Happy 2011 everyone! And Supernatural decided to break in the new year with... an episode about virgins. Subtle, guys. But anyway, when I wrote my last review of 2010 I actually thought we would be getting one more episode before the break, so I didn't get to say happy Christmas or New Years or anything! So happy those things and all other celebratory events! I hope everyone was as excited for this episode as I was... Supernatural was gone from my TV for far too long! And who knows, this might be its final year... what do you all think, more seasons yay/nay? Obviously we might immediately root for a big fat yay but there is a sad tendency on TV these days that when a show has an audience, it just won't end, despite how many re-imaginations of concept they have to do and exciting new characters they have to add... One Tree Hill, Gossip Girl and Grey's Anatomy, I'm looking at all of you and I'm not liking what I'm seeing. I used to like you guys, what happened?! *sob*. But whatever, Supernatural is way better than all of them and it would be a shame to see half its audience alienated by drastic changes that would have to be made in order for the show to continue to make money for the network. Damn you, capitalism.
One last note before the you know, actual review, is that one of my new years resolutions this year was to make these reviews absolutely fabulous and more interesting, so as part of that they have gotten a bit of a makeover: you will see more pictures, a selection of the episode's best lines, and an overall rating of the episode out of five, among other things. And I hope that you will continue to enjoy the words, too. As far as timing, you can expect the reviews to appear on SpoilerTV and Out of the Box by the end of the weekend after a Friday night episode. So without further ado, let's rock and review! (Yes, that really just happened. I know.)
Don't forget to check out the Out of the Box television blog for more insights into your favourite shows!
I'm BAAACK in the saddle agaiiiin!
First is first: I looooved the Road So Far recap. I realised while watching this that the vampire alpha was a cylon on Battlestar Galactica, spoiler alert. Aaand of course we got the whole soul+purgatory storylines refreshed. And NOW, we've got Sam back, with the dire warning to not scratch the wall........ yeah, this'll end well.
Is it a bird? Is it a plane?
First scene has us in a small plane flying through a storm, where a young girl, already terrified, sees something huge and ominous fly past her. Is it the Grim? A dementor? I don't know, but I'm thinking there'll be no Arresto Momentum to save them this time! They ARE just the opening redshirts, after all.
As the guy (was his name Sam?) tells her to relax and think of someplace nice... the big monster gets him! And the plane crashes. That's awful. And I'm already a little unsettled. Lucky this is really a show about our two boys, and that I'm betting they'll save the day. That's just a feeling I have.
Hey, soul sister...
Yay, it's Castiel! We've been told he's back to being a fully-fledged regular now, which is awesome (did you see he's on the main poster now? It's kind of weird, having the Winchesters + someone else, but if I can't have Bobby I'll settle for Cas hehe). Sam's soul is in place, but he's unconscious. Cas warns that he might not wake up, but you know, he probably will. Otherwise it'd be a pretty boring show.
His soul... it's like it's been skinned alive, is what Castiel says. And THAT isn't good news. I had a small hope that all the warnings that Sam's soul was damaged were in fact false and his soul was really fine, but no, and this means that Lucifer and Michael really HAVE been playing hackey-sack with it for all these months to pass the time... I can't even imagine. And of course, there'll be that pesky expiration date on Sam's good health, if nothing else then when he dies, as I understand it his soul will suffer for all eternity? I hate situations like this, where you know a character you love is suffering, and while you can forget about it, it's still always there... like Bela, she's still in hell too. And what about Jo, didn't she actually die from her Hell Hound wounds? Ugh.
Cas flaps his wings and flies (off this island), and Dean and Bobby hold status report. I love Dean and Bobby scenes. Bobby reassures Dean that Sam will bounce back from this, and it's at times like this where I realise why they haven't killed off Bobby (despite how they haven't been shy about killing off practically everyone else close to Sam and Dean), why the show needs him and has utilised him so much. We've got Sam and Dean, the tough vigilantes out there in the field, and they're great for putting their heads together and figuring out the individual episode mysteries, but when it comes to the big picture and the big existential crises, these messed up boys have no idea what they're doing and what's going on. That's where they need Bobby to ground them, to be the go-to lookup guy and the one who can reassure them that everything's going to be alright in his deep, calming voice. Damn, I'd have him read me the phonebook when I was upset.
It's the BIG EFFING EMOTIONAL REUNION and it deserves its OWN EFFING TITLE!
So we were all ready to tackle the mystery of the week and thinking okay, so this will keep us distracted from the lack of Sam for a while... and then he wakes up, and the music gets all soppy! And okay, I may have the flu and I may be sleep deprived, but did anyone else bawl like a baby...?
They huuuuuuug yaaaaayyyy!! I do love their hugs! Interesting parallel moment here to the scene in 6x01, when Dean hugged Sam. Have these guys got the oomph!hugs down to a T or what?!
And then Sam hugs Booooobbyyyy oh my goodness where are the tissues???
But still, Bobby and Dean are confused. Sam doesn't remember anything since he jumped, and he just seems... normal. I think this is what confuses Bobby and Dean, because it worked, and there don't seem to be any side-effects (well until he scratches the wall of course! Ah scary times!). He's shocked that he was gone for a year and a half. And let's not underestimate the screwed-up-ness of any sentence that starts with, "Well, me and Death..." lol.
Dean doesn't want to poke the bear, scratch the surface, rock the boat, etc., and urges Bobby to stop being such a poop face (eh...?), leave it be and let Sam just live on in blissful ignorance. I know I'm Miss Sceptical today, but I doubt that'll last long. Bobby agrees with me, at any rate, and argues that it's better that Sam hears the truth from them rather than from some average Joe demon. So let's throw some money on the table, who's it gonna be? Grandpa!Sam? Vampire alpha? Castiel? Crowley-despite-the-fact-he's-dead? Lisa? Yeah, no, I'm not even gonna attempts to call that one.
Bobby also argues that while soulless Sam wasn't all Sam, it was still him. It's not like Buffyverse vampires, where the lack of soul means that your body is inhabited by a vicious demon with all your memories... and that once you get your soul back, your soul is in a constant struggle with said demon (which is why I also argue that Spike loved Buffy more than Angel, because in Angel's case only the human part loved her, but Spike's demon part loved her before his soul did... but wow, how off topic is THAT?). Sam was just devoid of a conscience, plain and simple, and therefore had no problem stabbing Bobby to stay that way. But then again, he wasn't capable of love in this state, so isn't he excused? Ah, grey areas.
The mystery of the week: virgin theft. I'm thinking... vikings?
Dean and Bobby plan to head out to kill some bad guys, but Sam catches them on their way. He's all with the clever comebacks ("Right, cause that's what you did when you came back from hell." You tell him, Sam!"), and you know, I've missed Sam! This Sam, that is, not the demon blood-drinking, soulless, evil Sam. This Sam we haven't seen since what, season 3? Let's relish. We'll probably only have him for like 10 minutes.
And it looks like the ultimate awesome road trip with all three of my favourite guys in one car, but no, Bobby doesn't want to come if Sam does (it's like we're in the 2nd grade innit?), so he stays behind. And ta-daa, we've got old school brother hunting! That's actually awesomer, if possible.
Sam calls Dean out on not having tried living a real life as he promised, but oh snap Sam, he did try! "You're exactly the same," Sam says. But then Dean tells him that he stayed with Lisa and Ben for a year, but it "didn't work out." Turn up music, cue end of conversation. Cause of course, Sam doesn't know that he was in fact walking around causing mayhem, and made Dean leave.
So on the MOTW, lots of girls have been disappearing. No guys, of course, pffft. In Portland, Sam and Dean visit the sister of Penny, one of the disappeared girls. Straightaway Sam is his own very soulful, compassionate self, and Dean is visibly happy to see this. We've all become so used to the no-bullshit version of Sam, it's great to finally get back to how he used to be.
Motel, fast food, research... the heart and soul of this show. :)
So now Sam is back to being the goody-goody, Dean can take a break from morality and you know, steal the missing girl's diary. Over the season, Dean has been the good guy out of the two, which has been unsettling. Straight from his stint as a responsible family man, and with an out of control little brother to protect, Dean stepped into the responsible role perfectly, and had to learn to be tactful and nice to balance out Sam's straightforward and crude new ways. But now, it's easy to slip back into familiar roles. Comfortable. For both Dean, and I think the fans. Nothing wrong with a bit of status quo once in a while.
Dean figures out how the dots are connected: "Virgins, Sam, virgins." The way he says it, brilliant. So with my extensive knowledge of history... and television shows... my best guess would be that they're needed for a sacrifice. And again I ask, vikings? Or maybe a DRAGON omg.
Girls leave a school, and we're set up for the next snatching. But this girl is not snatched! I wonder whyyyyyy eeeheee giggle. She says what attacked her looked like a giant bat, and aha, I might not be off in my dragon theory! What story is it where the dragon needs virgins? Besides from in the very underrated Discworld MS-DOS game voiced by the Monty Python cast? Or maybe that was it...
It took her ring, a promise ring. Oh. That throws a curveball at the whole virgin theory, doesn't it, Dean? Unless of course she's a Jonas Brother lying... Dean tries to respectfully ask if she's actually a virgin, but um, might want to work on the tone big guy. Though I guess he was right! Something that sounded like "met barn" (can anyone help me decipher that?) didn't count.
The world according to Dean Winchester: being easy is all upside!
It's almost sad how hearing Dean be all crude is a little surprising. I have gotten so used to him being the nice, responsible one, that seeing him in revertigo (debatable word, see HIMYM for more information) is unnatural. I still haven't gotten used to Sam being Sam again, either, I keep expecting him to do something bad!
"Dragons, dude."
I WIN!
Anyway, World of Warcraft? I might be a geek but I have my limits, so I actually don't know anything about this game, but I do remember that episode where the Ghost!facer founders put something on Hell Hounds Lair and actually caused a monster to manifest because people around the world believed in it. Maybe this is a similar deal. Sam is shocked that there might be actual dragons involved, but I think after Dean's trip to fairyland he'll pretty much believe anything. Wait, when did Sam become the Scully in the relationship?
Dean calls Bobby to ask about dragons. Bobby says "They're not like the Loch Ness Monster, Dean, dragons aren't real!", and I laugh. I think I've found my favourite episode quote!
Suddenly Sam has a flash of remembering a skin walker. Uh-oh. Bobby calls back, with a name: Doctor Visyak. Dean goes to see her, while Sam stays to research. Why break up? Sad times.
Meanwhile the virgins are trapped in a cage in the sewers, where a man is keeping them. He breaks one of the girls' arms, and his skin burns red as he forges the cage shut with his hand. Jeez.
Knock knock...
Dr Visyak turns out to be an old flame of Bobby's. Interesting. The woman tells him to kill it with a blade, forged with dragon's blood. How does she know so much? She HAS a dragon. And you know what, she even LOOKS like the dragon keeper lady from the Discworld game! Weird! Oh wait, it's the sword she has, not the dragon. Never mind. It's the Sword of Brunswick, and a brave knight is needed to pull it out.
Which... apparently isn't going to be Dean. Actually it looks more like he's trying to go to the toilet. Hilarous scene.
I don't understand though, cause funny as it is, surely Dean is as brave a knight as they come?
But no time to dwell on that, because Sam is calling Bobby. Bobby answers hesitantly, but helps Sam figure out the location of the dragon. Sam looks fiiiine by the way. He asks Bobby about his behaviour, and about what happened in the last year. Bobby doesn't tell him anything, but hangs up before Sam can ask more questions. He's clearly finding it hard to relate to Sam now, since he almost killed him... which, while fair enough, is also sad to say because we already know what Bobby likes Dean more than Sam. He doesn't need more distance from the poor guy.
"So how does it feel to have your soul back?" Great. Thanks a lot Cas.
Sam, having learned nothing from Bobby, calls up the other guy who might know something. "I'm back. So... if you've got a minute?" Now that's a nice way to ask. And Cas shows up, too, which as we remember he didn't when Sam was soulless.
And AAAWWWW Castiel wanted to hug him! But oh snap denied! Sam didn't want to... cause "it would be awkward." And then it got awkward. How sad. Is Castiel getting more human or what? Surely the hugging thing is new! This is a good thing, considering that he'll be spending more time down with the earthlings. Still though, the fact that Sam didn't hug him isn't all that great... especially cause we already know that Sam thought he died! Shouldn't Sam be happier? These boys just take their angel for granted.
Sam is tricksy, telling Cas that Bobby told him everything that happened... and Castiel bites. He's not always the brightest star in the sky, is he?
And that's it, the end of the happy brother times. Soul's out of the cage now. So to speak. "Right, cause... I was walking around with no soul."
If at first you don't succeed, blow it up.
Dean might not be the knight the sword requires him to be... but he's got toolz! This reminds me of the episode of Buffy where they're trapped in the haunted house, and Giles breaks through the door with a chainsaw.
The stone explodes, and the sword... is broken. Ooooops.
Dean takes the sword back to Sam, who doesn't say anything about the soul issue. Damn, already with the tension.
They take to the sewers, and find treeeeeasure. Also an altar and some nice candles. And virgins. All they need now are some cheez-its and they're set.
The big man comes back, and wasn't he on Alias? Dean grazes him with the sword (from Comic-Con lol), and it seems like HE is the dragon? Then there's another guy, also flammable... but Sam stabs him, yay, and he dies. The first guy flies away, but at least the virgins are safe and Dean is RICH.
Monster Land, Monster Land, let's all go to Monster Land!
They return to Bobby's... and wait, is the other guy free to eat virgins somewhere else? That's some sloppy follow-through! But I guess we need time for the big emotional finish. So let's have it, Sam, truth time.
"Dean, I am so sorry. I can't even begin to say..."
"For what?"
"You know what."
Well it's better than Sam being angry with Dean for keeping it secret. That would have been a little repetitive. And it's so in Sam's character to be sorry for what his soulless self has been doing. And I guess in a way, it wasn't that important that Sam didn't know that he'd been soulless. What WAS important was that he didn't know about the wall protecting him from the damage to his soul! But now Dean has told him that, I can't imagine that Sam won't start scratching. Would YOU be able not to, knowing it was there? Damn it, Dean.
And now Sam wants to fix what he broke, which is nice. But before the end, Bobby finds a 14th century book of human skin... in this book, something ominous is written. We see the dragon men with more virgins, throwing one of them into presumably "Monster Land" (coming soon to a theme park near you)... aka Purgatory. In the words of Dean, "Awesome."
So by throwing the virgins in their white dresses into Mount Doom the hole, these dragon guys are opening the door. Or you know, blowing up the island.
And the door is opened. Letting in... Megan Fox Mother (and again I think Lost). Born into the body of the virgin sacrificed. Welcome to season 6, act 2!
Thus ends another great episode of Supernatural! Dragon subplot and virgins aside, cause I really thought that was silly, I thought it was awesome to see the brothers bond again, to see Sam back to his righteous ways, to get some great character moments with Bobby and Cas, and to continue our exciting purgatory plot - adding another major player who looks like she can rival Lucifer for Big Bad of the Year!
Quotables!
Dean: Well, me and Death...
Dean: 'I've decided to give Stan my most precious gift.'
Sam: Wow that sounded really creepy coming out of your mouth.
Dean: I think I delivered it.
Bobby: They're not like the Loch Ness Monster, Dean, dragons aren't real.
Dean: Could you make some calls?
Bobby: To who, Hogwarts?
Rating: 3/5
Cause it was a good, solid episode, but the villains were underdeveloped and boring (except of course the final one). Would have ranked it higher, if not for the subplot, because the brothers' storyline was pretty much a solid 5!
Lock up your virgins and sound off in the comments with your thoughts on the episode!
Sign Up for the SpoilerTV Newsletter where we talk all things TV!
Recommendations
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
