Supernatural Station

Bedtime Stories

Supernatural Season 3, episode #5.
Airdate: Thursday Nov 1, 2007.
Written by Cathryn Humphries.
Directed by Mike Rohl.

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• Synopsis: Click here to read the episode summary

  Heading to New York to investigate a suspected werewolf attack, the Winchesters have another argument about Sam wanting to break Dean’s demonic contract. Without resolving the issue, they proceed with the case and find that the attacks were done in a fairytale like way by apparently ordinary people. This turns their attention to a ghost child that can control people’s minds. But there’s no grave or bones to burn because this ghost is that of a long-term comatose patient. While Dean fights off a man who believes he’s the big bad wolf, Sam gets the girl’s father to accept that his daughter was comatose due to no accident and to let her go. After the girl dies and the ghost vanishes, Dean also tells Sam that letting go is good advise. Later, while Dean sleeps, Sam packs up and leaves taking the colt with him. He confronts the crossroads demon, but she refuses to let Dean out of his contract. Then, even though the demon said that her death wouldn’t get Dean off, Sam shoots and kills her.

• Praises: Supernatural returned to it’s roots in this episode and very successfully too. I was happy to have an episode with no distracting new cast members. It was just the boys doing what they do best with some brotherly interaction and some mytharc thrown in. Sam did the talking, Dean did the fighting, and they got rid of the bad thing in the end. There were even flashbacks scenes of their Dad in the intro and Sam mentioned him in his remark to Dean that “you’re not Dad!”. It was good to be reminded that though John is gone, he’s not forgotten. A couple scenes stood out for me in this episode. When Dean walked away from Sam right after telling him that he should just let him go, was particularly poignant. My heart wrenched a little for Sam. And, when Jared shot his girlfriend…um, I mean when Sam shot the Crossroads demon. It seemed cold, but I uttered a “yeah!”. Demons lie and if there was even the slightest chance that it could get Dean out of the contract…[wow, did I get drawn into the story there, or what?]. I also liked the twist in the case where the ghostly remains turned out to be that of a coma victim.

• Nags: As always, my biggest nag is with the “scary” creature. This time, the little girl ghost was just too adorable. She was not even a little evil looking. No way was she believable as an angry ghost capable of killing multiple people. Getting a child to appear evil is hard to do, but a little of the ghostly distortion like was done in Provenance would have helped. And why was this ghost so different that it was capable of taking over people’s minds? Was it because it’s body was still alive? Were the people that it influenced special in some way? I feel gypped because Sam didn’t give a good explanation for this one. All in all, this episode, though not especially outstanding, was comfortingly familiar (yes, you can say that about a “horror” show) and an enjoyable way to spend an hour of my time.

• My Rating: excellent episode. 4 out of 5 stars.

Sin City

Supernatural Season 3, episode #4.
Airdate: Thursday, Oct 25, 2007.
Written by Robert Singer & Jeremy Carver.
Directed by Charles Beeson.

In deference to my overseas visitors who 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. Please note that the blog RSS feed will still have review excerpts.

• Synopsis: Click here to read the episode summary

  The brothers are at Bobby’s trying to restore the demon-killer colt, when demonic omens and a couple of unexplained suicides sends them to a Ohio town where the people have turned their community into a den of drinking and whoring. The brothers find that several people, though changed, are not demon possessed. But a fellow hunter is lured into a trap by a female demon and killed. Dean confronts the demon on his own and gets trapped with her in a cave-in. Attempting a rescue, Sam unknowingly recruits the assistance of the other demon in the town, the priest. When he is attacked, Bobby comes to his rescue armed with the newly restored colt. Demon Ruby had helped Bobby fully restore the gun as a demon-killer. Sam then uses the colt to kill both demons in a shockingly coldblooded manner and rescues Dean.

• Praises: This episode was all about the Supernatural mythology. We got to see the colt rebuilt. Sam's aborted destiny as the leader of a demonic army was reiterated yet again. And it was made perfectly clear that Sam is different. Whether Sam is different because of his anguish over Dean's impending demise and the weight of the secrets that he's carrying, or because he is turning evil, is still a question. Jared is doing an excellent job of portraying a changing Sam. Showing us his old boyish, emo self, mixed in with the more reserved man he's become, and then scaring us (and Dean) with those glimpses of the coldblooded killer that may be his future. On the lighter side, there were a couple amusing scenes that caught my attention: Sam physically dragging his brother away from the temptation of the woman in the car, and Dean putting a pile of quarters atop the “Magic Fingers” in the motel room (see 2.13-Houses of the Holy for explanation). The character Richie was also amusing, though not at all believable as a hunter. His line, “FYI Winchester, words hurt” seemed to have special meaning later when Dean expressed doubts about Sam, reminding us of yellow-eyed demon's tormenting words to him from the season 2 finale.

• Nags: This episode lacked Dean's snarkisms to give us comic relief. There were no scary moments to jolt us out of our boredom. And there were no big fight scenes where Dean gets thrown into a wall and Sam gets choked to get us charged up. The result was a monotonous and depressing episode that too wordy and worst of all, damn preachy. As for Richie, he was so obviously there to be killed that he might as well have had a red shirt on, ala “Star Trek”. And why weren't the brothers even a little suspicious of a priest who hangs out in a bar? If that isn't a sign of demon possession, then I don't know what is. So far the demons that escaped hell through the devil's gate have been a blah lot. Someone needs to remind the shows writers that demons are supposed to be terrifying creatures, not chatty existentialists. With the loss of two of the show's writers, Raelle Tucker and John Shiban, I am now more than a little worried that season 3 is going to flop.

• My Rating: good episode. 3 out of 5 stars.

Bad Day At Black Rock

Supernatural Season 3, episode #3.
Airdate: Thursday, Oct 18, 2007.
Written by Ben Edlund.
Directed by Robert Singer.

In deference to my overseas visitors who 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

  An unexpected call on their Dad's cell phone, sends the Winchesters to Black Rock, NY, where, unbeknownst to them, their father kept a storage container. That container has been broken into and one item, a cursed object has been taken. Confronting the thieves, the brothers inexplicably trip over themselves and end up disarmed and on the other side of their own weapons. When Sam grabs hold of a rabbit's foot, their luck immediately changed. They learn from Bobby that the rabbit's foot is cursed and when someone has it they have a run of good luck, but that luck turns fatally bad when they lose it. In a restaurant, Sam is distracted by a waitress who picks his pocket and takes the rabbit's foot. Dean goes after Bela to take it back but leaves Sam and his bad luck behind in a motel. Dean gets the rabbit's foot and his own run of good luck. Sam has to put out an A/C fire and is nearly killed by a couple hunter friends of Gordon. To remove the curse, the boys perform a cleaning ritual on the rabbit's foot, but not before another confrontation with Bela who steals Dean's winning lottery scratch-off tickets.

• Praises: Only the third episode into Supernatural's third season and we've already got the kind of funny episode that's usually shown in the 2nd half of the season. And this episode was funny. I found myself laughing out loud several times. Jensen, as always, had great comic timing. His depiction of Dean’s childish delight in his brother's and then his own good luck was infectious. The contrast of Sam's suspicions of good luck and his fatalistic acceptance of bad luck was excellently performed by Jared. Jared really surprised me with how good his physical comedy was. The newcomer to the cast, Lauren Cohan, also made her first appearance. Her first scene was pretty good because it was unexpected. I, like the boys, was completely fooled and believed (hoped really) that Sam was going to have some “luck” with a woman for a change. But it was not meant to be. Poor Sammy, even when he has good luck, it goes completely bad when it comes to women. I'll admit that the scene where Dean confronts Bela was interesting and gave us some insights into Bela's character. However, I thought there was better chemistry between Bela and Sam in their one brief scene together. The romantic in me thinks that Bela is just the kind of woman Sam needs…a savvy, street smart female who can take care of herself…not some sweet innocent who'll just get killed or some evil, demonic bitch. Still…she did shoot Sam and rob Dean. That'll put a crimp in any potential relationship. Also back was Sam's nemesis, Gordon. In jail, but still a scary badass and still obsessed with killing Sam. He has recruited another psychotic hunter to do his dirty work so now the Winchesters have yet another opponent to worry about. Pheesh, our boys need a break!

• Nags: Alright Kripke, enough already! I am now officially sick of seeing Ruby's oh-so-fake slo-mo fight scene from the 1st episode. Jamming her down our throats in the “then” bits is not going to get her accepted by fans any easier. In fact, it just gets our backs up. Bela's intro in this episode was definitely better than Ruby's was, but I was still disappointed. When I read about Bela's character in the pre-season, I so wanted her to steal Dean's bull amulet. Had her intro to the series brought with it the long awaited story behind Dean's mysterious amulet, it would have been an instant win. But I guess that was too much to hope for. Jensen and Lauren didn't have much onscreen chemistry. Their scenes together felt somewhat forced. Also, I'm not sure if it's supposed to be this way, but Sam seemed just too emotionally distant. At times, Jared appeared almost wooden, more like set decoration than an active participant in some scenes. That aside, I really did enjoy this light-hearted episode. It was not scary, but that's expected when the evil, supernatural thing is a rabbit's foot.

• My Rating: Great episode. 4 out of 5 stars.

The Kids Are Alright

Supernatural Season 3, episode #2.
Airdate: Thursday, Oct 11, 2007.
Written by Sera Gamble.
Directed by Phil Sgriccia.

In deference to my overseas visitors who 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

  Hoping to hook up, Dean drops by an old girlfriend's house, only to find himself in the middle of a child's birthday party. His ex has a little boy who is celebrating his 8th birthday, and it's been 8 years since Dean was last with his mother. After meeting Ben and seeing a lot of himself in the child, Dean starts to believe that he is the father. At the party, Dean learns that several fathers in the community have died in freak accidents and that their children are now acting strangely. Further investigation reveals that the real children are being taken and replaced with changelings. When Ben is also switched, the Winchesters find the changeling’s lair, kill the changeling mother(queen?), and free all the children. Dean takes Ben home and is disappointed to learn that he is not Ben’s father. While Dean is occupied, Sam surreptitiously looks into his mother's past only to find out that everyone who knew her is now dead. When he confronts Ruby about her knowledge of his mother, she reveals herself as a demon, then tempts Sam with the possibility of saving Dean.

• Praises: I am happy to say that Supernatural was back on it's game this week. Dean was his old charming, rascally self. Sam played the geekboy to perfection, complete with his inability to come up with a decent lie quickly. Even the reappearance of Ruby wasn't all bad. But the best part of all, was seeing Dean with mini-Dean. They were absolutely adorable together. I so felt Dean’s disappointment that Ben was not his kid. But hey, the mom could be lying…a blood test works only if you have a sample to compare it to, and Dean wasn't around back then and neither was that other candidate, seems like. Also notable were the beginnings of new and fascinating twists in Sam's story arc. Somehow, I get the feeling that Sam will…[spoilery speculation hidden]. end up in the midst of a demonic power struggle to fill the gap left by the yellow-eyed demon's demise. Ruby is probably planning to use him as her stepping stone to reach the top. Overall, this episode was fun and interesting. The only scary scene was in the beginning with the powersaw and there weren't many brotherly moments to speak of, but the chemistry between Dean and Ben more than made up for the lack.

• Nags: This episode was, perhaps, a little too cute for Supernatural. Other than that, I don't have too many bad things to say about it. I wish there had been a scene with Sam meeting Ben and noticing his remarkable resemblance to Dean. The not-at-all-scary kids didn't do anything evil other than act brattish, stare balefully and sap their mom's strength…but all kids do that, good or bad. Even in their changeling form, the children just looked pathetic, not scary. In the scene where the mom tries to drown her changeling child, I actually felt more sympathy for the kid, than that murderer mom. I did think that the changeling mother(queen?) looked an awful lot like the alien creature that feeds on salt in a “Star Trek” episode from the original series (I don’t remember the episode name). As for the new recurring character Ruby, she definitely improved as an evil demon. Still, she's no Meg…(or is she?).

• My Rating: Great episode. 4 out of 5 stars.

Supernatural Season 3, episode #1.
Airdate: Thursday, Oct 4, 2007.
Written by Eric Kripke
Directed by Kim Manners.

In deference to my overseas visitors who 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

  A week has passed since hundreds of demons were released into the world. Dean is living it up and Sam is being tolerant of him. When Bobby recruits the boys to investigate a demonic omen, they find a entire family lying dead in front of their TV. An unprovoked attack on a shopper over a pair of shoes, leads the Winchesters to a bar run by a group of demons. When a hunter duo walks into the bar unawares, the Winchesters and Bobby come to their rescue, saving the woman but too late for her husband. This brings them up against the pack of demons, each one representing one of the 7 deadly sins. Hunkered down in a house outside of Lincoln, Nebraska, they confront the demons, sending them back to hell. That is, except for the three who were killed by the mysterious, dagger-wielding Ruby, who came to Sam’s aid when he was cornered by them.

• Praises: I will admit to being pathetically eager for this season opener. I learned to stay away from spoilers after last seasons' gave me false hopes that all 3 Winchesters would survive (I still miss John, damn it!), so apart from the appearance of Katie Cassidy, this episode was almost completely new for me. I liked the idea of the 7 deadly sins and the actor who played “pride” was a riot. It was amusing how Sam and “pride” recognized each other right away. In comparison, Dean and “lust” were lackluster. There were several funny one-liners in this episode, and not just uttered by Dean, either. Bobby got a laugh from me with his “fat, drunk and stupid” line and Sam had several good quips as well. There was also plenty of the ground level camera angles and dramatic lighting that is now synonymous with the show. I particularly liked the upside down angles from the scene where Bobby practically stepped over Dean to greet the other hunters. That hunter-duo was a fascinating couple. We were given just enough of their story to like them and to feel the pain of their loss. The new regular Ruby, made a couple brief and mysterious appearances. I had problems with this character as you will see in the nags section, but I have to admit that my interest was peaked when she was recognized by one of the demons that hasn’t been topside since the middle ages. Oh yeah, I also liked the new "Supernatural" logo as well.

• Nags: This episode delivered the standard Supernatural fare, but it was missing something…that extra umph to take it a step above good. Maybe my expectations were too high and I couldn't help but be a little disappointed with the reality. With the exception of “pride”, the demons representing the 7 deadly sins were neither scary nor very interesting. Lust wasn't sexy. Gluttony wasn't portly enough. Envy was just boring. And the others were practically invisible. I have no idea which one was sloth, greed, or [what is that 7th sin?]. After the brief glimpses of Ruby, my first judgement is…disappointing! How am I supposed to take her seriously as demon hunter when she fights with her long, blonde hair loose and flowing around her face? She must be real talented to be able to do battle with her vision obscured like that. In any real fight, that hair would be an easy weapon for her opponent to use against her. (Has Kripke never seen a cat fight?) But the biggest WTF moment was when I saw “Katie Cassidy” listed as a star of the show, with her name coming right after Jensen Ackles in the credits. Not even Jeffrey Dean Morgan had that billing. This means she’s not just coming in as a recurring role, but as a main member of the cast. This change in the dynamics of the show is going to be hard to accept. I doubt if many fans will like it.

• My Rating: Good episode. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Crossroads Blues - A Must-See Episode of Supernatural

One of my favorite episodes of the season, Crossroad Blues, will be re-aired this Sunday June 24th, 2007 at 9:00pm EDT on the CW. If you have never watched Supernatural or just wasn’t interested in it, this is the episode that could make you change your mind. It is that good.

Crossroads Blues get’s its name from a song by the Grandfather of Rock-and-Roll himself, Robert Johnson. It’s premise is that Robert Johnson did indeed sell his soul to become the greatest blues guitarist of all time, as has often been speculated. The actor who plays Johnson even looks like the musician. This episode has a lot going for it. It has a great story, the best music, good acting, and some of the scariest scenes you’ll ever see on network television. I encourange anyone who like scary or suspenseful films to give this episode a view. You will not be disappointed.

All Hell Breaks Loose Part 2

Supernatural Season 2, episode #22.
Airdate: Thursday, May 17, 2007.
Written by Eric Kripke & Michael T. Moore
Directed by Kim Manners.

• Synopsis: Click here to read the episode summary

  Sam is really dead and Dean is inconsolable. He refuses to bury Sam. Instead, he makes a deal with the crossroads demon to ressurrect his brother in exchange for his soul in one years time. A resurrected Sam, along with Dean, Bobby and Ellen join forces to prevent an imminent demonic invasion. They try to stop Jake, Sam murderer and a pawn of the yellow-eyed demon, from unlocking a gateway to hell with the antique colt. Jake is coldly killed by Sam, but the doorway is unlocked and swings open, letting hundreds of demons and other supernatural beings out of hell. Dean grabs the colt and confront’s the yellow-eyed demon while Sam, Bobby and Ellen push close the doors. The demon easily disarms Dean and turns the gun on him instead. An apparition appears behind it and grabs it and pulls it right out of the host body. Dean retrieves the colt and fires it, killing the demon as it is recovering from the surprise attack. The apparition is John Winchester, escaped from hell through the doorway. He smiles at his sons then vanishes. There is a brief moment of satisfaction at killing their nemesis. Then Sam confronts Dean about his selling his soul. The season ends with the brothers resolved at stopping the released demon army, Sam resolved at finding a way to save Dean, and strong hints that Sam is not the same as he was before his death.

• Praises: This season finale was a riveting episode that had me sitting on the edge of my seat. It had a shock impact even bigger than that of the season one’s finale and it’s ending was much better. We weren’t left hanging about the immediate fate of the Winchesters. (more…)

All Hell Breaks Loose - Part 1

Supernatural Season 2, episode #21.
Airdate: Thursday, May 10, 2007.
Written by Sera Gamble.
Directed by Robert Singer.

• Synopsis: Click here to read the episode summary

  Sam vanishes while purchasing takeout, leaving behind nothing but a diner full of dead people, demon sulfer on the window sill, and a very frantic brother. Dean enlists Bobby’s and Ash’s aid to find Sam. Ash tells Dean that he has found out something big that he can’t reveal over the phone. When Dean and Bobby get to the roadhouse it is burned to the ground with Ash’s body in it. In the meantime, Sam is transported to a ghost town along with 4 others of his “generation”, including Andy (from Simon Says) and Ava (from Hunted). With no cell phone signal and a demon picking them off one by one, Sam is forced to become an unwilling participant in a deadly game of “survivor”. A game in which Ava turns betrayer, Andy is killed, and his ally, Jake, turns on him. Sam wins a fight with Jake and spares his life. But just as Dean and Bobby comes to his rescue, Jake attacks from behind, and stabs Sam. The episode ends with Sam collapsing lifelessly into Dean’s arms.

• Praises: This is the first part of the two-part season finale and my expectations were high. Fortunately, it did not disappoint. This episode was all about the show’s myth arc. (more…)