Wynonna Earp: Vengeance (Tubi)

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Don’t worry, no spoilers!

Wynonna Earp: Vengeance is a follow up movie to the TV show. It’s not a replacement for the Season 5 we were supposed to have but never got, rather it’s a sequel, stand-alone, five years later, kind of thing.

I will admit, I had my doubts going into this. Wynonna Earp felt like our shit-show, but it also felt like it might be lightning in a bottle, and once it had escaped, you could never recapture it. Just putting the band back together again might not be enough.

There were odd moments when I still felt that was true. Which in a 95 minute film is probably a reflection that, at some level, there were odd scenes that I thought needed a bit of work. Given I could say the same of almost any film, that’s not a bad thing to say about this one. There are many I’m far more critical of too. This one just registered a bit differently with me, because I had different expectations, and worries, compared to most films.

But the things I expect from Wynonna Earp were there, and well done. Wynonna and Doc having sexy times but not adulting well. WynHaught moments. WayHaught times. Battling demons. Nedley. Black Badge. A suitably scary big bad. But as well as that tick list of things that pretty much had to be included, the humour was there, the rapid switches from laughing to crying, crying to laughing were there as well.

This was an Emily Andras script, and it showed, and Paolo Barzman directed - and while I can’t sit down and tell you what he does, it looked like Wynonna Earp in way that he always brings to the table, and that was wonderful too.

Despite my misgivings, I thoroughly enjoyed this and will happily watch it again. It’s not the place to bring a potential new fan to watch and enjoy, that would be back in Season 1 of the TV show, this is a film for the fans. However, it’s not simply fan service, it’s a fun film in it’s own right and, I think the story is clear enough that if you have a non-Earper in your life, they could watch this and enjoy it with you. Although I haven’t watched many films this year, going to be up there for me.

Bechdel Test: Pass. There are a load of named female characters and they talk to each other about everything under the sun. Occasionally men too. Easy pass.

Ko Test: Fail. There is a WOC (blink and you’ll miss her) but she doesn’t say enough to pass.

Russo Test: Pass. WayHaught, need I say more? You have an out bi woman and an out non-binary person playing an out lesbian and an out bi woman who are married to each other and can barely keep their hands off each other. When they talk about “the gay agenda” this show is practically the poster child for what they mean. Thankfully.

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