Vaness Ives is perhaps one of the most intriguing female protagonists in television history. In Penny Dreadful she is depicted as a natural-born witch and is thought to be the Mother of Evil, a re-incarnation of the goddess Amunet. But even before her supernatural origins were established, it was clear that Vanessa is someone who harbors deep channels of power within herself.
But in an attempt to make Vanessa interesting the makers of the show have done away with quite a few clarifications about her real origin and source of powers. Here are 10 unanswered questions fans still have about Vanessa Ives from Penny Dreadful.
10 Is She Really Amunet?
It is revealed post Season 1 that Vanessa is actually the Mother of Evil, and a reincarnation of the primordial Goddess Amunet. Vanessa is sought by Dracula, who is depicted as the devil, who wants to win the favor of the Mother of Evil, which can restore him to power.
Though Vanessa has been depicted as someone who harbors deep energies within her, bordering on the supernatural and is revealed to be a natural-born witch, is she really the Mother of Evil? If she really was a reincarnation of Amunet, would she not be aware of her own origins of power much early on? She’s an extremely powerful being for sure, but is she really the prophesied Mother of Evil?
9 Did Evelyn Poole Recognize Vanessa To Be Amunet?
Evelyn was a Nightcomer, a witch, and was aiding Lucifer as he sought access to Vanessa. She, too, was an ancient creature, and in Season 2 it is revealed that she is quite familiar with Amunet. This raises many questions. If she indeed knew earlier versions of Amunet or the original goddess, could she sense that Vanessa was the Mother? In the 3rd episode of the second season, she reminisces about her time with Amunet.
"Why don't you come to me, then? Kiss me, sister, as we did in the old times. When we were a coven of sisters, coiled together like adders, like adders in the sands of Egypt, like hawks over Golgotha, like all things that come together and find strength as one,” she tells Vanessa. But during the seance she summoned Amunet quite unknowingly, why couldn’t she sense that Vanessa was the reincarnated Amunet?
8 Is Vanessa A Medium?
One of the fandom’s biggest complaints was the lack of clarity about the limits of Vanessa’s powers. In an attempt to make Vanessa a mysterious force of nature the makers never really explicitly spelled out what her supernatural powers are.
If she’s Amunet reincarnated that would probably mean that she channels enormous forces within her, but she has often proven to be quite human in her defenses. Her mediumship has often been questioned by fans; she does seem to share a connection with Mina who's technically dead, and can act as a medium occasionally but can she really communicate with the dead?
7 What Was Dracula’s Plan For Vanessa?
It’s not exactly a mystery, Dracula has admitted multiple times that he wants Vanessa to work with him to lead the world into eternal darkness, to bring humanity into pestilence, and to free the dead. But how exactly did he plan to achieve that?
Especially since Dracula sought Amunet’s favor to earn his place back in Heaven. Why then was he so utterly concerned with leading the dead on earth, especially since Dracula was just one of his many forms? Moreover, did the Devil really envision a future with Vanessa, who although a reincarnated Amunet was actually a human?
6 Why Is Her Sigil A Scorpion?
Some fans have pointed out this mythical plot hole in the show. Vanessa's personal sigil is a scorpion, as a homage to the Cut-Wife who gave her the nickname. In Egyptian mythology, the Goddess Serket is depicted with a scorpion on the top of her head; Serket is the goddess of prosperity and is an advisor to Queen of Heaven, Isis.
But Vanessa is Amunet re-incarnated, who is not just supremely powerful but is one of eight deities who helped to create the world. It’s unlikely that Vanessa or rather Amunet would use the symbol of a different goddess, that too a symbol that’s quite prominent historically. It could be a general ode to Vanessa’s origins as an Egyptian goddess, but for a show that's this thoroughly researched this mix-up looks quite odd.
5 What Exactly Happened To Vanessa At The Seance?
The Seance scene is one of the most powerful scenes in the entire show, and although it’s possible that the ritual opened up certain channels within Vanessa, it’s not entirely clear what happens during the seance. Madame Kali who is actually Evelyn Poole summons a supernatural force; she senses the presence of Amunet and another stronger presence that’s seemingly older than her.
But if Vanessa is the re-incarnated version of Amunet wouldn’t Eveyln have sensed it immediately, since she’s an ancient Nightcomer and witch who in fact, shares a history with Amunet, as it is later revealed?
4 Is Vanessa Religious?
As Vanessa is assaulted by the forces of darkness relentlessly, her resolve in god and the good faith grows stronger.
But Vanessa’s faith in her soul is the pillar of her strengths, her firm resolve to not cross the threshold of darkness is what helps her stand her gourds against Lucifer. “I am nothing. I am no more than a blade of grass. But, I am. You think you know evil? Here it stands,” she tells Dracula and Lucifer. And though Vanessa is seen praying to God when she is scared and makes references to 'My God', she’s not really devout and her relationship with religion remains a mystery.
3 What Did Vanessa Really Feel About Malcolm?
It’s clear that Malcolm and Vanessa care about each other deeply, and Malcolm is a father figure in her life. But Vanessa does have some deep-seated resentments against him, which possibly triggered whatever happened to her at the seance.
When she was young she saw Malcolm indulging in an affair with her mother, and couldn’t cope with it. And though she seems to have grown past the issues and even risks her own life to save Malcolm, she does not trust Malcolm blindly. Although viewers don’t get a clear perspective of her real feelings about Malcolm.
2 Why Did Malcolm Think The Devil’s Memoir Talked About Vanessa?
As Ferdinand Lyle was translating the devil’s language from the ancient texts, Sir Malcolm seems to think that the text is actually a memoir and he also believed that it spoke of Vanessa.
This is quite unbelievable as Vanessa also points out, especially since no one had realized Vanessa’s true origins back then, and it was entirely possible that Vanessa was being hunted because she was a witch or for some other reason. Vanessa was also quite puzzled by Malcolm’s conclusion since the memoir does not mention a woman or make any allusions to the Devil’s consort.
1 Did She Really Want An Exorcism For Herself?
At the Season 1 finale, Vanessa goes to a church where she speaks to a priest to find some answers. She asks him about exorcism and what it can do and asks him if a soul can really be taken over by another? But Vanessa was not possessed by the devil at that point, she was being hunted for sure and she was very aware of his presence.
But since she was never a devout Christian, did she really believe in the powers of exorcism, especially since she wasn’t too averse to the idea of being ‘touched by the devil’ as the priest puts it? “If you’ve been touched by the demon, it’s like being touched by the backhand of god… it makes you sacred, unique in a way,” he tells Vanessa, which makes her think.
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