the way that the "harrowing of hell" that is associated with the halo's rite and the repetition of violent trials on wn also characterizes jesus as "conqueror of hell" is very interesting when you remember that francis called this place hell. and there's also the imagery of a dualistic schism of "above and below" shown in *many* different ways (down to distribution of the senses in ava's body itself). the implication is that the earth depicted is at least in some way, "hell," and depending on what religious sources are used on wn for worldbuilding references, it's also potentially one of many hells and/or heavens, too. jesus as a conqueror in general is interesting because the show includes the crusades as a critical part of the lore and reya herself is described as a conquistador and potential colonizer as a wager of "holy war"
western christianity in general doesn't linger much on the harrowing of hell (though i know it's also a story beloved to people like, well, mel gibson, for many reasons i'd rather not get into on here. hyper violent conqueror jesus? you can guess why it appeals to that type) but as i understand it, the harrowing is way more prevalent in the faith of eastern orthodox christians. there's a lot going on with it being a "pagan" story originally and historically more like tales of a mortal descending into and returning from hades in greek myth (and it's way older than that, too). but it's so fascinating to think that wn is using the idea of colonization and subordination on every level, including mental and spiritual, as the underlying conflict driving the story. it's a story about freedom in the end
when "god" is a conquistador in the newtonian *and* the quantum realms, the visible and the invisible, how does that shape reality and the other beings in it. when ava is a jesus *and* a mary *and* an adam *and* a lucifer proxy ect., her nickname of "hungry ava" informs us of the underlying unifying idea of consumption being a universal threat as much as the more obvious name of "the great devourer" does. the most unifying similarity of all living things is also the most terrifying: "everybody's gotta eat." there are followers of various faiths that believe that the difference between the mortal world and the spiritual world is that the laws of nature don't exist in the spiritual. we're not required to feed on the life of other beings to survive, whether it's an animal or a plant, and that's what "heaven" is. they say that there's "no hunger in heaven"
there's not supposed to be predator and prey or a consumer and consumed - and yet there is. there's also a belief that to those in the spiritual realm, this world of the physical is the world of decay - this isn't only "hell." it's hades itself. it's the realm of the dead. and so when we see ava leave, she may not be going to the realm of the dead, she's going to the realm of the *living.* and like orpheus, ava, who dreams a life of death, leaves hell looking back at her love, who remains among the dead. it's possible that we're not on the side of the story that we think we are
but warrior nun, by portraying beings from the spiritual and the quantum as holding space for hunger/consumption/avarice even if metaphorically, is supporting the idea that the way we live on earth also resonates with life on "the other side." yes, michael tells jillian that the nature of life is different through the arc, but michael was also mentally and physically conquered by reya. we also see him destroy a wraith by first devouring it himself, consuming it like holy communion, in a tactic he likely learned from reya. wn may be saying "when it comes to consumption, the natural law, there is no divorce between the newtonian and the quantum - there is no difference between the laws of the physical and of the spiritual." which may lowkey be theeee bravest thing to say when segments of both science and faith would square up against anyone for saying it
you could even say that by being born and "reborn" on earth, becoming a globally-known pop culture savior figure of the downtrodden and institutionally powerless, and then "sacrificing" herself to spare others, ava herself has been harrowing hell all along. it's the cycle itself that repeats in ever widening cycles. she's harrowing hell over and over, and at the end of season two, it was simply the most obvious depiction of the (underlying) story. and like so many religions outside of western christianity and even in apocryphal christian texts, salvation from hell is possible, even for those already there. the cycles and trials are a means of "god" preparing us for ascension. and on wn, we're told that you can never be ready, only prepared
and here's the thing: the harrowing of hell in some systems of belief isn't just a consequence of jesus' planned propitiation - it's a tactic and prerequisite for his active violent siege of and raid on hell itself. death is only the beginning of the battle plan. in a reality of tactical combat nuns, physical battle against "demons" and the existence of the ocs as stationed "fallen angels" in the enemy territory of the secular world, is it any wonder that the idea of god as a warlord waging a crusade against the earthly realm, which functions as hell, was inevitably part of the plan? there exists an understanding in eastern orthodox catholicism of jesus as a god of war and of love, not a victim, who descends and battles forward through hell to free the righteous souls trapped there. maybe, just maybe, that was ava silva, 19, who finally, after hundreds of years of warrior nuns "returning" in the form of the title halo-bearer, defeated adriel
there's so many ways the show tries to tell us that this story takes place during a harrowing of hell by ava. the cruciform sword embodies church iconography just like all of the cruciform architecture and decoration shown in nearly all parts of the world on screen. any object at any time can take on the shape of the cross any and everywhere, just as the cruciform church is prevalent throughout dante's divine comedy, an incredibly famous version of a harrowing of hell. the act itself is considered holy, and so even hell is made a temple along the journey. the harrowing is a pilgrimage of the soul, just as dante's divine comedy is, but dante was no warrior. the warrior nuns themselves are empowered to be conquerors of earth and of hell with the potential to become usurpers and even rulers if they wished. ava exposes the ocs in a way that basically recreates the early days of a new faith. we even see her stuck half above half below the roof of adriel's cathedral (a noticeable portrayal of a circular temple and not a blatant cruciform one, more suggestion of dante's nine circles), just like satan in the deepest bowels of frozen hell, half trapped in ice. ava embodies both jesus and the devil because this is a conquering jesus, and once the devil has been defeated, nothing is stopping jesus from ruling hell in his stead as a new devil
the imagery of ava violently descending depths to fight the devil is literally only the tip of the iceberg here. what does a hell become with a god as ruler...? john milton seems to be of particular relevance to the lore of warrior nun, and he wrote that "the mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heav'n of hell, a hell of heav'n" in paradise lost. there's the "everything is in ava's mind" crack theory that can never truly be disproven in the same way that our own minds can never prove that the world we perceive around us is real, but suppose it's just as important either way. reya as an established conqueror makes you wonder if maybe the place where she resides was once someplace else. reya, with her bones and shells and veil, a woman with power whose very existence would overthrow the rule of the western world. she's a standing reminder of female deities who were subordinated in ancient myth and religion to make way for patriarchal rule and that the goddesses who couldn't be demoted and absorbed were made into demons and villains. maybe ava isn't the only harrower on the board
it's a shame that netflix didn't appreciate the depth of wn. the show went so many places and had a genuinely provactive and moving story. i would love for this trippy show to continue
