People's Choice

In case you, like me, have your head buried in your to-do list, Supernatural won the People's Choice award for both Favorite Network TV Drama and Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy Show. The boys did a short thank-you video to the fans:




Laura Prudom at Huffpost TV has a really good article about the injustice of the Favorite Network TV Drama being left out of the live telecast.

Jensen the director, the actor, the..... everything.

He's a talented guy Jensen, there's no denying it. Watching his growth as an actor over the past six seasons of Supernatural has been one of the highlights of the show. He's transformed Dean from a cocky-one-liner kinda guy into a deep, passionate, troubled, sexy and yes still sometime, cocky-one-liner kind of guy. As Dean has matured and developed, I've fallen more and more in love with him and alongside that, I've fallen more and more in love with Jensen. I've got to a place where I feel like I can see a little of who Jensen really is and to me, he looks like a beautiful man. I'm not talking about the physical, though his outer beauty is undeniable, I'm talking about the inner Jensen, that inner beauty which simply shines through.

When I met Jensen at LACon, one of the words I used to describe him was 'gracious' because he really is incredibly gracious in all his interactions with the fans. There's an aura of peace around him which calms the nerves (a little). He has a lovely gracious and generous nature that fills the heart, my heart, to over flowing. Yes, the relationship between the fans and the show is symbiotic, but to be treated with such respect by someone you respect so much really is a defining moment, at least it was for me.

Supernatural fans all know how much Jensen is interested in, not just his own art as an actor, but the art of making television, the creative and technical aspects of how a show comes together. He had a hankering to direct and when he was given that chance, the fandom let out a hearty cheer.

Weekend At Bobby's is one of the highlight episodes from season 6 and it was Jensen's directorial debut. It was a wonderful feeling to see his name come up with the director credit, knowing how important that is to him. It was an even more wonderful feeling to watch the episode unfold and see what a truly excellent job he'd done. In that moment, I seriously couldn't have been prouder for him.

The season 6 DVD special feature, "Jensen Ackles: A Director's Journey",  shows Jensen the director (and a little of the actor) at work. Watching this was so happy making. Seeing how Jensen interacts with the crew and how they all obviously trust and respect him is a pure delight. He may say he's nervous, but he looks calm and in control and you know what else he looks? Gracious. I thought it was interesting that the costume supervisor Daevina used that word. My word. Gracious. For a man that has so much going on in the talent and looks departments, he continually comes across as thoughtful and humble. It's hard to express how that makes me feel.

I'm so happy that the Supernatural 'Powers That Be' gave Jensen another chance to direct. I'm really looking forward to seeing what Jensen did with episode 7.03. He said the experience was far more difficult the 2nd time round, because he knew more, so he couldn't just innocently be naive about anything. He had no excuses. I sure am excited for it, I mean, he got to direct his bestie! 

It is a true fact that I love Jensen, as ridiculous as some people in my life may think that is, I do, I can't damn well help it ok? Seeing him here, in these videos, being candid, being professional, being calm, being honest, being humble, being gracious, being Jensen.....it's pretty damn near perfect.

This may sound weird, but I'm so very proud of Jensen. I'm proud of who he is, or appears to be to me and I'm proud of what he's achieved and the way he's gone about achieving it. I want nothing but good things for Jensen. I want him to be happy in his personal life. I want him to be happy in his professional life. I want him to be hugely successful in a way that's meaningful to him. I want the best for him because, well, I think he deserves it.

Oh...and....if you thought for one second I was going to be able to get to the end of this without  objectifying....ummmm....seeing him walk? I dunno why, but seeing Jensen just walking around. DAMN. Seriously....D-AMN! (Sorry I tried not to say this, but some things are beyond my control)!

Enjoy the videos....

P.S. Thank you Jensen for being you...

My Confession: I've Been Converted to Samdom

I confessed on Twitter and Facebook a few weeks ago that I think I've been converted. Then I started watching season 1 again, and I realize it's a lot more complicated than that.

From the first time I watched Supernatural, I was (for lack of a better term) a Dean girl. I mean, I was in my 30s, and he was the older, more experienced, more mature guy. I loved Sam just as much as I loved Dean, and I always identified more with Sam, but for attraction? It was Dean all the way.

Going back, I still feel that way about the early seasons, but I marvel at how freakin' much Jared Padalecki has changed.

During season 2, he started to really grow up. He filled out, caught up to his nose, and just kept getting bigger. And bigger. Not in a huge, scary way, and not in a lanky, buggy way. Just...big. The amazing thing is that he never stopped.

Take us through seasons 3, 4, 5, 6, and his character grew as much as his body did. Dean kept me through at least season 5 because of Jensen's fantastic acting (as well as the writing). He was tortured, and so full of loyalty and determination to save us all. He stayed true to his principles and his convictions. My goodness, how can anyone not stay hooked?

But Kripke always said Sam was the true protagonist of the show, and he faced and overcame some pretty intense obstacles. Season 6, especially the finale, made me flip.

Not that I realized it for a long time. I've never been all on one side—I always loved them both, and I still do. So I claimed to still be a Dean girl the whole time I marveled at the nuances of Padalecki's performance, and the challenges the writers threw at him. In the finale, he overcame all that fragmentation, all that pain, to go try to save his brother. Most of the talk I've seen has been about Castiel going dark side, but what *I* can't wait to see is how Sam comes out of the whole thing.

So all summer, whenever I thought about the show, Sam was who popped into my head. He's who my brain lingered over while I drove to work or did dishes (especially after my iPod got stolen and I had only my brain for company!). I would be lying if I didn't admit that I've been converted.

Except...Sam doesn't exist without Dean. All that character development couldn't have happened without his brother's influence. So it seems almost impossible to me that I or anyone else can really be all Dean girl or all Sam girl. Which puts me right where I was at the beginning of season one: in the middle, with a slight lean to one side.

I know some of you are rabid Sam girls and rabid Dean girls, but how many of you have found yourself switching back and forth? Tell us in the comments!

My Favorite Episodes of Season Six

This might change after I've watched the whole season over again (which I can't do until I get the DVDs, THANKS A LOT, stupid DVR), but for now, these were my favorite episodes of this season.

"Weekend at Bobby's"
Dean's edge aside, I loved getting insight into Bobby's life. There was so much humor, and pathos, too, because my god, he must be lonely.

"Clap Your Hands if You Believe"
The story-of-the-week was delightful, with evil fairies and alien abduction and "crazy" people who knew what they were talking about. But really, the best part was seeing Sam freed of the constraints of hiding himself from everyone. It was a step beyond knowing why he was acting so strange, and I loved watching him acting at a whole new level.

"Appointment in Samarra"
Death is just an awesome character, and Dean's courage in seeking him was fantastic. It was great to see Tessa again, especially with her attitude toward Dean. She was a little tired of his defiance of the natural order of things.

From episode 15 on, things just got really good. "The French Mistake," because I love the meta. "My Heart Will Go On," because of the way they changed everything. I had to laugh that they were driving a Mustang, because of Kripke planning to have them drive that, and being told by his neighbor that it's a good car for pussies. "Frontierland" and "Mommy Dearest," finding ways to bring back old threads and old guests. Samantha Smith just rocks every time she's on.

"Let it Bleed" killed me, with Dean making that big sacrifice, and I will forever be impressed with Jared Padalecki playing FOUR different versions of Sam in "The Man Who Knew Too Much."

So that's my list of favorites. What's yours?

Goodbye Season 6

Since there's no new episode to recap today, I thought I'd focus on wrapping up season 6 and get a head start on season 7 info.

Articles reference an interview with Sera that addresses, in oblique fashion, what Castiel has become and how that affects the tone of season 7.

All the boys have is each other? I'm on board with that! (Unless that means no Bobby, of course, but I haven't seen a hint of that.)

A new tie-in novel by Rebecca Dessertine fills in the missing year when Dean was domesticated and Sam had no soul.

The Internet is abuzz with the news that Misha Collins will no longer be a series regular. They've been cagey on what this means for how many episodes he'll be in, and whether or not he'll be a season-long "big bad."

An answer to an After Elton reader question talks about the appeal of shows like Supernatural to the gay community.

Speaking of After Elton, AE readers voted on the World's Hottest 100 Men. Our guys made a respectable showing, with Jensen moving from #14 last year to #8, Jared going from 37 to 16, and Misha climbing a little from 44 to 40.

Supernatural won't be the only supernatural-y series come fall. Besides the other returning shows (like Fringe and Vampire Diaries), the networks are bringing in a plethora of new ones. Grimm appears closest to SPN, with a guy who finds out he's the end of a long line of hunters.

The End Approaches

Is it me, or did this season just fly by? I mean, I don't feel like I ever stopped longing for the show to come back, and now we're about to say goodbye again. But I also can't wait to see how it ends.

Back in January, I was talking about season 6 with some friends. A couple of them expressed some of the same disappointment a lot of you have, and said the season has felt sloppier or more haphazard, with too much going on.

At the time, I agreed but said I had hopes that it wasn't going to end up that way overall. I thought that once we got to the end of the season, we'd look back or rewatch and find it extremely well done. And it's shaping up to be that way.

It's DIFFERENT, for sure. In all the past seasons, we knew what the goal was, and every detail fed that goal. We had the framework of a puzzle already put together, and every piece of information filled it in and gave us a better picture.

This season, we started with a jumble of pieces and no picture of what we were making. As we got pieces and started to fit things together, we got different parts of the whole put together. Instead of filling in from, say, top to bottom, we got two pieces in the top left corner, and then a chunk in the middle, and a bit from the right side.

Now we only have a few key pieces missing, and everything fits together. I really can't wait to see the end and then watch again from the beginning.

Going back to last week's episode...

I loved that they kept Mark Sheppard's name out of the opening credits. When he was killed, I felt let down because it seemed so easy and final. I always had a tiny seed of hope that it wasn't the end of him. And then the big reveal came, and it would have been totally ruined if we knew he was going to be there. (I'm good at avoiding spoilers during the week, but despite hating to know ahead of time, I can't stop myself from reading the guest star list!)

I also liked that once they came up against the "big bad," they vanquished her in the clever, determined way they used to do. They could have dragged it out longer, but making the Mother more powerful than Lucifer would have been a mistake, in my opinion.

So now we have three episodes left, and we finally can see a glimmer of everything tying together. I'm thinking it all comes down to the war in heaven. Purgatory, the Mother, the souls, bringing back the Campbells, maybe even leaving Sam's soul in the pit all connect to whatever stakes Cas is fighting for (or against).

I'm betting next week's Cas-centric episode will give us a lot of the answers, and then the last two episodes will be the big fight and the setup for season 7.

You know what? I might just go start watching season 6 from the beginning right now...

Favorite Season Six Quotes (So Far)

One of my concerns about the loss of Eric Kripke and some of the writers from past seasons was the potential that Sam and Dean (and everyone else) would lose their flavor. Supernatural's one-liners and exchanges have always been fantastic. (I use "again and again and again and again and again and then one more time" constantly!) I didn't dislike the last season of Gilmore Girls at all, but there was a definite change in tone, and all of the wittiness felt forced rather than greased.

So while I've sometimes thought Dean was being too much of a dick, or that soulless Sam drew too much of what we love away from the show, I've been relieved that the banter and one-liners didn't change! Here are some of my favorite lines from each episode in season 6. So far.


"Exile on Main Street"

Bobby to Ben: Just don't touch the decor, okay? Assume it's all loaded.

"Two and a Half Men"

Dean about the shapeshifter baby: What the hell are we gonna do with it? We can't actually drop it off at an orphanage. They might get upset when it turns Asian.

"The Third Man"

Castiel: Sam, Dean, my "people skills" are "rusty." Pardon me, but I have spent the last "year" as a multidimensional wavelength of celestial intent.

"Weekend at Bobby's"

Bobby: Do I sound like I'm done? Now look, I know you've got issues. God knows, I know. But I got a news flash for you: you ain't the center of the universe. Now, it may have slipped your mind, but Crowley owns my soul, and the meter is running, and I will be damned if I am gonna sit around and be damned! So how about you two sack up and help me for once?

"Live Free or Twihard"

Dean: Look at this. He's watching her sleep. How is that not rapey?

"You Can't Handle the Truth"

Bobby: Tori Spelling. I'm a huge fan. Girl's a real talent...You know what else? I get a pedicure once and a while at this nice Vietnamese joint. This one girl, Nhung Phuong, name means "velvet phoenix." Tiny thing, but the grip on her! She starts on my toes and I feel like I am gonna - ... I never told anyone that. Why am I telling you? Maybe because you're my favorite. Although Sam's a better hunter - lately, anyway. Whoa, whoa, why the hell am I telling you this?

"Family Matters"

Castiel: This is a vessel. My true form is approximately the size of your Chrysler Building.

"All Dogs Go to Heaven"

Crime scene tech: What are the feds doing here?
Sam: Oh, we're specialists. They call us in to answer the questions of mouth-breathing dick monkeys.

"Clap Your Hands if You Believe"

Sam: If you want to add glitter to that glue you're sniffing, that's fine, but don't dump your whackadoo all over us. We'd rather not step in it.

"Caged Heat"

Samuel: Is this what you boys do? Sit around watching pornos with angels?
Castiel: We're not supposed to talk about it.

ties with

Castiel: I learned that from the pizza man.

"Appointment in Samarra"

Tessa: Just so you know, when people die, they might have questions for you.
Dean: You mean like, "how did Betty White outlast me?"


"Like a Virgin"

Bobby: They're not like the Loch Ness Monster, Dean. Dragons aren't real.
Dean: Could you make a few calls?
Bobby: To who? Hogwarts?

"Unforgiven"

Sam: Mel Gibson really took a turn this past year, huh?
Dean: Or he's possessed.

"Mannequin 3: The Reckoning"

Dean: They don't even dissect anything good in there. I mean, bigger than Kermit, they use an iPad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Your turn! What are some of your favorite lines from this season? Which one is your all-time season 6 favorite? (I gotta go with Bobby telling Dean the truth and much more than the truth. :) ) I have a feeling we might get some even better ones this week, though.

Can We Reignite the Passion?

Last week, I read a list of TV shows that have been renewed or canceled, that are sure things or dead and buried. At the time, Supernatural was in the Danger Zone (now it's listed as Could Go Either Way).

I had occasion to be depressed this weekend (I don't want to talk about it stupid Jets), and my go-to cure for such is to watch Supernatural on DVD. I'm watching season 4 now, and despite the rift between Sam and Dean, the natural chemistry and brotherly relationship was funny and beautiful.

That naturalness is really missing this season. It's been easy for me to dismiss my lack of passion for the show. It's on Friday now, and my schedule is different. I forget the show is on, so I don't have the whole-day buildup. The people I used to chat with after the show aren't always available anymore (or I'm not), and I've always known my passion has lasted so long because of the synergy of the fandom, even when that was just half a dozen of us chatting online or posting/commenting here. So many fans, including some Supernatural Sisters, aren't happy with the show, and don't even put it as their favorite anymore. I admit, that affects my feelings.

I also blamed it on maturity. No relationship can burn with the passion of a thousand fiery suns forever, right? Except that passion is still there when I pop in the DVD or recite lines from past favorite episodes.

So what's going on this year?

I never thought the change in showrunner would make much difference. Sera Gamble has been here from the beginning, and Kripke hasn't gone away completely. But there's a definite atonal quality sometimes. Dean is too harsh and selfish, and the heartfelt moments, the ones that lead to "let's get out of here before we grow ladyparts" comments are missing.

Yes, a lot of that is because of Sam's missing soul, which means it may return next week when Sam does. I am DYING to have Sam back! But the humor hasn't been the same, either, especially between the brothers. I don't want to call it a misstep by the writers, because I've found the whole storyline intriguing. If I didn't have 5 seasons behind me as a viewer, I'd be loving the show this season.

But I do have those five seasons, and no matter how much I tell myself the passion is still there, it's just matured, all I have to do is watch two minutes of an old episode to know I'm lying to myself.

So what do you think? Is your passion banked, too? If so, what do you expect now that Sam's returning?

The Sam Question

Last week, MJ asked the question of season six, namely what's up with the Campbells?

A tie-in question, and one perhaps far more important, is what's up with Sam?

After two episodes, I have to admit, I'm not sure. In the first episode, he was—as we said over and over LOL—cold and smug and dismissive and not at all like our Sammy.

In the second episode, he was more on his own, and less weird. He and Dean interacted a little more normally. In fact, when faced with something he couldn't handle, he automatically looked up to his big brother for help. And Dean, of course, leaped right in (okay, after some resistance).

But then they went back to the Campbells, and Sam seemed all too willing to defer to them. In a slightly less creepy way, but...

Why would Sam join them instead of hunting on his own?
I can actually think of some reasons for this. On the one hand, he was on his own for six months when the Trickster made him think Dean was dead, and again when Dean was in Hell, and you'd think he'd prefer it that way. On the other hand, all his other hunting experience—a lifetime of it—has been with someone else. Dad, and Dean, and Ruby. He may hate being alone now, especially after he decided to leave Dean alone, and welcomed companionship, people who are "like him." And supposed family to boot. He was trying to fill the void.

Why would the Campbells want Sam along?
So maybe we can buy why Sam wants to be with the Campbells, but why would they want him? Those people who claim to be cousins are too young to have known Samuel/Grandpa before YED killed him. If they'd been raised in the life, why would they suddenly follow him? Hunters are loners for the most part, that's well established. Whoops, I'm delving too far back into the damned Campbells question. Back to Sam, who freed Lucifer and came back from the cage. Why wouldn't they assume he was still possessed or something and try to kill him? Why wouldn't they hate him for unleashing so much onto the world and making their jobs and lives harder?

Why did Sam reveal himself to Dean?
If Sam truly thought Dean was better off thinking him dead and staying out of the life, he could have stayed that way. He could have killed the djinn, rescued Dean, and hidden or left so Dean never knew he was there. Or he could have sent Bobby to protect Dean and Lisa and Ben, or even just the Campbells. Yeah, Dean would have found out sooner or later, but there were ways Sam could have achieved his stated ends without revealing himself to Dean.

Is it really Sam?
This is the biggest, most disturbing question. I want it to not be Sam. I mean, the smugness during the hug was too reminiscent of Lucifer. I don't want him to just be changed by his possession or his time in the cage or his new life. Change is inevitable, and I don't mind it—but I don't want him to change like this. If it's not Sam, who could it be?

If it's really Sam, what else could be going on?
My favorite theory is that he's either under the Campbells' thumb somehow, or suspicious of them and scared so that he needs his brother. His oddness would be because of that fear, and the agenda he's trying to hide. But I'm sure there are a bunch of other things that could be going on. What's your favorite theory?

Thoughts?

Exile on Main Street Recap and Review

Photo: Michael Courtney/The CW ©2010 The CW Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Supernatural has never had a bad premiere.

Season 1, the pilot, introduced us magnificently to the brothers (and their chemistry) as well as the premise of the show and the overarching mystery of the season.

All premieres after have followed suit. Season 2's "In My Time of Dying" flows directly from the finale and shocks by the credits. Season 3 is probably the weakest, but maybe I just say that because Isaac's death disturbs me so much. Season 4 brought Dean back from hell, with all attendant angst, and while Season 5's jumpiness at the beginning made it a little difficult to figure out, it threw us headlong into the war.

Bottom line: The Season 6 premiere had a lot to live up to. So let's see how it did...

First we get the new image (I like the blue) "One Year Ago" recap, followed by "Now" over Dean's new life. That stupid alarm that EVERY ALARM CLOCK SOUNDS LIKE goes off, but Dean's already awake. Wow, he looks young for some reason. And despite the coziness of the shot, you can tell by looking at him: Dean's not okay.

In classic Supernatural style, we get awesome music ("Beautiful Loser" by Bob Seger) with clips of Dean in his new life interspersed with comparable scenes from the past. It's fabulously done, amusing and poignant. I love seeing Dean happy, at the same time mourning what he's (and we've) lost.

I found myself thinking "that's Jensen, not Dean." There were subtle but powerful differences—the way he wears his hair, the now-famous tucked-in shirt. He moves easily, smoothly, not the always-alert stalker-Dean charging around, bent under the weight of his life and responsibilities.

Ahhhh, but there's the shotgun under the bed. He's not completely changed.

Despite the weapon, he seems fully immersed in his new life. A new friend ("pest control," he tells him when he asks about his past). A partner—he doesn't hesitate in his affection and cuddling with Lisa. Easiness with Ben, when in season one, he had no answer to Sam's "Name two kids you even know."

It's nice to see his normal reaction to a scream in an abandoned building, though. He doesn't hesitate here, either, and he's packing a gun in his beater construction-guy truck. The abandoned building yields ominous gouges and some blood, but no victim. A pretext call to the police gets him nothing but suspicion from Lisa. Uh, oh, he's lying to her. Not a good omen. Is it bad that I loved how smoothly he covered?

"It's eleven thirty."

"It is? That explains why he was asleep when I called him."

And now we see that his easy, comfortable, normal life has undertones. He checks outside again, makes sure the demon trap under the rug is intact. Now he's clearly uneasy, and we wonder if the routine had all that subtext before the scream, and we just didn't see it from the outside.

The next scene made me feel like I was watching a feature-length thriller. More gouges, in a telephone pole, a billowy sheet (loved that shot!), a shed door. Dean's flinching at the little yappy dog evokes memories of "Yellow Fever." But our moment of amusement is over when he finds sulfur.

Lisa catches him gearing up from the Impala's trunk, under tarp but at the ready. I like that Dean has clearly told Lisa all about himself. She asks if he's hunting something, doesn't question or argue against his desire to send her away and keep on the hunt.

Now, if you read the opening credits (or attended the July Salute to Supernatural in New Jersey), you know what's coming. After a few creepy teasers (flickering light, rolling ball—why is it always a rolling ball?), suddenly we have...

THE YELLOW-EYED DEMON, aka scenery-chewing Fred Lehne!

He tells Dean "you had to know we were coming for you." You know, I thought that, too, at the beginning, that just because the apocalypse was over didn't mean all the evil monsters stopped wanting Dean's head on a plate. But then I remembered the Enochian carvings in his ribs kept him hidden. That's why he's been safe for a year. Isn't it?

Shocking moment number one: As YED chokes Dean into unconsciousness, Sam stabs him with...milk? Yeah! But wait, then Dean gasps awake...and we go to commercial. Was it a dream? But no, when we get back (yay, Harry Potter trailer!), he's waking again, and Sam's still there.

Right off the bat, Sam bothers me. He's cold. Gone is the well of emotion Sammy drew from. He's flip and actually looks a little smug when Dean finally hugs him. He "proves" he's Sam by drinking salted holy water and cutting his arm, but that stuff doesn't work on angels, and Lucifer was an angel. I don't know if this is a hole or something that might come up somewhere along the line.

Now Sam reveals how long he's been out of the cage—almost the entire time—and we see the Real Dean again. "I wanted my brother!" Sam still sounds cold in his logic, and acts almost bored with the tedium of relating his story to Dean. I almost hate him. But on the other side of it, the old Dean would have punched Sam in the face. I wanted him to punch Sam in the face. He doesn't seem to have that bottomless pit of anger he's had since Dad died. Hmmmm.

Worse than if Sam had been hunting alone for a year, however, is the truth—he's been hunting with family. Campbells, who grew up as hunters, but who never knew about Sam and Dean. And here's "shock" number two (again, only if you didn't read the credits and managed to avoid all spoilers). Grandpa!

I wonder if Samuel remembered Dean's trip back in time. I was never clear on if that was real for those in the past, or only for Dean. Samuel sure treats Dean as if they'd met before. He's been returned to life, too, pulled from heaven. Even though he says he wanted to tell Dean everything but deferred to Sam's wishes, he strikes me just as cold as Sam.

So let's get to the monster of the week. It turns out Dean's hallucinations were due to poisoning by djinn, who can pass for human and kill with a touch. They came after Sam, apparently for revenge, so the hunters knew they'd go after Dean next. Realizing he left Lisa and Ben vulnerable, "Take me home!" Dean demands, and who would think that would be one of the strangest things ever said on this show?

The guard they had on Lisa and Ben is dead, and the house is empty, and we finally get a glimpse of the old Sam, torment on his face as he comes in and exchanges a despairing look with Dean.

Lisa and Ben were still at the movies, though, and come home safe. Dean tells them he's taking them to a friend's house. But before Ben goes upstairs, Sam comes in, and Lisa immediately recognizes him and the import of his appearance.

Suddenly we jump to Bobby's. He's sadly not pleased to see Dean. "if you're here, there's something wrong." He lets them in, sends Ben upstairs ("Don't touch the decor. Assume it's all loaded.")...and is totally unsurprised when Sam appears.

Poor Dean. They left him alone to be happy, to have a life and a family and a home, but he's far more alone now. He reveals how hard it was—he was out of his head with grief, drank too much, had nightmares...

Sorry, Bobby, but I'm with Dean. I guess they had good intentions, but I'm sorry, letting him believe Sam was in the cage could never be balanced by what he gained. Not even the love he clearly has from Lisa and Ben.

Dean takes a moment with Lisa, apologizing for bringing this stuff to her, for not knowing it would lead to this. And Lisa becomes my favorite person when she says "when a guy who just saved the world shows up at your door, you kind of expect him to have issues" and when she tells him it was the best year of her life. She turned out to be exactly the kind of woman Dean needed. Maybe when the show is over, he can wind up back with her. :)

Dean returns to the "family." I don't like them. They're patronizing and seem to be plan-less, and excuse me, but Dean's only been out of it for a year. Samuel was out, what, 35 years? More? Dean's far more professional. (And he responds accordingly!) That other cousin looks like Rick Schroeder, BTW.

"Nice house." Something about Grandpa Samuel is bothering me. He's too controlled. The Samuel we met in "In the Beginning" was passionate and protective. We get a flash of the old hunter as he describes the upheaval in the supernatural world, but his "we're blood, join us" speech still rubs me the wrong way.

The djinn are watching, not moving in, so Dean sends the Campbells away in order to be better bait. He and Sam talk a little. Sam doesn't want to talk about being in the cage. But if he was removed almost immediately, how much could he really have endured? Will they ever reveal it? If they follow pattern from past seasons, it'll come out eventually.

Sid and his wife are being killed next door, so Dean takes off, going to try to save them, while Sam yells that they're already dead. Dean gets attacked—the female reveals that the djinn killed was their father. They poison Dean and leave him for dead, joining their brother(?), against whom Sam is faring much better. I guess the differences in their fighting is supposed to illustrate that Sam's been doing it for a year and Dean's lost his edge, but I don't like the redundancy in the attacks on Dean.

Who's hallucinating again. Lisa and Ben in danger, YED after them. Lisa winds up on the ceiling, Ben drinking demon blood, all Dean's nightmares in vivid detail. YED says "This...something else...there's something coming for this one [Ben], and you can't stop it." Oooh, is that just the hallucination, or foreshadowing?

Sam fights like his old self, too, but is losing when Samuel gets the drop on the demon attacking him. But he sends Sam to get Dean, and instead of killing the female djinn, they capture her, hustling her to the van before the boys come back. Great. Secrets. Yeah, I trust dear old Gramps.

So Dean's okay, despite the double poisoning. Samuel and the cousins are gone, Sam's going to meet them, but Dean says no, he's not going. Sam's argument feels disingenuous or something. You know what it is? He has the same tone Meg!Sam had when he was talking to Jo, in "Born Under a Bad Sign." Then he says something that really gets to the heart of how much he's changed. Dean says he's a liability, he did something stupid, but Sam says no, Dean cares, and Sam wouldn't even have thought to try. That it's better with Dean around. But there's still not much emotion behind the admission, which makes me ache.

Dean tries to give Sam the Impala, but he easily declines. Okay, he has a sweet car, too, but it's no Metallicar. When he says, "It was really good to see you again, Dean," it sounds like any person who ran into a friend they hadn't seen in a while. Not a brother who'd given his life to save his only family, and been saved the same way.

Oooh, they got new promo shots! Sam looks hot in leather, with now!Sam hair (instead of season 2 hair). Dean's hot, too. The preview for next week looks awful (in a horrorific way, not a badly done way!). But Sam seems more like the guy we've loved for five years, and it looks like they'll be pulling Dean back to the life slowly. I like that. His year with Lisa and Ben has been significant. His fight to shed his old life was a true battle. It makes sense that he'd want to hold on to it, and it's more natural to ease into the new reality than to just abruptly change everything, as TV writers are wont to do.

So, let's analyze this. Obviously, this is just my take, and your mileage may vary. :)

My husband felt a lot of the episode was slow. I thought those slow parts were unnervingly tense. Production values were high—music and editing and scene and cinematography were excellent, and I think the writing was, too. I have no qualms about overall quality this season.

I LOVED the first third of the show (OH! Including the new title card, shattering glass!), and when I break down the new reality, I'm satisfied. All of what we writers call GMC (goals, motivation, and conflict) are there. It makes sense that Sam would be cold and closed off after his experience. When Dean came out of hell, he still had his brother to protect. Sam did, too, but his choice to protect him was to stay away, which removed Dean's influence on him and vice versa. Instead, he's been with these hunters who were raised to be cold and removed. Unlike the Winchesters, who hunted out of anger and pain and even love, the Campbells hunt out of legacy and expectation.

Dean's choice to stay makes sense, too. His brother isn't who he used to be, and he allowed Dean to be tormented for a year. He's fought for the life he created, and he's not ready to give it up. Besides the fact that he set up Lisa and Ben to be in danger, and can't leave them vulnerable to it.

The only thing that concerns me is the sense through two-thirds of the episode that everything was off. The entire world of Supernatural has changed, and it doesn't fit all that well. Shows that last this long often stagnate as they try to hold on to what made them great. Other shows try to evolve and fail. We can't really tell from one episode, but hopefully, Supernatural's evolution will be the rare success.

So now it's your turn! What did you think?

SPNews

Check out the DVD cover for the anime series.

In this video, Jensen talks about the start of Season 6 and how Dean’s the last to know about Sam.

Some behind-the-scenes pics from season 6.

TV Squad has a great interview with Sera, who reveals—HORROR—that Dean won’t be driving the Impala!

More on Sebastian Roché’s role as Castiel’s angelic friend in Season 6.

Finally, you have to watch this awesome fan video with birthday wishes for Jim Beaver who turned 60 on August 12.

SPNews

Spoiler TV has some non-spoilery on-set pictures from the start of season 6.

Zap2It has a fun, lightly-spoilerish article talking about the return of the YED, Jensen's directorial debut and Jim Beaver's rough shoot for Weekend at Bobby's.

ScreenRant has a full review of Batman: Under the Red Hood

The Daily Record said Matt Cohen (Young John Winchester) completely charmed fans at NJ's Salute to Supernatural convention.

Jared takes time out from filming season 6 to make a video plea for fans asking them to vote for the Dog's Life Rescue in the Chase Community Giving Contest.

So, Friday, Huh?

I started watching Supernatural in the second season, when it was still on Tuesday night. I think they switched it to Thursday for season 3, so that "feels" like the right night. Honestly, it doesn't matter. I'll watch it no matter when/where it is, with very little getting in the way, and if I can't watch live, I'll DVR it to watch later.

But now they're moving our beloved show to Friday night, aka The Night Shows Go to Die. I know at least one person that is a problem for: she has a family night on Fridays, and is religious about it. Friday is "party" night, too, so ratings overall tend to be pretty low. Most shows that get moved to Friday don't last very long.

On the other hand, dying or being killed isn't a given, generally speaking. There have always been shows that did well on Friday, such as Providencetown and Numb3rs. Smallville kept its numbers the same after being moved to Friday, and it was always a good pairing with Supernatural (though I'd argue that The Vampire Diaries makes a better combo).

We hear a lot among "fandom" about how the CW doesn't give our show any love—doesn't promote it, doesn't support it, etc.—but after three years in a row of early pickups, and insisting it continue after a natural end point, I'd have to call bs on that complaint. Supernatural is a solid performer for them, and they struggle to develop new shows/enough programming for a full week.

So in my opinion, the move to Friday isn't necessarily a bad omen. In fact, I think we have to be more concerned about Ackles and Padalecki's contracts expiring this year.

What do you think?

THIS JUST IN

This just in: Supernatural has been renewed for a sixth season!  Woo hooo!

*runs off to tell everyone*

ETA:
Well, damn, I was afraid of this. To sum up without all the drama: Eric Kripke is handing over showrunning duties to Sera Gamble, but he and Robert Singer will remain hands-on executive producers.

I don't know, that doesn't seem like much of a change to me. :)

From the Floor of the Writers' Room

It goes without saying that we’re excited about the show coming back on tomorrow! But lately, SPN fans have also been excited about the possibility of the show coming back next year. Television history demonstrates that sometimes series which have been on the air awhile have to alter their original direction—characters who have been in high school for the show's entire run move on to new settings and plots on college campuses; a show that was initially based on the “power of three” sisters killed one off and had to cast about for a way to play off the premise; and after four seasons of fighting Wolfram and Hart, Angel accepts a job offer to work for them.

So, if the Winchesters return for an unexpected sixth season after the Apocalypse (which many feel is a natural end), will it be more of the same, or will the writers revamp the show entirely?

I was recently given a wadded up piece of paper from an unnamed source (my imagination. What, you named yours?) Said paper is rumored to have been found near the wastebasket in the Supernatural Writers’ Room, giving us a rare what-might-have-been peek at some proposed—but ultimately rejected—new directions for the brothers Winchester.

1. In the season five finale, Dean is killed in a climactic battle but, during the episode’s last few seconds, “downloads” into a new body. Season six opens with Sam’s stunned realization that his brother is a Cylon. The resulting story arc unravels the mystery of who else might not be human and why Bobby is suddenly hearing Dylan music.


2. With the Apocalypse behind them, Sam returns to law school and the sixth season premiere kicks off SPN's new legal-drama format. Sam finds himself defending Dean against a murder charge. Richard Speight Jr. guest stars as the prosecuting attorney.



3. The Apocalypse is over. But our boys are so traumatized by what they’ve seen and done that all they want to do is forget for a few years. Enter a mysterious British woman who works for a shadowy corporation. She offers them the refuge of a temporary fresh slate, if they will allow their minds to be wiped clean and “imprinted” with different personalities…some of which might be sent on risqué assignments such as sleeping with multiple female clients. However, this show never really finds its feet and is ultimately axed, due to Dean scoffing that he’s perfectly happy to sleep with dozens of women without any personality transfers and Sam--broad-shouldered, tall, tall Sam—inadvertently breaks the treatment chair the first time he sits in it.



4. Now that the day has been saved and demons have retreated below to lick their wounds, Hunters everywhere are at loose ends. What to do next? With their accumulated knowledge of American diner cuisine, Sam, Dean and others compete against each other for the title of Top Short Order Cook. Quickfire challenges include best roadtrip snack and best new take on pig in a poke. The entire season is hosted by Padma Lakshmi and Tom Colicchio, with the Ghostfacers rounding out Judge’s Table.

*****

Hmmm…

It’s probably best that the writers aren’t going with any of these and we all just wait to see what Kripke and Co. decide!