Wynonna Earp: Emily Andras Talks “Forever Mine Nevermind”

*** This article contains major spoilers for the Wynonna Earp Season 2 episode “Forever Mine Nevermind” ***

Mercedes (Dani Kind) was not who any Wynonna Earp fan wanted to be behind that door when Nicole (Katherine Barrell) opened it at the end of this week’s episode. After spending the entire episode in a fight with her girlfriend, fans thought they were going to see Waverly (Dominique Provost-Chalkley) appear to finally smooth things over in WayHaught land. Unfortunately, that’s not the case as one half of the Widows seems poised to cause problems for Nicole, while Beth (Meghan Heffern) took care of Tucker once and for all.

Yes, just as suspected, Tucker reappeared and was out for Waverly. Thankfully, Rosita (Tamara Duarte) saved the day for Waverly, even though it meant revealing that she was actually a revenant herself in the process. That reveal may not have been the most awkward moment between the pair either after Waverly kissed Rosita at the spa in “Forever Mine Nevermind,” written by Alexandra Zarowny and directed by Ron Murphy, but the two quickly moved past it and a new friendship really seems to be building.

To discuss all the happenings in WayHaught land, as well as that dinner that Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano) cooked up for Doc (Tim Rozon), showrunner Emily Andras joined The TV Junkies for her weekly chat. She explains what Waverly was feeling in those scenes, as well as what Doc giving his ring to Wynonna, in order to break the third seal, may mean.

The TV Junkies: Mercedes showed up at Nicole’s house, and I’m guessing she’s not there for coffee?

Emily Andras: She’s not, but she looks like she could use ALL the coffee in Purgatory.

TTVJ: OK, but does this mean we get to see in Nicole’s house next week?

EA: Yes, because that’s the takeaway here, Bridge. We get to see Nicole’s house and it’s really a house tour.

TTVJ: So just like House Hunters!

EA: Yes, just like House Hunters and Mercedes is like ‘Oh, this is nice! This is nice!’ Yes, we get to see Nicole’s house, but lots of crazy stuff is happening within the house. I think you should be worried about Nicole’s house, as in herself, her body, her “spiritual house” if you will.

TTVJ: We see the Widows are now on sort of separate paths. What does that mean and what did Beth mean when she told Tucker that Waverly was “special”?

EA: It’s interesting that the Widows are on different paths and you really see that come to fruition in next episode. It’s interesting that there’s a power struggle going on there, and it’s interesting that Mercedes is weakening from the Peacemaker gunshot wound. She seems to be rotting from the inside out, or her witch body is rejecting Mercedes’ face, and it’s the worst transplant ever.

I would argue that literally, Waverly is special. We all know it. Look at this audience, they very much like her. She is our cinnamon roll, the brave little toaster, wrapped in an adorable cheerleading, lounge-singing package. She is beloved. She is pure and uncorrupted, regardless of what happens this episode, but does Beth have some insight into something to do with Waverly that is more figuratively special — something closer to the supernatural, paranormal or the demonic? Maybe? You know who isn’t going to tell us? Tucker. You know who didn’t have much time to digest that thought, because he was being digested? Tucker.

TTVJ: I was so glad thinking we can finally say goodbye to him.

EA: Yeah, I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of candlelight vigils for Tucker.

I hope this episode isn’t too triggering. I feel like the language Tucker uses is almost more terrifying than a lot of the creatures we’ve encountered because it’s so close to reality for a lot of women. Just the way he talked down to Waverly, his expectations and the ownership he took of her. That stuff is chilling and so much of that is due to the brilliance of Alex Zarowny. I was like ‘Man, you really know how to write an outright creep.’ She’s a woman of so many talents and has great range on the page.

TTVJ: Waverly was about to head over to Nicole’s to try to end this awful argument WayHaught is having, but prior to that she kissed Rosita. What was that all about?

EA: I think we have to be fair. First of all, they were in a hot tub. Second of all, there was champagne. Third of all, Rosita looks like Rosita. Fourth of all, Waverly desperately needed some kindness at this point in time. I truly think there will be a thousand interpretations of that kiss, but I think the truth is, the second Waverly did it she knew it was a huge mistake. They both did, right?

It’s that feeling of wanting to feel something, wanting to feel warmth. It’s almost like a thank you and a connection with someone. I think it’s fair to say that Waverly is still exploring her sexuality and Rosita is a delicious, lovely person. That being said, there’s no doubt about Waverly’s feelings for Nicole. Before the kiss is even over, the first thing she’s thinking of is Nicole. Nicole is the person she cares about deeply. Rosita also acknowledges that it’s a mistake, and what it led to that I really like, and I like the evolution of this relationship, but Rosita, more than anyone, was encouraging Waverly to go get her girl at the end. She knows that what Waverly and Nicole have is unique, special and worth fighting for. I really like that Rosita is the one who gives her the pep talk.

Look, I’ve never done anything stupid while drunk because I’ve never been drunk. I’m basically a monk, but if I looked like Waverly and Rosita… I don’t know. And I was sad about my hot girlfriend.

TTVJ: What I really liked about the friendship growing between Waverly and Rosita is that for the first time, Waverly has someone that is really on her level intellectually.

EA: Exactly! I also love that it’s these two hot girls in bikinis who are probably the smartest people in Purgatory. Maybe tied with the other gay in Purgatory, Jeremy. I also think, remember that Waverly has been tucked in this small town her entire life. So everyone she knows has preconceived notions of what Waverly Earp is like or expected to be. Rosita is someone who didn’t know Waverly’s history, didn’t know Waverly when she was dating Champ in high school and there’s something intoxicating about that. It’s a chance to reinvent yourself, and I think it really parallels Waverly’s journey to find out who she really is. It’s nice to be seen through someone’s eyes who doesn’t have the baggage of your past mistakes, who doesn’t know that stuff.

I really like their friendship. I’m intrigued by Rosita and her warmth and empathy. I continue to say that Rosita is in a tough spot. She is dating Doc, who she obviously cares about very much, but who regardless, is having a baby with Wynonna and is his number one girl. She is on the outs, right? So the fact that she works so hard to make these inroads with Waverly, and seemed so genuine about it, I really liked that. I thought Tamara was wonderful in this episode.

TTVJ: I agree because all season long I’ve seen Rosita as this new person on the cast, but didn’t know much about her. Now, these past two episodes we’ve gotten to know her and I am really loving her.

EA: Yeah, me too. I don’t think anyone will even really notice that kiss though. I don’t know why we are talking about it so much. I think people won’t care and will be more excited about what Wynonna made for dinner. They are pretty detail-oriented, this fandom, Bridget, but they don’t really spend time on emotions.

TTVJ: Speaking of Alex Zarowny, I loved the speech by Rosita about “perfect is overrated” and that’s why champagne has bubbles.

EA: I think that’s so much of what we strive to do with all the relationships in our show. We are not going to write a perfect relationship because I think that’s a disservice to relationships on our show. I don’t think those exist in real life. In our continued quest to give you real characters who are flawed and make mistakes, I think you have to acknowledge that even WayHaught needs to figure stuff out sometimes.

That was a pretty good speech from ol’ Alex Zarowny. She killed it this episode. She’s amazing and I love her.

TTVJ: Enough about kissing, let’s discuss how Rosita is a revenant! That was almost buried in a way because I was thinking how much I loved her, and then oh by the way, she’s a revenant.

EA: Oh yeah, I forgot that part. Were you surprised?

TTVJ: I was surprised. Then it totally made sense. No wonder she has three PhD’s and she’s just so wise.

EA: Well, if you live for a long time you can either do nothing, or go to school for astrology. Every year on the show we like to stretch the boundaries between good versus evil and black versus white. Obviously there’s a huge gray area, which we are continuing to see, first last week with Robert Svane becoming Bobo and now with Rosita. She hints at the circumstances under which she became a revenant not being ideal. When she makes that speech at the end about dating one guy to piss off another and getting caught in Wyatt’s crossfire, I just think it’s all quite messy, the circumstances of this curse and sometimes it’s truly not fair.

TTVJ: Before we leave Rosita, what was up with Dolls being so suspicious of her? Did he suspect that she was a revenant or is something more going on there?

EA: I feel like he has already figured out that she was a revenant because of their encounters when he was chained to the bed in 204, and she was taunting him with the drugs. I think he figured out she had a specific beef against him and Black Badge, and because he’s part dragon/lizard/Godzilla I feel like he had a sense that she was other. Quite frankly though, he’s less concerned about what she is than getting what he wants. He needs to have access to his drugs apart from her, in case she is bad news or flakes. It kind of made me sad because he basically played her. He gave her the tickets to the spa with the intention of stealing the formula for the drugs, but then got distracted because he’s a moral man by the Widows. Do I think there will be consequences? Maybe.

TTVJ: This episode proved what I’ve always said about Wynonna Earp, which is that I’m so into these characters I could just sit and watch them talk. The scenes between Mel and Tim were so great!

EA: Well, thank you. I am also OK with them talking, though I wish occasionally it was on a riverboat cruise, but that’s fine. Tim and Melanie together, there’s just so much chemistry there and I agree that it’s probably my favorite part of the episode. I really like it when people have an argument on television, if they are characters that we love and respect, I like when they are both right on some level. That’s what I like about this conversation, they are both right.

Doc is being selfish and should do anything to help Wynonna break the curse and save the baby, and it’s really her choice to make how she does that. At the same time, Wynonna is pretty cavalier about saying to Doc ‘can you just give up your agelessness over these Twizzlers?’ It’s a lot to ask given all that Doc has already sacrificed for Wynonna. They are incredible though, when Doc tells the story about how his mother died, the circumstances under which he became claustrophobic, then Constance used that against him and devised a very specific torture for him which was an eternity in the well.

There’s constantly surprises with these two from their history and with their past and who they are. That’s what I love about these actors, these characters and their performances.

TTVJ: I liked that even though they were sort of forced into saying all that stuff, they were like ‘I meant what I said.’

EA: They were long overdue for a blowout anyway, right? I really think they needed a conversation, and it’s also not the worst to just summarize to the audience, in a very emotional way, where we’re at and the stakes for the last three episodes. We have two seals broken, we have one left to do and if we break them then the demon who cast the Earp Curse in the first place will rise from his tomb, and then what happens?

I just think it’s good to remind the audience as we go into these last three episodes that these are the stakes and this is what we’re fighting. Because Bridget, the last three episodes are bananas!

TTVJ: I just loved the image of Wynonna in that apron all episode long.

EA: I am sure that was a Mel choice. I’m sure she just put it on and didn’t take it off because she’s so funny.

TTVJ: That and spoon-feeding Doc that mac and cheese. Who buys one maraca? [laughs]

EA: She’s still Wynonna Earp, right? Half the time she forgets she’s pregnant. Mel looks so amazing this episode that it looks like she’s wearing a fake belly, but nope, it’s a real baby in there!

TTVJ: In the end Doc does agree to give Wynonna the ring, but are we going to see demons, other than the Widows, keep coming for it?

EA: I would say so. But what did you think of the way he gave the ring to Wynonna?

TTVJ: I believe in my notes for the episode I wrote ‘Doc getting down on one knee! Are you trying to kill me, Emily Andras?’ I almost passed out.

EA: Look, we give and we take away. We should be worried about Doc though. I think Wynonna is being a tiny bit reckless about this, right? She’s pregnant. Is it the best idea to break this seal that the Widows also want to do? I don’t think so. I’m just worried about Doc being mortal. I’m really worried about it.

TTVJ: I’m worried every time he coughs!

EA: Yeah, maybe he should stop smoking those cigarellos.

TTVJ: I am curious, did you guys come up with the doll story just so you could use the line “Sorry, we already have a Dolls?”

EA: We didn’t. [laughs] That’s ones of those lines where I wonder if it’s going to work or be cheesy, but then it’s Melanie Scrofano so it’s perfect. Leo Weiser from Bleeding Art had done us a huge solid and pitched us a bunch of cool creatures we could do on our “talking budget.” One was a porcelain doll and we thought it was so creepy. We really loved it. Dolls came first, then the doll and then ‘we already have a Dolls.’

TTVJ: It was so fun to see [Wynonna Earp comic creator] Beau Smith and his quick appearance in the beginning of this episode. How did that come about?

EA: Beau was just visiting set with his beautiful family and it came about organically. I said to our director Ron Murphy ‘do you think you can find a way to get Beau into the scene?’ He said ‘of course, no problem!’ It was more serendipitous than planned and I love the little minute of Doc and Beau sizing each other up. It was a Beau Smith Easter Egg with Papa Earp! He was smart enough to not buy the doll.

TTVJ: I really loved the training montage to start out the episode. Also, it was a fun callback to Alex’s episode in Season 1, Episode 6 which also began with a similar montage. Were these some of the fighting/stunts you alluded to for pregnancy? Obviously Mel wasn’t doing a backflip.

EA: What do you mean ‘obviously’? You don’t know that’s not Mel. Mel is super fit and super good at this stuff. That’s all I’m going to say about that.

The best part about writing training montages, and I feel like I’ve said enough good things about Alex that I can now tease her, is that Steve McMichael [stunt coordinator] is so strong we can just say “training montage.” Steve will choreograph the whole thing and oh my god, there’s a pregnant woman doing a backflip. We knew that Dom had been practicing with these sticks, which have a very specific name, kickass sticks? Tiny person kickass sticks?

TTVJ: That sounds right.

EA: Yeah, that’s right. I think that’s official. I think that’s what ninjas call them. She had been training with them last year because Dom is so eager to get better and bring it. So we knew she had these skills, but we didn’t really feel like in Season 1 that it made sense for Waverly to fight like this. Now, I completely buy that Waverly has been training to try to be better, try to be a member of the team and try to protect her sister and the baby. It felt like a natural fit and I like that this time it was Earp sisters and Dolls teaching them. We see how much things have evolved. It was just so fun. I would start all my episodes like that if I could.

TTVJ: You’ve already teased 210 about being totally insane, but is there anything else you’d like to say about it?

EA: I think 210 is blistering, it’s relentless and all of our characters having to make sacrifices and incredibly difficult Sophie’s Choices. It’s one of the most intense episodes we’ve ever done. It also features a very special feline guest star.

TTVJ: I’m so scared!

EA: For the feline? Never bet against a cat, Bridge. You’ll be fine.

What did you think of this week’s episode? Add your thoughts, especially about those reveals, in the comments below!

Wynonna Earp airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Syfy and Space.