This article is a collaboration from SpoilerTV writers – DJRiter, Zandarl, Luana Arturi and Kollin Lore.
There is nothing that says a hero has to be the star of a television series, and if written properly a good show can have all kinds of heroes. A hero can be the obvious, outgoing stalwart type, and then another type of hero can be the strong, stoic silent type.
That second type of hero perfectly describes the character of Agent Xavier Dolls, played to perfection by Shamier Anderson on SyFy's Wynonna Earp. Dolls, when we first meet him, is serious and follows the company line, working for a secret government organization, known as the Black Badge division. Their purpose is to keep demonic activity under the radar and send it back to hell. Or, so we are led to believe. Agent Dolls doesn't seem to smile or have a sense of humor, despite Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano) cracking her usual witty barbs left, right and center. We soon learn that indeed not only can he smile but he is hiding a demonic secret of his own. The truth which only comes to light the latter part of season 1.
Anderson's stoic performance as Dolls brought a certain humor with it when playing opposite Tim Rozon as Doc Holiday. An episode in season 1 which shows Purgatory's own version of fight club and continuingly trying to prove who is the better man for Wynonna leads to an uneasy alliance.
In Season 2 which began with Dolls life in the balance, we see how much he is cared for and respected by the team and when Black Badge abandons them he continues his quest. We also get insights into his past and how he became part demon. He has been an integral part of the crew, and a central one at that, he's the one that made them a real team in the beginning and he has continued to a rock for everyone. It's no surprise he was voted SpoilerTV's Most Outstanding Actor of July for his emotionally charged performances in episode 2x8 – No Future in the Past.
We can see this when he takes Wynonna to the OB and is the only one there with her, and his desperation when he realizes Wynonna is gone and thinks she's been kidnapped showed just how much he cares for her, whether they're in a romantic relationship or not. The desperation only grows stronger every single minute she's not with him and he rushed to Sheriff Nedley's office to start the search in any way he can, up until he gets a call from her and he can finally breathe, though it's a short moment because once he gets to the chapel and finds out Wynonna is on the floor, on a vision quest and he has to fight off the widows coming for her.
The other issue Dolls is struggling with, are his own feelings for Wynonna. Wynonna is pregnant and the possible father could be Doc Holiday. All this makes for some complicated scenes between the three of them and no surprise the usual male one-upmanship. However, the storyline gives Anderson something to sink his teeth into and show more of Dolls emotional side, showing how much, he does indeed love Wynonna. It's likely that these scenes are the ones that won him the Performer of the Month.
We see the lengths Dolls is willing to go to protect Wynonna and how much he cares for her. Juan Carlo gives his life for it too, giving Dolls time to get locked up inside the chapel and claiming sanctuary while he freezes thanks to our beloved widows. He manages in utter pain to get to her side and lay there, pretty much putting all his trust in her, that she'll come out of the vision in time before the widows burn down the church. When the firemen pull them out of the flames Wynonna is not breathing and Dolls loses it. Like the saying goes, you don't really know how much you love someone until they are gone. The usual stoic Dolls shows the most emotion we've seen from him in this scene when Wynonna apparently dies. We get the sense in that moment that he realizes just how much he loves her, and Shamier Anderson expressed that profoundly, he gives her CPR and when she comes to, he kisses her desperately relieved.
Like the saying goes, you don't really know how much you love someone until they are gone. The usual stoic Dolls shows the most emotion we've seen from him in this scene when Wynonna apparently dies. We get the sense in that moment that he realizes just how much he loves her, and Shamier Anderson expressed that profoundly.
After that he keeps her as close as he can in that last scene together, they're finally warm and cozy, cuddling in bed and they talk about what she saw, in one final quiet moment before all hell breaks loose they don't even realize what the heir dying, even for a few seconds, could mean for the revenants. He asks her to just not die again. This is a tender scene between the two characters that further cemented how much Wynonna means to Dolls, and how much he means to her, especially when they talk about the phrase "If we live long enough, we all become enemies", but Wynonna doesn't agree, "No. Not you and me. Never."
These reasons and more make it clear why he is SpoilerTV's July Performer of the Month as the Most Outstanding Actor. His intense acting skills and ability to be both strong and emotional make his character the perfect example of the strong, stoic hero. What did you think of Shamier Anderson's performance in episode 2x8 – No Future in the Past? Please, feel free to use the comments section to discuss all the amazing moments we couldn't get to in this article.
PLEASE READ: Please keep comments on topic and just discussing the performances of the winner.
***WRITER'S NOTE - The writers would like to send a special shout-out to the creator of POTM, Aimee Hicks, who is recovering from recent surgery. Get well soon Aimee, you are missed and we hope we've done proud by the series!
