Anyone who’s a fan of Supernatural remembers the moment where the long-running horror series kicked into a new gear: its Season 4 premiere “Lazarus Rising”, which introduced the angel Castiel (Misha Collins). Castiel’s presence added a new dynamic to Supernatural, particularly when he shared the screen with Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles), and new enemies as Dean and his brother Sam (Jared Padalecki) found themselves fighting the forces of Heaven and Hell. Before Castiel stole the show in Supernatural, the Syfy Channel depicted its own version of a heavenly war with the short-lived series, Dominion.
Dominion takes place after God mysteriously disappears from Heaven. In His absence, archangel Gabriel (Carl Beukes) launches a war against humanity, intending to wipe them off the Earth. Humanity isn’t going down without a fight though, setting up small armies in heavily fortified cities — including “Vega”, which is built out of the remains of Las Vegas. It’s here that Alex Lannon (Christopher Egan) learns that he has been chosen to be the savior of the human race; he must juggle his newfound duties with continuing the battle against Heaven’s forces.
‘Dominion’ Is Actually a Sequel to an Ill-Recieved Horror Film
Dominion‘s biggest claim to fame is that it’s a sequel to the horror film Legion, even bringing back director Scott Stewart to helm the pilot episode. Legion boasts the kind of plot that would come to define Supernatural, as the archangel Michael (Paul Bettany) travels to Earth to protect a young couple, Charlie (Adrienne Palicki) and Jeep (Lucas Black), as their child will be the only hope for humanity to survive the angels’ wrath. The pilot of Dominion picks up where Legion left off, as Alex is Charlie and Jeep’s son. Jeep, now played by Langley Kirkwood, even appears in the pilot episode before dying and passing on his duties to Charlie.
Though Legion was packed full of horrifying Biblical imagery and managed to turn a profit, it was critically savaged, being called “dull” and that it “took itself way too seriously“. Dominion fared slightly better, as its first season stands at a perfect 100% on Rotten Tomatoes while its first season is a measly 48%. This jump in quality is credited to a deeper storyline that finds Alex dealing with the toll that the war against Heaven is taking on him, while also showcasing just how devestating said war truly is. Sadly, it wasn’t enough to save Dominion as the series was canceled shortly after its second season.
The Cast of ‘Dominion’ Is Stacked with Genre Alums
Dominion might share the common theme of fighting angels with Supernatural, but like its predecessor, its cast featured a wide range of actors who went on to bigger and better roles. Season 2 features Christina Chong as Zoe Holloway, a soldier who grew disillusioned with the war and deserted; sci-fi fans might better know her as La’an Noonien Singh from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Kim Engelbrecht, who plays Alex’s fellow soldier and lover Noma (and also turns out to secretly be an angel), had a stint on The Flash as the wife of the superintelligent villian, the Thinker. Buffy the Vampire Slayer fans will be delighted to see that Anthony Stewart Head appears in the series, playing a villainous role for once.
Ironically, Dominion wouldn’t be the first time that Christopher Egan starred in a short-lived series that put its own twist on Biblical lore. Prior to Dominion‘s conception, he starred in NBC’s Kings, a series that put a modern spin on the rise of King David. Kings was handicapped from the start, as it dealt with low ratings and NBC refusing to promote it due to its ties to religious material. Dominion, on the other hand, had no such hangups as the Syfy Channel was fairly open about the kind of programming it carried. If you’re looking for a series to fill the Supernatural-sized hole in your heart, Dominion is worth a watch.
- Release Date
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2014 – 2015-00-00
- Directors
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Alex Holmes, Larry Shaw, Oz Scott, Rick Jacobson
- Writers
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Dario Scardapane, Todd Harthan, Bryan Q. Miller, Damien Ober
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Danny Keogh
Senator Thomas Frost
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Kim Suzanne Engelbrecht
Sgt. Noma Walker
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