Listen, I suffered through Season 12 – a season that wasn’t just bad but – in my view – unforgivably bad. I can’t get past the shoot-outs with other human beings thing. Sam and Dean killing other human beings. Hiding between posts and peeping out to get a shot. What the FUCK. It made me realize no one over there even GOT what show they were working on.
But yes, I am a sucker and I will be watching. I guess I’m a glutton for punishment.
Listen I’m still doing re-caps of Season 3 – intermittently yes – but still going. I plan on continuing. Please participate if you like. I’ve missed you all and it’s fun to talk about something positive.
HOWEVER. I will be putting up place-holders for new episodes. If the show starts to suck as much as Season 12 did, I don’t know if I’ll have the heart. We shall see. I will try to keep an open mind.
(Updated to reflect the extremely illuminating mistake that I didn’t even know what season was premiering tonight. It’s like last yearnever happened.)
Thank you, Sheila.
I will be watching this ep even tho I had to give up half way through the last Season. Either that or stage some kind of intervention.
In the meantime, your recaps are a complete joy – Season 3 is bliss – and I relish every one.
I relate to the intervention thought. At a certain point I just had to give up hope … like: Oh, wow, so this is the show now … there’s not going to be a course-correction … this is what they think the show is.
Sadly, last night’s ep is on that same track. It’s kind of heart-breaking. They don’t care about Sam and Dean’s relationship anymore.
To console myself, I just started working on the “Bedtime Stories” re-cap. Because yes, Season 3 is absolute bliss.
I love the Bedtime Stories ep!
Me too!
The casting directors for that one must have had a BALL. Everyone was cast so perfectly! The 3 Little Pigs? ha!!
I also love it when Sam’s an expert on something. Suddenly he’s Mr. Grimm Scholar and it’s so charming.
Thanks Sheila – for the amazing recaps and for the place to talk after episodes. I think the trauma beginning at the end of season 11 made you black out completely on season 12 (there were parts I wish I could forget). Lucky Season 13 starts tonight.
Yes, I did completely black out Season 12 – hahahaha I didn’t even realize I’d done it until I read your comment. So revealing!!
Sigh. I guess I’ll go ahead and watch the last 3 episodes of last season. I haven’t been able to make myself watch. *I * can’t forgive what they did with Mary’s character and the squandered potential for family drama and related character development.
I mean, I’m still going to watch. I’m just not that excited right now.
// *I * can’t forgive what they did with Mary’s character and the squandered potential for family drama and related character development. //
Yes. Another unforgivable choice. Made me realize that they really didn’t understand the backstory in any way whatsoever. And also just reiterated that the characters of Sam and Dean – the relationship of Sam and Dean – held no interest for “them”, those writing, those putting it all together. It was upsetting to watch.
Sheila, thanks for making a place to talk.
The beautiful shot of Dean angry-praying by the side of the fast food joint, with that sky and lake in the background, overcame a whole lot of meh.
Wish there hadn’t been so much to overcome.
That was a gorgeous shot and intimate moment. Also loved the scene where they were actually driving and discussing. Gave a nice sense of movement (as opposed to the typical walk and talks) plus the feeling of being an outsider eavesdropping on a terrible conversation.
I did like hearing Baby’s engine growl, and the sense of eavesdropping there, too. Another decent moment: Dean saying that nothing goes well for them, so of course Jack will become evil.
I hate fist fighting with angels. S&D should just be completely overmatched and need to resort to their wits (which Sam did).
And Dean is usually right in those cases. I was also intrigued by Jack’s comment about the bad woman on fire. Mary?
Didn’t Dagon burn up? I thought that was who Jack was talking about.
Could be Dagon, you’re right.
TonyaNC –
Good catch. I think you’re right about Dagon!
I liked the scene where bloody knuckled Dean downs whiskey by the car and goes cross-eyed with tedium at the chatty girl.
Sam needs to lose that godawful ugly barbecue-sauce coloured jacket.
Um … the scenery was lovely.
HOW DARE
I feel defensive of Sam’s unique wardrobe choices. It must be hard to show your personality through flannel and canvas. (Oh purple dog shirt, where did you go?)
I loved the white shirt he used to wear – with the pattern on it – kind of Western style?
PITTER PAT.
The one with the flowered pattern on the inside and the cuffs? I like that one too (some people who will remain unnamed call it the maternity shirt but they don’t understand Sam’s need for individuality) (well, okay, it’s probably Jared rooting through the wardrobe going, how cool).
Yes! That’s the one. He only wore it a couple of times and it’s so … dude-ranch-y, it’s a fascinating “departure” for him.
Talking about their clothes NEVER GETS OLD.
I love how we all could probably make a definitive list of every single piece of clothing in their wardrobe.
I think the thing I am most looking forward to this season is the return of Sam’s red and green cheesecloth-type plaids. They are heaven.
Yes, those are really good.
I mourn the disappearance of henleys from the equation. Season 4 (re-watching now) is Henley Heaven.
//I mourn the disappearance of henleys//
Right there with you.
when I die I hope to go to Henley Heaven …
And I refer you all to one of the definitive discussions at this site on this subject, back in Season 10 episode 10
http://www.sheilaomalley.com/?p=94859
And the many and varied discussions therein including how every plaid shirt worn is a henleys opportunity lost.
And also possibly the first Legs discussion, including the names for JA’s left and right leg. (Eric and Ernie. Oh happy days.)
//
January 22, 2015 at 8:54 am
Also the advantage of legs is that they are never clothed in plaid//
Some things are just inarguable, especially since kilts and pajamas were excluded.
Helena – how on earth did you know where to find that thread? I am so impressed. what a hilarious walk down memory lane.
// those legs are eloquent, man, they look like they’re having their own conversation. I liked what they were saying to each other in that little wander over to the bench in front of Claire’s Caravan of Crazy. //
Helena, thank you for this.
Well, thank you Sheila for creating the space where it could all happen, the space for Legs, Teapots, Eyelashes, and Henley’s appreciation.
and on that subject, happy 15th year anniversary to you and your blog. My life is richer for it.
Thank you Helena!
Season 13 episode 2 had some Henley.
The scenery really was lovely though!
Dean being a mess and keeping secrets is always a good thing.
Hi fellow fans! I guess I’m in for the long haul too – I can’t quit these guys. I’m intrigued by this seasons premise – I want to see how they use Jack. The angel war is so tiresome, but it’s not going away so I will have to grit my teeth and ignore it.
I was really impressed by the shot outside of the Impala – it came up from behind, swung around to the drivers side and then it was shooting from the front of the car. Just cool. I was getting antsy at how much time was being spent on these new characters and leaving the brothers as after thoughts – it was giving me flashbacks of last season. Luckily for me, Jensen’s scene at the end made up for the lack of screen time during the beginning of the episode.
I hope the practice of cutting the brothers scenes short is not happening again this season,
// I hope the practice of cutting the brothers scenes short is not happening again this season //
I’m with you!
Also, the lack of Impala scenes … the Brothers Melodrama scenes – totally absent from S12 … It’s like they’ve forgotten how to do them, how to dig deep, how to give the brothers space to talk, or reflect, or whatever.
I got no sense of the realtionship between them in this episode. I’m not quitting. I’ve come too far!
But it still felt “off” to me.
It breaks my heart to see them trying to act with so little to go on. It’s like trying to bake a cake with just flour and milk.
Hadn’t loved Castiel so much in a long time. That’s what I’ve wanted to see for at least two seasons.
// It breaks my heart to see them trying to act with so little to go on. //
Such a good observation. That’s my feeling too.
I love them both so much. They’re so good. But they can’t do it alone. They need to be given shit to do, shit to PLAY. Like Dean’s phone call at the end. I wasn’t crazy about it – like oh my God, no, you are asking for Crowley to return?? At least he didn’t say “Bring back Rowena …” – but at least it gave JA a chance to do some ACTING, for God’s sake.
they were working hard, but I found it a tough ask to take all those intense mournful emotions seriously — I know I’m biased, but come on.
Why wouldn’t they be grieving? They lost their best friend, their mother, and the battle they were fighting in an instant. Why wouldn’t Dean ask for Crowley? Over the last few years the two developed a weird sort of comradery, and Crowley had just sacrificed himself for their cause. Why wouldn’t they start to see themselves as heroes and believe their own hype a bit, after being the two most important figures in the apocalypse, and then being told repeatedly about their reputation? In any case, Dean refuses th label in this episode.
I’m not sure,to be honest, what more they should have been given to work with in this episode. As I said below, I thought it was beautiful, in terms of the J’s acting, the direction, the set up for the season, and in the intro to Jack,who was also well played by Alexander Calvert.
// In any case, Dean refuses th label in this episode. //
Thank God. But for me, even putting “So you guys are superheroes” into the mix is way too explicit – this was a huge problem for me all last season where everyone – including them – kept reminding us of how heroic they were. “This is what we do. We save people.” “We put on flannel, we pick up a gun, this is what we do …” It’s just … it’s best to leave that stuff unsaid – or to use it very very sparingly. Mainly because THEN it gives us access to Sam and Dean’s real feelings about all of this which is: “our lives suck and often the cost has been way too high.” That was why Dean’s phone call was the real-est moment in the episode for me – his rage was titanic at how much they have lost. This is the kind of thing that was totally absent last season so I suppose I am still suffering from a hangover because of it.
Too much text, not enough sub. :)
Barb, I take your point and I’m really glad you liked it! Of course they’re mourning — and I’m glad they mentioned Crowley too — but the emotion was just too heavy for me — I feel like it’s been too thin to support such emotion, in the story, the character relationships. It felt disingenuous at times. I’ve got no idea what Dean is thinking when he stares at Cas’s face, to be honest. But there were some great moments! I really liked Dean tearing down the curtain to help with the shroud. I loved his nightmare of Mary. Those things were painful, personal. I would love more of that kind of specificity.
Jack was more interesting than I expected and I thought Calvert fond some good moments to play! Maybe the dualism a little heavy-handed in the way it’s shot but I’m curious about what’s next.
“that kind of specificity” – so true. I loved that detail of tearing the curtain. It showed us a step in preparing for a hunter burial that we’d never seen. Not that I think that they usually rip down curtains, just that they use something to bind the body. In this episode, Dean is pragmatic when he uses what’s nearby – the curtains – but it also reminded me that he just didn’t care.
I thought it was a sign of grief, as well as demonstrating how he usually builds walls and does what he HAS to do, even if his heart is breaking. I didn’t think about it at the time, but others pointed out about the Jewish habit of symbolically tearing garments when mourning.
I wonder if subconsciously I noticed that because my growing-up years were absolutely immersed in the Bible. And somehow, that quiet, stark location and Castiel’s body on the table and the curtains — I thought of Emily Dickinson’s poem:
” The Bustle in a House
The Morning after Death
Is solemnest of industries
Enacted opon Earth –
The Sweeping up the Heart
And putting Love away
We shall not want to use again
Until Eternity –”
They weren’t cleaning up a house but, still, the table and the curtains and the quiet sense of grief just resonated.
I also liked the flashback of Mary. I thought it was a recap at first, then Mary burst into flame like Dagon, then she was burning on the ceiling, then I realized it was Dean’s dream. I just thought it was so poignant because it related his sense of loss and grief and horror all the way back to when he was four years old. He’s never gotten over that wound to his soul, no matter how much of a tough guy persona he puts on.
I agree, Aslan’sOwn, about how much more significant those moments felt — and wow, that poem!
I guess my main complaint – and just speaking for myself now! – they lost a lot of momentum in S12 and so some of these moments just didnt have the OOMPH that, say, the opening episodes of Season 4 had – or Season 6 … where they had been putting money aside for an entire season, so there were all of these checks to be cashed when the time came. A pay-off for stuff that had been set up for 18, 19 episodes.
For me, these moments – especially with Castiel – lack a sense of payoff. I like Castiel – and I’m re-watching Season 4 now and it’s just THRILLING to go back and remember what he brought to the series, how strange he was, how essential to moving the entire thing to some new level.
And then they lost a lot of ground – Season 9 to 12 – where no one seemed to know what to do with Castiel – or Crowley. They were still there but they were somehow removed from the texture of the show. Peripheral.
I did like what Calvert was doing – I liked the baffled innocence of it – and I also liked how it unfolded in an unexpected way. In him could be more opportunities to explore the concept of free will – can a monster choose NOT to be a monster – and all of those really rich topics that have been so much a part of the series.
I do agree that Crowley in particular never had enough to do after he turned Demon Dean over to Sam. His scenes were too often placeholders, reminding us, “here’s what’s going on in Hell!”, when we didn’t really care, and the storyline works better when we DON’T know what’s going on in Hell–or Heaven, for that matter–when there is a sense of mystery or menace hanging around the Winchesters.
I do think the Jack story could be tremendous, and another refraction of our leads, Sam in particular. Also, it has the potential to realize my own long-held wish to see both Sam and Dean in a more explicit parenting sort of role, and to bring Cas back into the main story in an interesting way.
// to realize my own long-held wish to see both Sam and Dean in a more explicit parenting sort of role, and to bring Cas back into the main story in an interesting way. //
Barb – yes, I am very intrigued by these possibilities as well.
I guess my only unequivocally positive comment is that I was excited that finally – after 13 years – they got permission to use an actual Metallica song! Metallica has always been implicit – from the pilot – so it was nice to finally have it go EXplicit. (Metallica is very very stingy with permissions to use their stuff. I imagine the costs are prohibitive. That’s why you rarely hear Metallica songs on soundtracks – and NEVER in advertisements.)
So. I was happy to hear “Nothing Else Matters” over the “prologue.”
But that’s about it. I feel that the soul is gone. And once again, there’s no relationship between the brothers except an extremely general irritable bickering mood – plus an argument that is about 10 seasons old. “We kill him, Sam, that’s kind of what we do.”
They’re both beautiful actors and they find things to grasp onto because they are both intelligent and they certainly know their characters better than ANYbody writing these scripts now.
I wish that horrible scene with the girl by the Impala had been played for … humor … maybe even sex … maybe Dean getting sucked into her vibe a little bit? Getting “played”? Or being intrigued? Maybe if she was funnier or a better actress – – but she was neither, sad to say – her line readings were so muddled that the call back to “Becky” at the end didn’t register properly since she hadn’t made it clear the first time around because she was so busy “acting”) … That scene was a great opportunity for some weird eccentric texture. It was there but somehow … it didn’t LAND.
Each scene in the series used to have a little original SPIN on it … quirks, eccentricities – the girl sucking on the straw during questioning in Monster Movie – (just re-watched so it’s fresh in my mind). that scene between Dean and the girl by the Impala is a perfect example of how the series has flattened itself out into the generic.
There was barely one even vaguely humorous moment in that episode. I liked the Pirate’s employee assuming Jack was “baked” – he had some very funny reactions to the weird behavior. Phil Sgriccia is a good director – and VERY good with comedy. But … he can’t create something out of nothing.
Both actors had beautiful moments. They always do. There was a rage that came out at the very end of Dean’s phone call that was very real, and also new for Dean. It was a childish rage, a sort of “Enough already, I’ve had it” rage … but they lost so much ground in S12 I’m having a hard time grasping onto anything here. I did like that rage though. And the sort of floating-lost look in his eyes when he stared down at Castiel. There’s Dean, that’s the Dean we all know.
I will say that I liked the look of a lot of it. There was one shot of Jack in the cell, his hands up on the wall, that was particularly beautiful in a kind of dark-green glamorous vaguely Art Deco way.
I found that Home-callback prayer scene kind of excruciating to watch (and not in a good way) BUT my GOD did I love the way he punched that door.
And there were quite a few really pretty shots.
Some character notes that worked for me. Sam’s worry. Dean’s certainty, which weighs a metric ton. Hilariously, he has decided that now is the time to start having flashbacks to his mother’s death and all the weird feelings he might have about her. A season too late but whatevs.
Can we please, please, please lay this hero business to rest now. Please. It’s so naff. It’s so gross.
What was going on with that FIGHT?!?!
The wall punch was awesome!
// Can we please, please, please lay this hero business to rest now. Please. It’s so naff. It’s so gross. //
I just cannot even deal with it. It has no part in this show – at least not how they’re doing it. It shows how “outside” the world the writers are. It’s bizarre, totally off-key.
Both JA and JP are extremely deep actors who bring their entire lives with them to every single moment – it’s why their performances are so rich. JP just sort of emanates a kind of sadness – doesn’t he? Or … mournfulness, thoughtfulness. He’s always managing something – sadness, worry, isolation – in order to function. I love that aspect of Sam – or of JP – same thing at this point. And I love Dean’s deflections – still knee-jerk – how quick he is to be irritated – his frayed nerves – his flailing about – his need for privacy, but how he can never get privacy … it makes him crazy.
all of this is totally present at all times, regardless of the material – and it’s one of the main reasons I’ve stuck around. I just like watching these guys think and react and feel and all the rest.
and the fight? I have no idea. It was chopped up and filmed so confusingly I have no idea what was happening.
JP and thoughtfulness, sadness, mournfulness — yes, agree 100% — the contrast between Sam and goofy fidgety JP is huge, but I think JP is someone whose brain just doesn’t turn off and the way that emerges in Sam is deep and still and heartbreaking at times. I’m dying to see more from these two guys, in this show, all the time….I can never be satisfied…lol
that fight — it felt like there were a couple of beats that were meant to be comic and didn’t land? Dean trying to fight her with paper and a hatstand or something? A mess, unfortunately — maybe the actress wasn’t an experienced stage fighter or something but production/editing missed the mark in compensating.
// think JP is someone whose brain just doesn’t turn off and the way that emerges in Sam is deep and still and heartbreaking at times. //
Yes. He is very very familiar with sadness. He emanates it. More so now than when he was young. It’s just THERE.
//I wish that horrible scene with the girl by the Impala had been played for … humor … maybe even sex … maybe Dean getting sucked into her vibe a little bit? Getting “played”? // yes this. It started sort of amusing then devolved into a mess and I think you’re right about the actress. There have been plenty of side characters with this type of drunken or stoned interaction is played for both humor and/or feelings. It was oddly paced and that Becky story was so odd. Definitely the low point of the ep for me.
Also, an angel who calls Sam “the other one”? Because they wouldn’t have strong feelings about Lucifer’s vessel, of course. Again, that character and its dialogue was an odd choice.
// It started sort of amusing then devolved into a mess //
Yeah, it was a great setup! She was over-written – or maybe it was just how she played it. If she had played it simpler, straighter – then the “Becky” callback could have really worked.
Also, maybe wouldn’t Dean’s radar be a bit better by now? Like, why is this girl talking to me like this? And her touching his car like that? I feel like if she had been a bit less “overt” – there might have been some good moments where he was actually duped by her – instead of just showing a vague sense of irritation.
I don’t know – it was “off” somehow.
I liked the premier. I’m going into this season like I try and go into every season….with fresh hope and optimism. 12 was my least favorite season ever, but there was a lot of turmoil going into it from show runner departure to writer departure so I’m hoping that was a part of some of the issues. My favorite writer is gone and I still feel his loss, but I recently watched some of his earlier episodes and while good….I could see how he improved as the show went on. So I’m keeping my hope for all the new writers as well. (Buck-Lemming I shall continue to grit my teeth and endure….they apparently will never leave)
Moments I loved in the premier: Dean praying, Baby roaring down the road, the haunted look in Dean’s eyes as he stared into the flames at the end.
Things I liked: The fact that Cas didn’t pop up alive in episode 1. Pretty sure many fans were hoping he would do so. Not me. Let him be gone. Let Sam and Dean feel him being gone.
The AU. This storyline has me intrigued (probably even more then Jack to be perfectly honest) I’m looking forward to seeing more of it.
Jack was interesting. I hope he remains so. He’s going to be around a lot this season. We shall see what they do with him.
Things I hated: Angels. Didn’t like them . Haven’t liked them in years. I hope that maybe the storyline with Jack will bring something new and fresh…but it’s pretty slim…not going to lie
So overall, I liked it quite a bit. I maybe in the minority…probably am, but I actually thought Sam and Dean’s characters were written pretty spot on in the premier. Dean does tend to close down during grief and become surly and grumpy. He wouldn’t have talked to Sam about Cas or their mom. I think that Sam not pushing him to do so is a sign of how he’s learned to give his brother space rather then just lazy writing? Maybe this is just me indulging in the hope/optimism I was talking about. I’m hoping the talks will come. I hope with everything they will come. I totally agree that Sam and Dean’s relationship was completely lacking last year….hence why 12 was my least favorite season. Some of the best BM moments have often come from the MOW stories. We haven’t delved into any of those yet, so for me anyway…..hope lives!!!
Considering nothing in particular seemed to happen to or between the brothers last season I agree, Michelle, about the brothers stuff in this episode — it was about as good as I’d hoped for, for a season opener in which the end of last season didn’t hinge on something big between them a la S3, S5 — so… *deep breath* I don’t know if I’m optimistic, but at least it didn’t scuttle me completely.
// for a season opener in which the end of last season didn’t hinge on something big between them a la S3, S5 //
right, that’s an interesting element in all of this.
They lost a lot of ground with how easily they accepted Mary’s presence and then absence. If you don’t explore THAT then … what on earth are we doing here?
The flashback to the pilot was – maybe – a good sign.
We need to get Sam and Dean interacting again. Impala scenes. Brother Melodrama scenes. PLEASE.
Michelle – I like your hopeful attitude.
// I think that Sam not pushing him to do so is a sign of how he’s learned to give his brother space rather then just lazy writing? Maybe this is just me indulging in the hope/optimism I was talking about. //
I like this take!
// Moments I loved in the premier: Dean praying, Baby roaring down the road, the haunted look in Dean’s eyes as he stared into the flames at the end. //
These were good moments. Also the flashback in and of itself shows that maybe now they’re actually ready – after an entire season – to deal with the emotional fallout of Mom returning and then abandoning them again.
I don’t know. They so botched the whole Mary thing I feel pretty beat up about the whole thing … but maybe something’s churning up there that they’ll deal with and that would be great!
// Some of the best BM moments have often come from the MOW stories. //
Very true!!
Onward and upward!
I thought it was well done, beautiful to look at (and not just talking about the scenery. The highway sequence that Paula mentioned, the shot of Dean hiding behind the shack to pray which I think was a deliberate echo of the one in Home, his pause over Cas’ body, Sam’s face at the pyre–it was all beautiful). I liked the pacing of it, and the humanizing introduction to Jack. I’m still excited to see what comes next.
And now I get to add a Metallica song to my playlist! Bonus!
// which I think was a deliberate echo of the one in Home //
that’s exactly what I thought of too!
I heard those opening strains in the prologue and was like, “OMG they finally got a Metallica song into the mix. AT LAST!” Bob Seger must be cheap as hell. :)
The studio heads always say they’ll keep it going as long as J &J want to do it. These guys have never seemed the cash grabby type so these writers definitely need to get it together. If these boys aren’t given something to DO and soon, then I think we’re looking at the final days here. They are both too smart and talented for what they been given lately.
This is my feeling too.
CHEESECLOTH SHIRT
HENLEY
WE’VE PEAKED TOO SOON
(Scooby-Doo voice) Henleys???
on the other side of the world and your head snapped up like a gun dog at birdshot
HA
I haven’t seen it yet. I almost fainted just reading your comment.
Not just Henleys, but Dean wandering the halls of the Bunker in a Henley. Softies + Bunker patrol. Y E S
One thing about The Rising Son. TJ Wright certainly does a beautiful job of mixing up those outsider POV shots, peeking around the corner at the action (Jack sitting in the alley or Sam and Dean in the kitchen), with more intimate shots. His use of light makes me happy too – that beautiful golden light he uses on the brothers and on Jack is gorgeous. And yes, HENLEYS. It’s like the discussion here last week conjured them so thank you Jessie and Helena.
Baby got to roar down the road again!! 2 weeks in a row. Last season was utterly lacking in that department in my opinion. Let’s keep this up!
Cosign!
Baby on the road, yes. And Wayne (Jeffrey Vincent Parise) from The Love Witch as Asmodeus!
That hotel room was an ominous blue and red.
I was glad to see Donatello again.
I’m getting a lot of Cas in Jack’s inflections. Is anyone else getting the same thing? I assume it’s deliberate.
I liked that Jack opened the Bible to The Song of Solomon. Or Dean handed it to him with that book opened. Portents?
I think the Cas mannerisms are on purpose, especially some of the physical poses like sitting on the edge of the mattress watching TV. Poor Donatello. Smart though, if you’re soulless, then Mr Rogers does provide excellent advice on social interactions.
ha ha ha that GIANT hotel room. I’m surprised their voices didn’t echo. But I loved the colours and the backgrounds they gave for the closeups.
Perhaps the large room was to make up for the single bed they shared back in “Sin City.” Or maybe they have frequent guest perks at this point with their FBI agent badges. “If we use our Mulder and Sculley badges we can stay at a Hampton Inn!”
…….still only saw one bed……………
Wait, what *squints at screenshots* umm you may be right
Paula, God gave me a gift. I count beds well. I count beds very well.
Jessie –
the world needs your bed-counting skills.
The hotel room was nuts – like, how many Venetian blinds WERE there to create those shadows?
It was fun to see that everyone on the team go crazy in the randomness of that design – have some fun with the damn thing again, know what I mean?
yes — the blinds, the light, the chipped paint, the giant old CRT TV, bright bile-yellow bathroom. So good to see a shabby shitty cheap m/hotel room again, and used well, used evocatively.
And then, oh my god, the tattoo joint!!!!!!!! (in, like, the back of a pub or a garage or something?) I cannot get over how good they looked in front of that neon!!!!!!!!!!
I thought the Bible opening at the Song of Solomon was funny. Of all things you’d want the Son of Satan to read in the Bible — maybe God’s desire for the people of Ninevah to repent instead of destroying them in the book of Jonah or the chapter on love in 1 Cor. 13 or Jesus saying, “Let the little children come to me., but in stead, three-day-old Jack will be reading, “Your breasts are like twin fawns.”
The Song of Solomon bit was hilarious!!
“Hey, kid, here’s the story of your parents, but we’re going to start with some Biblical-era erotica.”
I marked those outsider POV shots too, Paula — I thought they were fascinating — especially how long the bunker one lingered.
In fact this episode was gorgeous whenever it was on the Winchesters to a degree that I haven’t noticed for a long time. Just breathtaking and kind of woozy and secret and rich. The Winchester scenes really worked for me. It was the same conversation, over and over, but it felt kind of….obsessive…in the way the show used to.
The choice of colours for the hotel was great, and used really eloquently in a couple of shots. Also there was a real richness and texture to it in a way that was completely absent last week from everything but those really amazing landscape shots.
And Sam and Dean both looked great, not Kim Manners great, but like the director was interested in them.
// And Sam and Dean both looked great, not Kim Manners great, but like the director was interested in them. //
Yes. This is what was not happening in S12 (or last episode). Nobody seemed to remember how to be obsessed with the faces of these two actors.
It’s weird – such an esoteric aesthetic thing … but we all picked up on it.
yes, guys — Sheila I felt that kind of unlocking relief that you did, bare minutes into it — the director was interested, the show was obsessed, it knew what it was about — it’s amazing how elemental and fundamental that feeling is — it makes all the difference in the world. It’s not like other episodes don’t have close-ups, you know? But you can TELL.
//I felt that kind of unlocking relief that you did, bare minutes into it//
YES!
Once the scene with those terrible, terrible actors playing demons was over. What the hell is that about? Remember when each the Gas n Sip cashiers with 30 seconds on screen time was a delight? Ugh. Makes me talk like an old lady.
I think all of us who were so dismayed last season picked up on it: something was happening! It gives me hope.
// Remember when each the Gas n Sip cashiers with 30 seconds on screen time was a delight? //
Lyrie – I know! You can’t just throw anyone up there. You have to actually think about what you want portrayed – the mood you want – and you need to get actors who can DO it. I’ve been bitching about the bad demon actors for about 3 years now – which like I say probably has to do with a lack of cohesion in their concept of Hell. Who are these demons? What is the relationship to their vessels? Why are they all 18 years old? Why can they barely read their lines without rolling their eyes? Think about MEG. and RUBY. I get these are glorified extras but still. The disparity in acting skill also makes Hell seem even MORE irrelevant. Know what I mean?
It’s like in the Winchester world, there’s people who know how to act. Therefore it’s fun to watch. In Hell, nobody knows how to act. Nobody even seems to know what they’re supposed to be playing. Therefore the scenes don’t play at all. It’s super annoying.
Onto more positive things: I felt hopeful too.
A weird motel room! Lots of great closeups. Behavior. Impala. Many talks between the brothers. Humor. Now all we need is to have some sexuality again and we’ll be off to the races.
// it knew what it was about — it’s amazing how elemental and fundamental that feeling is — //
Jessie – I know, it’s really kind of amazing.
If I had more time I’d try to write about it. How can we FEEL it? What IS it that we’re feeling?
I think “it knew what it was about” really gets at the heart of the matter. But still: how does that operate behind the scenes? After an entire season of forgetting what the whole damn show is about?
How can we FEEL it? What IS it that we’re feeling?…. how does that operate behind the scenes?
Right? As disheartening as it’s been, it’s fascinating on this level. They have the same technological and aesthetic tools, the same people behind and in front of the camera! Making the narrative personal — making them obsessed with their own psychodrama — is one part of it, but isn’t there something else going on as well?
Maybe just that so much of it happened in the dark?!
I agree about the lighting and the use of POV shots! It gave the episode an emotional attitude that registered … focusing on the characters as opposed to just “and here’s what happened next.”
This is great b/c when you look at the episode a LOT happened. A LOT of plot was introduced – plus new characters and concepts – but they still managed to keep us grounded in the relationship between Sam and Dean, and the adjustment (awkward) to their new roles as parents.
Good balancing act.
Why do the “that’s what we do” lines annoy? Sam had one of those this week. I’m thinking back to the first few seasons where the show opened with Dean’s lines about “picking up where Dad left off. Saving people. Hunting things.” That was on every show for 2-3 seasons.
Is it now the verbal equivalent of the Emperor’s remark to Mozart – “too many notes?” We don’t need to hear that now? We know they don’t need to say it to each other now? It sounds ridiculous to characters from outside the Bell Jar? Does it annoy because it seems like the writers are trying to tell us who Sam and Dean are, when they have been the clueless ones for a season and a quarter? All of the above?
It bugs me too, same as many other folks here. But I was asking myself why I was happy to hear it each week for a couple of seasons.
The repeated SPHT line worked because it was paratext. It was a door opening. This “what we do” business doesn’t work because it’s inside the text — it’s dumb writing (who talks like that?) and it treats us like idiots — and yeah, it’s particularly annoying considering S12.
This time around it bugged me too, but not so much as usual — not great writing (“fix it”? fix what?), but in the context of a pep talk when “what we do” is just white-knuckle our way through loss and trauma, it felt all right to me. It didn’t have that ‘we’re heroes’ inflection that drives me up the wall.
SAM: All right. I know what’s going on here.
DEAN: Oh please, tell me, what’s going on here.
SAM: You, thinking Mom is gone, and Cas is gone, and that Jack can’t be saved. Dean, after everything we’ve gone through — we’ve just lost people we loved, you stubbed your toe before, I had to eat a burger. I get it. But we’ve been down before. I mean rock bottom. I killed a bunch of people last week and keep getting touched inappropriately. You use extreme violence to solve problems like “my phone takes a while to restart.” Remember that time we almost ended the world? And that other time? And that other time? And that other time? And that other time? But did we let it beat us? No. We let it kill us, usually. But then we get up again. Because that’s what we do. We form dubious alliances that make no sense. We drink an improbable amount and look good even when we look like shit. We have identity crises that boost our stubble growth rate by 600%. And do we shave? No. We just drive around and take it out on other people. Because that’s what we do. And some weeks we don’t even tackle the big problem that’s consuming us. We just do some random other thing. And does that help? No. Generally it gets some innocent person killed. But we make it. You and me. Except for the times when, like I said, we die. But we know that I won’t let that stop you, and you won’t let that stop me. We’re here for each other. We fix it. And you know what? Maybe it invents a new kind of apocalypse and ruins a bunch of other peoples’ lives. But we keep grinding. Like a cheese grater, or the thing you use to chop up weed. But we keep grinding. Sometimes in the same bed, I don’t know what that’s about. You would think we’d know how to ask for a hotel room by now. So yeah, we mess up. And yeah, our own issues get between us, and angels, and demons, and doors. But we always get past it. We grind, Dean. You and me, we grind. Because that’s what we do.
‘We have identity crises that boost our stubble growth rate by 600%. And do we shave? No.’
Jessie, this is hilarious and worthy of A Day in the life of Agent Henrikson and I wish season 12 had just been Sam saying this.
‘We grind.’
Like two giant murderous plaid-wearing pepper mills.
I wish someone would set this to music.
Like two giant murderous plaid-wearing pepper mills
PLEEEEEEEEASE tell me this is your next art project
Better left to the imagination, Jessie.
Jessie…oh Jessie. I salute you….actually I bow to you. MASTERPIECE.
I cannot. stop. laughing.
You would think we’d know how to ask for a hotel room by now.
// I killed a bunch of people last week and keep getting touched inappropriately. //
I hate it when that happens.
such a bummer, you know? really throws your day out of whack
Unlurking just to thank you for this tour de force. I needed this laugh so badly!
All of this, Jessie, ALL OF THIS.
a ha ha, thanks Michelle, Paula — & hi cady, I hope you stay unlurked!
I love it when people unlurk. Welcome, cady!
// It didn’t have that ‘we’re heroes’ inflection that drives me up the wall. //
Cannot stand that.
It makes the writers sound like they don’t understand the show and have just been reading fan-fic to get up to speed.
obviously not MY fanfic >:-/
I agree mutecypher and I see what you’re saying, Jessie. But it was really those first time it was said that grabbed me (I can still hear baby Dean high pitched voice in the woods in Wendigo and that thrill of YES) then it fell away as a bit of a contrivance. There’s no new thrill to the “who we are” statements because they are so obvious. A casualty of a mature show and mature characaters.
Forgive me for being thick Paula — do you mean the SPHT line in the prevouslies became contrived for you? And/or that you got weary of it in the show itself? The former — and those other key lines like “In 1835 Samuel Colt made a gun” — I still feel very kindly towards…as a previouslies line. They proved last year that they can’t bring this stuff back cleanly.
Definitely enjoy those type of lines as a previously. It when they overwork it – having Charlie or Crowley throw it out wears out the original feelings it caused.
ok yup, couldn’t agree more — it’s cheap and self-impressed and takes you out of the show, like so many of the lame references last season.
I kind of got lost here – what sorts of lines are you both talking about?
the difference between how those thesis statement lines like “saving people hunting things” work in the previouslies vs the text, especially in the last couple of seasons, and especially when it’s a “what we do” speech :-)
Oh – okay – I am out of the loop and had not heard the term “previouslies” before – hahaha – so now I totally get it.
Yes: the sort of summing up “here’s where we’re at” of the previouslies needs to stay there, not bubble up into how these guys talk to each other.
Because it makes the script sound like it was written by Carver Edlund.
Enough already.
Finally saw it and felt a breath of relief almost immediately … within 5 minutes I was like, “Oh. This is the show I recognize.” the episode was anchored in emotions/conflict/relationship – even though there was a ton of “plot” going on as well. There was conflict between the brothers – and it is conflict that anchors them – that gives US something to watch. Yes, it’s a conflict we’ve seen a million times before – and it had a bit of a feeling of a re-tread about it – but after last year of almost no interaction between Sam and Dean – it was great.
Plus the aforementioned henley.
Hell continues to be a big fat bore – and the actors they choose as demons now – OY. THEY ARE BAD. I’m not sure what the casting director is even looking for. I’m at this moment re-watchign Season 4 – and Ruby is so delightfully weird and eccentric and organically bad all on her own – But the demons here are just … I don’t know. Maybe it’s not JUST the problem of casting what seems to be totally green actors who can barely give a line reading – I think it’s a problem of CONCEPT and that’s been an issue for a long time.
I do like our new Prince of Hell, in his white suit and his Tennessee Williams Cat on a Hot Tin Roof drawl. The performance already has a lot of meat on the bone.
I really like where they seem to be going with the Jack plot. And he’s a wonderful young actor!
Lots of good behavioral stuff, and it’s fun to see Sam and Dean as good cop/bad cop parents. I hope they MILK this for all its worth and don’t just drop it.
I’m bored by Badass Mary. It’s a problem of concept more than anything else. I think they’re proud of giving a female character “agency” – and having her be “more than a mother” blah blah blah but it’s misplaced in the epic dreamspace that is Mary’s role in their lives. I’m still hungover from Season 12. I’ll get over it!
I’m not quite following what is happening in the alternate universe yet. More people in SWAT uniforms. I don’t want Supernatural to get too invested in the SWAT-team mentality. (More of my hangover from Season 12.)
It’s always good to watch Mark Pellegrino unleashed.
But mainly I appreciate the interest in character over story – and the interest in what is going on in Sam and Dean’s FACES – something that was also completely missing last season. Fans are obsessed by these guys and their every emotional moment. This episode reflected that. Plus: HUMOR. Humor that comes from behavior.
If either of them say “It’s what we do” again … I’m crackin’ skulls.
But other than that, I’m very intrigued. I really liked it!
I just think they need someone really WEIRD back on staff. They need another Edlund, someone who can take these dead-air stories somewhere unexpected. Someone who can marry the out-of-time cosmic scope of angels with the mundanity of their goals/needs. Someone who can think of something ELSE to happen in that gimcrack Hell set. For the last three seasons everything to do with Hell has just been “gotta fill a B/C story as cheaply as possible in a standing set” and I’m OVER it. Don’t they have any IMAGINATION? They gotta use Asmodeus as an opportunity for a paradigm shift.
The alt-universe story was just empty time to me — the grotty skeevy hunter and the military bros, yak-yak-yakkin about ‘our boys’, angel punches, Mary given nothing to act or think or feel — her flat affect choices tire me. And I’m desperate for Lucifer to actually mean something again — I hope that the connection Sam has to Jack means something for the connection Lucifer has to Sam. I hope it gets personal.
I’ve forgotten the end of last season — can someone explain to me why they were walking for x hours and ended back up at that half-buried church with the spiky things and there was no alt-Bobby and they didn’t go like oh we’re walking in circles?
//I hope that the connection Sam has to Jack means something for the connection Lucifer has to Sam. I hope it gets personal.// Wouldn’t that be great? This is why the Cas connection seems so distant and irrelevant to the Jack story. Perhaps they’ll come up with something compelling but will it eclipse Sam who is the one offering guidance and protection AND operates in the narrative as both parallel/object of desire/nemesis for Lucifer? What better opportunity for conflict?
Getting some Edlund level strangeness in the writers room would help a lot. He was so quirky but also sharp in his humor, willing to take it all the way to the edge. They could also use someone like Sera Gamble – a writer who is head over heels in love with the brothers and wrings out those intimate even painful scenes.
get out — I was just thinking this morning about how much I missed Gamble, her sick glee, her obsession with blood and with the boys and what’s going on with them individually and as a pair.
This is why the Cas connection seems so distant and irrelevant to the Jack story.
I’m trying so hard to not judge these episodes on my projected fears for later ones, but I’m so burned by last season! It’s so tough! I am worried that Cas’s return (we all know he’s coming back, right?) will split this off into another irrelevant story. But anyway, we won’t know until we see it. For now I’ll enjoy Sam saying that Lucifer is “rough around the edges” and have that understatement hang there loud and queasy in the air.
//(we all know he’s coming back, right?) //
Well, fuck. I suspected so because I saw Misha Collins on promotional material, but now I know. We’ll see how it goes.
As much as I’ve enjoyed seeing the brothers interacting with/mentoring teenagers before, this whole game of mirrors of talking about a somewhat shitty father and being a surrogate parent unexpectedly opens so many interesting possibilities.
I don’t know how Castiel is still relevant to the story, especially now that we have Jack. Jack is kind of an alternate version of what Castiel could have been a few years ago, had he been vulnerable.
//Sam saying that Lucifer is “rough around the edges” and have that understatement hang there loud and queasy in the air//
RIGHT!?
// For now I’ll enjoy Sam saying that Lucifer is “rough around the edges” and have that understatement hang there loud and queasy in the air. //
YES. Loved that moment.
// this whole game of mirrors of talking about a somewhat shitty father and being a surrogate parent unexpectedly opens so many interesting possibilities. //
Lyrie – I know! I am looking forward to exploration. Not just moving us all from Point a to Point b in the plot – but exploring these issues.
I have PTSD from last season.
// I don’t know how Castiel is still relevant to the story, especially now that we have Jack. Jack is kind of an alternate version of what Castiel could have been a few years ago, had he been vulnerable. //
Interesting point!
Paula – // but will it eclipse Sam who is the one offering guidance and protection AND operates in the narrative as both parallel/object of desire/nemesis for Lucifer? What better opportunity for conflict? //
I feel the same way. Castiel has had so little relevance to the show for years now … its hard to invest. I miss Sam IN PARTICULAR. Sam, for me, was the real casualty last year. It’s like nobody even understood the character at ALL. “Where do ears come from.” I just can’t.
One of the things that was missing in S12 (to state the obvious) was conflict between the brothers. The series clearly works best when – along with whatever Big Bad they’re fighting – they’re also fighting each other, or at least – in serious disagreement about something. When that primary relationship is threatened – shit gets interesting. This is the way the show works and I so hope they don’t forget that!! I am encouraged by this episode.
Cosign in re: missing Gamble.
Yes — it’s not that they have to be fighting, or on the outs, or whatever — it’s that there has to be something Going On with the guys that is About the guys — there has to be worry, or a targeted threat, a flaw, something. The way their perspectives and worries complemented/played against each other this episode was key. It wasn’t all about some rando pack of paramilitary losers (and it didn’t turn S&D into paramilitary losers themselves!). (oh, the missed opportunities of last season, they burn, they burn!)
Jessie – I so agree with your thoughts about needing someone weird on that staff. The fact that Hell – in its current iteration – has lasted now for, what, 4, 5, seasons – with very little to show for it – is just bad news!! The second I saw that set in the episode, I felt a little deflation of excitement, like, “Oh God. You again.”
I’ve just been re-watching end of Season 4, beginning of Season 5 … and there’s the “green room” set – and it’s so simply done, but so effective and creepy – otherworldly. The paintings changing on the walls. The random harp. It’s just such a beautiful evocation of “foyer to Heaven” – and it’s totally WEIRD.
Hell is too literal. It’s been that way for ages. It serves no purpose. The demons, too, no longer serve a purpose. I’m sorry to be mean to young actors – I hate to do it – but casting people who can barely read lines doesn’t help. If they’re trying to make the point that Hell is impotent … I think they’ve made that point 5 times over. What GOOD is it then??
// And I’m desperate for Lucifer to actually mean something again — I hope that the connection Sam has to Jack means something for the connection Lucifer has to Sam. I hope it gets personal. //
I feel the same way. We all were so burned by the end of S11, with all of those terribly missed opportunities in re: God/Lucifer/Sam/Dean. “Why are planets round?”
#neverforget
Guys, Buck-Leming wrote this episode!! There was an Impala moment between the brothers, there was conflict…conflict handled well. There was emotion and humor that was actually funny! Baby roared down the road!! Buck-Leming wrote this! It wasn’t perfect but the show was there..really there. Please let this trend continue!
Michaelle – I echo your thoughts! I felt the same way. The show was there again.
Fingers crossed.
I’m going to put this here even though it’s not related to s13. We’ve talked about those godawful Vaseline-lens flashbacks of s8 before so I though you might find this tumblr post of interest.
Sheila – Have you heard of the film, Elvira Madigan, before? It’s fascinating to hear the creative process behind their choice, even if it doesn’t necessarily change my mind about how it doesn’t fit well into SPN as a show.
Interesting link, Paula.
it’s a very long time since I saw the film but doesn’t Elvira Madigan end very.badly.indeed. for both parties? I get they might have been aiming for a doomed romance vibe for Sam and whatsername, but maybe not quite so doomed?
also I don’t remember any scenes with spaghetti and hotdogs in EM.
Limes in the sink?
I have cleaned up
the limes
that were in
the sink
and which
you probably
dumped there
after a drunken bender
Forgive me
our
relationship
is doomed
Cry “Havoc!” and let slip the hot dogs of war,
That this foul deed shall smell above the earth
With carrion spaghetti, groaning for the disposal.
‘The hot dogs of war’
Dyingggg!!!
And loved yours!
Helena Carlotta Helenas
Let me not to the marriage of true limes
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it major blockages finds
In u-bends, that no remover can remove.
O no! it is an ever-fixed lime
That looks on tequila and is never shaken;
That is awesome.
I’ve got plumbing problems of my own (not a euphemism, and not lime related) so I feel ya, Amelia
/I feel ya, Amelia/
Wasn’t that an Anthony Newley song?
I hope the plumbing problems get resolved in an economical and expeditious manner.
Thank you.
Amelia believed in the green light, the verdant future that lime by lime recedes before us. It eluded her then, but that’s no matter – tomorrow she will juice harder, bear down farther. And then one chartreuse morning – So we salt on, dry heaves against the hangover, borne back ceaselessly into the kitchen.
A+++
I am loving this return to SPN poetry slams.
‘One chartreuse morning.’
Now that’s a Lee Hazlewood song.
it is a truth universally acknowledged that a woman with a waste disposal unit full of mouldy limes is on need of a plumber.
It was the best of limes, it was the worst of limes.
Hot dog, hot dog broiling bright,
Amidst the neon of the night,
What depraved pan or rotisserie,
Could prepare thy fearful misery?
For Baby
I got a ’67 Chevy with a 502,
Demon warding and some tapes for the trip.
She’s waiting tonight down in the parking lot,
Besides the Lebanon gas-n-sip.
Me ‘n my brother Sammy rebuilt her
Straight out of scraps
And he rides with me from town to town.
We only come for the savin’, got no string attached
We shut ’em up and then we shut ’em down.
Tonight, tonight the highway’s bright,
I want to salt-n-burn ’em all good and hard,
Summer’s here and the time is right,
For hunting in the boulevard.
We take all the action we can meet
And we cover all the USA
When the devil gate opens we hunt ’em in the street
From Wyoming to jaded LA
Some guys they just give up living
And start haunting little by little, piece by piece,
Some guys come home from pool hustlin’ and drink up,
And then go huntin’ in the street.
Tonight, tonight the highway’s bright,
I want to stake em’ till it’s just a shard,
Summer’s here and the time is right,
For hunting in the boulevard.
Freddiemercurysingingmagnificoooooo.gif!!!!
you guys are killin me!
Bravo!