Supernatural Station

Lazarus Rising

Supernatural Season 4, episode #1.
Airdate: Thursday September 18, 2008.
Written by Eric Kripke.
Directed By Kim Manners.

In deference to my overseas visitors wish not to be spoiled, episode review posts and images are no longer being displayed in the blog index. Please click on the post link or go to the “Reviews” category to read a review.

• Synopsis: Click here to read the episode summary.

  Dean Winchester is back! His soul has been pulled from the pits of hell and pushed back into his body with such force that the trees surrounding his burial site have been flattened. After dragging himself out of his own grave, he finds that his body has been completely healed of all mortal wounds, but there is a new scar on his shoulder, a scar that looks like a hand print.

  When Dean knocks on Bobby's door, Bobby' reaction is disbelief and kill-first-ask-questions later. He is convinced only after Dean demonstrates that a cut from a silver knife doesn't poison and holy water in the face doesn't burn.

  When Dean and Bobby shows up at Sam's motel room, Sam's reaction to Dean's appearance is disbelief and kill-first-ask-questions later. He is convinced only when Bobby tells him it's really him and Dean says “I look fantastic”.

  After Sam denies having anything to do with Dean's resurrection, though he did try and fail, they visit a psychic friend of Bobby's to get answers. But the entity cannot be viewed with human eyes and the psychic is blinded for her efforts.

  Next, the Winchester question some demons in the area, but they too have no answers and are running scared. Sam wants to kill the demons, but Dean says no they are outnumbered. Dean wants to summon the thing that pulled him from hell, but Sam says no it's too dangerous.

  Sam sneaks off to confront the demons with an all-new Ruby as companion. Deans goes off to summon the entity with good old Bobby at his side. Sam succeeds and sends the demon to hell with his bare hands and a new found psychic ability. Dean summons the entity, but cannot kill it despite his best efforts. This being now occupying the body of a man, claims to be a angel of the lord. He tell Dean he has been resurrected to perform a mission for God.
  The end.

• Praises: Supernatural's season 4 premiere finally arrived and I was blown away. I already knew Dean would return, but Kripke managed to surprise me with the story anyway. There was plenty of drama, some good comic moments, tense moments, and a little gore. There was no real scares, but this episode's three big shocker scenes more than made up for that.

  The opening scene was jaw dropping. With intermittent bursts of light like flashes of a camera, we glimpsed Dean in a world of blood, fear and noise. Then it was silent and pitch black and Dean was in a coffin. His struggle to speak and then break free was spellbinding. When he emerged from the ground and we saw the devastation around his gravesite…and that strange hunched back shadow he cast in the morning sun…that just wowed me! Amazing and shocking and one of Supernatural's best scenes ever. Fantastic acting, directing, and special effects!

  After Dean managed to avoid being killed by Bobby and later Sam, who thought he was either a shapeshifter or demon, their reunion was touching. Oddly, Sam's reaction, though initially strong, was not as intense nor as sustained as I expected. He was less emotional about it than in Mystery Spot. I believe this was deliberately written by Kripke. He made Sam appear more interested in killing demons than in being reunited with his brother. When it was revealed that Sam lied to Dean about Ruby and about his use of his demon-linked psychic mojo, that was the second big shocker of the episode.

  But Kripke wasn't done. He delivered the most unexpected shock of all in the last few minutes of the episode…the reveal of who saved Dean, Castiel, a self-described “angel of the Lord”. Angels are a new addition to Supernatural's mythology. Some people have express fears that this may drive away viewers who don't want to see any religion in the show. I think the opposite will happen…this is what I and many other fans have wanted to see for a long time…a true good vs. evil showdown, if Castiel is really “good”, that is. I’ve learned that you can't trust Kripke on these things.

  I enjoyed every minute of this episode. I laughed at Dean getting splashed in the face by Bobby and when both brothers were propositioned by the psychic. I was awed when Castiel revealed his huge wings. I was also fascinated by the intermittent camera focus on Dean's bruised and battered hands. It seemed a deliberate reminder that Dean is human, that although he dug himself out of his own grave, that although he cast that eerie, hunched back shadow, that although his body is mysteriously healed, he can still be damaged like the rest of us. Then there is Sam, just as mysterious and once again with psychic abilities. The camera hinted of an unhumaness to Sam…he was backlight by blood-red light when he and Dean were reunited and his eyes appeared dark and demon like when he opened them after using his mojo to exorcise a demon. These hints makes me excited about whats going to happen in the rest of this season.

  In conclusion, this was the best season premiere possible. Fans were given back their fallen hero, the mythology has had a dramatic change, and the Winchester brothers are once again as mysterious as they were when we were first discovering them back in season one.

• Nags: Though I thoroughly loved this episode, I do have a few nitpicks. The biggest was the actress Genevieve Cortese, who played Chrissie. When it was revealed that she was in fact, Ruby, my reaction was disbelief. The actress just didn't demonstrate any of the demonic smartalecky behavior that personifies Ruby. She was too soft-spoken and completely unanimated. I never thought I'd say this, but Katie Cassidy was a better Ruby.

  Another bothersome thing was how Dean conveniently had a lighter on him in his coffin. That just didn't make sense to me. If Sam had left him a lighter because he thought he might need it, then wouldn’t he have also put a shovel and a flashlight in the coffin too?

  Lastly, I was a little disappointed that Dean has lost the ability to see demons that he had in No Rest for the Wicked. Too bad he is now only human…though having a badass guardian angel at his side doesn't hurt. Fortunately these are minor flaws in what is sure to be recognized as one of Supernatural's best episodes ever.

• My Rating: Excellent episode. 4 and a half out of 5 stars.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 21st, 2008 at 1:56 am and is filed under Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.