The 12 Best Moments From Warrior Nun Season 2 Ranked
Netflix's "Warrior Nun," based on the comic "Warrior Nun Areala," strikes gold once more in Season 2 with its mix of humor, drama, and no-holds-barred fights to the death between rowdy armed nuns and the demons who challenge them. The series follows Ava, a woman who dies young, only to be gifted with the Halo. This ancient tool fuses itself with a host in order to achieve its divine purpose. Awakening her from her untimely demise with a new mission, Ava joins the Order of the Cruciform Sword, a group of nuns who battle demons, corrupt religious figures, false prophets, and so on.
Season 1 sees this group accidentally free a long-imprisoned threat to humanity named Adriel, while much of Season 2 revolves around their attempt to thwart his power grabs. Along the way, Ava becomes more responsible and mature, and a far better fighter. She also falls in love with her trainer, Beatrice, and sacrifices herself to save the world. "Warrior Nun" leaves things on a monumental cliffhanger, which has fans on the edge of their seats. Why not revisit this season's high points while you begin your Season 3 countdown? These are the 12 best moments from "Warrior Nun" Season 2, ranked.
12. Father Vincent goes against Adriel
Father Vincent is one of the show's most complicated characters. Having betrayed the Order of the Cruciform Sword in Season 1 to free Adriel, he slowly comes to regret that error and even stars down the path of redemption in Season 2. While he admits that it'll be a long and difficult road to regain the Order's trust, he makes some pretty good headway. Moreover, we learn that when Vincent entered the church, he was struggling with addiction and a lack of direction. His faith in Adriel, then, might speak to some of his worst qualities.
After the Pope drags him for his shortcomings and Adriel shows megalomaniacal tendencies, Vincent's devotion to the cause begins to deteriorate. Seeing the active harm Adriel is causing people Vincent once knew as friends pushes him even further. He has a conversation with Adriel, in the hopes of addressing his newfound doubts. But Adriel has no interest in hearing him out: He offers a handful of trite catchphrases and talks about what he plans to wear for his ascension. Vincent sees his hopes have been misplaced and reaches out to Ava, eventually allowing her to use his connection to Adriel to sow the seeds of his destruction.
11. Michael reveals his identity
When Miguel appears on the scene as a casual patron of Ava's bar, he seems like a polite and decent fellow who's in over his head. Noting that he's part of a group called the Samaritans that seeks to dispute Adriel's claims of godliness, he immediately befriends Ava and seeks her help in defeating the false prophet. Though it's not immediately clear what his whole deal is, we quickly learn he's in deep. A late-night brawl reveals that the Samaritans are well aware of Adriel's master plan, and are working to put a stop to it.
After a particularly nasty fight, the nuns need somewhere to lay low and rest up. Miguel says they can go to his home. This is where we discover that we've actually already met him as Michael, Jillian Salvius' young, terminally ill son. Salvius created the reality-hopping gateway called the Arc; we last saw Michael jumping through the Arc, only for Jillian to find herself unable to cross with him. Apparently, he spent a great deal of time in this unknown realm, eventually returning to Earth to stop Adriel. Michael's dramatic reveal is immensely satisfying, as is the reconciliation he and his mother are able to share before his untimely demise.
10. The revelation of Reya
The mystical "other realm" is almost completely unexplored. Notably, it's referred to as "Reya's realm," indicating a larger universal hierarchy we're not yet privy to. We finally see Reya when Ava puts on the crown of thorns, but her appearance only leaves us with further questions. Though we know Adriel once served Reya, that relationship clearly turned adversarial at some point. Now, the whole planet is feeling the repercussions. But Reya herself remains an enigma.
Throughout Season 2, hints are dropped that Reya might not be a benevolent deity. Her inspirational and angelic appearance is counterbalanced by claims that she considers humanity primitive and beneath her notice. But, as most of this information comes from Adriel, it's best to take it with a grain of salt. Ava is inspired by Reya's presence, which helps her continue what seems to be an increasingly hopeless fight. Adriel briefly succeeds in capturing Reya, but after his destruction at the hands of the Tarasks, she returns to her world. It's hard to say where Ava's story will go in Season 3, but chances are, Reya will play a pretty huge part in it.
9. Ava outsmarts Adriel
We meet Adriel in Season 1 when Ava, misled about his true identity, frees him. In Season 2, he steps into his own as an antagonist. Immediately working every deceptive angle he can to win people's faith, Adriel wastes no time taking full advantage of his freedom. His history with the nuns dates all the way back to the beginning: We even discover that he was the one who embedded the Halo in the original warrior nun, Areala. But his power grabs have frayed his relationship with the nuns, and he proves to be totally unable to predict Ava's tenacity.
Adriel's greatest flaw is his arrogance, which is exactly what leads him to underestimate Ava. When Ava's original plans to dethrone him don't work, he believes the game is won. Here, he makes his worst mistake. Ava might not be able to take him out one-on-one, but she knows he's vulnerable to the Tarasks. In the end, she simply lets them do the job for her. The demonic gatekeepers tear Adriel to pieces. It's not a pretty end, but honestly, it's the one he deserves.
8. Lilith vs. Ava
Lilith isn't the easiest character to love, but no one can deny she's had a hard time. A legacy sister whose family invested everything in her intended future as the warrior nun, Lilith is devastated to be passed over in favor of Ava. Watching the new girl get promoted to a job you've been training for your whole life is awful. Season 2 includes a particularly agonizing scene in which Lilith's mother coldly dismisses her as a failure, due to circumstances that are truly out of her control. We can't say it fully justifies her turn to the dark side, but it's hard not to feel sympathy for this misguided soul.
Lilith sides with Adriel against her former friends in the Order of the Cruciform Sword. Empathetic Ava repeatedly reaches out to her as her transformation into an otherworldly creature continues. There are several fights between the two in Season 2, but the best is the first. They square off atop Adriel's Cathedral while he attempts to seize power on live TV. Lilith is hands-down a better fighter than Ava, but skill doesn't always equal victory. Ultimately, Ava's heroism and sheer love for her friends sees her through. This fight ranks among the series' very best in terms of character development, emotion, and sheer thrills.
7. The introduction of Yasmine
After losing fan favorite Shotgun Mary at the close of Season 1, "Warrior Nun" has a major hole to fill in its supporting cast. Fortunately, we meet a few new nuns in Season 2, including Sister Yasmine. Yasmine is comically lacking when it comes to martial skills. Prone to nervous rambling and being easily intimidated, she just doesn't seem like much of a warrior. But her commitment to doing the right thing, even when it scares her, makes her a perfect friend to the nuns.
Yasmine has many great moments and is one of Season 2's highlights. But her most inspiring scene comes when she stands up to one of Adriel's followers. When the man attempts to take her hostage, she snaps that she isn't a hostage, she's a sister nun. She subsequently fights him off. Beatrice is able to see how intense the interaction is for Yasmine and sends her off to regroup with the others. Still, there's no denying that fish-out-of-water Yasmine steals the show by stepping up when it matters.
6. Camila's bond with her sisters
Camila's little sister vibes are a major part of what makes her so likable, but they belie a troubled backstory. After losing her father, she realized the strain her existence put on her mother, and chose to join a convent. This self-awareness and heartbreaking empathy defines Camila, who's often treated as a bit of a rookie by the others, due to her youth. However, Season 2 makes it clear that she's a major part of the group and a consistent advocate for herself and others.
The season kicks off with Camila in hiding with Mother Superion. The little nun repeatedly steps in to do the right thing, showing a level of bravery and devotion that inspires the older nuns. Her strongest moment follows her discovery that she's embedded with a cross that Adriel intends to use against her. Instead of being intimidated by this intrusion, she immediately stands up to Adriel, noting that if he can use the cross against her, she can surely use it against him. Indeed, she utilizes it to weaken him in the final episode, which helps Ava defeat him.
5. Lilith's transformation
Lilith starts Season 2 separated from the other nuns and searching for her fallen friend, Shotgun Mary. This leads to a heel turn of epic proportions, but it takes a minute to get there. First, she's manipulated into believing Mary is alive, only to have that hope yanked out from under her. She visits Jillian Salvius' home and ventures into the other realm, only to be violently rejected. But it seems something happens there that causes a scaly growth spurt. Lilith ultimately sides with Adriel due to disillusionment with the Order of the Cruciform Sword, as well as a lack of other options. Moreover, he offers to help her with her physical transformation, which initially gives her untold power.
After Adriel is defeated, Lilith continues her morally complicated path by offering Beatrice a way to save Ava's life: She pushes her through the Arc and hopes for the best. Lilith notes that a holy war is coming, and that she genuinely hopes they'll be on the same side once more. Then she flexes her demonic wings and vanishes. Where she goes is hard to say, but one thing is clear: Lilith cuts a pretty intimidating figure in her transformed body.
4. Beatrice takes on the enemy
Sister Beatrice is Ava's trainer and all-around right-hand woman, helping her with everything from using her unique abilities to navigating her impulsivity. But let's not forget that Beatrice is an absolute powerhouse in her own right, and doesn't require a mystical artifact to pull it off. Though her maturity and mindfulness save the day more often than not, this still leaves plenty of room for her to go all the way off in a number of top-notch fight scenes throughout Season 2.
There are many examples of Beatrice kicking butt in "Warrior Nun," but perhaps the greatest arrives when she's separated from Ava, who chooses to sacrifice her own life in order to save the world. Knowing that time is of the essence and that she needs to get to Ava before it's too late, Beatrice squares off against a large group of Adriel's followers. She plainly states that nothing will stand between her and Ava, and that her opponents are free to save themselves the pain of being beaten by simply choosing to walk away. They refuse, and she shrugs, quipping that they can't say she didn't warn them. Then she goes absolutely nuts on the misguided group.
3. Mother Superion protects the Pope
Three cheers for Mother Superion, who initially appears to be an overly strict and even resentful authority figure, only to become one of the wisest and most self-aware members of the Order of the Cruciform Sword. In Season 2, we learn a bit more about her history as the former Halo Bearer, and the reckless behavior that led to this power being removed from her in favor of another. But as she puts her life on the line time and time again in the service of good, we see much of Mother Superion's guilt replaced by a greater sense of serenity.
She also gets some absolutely amazing fight scenes in Season 2. In the most notable, she attempts to protect the Pope at all costs against those who would do him harm. After a contentious meeting in Madrid in which Pope Duretti attempts to voice concerns about Adriel to a mostly uncaring church, several cardinals and other officials loyal to Adriel attack. This forces Mother Superion and Pope Duretti into hiding, from which they are ultimately rescued by the other nuns. But first, Mother Superion gets a top-notch action sequence. When the fiendish officials attack, she doesn't hesitate to leap to his defense, showing off her incredible skills. It's emotionally satisfying, narratively significant, and just plain cool.
2. Ava saves Mother Superion
Despite being a supporting character with less screen time than Ava or Beatrice, Mother Superion has a heck of a run over the course of "Warrior Nun." She manages to die and be reborn before Season 2 reaches its final episode. After Dr. Salvius informs her that she'll have to sacrifice herself in order to destroy the Arc, lest it fall into the wrong hands, Superion kneels before the gateway. She whispers a quick prayer, then goes to meet her maker.
Sadly, she's shot and killed before she can detonate the Arc, robbing her of her final triumph. The nuns are devastated to see their mother figure fall in battle, but when Ava goes to her, the Halo seems to recognize its former bearer. After enduring the pain of losing this character, it's a huge relief to see her return to life. Mother Superion goes on to enjoy many more iconic moments before the season's end. What's more, her former resentment of Ava has fully run its course, as she accepts her position and shows her gratitude and love. She even declares that the Halo was right to choose Ava. Seeing these two build sincere respect for each other is undoubtedly one of the most delightful parts of the show.
1. Ava and Beatrice's goodbye
Every epic needs a love story, and there aren't many better than Ava and Beatrice's. Season 2 sees their bond deepen as they hide out together, disguising themselves as bar staff while secretly training Ava for the imminent fight against Adriel. First, their feelings manifest as mild jealousy. Then they swing from hope to malaise as the catastrophic events of the season play out. It seems briefly impossible that these two will ever make it work. But these moments of hardship just make it all the more impactful when they finally confess their feelings.
We get hints that Ava's interest in Beatrice goes beyond friendship in Season 2, Episode 1, when she stares longingly at the other nun during their night on the town. But the looming threat of Adriel prevents them from exploring their feelings. It isn't until we learn that Ava plans to sacrifice herself that the two are forced to be real with each other. Beatrice attempts to physically restrain Ava, and Ava deflects her attack with a kiss. No one said life as a warrior nun was going to be easy, but watching these two get torn apart just as they find one another is the kind of brutal, heartbreaking romance we live for. Season 2 of "Warrior Nun" leaves many questions behind, but one of the biggest is undoubtedly whether or not Ava and Beatrice will ever get to enjoy some peace together. Here's hoping they do.