DAMNATION – Is it Heaven or Hell?
I don’t watch a lot of television, so when a commercial actually catches my attention – it’s a big deal. For the past couple weeks I’ve been intrigued by the ads touting USA Network’s new show Damnation. I tuned in Tuesday night at 10:00pm with very high expectations, and Damnation more than lived up to them.
Set in Holden, Iowa in 1931, it shows the struggle between small town farmers just trying to keep their heads above water and the Banks who are trying to push them under.
The characters…
We meet Reverend Seth Davenport (Killian Scott) and quickly learn he is not your average preacher. In fact, he’s not really a preacher at all. Davenport uses his influence on the small town to instigate a Farmers Strike in an effort to “break the systems back” and end the Bank’s price fixing.
The Banks don’t take kindly to this and bring in a Strike Breaker, Creeley Turner (Logan Marshall-Green,) to put an end to the strike. Turner quickly shows the farmers and townsfolk he means serious business, thus setting off what promises to be a bloody feud between both sides.
Along with Davenport and Turner we are introduced to many other fascinating characters, including the town’s not-so-honest sheriff, Don Berryman (Christopher Heyerdahl) and the slimy banker Calvin Rumple (Dan Donohue).
The show also has several strong females who are quite capable of taking care of themselves: Bessie Louvin (Chasten Harmon), the prostitute, quickly asserts herself as no one’s fool. She is as cunning as any of the men around her. The preacher’s wife (or is she?), Amelia Davenport (Sarah Jones) is quite intelligent and helps Reverend Seth carry out their deception on the small and unsuspecting town.
Choose a side…
Damnation had me on the edge of my seat several times and the storyline sucked me in immediately. It has the look and feel of an old time western with its muted colors and authentic sets. An unexpected twist at the end of episode 1 made me even more excited to see where this story goes. The first episode ended with a sign saying “WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?” and quite honestly I can’t choose. I love both Reverend Seth and Creeley Turner, but I know eventually I’ll have to choose. This show is definitely “heavenly” and I highly recommend it!
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