All Dogs Go To Heaven Recap

Then: Werewolves! AWESOME!!! I’m reading a Lori Handeland novel, so I’m IN. DANG. Just realized Tivo didn’t pick up last night’s Vampire Diaries.

Now: Dude talking baby talk on the phone gets stalked by something snarly, then explodes bloody. YUM. Time for a cookie.

Dean’s on the phone with Bobby, when Crowley appears at his elbow with a job. Dean resists and Crowley burns Sam’s hand with a touch. (Trust me when I say OUCH. Also, wish Crowley had been around to heal me like that three weeks ago. Fingers just now returning to normal.) Dean caves. Crowley promises Sam’s soul if the boys bag him a live alpha, and shows them a paper about a businessman killed with his heart ripped out.

Crowley: Werewolves turning on the full moon. So…’09.

Sam tells Dean he and his Sampa ganked one on the half moon, so they go after it.

Dean to Sam, complaining about working for a demon: Crowley’s so far up our ass we’re coughing sulphur.

Sam’s determined Dean knows he’s still Sam as they drive to the next case, a dock worker whose chest was ripped open and whose heart is missing.

So, question. A soul is the part of the body that makes you sleep?

Anyway, Sam’s been playing connect the victims, and damn, there’s my car. I love that car so much. They pull up to the house of the man who’s the common denominator and the woman who opens the door looks a lot like Lisa, don’t you think? They ask to see Cal, who staggers into the kitchen rubbing his head like he has a hangover. His German shepherd growls at him. Turns out he’s the brother of one of the victims. They didn’t have the best relationship—Cal called the cops on his brother the last time because his brother was out of control. Also, the businessman was his landlord. Cal and Mandy don’t think it’s weird both were killed by an animal attack, even after the Winchesters point it out.

That night they stake out Cal, following him as he barhops.

Dean: I’m getting cirrhosis just watching him.

Dawn comes and the guy’s still standing. The brothers drive off—too soon, I fear. Cal walks out to his truck and his German shepherd attacks. We see the attack through the dog’s eyes, then the dog changes to a man.

The man shows up in Mandy’s bedroom while she’s sleeping, shifts back to a dog and licks her awake. She realizes Cal isn’t home, and goes to shower while the dog watches. (This is a fear of mine. Anyone else?)

The brothers realize since Cal is dead, Mandy might be their alpha. Sam asks Dean if he can serve her up to Crowley if she’s the one. Dean reluctantly agrees. They go out to Mandy’s and have to break the news that Cal’s dead. They want her to come with them, Sam pretty heartlessly when she tells him her kid is sick and she doesn’t want to leave him. She reveals that her kid was up all night (so why was she sleeping so soundly when the dog came in?). Dean believes her alibi, but Sam wants to stay and watch the house. While he’s hanging next to a pretty nice playscape, he sees a naked man stand up and stretch inside the house. The man walks out and sniffs. Sam follows and sees dog-man talking to someone else, who gestures him back to the house. The dog-man sniffs again and turns in Sam’s direction, then bolts. Sam jumps over the fence in a very nice move after him. The guy shifts and—oh no! Hit by a minivan!

The driver loads the dog in to take it to the vet and drives off.

Sam called Dean to tell him it’s a skinwalker, a werewolf cousin. Same weaknesses, but can change anywhere, any time.

They go to the animal hospital and retrieve Lucky, first showing him silver bullets, then giving him a choice. They can do things the easy way—clothing—or the hard way—silver chains.

Sam is actually kind of funny in the interrogation in the hotel room. He’s threatening Lucky with a knife, when Dean interjects. He knows why Lucky stays with the family, to protect them. Dean wants to know who Lucky was talking to, and he tells Lucky if he reveals who the man is, that will protect the family.

Lucky speaks. He says there are about 30 skinwalkers, and they were recruited. Lucky had been homeless. One bite and they’d be fast and strong. They were told to find families and lay low, waiting for the word. Once they’re settled, they’ll get a signal, turn on their families and turn them.

Sam wants to know who organized them. They have a pack leader. Dean plays on Lucky’s emotions, wondering how he plans to take out this family he cares for, and Lucky helps.

Dean wants to take out the pack leader, but Sam wants to get the pack leader to lead them to the alpha. Dean is appalled (his go-to emotion this season) and asks if Sam wants 150 people turned into monsters. He said that Sam isn’t Sam and to stop pretending.

While Dean is behind a sniper rifle, Sam says he bets Lucky will double cross them. Sam would. He thinks that’s the only way he’ll go on living. Some men drive up in an SUV and a garage door opens,, revealing more people. Sam tells Dean to take the shot but he doesn’t have a clean view. Then the SUV opens and Mandy and her son get out. Sam urges Dean to take the shot. Dean says Mandy’s in the way and Sam tells him to take it anyway. Dean doesn’t, of course, and she’s ushered into the garage and the door closes.

“Plan B?” Sam asks.

“We’ve got one?” Dean responds.

Inside the garage, Mandy is confused. Lucky’s in trouble for unauthorized murders, and is told to turn Mandy and her son while the others watch. Sam charges into the garage and starts shooting, the pack leader first. Lucky pulls Mandy and her son out of the line of fire, and Sam comes upon some empty clothes. The skin walkers have shifted.

One attacks Dean, who has the sniper rifle barrel through a grate. It’s stuck, so he whips out his pistol at the last minute.

Lucky shifts to protect his family, and the man who turned him says he was going to turn the family but now he’s going to kill them. He shoots Lucky, but before he can kill him, Dean fires. Sam comes around the corner to see a smear of blood and a confused Mandy.

In a transition I didn’t quite get, Lucky the man shows up at Mandy’s house and tells her thanks for being kind to him. She rejects him, telling him to get away, calling him a psycho. He shifts back to a dog and wanders off.

Dean and Sam are walking in a park and a girl with a dog runs by. Dean swears he’ll never look at a dog the same way again and wonders how many packs are out there, waiting for the signal.

Sam tells Dean he’s right, that he’s not Sam and doesn’t really care about things, doesn’t care about Lisa and Ben, or really Dean, for that matter. He says he’s done bad things, killed innocents in the line of duty. He should feel guilty, but doesn’t. It’s more efficient, you get the job done and don’t feel bad about it. He remembers his life before and thinks he should go back to being him, which is why he wants his soul back, and why he wants Dean’s help. Dean agrees because he wants his brother back.

Oh, hallelujah, next week is a light-hearted episode. I have to go with Terri’s review from last week. I’ve not rewatched one episode this year. Last year, with the Apocalypse looming, we had more levity. Now, it’s just too gloomy.

Supernatural News

Supernatural had a 20% gain in viewership this week! I wonder if it was those delicious previews of Sam, which is the only part I've watched a second time because the rest? GROSS!

Even Entertainment Weekly mentioned that Supernatural is one of the winners in the ratings game, giving The CW its best Friday night ratings.

In other news, Misha Collins is a new daddy! He and his wife have been together since high school. Isn't that sweet? The link has a perfectly adorable picture of Misha.

The trailer for the Supernatural anime is out. It looks completely cool!

Jim Beaver has been tweeting about being on a non-supernatural show called Love Bites. With the latest vampire craze, you'd think they'd name it something else.

And because you've been so good...

The Devil You Know recap

The boys are chasing Pestilence. Woot—Tanya’s favorite kind of episode!

We open with some scientists in a research lab, and a man dressed as a janitor jabs a needle—presumably the Croatoan virus, if one goes by the “THEN” segment—into the neck of one, then leaves him alone with the other one, who he apparently rips apart, judging by the blood spatter. (I don’t usually use this many adverbs—testing week has wiped my brain.)

Sam and Dean show up on scene as CDC. The woman they’re speaking with wants a vaccine for the swine flu, not the Croatoan. Dean mentions something about statues crying—hope we learn more about this. Sam and Dean call Bobby from the Impala. They’re trailing Pestilence and wondering why he’s teasing with swine flu when he has the Croatoan virus.

Suddenly the demon Crowley shows up in the back seat. Dean spins the car and Sam lunges with a knife, embedding it in the back seat (sob). Crowley has disappeared, only to knock at the window. The brothers are pissed at him for sending them to kill Lucifer with the Colt. They think he knew it wouldn’t work, and Jo and Ellen died because of it. Crowley convinces them he can get them to Pestilence. He takes them back to his new digs—a far cry from the mansion the other demons burned down when they learned he helped the Winchesters. He tells them he was tracking them with a magic coin in the car, and it allowed him to hear their plan. Turns out he doesn’t know where Pestilence is, but he knows the demon who does, the Horsemen’s stable boy.

The next scene is a boardroom at a pharmaceutical company where a man is demanding distribution of an undeveloped vaccine for swine flu. Later we see him in a private office, talking to a cup of blood bubbling with flies (AND I’m putting down the brownie) after cutting the throat of someone who questioned his will. Pestilence is getting an update.

Wow, short commercial break, and back to the brothers and Crowley. Crowley doesn’t want Sam along because he doesn’t like him. After the brothers seemed to get along better than they have in several episodes, Dean agrees to leave Sam behind and accompany Crowley. Sam is suspicious, and alone. He calls Bobby and they drink together over the phone (aww.) I just realized we don’t see enough of Sam’s dimples this season.

Oh, no. Sam asks Bobby about how, when he was possessed, he managed to take his body back. He proceeds to lay out his plan—get the devil to the cage, and Sam will jump in to lure Lucifer, then attempt to gain control of himself. Bobby goes off on him, reminding him that he’s talking about Satan. Bobby asks how he could control the devil when he can’t control himself.

I’m not trusting Crowley. He and Dean are sitting in the Impala, and suddenly Crowley disappears and reappears inside the building they’re watching, cutting the throat of the night watchman. He sets Dean in an elevator and sends him on his way. Dean asks why he’s not coming.

“It’s not safe up there. They’re demons.” I love this actor.

Dean continues up and comes face to face with the suit who had been talking to the bowl of blood. Dean tells the demon that he’s willing to sell the rings he has. The demon proceeds to kick the crap out of Dean. Dean escapes into the elevator but the demon follows him. Crowley drops a bag with a devil’s trap on it over the demon’s head and bashes him over the head. A lot. Then Crowley changes his plan. He won’t take the demon back to Sam because they have history. Hmm.

Dean prevails and Sam comes face to face with the demon, tied up in a devil’s trap. Turns out he went to college with the guy—he had a devil on his shoulder even then. Brady, the demon, introduced him to Jess. Sam loses his temper, but Dean pulls him away, trying to convince him to stay focused.

While Dean calms Sam down, Brady and Crowley have a conversation. Brady doesn’t believe the demons will be destroyed if Lucifer wins, and would rather die on the winning side. Crowley leaves to kick open a hive of demons, and Sam traps Dean in the bathroom so he can face Brady—complete with the demon-killing knife.

Brady talks about what a good friend Sam was, how YED sent him to toughen Sam up. He tells how he killed Jessica, and Sam lunges with the knife, but stops before he does more than knick him. He lets Dean out of the bathroom as Crowley returns. Crowley tells Brady that he massacred the demons except one. He told the survivor that he and Brady were lovers in league against Satan. Brady knows what this means. His only choice is to tell him where Pestilence is.

Before Brady says anything, they hear the baying of a hellhound. Turns out one of the demons planted a magic coin to track Crowley. Crowley tosses the coin to Dean, who catches it (and gets an I-told-you from Sam). The hellhound bursts through the window when Dean goes to find salt. Crowley reappears with a hellhound of his own, and the Winchesters and demons escape while the invisible dogs go at it.

Brady gives up Pestilence’s location and the brothers trap him with salt while Sam glares. Brady continues to taunt Sam, who approaches with the knife. Dean watches his brother fight as Brady says Sam’s just like them, but his hell is right here. Finally Sam ends it and walks past his brother.

Bobby’s on the phone with Rufus when Crowley shows up in his kitchen. Bobby shoots, and Crowley complains that he’d liked that suit. Crowley’s willing to help find Death. But he wants Bobby’s soul!!! NOOOO!!! Bobby blasts him with rock salt. Crowley promises he’ll give the soul right back, and Bobby wants to know if he thinks he’s a natural born idjit. Bobby’s considering it when they go to credits. NOOOOOOO!!!!! Why isn’t it next Thursday???

Not a favorite episode for me. I was waiting for Pestilence, though I did like the insight into Sam's college life. What did you think?

News February 8

Sorry, I just loved this scene SO much. Happy John and Mary...sigh.

Besides, I needed something to ease you as I deliver the bad news. After Thursday's show, Supernatural will be on hiatus for SIX WEEKS! All together now...WAHHHHHH!!!! The dh pointed out that most shows will be on break during the Olympics but still. WAHHHHH!

According to Jim Beaver's Tweets, shooting continues until the end of March. He will return in episode 15, then episode 18. Also, he's confirmed for SPN conventions in LA, Rome, Australia, Birmingham, and Germany.

The Chicago Tribune has an interesting comparison between Lost and Supernatural.

The show recently celebrated their 100th episode and are being considered for a sixth season.

ETA: Supernatural made TVGuide.com's Top Ten Moments of the Week.

Trish and I saw Legion when she was here last week and we were both, "Meh." Anyone else see it? What did you think?

Why You REALLY Don't Want a 67 Impala for Christmas (But I DO!)

Eric Kripke himself said the Impala looks really cool but “handles like a shopping cart.” Nevertheless, I have wanted one since…well, since Croatoan.

8) Finding one in any decent shape is near impossible. She's over 40, you know, and if the outside's good, the inside probably isn't. The ones I've found in my price range have ratty interiors or rust spots on the undercarriage.

7) No airbags—though she probably does more damage than she receives

6) No electric windows/locks—but it's easier to pick the locks when you lock your keys inside

5) No cup holders—remember the plastic things you could buy at the gas station and hook on the windows? Classy.

4) No. Air-conditioning. That leaves me OUT.

3) Getting parts will be a nightmare.

2) She guzzles gas like damn and whoa. But probably not worse than those SUVs.

1) She’ll attract a lot of attention, especially with those 8 cylinders. Look in your rearview mirror for flashing lights.

Supernatural News Lite

Not a lot of news that I can find this week.

Huffington Post called Supernatural the best show on the CW.

Jared and Jensen are named in the top 50 Teen Idols by aol.com. (Jared #21 and Jensen #36. Not sure I agree with that!) But they're listed there with teen idols from years past, so any showing is good!

Ghostfacers was named one of the top 14 greatest format-breaking episodes ever by SFX, the science fiction magazine.

It's so good to see the show get wider coverage!

Since I couldn't find much in the way of news, I thought I'd help you with your shopping this year. There are some cool Supernatural-themed products at Cafe Press. I asked for this:

And this:

This is fun too:

And this magnet:

Then there are calendars. This year Creation Entertainment will let you choose Sam or Dean, or if you can't, you can have both!

All-Time Favorite Episodes

I've made some adjustments to my all-time favorite episodes this season. I couldn't QUITE get it down to a top ten (good, right?) See if any of yours match.

1) Changing Channels

2) I Believe the Children Are Our Future

3) Croatoan

4) The Monster at the End of this Book

5) Monster Movie

6) Jus in Bello

7) What Is and What Should Never Be

8) A Very Supernatural Christmas

9) Bad Day at Black Rock

10) Hell House

11) Hookman

12) Faith

13) Scarecrow

14) The Pilot

However, I also have some episodes I'd happily never watch again.

1) Metamorphosis

2) Bugs

3) Red Sky at Morning (and I was SO looking forward to this one)

4) The Usual Suspects

5) Everybody Loves a Clown (except for the last scene)

6) Route 666 (except for the love scene)

What about you? Are you a bigger fan than I am? Will you watch an episode over no matter what?

Changing Channels

Tonight’s episode opened with a voice-over from Dean: “Supernatural is filmed before a live studio audience.” LOL! “Supernatural: The Sit-Com” had Dean mugging and Sam making exaggerated movements and the bitch-face. I have to say, the theme song was fun—two hunting bros, when demons come out to play—LOL. Also, the bicycle built for two!

Two days earlier, Sam and Dean are investigating a man killed by the Incredible Hulk (Lou Ferrigno, not Bana or Norton. I loved Dean’s matter-of-factness following this line of questioning). Sam is pretty quick to identify the Trickster as the baddy, based on the punishment fitting the crime (the vic was a hot-head, you wouldn’t like him when he was angry) and candy wrappers at the crime scene. Sam wants to recruit the Trickster’s help, thinking the Trickster isn’t going to want the world to end, and will work against the demons and angels. Funny that Dean didn’t know MySpace a couple of seasons ago and now asks Sam why he wants to be Facebook Friends with the Trickster.

A fake call on the police radio sends them to an abandoned warehouse. When they walk through the door, they’re suddenly wearing doctor coats and are in the halls of Seattle Mercy Hospital, the setting of “Dr. Sexy, M.D.” Sam is accosted by a female doctor who slaps his face and says “seriously” a lot. Dean points out the characters, including Johnny Drake, who’s a ghost in the mind of the sexy-but-neurotic female doctor. The brothers riff about why the show has ghosts, and then Dean goes all fan-boy when Dr. Sexy himself approaches. Dean knocks him off for wearing tennis shoes instead of Dr. Sexy’s cowboy boots, and Dr. Sexy morphs into the Trickster.

Sam tries to talk to the Trickster, who says if they survive the next 24 hours, they’ll talk. He disappears and Dean and Sam try to escape. When Dean tells a patient at the fake hospital that none of it is real, he shoots Dean in the back. Dean ends up on the operating table with Sam as the surgeon, who asks for a penknife, dental floss and a fifth of whiskey to operate.

The brothers then appear—as in, suddenly—on a Japanese game show called “Nutcracker.” They’re standing, legs spread, while the host asks questions in Japanese. Sam can’t answer, so he gets smacked in the groin by a giant spring-loaded ball. When Castiel appears to save them, he disappears. The host chides them, saying he doesn’t want pretty boy angels. Dean decides to play the role and gets the answer right—in Japanese.

Their next appearance is in a commercial for genital herpes. Sam doesn’t want to, but the boys realize they have to play their roles to survive. He says his lines, then does a nice lay-up in the basketball game his character is playing.

Back to the sit-com. The Trickster shows up and wants the brothers to take their roles (ahhh) as Lucifer and Michael to get the show on the road, to accept the roles destiny has chosen. If they don’t, they’ll stay in TV Land.

Next is a procedural cop show, a la CSI. The brothers are dressed hot as hell, in suits, blue shirts and shades. At night. They adopt gravelly voices and toy with the glasses. They joke over the body with a CSI tech who’s eating a lollipop, and stab him with a stick. Turned out to be the wrong guy, but when the Trickster shows himself, Sam is there to stab him and the brothers return to reality.

Or….not. Suddenly Sam is the voice of Metallicar, in a Knight Rider take-off. Sam-as-the-car and Dean discuss whether or not the stake didn’t work because their nemesis is something else, not a Trickster after all. The Trickster shows up and Sam and Dean light a circle of flames around him. Turns out he’s the archangel Gabriel who had left heaven and was happy until the apocalypse began. He blames the brothers for HIS brothers killing each other. He says there’s not stopping this, that this war is about 2 brothers who loved each other and betrayed each other.

He says the brothers were born to be the vessels: the big brother, loyal to an absent father, the little brother, rebellious, and that one has to kill the other. Heaven has always known it would come to Sam and Dean.

Gabriel tells them he wished this was a TV show with easy answers, but it’s going to end bloody. Oh, dear, not a good sign for the end of the season!

Dean is defiant, but Sam looks worried. Dean does get Castiel back, and accuses Gabriel of being too afraid to stand up to his family of angels. He puts out the fire and the brothers and Cas leave. The ending was a little weak, with the brothers climbing in the car asking what they were going to do and not having an answer.

I really wanted to like this show more. Maybe on a second viewing. What did you think?

Supernatural News

It is so hard for me to compile the news because I avoid spoilers like mad.

Buddy TV has a pros and cons of Season 6.

Screen Rant has a positive slant on the dismal ratings. (WHY do they complain when SPN is up against the hard-hitters like Grey's, CSI and The Office? Now Fringe is taking away some of the audience. Even I have a hard time deciding how to split my time and I love SPN.)

You can write in Supernatural and your favorite brother in the People's Choice Awards. I picked Jensen.

The brothers are listed at TVGuide.com as some of the sexiest crime fighters on TV.

Hunter's Addict has some possible spoilers on Episode 10. By my count, that will be the last one before hiatus. Check it out here if you want to know.

You can help Supernatural fans raise money for Make-A-Wish! A Supernatural marathon--now that's the marathon I'm trained for.

Supernatural Wiki has a list of conventions in 2010, all around the world. Make plans now!

And, not news but another question I have. Remember last season Kripke said he wasn't planning to cast Lucifer? Do you think he meant for Lucifer to go into Sam as soon as he rose?

The End (And a New Beginning)

We first see Dean when he is accosted by a street preacher who wants to know if Dean has thought about God’s plan for him. “Too freaking much, pal.” Shortly after, he gets a call from Castiel, asking about the Colt. Dean doubts it still exists, but Castiel hears differently. He thinks it’s the way to kill Lucifer (But is Lucifer a demon? Would the Colt kill an angel?)

Castiel wants to meet up but Dean begs for sleep. (So do angels not sleep, even when they’re in a human body?) Dean’s crashed out when his phone buzzes and it’s Sam, to tell Dean that he’s meant to be Lucifer’s vessel. “So Lucifer’s wearing you to the prom?” Dean asks wearily.

Sam wants back in, the “dynamic duo” again, not for revenge this time but for redemption. Dean is reluctant. They’re not stronger together, they’re like fire and water, and they should just pick a hemisphere and stay away from each other. The “thing” they have that they think makes them stronger—family, love—just ends up used against them. Dean thinks they have a better shot of avoiding the angels if they stay apart.

Dean hangs up and falls asleep, then awakens on a cot in a town trashed—cars turned over in the street, what looked like bombed out buildings. Actually reminds me of Dark Angel a bit. He encounters a little girl crying in an alley but when he goes to help her, she slashes out at him with a piece of broken glass. He punches her, and when he turns, he sees the word CROATOAN spray-painted on the wall of the alley, just before a gang of men chase him. He hits a chain-link fence and is going to have to turn and fight when a Hummer full of soldiers pull up and shoot the gang of men. Dean escapes, and when he slips out through the fence, he sees the date is 2014.

He’s driving along when Zachariah appears in the passenger seat reading headlines. “Croatoan pandemic reaches Australia. President Palin defends the bombing of Houston,” and Congress revoked the right to group assembly. The angels want him here for three days to see where his choices take him. This is what will happen if he continues to say no to Michael.

He heads to Bobby

’s. He finds an abandoned wheelchair with bulletholes and blood, but no Bobby. He finds Bobby’s journal (???) with a photo of Bobby and Castiel, among others, at a survival camp. When he arrives, the first thing he sees is his Impala, abandoned in a field. I’m almost as upset as Dean. Someone approaches and it’s Future!Dean. Seriously, shades of Dark Angel. Double Dean, double the pleasure. Is it weird I’m buying this scene completely, not thinking about how they did it?

Future!Dean wants proof of Dean’s story and Dean reveals a time when they (he?) wore a girl’s panties and kinda liked it.

The lightness ends there. Dean asks about Sam and Future!Dean says he heard Sam didn’t make it through a fight in Detroit, against some heavy-hitters. The brothers haven’t talked in five years.

The Croatoan virus hit major cities two years back and turned people into monsters.

Future!Dean leaves Dean alone, and Dean picks the cuffs by digging up the wooden floor and pulling out a nail. He walks out and encounters the Prophet Chuck, asking him about provisions. Then a girl comes up and accuses him of spending the night with another woman, and Dean laments that he’s getting in trouble for things he hasn’t done yet.

He finds Cas surrounded by women, and he shoos them away telling them to get ready for the orgy. Cass immediately recognizes that Dean is from the past, but can’t help Dean get home. Dean never does find Bobby.

Future!Dean returns and shoots one of his men in front of everyone. Apparently the man was infected by the Croatoan virus. Dean is appalled by his heartlessness and calls him on it, but Future!Dean isn't moved.

But Future!Dean has the Colt!!! WHEE!! The girl who smacked Dean wants to know how to find Satan, but Future!Dean says they have intel. Satan is in a hot zone, surrounded by “Croats,” people infected with the virus, and demons. Future!Dean doesn’t like Castiel calling him reckless, so Castiel says he’ll use the word insouciant.

Dean wants to know what is going on, and Future!Dean tells him Sam didn’t die in Detroit. He said yes to Lucifer, and Lucifer’s wearing him to the prom. Future!Dean wants Dean to say yes to Michael. BEGS him to, but knows he won’t. (Jensen, submit this scene to the Emmys, ‘kay?) Future!Dean says he tried to say yes, but now it’s too late, the angels are gone.

As they prepare for the mission, Chuck follows Dean. He tells him if he makes it back to 2009, to horde toilet paper like it’s made out of gold, because it is. (So if they attack Chuck, won’t the archangel come?)

Dean rides with Castiel. He says he’s glad the stick is out of his ass, but wants to know what’s up with the drugs and the orgies. Castiel admits he’s mortal now, powerless, hopeless. And adorable. (Okay, he didn’t say that, I did.)

Next shot is very Resident Evil, the survivors approaching the target with heavy-duty weapons. Only they’re not experiencing the resistance they expected. Future!Dean is sending Cas and the others as decoys as he and Dean go in the back. Dean says he’d never sacrifice his friends and Future!Dean says that’s why they’re in this mess. Future!Dean knocks Dean out for the second time.

When Dean wakes up he sees the windows lighting up with gunfire. He runs around to see a man with a shoe on Future!Dean’s neck. He snaps his neck and turns. It’s Sam in a white suit. Lucifer.

He’s talking strange, as if he’s not used to the language, though he’s been on earth 5 years. He tells Dean he was cast out because he loved God more than anything, and then God created man and asked angels to bow down before humans, to love humans more than God. Lucifer found them flawed and murderous, and God had him cast into hell for it. He was right, because the humans destroyed the planet, but blame Lucifer for it.

Dean accuses him of being the same as everything he’s hunted, the only difference being the size of Lucifer’s ego. Satan walks away, and Dean tells him to kill him now, because he’ll kill him. Satan tells him no matter what decisions he makes, the two will always end up in the same place, because Dean won’t say yes to Michael and he won’t kill Sam. He tells him he’ll see him in five years, then Zachariah shows up and touches Dean’s head. (My battery is running out! Ack!) Zac wants Dean to prove the devil wrong, to strike before Lucifer gets to Sam and billions die. (Nononononono!)

“Nah,” Dean says. He learned a lesson, but not the one Zachariah wanted to teach. Zac is mad, and stalks Dean, who disappears and ends up with Cas on the side of the road.

And then---YAY!!! Dean calls Sam!!! They meet on a gravel road in the middle of nowhere. Dean gives him the demon-killing knife…and an apology. Maybe they are each other’s Achilles heel, but they’re all each other has, and more than that, they keep each other human.

Sam promises not to let Dean down.

I’ve not rewatched any episode this season. The shows are so dark. The first thing my husband asked when it was over was if that ending was better. Not sure. But definitely more hopeful.

Great Expectations

I’m scared about tomorrow night.

No, I’m not scared of Lucifer. I’m not scared of the apocalypse.

I’m scared of my own expectations.

Season 4 was awesome. Best season ever, consistently good. And I’m scared they’re going to drop the ball. I remember being so excited about the premiere of season 3, after the death of Azazel, the opening of the devil’s gate, Dean’s deal.

And we got “The Magnificent Seven.” I still don’t like that episode and I couldn’t say why. I think maybe they were trying to do too much, introducing new characters, and the rhythm was off. So I’m scared that this will happen again. I mean, they do have a lot of ground to cover, with the boys learning to trust each other again, and, well, Lucifer rising. I’m hoping they pace themselves.

I hope it’s as good as “In My Time of Dying,” or “Lazarus Rising.” I hope we get the balance of brotherly angst and humor and the scary. I hope my expectations aren’t too high.

Am I the only one worried? Or do you trust in Kripke?

Classic Episode Review--Hell House

“Hell House” is another of the episodes on my iPod. Initially I loved the “monster of the week” storyline (and I always love it when ghosts aren’t simply ghosts) but it turned out to launch an arc of its own with the Ghost Facers.

But why is this episode on my iPod so I can watch it over and over?

I love the pranks, of course. I can just imagine young Sam and Dean driving John crazy with such things on the endless road trips of their youth. Can you picture Dean, in particular, sitting still for any extended period of time when he was a kid? Maybe that’s just the teacher in me who can just see that absolutely.

The fumbling paranormal investigators who have never seen a ghost and ask themselves “What would Buffy do?” are hilarious while they’re endearing. I can almost feel the same contempt Dean and Sam feel for their methods, but as someone who has dreams that seem pretty out of this world to normal people, I can relate to their passion for the job. I love how the two amateurs end up instructing Dean and Sam in “It’s a Terrible Life.”

There’s the monster of the week, the tulpa. I loved that it was CREATED by the beliefs of people on the internet. I mean, isn’t that so true? “I saw it on the Internet, it MUST be true!”

And there’s the towel scene.

Is “Hell House” one of your favorite episodes? What do you like best about it?

The Colt

I thought I’d write about the Colt, a modified Paterson pistol (named for the city in NJ where it was manufactured) which plays such an integral part to Supernatural. It bothers me that in John’s speech introducing the gun, he said it was made in 1835 the night those men died at the Alamo. Dude, the Battle of the Alamo was 1836. (Jared should have known that, native San Antonian that he is.) There was a battle in 1835 but not nearly as bloody. It lasted for five days, not one night.



Anyway, I started wondering about Samuel Colt, this real person who the Winchesters credit with all this occult knowledge. So I googled.

Yes, I googled. If I’d thought about writing this, you know, before Sunday, I might have hit the library.



He took out his first patent in 1835, when he was only 21.

He had to close his gun plant in 1842 because he couldn’t sell the Army on the necessity of his guns. They did use them for the Seminole Indian wars, though.

In 1846, he got an order for more guns and had to rebuild a factory using an assembly line.

He never fired a gun at another person.

He helped develop underground telegraph lines and underwater explosives that could be detonated by remote control.

He was a mason.

He died at the age of 47, in 1862. So....not absolutely sure of my history here, but I don’t think Wyoming had a lot of railroads by the time he died.

Anyone know why Kripke chose to base the myth on this real person? (Who knows, maybe he went to the library ;) )

Classic Episode Review--Faith

I’ve been watching the first three seasons of SPN again and my favorites are still my favorites. And one I watch again and again is “Faith.”




The episode opens with the boys on a hunt for a monster that can only be killed by electricity. Children are in danger, and the boys find them in the basement of a house. Sam escorts them to safety while Dean stays behind to zap the monster. Unfortunately, he’s standing in a puddle and electrocutes himself, damaging his heart.

In the hospital, the doctor tells a distraught Sam that Dean can’t be helped and he’s going to die. Dean, of course, is cracking wise about daytime TV and fabric softener teddy bears, while Sam is frantic to find a way to save him.



Dean leaves the hospital AMA and shows up at the motel, declaring he’s not dying in a hospital where the nurses aren’t even hot. Sam has found a specialist, he says, and takes Dean to a muddy field in the middle of nowhere where an evangelist has set up a tent for faith healing services. Dean swears that Sam has lost his mind but agrees to appease his little brother. He meets Layla outside the tent, and manages to flirt despite being deathly ill.

Against all odds, Dean is called to be healed. He resists, but Sam convinces him. When the preacher lays his hands on Dean, Dean sees a man in a suit standing nearby. Instantly he feels better, but is disturbed by the miracle, especially when he learns Sam didn’t see the suited dude. Then the doctor who checks Dean out and gives him a clean bill of health happens to mention that a healthy young man died of a heart attack the day before. Dean convinces Sam to check it out and they learn that somehow lives are being swapped for lives. It turns out the preacher’s wife has managed to control a reaper. Worse, she is choosing who lives and dies based on their beliefs.

What I love about this episode, besides Sam’s desperation to save his brother, is Dean’s dilemma. He becomes attached to Layla, who has faith and is suffering from a brain tumor. Once he learns about the reaper, he can’t allow Layla to be healed, no matter how he cares for her. He can’t let the preacher’s wife take another life in exchange for Layla’s. I really love how this choice tears Dean up, especially when her mother asks why he deserves to be healed and Layla doesn’t, playing on Dean’s already low sense of self-worth.

In the end, they can’t save everyone. They destroy the bond to the reaper just as Layla is about to be healed. But she comes to Dean in one of the most poignant scenes in the series. She’s so serene, he can’t help but offer the only thing he has left.




Where is this episode in your list of favorites? What were your favorite bits?

Winchesters on other TV shows

I know, you're thinking, "There are other TV shows besides Supernatural?" Unfortunately, yes, there are. And I wouldn't have come to SPN without first falling for Jeffrey Dean Morgan on Grey's Anatomy, so I have to credit that show.

Here are some other shows you might have seen the Winchesters in.

Daddy

Grey’s Anatomy 2006-2009

Jeffrey Dean Morgan played Denny, a heart patient that intern Izzy Stevens falls for, risks her career for, and then he DIES. How rude. He returned last season as a symptom of her brain tumor, but this was the speech that had women around the country falling in love with him.





Sam

Gilmore Girls 2000-2005

Jared pretty much jumped from high school to Gilmore Girls, where he played the very nice boyfriend Dean Forester to very nice girl Rory Gilmore.




Dean

Days of our Lives (1997-2000)

Jensen played Eric Brady, twin son of Marlena and Roman Brady. I know I had to be watching this when he was on, but I mostly remember when his character was a baby.



Dark Angel (2001-2002)
Wow, I didn’t realize this was so long ago. I bought this season on DVD because he was just adorable. He was a genetically engineered super-soldier, raised by the group Manticore, and assigned as Jessica Alba’s character Max’s breeding partner in Season 2 of Dark Angel. He’s a charmer, though, once he leaves the Manticore facility and enters Max’s world. He also plays the evil twin of Alec (named because of his smart-alec attitude.) I liked this show, but it had no resolution before it was cancelled.



Dawson’s Creek (2002-2003)

I didn’t see him on this, but he played Jen’s boyfriend.




Smallville (sorry, Natalie, this clip has Lana) 2004-2005

He played a man who fell for Lana when she was on a trip to France. He followed her back to Smallville and got a job as an assistant coach who had an inappropriate relationship with a student. As a teen-aged girl, I would have bought into the fantasy. As a teacher, I’m creeped out.



What’s your favorite show from our Supernatural boys? Did you know about the actors before you followed them to Supernatural?

Pop Culture in Supernatural

It makes sense that Sam and Dean would know a lot of pop culture. After all, they grew up locked in motel rooms with only the TV for company. Even now, they probably watch a lot of TV between cases. So it’s absolutely believable that even in the alternate Supernatural universe, our pop culture would be part of the boys’ lives.

There are the I.D.s, of course, which used to be more obscure but are now getting easirt to pick out. Tyler and Perry? Come on, guys. My favorites are Freeley and Simmons (when they were priests.)

Favorite movie quotes
“We’re not in Kansas anymore.” WIAWSNB
“Run, Forrest, run!” Wishful Thinking
A number of references to The Shining, especially after Sam’s abilities are revealed. Also a lot of Ghostbuster references, especially in Hell House. LOTS of Star Wars references, like “He full-on Obi-Wanned me,” from Simon Says, and “I love the guy but he writes like friggin' Yoda,” from Asylum.
“Let me know if you see any dead people, Haley Joel.” Asylum
“Dude, I full-on Swayze'd that mother!” In My Time of Dying (I completely didn’t get this as I hated that movie and blocked it from my memory.)

Favorite TV quotes
“Candy-gram!” The Magnificent Seven
Comparing Sam to the protagonists of Medium and Ghost Whisperer. “Who’s the hotter psychic?”
A number of instances comparing themselves to Mulder and Scully from the X-Files.

Crushes on girls from 60s sitcoms
Debating the hotness of Barbara Eden vs. the actress from Bewitched WIAWSNB
Being offered Ginger and Mary Ann in season 4’s finale.

What they don’t know:
It really bothered me that Dean know Mary Poppins, or Mina and Jonathan Harker from Dracula, especially the latter. Yet he knows Kurt Vonnegut styles? Also, Molly Ringwald movies, since he refers to “Ducky love” in Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things.
But I can see him not knowing what MySpace is. Sam’s the computer geek, after all.

References to the actors’ real lives
During Hollywood Babylon, they tour the studio where Gilmore Girls was filmed. Jared, natch, was in GG.
In Shadow, Meg says, “Oh, and I met what's-his-name, something Michael Murray - at a bar.” Chad Michael Murray was in Gilmore Girls with Jared.

Inspires own pop culture

Responding to “Bitch” with “Jerk.”

Naming the Impala Metallicar.

What are some other pop culture references you attribute to Supernatural? What are some of your favorite references?

The Anatomy of an Awesome Episode

I started thinking about my favorite episodes as I scrambled for a topic this week. And I started thinking about how most of them have certain elements in common.

1) High Stakes

As you know, if you’ve been reading this blog, “Croatoan” is one of my favorite episodes. And the stakes are high. Sam may be infected with a demon virus that will change him irrevocably. Dean stays with him to die with him, to the point of giving up his car. (You know, the scene that I love so much, when Dean makes this choice, is actually pretty short. Feels longer.) The stakes can’t be any higher—the boys’ death. Riveting stuff. HOW will they get out of this?

I also love “Faith.” The stakes here are high because, well, first Dean is dying, then he has a reaper after him. The twist is that if he lets the reaper get him, the sweet Lila will be cured of her brain tumor. Oh, the dilemma!

What about “The Monster at the End of this Book?” HIGH stakes. Lilith is coming, Sam might sleep with her to make a deal, Dean must stop him and doesn’t know how! The boys are at odds and are unable to take steps to avoid what seems like an inevitable conclusion.

2) Humor

In “Croatoan,” despite the dark storyline and high body count, there is humor when Sam sees the word “Croatoan” carved on the pole. He goes into exposition and chides Dean for not paying attention in school. Dean defends himself with “A Shot Heard ‘Round the World” and “How a Bill Becomes Law.” Sam says, “Dude, that’s not school. That’s Schoolhouse Rock.”

When Dean’s in the hospital in “Faith,” he rails against how much daytime TV sucks. Considering he got an Emmy for being on “Days of our Lives…” Also, “Ooh, that fabric softener teddy bear. I’m gonna hunt that little bitch down.”

Humor in “The Monster at the End of this Book:” Oh, so much. I laughed the first fifteen minutes. My favorite, when Chuck was apologizing for “Bugs” and “Red Sky at Night:” “Horror is one thing, but to live bad writing. If I’d known it was real, I would have given it another pass.”

3) Advancement of the Myth-Arc

The way they get out of trouble is that Sam is immune to the virus, because of his demon blood. Hmm, the plot thickens.

Okay, so maybe “Faith” doesn’t have a big part to play in the myth arc, but it was just first season.

“The Monster at the End of this Book” was ALL myth-arc!

4) Metallicar-porn



Also, no Metallicar porn in “Faith,” though she is shown a bit.

In “Monster…,” poor Metallicar has her back window bashed!

Okay, so there are too many episodes to do this with, and this post is already long enough. What are your requirements for an awesome episode? What episodes are your favorites?

Supernatural Music Quiz

Here’s my next quiz. Send your answers, numbered, to mfechter @ gmail .com by…next Friday, 3 PM CT. This one should be easier than the quotes quiz. I took out the hardest ones ;) Most are early episodes, since, you know, no budget for great music.

1) Bad Company--Bad Company
2) Burning for You--Blue Oyster Cult
3) Don’t Fear the Reaper--Blue Oyster Cult
4) Eye of the Tiger--Survivor
5) White Rabbit--Jefferson AIrplane
6) Heat of the Moment--Asia
7) Hey Man, Nice Shot--Filter
8) House of the Rising Son--The Animals
9) It’s My Party--Leslie Gore
10) Knocking on Heaven’s Door--Bob Dylan or Guns N Roses
11) Lady in Red--Chris de Burgh
12) Look at You--Screaming Trees
13) Peace of Mind--Boston
14) Renegade--styx
15) She Brings Me Love--Bad Company
16) Stonehenge--Spinal Tap
17) Surrender--Cheap Trick
18) Visions--Jason Manns
19) Wanted Dead or Alive--Bon Jovi
20) What a Wonderful World--Joey Ramone

Supernatural Quote Quiz

EDITED TO ADD: Email answers to mfechter @ gmail . com! Sorry! I didn't think of that before! Answers due Friday by 3 CST ;)

Okay, I'm a teacher on vacation, so I'm missing giving tests. So I made a quiz of Supernatural quotes for you. There will be a prize, probably some sticker or magnet or mug or something from Cafe Press. I'll decide Friday when I pick the winner, which will be the person with the most right answers. You need to number and write the name of the episode. And make sure you put your heading at the top of the paper....oh, wait, that's my class, not y'all. Just the number of the quote and the episode title, please. In case of a tie, I'll draw a name.

Hint: No quotes from Season One are here, and only a few from Season Four.

1)"Does anyone have a breath mint? Some guts spilled in my mouth while I was killing my way in here."

2)"How many dying wishes are you going to get?"
"As many as I can squeeze out."

3) "Right you're a mind reader. Cut it out Sam. Sam. You think you're funny but you're being really, really childish. Sam Winchester wears makeup. Sam Winchester cries his way through sex. Sam Winchester keeps a ruler by the bed and every morning when he wakes up... okay, enough!

4)"What’s the deal with the liquor store? Your parents out of town or something?"

5) "You fudgin' touch me again, I'll fudgin' kill you!"

6) "You're piercing the veil, Dean, glimpsing the "b" side."
"Little less New Agey, please."
"You're almost hell's bitch, so you can see hell's other bitches."

7) “A couple of severed heads and a pile of dead cows and you’re Mr. Sunshine.”

8) “Are you kidding me? I have her bestest friend in the whole wide world.”

9)“Come on! We’re not demons!”

10)“Go find some hoodoo priest to lay some mojo on me.”

11) “Okay, Sparky. And you know what? After we kill it, we can go to Disneyland.”

12) “Smells like old lady in here. And that would explain why.”

13) “So I’m a freak now?”
“You’ve always been a freak.”

14) “Time for bed. Come on, Sasquatch.”

15) “We saw the second largest ball of twine in the U.S. Awesome.”

16) “When have I ever forgotten the pie?”

17) “Yeah, Justin is quite the triple threat.”

18) “You got a neighbor named Mr. Rogers?” “Not anymore.”

19) “You’re walking into harm’s way!”
“Harm’s way doesn’t really bother me.”

20) “You’ve got angels on the bullcrap list?”

You Know You're Addicted to Supernatural When...

You Know You’re Addicted to Supernatural When….

You start writing paranormal stories because of the show.

You check Café Press and Zazzle weekly to see if they’ve made new products based on this week’s quotes.

You’ve seen every episode at least three times (except Metamorphosis).



You’ve gotten hooked on Gilmore Girls and Dark Angel because of Jared and Jensen.

You can match quotes and pictures to episodes.



You want an old Impala so bad, you go to classic car shows.



You’ve bought every song that’s been on an episode (except “I Can’t Fight This Feeling”), and especially love “She Brings Me Love,” (from Dean’s love scene with Cassie) and “Look At You” (from Sam’s love scene with Madison.)

You’ve sat through MY BLOODY VALENTINE, DEVOUR, HOUSE OF WAX, and FRIDAY THE 13TH is number one in your queue.

Flickering lights make you want to grab the salt.



You have to adjust your way of thinking when someone mentions Winchester in relation to the gun or the mansion.

You can identify guest stars from SPN on other shows.



What am I missing? How do you know you're addicted?