Supernatural - 6.18 - Frontierland - Recap by Selina

I think it's safe to say that 'Frontierland' was one of the season's most hyped episodes - if not the most hyped - and what's more, I think this might be the only season 6 episode to go down as a classic must-watch SPN episode. Why? Well, cause it's awesome, but more importantly because it called back to some of the most iconic parts of SPN history - the Colt, the Devil's Gate in the season 2 finale, and the good old fashioned (non-Campbell cause people hated them - to which I take personal offense; my dad's name is Campbell) Hunters. The only thing that'd get fans' hearts pumping harder at this point would be the return of JDM, but I think we can put a pin in that one at this point.

But who cares (gasp I know!)? Because it's the Colt, the first of many canon-Samuels, and the incorporation of the Western genre into the show format... hell, it's done about every other genre (most of them in 'Changing Channels' but still), so why not?

But these are all reasons why the episode should be great in theory. Did it actually work? Let's RECAP.


Oh, one last thing: these reviews are also posted on my personal blog, Out of the Box, where I write about TV shows, and feature book reviews, news, articles and much more. If you like this, you might want to take a look at my blog, there's lots of cool stuff over there to waste a lovely Easter Sunday looking at. :)


Previously on Supernatural: The entire premise of Season 2. And look, it's Ellen again!

Aww, Ellen. Kind of random to see her and Bobby in a scene together after last week's episode. You know, one thing I thought of a few days ago and regretted not saying in my last recap was how - as much as I loved the twist of Bobby and Ellen being married - it was a bit too big of a cliche to see two television characters shack up simply because of their relative proximity in age and the fact that they were the only two eligible single people in the audience's immediate familiarity group. I mean, in what show have we not seen this in?! (And don't you start naming shows, it was a rhetorical question.) It was just a tad too convenient, and we never had any previous inclination that them two were an item - though the same can't exactly be said for Ellen and John, but that's a whole other story. That aside though I'm still bummed Ellen couldn't have stuck around. Barring Jo (and for some reason people always do) Ellen was the only real powerful female character the show's ever seen (also not counting Mary, cause she was never part of the cast in any significant way), and the fact that she wasn't a hot young love interest only intensified that. So seeing her back was a real breath of fresh air, because as much as I'm all for the no-girls-allowed cast, having the biggest female presence be Lisa was, well... let's just say I'm not on the Team Lisa train, she's got more balls than your average Dean fling but that's about it.

Anyway I think that's enough on that topic. Sidetracking, that's me.

Oh, I also think it's funny how we're always told pretty much everything the episode is going to be about and all the characters and objects featured in the 'Previously On'. I get why they do it, but it takes the fun out of guessing a little bit. I guess it's a moot point for all you guys though cause this is posted on a spoiler site, but you know...


Sunrise, Wyoming... 1861

One thing: I LOVE time traveling. Not, you know, the act (I wish!), but in fiction! I am a MASSIVE Back to the Future geek, and knowing that was going to be one of the primary intertextual element in this episode got me way too excited. I've read The Time Traveler's Wife twice (and it still baffles me; one of the cleverest books ever written), and one of my all time favourite SPN episodes was the one where Dean traveled back to meet young Mary and the others. That alone puts this episode way up there for me! So 'scuse me for the geek fest, I'll try to keep the squealing down!

I also should tell you though that I'm not the greatest Western connoisseur, so some of the references will escape me, I'm sure. My knowledge is kind of limited to, well, BttF and the odd Firefly episode, and that hardly counts. I apologise in advance.

Anyway, I like how the episode goes directly into the past, without any explanation, straight to a standoff between a cowboy... and sheriff Dean! Whaaat! Immediate confusion, what is going on, cats and dogs living together, mass hysteria, I love it! How did Dean end up there, we all ask in bewilderment. Good stuff.

The clock (clocktower! Eee!) strikes 12. Guns are drawn. FADE. TO. BLACK.


Bonanzaaaa!

Now here's a reference I did get! Who else loved those opening credits?! I love when shows do credit variations, like the musical and Jonathan episodes of Buffy, this week's How I Met Your Mother, and of course Supernatural's done a few great ones too.

Next, we go to 48 hours earlier... and 150 years later, lol. I chuckled.

Bobby, Sam and Dean have found the Campbell family library, where they find some old pictures... I'm a sucker for old family pictures, but Dean didn't linger.

There's some fun montage music while the gang looks through a bunch of books, and it's a little inappropriate. But then they find what they're looking for: "The ashes of a phoenix can burn the mother." Too bad the SF budget is nonexistent this year, the phoenix will probably be a guy dressed in a chicken costume - think Mr. Clucks.


So where do they get a phoenix? Hey I know, ask Dumbledore! Ba-da-bam-tching! ...No? Fine.

More inappropriate montage music later, and Dean gets something else: Samuel Colt himself killed a phoenix in Sunrise, Wyoming with his gun. Great! "Dude, no." "Dude, yes." Tell me I'm not the only one who squeed at this little Sam/Dean exchange??? Look at that smiling face. Yay.

Dean knows where to find a phoenix... in the past, of course. Of course. "We'll Star Trek 4 this bitch." Seriously, where's Cas when you need him... my life is so boring.

There's some real great dialogue in this episode though. "I only watched Deep Space Nine," Bobby admits after a pregnant pause, and Dean is very disappointed. "It's like I don't even know you guys anymore." Thank you, teleplay writers Andrew Dabb and Daniel Loflin, I hope you come back for the hypothetical season 7!


"Timetravel? That's a reasonable plan?"

You know, that's another thing that works so well this week: the plot isn't stupid or contrived because it acknowledges that yeah, it is a little contrived. But because of the way Dean presents it and how completely nonplussed Bobby and Sam are, it suddenly doesn't seem like an easy way out of a plot hole, but a real storyline, totally in character. And it's also a nice callback to past character development, because in the past of course Dean would have flipped is you-know-what at the idea of time travel, but then he went through it, plus you know, a hell of a lot of other weird-ass stuff, so at this point he's just like, why not? Which is a perfect set-up for this would-be ridiculous story premise.

Dean calls on Castiel, but um... instead of Cas, an angel called Rachel appears. Unexpected. She's not as cool as Anna (or, you know, Cas) but it's good to see another female angel. She's... kind of annoying though. What was it I said about powerful female characters?

Cas appears to tell the insubordinate female underling off (sorry show, but he did), and man, is anyone else dying to find out what's actually happening in this so important heaven war??? Every time Cas appears it's like this big deal but we never see it! I don't know if we're meant to want to know, but I feel like the show is doing its best to peak our interest. Will we ever get another Cas centric episode? Sigh.


Cas thinks your plan is STUPID.

Here's the sitch with all this time travel. It's not as easy and repercussion-free as one might think...what with them doing it like every week. The further back they go, the harder it'll be to retrieve them. Sooo it's not like they can just go back and, I don't know, stop the Mother of All Evil from rising like a month ago.

Snark, I haz it.

No, I mean it's the Harry Potter time turner question all over again isn't it? Without certain loopholes, there just wouldn't be a story. So let's roll with it.

So they have 24 hours in the past, and if they aren't brought home in that time, they won't be able to return. Dun dun dunnn.


So Dean's a big Western fan.

Of course he is. Hehe. I always like the episodes when Dean geeks out about something (though would it kill Sam to join in every once in a while?), and seeing him all excited about going to the wild west is great. Sam, however, is not amused.

So they change... and Dean's wearing a poncho, and looking very serious about it. "Now, is it customary to wear a blanket?" Cas asks, and I just love Cas and his straight-man humour.

Bobby gives them some gold to use as money, and Cas sends them on their way.

And then they're back in time, to the old west... Dean is very excited, Sam is just Sam, which is funny.


Important episode plot point: Sam steps in... authenticity.

Well, he does. And I laughed, cause I'm so immature. Dean might have the funniest scenes this week, but Sam's got some great physical comedy.

In Sunrise, there's a hanging going on. Elias Finch is hanged for murdering his own wife... well, at least they cared; women were treated like um, real authenticity back then. But hey, we know that guy! Isn't that who Dean standoffs with at the beginning/end?

"You're gonna burn for this," Elias ominously states... and then the guy who looks like Lucifer hangs him. Man that guy looks like Lucifer!

Dean mopes because someone called his blanket a blanket, and thankfully takes it off.


Marshall Eastwood. Clint.

Of course, Dean, of course you did. And Walker Texas Ranger is not amused by your shenanigans. Look at the picture for proof.

And look, it's the guy who looks like Lucifer! Well, from certain angles. But it's not Lucifer at all, it's the sheriff in town.

They're sent to the saloon, to ask Elkins (the guy who's been there longer than God) about Colt. But the saloon... isn't as exciting and lively as Dean had hoped. I don't know which is better, his happy face or his disappointed face. Oh hell, they're BOTH great. Just like Sam's not!amused face. There's some great faces this week.

They learn that Samuel Colt is currently out building the Devil's Gate (heh, convenient), and then they meet Elkins' best girl, Darla. And she looks like a vampire too, with blood at the corner of her mouth! Buffy tie-in! But this girl's no Julie Benz (who was on this show in which season 1 episode??? Bonus point for right answers!) - this is really ruining poor Dean's Western fetish.

Luckily Dean is saved by the Judge... dodged a bullet, if you will. Heh heh.


Oh look, something Supernatural is happening!

You know... time traveling aside? I'd almost forgotten that this was a show in which supernatural happened! So when Darla screamed I was like what?! But of course, Elias did promise to come back and burn the men that hung him, and there he is. Incinerated poor Judge.

But was it supernatural? As the sheriff shrewdly points out, a ghost doesn't leave footprints (good super-hunter job, Winchesters). He's seen it before, that the rope didn't kill the hanged man, and he's got a plan. But roped into the job, the brothers visit the gravesite after all, to find the coffin empty and broken. Which leads them to the logical conclusion that Elias is the phoenix. Huh. You reckon the sheriff is a basilisk?

Then the brothers decide to split up (noooo booo sad times): Sam goes after the Colt, while Dean - the posse magnet (niiiice) - stays behind. And look, a horsie! Not that Sam's ever ridden one before but you know, they make it look so easy on TV. When he rides away silhouetted I figure it's a reference to something, but I don't know what. Can someone please tell me in the comments?

Meanwhile, it's the sheriff's time to get burned. Elias isn't hurt by bullets, and sheriff Lucifer-look-a-like is killed.


I'LL KEEP YOU MY DIRTY LITTLE SEEECREEEET! New ship! *dances*

It's not really that interesting but the new angel girl summons Castiel and she's heard things that she needs to know if are true. As Buffy would say: jeez, could you vague that up for me?

Castiel is turning into something, an the angels aren't happy. But Cas doesn't have a choice, and neither does Rachel, so she STABS HIM NOOOO but it's okay cause he doesn't die, instead he kills her cause he's super!angel, and so much for girl power.

Cas is sorry. And still bleeding blue light.

Wow, that was an informative cut scene.

Oh wait it's not over. Cas appears in Bobby's house (how nice, that this is where he'd choose to go), weak and using his own blood to draw an angel symbol on the fridge, and falls into Bobby's arms. Uh-oh.


There's a new sheriff in town, boys!!!

OH how I was HOPING I'd get to use that title in this recap! :D

"I look good," Dean says. Good, now I don't have to say it and sound like even more of a fangirl. Thanks Dean. *swoons* Oh... crap. Anyway.

"Great. Well, who's the sheriff now?" Um, Dean's wildest dream just came true... but how much does he still want it?


Colt is AWESOME.

Finally, we meet the ONE. The ONLY. The LEGENDARY Samuel Colt! Collective fan cry of delight.

First of all - is he British? He sounded very British in some scenes I thought. Second, he's accosted by (I never believed I'd say this) a sight for sore eyes, some good old fashioned demons! Only, Colt is retired and hopes that the nice demons will just go away and leave him alone. Sure. Or, you know, not, and he'll just shoot them with his super awesome GUN! Yay! Also, fast reflexes. Good thing to see that this guy isn't just a legend but really was a disappointment; Samuel Colt is everything I hoped he would be

In Sunrise, Dean tricks the last and most handsome hanger-man to open the door. "I was a one-man wolf pack, thanks to you." I don't think that was actually a The Hangover reference, but I couldn't help but grin anyway, because that's where my mind went.


Knock knock. Who's there? It's Sam. Sam who? Sam YOU. lol, Sam gets all the cool namesakes.

And Dean was named after a girl. :P

Sam gives Colt his real name (risky? Colt did keep a diary, after all), and tells him he's a hunter - from the year 2011. WHAT Sam, don't you know that's the first rule of time travelling?? Rule #1: Don't tell people you're a time traveller! Duh! I guess maybe now Colt will forget it all by the end of the episode like the brothers' parents kind of did, to avoid unfortunate time-messups, or maybe he'll just promise not to write it down? Oh and if they take the Colt, how will it exist when they need it later in season 2? Jumping ahead though I guess, and you guys will already know since when you read this you'll have seen the end so it's all moot anyway.

Oh wait, intermission! I have a question: are we meant to assume that the Campbells are descendants of Samuel Colt or not? I mean, I guess there are no hints except the, to be fair, relatively common first name they all seem to share, and I guess Colt's diaries are pretty well known and highly sought after in the hunter community, I just always wondered. Would be neat, if it was true.

Back to the [Future] story: Sam gives Colt his watch to prove it, and Colt is surprisingly unfazed. He's seen weirder things than a giant from the future. Sam shows Colt his journal, and that's nice, now he knows he'll be remembered.


"Don't believe everything that you read."

Interesting. I guess this is where Man vs. Legend comes into play. Just cause Colt wrote down that he shot the phoenix is no guarantee that he actually did it. And despite Sam's vehement insisting that "there's no getting out" of hunting, Colt won't come. I guess Sam's gonna have to do it then.

Colt won't give Sam the gun though. "It's a curse," Colt tells him. He's clearly done, and I wonder what happened to make him give up and back out this way. I wonder if we'll ever know. If there's any circularity in the story, I bet he had a brother... now there's a great idea for a comic book spin-off. :)


"Honey, take the Volvo and pick up the kids at Frontierland." I wish that was a real place.

In the present, there's now an hour left (and in the past too I guess... though technically that hour's long gone isn't it?! Ah, headache.

Cas is very weak from his wound, and explains to Bobby how Raphael corrupted Rachel and she turned on him - if that's really the whole truth. We find out that the symbol he painted was to ward off angels (and here I was hoping he was calling on Balthazar).

Oh, and, bombshell: Castiel isn't strong enough to pick up Sam and Dean from the past! Yikes... of course, there is one thing he could use: Bobby's soul.

Wait, AGAIN?!?! Seriously, why do they all want his damn soul?!



"I need you to let me touch it."

And I just needed to make that a title. Just cause.

Seriously though, the fact that Misha Collins can say this stuff with a straight face... kudos, dude.

Of course, it might explode Bobby so I'm not sure I like it, awkwardly funny as it is.

And more importantly, what is it with Cas and needing soul juice? Important plot point to keep a lookout for hmmmm?


Time's running out. Park's gonna close, boys.

All Dean can do for now is trying to draw out the Fawkes Guy (see what I did there?), despite the fact he doesn't have the Colt. Elias appears, and like most monsters he is weak to irons. Dean gets him to tell his story: he was married to a human woman, then they went into town and the men attacked and killed her, then strung him up cause he didn't die from the bullets. I wonder what kind of monster he is - werewolf? Oh wait, we know, phoenix. *facepalm*

So... are phoenixes bad in the SPN-verse? Bummer. I thought they were universally good.

Phoenix shoots the last guy (good riddance) and goes after Dean, who runs away. Luckily he meets Sam, who arrives just in time with the Colt.


2 Minutes to Save the WORLD!

We're back where we started, at the beginning/end. Dean and Jacquin Phoenix square off.

One last aside: For once, I wish it was Sam in this role. Yes, Sam's done his share of sacrificing, but I feel like there's a lack of him stepping up in a climax moment and fighting the Big Battle. Being the top guy, the main hero, it hardly ever happens. I challenge you, SPN Overlords, to make it happen. Give him the spotlight in a scene like this. Did I hear Challenge Accepted? Good. Roll on season 7.

That aside... aside, this does seem like a Dean moment, doesn't it? His squared-jaw expression was meant for this moment.

Also, Castiel reaches into Bobby and touches his soul but I'm not gonna dwell on that. I think "enough said" is the appropriate phrase here.

BANG! Dean shoots and kills mr. Phoenix, while Phoenix (unbelievably? maybe. Maybe not - this IS a classic White Hats-Western imitation after all) misses. Phew. I know we were all sweating there, right? Naaah. It's not a finale.

And then the not-so-bad monster dies. Bittersweet, no?

Dean drops the Colt, and they run for the ashes... but don't get them. SO IT WAS ALL FOR NOTHINGGGGG?!?!?!?

At least it was awesome though!


Knock knock. Who's there NOW? Oh look, it's a convenient twist ending!

Just as all hope seems out, there's a knock on the door. Did y'all do the same quick confused head count as me? These guys don't have any more friends left alive at this point, so who the hell could it be?!

It's... this guy! You know, the mail man. He's got a package for Sam Winchester, from Samuel Colt. Sorry, how did he get to town in time to get the ashes before they blew away? And the package has been waiting for Sam in the same post office for 150 years? And Sam just happened to leave his phone behind, which Colt figured out how to use - and which address is it, even, Bobby's? How did Colt know that's where Sam would be? And the delivery guy happened to get there just when the brothers got back... Is this all just way too convenient? Well yes. But who cares! Right? Okay, maybe some people might think it's a lame and contrived plot point, but I'm in a generous mood. I just saw Dean blow the smoke off a gun, I'll forgive them anything right now.

And there's the ashes! Yaaay! Honestly, I think this was a cooler way than if they'd gotten it themselves. I know, it was the most unrealistic thing EVER but guys: you're forgetting that Dean blew smoke off his smoking gun!!! This episode cannot NOT be awesome! And they got the ashes, so now they can fight mama dearest - everybody wins. Joy to the world.


Quotables:

Dean: We'll Star Trek 4 this bitch.
Bobby: I only watched Deep Space Nine.
Dean: It's like I don't even know you guys anymore.

Dean: You know what that is?
Sam: Yeah, that's horse sh-
Dean: Authenticity, Sam.

Castiel: I need you to let me touch it.


Rating: 5/5
I'm not sure what everyone's reactions are going to be to the final twist. Sometimes I feel like I'm SPN's harshest critic (only cause if I just fangirl-squealed at everything, these recaps wouldn't be half as exciting. My limit is 90%), other times I feel like I'll forgive them anything as long as they pay some kind of homage to the heart of the show, aka the early years. So I'm just... not going to take the ending into account at all in my rating, because whatever there is to say about its level of contrived-ness I am NOT going to let it spoil my enjoyment of this GREAT episode! I think my prediction at the beginning was right, this episode is going to go down as a classic SPN episode - and I think when we look back on the show, it will end up being the only season 6 episode to do so. It not only had an awesome premise, it also had great acting. For once I'm not going to be shy about singling out one of the leads; I thought Jensen Ackles was absolutely outstanding this week. His (or Dean's, or both) excitement at playing this cowboy character was obvious, and it made the episode a lot more fun and enjoyable, and his expressions were perfect. The sets and colouring was very authentic (for once meaning what the word's supposed to mean), the directing was spot on, and the script was also a perfect blend of humour and character development. While I didn't think Samuel Colt was particularly memorable, it was a good actor fit and it was a treat for fans to finally meet the legendary character, and the fact that it was Sam who went to see him was neat because of the name connection. All the intertextual references (I recognised a lot, though I couldn't name them) were in true Supernatural style, and the fact that there was a regular monster mystery mixed in with the plot just added a great early season feel. Bobby and Castiel's side story was both funny and engaging, and of course Cas' secret heaven storyline was shrouded in even more mystery... I can't wait to find out what he's doing! Furthermore, this episode actually furthered the plot - in a lot of special episodes, like last week's, the status quo is restored at the end, and honestly I was funny expecting them not to get the phoenix ashes. The fact that they got them (not saying a word on how) was really refreshing, storytelling-wise.

So what do you think? Agree/disagree? I'd be very interested to see how much you felt the execution of the ending mattered to you guys - did you think it mattered, how unlikely it was that they got the ashes this way, or are you like "Awwww maaan Selina is nitpicking agaaaaainnnnn?" Don't be shy, I truly am curious. :) For me, I felt like I would have slated any lesser slow for such a lame cop-out, but I just feel like this episode was so full of awesome, it totally makes up for it. But it could just be the closeted fangirl in me talking.