Supernatural follows up its solid start to the season with an equally satisfying episode which is heavy on the giggles and heavy on the mythology of the new season. It gives new show-runner, Jeremy Carver, a chance to flex his muscles and show the audience that he truly intends to take this show back to its roots without sacrificing too much in the process. Picking up where we left off, Kevin is riding around with Dean and Sammy now, and after watching his girlfriends neck snapped by Crowley, Kevin forces the brothers to take him home to the loving embrace of his mother. Of course, half his neighbourhood has to have their throats slit before this family reunion can take place and Dean, fuelled by Purgatory-rage, is only happy to oblige. The addition of Kevins mother to the group added to the funnies of this episode; watching her take a stubborn shop-owner down a peg or two as Dean and his manliness falls flat was amusing and her decision to sacrifice her soul, the most valuable thing she holds, for her son worked on many levels. For those interested, Kevins mum was played by guest-star Lauren Tom, who played Julie in the second season of
Friends. I felt this episode was very dark. Aside from the humorous elements, which were many (did I mention that?), the episode was incredibly bloody and featured quite a few deaths. We got our first splash-opening, that perpetually unlucky soul whose existence is wiped out in one of the shows favoured blood splatter openings. Demons were exorcised, Gods were stabbed, and ultimately, humans, the vessels, were killed. Watching Dean go about his business was quite an eye-opener. He killed the human vessels without remorse and admitted that he would have killed Kevins mum (who had been possessed by Crowley) in a heartbeat. This reminds me a lot of the Sam we saw at the beginning of Season 6; whilst I dont think Dean has lost his soul, its certainly been tainted with something and the murky Purgatory flashbacks were once again as intriguing as ever. The flashbacks are something that I imagine will come into play more prominently as the season progresses. Were not looking at any in-depth
LOST sequences here, but theyll be quick and painful. This week saw Castiels return to the show and the admission that when the two had originally arrived in Purgatory, he had abandoned Dean in order to somehow
save his human friend, was slightly far-fetched. Its a fangled theory but Cas seems pretty adamant. The final shot of Castiel, wide-eyed and calling out to his friend, was quite a visceral ending. Something happened with the two and Id bet my bottom dollar it wont reflect well on Dean when it does come out. By the end of the episode, everyone wed come across in the episode apart from our main players seemed to have died, Crowley had the tablet, Kevin had done a runner with his comatose mother (anyone know how he got out, carrying his mother?) and Sam and Dean were back to square one. The direction of this season isnt crystal-clear at this point in time, but it was still a fun episode with some great lines (
Plutus?Is that even a planet anymore?) and it opens the door for next week to mix some funky flashbacks with some classic monster-of-the-week episodes where Carvers true ability will take centre stage. So again,
Supernatural continues down the right path and for now, all signs are reasonably positive. We didnt get to see anymore of Sam and his dog this episode but Im sure thats just a bones throw away. For me, I want the show to get back to its gritty roots. Monsters need to come out to play and really take the boys for a ride. Lets see what its got Side-note: I hope the brothers decide to take the Hammer of Thor with them...might come in handy.