Domino Day: Lone Witch Series Review: A Wickedly Fun Watch
Who is Domino Day? Hell, what is she?
Dom is a maneater of a different variety in this sexy, fun, occult romp.
If you don't tune in for anything else, you should for Siena Kelly's deceptively complex performance.
Moments into Domino Day: Lone Witch, AMC+'s newest acquisition, it's evident that the series has no interest in wasting the viewers' time.
We delved right into the thick of it, none of the traditional pilot-itis that feels like a slog through background and character building before getting into the good content.
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Instead, the series mostly throws us into the deep end, trusting us to follow the plot and figure things out along the way.
The premiere didn't feel so exposition-heavy that we were bogged down by it, which made it a refreshing watch altogether.
Despite that, we quickly picked up things and got a feel for the universe that the story builds.
Beyond the grit and vibrancy of Manchester lies a covert world comprised of witches and covens and an organization designed to keep that world in line as well as secret from humans.
It's your basic concept for many supernatural series, nothing too off the wall.
Yet, despite this familiarity, it's no less intriguing to watch some of the pieces fall into place about what this story could evolve into as a result of this world.
Dom is very much a "lone witch," some rogue individual who has navigated her world as any run-of-the-mill Zoomer who works at a coffee shop and lives in a starter apartment with "character."
Swiping right on dating apps and lithely dancing through crowds in youthful, cheap nightclubs after hours feels as normal as it gets for Dom.
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But then the narrative shifts to something more beguiling as we're treated to little shocks and moments that alert us that there's more to this young woman on a date with a total sleazeball that meets the eye.
Yet, that goes on the backburner the second it's clear that her slimy date is nothing short of a predator.
The intensity of witnessing this man nearly sexually assault Dom is enough to make your blood run cold until she literally and figurately flips the script on him.
There is nothing more satisfying than watching Dom writing on top of this man as prey becomes predator and sucking the life force out of him to her heart's content.
It's the type of revenge-fantasy content with a feminist edge that we haven't seen since the likes of the tragically canceled, ahead-of-its-time MTV series Sweet/Vicious.
There's an allure to the type of power that Dom wields in these moments, especially after seemingly having a man try to strip her of it multiple times.
And there's a fascinating element to how her privileges and disadvantages battle each other during every moment.
Dom's gorgeous enough to lure these men, her "pretty privilege," but she still faces sexism and subtle racial insensitivities, too.
Some of the best and most engaging series are those that manage to combine several genres, and the revenge fantasy combined with the occult mystery immediately grabs your attention.
It's not trying too hard to be anything but what it is, which is fun and commendable.
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It's early days yet, but the vibe is enough to remind one of Being Human, a dash of vintage Buffy with a dose of the Shadowhunters.
It's sexy and dark enough to feel closer to Netflix's tragically canceled (do we see a pattern here) The Bastard Son & The Devil Himself than something of a lighter fare.
The crux of the premiere is not getting to know who Domino is but trying to figure out what she is.
From the second we see her sucking energy out of a sexist pig, the quick conclusion is that she's a form of succubus who feeds off the energy of those around her.
Sadly, she needs it to survive, and thus, Dom is constantly on the hunt to satiate her need to feed in order to prevent the subsequent bleeding as a result.
It'd be interesting to learn what happens if she doesn't feed in time or if she's completely depleted of the energy she's compelled to siphon from others.
But so as not to make her a complete bad guy and instead hone in on the complexities and a gray area of this world, we're assaulted by her potentially deadly and dangerous quirk by the fact that she hunts after those who "have it coming."
You feel less bad about some guys losing their golden light and sprouting spiderweb-blackened veins and a shoddy memory when we also experience them being total dicks.
The casual way in which they incorporated the sexist and racist microaggressions, especially those one faces in the dating world, falls on the right side of being realistic rather than preachy and serves the plot.
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Some bar patron spouting off the whole "You're hot... for a Black girl" line doesn't enrage you so much as make you cringe and roll your eyes.
Dom's date ordering for her and unleashing textbook jargon that suits every bit of the archetype of an entitled cad that he was feels tragically on point for how bleak the dating world is.
None of it is a direct attempt at inserting social commentary so much as showing things as they are and expecting us to read between the lines if necessary, which is refreshing.
It gets a bit more pointed, particularly as we ease into the second installment when Kat grapples with which magic she's inclined to use.
The entire premise revolves around Dom recklessly performing a type of magic that isn't of the norm and doing so on humans in a way that could expose the world of witches.
And there are Elders who exist to outline the rules and enforce them.
Interestingly, the Elder Witches seem to have very rigid guidelines and posh ways of handling things that belie their European background.
And it's these guidelines that all witches are supposed to abide by while forgoing all other forms of witchcraft.
They didn't have to force-feed us the background for us to grasp that the Elders and what they represent wiped out all other forms of witchcraft, colonized it in their way, and ascended to power.
And they instilled this hardline rule that only their way was the way for everything.
The mask on her wall felt representative of the ugly fight that likely took place as they possibly slaughtered others or wore them down into submission.
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Ironically, while Dom faces the most overt identity issues as she comes to grips with being "a monster" for what she must do to sustain herself, Kat faces something similar.
She's the head of a coven working to appease the Elders and instill the rules, but it seems she can't fully reach the full breadth of her powers, get proper guidance, or figure out most things without calling upon her ancestors who practice Voodoo.
And there's another angle where Domino Day is fascinating and separates itself from the standard witch fare.
It's not very often that you see Voodoo centered in any way or any attempts at capturing the spirituality and practices in a way that isn't damning.
Kat seems at war with herself over having to practice "respectable witchcraft" while knowing, recognizing, and longing for the ability to utilize another form of mysticism truer to her roots.
Some of the best moments of the premiere are when her ancestors call her out on this while still responding to her every beck and call when she reaches out to them.
It's just like family, right? They'll read you the riot act but still offer help.
I love how they infuse the bits of culture with them, and it feels like something that the series will continue to infuse into the series.
Even Kat's ancestors have a different approach to handling Dom compared to Cal and the Elders.
They recognize the danger of what Dom is, the damage she can cause, and the power she harbors, but their response to her isn't immediate extermination.
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But it's likely because they know what it's like to be on the receiving end of extermination.
It seems they could potentially have a plan and some way of assisting Dom that wouldn't be found in the Elder way of practicing, which only proves the necessity and validity of all practices and branches.
Unfortunately, we don't get to spend enough time with most of the other coven members to get a real sense of them.
It's a shame because a badass coven of witches is prime viewing.
Out of the bunch, aside from Kat, Sammie stands out most as the one who reads auras and instantly takes a liking and sympathizes with Dom.
Their connection is fascinating, and it makes one wonder if there's more to it than what we see on the surface.
She's advocated so much for Dom and has taken primary in reconissance while surveying her.
And she's the most reluctant to alert the Elders about her.
You could see how upset she was when Kat used her to lure Dom to the plant shop only to mislead and violate her.
So much of the series thus far has been exploring how people violate each other.
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We see many of the men Dom seeks out as doing so, resulting in her returning the favor in kind and some sucking most of the life out of them.
Ironically, despite the coven's desire to stop Dom from doing this to humans, Kat's technique was to lock her into place and have her ancestors invade Dom's body and mind without her consent.
The series does a great job of exploring womanhood in all its forms, how women navigate society, and how they do so through a supernatural world.
Another delightful of this series is that the love triangle component takes a backseat to Dom's identity arc.
She'll be torn between her ex-boyfriend, Silas, who she thought was long gone, and charming bartender Leon.
She has genuine feelings for Leon, but she's too afraid of herself to jeopardize him or allow herself to be happy with him.
It was scary enough for her when she had to feed on him after their sweet date together.
But there's still a mystery about her relationship with Silas.
They must have cared about one another, but if Cal's spell he put on her was accurate, Dom and Silas's relationship was tumultuous and filled with tension, betrayal, and anger.
Did Silas actually love and have feelings for Dom, or was he drawn to her unmatched power and curious about what she was and how he could benefit from it?
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Dom seems none the wiser about so many aspects of the witch world, and it seems her lifeline to that was Silas, who was holding out on her a great deal.
He was studying her and likely put her on Cal's radar because of his prodding and research.
It endangered her well before her reckless actions of siphoning energy from humans probably did.
And now that Silas is back when it appeared as though Dom was responsible for killing him or sending him to a different realm, there are more questions than answers!
What are your thoughts on Domino Day: Lone Witch? Will you keep watching?
Domino Day: Lone Witch airs Thursdays on AMC+ and Sundance Now.