|| Supernatural Online Reviews 9x11 Updated Page-5| - Page 6

Robin's Rambles: Supernatural 9.14
- "Captives"
Bunker, a specter! Dean listens to
rock. Lights blink. Sam grabs a
sword when Dean calls. Sam and
Dean meet. The bunker is haunted,
despite the sigils. Whoever it is died
here. It's not Kevin, Dean burned
him.
Funeral. A man breaks away. Castiel
grabs him. Metatron? Rebecca didn't
make war. Bartholomew killed her.
He's a monster.
Their ghost, Kevin, is new at this.
Dean talks to the coffee maker as if it
were Kevin. I'm sorry, you didn't
choose this life, lost everyone you
loved, got killed on my watch. It was
on me, I'm so sorry. Kevin starts to
flicker and appears. Kevin is stuck in
the veil, can't get to heaven--find my
mother. A woman named Candy, who
lives in a forest in Wichita, says
Mama Tran is alive. Kevin wants the
brothers to find Candy and his
mother.
Cas is captured by two angels, Bart's
minions.
They bring the coffee maker to
search for Candy.
Bart takes Cas' blade and hugs Cas,
seemingly delighted to see him.
The brothers wait inside, candles lit.
Dean calls Crowley, who doesn't pick
up. Maybe hHe's not that into you,
quips Sam. The radio goes staticky.
The angels reminisce about battles
with Raphael, when Cas was "the
great Castiel" and Bart tortured. Now
Bart gives orders.
A cold, dark box, says Candy,
describing where she and Mrs. Tran
were being held prisoner . British
men, they tried to escape, but, Candy
was stabbed to death from behind.
Mrs. Tran might be alive. She is
alive, and screaming!
The brothers head to save Linda Tran
from where Crowley has been holding
her prisoner for God knows how
long.
Bart assures Cas he's free to go.
What can he do on his own? They
both want to find Metatron, restore
heaven. They disagree about
Rebecca's murder.
The brothers enter a motel as FBI
and demand records. The clerk is
reluctant, Dean insistent. Sam notes
storage units rented by D. Webster.
Crowley in-joke. Dean and the clerk
check one unit, Sam another, and
finds Mama Tran. But someone locks
them both in and the clerk watches
them on camera and knocks out
Dean.
Bart shows Cas on-earth sightings of
Metatron. Bart wants Cas by his side,
here and eventually in heaven. A
rebel is brought in, bound, his face
covered by a black bag. Bart wants
Cas to help him torture him.
Sam frees Linda from her bonds and
works on the electric plate of the
door. She thinks Kevin is still alive,
and he doesn't have the heart to tell
her otherwise. She angrily orders him
to shine the flashlight where she
needs it.
Dean comes to, hands bound.
Crowley left the bitter demon clerk in
charge. Feeding the apes, hosing the
floors, getting no credit. Worst part?
He wasn't even allowed to kill
anyone! He won't even get a thank
you for capturing the Winchesters!
That's true, Dean tells him--he's
friends with Crowley now. This job
bows, I quit! the clerk declares.
Having tortured the rebel and learned
nothing, Bart wants Cas to prove his
loyalty by killing the rebel. Cas
refuses, insisting there's another
way. My only choice was to obey or
be killed, realizes Cas. Bart plunges
the knife into the rebel angel over
Cas's protests.
The clerk asks Dean, "Do you know
how long it's been since I've done
this? Thank you for reminding me
who I really am." And he starts to
slice open Dean's throat, leaving a
bloody trail. Sam bursts in,
preventing Dean from being stabbed
to death.
As your refusal makes perfectly clear,
you always thought you were better
than me, says Bart, punching Cas
twice in the face. Cas says no,
angels fighting angels must stop
somewhere, might as well stop with
me. First Bart has Cas at knifepoint,
then Cas has Bart at knifepoint. Cas
drops the knife on the floor. There
can be no peace without bloodshed,
insists Bart, and moves to attack Cas,
who turns the tables and kills him.
He orders the two guards, "Let me
pass." They do. Cas leaves.
Sam and Dean allow Linda to kill her
jailer, who they have bound. After
she does, she commands, "Take me
to my son."
Bunker - The brothers call for Kevin
and assure him they saved his
mother. Linda feels Kevin is bound to
his father's ring. She wants to keep
him safe as long as she can.
Cas prays to Rebecca's grave,
apologizing for the chaos, praising
her for trying a new way. An angel
touches his shoulder and says he
chooses Cas as his leader; he wants
to follow him, as do others. Indeed,
two other angels stand there, both
also wanting to follow Cas.
Bunker - Kevin considers his mother
his responsibility. And you're ours,
Sam says. Kevin assures Sam he
doesn't blame him; that's all on
Gadreel. He thanks them. Thank us
when we get you to heaven where
you belong, says Dean, until then,
enjoy your 24/7 time with your mom.
Kevin asks them to promise to "get
over it," reminding them that just
because they couldn't see him, he
could see them--drama, fighting,
stupid. My mom is taking home a
ghost. They promise, yet go their
separate ways without exchanging a
word.
Questions
1. So Kevin asked the brothers to cut
it out, they promised, but they went
to separate rooms without speaking.
That bothered me. You?
2. Bart was dispatched quickly in this
episode. Were you glad or
disappointed?
3. Were you sad when Mama Tran
was asking about Kevin? I was. While
I knew it was a possibility she was
alive, I cringed at every mention of
Kevin.
4. I was bugged because there was
no Cas with the brothers. Did you
find that weird, too?
5. This ep might need another
watching or two, but at this point, I
only give it a 7. That's my
impression after only one viewing.
You?
6. I do love the idea of Mama Tran
and Kevin keeping each other
company for a while, as long as he
doesn't become hostile. Finding out
her son was dead must have been
awful for Linda.
7. Don't you hate Crowley for
keeping Linda prisoner like this?

REVIEW: SEASON 9, EPISODE 14
"CAPTIVES"

I really only have three words for
you: The Tran family. Part of me
wants to end the review here and
now because that's really all you
need to know about "Captives" but
for fear of my editor raining all of
hell's wrath down upon me, I will
continue on. It's been a long few
weeks for the Supernatural fandom.
Given the emotional turmoil that was
set up for us before the hiatus, it's a
miracle we all survived with even a
small amount of sanity leftover. After
Sam's stunning (and heartbreaking)
revelation, we were all left down in
the dumps. And we then had to wait
three weeks with dire anticipation of
Snooki gracing our screens in the
newest episode. Sure, we were
promised the Ghostfacers, but...
Snooki? Why? And at what cost? At.
What. Cost. Little did we know that
we were being lied to by the network
and the Supernatural cast/production
crew. "Captives" picked up a few
days/weeks after the confrontation
between the brothers and dealt
directly with Kevin's death. And by
directly, I mean we learn that Kevin is
in limbo, struggling to reach out.
Well, it looked like all of us viewers
would have to wait another week to
suffer through the pain that is
Snooki. Darn!
Most of the positivity I carry towards
this episode has to do with seeing
Kevin again, even it is for a final
time. It's no surprise to anyone that
the deceased prophet was my
favorite character. My love for him
knows no bounds, not even death
can sway me away from those god-
like arms. Sam and Dean, believing
that the Men of Letters bunker is
haunted, take turns watching a
coffee-maker that has been
misbehaving. While they both believe
the haunting to be Kevin's doing,
they can't be sure. Dean, still
wrought with guilt over having a
hand in his pseudo-brother's death,
begins a soliloquy, stating how sorry
he is to a believed-to-be empty
room. Then, after having quite
enough, Kevin appears. I think, I
can't be quite sure, but I think I fell
onto the floor, which is something
that hasn't happened in a few weeks.
Sure, it was twisting the knife a little
bit to see him again, but his death
was so sudden, so forced, that I (and
the rest of the fandom) never had a
chance to even begin our goodbyes.
When watching Supernatural, it's
pretty much carved into stone that
any side character will die sometime
down the road, but as time wore on
and Kevin continued to breathe, I
started imagining the series with him
actual in it. It didn't feel like he was
walking on broken glass, but instead
he had a presence that was missed if
he wasn't in an episode. So, when he
died, it was jarring. Not to mention
the fate of his mother was left up in
the air as well. Until now. When
Kevin appears to Dean, he reveals
that, through conversations with
other spirits, he knows that his
mother is alive. That's right y'all,
Mama Tran has somehow made it
through to season nine. WHAT A
MAGICAL DAY. I mean really, I was
doing fistpumps and step-dancing
and any movement that resembled an
obscene joy.
So, Sam and Dean go on a mission
to find Mrs. Tran. Their journey leads
them to a self-storage business. It
has been revealed that Crowley was
keeping her alive as leverage against
Kevin but because he is busy
combing the oceans for Cain's knife,
the holding of hostages has been left
to a demon possessing a teenage
boy. Sam goes to find a very much
alive Mama Tran and Dean faces off
with the demonic teenager. The
demon is subdued and Sam and
Dean allow Mrs. Tran to deliver the
final, fatal blow. At this point, she
knows that Kevin has died and has
kept it together this entire time. Talk
about an incredible lady, am I right?
Back at the bunker, Kevin and his
mother are reunited and decide to go
on the road together until he can find
a way to heaven. But before he goes,
Kevin has a final request for the
brothers: "Can you two... get over it?"
he asks them, saying that he has
been around the awkwardness that
has been hanging over the bunker.
The brothers need each other; they
work better together and Kevin knows
this. And then, we say goodbye, as
he and his mother leave the brothers
most likely for good. However,
Kevin's wish goes ungranted as,
before Dean can turn around, Sam
has left the room and Dean,
nonplussed, goes to his bedroom.
And let me tell you, this was
surprising. I expected at least a little
bit of plot development between the
brothers and there was none.
Instead, the plotline is carried
forward by Castiel, your friendly
neighborhood grace-stealing angel.
We find Cas with Bartholomew, the
smarmy angel who is waging a war
on Metatron and heaven. Seriously,
what is the point of angels when the
only good one has died and come
back to life? Every single one of them
has it out for another. I speak for
myself when I say that I'm truly done
with angels. They've been around
since season four and even then
their story arcs got old very fast.
Sure, Metatron is a villain that is only
paralleled by Umbridge in Harry
Potter, but why an angel? We need a
villain that has no conscience, one
that won't be swayed by the
Winchester's (or Cas') puppy dog
eyes. Even Abaddon has a weak spot
for Dean's emerald green ones and
everyone knows that Crowley can't
get enough of Sam's never-ending
legs. When Bartholomew was
introduced I figured maybe (even
though he's an angel) he'd be
different. Turns out, he wanted to
bring Cas to his side and together
take down Metatron. This had me
practically yelling at the screen
because if anyone needs to stop
being tricked into joining sides, it's
Castiel. The poor guy just needs a
little "me-time" ya know? He had
Leviathans coming out of every
orifice and is expected to just be fine!
But, Cas denies Bart's various
attempts at seduction and instead,
turns the knife on his angelic
counterpart. Then, Cas is called to
arms by a garrison of angels that call
themselves his followers. My fingers
are crossed that Cas will be able to
handle this much responsibility as
last time this happened, he got so
full of himself (and Dick Roman) that
he believed he was the new god.
The fact is that none of the plot was
moved forward in terms of Sam and
Dean is frustrating. We cannot just
be in a static period with the two of
them as they are the core of the
show. And while it is interesting to
watch Cas do his own thing, seeing
him just kill another being made me
very sad. What happened to killing
without consequences? And this
doesn't just go for the angels, it also
happened with Mrs. Tran, who killed
Del the demon. The Winchesters just
stepped aside and allowed her to
drive a knife into the demon's
stomach. "Saving people, hunting
things" is a motto I can get on board
with but it always had consequences
and now I'm not quite sure I
understand. We watched Cas kill
Bartholomew in cold blood and yes, I
understand that Mama Tran had just
been told her son was murdered, but
it wasn't necessary to have her kill
someone, especially a demon that
was using a human host.
All in all, while this episode served
the purpose of saying goodbye to the
Tran family, it didn't move forward in
the way I expected it to. Sure, I was
in fetal position on the floor when we
got to see Kevin again, and then
when he and his mother were
reunited, I may have looked like Alice
Cooper, but these emotional blows
were used to cover the fact that there
was no forward momentum. I hope
that the Ghostfacers and, sadly,
Snooki will pick up where "Captives"
left off, pushing it in a way that
means betterment for both Sam and
Dean, but also Cas, who will
hopefully join up with the brothers
soon.

Supernatural Review 914: Captives
This episode came off as a giant
apology for the mistakes of the
previous couple of seasons. I
generally liked season 8, but there
were a few key points that bothered
me. It shouldn't come as a surprise,
but I have been less than thrilled
with season 9 so far. The overall
themes and individual episodes have
been very upsetting on many levels.
This one was written by Robert
Berens, who also wrote Heaven Can
Wait, another highlight of the season.
This one wasn't a perfect episode,
but it was far better than most of
what we've had this season. Out of
the 14 episodes we've had so far I'd
definitely rank it in the top three.
To start, this episode marked the
return of Castiel. It was highly
anticipated among Cas fans and #
CastielReturns even began trending
on Twitter within the first 20 minutes
of the episode. His arc this episode
looked to be a rehash of what he's
already gone through for many
seasons. He seems to be too
trusting of people and winds up
working for the wrong side. He
managed to back out of this situation
quickly, though. I'm grateful this
wasn't another multi-episode arc
where Castiel's morality began to be
questioned. Castiel didn't kill
Bartholomew until he was forced to
do so in self defense. Even in season
6 his morality was generally still
intact, but he made massively
dubious decisions that had even the
most diehard Castiel fan beginning to
question his decision making.
The episode ended with Castiel
gaining loyal followers much like the
arc during the first half of season 6.
Castiel never asked to be a leader,
but the lessons of free will and
fighting for good that he learned from
the Winchesters have given him the
skills needed to lead Heaven's
wayward angels. I only hope that this
season turns out better than season
6 did. He, you know, went a little too
overboard with power, swallowed up
all the souls in purgatory, then died
just a couple episodes into season
7. Circumstances are different now,
and we have a new show runner who
has taken the angel story in a
different direction. I worry that we
could see a repeat scenario, but I'm
going to try to remain positive about
it all and hope for the best.
Another absolute highlight of the
episode was the return of Kevin Tran.
Yes, he's still dead, but that doesn't
mean a hell of a lot on this show. It
was great to have Osric Chau back
on TV. Like Bobby, Kevin returned as
a ghost. Unlike Bobby, it seems that
he's going to get to stick around on
earth for a while. Kevin was also
given the line of the night when he
told the brothers to "get over" their
drama. Most fans have been majorly
displeased with the tension between
the brothers this season. Some fans
have seen it as necessary growth,
but I haven't really seen it going to
the places that I feel it would need to
go to be categorized as "growth."
I've viewed it as the same repetitive
fighting that happens every season,
sometimes multiple times per
season. At the end of the episode
they go their own separate ways in
the bunker again, but I hope that
Kevin's words will resonate with
them in the future.
In addition to Kevin's return, we got
confirmation that Mama Tran (or
"Linda Tran," as she is actually
called) is alive. Unfortunately she
had been locked up for many months
and tortured, but she has a resilient
spirit and had actively been trying to
escape her captives. When Sam
came to her rescue she contributed
to their escape instead of being a
passive damsel in distress. As much
as she was in distress, Mama Tran
wasn't going to sit back and wait to
be saved. Her scenes talking about
being reunited with Kevin were
incredibly heartbreaking, though. I've
got to hand it to Lauren Tom and
Jared Padalecki for breaking my
heart with a few short words and
awkward glances.
Overall I think this episode is headed
in the right direction. It brings the
main story arc back in, returns many
of our favorite characters, and hints
at possible progress on subjects that
have been worrisome for quite a
while. I have a lot of faith in Robert
Berens, despite the fact that he's one
of the newest writers. I hope that the
potential he has set up with this
episode continues through the rest of
the season.
http://thegeekiary.com/supernatural-review-9x14-captives/7413

SPN #9x14 Captives (episode
review)
At least for the angel part. Honestly, I
don't know how much less I could
give a crap about the different
factions fighting and Bartholomew
and etc etc etc. The two different
plots in this one didn't seem
intertwined at all and IMO it would
have been better for both to get their
own separate episodes. Maybe the
fact that they were discussing
Metatron is part of the myth arc, but
still the two plots didn't fit together
seamlessly. Maybe other people
don't care and I'm just too critical
but it just irks me. Bart was killed off,
meh I was not attached to him
anyway. And we learned that there
are angels willing to follow Cas ( or
at least they tell him that).
As for the other half...well I just need
to say this upfront first...
In the bunker in the beginning...
Sam's hair!! Looking all long and
bouncy...thanks SPN for the birthday
hair po*n :D Though I wish it'd been
that nice for the whole episode. The
scenes in the storage unit...did he
use Vaseline as shampoo or what?
LMAO, seriously hair dept, use the
opening scene as a guide and keep
his hair like that for each scene this
season. I mean for reals, his hair in
most of the preview for next week
nearly made me weep (though it
looks glorious in one of the promo
pics). Be nice to the hair please,
kthxbai. (I know I'm too
obsessed...please don't mock lol)
*cough* okay as far as the rest of
that thread...I honestly did think that
Kevin's mom was alive the whole
time. Nice to see it confirmed. Sam
and Dean's interaction is at least civil
through this case, if not a little frosty
(like in the summoning Candy scene)
. Not that that isn't expected at all.
And as expected, Dean is still feeling
really guilty for Kevin's death.
So the guy keeping Kev's mom
captive is a shapeshifter working for
Crowley. Why does the actor look so
familiar to me? He looks like he was
in another episode in the past, but I
can't put my finger on it. Nice that
Mrs. Tran got her revenge for Kevin's
death and was the one to kill him. I
liked her scenes with Sam. And the
look on his face when she wanted
them to bring her to her son.
Kevin is reunited with her at the end
and actually tells the boys to knock
off the fighting and drama. And as
kinda expected, Sam leaves the room
as Dean's about to say something.
It's way too soon for them to just call
a truce like that and it would be the
easy way out. Sam goes into some
other room...can we assume that
he's got his own room too now? Or
did he go into some different type
room? Dean goes into his room and
listens to his music like he did in the
beginning. Has he resigned himself
to the fact that they can't just mend
fences yet or is he just trying to put
it out of his mind? I wonder what it
will take for them to get back on
better terms, something really big? Or
is it something that will just happen
gradually? Guess we'll find out.

Supernatural 9.14 - Captives
In this episode opening we learn that
Dean lies on his bed listening to
angsty classic rock through
headphones like a teenager, Sam
does... something in his own room,
who even knows what, and that the
bunker is haunted. Full-on flickering
lights, EVP, spinny furniture haunted.
We also learn that Sam somehow
thinks a sword will protect him. I'm
pretty sure it's not made of iron.
Thankfully Dean has rock salt shells
at the ready for just this kind of
predicament.
Shortly after, Dean makes coffee
while Sam sits at the table packing
salt rounds and they argue over who
could be haunting the bunker. Sam
decides it's Kevin, Dean rejects his
logic and inserts his own. He gave
Kevin a hunter's funeral, so it's not
possible.
Yes, Dean, because those are always
foolproof.
Fool.
Fortunately, Dean's coffeemaker now
responds to the name "Kevin", so
Dean quickly figures out that he was
wrong.
Speaking of funerals, Castiel is semi-
crashing one to harass a fellow
angel, Eliah, but Eliah isn't there to
cause trouble, he just wants to pay
his respects to his fallen, twice over,
friend Rebecca. Castiel isn't buying
it, Rebecca and Metatron used to
have teatime together, they were
pals. "Were" is apparently the
operative word. Nevertheless, Eliah
asserts that he and Rebecca were
pacifists and tried to stay under the
radar. Specifically, Bartholomew's
radar.
Meanwhile, Sam and Dean try to
make contact with the coffeemaker,
but they aren't really getting
anywhere. Sam bails and Dean
decides that talking to an appliance
feels stupid, so he opts to talk to thin
air. About himself. And how he feels
about the Kevin situation. And also,
and I can't stress this enough, about
himself . It's enough to make a ghost
manifest just to make it stop.
So Kevin does.
Turns out he and everyone else who
has died since the angelic rain
shower are stuck in the veil between
life and enternal rest because the
pearly gates are padlocked. Downer.
On the upside, there's nothing to do
in line but gossip and a new arrival
to the veil, Candy, told Kevin she just
saw his mom, alive, a week ago. All
the boys have to do is head up to
Wichita, summon her, and interrogate
her. No big.
So they do. Guilt is a fantastic road
trip motivator.
Things we learn in the woods of
Wichita:
- Candy the friendly ghost takes as
much time to arrive as you'd assume
a girl named Candy would.
- Dean's a drunk dialer.
- Despite telling Dean they're no
longer brothers, Sam seems to think
it's okay to sullenly rib his brother
about his drunk dialing tendencies.
- Dean is a litterer.
- Watching Sam and Dean be dicks to
each other is the anti-fun.
When Candy finally makes contact
through the radio, she tells them she
was trapped in a box. So was Mama
Tran. Candy describes it for Sam and
it pretty much looks like they were
auditioning for Saw VIII: The FINAL
Final Chapter.
Over in Angelville, things are looking
less passive for Castiel if the
angelblade to his throat is any
indication. The angel that's
threatening him with the sharp and
pointy looks like he could be Justin
Taylor's younger, twinkier brother.
Obviously, he's my new favorite for
this reason. The angry angels take
Castiel to Bartholomew's office.
What we learn hanging with the
aviation impaired:
- Bart's office looks like Naomi's.
Which looked like discarded first draft
of the Wolfram and Hart white room.
- Turns out, Bart's a hugger.
- Once he believed that you follow
orders. You follow orders or angels
die, it's that simple.
- He was also part of Castiel's
faction during the great Raphael
upheaval of '09-11
- He obviously admires Castiel, but
there's a soupcon of bitter jealously
there as well.
- He was a crazy torture murderer.
Castiel is wary of Bart and his
operation, and considering the glares
he's receiving, that seems valid,
though Bart assures him that he's
safe here, but free to leave if he so
chooses. But why choose that?
What's out there for Castiel anyway?
Bart's got a point, Cas is kind of a
lone wolf as a rule. Bart and Castiel
are doing their Col. Jessup/Lt. Caffee
impersonations so well, I half expect
Bart recite the entire "you can't
handle the truth" monologue to Cas.
Bartholomew shows Cas his fancy
CIA Metatron tracking map. Castiel is
impressed. Bart is pleased. This
relationship is escalating quickly...
until Bart has Eliah dragged in to be
tortured and killed. Castiel is less on
board judging by the face he's
making.
Sam and Dean are investigating
nearby storage lockers, each one
blending into the last one. I'd like to
take a moment here to acknowledge
that Sam and Dean's aliases in this
ep are Nicks and McVie. As in Stevie
and Christine. As in Fleetwood Mac.
As in this is my most favorite of
aliases ever.
Moment done.
Del, the ironically unironic employee
offers to take Dean to a storage unit
rented under Crowley's alias "D.
Webster" (oh, I see what you did
there, tasteless, but the judges will
allow it) and so he can search
through it. Dean agrees to go with
Del the Funkee Homosapien while
Sam searches the other rooms rented
under than name. Meaning Dean has
just revealed himself to be a closet
90s semi-underground hip-hop fan.
You think you know a guy.
Sam heads down the corridor and
finds Mama Tran in the first unit he
lock picks. Unfortunately, Del, aka
Jigsaw, is watching the rooms and
remotely slams the door shut before
Sam can free her. He's watching and
controlling from his cell phone all
while placating a suspicious Dean.
Dean finally realizes he's been had
just in time for Del to turn out his
lights with a blow to the head.
Meanwhile, Sam attempts to override
the door of the unit by getting ready
to snip the wiring, only his
indecivnes about which wire has
annoyed Mama Tran. She shoves
him aside and goes all electrical
engineer on his ass. She learned a
thing or two from helping Kevin
study. Speaking of Kevin, she'll get to
see him soon, right Sam? RIGHT?
Sam makes a tight face and agrees
that he left Kevin in a safe place.
Which, technically, yeah, I mean
aside from the fact that he was killed
in the bunker it really is the safest
place on Earth. Mama Tran gets busy
on the wiring, intent on seeing her
son. Sam stops her for a moment
and conveys with his eyes what she
doesn't want to hear. She steamrolls
his look o' meaning and carries on
with her bomb squad impersonation.
What's even more heartbreaking
about his is that Sam doesn't really
get it. Yes, he knows what it's like to
bury someone you love, multiple
times in fact, but the mother-son
bond? A mother's ferocity? These are
foreign concepts to Sam Winchester.
The closest he has to a mom is his
big brother. Oh wait...
Anyway, while that's happening Dean
is spending his time trussed up,
listening to Del whine about the
stress and boredom of his job.
Crowley made him promises, double-
talked, laid out a sweet 401k plan,
then pranced off leaving Del to mind
the store. Welcome to middle
management, Del. All the while, Dean
is actively listening, big ears on, as
he tries to shimmy his knife out of
his really freaking stylish boots.
Actually, the whole outfit is snazzy.
So is Sam's, come to think of it. The
MOL bunker has really upped their
fashion savvy.
Speaking of fashion forward, Castiel
and his Burberry jacket are busy
having a crisis. Save Eliah or kill
Eliah. On one hand, Bart wants proof
that Castiel can be trusted. On the
other hand, Castiel doesn't see
himself as a killer.
Really, Castiel? Really?
Bartholomew's reaction pretty much
mirrors mine. Castiel killed angels by
the cloud-load, killed a man in Reno
just to steal his grace. Castiel
counters that his actions of the past
do not make him who he is in the
present.
Um... actually, yes. Yes, they do Cas.
Our actions shape us, one glance to
the left, one blade of grass you don't
trample upon and you may be an
entirely different person. Or angel, in
your current case. But Castiel
maintains his stance, he won't kill
Eliah. Which doesn't stop Bart from
doing it. Result: Eliah is dead anyway
and now you've royally offended your
unstable war buddy. Castiel takes a
blow to the chin from Bart like a
champ, but refuses to swing back.
Bart counters with an angelblade
aimed at Castiel's throat, but Cas is a
bit better at hand to hand, gets out
of the hold, and suddenly their
positions are reversed. Of course,
it's enough for Cas that Bart knows
he could have angel kabob'd him and
drops his sword.
Thing is, according to Bartholomew,
Castiel just doesn't get it. Eliah and
Rebecca's deaths, while tragic,
probably saved lives; and
Bartholomew's existence, while
grotesque and incompressible to
Castiel, probably saves lives. Castiel,
however, has neither the time, nor
the inclination to explain himself to
an angel that rises and not-sleeps
under the illusion of freedom he
provides and then questions the
manner in which he provides it. He
would rather just say screw you and
be on his way, but Bart lunges at
Castiel's retreating form. Castiel isn't
having that; he whips around,
overpowers Bart and just like that
Bart's a sparkler.
Just when he was actually getting
interesting.
I never thought I'd say this, because
I never felt particularly attached to it,
but I miss the trench coat. Castiel's
exit would have really benefited from
the trench coat.
Back to Sam and Dean. Dean is still
trying to subtly free himself, but Del
has officially quit and he is going to
do what everyone thinks he's going
to do and just flip out. And start to
slice Dean's throat. Unfortunately for
Del, Sam's timing is almost
impeccable and he storms in just at
that moment and punches Del's
clock. Really forcefully, in fact. But he
doesn't kill him. No, that honor is for
Mama Tran. She is scarily stoic while
knifing Del to death and now all she
wants is for Sam and Dean to take
her to Kevin.
So they do.
It's tearful and gorgeous and
heartbreaking when Kevin and Mama
Tran reunite. Mama Tran rummages
through Kevin's things and figures
that his deceased father's old ring is
what's binding him directly to the
bunker. Mama Tran decides to take
the ring and Kevin home. Dean
reminds her that spirits get meaner
the longer they stay in the veil. She
reminds Dean that Kevin is her son
and it's her job to keep him safe as
long as she can. You're preaching to
the congregation, Mama Tran.
The Trans get ready to head out.
How? Who knows? Not of import. As
they're leaving Kevin makes sure to
tell Sam that he knows Sam wasn't
at fault for his death. Also, no one
seems to blame Dean either, which is
interesting. Kevin can't leave without
calling in one more favor. What does
a deceased prophet of the lord want?
For Sam and Dean to get the hell
over their issues. The middle school
drama club antics and the mean-
spirited bickering? Kevin thinks it's
stupid.
Man, Kevin you are not the only one.
Sam and Dean promise him they'll
respect his wishes, but as soon as
the Trans leave Sam doesn't even
spare a moment to quietly judge
Dean; he just walks off leaving Dean
alone.
But he does hesitate at his bedroom
door and one has to wonder why.
Narratively speaking, we have the
brothers at odds. Sam is pissed and
rightly so, but he's not conveying it
in a sympathetic or even accurate
way. Which means Dean can't
actually understand the basic
foundation of Sam's anger. They're
fighting, but they aren't really having
the same argument with each other.
Add to that the fact that the most
consistent theme of this juggling
multiple balls of a season is the
outsider point of view. Jody, Castiel,
Crowley, Kevin, everyone, is
constantly telling Sam and Dean how
unique their relationship is, how
strong and essential it is. The
brother's don't seem to see it,
especially Sam. Yet the brothers'
actions, especially Sam's, seem to
contradict their current state and
scathing word. Or lack of words, as it
also seems to be. The anvils are
falling like Seattle rain.

Let's Speculate: Supernatural
9x15 "Thinman" - The Winchester
via Winchesterfamilybusiness.com
Summary: This episode was quite
anvilicious, I must admit. But much
was saved by the appearance of my
favorite Supernatural guest character/
stars - ED AND HARRY!!! The
Ghostfacers!!! (And they had their
theme song in here too...that was
comforting even if the episode was
not).
The episode opens on what has to be
every teenage and young woman's
nightmare - a selfie gone horribly,
horribly wrong.
Sam and Dean update: They are still
acting like children.
The return of the Ghostfacers
promised a fun-filled episode of
semi-crack hilarity, right? Yeah, that
wasn't the case. We find they've
returned as a couple of supernatural
author/hunters who are chasing
down the "Thinman", which was a
meme from back in 2009. The pair
are in cahoots but we find out that
Harry wanted a "normal life" with a
girl, etc. You see where this is going,
right?
The case is found by Dean who
starts to go on his own because he
doesn't want to share his toys with
the other child, Sam. When they
arrive they quickly learn the
Ghostfacers are in town and much of
the episode is about trying to figure
out if the Thinman is real, which it
turns out he's not. Instead the
murders are being performed by
Comic-Con rejects who like to read
conspiracy theory blogs.
There are some nice moments, such
as when Sam and Dean reminisce
about their childhood - Sam broke
his arm and Dean drove him to the
ER on the handlebars of his bike. The
angst between Ed and Harry was very
pointedly a parallel to Sam and Dean
- Ed made up the Thinman to keep
Harry with him. Well I wonder who
were supposed to link that to? <looks
up as anvil falls>
There was also some really eye
raising commentary on fans and their
internet habits. And the break up of
Harry and Ed at the end is either
foreshadowing or anvilling of Sam
and Dean.
I do have to say that the murdering
duo kind of reminded me of the guys
from The Real Ghostbusters. They
were fans and they did some mean
cosplay, but this time gay love did
not save the world. And for that? I
am really sad.
By the way, Dark Dean is acoming.
Dean's rather cold murder of a
human was marked...see what I did
there?
Speculations and questions for the
week:
Will Ed and Harry return and next
time, will we get to see their
wedding?
As I stated last week, Sam loves
Dean. His scream when the cop was
about to kill Dean was not an "all
business" scream. Sam needs to be
honest with himself but I think his
realization will be too late to save us
from a Dark Dean arc.
So that stabbing? As I stated before
and I will again, Dean's mark of cain
is sending him on the fast track to
demonhood or its equivalent.
How are you dealing with the anvils
in your yard, readers? I'm thinking of
decorating mine with lights and
artificial flowers.
Meta question: Do you really think,
show, that you are going on for the
fans and is there a slight resentment
there?

A Sashurai's Review: Supernatural -
Season 915
In a "Slender Man" meets "Scream"
style episode, Sam and Dean reunite
with Harry and Ed from the
Ghostfacers when a teen girl is killed
by an internet myth known
as...
Thinman.
I was a part of the Slender Man saga
and like to follow it's incarnations,
and even watched a few notably
decent fan films. At first I really
groaned when this became the
parody plot, but as it went on I
realized I was more taken in by the
story's attempt at duplicating Sam
and Dean's sibling hardships in the
guise of Harry and Ed who are going
through similar troubles. What I think
works really well is the concept that
Sam and Dean need to step outside
their shells and see what their
problem looks like on the other side
of he window. Not only does this
work in small doses, but it makes
Sam and Dean see this at the same
time. I also want to credit Dean for
slyly bringing up a childhood
memory that caught Sam reminiscing
for a moment, before realizing it.
I never have been and still am not a
fan of the Ghostfacers concept or
characters. Having said that, I do
believe Harry and Ed deserved an
episode that pulled out some deeper
feelings within the two. As bromies
go, one can sympathize with either
Harry or Ed considering what they
both went through although what
Harry did is a hard sell in the real
world. Manipulation to maintain
friendship is "complicated" and a
rather defeatist tool to keep those
close at heart. Ed's intentions were
honest to a point, but people like
Harry deserve to make their own
mistakes. Even with Harry and Ed
separated, I don't think it will
negatively impact Sam and Dean's
situation. If anything, it should shed
better light on the futility of Sam's
push to keep Dean as strictly a
hunting partner and not a true
brother.
The plot's mystery touched on a few
ideas that I'm not sure which were
intended and which were more
layered in analysis, but I'll try and
see if I can spot everything I noticed.
Firstly, the concept of cos-real. The
internet finds ways to build niche's
that adore and help build interesting
lore whether it's old paranormal, new
paranormal, or just good old-
fashioned mystique in the unknown.
The idea that people can attach their
minds to capitalize on viral violence
is a scary thought. There's
thousands of viral content produced
daily and lately, there's been more
and more pressure with creating
videos that are "fake" or set up to
fool the casual observer that it isn't
real. This episode showcased the
ability to put murder online and treat
it as myth and drive its fanbase wild
with views and comments. Is that
something that could happen or has
it already? Scream 4 touched on this
concept and I think "#Thinman"
represents an extension on how viral
video and shock value video can
effect those who want to push the
envelope. The most relevant point
about this episode was when Sam
and Dean realized that there were no
supernatural forces at work.
Humanity can be just as dark as any
creature they come across. and Dean
still had to put a human down.
On a lighter topic, I think this episode
more than any has truly trumped Sam
and Dean's understanding of pop-
culture meme's and current slang.
Harry threw words like "feels" and
how to pronounce meme and while
some were within earshot, you can
plainly see that Sam and Dean aren't
getting it. In a way, they've become
the Castiel's of awkward lingo being
thrown at them. Obviously the pair is
going to be out of touch on those
types of words, meanings, and
subjects, but they also have laptops
and still meet a lot of people. I don't
think they need to be painted as that
ignorant considering the nerd-culture
they come into contact season by
season. I've read the word "feels"
hundreds of times online, but hearing
someone saying it outloud...hasn't
happened yet. A lot of Harry's
dialogue seemed to keep him at a
strange level of adolescence and
often didn't work for me. The writers
haven't forgotten who the fans are
and that's good, but Sam and Dean,
at least Sam, needs to be a little
more savvy with the jargon of the
now. Just a thought.
Overall, I wasn't expecting a filler
episode so soon, but like the wrap
up of Kevin and his mother, it was
time to once more close the book,
this time on the Ghostfacers. One
would think this really is the wrap-up
season, but we know better. This
episode was designed to showcase
Sam and Dean's problem right in
front of them and I think it was
successfully accomplished. Sam has
to be the one to truly make the effort
to return to old roots. Dean's ready,
he's always been ready. Whether he
needs to eat some crow at some
point for Sam's benefit, I'm not sure.
I'm hoping the demon plot becomes
our next big arc. Abaddon needs
some screen time to fill.

spn 9x15 reviews:

It appears that none of the huge
issues of this season are troubling
neither Sam nor Dean. Life for the
Winchesters is seemingly much
calmer than in recent years as
tonight's episode of Supernatural has
them crossing paths with The
Ghostfacers. It's the same cookie
cutter monster-of-the-week episode
we've seen multiple times this
season. Though we haven't seen the
quirky duo of Ed Zeddmore and Harry
Sangler since way back in ""It's A
Terrible Life" in Season 4, the story
of the infamous Thinman legend
killing a young girl got their
attention. Thus ensues a fair amount
of tragedies, but probably not from
who or what you would expect.
It's not farfetched to say that The
Ghostfacers were brought back for a
reason. And while many times a
lighter touch of parallels will have a
more profound impact on the
audience, anvils and hammers were
thought more appropriate as they
were smashing through the narrative
like they were dropped carelessly
from the top of the Empire State
Building. Although obvious, the
parallel of Ed and Harry to Sam and
Dean is a bad one at that. Ed and
Harry may have been at odds, but
they are nowhere close to
experiencing what Sam and Dean
have. For starters, Ed and Harry
chose to seek out the supernatural,
to be in this life. Sam and Dean were
brought up as children into it; they
didn't have much of a choice. And
when Sam did try to choose a normal
life for himself he was belittled by
his father and then guilted back into
hunting later by his brother. That's
the difference right there; a feeling of
"have to" and "want to". Dean wanted
to because his father told him he
should. And now both brothers don't
know how to do much else. Although
Ed and Harry may have been through
a few tough spots together; Sam and
Dean have fought, bled, lied, saved,
and betrayed each other countless
times. They've died for each other.
For the whole world. I'd say their
wounds run a little deeper than just
one lie that got out of hand. Even if
that lie killed innocent people, it's no
comparison to the constant turmoil
that is Sam and Dean's troubled
relationship.
The brothers have apparently put all
their supernatural problems on hold
to sulk and take it easy, which is a
bit more than odd to say the least. In
the past, despite their differences,
Sam and Dean have always ventured
forward to accomplish shared goals.
Sure they have hunted regular run of
the mill monsters in the past and it's
a nice change on occasion from big
overhanging arcs, but they've never
just stopped trying to solve the major
problems in front of them. Even if
Sam wasn't willing to pretend like
everything is okay and work with him,
Dean would normally continue to
work on the current dilemma they
were faced with. Seems more than
suspicious to me. You would think
helping Castiel, his adoptive "I need
you" family member, who has been
M.I.A. from the brothers for four
episodes might be a priority. They
wouldn't just be helping Castiel,
either. They would also be seeking
out a resolution to the Metatron,
Gadreel, and angels' situation. What
about the Mark of Cain? Is that ever
going to be mentioned again or
developed upon? Right now it's just
a cool looking tattoo that hasn't been
utilized as I'd hoped when Dean
received it. Everything this season
has taken a back seat while the
brother's codependency issues are
front and center. For the umpteenth
time.
Casey, who was the innocent victim
in the first five minutes of this week's
episode, was dead in under three.
That might be a new record. There's
no wasted time in slicing her up to
get to the Winchesters but there's
plenty of precious time spent on
pointless banter between Ed and
Harry about memes or making rude
and sexist comments. The comedic
relief was less of a relief and more of
a cringe inducing anxiety. Things can
be funny without being demeaning.
Rather than spending precious
minutes on offensive jokes, that time
could have been spent talking about
any number of pressing issues that
are more important and actually
relate to the story.
However, there were a few moments
that stood out and I could really
appreciate. The short story told by
Dean of when they were just kids was
a highly adorable and fond memory
for both brothers. Even if it did end
up with Sam going to the ER. It
reminded us once again how long
Dean has been taking care of Sam.
Another moment was when Dean
slapped another man's ass to get his
attention rather than simply calling
his name or tapping on his shoulder.
It was a conscious, if fairly
suspicious, choice to see and adds
fuel to multiple interpretations of
Dean's sexuality. See, a little subtlety
can go a long way, no?
There was something else that really
stood out to me in this episode.
Dean Winchester killed a human,
which as far as I can remember is a
first for him. He may have been the
bad guy of the episode, but he was
just a human with no powers of
super strength or mind control.
Incapacitating him and calling the
cops would have been the better,
less morally ambiguous option. Even
Sam commented on it. I have to say
it's such a painful thing to watch one
of your favorite characters change
into someone you barely recognize.
And it's not only Dean but Castiel as
well. Tragedies, you could call them.
The real tragedy though is not just
that Dean killed a human who he
could have simply disarmed or that
Sam was sick yet again for a good
portion of the season or that
Castiel's absence is felt exceedingly
as each episode without him that
passes feels more and more forced
and dismal rather than exciting and
entertaining. The real tragedy is
watching Sam and Dean do the same
song and dance that they have done
for the past eight seasons with little
development past it. It's even worse
when you consider season eight and
how much development for all three
members of Team Free Will there
was. Then you fast forward to the
present with their overt regression
and it's as noticeable as a howling
screech in the dead of night.
Overall the episode fell flat and once
again failed to answer questions that
have been left unanswered for too
long. Where's Castiel? Is he okay?
Where's Abaddon? What is she up
too? Or Metatron and Gadreel? What
are they planning now? Are all of the
villains of this season just
conveniently laying low until the
Winchesters are back in the hunting-
together spirit? I hope the next few
episodes start answering these
questions, as well as bringing us
some development to the vast
amount of other plotlines that have
fallen to the wayside. Even though
there's a gold mine of mythology to
draw on and plenty big bads to deal
with, it feels a bit like trying to dig
your way out of a prison cell with a
plastic spoon when there's a full
arsenal of tools sitting in the corner
right next to you. I had high hopes
for Dean having his own myth arc
and Castiel to be with Sam and Dean,
but alas. The only thing I'm really
happy about is that Sam is sticking
to his guns and not shoving what
happened in 901 under the rug. It's
important that the brothers deal with
this and their numerous other issues
surrounding each other if they ever
want to live happy lives (well as
happy as a hunter's life can be).
Although, we've been down this road
before. I can only pray that there's
follow-through this time and we see
the brothers find a middle ground of
sorts. It may be painful to watch
them go through, but it's absolutely
necessary at this point. I'm excited
at the prospect of Dean and Sam
developing a healthier relationship
and for us to get off this tiresome
loop we've been stuck on since
season one. Here's hoping for more
mythology driven episodes and that
the slight progress past
codependency is not in vain. Again.

credit
http://thegeekiary.com/supernatural-review-9x15-thinman/7672

Jess' Fangirl Haven - SPN #9x15
Thinman (episode review)
Here are my thoughts on this one...
A as in "anvil." Is it me or was the
episode pretty heavy-handed in
equating Ed & Harry's situation with
Sam and Dean's? I mean yeah, we
get it. Dean=Ed and Harry=Sam.
I always liked the Ghostfacers, they
were always good for some light-
heartedness, etc. But now we learn
that everyone was gonna bail on Ed,
that the other two Facers left and
then Harry was going to leave. He
was going to live a happy life, have a
girlfriend, etc. Gee, does that sound
familiar? And then Ed drags him back
in and invents the Thinman. Ed
doesn't want to be alone and he
loves how excited Harry got about
the Thinman (his excitement did
seem pretty over the top). But the
cop guy is all disgruntled and the
bus boy at the diner hates his boss
so they team up and people get
killed.
Ed confesses to our boys that he
made up the Thinman. Sam and Dean
tell him he has to tell Harry. Sam
says that lies ruin relationships.
Yeah, no shit.
He also tells Harry there are some
things you can forgive and some you
can't, and that Harry will have to
decide for himself which one it is.
I like that they decide to get in on it
and try to save Sam and Dean at the
end. Harry is upset when Ed
confesses to him, basically reacting
the same way as Sam has to Dean.
He decides in the end that what they
have is "complicated" and gets a ride
with Sam and Dean, leaving Ed there.
The part where Harry tells them that
he thought they'd always be together,
like being old and seeing the other
rocking chair there, was pretty
powerful. He asks if they know what
he means and they don't answer, but
you can see it in their faces
Our boys are still pretty awkward, and
we can tell their interaction is still
more business related. Sam decides
to join Dean on the case purely from
a business standpoint, at least in the
beginning. But I think we did see a
nice little ease in the tension when
they were in the motel room and
Dean started reminiscing about them
in their superhero costumes, about
how Sam broke his ...was it leg or
arm, I can't remember now. But about
him taking him to emergency and all
that. Sam chuckled a little and when
Dean said they were good times, Sam
replied "Yeah, it was." Nice little
break there and of course it is
realistic that there is still tension
there. I hope they will finally get to
have a much needed conversation
about this soon.
So...was nice seeing the
Ghostfacers again and had a chuckle
at some of their over-the-top
behavior early on (50 Shades of Too
Much Protein?? Lol), but a lot of the
heavy-handedness almost made my
head hurt.

Winchesters Through the Funhouse
Mirror: Supernatural's Thinman
http://fangasmthebook.wordpress.com/2014/03/06/winchesters-through-the-funhouse-mirror-supernaturals-thinman/
I've had so many different thoughts
about Thinman' that my head is still
spinning - once again, I woke up
this morning already writing this
review in my head, which I suppose
isn't a bad thing (unless of course I
was supposed to do something else
this morning...cough...work...cough...)
There was alot I loved about this
episode. In fact, Jenny Klein should
expect a tackle hug next time I see
her for the Weechesters flashback
scene alone (fair warning, Jenny).
I love that we saw some progress
with the Mark of Cain story arc,
which is a road I'm anticipating
going down even as I'm biting my
nails about the dark places Show
intends to take us. I've been
theorizing about the Mark and what
its impact on Dean has been already,
and am intrigued by the possibility
that part of what it does is pull the
wearer away from those he loves,
isolating him from family and turning
him away from love and affection and
his own humanity, so he can kill
without remorse or regret. It's a
punishment more than a gift,
influencing those he loves most to
turn away from him. And that's
terrifying. One of my favorite themes
of the Show is Dean's understanding
of why he and Sam are better
together, especially after he glimpses
a future without Sam in The End':
"We keep each other human." It's
true. Sam has repeatedly been the
one thing that keeps Dean from going
darkside, from becoming the vicious
killer that he secretly believes he is.
If the Mark can separate Dean from
Sam, how close to that internal self
image will Dean become?
Already we can see Dean pulling
away - he intends to go off on this
hunt alone, assuming that Sam won't
want to come with him. At the
beginning of the episode, Dean still
doesn't understand where Sam is
coming from. (Since Show hasn't
exactly been very forthcoming with
Sam's pov, we can empathize). He's
getting used to being hurt, though,
so he's becoming defensive, pre-
emptively walking away from Sam in
preparation for Sam walking away
from him. That beginning was chock
full of meaning, and it left me with a
gnawing anxiety about what was to
come in the rest of the episode.
Then there was the confrontation
with the MotW badguys, which took
the anxiety to full-on fear. Watching
Dean plunge the knife into that
(admittedly monstrous but still
human) young man was chilling -
we saw Sam's reaction for a second
too, as he catalogs his brother's
coldness. That scene and Jensen
Ackles' face were perfect.
I'm bouncing with anticipation to see
where this story arc takes us. I'm
fairly certain it's going to rip my
heart out, but if that stopped me
from watching, I would have bailed
on SPN years ago.
And once again in this episode, Show
gives us a clear example of how very
much Sam still loves and cares about
his brother. In fact, Show has been
careful to do this in every episode
since the brothers' estrangement, to
keep showing us that the love is still
there. Sam's agonized "Nonono,
don't!" and the expression on his
face when Dean was about to have
his throat cut just floored me with
how much anguish was there. I
found myself screaming right along
with Sam. Kudos, Jared, you broke
me. (In contrast, look at Dean's face,
stone cold and calm, like he's ready
to die and really doesn't give a damn
if he does. Chilling). Kudos to you
too, Jensen.
Protective Sam
Resigned Dean
I liked that the episode was based off
the real Slenderman' phenomenon,
which gave the Show an invitation to
go a little meta, one of my favorite
flavors of SPN. The beginning was
satisfyingly scary and creepy and
gory, which is what I expect from the
first five minutes of Show, and I sort
of wished the monster-of-the-week
was "real" just because he creeped
me out so much. In the end, though,
it was a nice twist that the
Winchesters were dealing with
monstrous humans again. We didn't
get to see them struggle with that
too much in this episode, but
hopefully we'll see the idea come up
again. It's something Kripke was
interested in from the beginning -
the idea that sometimes it's humans
who are the most monstrous, that
what appears to be a monster on the
outside might not be, and what
doesn't might be after all. Also, the
fact that they were human gave
Dean's swift dispatch of the busboy
a gut-wrenching impact (literally, for
the busboy) that left me shuddering.
My favorite callback to canon line?
"Sheriff's on a hunting trip..." I
actually yelled at the television "And
he hasn't been home in a few days".
I straight up got goosebumps at that
line.
And maybe during this scene too, for
an entirely different reason. Sam and
Dean in tight white dress shirts with
rolled sleeves? Thank you for
whoever made this happen - please
don't stop any time soon.
GUH
I also like the Ghostfacers, so I was
happy to see them back after all this
time and all the actors' convention
appearances. I'm kind of glad that
Show didn't go where I expected it to
with the Ghostfacers, that instead of
comic relief, their story went dark
and tragic and ended up painful. I
like to be surprised, and that was
unexpected. Wester and Buckley
proved they can do sad as well as
funny - Buckley had me tearing up
at the end, as Ed stands there alone
and heartbroken and Harry gets into
the backseat of the Impala just as
broken. The actors did such a great
job that I really felt for the
characters. Good job all around on
that last scene - script, directing,
acting, cinematography, everything. It
came through with more impact that I
would have expected.
Much of the meta on social media,
fame and fandom gave the episode
some great comedic moments. Travis
Wester and AJ Buckley can do humor
as well as Jared and Jensen (which
is really saying something) so there
were many times during the episode
that I laughed out loud in the literal
way, not the meaning-morphed LOL
way. Klein gave the Ghostfacers and
the Winchesters some excellent lines
to chew on, and according to Jared's
tweets, AJ and Travis ad-libbed some
into the script as well, giving viewers
some much-needed comedic breaks
from the angst that we've been
drowning in for much of this season.
Some of the best lines were clear
shout outs to fandom.
"No one cares what they think, they
don't even have a twitter" (Or was
this a shout out to the still-
twitterless Ackles?)
"I just got punched right in the
feels." (99% of fandom, every
Tuesday)
Also that whole conversation about
the pronunciation of "meme" was
brilliant - because who the hell was
sure how to pronounce it? Osric
confided that he's still saying me-
me. He he.
Also any dialogue that gets Dean to
say "treasure trail" is A plus in my
book.
It's always a risk when Show decides
to comment directly on fans, because
let's face it, many of us go
hypervigilant when we see it
happening, always alert for "what
they really think of us." (Us included,
since we wrote two books that aimed
to discover exactly what "they" really
did think of us!) I still love the meta
episodes in which Kripke broke the
fourth wall to depict fans on the
Show, with such a deft mix of
affection and poking fun (at the
show, the fans, across the board) -
but then there was the episode I've
excised from canon (something
about a wedding...) and it's easy to
see just how wrong this can go. I
enjoyed most of the meta in this
episode, though the "Let's keep it
going for the fans, they'll never
know" was an exception, sounding
too much like a fans-are-clueless
comment.
As always, watching SPN along with
cast and crew live tweets adds to the
fun. You never know who's going to
join in - sometimes even Captain
Kirk himself!
@Jarpad: @WilliamShatner, you
should be watching Supernatural!!!
@WilliamShatner: It's DVRing
@Jarpad: Ok...then I can forgive
Sometimes when fandoms collide like
that, I just end up staring at my
twitter feed and grinning like a fool.
Of course Captain Kirk watches
Supernatural - my Show is a pop
culture phenomenon, damn it!
Jared echoed fandom a few times:
@Jarpad: Oh, Sam and Dean...I hate
when y'all argue...
And so did Osric Chau, who was
tweeting along
@OsricChau: Brother bonding
moment
All that laughter felt really good -
until suddenly everything went from
hahaha this is so funny to OMG take
the knife out of my heart and the
anvil off my foot!
I'll confess that I'm a little touchy
about subtlety. Anyone who reads
these reviews knows that I adore
parallels, and think that Kripke's
original formula of letting the MotW
mirror the Winchesters' relationship
is brilliant. That said, as soon as the
parallel starts to feel too on-the-
nose, it yanks me right out of the
Show. That messes with my viewing
experience - and that upsets me. I
like the idea of setting up the
Ghostfacers' relationship woes to
mirror the Winchesters', and this
morning I'm more okay with it than I
was at first viewing, but as I sat
there watching on Tuesday night, the
parallel seemed so heavy-handed
that I couldn't take it seriously. There
was a lot of "Help, falling anvils!" on
twitter, and there were some upset
fans who took to twitter afterwards to
make their complaints known. Then
there were fans just trying to get their
squee on who took to twitter to
chastise those fans, and... well, you
know how this goes.
I get both sides - in fact, in this
case, I feel like I was on both sides!
I get why fans are upset when Show
seemingly does something that's not
perfect. Let's face it, we hold Show
to a pretty damn high standard. We
want it to be witty and funny and
smart and breathtakingly gorgeous
and also to make us FEEL, which is a
lot to expect (I can't be the only one
remembering what a mistake it was
to expect all that in teenage romantic
partners...). But we do expect it from
our favorite Show. We're passionately
invested in Show's "success" - that
is, when the Show delivers all these
things, we feel like it's a winner. And
we, in turn, also feel like a winner.
There's research (yes, legit empirical
research, for those of you who are
academically inclined) that shows
that when a sports team wins, the
invested fans of that team experience
the exact same rush of endorphins
and euphoria that the actual players
do. It's the same for media fans -
when we feel like "our" Show is witty
and funny and smart and gorgeous
and tugging at our heartstrings
successfully, then it's a "win" for us
too. But if it seems our Show falls
short of the mark, we're devastated -
and then we're angry at our "team"
for not winning so we can have that
lovely addictive endorphin rush! As I
was watching the first time, I had
plenty of euphoric moments, but I felt
a bit of that let-down too when the
parallels weren't the subtle sort that I
love.
I'm invested in Supernatural, and I
watch to get my fix of these
fascinating characters and this
amazing intricate world I've been
sucked into over the past nine years.
So when something doesn't quite go
the way I wish it would, I need to sit
back and figure out why. I don't want
to be that devastated fan sitting in
the bleachers with her head in her
hands - I want to be jumping up and
down cheering and euphoric and
eagerly counting off the days until
the next "game". Over nine years, I've
come to trust Show to take me there
about 9 times out of 10, which is a
pretty damn good record (better than
some early examples of that dating
analogy).
Having pondered for two days, and
rewatched the episode, I'm still
happy about all the things I loved,
and I'm alot happier about the
parallels. Here's why: The blatant
parallel works for me if I look at it
from the Winchesters' point of view,
and in fact the whole episode works
well this way. It's almost like I'm
reading a piece of outsider pov fanfic
(one of my favorite things in the
world) - we're seeing Ed and Harry
through Dean and Sam's eyes (even
when Sam and Dean aren't in the
room with the Facers, it's like we're
seeing and hearing from the
Winchesters' pov).
Perhaps that's why the things Ed and
Harry say to each other are at times
almost a verbatim repeat of what the
brothers have said to each other in
the past. Many times, it's literally
what Dean and Sam are hearing. The
camera angles and perspectives
make this explicit - we are watching
Dean or Sam watch Ed and Harry.
They don't comment overtly on what
they're seeing and hearing, but we
see their line of sight, their
concerned expressions, their
constant sideways glances at each
other to check on how their brother
is reacting. We can almost hear the
Winchesters' internal dialogue: "How
is he hearing this? Does he think
that's what I'm doing? What I did?
What meaning is he taking from what
he's seeing here? Is this where we're
headed too?" I was going to say that
I wish they had actually said some of
that, but honestly, I don't. At first
viewing, I thought this episode lacked
subtlety - watching it this way, the
Winchesters say plenty with just
those looks. And each one breaks my
heart.
The other thing that bothered me
about using Ed and Harry as a mirror
for Dean and Sam was that the
parallel just didn't work well for me. I
mean, the Ghostfacers and the
Winchesters have vastly different
histories. Ed didn't practically raise
Harry, and they haven't saved each
other's lives a million times. When
Harry accuses Ed of "dragging me
away from a normal life" it seems
like that could apply to Sam too -
except Dean had a real reason for
doing so, not a fabricated lie. And he
brought Sam back. Sam chose to
come with Dean after Jess was killed,
he wasn't tricked. He's choosing to
stay with Dean now (at least as a
hunting partner) when he knows the
truth about Gadreel.
They also have vastly different
missions - the Ghostfacers haven't
been tasked with repeatedly saving
the world, after all. They haven't had
to make the kind of impossible
decisions with which the Winchesters
grapple on a weekly basis. Yes, there
are surface similarities in their
situations. There's one partner who
desperately doesn't want to lose the
other and deceives them to
accomplish that, which superficially
fits both duos - or at least fits from
Sam's overt understanding of what
happened with him and Dean. Yes,
lies were told and people died and
the deceived person feels
responsible for those deaths. He
also feels understandably betrayed
and not sure he can keep trusting.
But there are so many differences in
their situations, it's hard for me to
see a mirror image. Ed created the
Thinman fantasy to keep Harry as his
partner; Dean deceived Sam to save
his life. There's nothing keeping Sam
from leaving Dean. Ed's deceit
seems mostly selfish, although he
rationalizes it as getting Harry away
from a life that wasn't "right" for him
- but it's made fairly clear that's
only a rationalization. Dean's deceit
may have been partly selfish, in that
he doesn't want to be without Sam,
but it was also clearly about Sam
too. Saving a life is not the same as
hey, don't marry that girl. Both Harry
and Sam ended up hurt by the deceit,
but Ed and Dean's motivations were
quite different. Ed kept it up for a
ridiculously long time simply
because he wanted Harry to stay;
Dean kept it up reluctantly because
Gadreel kept threatening to let Sam
die if he didn't. It wasn't an
intentional gaslighting, though from
Sam's perspective, intent doesn't
matter quite so much when you're in
the agonizing position (again...) of
thinking you're going crazy. But the
stakes are vastly different here.
So there I sat, gnashing my teeth and
saying "Come on, Show, fandom is
smarter than this, you know that"
when suddenly it hit me. Maybe the
parallel isn't supposed to line up.
What Ed did to Harry is not what
Dean did to Sam. Sure, it sounds like
it on the surface - and maybe that's
why we got the exactly mirrored
dialogue so often - but dig a little
deeper, and it's not a mirror at all.
It's a fun house mirror, with the
reflection skewed and imperfect. At
first, it looks like we're supposed to
see it as a reflection, because we're
still seeing through Sam and Dean's
eyes - and they are seeing the
parallels. They are seeing the mirror
image as closer to their own than it
really is, because that's how any of
us would view it if the reflection was
right there in our faces. But Dean and
Sam are smart. They're almost as
smart as the SPN fandom. They'll
figure it out. They'll see the places
where the images don't line up,
where the reflections diverge. They'll
use the mirror in (perhaps) the way it
was intended - to see that their own
path forward doesn't have to be the
one that the Ghostfacers followed.
Harry's forlorn comment from the
backseat hit home, both with me and
with the Winchesters.
"You roll with a guy so many years,
you start to think he's always going
to be next to you. When you're old
he'll be in the rocking chair next to
you..."

Neither Sam nor Dean want that
rocking chair next to them on the
porch to be empty. (And Jenny, be
prepared for another tackle hug from
me for that image of future!Sam and
Dean, which is the ending of some of
my favorite fanfics). I can see the
wheels turning for both of them.
Agonizingly slowly, yes, but this
wouldn't be Supernatural if it didn't
shatter my heart and then drag it
through the mud for five or six or
twenty episodes. But I can see the
glimmers of understanding in both
Sam and Dean, and it's enough to
keep me hopeful.
...empty rocking chair
The highlight of the episode, other
than the fact that we actually saw
some evolution in the Winchesters'
relationship drama (albeit without
words), was the glimpse we got into
Sam and Dean's childhood. Every
time Show gives us a morsel of
backstory, it feels like the most
delicious treat imaginable. And this
one was perfect, absolutely perfect.
It's in line with all my head canon of
how Sam and Dean were as kids, and
(as Dean no doubt intended), an
illustration of all the countless times
that Dean took care of Sam. The
image of an injured Sammy balanced
on just-a-kid-himself Dean's
handlebars as he races to the
hospital left me so emotional I didn't
know whether to squee or sob. Sam
wanting to be Batman, following in
his big brother's footsteps always -
it reiterates so much of canon
history, so many things the brothers
have said to each other and been to
each other. You can see how
emotional Dean is as he remembers,
a fond expression on his face (and
eye crinkles!)
You can see that Sam has the same
fond recollection, affectionately
ribbing his brother (like they used to
all the time, OMG Show you're killing
me here!) before he schools his face
into a more serious expression.
Kudos to Padalecki for making it look
like Sam had to really struggle to do
so.
So, in the end, I liked this episode a
lot. I don't know whether the
imperfect mirroring was intentional,
or if TPTB insisted that the parallels
be more on the nose so even a brand
new viewer could get it, as they're
apt to do. I prefer to believe the
former, because there's a reason
SPN is my tv boyfriend. Show really
is smart and witty and funny and
gorgeous and makes me FEEL. So I'll
be right here in the bleachers,
cheering for my winning team.
PS - Twitter started clamoring for
fanart of that backstory immediately,
and fandom, as always, didn't
disappoint. If the uncredited one is
yours, please let us know so we can
credit. Couldn't resist posting them
all, because damn, our fandom is
talented.