Warrior Nun tells the story of Ava, the chosen one who bears the halo of an angel, and her journey to accepting her new destiny. It’s not easy, takes a bit, and we’ve only scratched the surface of what it means to be this hero. And to better understand what we love about Ava, what things were missing, and what we wanted more of, read on for a special review where we break down the good, the bad, and the ugly of Warrior Nun.
The Good
Right off the bat, we’re going to talk about the action on Warrior Nun. Every single nun, including Ava, kicked ass in their own way. Some of them had long badass scenes like that of Beatrice against all those guards. Others showed how badass they were handling a weapon or two. While others fought tooth and nail against highly trained other nuns and showed us how badass they are as a whole.
Special shoutout goes to Toya Turner and Lorena Andrea, who played Shotgun Mary and Sister Lilith. Yes, they had stunt doubles. But if you really take the time to look at their fight scenes, they did a lot of their own work. You know how badass you have to be to train hours a day just to come face to face with a fellow actor and throw it DOWN?! HELLA BADASS, that’s how badass! So kudos to everyone on Warrior Nun who brought the action. It was appreciated.
And then there’s the Ava of it all. I liked her. Yes, she annoyed me at times. What character hasn’t? Especially when they make choices that leave you going, “But why?!” Which, Ava left me feeling multiple times throughout Warrior Nun. But the matter of the fact is that I liked how messy Ava was. She was nowhere near perfect, she fumbled all the time, and she proved that women can be compelling on screen while being far from perfect.
For many that might not be something to celebrate but for me it is. Ava is worth celebrating that she didn’t just jump into destiny’s waiting arms. She questioned all those around her. She questioned the heroes and made her own dumbass decisions like trying to run away with JC without considering that demons were tracking the halo and would be on her like white on rice if they caught her. Ava is different and proof that we can go against the grain when it comes to stereotypes and tropes that we’re used to when it comes to the female chosen hero.
The Bad
Personally it took a little too long to get to the point of things. I understand what I watched and I understand the steps that needed to be taken for Ava to accept she’s the Warrior Nun. And it’s a chosen one storyline at that. But I still feel like it took way too long to get to the point where she started training to be the Warrior Nun. And even though I find it really cheesy I was robbed the obligatory montage scene with weapons training cuz she’s THE WARRIOR NUN and I deserved that!
Hell, it took way too long to get her even to accept the fact that she wasn’t alone in this world anymore. And I know, when you’re alone for so long it takes time to get used to being cared for and by others. But Ava accepted it when it came to a boy that she liked and that liked her in return. But her destiny? Oh no, she didn’t want to accept that shit at all. And it kind of annoys me to the Moon and back. As women, we are more than the people we like. Ava is more than JC could ever fathom. And don’t even get me started on him being called JC like Jesus Christ.
Also, on a side note that has nothing to do with Ava, there wasn’t enough gay in Warrior Nun. Yes I’m really happy that Beatrice came out to Ava and we know her story better now. But it was towards the end of the show and didn’t serve any point besides checking off a box. Beatrice is more than a box. As a queer woman I’m more than a box. And I hope that when season 2 comes around we get to see what Beatrice goes through as a queer nun or other queer storylines.
The Ugly
Everything to do with JC and the lifestyles of the rich and the famous was a waste of time. And I get it. This is the first time she’s been able to choose what she wants to do with her life and who she wants to spend it with. I wouldn’t want a heavy burden like being the next Warrior Nun to hold me back or down. And I might’ve done something as stupid as falling in love with a guy I just met if I was previously paralyzed and tortured by nuns.
But it still took too damn long.
When the moment came, you know the one, where the love interest clashes with the forces chasing after Ava. And poof went JC. Seriously, all that time spent with him and he just slips away from Ava’s life, never to be spoken about again. Hopefully this is just a loose end that will be taken care of in season 2 because there is going to be one. I’m willing it to come true!
And then there was the whole thing with the portal and Jillian. I was expecting her to become the villain of the story. Usually powerful characters like her, who wear white as if it’s a representation of their purity, end up being the bad guy. But nope. Didn’t happen. All we got was the meeting point between science and magic and a portal that leads to heaven, hell, who knows.
But it’s still early. Jillian can become evil in her quest to find her son. And maybe there’s a little bit more to JC.
Warrior Nun is available from Netflix now.