Warrior Nun Review: The World Needs More Warrior Nuns

"Warrior Nun" recently dropped on NetFlix. The series has 10 episodes total (each named after a bible verse). It is based on a 1990s comic book "Warrior Nun Areala" by Ben Dunn.

The show starts with a bang. We see the dead body of Ava Silva (Portuguese actress Alba Baptista in her first English speaking role). She was a quadriplegic after being in a car crash that killed her mother. The nun taking care of her is "none" too nice. Ava dies under mysterious circumstances.

Back at the church morgue, a badly injured nun (Sister Shannon, who was the lead character in the comics) is brought in. It doesnt look like she's going to make it. They take something called a "halo" from her back. It is put into Silva for safe keeping. Ava arises from the dead and isnt sure what's going on. Turns out the nuns are from the Order of the Cruciform Sword. They've been around since the first Crusade. Its their job to rid the world of demons. Ava would rather spend her time partying and experiencing the world than fighting demons. But of course she is the "chosen one" so she'll come around...eventually. Yes, this show is based on the "you're really special" subgenre of fantasy. I'm sure you're familiar. An unlikely and largely uncooperative candidate finds out that he/she/they are actually the savior of the universe.

So what's up with the halo? It's a holy relic that is supposedly angel powered. There is also a substance called Divinium that is in the swords the nun's carry. Both have magical powers.

They OCS nuns include:

Sister Mary/ ie Shotgun Mary (Toya Turner)
Sister Lilith (Lorena Andrea)- she is next in line for the halo. Her family has been involved with the Church since the First Crusade.
Sister Beatrice (Kristina Tonteri-Young)
Sister Camila (Olivia Delcan)

Other prominent characters include:

Father Vincent (Tristan Ulloa)- He serves as mentor for the nuns
Mother Superion (Sylvia De Fanti)- She trains the nuns and also manages them. She was badly injured in the past. More of her backstory please.
Cardinal Duretti (Joaquim de Almeida)- He secretly protects and funds the OCS
JC (Emilio Sakraya)- Ava's maybe new boyfriend

There's also a B story in which a scientist Dr Jillian Salvius of ArqTech (Thelila Reuten) says she has discovered the existence of a quantum portal to an alternate universe (is it Heaven?). Or maybe it's all a trick? We later learn something about Jillian that makes her character more sympathetic.

Someone who works for Dr Salvius stole Divinium from the church. Cardinal Duretti is not happy. As time goes on, we're not sure how much Duretti can be trusted. Is he just out for personal gain?

We have an interesting assortment of baddies. There's wraith demons, a Tarask (a high level demon) who is really big and likes to stab people. Someone inside the Church tipped off the other side which led to the death of Sister Shannon. Who could it be?

I dont want to give away all the details about the rest of the show. Just hang in there till the last two episodes when the action really starts to heat up. Suffice to say, things are not as they appear.

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). A secret sect of nuns fighting ancient demons with shotguns, crossbows and mad ninja skills? Yes, please. "Warrior Nun" is geared towards the YA audience so if it's not your thing, ya might want to move on now. Some have complained about the show's slow pace and the various exposition dumps (including lots of voiceovers from Ava). "Warrior Nun" still has enough going for me to rank it positively. The locales (the show was filmed in Spain) are breathtaking. Everything about the show. is beautiful I love the look of the nuns. I also enjoyed the lighter elements- Ava and the nuns' snarkiness, Ava fighting a demon possessed guy with a rack of lamb, Mary kicks Ava off a cliff for being a pain in the a$%, etc. The show is a quick watch with each episode being around 42 minutes long. All of the actors do a good job especially Alba Baptista (Ava). The ending twist is a fun one. If NetFlix has a season 2, count me in. There's plenty more story to be told here.