I didn’t mind 2010’s Legion, Scott Stewart’s supernatural action fantasy about the Archangel Michael (Paul Bettany) protecting a group of diner patrons during an apocalypse in which angels are sent by God to wipe out mankind. It was pretty much the definition of mediocre, complete with a few decent performances, strong visual effects and laughable dialogue. Still, there was a certain type of mindless fun to be had with the movie, particularly with the R-rating allowing for all kinds of gruesome bloodshed. That said, I certainly wasn’t chomping at the bit for a follow-up.
Regardless, we’re getting one in the form of Syfy’s upcoming series Dominion, set 25 years after the events of Legion. The series follows a rebellious soldier (Christopher Egan) who discovers he may be humankind’s only chance of survival in the war against bloodthirsty angels. Michael (played by Tom Wisdom in this TV spinoff) remains with the humans, who are somewhat protected against the angels by large, fortified cities. As the soldier begins to realize his destiny, the Archangel Gabriel (Carl Beukes) draws closer to wiping out humankind once and for all.
The first poster for Dominion has me very excited for the series. Believe it or not, the image, which depicts an angel locked in mortal combat with a gun-toting man, is an actual photo. The man responsible, Peter Lippman, specializes in such images, according James Spence, senior VP of creative at Syfy.
“I got the idea for the Dominion posters from thinking about how the show brings together something classical – angels – with something contemporary – Vegas,” said Spence. “Much like Banksy when he subverted classical paintings. I thought it would be really compelling to subvert a classic image of an angel with a contemporary image of a gunfight (of which there are many in the show!). We worked with photographer Peter Lippmann to build up our image. Peter is a master of shooting images that look like they’ve been painted. The result is an image that at first glance appears like a renaissance image – the light, color and form of the image adheres to all the classic tropes – but on second glance it’s anything but.”
Dominion premieres June 19th at 9 p.m. on Syfy.
