Supernatural, “Paper Moon,” was written by Adam Glass and directed by Jeannott Szwarc – both familiar names on the show. The episode features the return of werewolf Kate (Brit Sheridan) from the episode “Bitten” in season eight. The episode also features almost more brotherly moments than anything else, which should make a lot of fans pretty happy. The opening sequence is perfect with a great shot of the full moon and “Werewolves of London” by Lone Wolf playing.
At the end of last episode, we saw Cas (Misha Collins) admonish Dean (Jensen Ackles) to give himself some time before getting back to work. As this episode opens, we see the two brothers, trusty cooler between them, wearing their shades and sharing a couple of beers beside a lake. Just two brothers, kicking back. The “No Hunting” sign right beside them is a nice touch. Of course, you might be able to take the Hunter out of the hunt, but you can’t take the hunt out of the Hunter – both brothers have noticed a series of suspicious deaths. Dean, in particular is itching to get back to work – especially for werewolves! We’ve known since “Heart” in season two that Dean loves killing werewolves. But we also know that Dean deals with things by immersing himself in work – as he did in season four after his memories of Hell started to surface.
I loved Dean twitting Sam (Jared Padalecki) about his elbow – does that sling come with a slice of cry-baby pie? Sam makes Dean promise to tell him if “things go sideways, even an inch.” Dean says done and fairly leaps out of his chair. It seemed like a real return to the past as the brothers show up in the local sheriff’s office sporting game warden uniforms. The trail of clues soon leads them to the old Sturgess farm where they find Kate. I loved Dean’s quip about the “fleabag chowing down on Sons of Anarchy.”
The episode clearly wants to draw a parallel between Kate and Tasha (Emily Tennant) and Sam and Dean. Kate is willing to take a bullet – literally – for her sister because she feels completely responsible for what her sister has become. We learn that Tasha had been in a car accident and was near death, so Kate bit her to save her life. Once again, the show examines whether the ends justify the means.
Sam stops Dean from shooting “Werewolf Barbie” because he doesn’t think Dean is ready. And in fact, it really does seem like Dean is hesitating. When Dean pushes, Sam says he wasn’t trying to start anything, so Dean says it’s fine. He then asks if Sam is ready and wants to talk about Lester. Dean says he’s not starting anything either. Sam maintains there’s nothing to talk about. Then they trade barbs about who is really responsible for Lester’s death. Dean says that Sam went dark – and then Sam defensively says, sure if you have to label it. Dean maintains it’s good that they are talking and clearing the air, but Sam doesn’t seem quite so convinced. It’s hard to see that the conversation really accomplishes much. The time it takes to get the intel in the bar was another scene that seemed needlessly long too.
Other than the somewhat laborious pacing, the episode also had one other feature that became quite obtrusive. One or two clever pop culture references are clever – this episode is fairly dripping in them and then it becomes too much. I did have to wonder if Kate’s using yoga to control her urges was a shout out to Stephen Amell of Arrow whose workout regime also included yoga and which Padalecki teased him about.
Kate tells the brothers that she is tired of the lies. She was trying to make her curse finally do something good by giving her sister a second chance. Are we once again treading the road where Dean tries to do good while Sam battles becoming evil? I loved the look on Tennant’s face as she struts by Kate after her first kill. Kate tells them that she and Tasha will drop out of sight until Tasha learns to control it. Of course, dropping out to get it together is exactly what Sam and Dean were trying to do. Sam is appalled when Dean lies to Kate about a cure. Sam thinks that they can’t fault Kate for trying to save her sister – after all that’s what they do all the time. Dean points out that that hasn’t worked out very well for them. Sam tells Dean that he can’t take whatever happened to them and dump it at these girls’ feet. While it’s true that they should remain objective, they should also try to avoid the same mistakes.
Sam tells Dean that he lied about Lester – there were others – not humans but demons. And then Sam further explains that Dean has to understand that he had to watch Dean die and then carry his dead body back to the bunker. Of course, Sam had to do this in season three – but he had Bobby then. Dean had to do it in season 2 – also with Bobby – but also with dire consequences. Dean confesses that he’d hoped the note would explain. But he goes on to say that it’s embarrassing. He’s clearly ashamed of the things he did. He thanks Sam, and Sam says he never has to say that to him. I loved the way this scene was shot – with Sam in the backseat. Sam would have sat there as a child, so it reinforces their big brother, little brother relationship. Dean is still trying to impress his brother, to have him look up to him. It’s also interesting that they are able to talk when they don’t have to look at each other. In the first scene they can hide behind their sunglasses.
When they get to the rendezvous cabin, Dean handcuffs Kate to the steering wheel. She still insists that Tasha can be saved, but Dean maintains that she’s in too deep. “You don’t ever come back from that. Not ever.” Sam looks particularly concerned at Dean’s words, clearly wondering if that’s what Dean’s worried about for himself. Sam reluctantly follows Dean into the house, where both are caught by Tasha’s new pack. In fact, Dean seems to be easily overpowered. Sam drops his gun. Kate somehow manages to get out of the handcuffs to confront her sister.
Kate maintains that Tasha was a good kid. Tasha, however, tells her that she was weak and scared, but she isn’t anymore. Now she’s scary, not scared. Kate tells her that she saved her to give her another chance, knowing that she wouldn’t be normal but that they’d at least have each other. Tasha is enjoying her newfound power, however. Kate says she loves her sister, stabs her, and then says she’s sorry. It’s possible to see both Sam and Dean in both roles – they’ve saved each other and done the wrong thing for the right reason multiple times. However, it would seem to still parallel Dean as Kate and Sam as Tasha.
Meanwhile, Sam and Dean face off with the two guys. There’s a nice moment when Dean reaches over to touch Sam’s shoulder when asking if he’s ok. In the end, Sam is the one to stab both werewolves as Dean is about to be over-powered and bitten by the one he’s fighting with. There’s also a nice moment when Dean makes a lame joke after the bad guys are dead, and Sam actually laughs at it.
Neither brother is eager to go after Kate. She did the right thing when push came to shove. Sam is concerned they’ve jumped in too fast – before they’ve had time to come to terms with everything that Dean’s been through. Sam would seem to still be denying that he went through anything – even after he told Dean how hard it was to watch him die. Is Sam really over that? Or what he did himself? Dean tells Sam that working is not trying to “get by” what happened, it’s not refusing to deal with it. Rather Dean feels the only way to atone is to do good. This is almost exactly what he wanted after his Hell memories returned, but he also says that he doesn’t want to stew in his own crap. Sam presses, “what if you’re not ready?”
Dean’s final words take Sam by surprise. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I’m not ready to hunt, but I’m just trying to do the right thing because I’m so sick and tired of doing the wrong one.” Ackles and Padalecki deliver terrific performances in all the brotherly scenes. It seems to be almost as big a relief for them as for fans to be able to play the brothers as brothers – who may still irritate and disagree, but who also clearly love and care for one another.
What did you think of the episode? Do you feel as though the brothers have made real progress this time around? Do you think they should have let Kate go a second time? Do you think that Sam may yet have more to reveal to Dean? Do you think Dean is ready to be hunting again? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
