Supernatural “American Nightmare” continued this season’s loving tribute to the show’s roots. The episode was directed by John F Showalter (look for a beautiful first shot of Baby with a small camera flare) and was written by Davy Perez, one of the new additions to the writing room. His previous writing credits are limited, including staff writer on
American Crime and script coordinator on
Fargo – but two really great shows!
The THEN montage was a lot of fun, taking us back to the first five seasons – how fun to see Ava (Katharine Isabelle) again! And it was a nice tie in to the current case, but including the scene with Ellen (Samantha Ferris), and even Sam’s (Jared Padalecki) discussion with Magda (Paloma Kwiatkowski) was a little off in terms of canon. There has long been a segment of fandom that wanted to bring Sam’s powers back, but that door was closed after Azazel’s death and Sam’s being re-souled after his stint in Hell. And did anyone think that Sam’s hair is suddenly looking a lot more like season two?
The opening scene is a good one, complete with stigmata and great, slapping bloody feet on marble! Also returning as a fan favorite? The brothers dressed as priests AND with terrific code names: Father Penn and Father De Niro (Dean – Jensen Ackles). Dean is hard on the Priest (Rick Tae) because he’s generally cranky. The Priest is impressed that Sam recognizes the words as Aramaic, and Dean brushes it off by saying they are the old kind of Priests. But the Priest insists that Olivia (Mariessa Portelance) was a good person. Even though their investigation continues to reinforce this, Dean is still convinced that there is something not quite right there.
It quickly becomes apparent what is eating at Dean. As the two leave the Church, Dean pauses as a mother helps her son light a candle. In fact, the mother/child thread that runs throughout the episode – Olivia works for child services – is a bit heavy handed, but hey, it’s nicely cohesive thematically. Once outside, Dean calls Cas (Misha Collins) and then quickly texts Mary before Sam joins him. He’s both desperate to hear from her and still angry that she left.
He texts that he’s checking to see if she’s alright and then adds – petulantly!! – if it’s still ok to call her MOM or if he should call her Mary. And of course, the nice shot of the crucifix and the other Mary’s son at the beginning of the episode was a nice touch too. Dean is a bit more self-aware than we may give him credit for and he actually calls himself on it as he watches his phone for a reply – “I’m a thirteen year old girl…”
Sam brings coffee and Dean fills him in on his conversation with Cas. Heaven is still on lockdown, so their case is not a rogue angel. He also tells him that Cas is working with Crowley (Mark Sheppard), hunting down Lucifer. “One’s an angel, one’s a demon, and they solve crimes together!” Nice logline for a sitcom! Of course, Dean is disgusted that Lucifer jumped into Vince Vincente – he used to wear purple hair down to his waist and a spiked codpiece! He was big hair 80s rock. Sam, naturally, was a bit of a fan! We know they don’t share the same taste in music and that Sam actually likes contemporary music – well, it would have been a bit more contemporary than Dean and John’s music and it would have been another way to rebel a bit – like any teenager. Sam pulls out of the argument because he knows it’s a losing battle….
Sam’s right about the Aramaic, and the two go to see Olivia’s body. Dean is tough on Carl (Jeremy Arnold), the coroner, who does a good job being completely innocuous – and therefore not deserving Dean being a dick to him! Sam finally calls Dean on being tough on both the Priest and Carl and not stopping for a pitstop for Sam on the way over. Sam knows his brother and asks flat out it this is about Mary. Dean denies and deflects – what he always does. I loved the holes right through Olivia’s hand – great effect. Neither brother can put the clues to a monster, so Dean suggests that they focus on the case – Not the “Dr Phil stuff.”
Dean and Sam head to Olivia’s work, and Dean is immediately suspicious of Beth (Aliza Vellani) because she has Olivia’s job and is burning a Wiccan candle in the office. Dean is ready to pump a witch-killing bullet in her – and won’t entertain the thought of Sam shooting her! Sam puts the breaks on it though – there isn’t enough evidence, there were no hex bags in Olivia’s apartment for instance.
When there’s another unrelated death, the brothers delve more into Olivia’s Child Protective Services files, and Beth points them at the Petersons. She describes them as Old Testament Bible religious, which certainly fits with the case. She tells them that their oldest daughter Magda died of pneumonia a few years ago after they refused to get her treated at a hospital.
Sam and Dean head to the Petersons’ farm – and in another throwback, we see them in their sweaters – to project that comforting, therapist vibe! And while they are dressed for the part, Sam tries to get Dean to talk about Mary. Dean does reveal that Mary took a cell phone – which she doesn’t use!!! – and some cash when she left. Sam tries to get Dean to see things from Mary’s perspective, what she’s going through. It’s a really nice walk and talk between the two, and it’s always a joy to see these two back on the same page. It’s another throwback to Dean’s most basic fear of being left alone. He gets that they’ve both needed time apart but they’ve always come back – and he’s just not sure if Mary will. At the end of the day, she’s a stranger to both of them. And to Dean, it always boils down to keeping the family together. Sam suggests that some families do better with time apart – and they are about to meet one!
And in keeping with the AWESOME cover names this season, we get a flavor of The Doors with Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek as the Peterson’s new case workers. Abraham (William MacDonald) seems reasonable right from the beginning while Gail (Christina Carlisi) seems off and to be the one calling the shots. She reveals that they didn’t like Beth – but did like Olivia because Olivia believed in God and Beth disliked them for their faith. Part of what made the episode so good was the terrific casting of the guest actors in this episode.
It’s hilarious when Gail asks them if they know God, and Dean chuckles and assures her that they are “besties.” When Elijah (Gig Morton) and Abraham ask for help, Dean pitches in to help them repair their wagon, leaving Sam and Gail to have an interesting discussion. Abraham explains to Dean that they wanted something better for their kids than rampant consumerism and watching fake people do fake things on a tiny screen! Ackles’ reaction to the latter is perfect. However, Abraham also makes the point that you sacrifice for family, giving Dean pause.
Sam thinks he’s looking at a picture of a happy family, but Gail sets him straight. She tells him that God showed them a better way to live, but of course, that’s not the real story. This is where the story gets a little muddled. Did Gail really think she heard God’s voice telling her to go and live a life of simplicity or is that really a fabrication. She keeps maintaining that God has a plan. Gail really reminded me of Mrs Rourke in “Faith.” Sam really loses it and tells her that God didn’t kill her daughter, she did. This seemed rather out of character for Sam to lose it like that – as deserved as the comment might be – because at this point he hasn’t even met Magda and he doesn’t have that common thread of psychic ability with her yet.
I loved the perspective shot out of the trunk as the two brothers are both convinced they know what needs to be done – but it’s not the same thing! Sam is convinced that it’s Magda’s ghost and that Gail is disturbed. Dean is convinced it’s Beth. Sam argues Beth didn’t know the other victim, and Dean argues that Beth killed to get a better job and there’s no way for the ghost to be getting around town.
Sam is partially right. Gail is truly disturbed and is holding poor Magda prisoner in the basement. She thinks Magda is possessed by the Devil, but she proves just how crazy she is when she tries to poison the entire family at dinner!
Dean finds Beth working late and quickly discovers that she never wanted the job. He realizes right away that he was wrong. And then has to quickly think of an excuse as to why he's there...And in yet one more throwback, Dean ends up with her phone number! And it’s Dean calling Sam to admit that he was wrong that gives Sam away and ends up with Abraham knocking Sam out, and Dean peeling out to the rescue.
Sam comes to tied up in the basement with Magda, who has been brainwashed to think she’s the Devil – or at least he’s inside her. She can hear what people are thinking and perform telekinesis. She only reached out to Olivia and the delivery boy for help – she never meant to hurt them. Naturally, television has to compress everything, but after years of torture, there’s really no way for Sam to just break through. Sam tells her that he used to get visions and be able to do things with his mind. It doesn’t make him the devil – they are just different. Sam qualifies that he doesn’t think he can do those things anymore, which of course, opens the door that maybe he can – or maybe the British Men of Letters will hunt him next?
Sam tries to get through to Abraham. Gail tells him that they know the Devil – they’ve been wrestling with him for years… If only they knew who they were talking to! Gail believes that pain purges sin, and Sam tells her that she’s wrong. It’s clear that neither Abraham nor Elijah want to torture Magda, and Sam tries to appeal to Abraham one last time. Elijah is so under Gail’s influence that he almost eats the poison until Magda saves him. And then Magda proves she’s a good person by not killing Gail even after Gail still manages to stab and kill Elijah. Of course, at this point, leaving Gail alive is more of a punishment.
Gail is taken away – no doubt to end up in an institution because she is clearly unstable. Padalecki was terrific in the episode, even if some of it seemed a bit out of character for Sam. Magda as the odd one out certainly resonated with him, and he reaches out to her to get in touch if she needs to talk. Luckily there is an Aunt in California who she can go to.
Meanwhile, Dean finally concedes that he’s had a hard time with Mary leaving and he’ll try to do better. It’s the requisite brother scene at the end of the episode. It’s nice to see them finally completing an emotional arc and learning from their mistakes. Dean’s “reward” is a text from Mary, apologizing for taking so long to respond. Her phone died and she didn’t have a charger – of course not! How would she know she needed one? Regardless, she tells him to call her Mom and sends her love. It’s the reassurance that he needed.
I loved Mr. Ketch (David Haydn-Jones) driving slowly by the Impala because it was such a nice follow up to last week’s throwaway. There was a scene in “The Foundry” when Dean makes an offhand comment about “nice bike” as he heads back to the Impala. I wondered at the time why the scene was in there, and now we know. Mr Ketch has been shadowing the boys. I wonder if he was more impressed with Mary’s work or the boys’ in the last case?
The final scene is a chilling one and points to the real flaw in how the British chapter of the Men of Letters works. It’s a nice throwback to the schism between Dean and Sam, and I’m thinking in particular about Amy Pond in “The Girl Next Door.” When is it ok to let a “monster” go? Dean’s time in Purgatory certainly changed his mind about vampires – a realization that Sam had with Lenore in season two. It’s going to be very interesting to see how this plays out.
This was another solid episode. I’m liking all the throwbacks. What did you think of the episode? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
