It was good, but not quite great, IMO. Still better than most of the other episodes this season, but definitely a step down from the previous two. But it was closer to great than okay, so the former got my vote.
I can't even. Feels all over the place. I loved that episode so much!
Dean's speech hurt and then Sam killed the hellhound and has to do the trials and then his speech was laksjdfl;kajsdflkajsdf. Why you gotta give two painful brother speeches in one episode?
This trial thing so isn't going to end well for poor Sam. That did not look good at the end.
The horses were adorable, too. And the girl who got killed was familiar, but I can't figure out who she is.
Dean thinking he was just a grunt and only Sam was worth saving was sad. His putting his Mom's pic in the first room he remembers having. I cried. Sam, bless his heart, is the one who does the killing. The look of pain on Dean's face, Sam's speech was heartbreaking. This time, Dean trusts him I know they are brothers again. This can't end good. Looks like we're going to have another tearjerker finale
Oh my gosh, Dean was so cute with his "nesting" in that opening scene at the hideout. "Memory foam... it REMEMBERS me."
I'm actually glad Sam ended up killing the hellhound. I know Dean feels like he has to protect him, and it's one of the characteristics I love the most about him, but Sam is just as protective of his older brother. And I absolutely loved his speech at the end. He's fighting for the light at the end of the tunnel, and he wants to take his big brother with him. Both brother speeches killed me dead tonight - Dean thinking he's nothing more than a grunt and wanting more than that for his brother actually made me tear up.
I also think this'll be nice closure for Sam if he's the one to close the gates - I know Dean started the process, but Sam finished it. Both brothers feel that weight, but Sam's struggle with Ruby and the demon blood (at risk of starting a serious war here) seems to tip the scale to his side on the apocalypse angst. So if he gets to be the instrument that closes those gates forever? I think that'll lift a good part of it.
Holy crap...The episode was...A-W-E-S-O-M-E.Everything was as it was supposed to be.For starters,I teared up when Dean said "Hey mom".Awwwww :'( He's got his own room!!And he's decorating it :D He also cooked!!!I never imagined him making dinner :P Sam yes but not Dean!!!How about that :) Sam seemed more than excited about his food.I am glad Kevin is better now.He seemed really messed up at the beginning.When Sam and Dean got to the ranch I knew that ranch girl was the one to do with the demon deal,I am glad to see that Sam is the one who will complete the trials.Dean...WHY are you always so pessimistic :'( I get really upset when he behaves suicidal.He seems to believe that there is no hope for him.Sam is right.He's got friends,FAMILY and he is damn young!!!He can go on...I hope he starts seeing that soon.I adored the speeches the brothers exchanged...SO MANY FEELS!!!Brotherly love at its best.So emotional.Oh and Dean reallt needs to accept that he can never dfeat the hellhounds himself!!!He died of them,almost twice if Jo didn't save him and came close to a third one when he and Sam were in that house where they were holding up Brady.And of course tonight!!!So glad Sam got to show that bitch.He literally opened it up and bathed in its blood.I am a bit worried about him though :/ What's gonna happen to him now??From what we saw tonight in the episode and a glimpse from the promo,along with the recent spoilers he's gonna experience nosebleeds,headaches who knows what else...:( I wonder what the other 2 tests will be :S Well once more I will say that I loved this episode and that this season has become one of 3 favorites!!!
That was an awesome episode. Loved the brother speeches and the scenes at the hideout. So sweet. The action was great too. Near perfect imo. The season is finally picking up. :D
So good. This was everything that I wanted for the Winchesters. It feels like a new basis for their relationship. Sam seeing a life beyond hunting and wanting to show Dean that he can have that too. I'm very happy.
I love horses and am taking a riding class currently so that just made an awesome episode even better.
Though I noticed how much horse sounds they put in the background. I mean, because of the number of horses at the stable I'm riding at, they're quite vocal, but they're not close to that vocal. :P
Ohhhh... that was so awesome!!!!! If they showed me a bit of Crowley I could said it was an absolubtely perfect episode.... But the didn't so I'm gonna say it was a perfect episode. So full of Mary feels. So full of family feels. And the hellhound... I loved them. And Sam killing the dog... Was so amazing!!!! Marry me Carver...
Yeah I am worried about Kevin and his lack of sleep. Wish he'd understand he'd probably do better not just physically, but mentally if he got some shut eye. His mind would be sharper. So going with barely any sleep probably isn't going to make things move along faster.
I loved it, lots of great lines, but why wasn't Sam this worried about Dean all the time he was missing?? I loved the brother talks and Dean with his room and mom's picture. So Sam ends up the hero and going to close the gate. This season just keeps getting better and better..
GOD this was good. dean's room made me smile. dean speech was sad at 1st but then its like here we go again dean telling sam what to do and you do not do that to sam so I was like sam will be the one killing the hellhound and all that black blood WOW and sam speech made me cry to but OMG! not again with the worry I have to deal with this again poor sammy it like so many times with the soul thing and now this NOOOOOO! I am just happy dean can trust sam to do this as painful as its going to be.
I loved a lot about this one. Dean's talk to Sam made me cry. I haven't cried over SPN in ages. His bleak view is so sad, and there's not much to contradict him. Sam's speech was a great reminder of that speech he gave back in S5 Point of No Return, and I was very happy that Dean trusted him, again. I still think it ends bloody. That photo of Dean & Mary melted this cold heart. And Dean "Nesting." ... Need I say more. Hope the theme of Dean cooking continues until he's Top Chef. Sam's reaction to the burger made me laugh out loud. There was alot of weakness in this too, especially how weak the family plot was - there were some really dumb things the writer left out there. But I'm not going to complain too much.
One small gripe I have affects demon deal continuity - I don't think Crowley can cheat like that. I know they did establish some shadiness in demon deals, like In the Beginning the YED isn't too forthcoming. But there was a structure demons had to follow, like a natural agreement that involves some free will. In Time for e Wedding and now this, demons flouting the rules and not making it clear there even is a deal, just sounds off to me. And didn't Crowley of all the demons pride himself that he kept to the rules?
Loved it right up until the last 5 minutes. I know I'm going to be in the minority but I truly wanted it to be Dean that killed the hellhound even tho I knew all along it wouldn't be. They went the predictable route. Just once I was hoping they would let Dean follow through on a course of action. I'm disappointed they went with predictability.
That being said, everything else was fantastic. Dean decorating his room was adorable and Sam's reaction to it was touching. Really good scene. I loved Dean's speech about why it should be him that went thru the trials. He really does see himself as expendable. Sam's counter reasoning was wonderfully done. I love him telling Dean he was the best hunter he's ever seen. He called him a genius! how long has Dean been waiting to hear that kind of validation from his little brother? I'm not saying Sam's speech was wrong. But now the opportunity for Dean to chose life over sacrifice has been taken away from him. Of course he'll fight to keep Sam alive. I think it would've been more powerful to have Sam work to convince his brother he could find that light at the end of the tunnel for himself. Now Dean's just going to fight for the same reason he always does -- to save Sam. He's not going to suddenly see that light for himself now because he's still not fighting for himself. A missed opportunity but I wasn't really expecting it to end any other way.
Another awesome episode, I feel so happy this show find his way again. All the story about helldogs was just great and for me the best part is the dialogues of trust between the brothers, Sam and Dean back to trust each other is a great deal.
I LOVED when Sam took Dean's burger with him to Kevin's, too! I also loved Sam's concern for Kevin... he was worried that Kevin would "burn himself out";he wants a "good life ever after" for Kevin.
"...But now the opportunity for Dean to chose life over sacrifice has been taken away from him." You made a very powerful point, I hadn't thought of. It does bother me that, in essence, the show is doing this same plot outline for the third time. To be honest, I watch mainly for the performances, which were great tonight, and because I loved the show & characters so much.
I am just going to say this and I like what you said and all but I am thinking that and it hard to say but I think this season will be the season that dean has to let go of sam and really let go just let him do this not try to save him let sam do this. its like with s5 and 6 dean did not know how to let go and damn he had a year to do it and with s8 sam did the same thing letting go of dean and I know how OOC of him to do it but come on. if they are saying that they getting older then letting go is a part of life.
^^^ This! Beautifully said. What's more Sam seemed to be OK at first with Dean doing the trials - one of them had to do it and Dean's first concern is that Sam be safe. It was only accidental that Sam ended up killing the Hellhound because he wanted to make sure the gal who got out of her cuffs was safe.
But Dean did let go in season 5. He stood back and let Sam jump into the pit possessed by Lucifer. He was 'on board'. And in season 6, when Sam wantd him to come back with him, Dean said no. His responsibilities had shifted to Lisa and Ben and Sam had the Campbells to hunt with. So Dean has learned to let go. He just knows that Sam can move on and have a real life -- he can walk away from hunting -- and that he himself can't. Even if they do close the gates of hell and wipe all demons from earth, Dean will still hunt monsters. Sam is seeing it as an end to hunting, but Dean knows it's not. So it's not about letting go at all. It's about finding a future. Sam see's one outside of hunting, Dean doesn't.
You're not alone, Sue...many fans wanted Dean to do the trials. There is at least one other tablet that the boys don't know about yet - the Angel Tablet. I'm reasonably certain that the AT contains instructions or trials too - for humanity's defense against Angels - "human" being the operative word. That leaves out Cas though he's intimately connected to the Angel Tablet storyline. I'm certain Dean will be the human champion against angel incursions. No one can make Dean want to fight to live rather just accepting death by going down fighting - he has to come to this realization himself. They can just show Dean they see the incredible value in Dean's life and that other people need him to live because he's loved, not just they need him to save them.
That's what bothered me about this ep, too. I knew, from the beginning, exactly what would happen. I want to be surprised again. I want them to make me go 'wow! didn't see that coming!" again. Love what the J's can do on screen and they are the reason I watch, I just want them to write better instead of copping out and going with what is -- at least for me -- incredibly predictable. This was a well done ep, I just knew all along how it would end up and that makes me sad.
I agree... I could done without some of the cliched family drama but the boys' superbly written emotional scenes outweighed the weaker parts of the episode.
My first thought when Dean set up his room was … oh geez that means they're going to destroy it sooner rather than later.
Domestic Dean is the scariest monster they've had on the show in 8 seasons
"We are on the one yard line it is time to play through the pain." And THERE'S the Dean I know and love.
I cannot express how much I wish we'd had these last three episodes at positions 3-5 of this seasons.... More accurately, I wish they'd found the Men of Letters and their new Batcave 3 episodes into this season. We could have had this Winchester team as we walked through the other major story points. Instead of the snippyness and the lame Sam flashbacks.
That troubled me, too. Crowley seemed to be a stickler for the rules so I don't how "they" (I think there were at least three who made deals) didn't know it was a "standard 10 year contract" except for Ellie who "knew" it was her last night and knew that something evil was coming for her.
Yep as to both ... the demons have been too quiet and they have the other half of the tablet. I have a feeling at least one of the necessary trials is on the other half. And Kevin is well on the way to a real stroke if he keeps up this pace.
I agree! I haven't been surpised since Souless Sam smiled when Dean was forced to become a vampire. Every plot has been pretty transparent for 3 years. The last real shock I had, was Lilith being the final seal. lol
Yes, remember Crowley's speech to the sassy demon in Time for a Wedding? He was proud and insistent on holding to the contract. These little things matter.
I loved the entire episode Supernatural just keeps getting better and better I have no complaints a lot of people have ton of complaints about every episode wow I thought it was touching and other people seem to complain about Sam its like come on just enjoy the episode
I believe she said she knew that she wouldn't be going to heaven, but she didn't know that "monsters" were going to come for her. I don't remember any Crossroads demon mentioning Hell Hounds coming and dragging you to Hell.
I made a joke somewhere about the last episode that if the boys have a beer fridge in the library I wonder if they have pie in it or are they going to have Dean making some.
Now with the burgers I can't believe that they really did go through with Dean in the kitchen!!!
I found this to be a weird episode. I should have loved it because of the brother moments, and with Sam and Dean being on screen together interacting for nearly the entire episode, yet there was something lacking and it didn't convince me somehow. X
It was the little things that stood out.
As soon as I saw Dean putting up the photo of him and Mary, I thought why just him and his mom and not Sam and John? Of course that was to reflect what the girl said to him later about her selling her soul for her mother and wouldn't Dean have done the same? Well Dean did sell his soul only it was for Sam, not for his mother! X
Then Sam's surprise at Dean's tasty cooking. In all those years Dean had never cooked for Sam? Hard to believe! We saw Dean's room but i was curious to see Sam's too.
X
Also the first half was rather boring, with very little excitement. Then I was waiting for them to close the doors of the Impala in synch when they arrived at the ranch but they didn't. :( X
Perhaps I'm being ungenerous but this episode just didn't do much for me and it should have. I just got the impression that the brotherly bond lacked in true feelling and intensity even although important things were said between them. It was more like two co-workers than the brothers we have been used to. X
As for the tests, in a way it's logical that Sam ( demon boy) gets to close the Hell-gates while Dean ( angel boy) will without a doubt get to close the Heaven-gate so he can have his little talk with Castiel too. X
Then all the "I want you to settle down and have a family " thing seems a bit redundant now aftwr all the bitching by Dean in the first ten episodes about Sam choosing a girl over him.
X
I'll have to think on the episode a bit more but I'm very disappointed with all of these writers.
They just haven't got what it takes to bring out the best in Sam and Dean and in the story-lines. X
The over two minutes we got with Kevin repeating the same actions over and over again was just some filler time to make up for a lack of creative ideas. I gave the episode okay.
I voted Great, one of the few times I've voted above Okay this season (and the past 2 seasons). Dean is hilarious in their new lair, it brings out the funny man Dean instead of "I don't trust anything" Dean which is nice. Kevin was also interesting to see what how he's been pushing himself so he can get out of it. I'm curious though, if they close the Gates of Hell, do they send all the demons back at the same time, or do all the demons still topside remain until they're sent back down.
The rest of the episode, particularly who was going to die... and in what order, was extremely predictable. Sam also being the one to do the trails was extremely predictable. It was still entertaining in a way, though.
Although, I thought the arguing family was simply annoying and too over the top. Also, I was really excited to see a Hell Hound but was extremely disappointed in both their size and the simplistic appearance of them. Very disappointed in that part of it, but still nice that they came back into play. And I would watch Sam/Dean go up against 100 Hell Hounds, then afterwards they can do one of those flying away camera shots with blood everywhere and Sam/Dean standing back to back with bloody knives in their hands breathing heavily. That'd be a cool final shot.
I raised Miniature Horses and let me tell you when something is outside they don't like, in my case a Bobcat, they will let you know about it. So they knew the Hellhound was there.
i just knew Sam was going to be the one to do the trials. Every season so far Sam is always the one with the main storyline and when something happens to him- visions, the crap about him maybe going darkside, powers, demon blood addiciton, being lucifers vessel, coming back from hell, not having a soul, the wall being put up, the wall falling down and him losing his marbles and seeing lucifer- Dean always has to worry about him and wonder whats wrong with him this time. But when something happens to Dean- coming back from hell & purgatory, having drinking problem & depression- nobody including Sam seems to care. They just tell him to stop whining and get over it. I'm sick of Sam always getting the big storyline and being 'the chosen one' while Dean just stands in the background, worrying about Sam, saving Sam, protecting Sam, looking after Sam. Even when it looks like Deans finally getting a big storyline, they just drop it and give Sam the bigger & better one over and over again. I think I'm finally done with the show, I'm sick of the same thing time after time.
Interesting theory about the heaven gate, if they have to close that too surely there will be tasks that need to be completed for that too? Is this Dean's purpose? Mkes sense in the context of the series. Dean talking about Sam settling down and having a family was IMO something he always wanted for Sam but because Dean was afraid he's end up alone and that he couldnt have that he was maybe blinded by his own feelings and that was why he was so harsh on Sam. I think its been quite clear through the series that while Dean is a hunter to the core he also wants a family and a home of sorts. Dean will now have to help and protect Sam on the trials and Sam will have to help Dean see the light at the end of the tunnel.
For the record no one ever said Dean would come back from Purgatory with a drinking problem or depression. So far we havent seen him with either of those problems because they were never intended to be part of his storyline.
I wonder if Dean picked up his cooking skills during his year off hunting while living with Lisa and Ben? It seemed like all those neighbourhood BBQ's may have paid off.
i love this chapter i voted awesome, What is someone i could say because they don't have published the renewal in the official facebook page of supernatural? thanks
I gave it a 'great', even if I did have to stay up until 12:15 EST to watch it (stupid basketball game!) and then had to be out of bed by 4:30am for work today! AH!). These last 3 eps have the show really on a roll as we head towards the final stretch.
Shot out to the special effects crew on this one. Stellar with the hell hounds and the light/spell thingy shooting into Sam's arm at the end.
Loved Dean's room. And his need for it. Perfect decor as well. LOL! And beautiful touch with the tiny pic of he and his mom.
I think Sam and Dean were dead on with their characterizations in this one. Dean needing to go head on, push Kevin to do the same and get this thing done now! While Sam, as he was mostly since the beginning of the series, always trying to see a positive end game, and now that he's done the end of the world thing several times, he knows what it can do to a person. So I appreciated that he tried to protect Kevin in that way. Great contrast with the boys, esp with putting Kevin in the middle of it.
Interesting that as soon as Dean found out the first trial was a hell hound, he went into this energetic almost happy mode...because he knew this was his way to give Sam that out that he wants so badly. Hello Kamikazi Dean! Seems to be his forte. :)
Unlike some, I don't mind the patter of Sam undergoing whatever and Dean having to save/protect him. It's what the show has always been about at it's heart and it's what seems to work best, esp with Dean. Despite the setbacks and bitterness in the past, etc...it's his job...no matter what.
Oh and Jared and Jensen rockin' the specks! Yeah! And who knew Dean could cook? Ha!
This ep, as with the last 2, felt like old school SPN to me. Great hour of television last night!
I think Dean's bitchin at Sam was not so much over the "girl" as it was hurt that Sam never said he looked for him. When Dean asked "Did you look for me" and Sam said nothing, that had to hurt. If Sam had said Yes I looked then life could have gone on...at least it would have for me and I would not still be bitter over this. lol
Well, Dean has always been the one associated with heaven-'the Michael sword, his vessel etc.'- so I see it as being logical that he would be the one to close Heaven and I can just imagine his satisfaction as he closes the heavenly gates on the 'dick' angels!
Then Hell was always Sam's story-line so it's only fair that he's the one to close Hell.
If purgatory needs to be closed too, they can do that together. :) X Both brothers are very complicated men and although Dean has gone on about wanting a family when he got the chance with Lisa and Ben, he was all too eager to go back to the hunting life as soon as Sam came back from the Cage, so I really don't know if that's what he truly wants. Maybe it's just what he thinks he does. X
As for Sam, perhaps once he wanted a family life up to and during the Stanford era, but since then he has always said that he had made his peace with hunting and that it would be dangerous for any of then to have a family.
That has been of course re-booted with Carver's Samelia theme but I don't think that Sam could be really happy with a suburban family life either. X
The whole series was based on the co-dependency and brotherly bond between Sam and Dean and IMO that basic fact can never be changed otherwise it's no longer Supernatural but some other show. Anyway I would like them to want to stay together to the bitter end, whatever that may be.
what an episode !! as I said it gets better and better, oh God they made me cry.. their speech to each other I LOVED IT ! Dean wants Sam to have the happy ending b/c its his perfect ending , Sam wants Dean to stay with him in his happy ending cause it"s not with out him! :'( Sam had me at (And if you come with me, I can take you to it.) oh God :'( is there anything beautiful than that !!!
I know, but its another thing about Dean that got dropped. He seemed to be depressed and had drinking problem from 4-7 which got worse in 7, but since coming back from purgatory he's mircaulously recovered from both... a bit like his fear of hellhounds.
So... Sam is the chosen one (again) and will do all 3 trials, and he's got the Men of Letters thing, and Dean's role will be what... to make sandwiches for Sam?
"But now the opportunity for Dean to chose life over self sacrifice has been taken away from him. Of course he'll fight to keep Sam alive -- he always has. I think it would've been more powerful to have Sam have to find a way to convince his brother it wasn't a suicide mission and that he could find that light at the end of the tunnel for himself. Now Dean's just going to fight for the same reason he always does -- to save Sam. He's not going to suddenly see that light for himself now because he's still not fighting for himself. So Sam's impassioned speech was beautiful but missed the point. Nothing changed. He can't force Dean to fight for himself when there is no reason for him to. Dean will still see himself as expendable in order to protect Sam. The writers missed the ball there."
THIS! Excellent point!
Why couldn't the writers allow Dean to find it within himself to want to fight for his own life? Why can't they allow Dean to see that he is worthy of living? I am so disappointed by how this all turned out. They have gone right back to square one, where Dean is only worthy for how well he can protect Sam.
probably will be, along with him drving the car while Sam saves the world again, protecting Sam, worrying about him and taking care of him when it all becomes too much.
Glad I'm not the only one who sees this. I do have to wonder what Dean is supposed to do for the remainder of season 8? If anyone can tell me what his part in the mythology is or what part he actually plays in all this (besides protecting Sam as usual) I'm all ears. I'm just disappointed because they had a great premise that really excited me: Sam with the Men of Letters -- he could become the brainiac he's always wanted to be and still be hunting without the parts he obviously hates, and Dean with the trials and actual hunting -- cuz that's his strengths. A perfect way for them to work together but still be true to themselves. But no. Sam is now central to every plot line and Dean... I'm not sure what he's supposed to do. I guess I'm just sad that they didn't see the potential and went with predictability (which will ultimately renew the forced tension when Sam starts being less than truthful about what's happening again) instead. Oh well. Maybe season 9?
Try having all of his Hell memories wiped in an instant after spending most of the season just rubbing his hand to control memories that were supposed to kill him. We get a few sleepless references, one breakdown episode, then wipe... gone. Most story lines tend to be wrapped unsatisfactorily on this show.
I did think that FINALLY the show was going to balance out the brothers' storylines with Sam finding his role as a Men of Letters and then that would leave Dean's role as a hunter and doing these trials. Sam would be able to use his skills as a researcher and Dean would be able to utilize his hunter skills, and then together they would plan the best way to approach the trials.
But now, Sam has *both* the brains and the brawn with the Men of Letters and the trials, and Dean has... nothing. Well, he now has a kitchen so he can cook Sam dinner, I guess. *shrug*
I agree. But until Dean is in a situation where he has to make that choice for himself, it can't happen. Too bad they missed this golden opportunity to do that. :/
Yep. And now we're right back to Dean's only reason to live is to save Sam. Too bad. They had such a great opportunity to move the entire show in a new and wonderful direction, but they chose to go back to square 1.
Exactly. They set up that Men of Letters/Hunter thing so nicely and then just didn't act upon it. I'm confused as to why. I was actually excited about that direction. I'm sure Dean will hone his culinary skills in the kitchen. :) I just sincerely can't see what his part is supposed to be. I want to, but for the life of me I can't. I'm hoping they give him some part of the overall mythology but I'm not getting my hopes up. I was just starting to really love this season and now... now I'm just sad. It's like someone kicked my puppy. :)
Dean was hilarious, loved the burger scene. And I loved when Dean wore the glasses, and automatically said "You look like Clark Kent" Then Ellie comes right out and says it, lol That was great. But my god, how obvious was it that she made a deal??? There was no surprise there.....I wanna know what went on with Sam's arm, and speaking of Sam, I LOVED the way he killed the hellhound, from throat to gut, that was awesome, Crowley is gonna be PISSED! lmao.....Well since Sam is taking on the tasks, looks like it's Sammy's turn to die again, ya know since Dean went last year....sigh...maybe we'll get lucky, and both of them will live and Kevin could die.....Poor Kev, I love hot dogs, as much as the next person, but hot dogs everyday, smh. Hell i'd throw up too.
Since when has Dean not been at the fore front. The mytharc the pov and exploration , his own hell , the relationships given to him, the insight , do you seriously think Dean will be hoovering around in the background while Sam gets the sl. Sam got the trials . Dean got Purgatory and Benny and Dean will be at the heart of what happen's in the future. As for Sam being the chosen one 'again' a fat load of good it did him last time and I dont suppose it will this time either.
Remember if it was not for Dean & Baby in Swan Song, bringing Sam back from Lucifer, the world would have been in a world of hurt. I always felt both brothers saved the world in that one. Sam for being strong enough to control Lucifer and Dean for taking that beating and telling Sam he was there for him.
Great comment about Dean has to come to that realisation himself. No one can make him and Sam can't take him there even if he wants to.
To be honest I liked Sam's speech but the little comment about Dean squeeing over 100 types of tomatoes gave me more hope about him eventually finding a reason to embrace life than Sam telling him he wasn't a grunt.
well we all knew it wasn't going to last so yes it was a waste of time, then again at least it gave Sam a storyline otherwise he wouldn't have anything in the first half of the season. It essentially took Sam fans 12 episodes to get a decent storyline.
I think this episode was the best of season 8. The first episodes - specially until episode 10- were horrible. I don't understand the difference betweeen the first part of the season - the amelia and benny's crap- and now we have this second part that it's being great. We have the brothers together again working together and instantly the quality of the season increased. As for the fact that Sam is the character to do the trials, i'm very happy about that, because this show has been told mostly through Dean's POV. not to mention the interaction that Dean has with all the secondary characters - everybody loves him more, everybody speaks with him more etc etc - and the fact that Dean was the only who killed almost all the big villains of the show so far - Azazel, Zacharia, Dick, Ruby, Sam only killed lucifer and lilth. We had episodes like IN THE BEGINNING, IN THE END, HEAD ON A PIN, not to mention all season 4 that was heavy Dean centric and the crap they did to Sam's character in season 7, writing his hell hallucinations in only 4 episodes with the lame idea that someone who spent 100 years or more in hell was alright with only rubbing his hand.. I loved the episode. it was awesome :)
Yes, of course, but when they were in the stable earlier with no hellhounds around in the middle of the day, the horses were still making a lot of noise in the background. They weren't even being fed, which is usually when I hear the horses get really vocal and stamp around.
this episode was really heart broken. something telling me from inside that the end of this season is just look like season 5 ( because what sam told dean that trust him was the same thing he told him in swan song episode ) but this time , dean keep hunting . considering interview from carver that told us he want to give dean some peace but dean is just not the one to stop hunting and i don't want to see something like this, that we saw before.i want the true peace for dean , not this.i hope they didn't mean for it. .
I don't agree with everything since I see both brothers as researcher AND hunter, but you made me laugh so hard I snickered with the kitchen comment. That's an upvote for you!
Dean having his own room and desk and bed was so cute, I was so happy for him! And his own kitchen! dean in glasses was awesome lol clark kent! This episode was awesome the story was solid and the brothers relationship was the highlight!
According to some people on this page, Sam's story was front and center throughout this season... I just don't see how two people can see the show so differently. To me it seemed that the Amelia flashbacks were only thrown in because there was nothing else for Sam to do. Whenever Dean had to go hunting with Benny or have a conversation with Castiel, Sam got to have a flashback with Amelia... but did we learn anything about Sam during any of those flashbacks? There was nothing Supernatural... No fighting, no action... basically all of the information we needed from those flashbacks could have been gleaned in the first episode this season. I didn't mind seeing them once I got over the jarring feeling of getting pulled out of the story for Days of Our Lives... but their placement became nothing but a joke for my family. Let's compare Sam drifting off to thinking about Amelia right after Castiel talks about smelling a bladder infection with Dean looking at his choices in a vending machine, seeing kids playing, then fighting for his life in Purgatory or tracking Castiel... The Purgatory storyline told us quite a bit about Dean and Benny... We kind of had to be filled in a bit about Castiel after he got out, but seeing him so devastated was pretty heartbreaking... Those stories had just a tad more impact that Sam fixing a sink.
Amen. I have never been as moved as I was during that episode. When Dean cranked up that rather brazen music and just blazed his way into the cemetery, my jaw dropped. I pictured him sneaking his way in there and being a witness. He basically went there and spit in the eye of two Arch Angels... One of them being Lucifer. That man really has a "pair" to be proud of :-)
Dean was not the Myth Arc character in AHBL II, but he was still the one that kicked Azazel's butt... Just because Dean isn't doing the trials does not mean he will be in the background.
I believe I would feel safe to bet REAL money that the writers don't do what they did with Sam in the first half of this season and waste Dean's screen time having him fixing the sink, having picnics, and researching while Sam gets to interact on a personal level with a bevy of interesting, recurring characters and have Supernatural adventures... Although they did have Dean sit on the steps in the Everybody Hates Hitler scene while Sam got beat up... I can't remember the last time that Dean wasn't doing something exciting or interacting with characters on screen while Sam was doing something exciting... Maybe, I could count the time that Dean was interviewing the cop and the site of the Swim Team slaughter... While Dean was "just doing interviews", Sam was hallucinating... but that is something that doesn't happen very often unless Dean is knocked out.
Well we know Sam won't die -- they got renewed for season 9. :) but, hypothetically, if Sam did die and if he was successful in closing the gates, Dean would still hunt monsters until one killed him. That, to me, was the point he was making. Even if he did it and survived, he was still gonna die with a gun in his hand doing his job. Closing the gates of Hell will get rid of demons, but there will still be monsters to hunt and people to save. Demons aren't the biggest problem, just the most evil. So if he couldn't save Sam, Dean would keep hunting. He tried normal and it didn't work for him. Since coming back from Purgatory, he found himself and he knows who and what he is. That's what I believe he meant. The whole suicidal label was Sam's words not Dean's. Dean acknowledged that past experiences showed that one of them would probably die to achieve their goal, and he was adamant it was not going to be Sam risking that, but he never said he wanted to die. He's realistic not suicidal. Hunters die bloody. He's a hunter. Sam can walk away, he can't. That's why he doesn't see a light at the end of the tunnel for himself. That was my Dean Winchester pop psychology. :))
Dean was not the Myth Arc character in AHBL II, but he was still the one that kicked Azazel's butt... Just because Dean isn't doing the trials does not mean he will be in the background.
This reminds me of the time that Sam was going to get his soul back... We had soulless Sam all year and so many of those episodes had a Sam that was totally unrecognizable and usually little more than a functional mute (I got that saying from a description of Gibbs on NCIS); in other words, seen, but not heard... especially during Main Street. Then, Dean dies temporarily and makes a deal with Death just to rescue Sam's soul from the cage and some Dean fans said that Dean's sacrifice was all about Sam, so Dean was again just rescuing Sam and his story was non-existent... But, in my opinion, if Sam wasn't off trying to kill Bobby that episode wouldn't have needed any Sam at all. We learned nothing about Sam from Dean's "Death test". We didn't see Sam. But, it was supposed to be all about Sam? We learned more about how far Dean would go to save Sam. We learned how hard it was for Dean to let that girl die... we learned all kinds of things about Dean... Yes, he did this for Sam, but it was all about Dean.
I believe I would feel safe to bet REAL money that the writers don't do what they did with Sam in the first half of this season and waste Dean's screen time having him fixing the sink, having picnics, and researching while Sam gets to interact on a personal level with a bevy of interesting, recurring characters and have Supernatural adventures...
Although they did have Dean sit on the steps in the Everybody Hates Hitler scene while Sam got beat up... I can't remember the last time that Dean wasn't doing something exciting or interacting with characters on screen while Sam was doing something exciting... Maybe, I could count the time that Dean was interviewing the cop at the site of the Swim Team slaughter... While Dean was "just doing interviews", Sam was hallucinating... but that is something that doesn't happen very often unless Dean is knocked out.
To the people who think this was a step back and Dean is once again just protecting Sam while he gets the cool storyline--um, this was about changing that dynamioc and making Sam protect Dean for once. Granted he's protecting Dean from himself, but it is a change from the norm.
To the people who think Dean never gets a storyline--the season isn't over yet and there's a whole 'nother season to go. I'm pretty sure the Angel Tablet will be Dean's personal mission. Plus, even if Sam has to be the one to actually do the trials, it's not like Dean will turn into a 50s housewife and stay at home keeping the bunker nice and spiffy. He'll be there too. Teamwork: There is no 'I' in trials...wait...
I thought awesome episode but agree last 5 minutes hard to watch because sam's speech some stuff he says true about dean but his friends are MIA. I agree dean should done trials but still hoping for the angel tablet keep him in story. And I believe dean will die with gun in hand the light at end of tunnel that is all Sam not dean.JMO
Wow what an episode .HELL HOUNDS YESSSSSSSSS I HAVE WAITED SINCE S3 TO SEE THEM :) THERE AWSOME! ....This was like the old spn and the boys speech :( was a tear breaker for me...I dont care if Sam is to do the trials ,because it's spn there's always a twist .Also people complain like "omg raging dean has all the story line " and now it's " sam once again stealing it".. Sorry but there has to be a balance and that had that in this episode.Sam desvers a wee bit of coolness Dean gets the car the women and hay (am a dean girl) but it's true . Am sure Dean will get something other than look out for sammy this final,.After all he got to kill yellow eyes with the colt ? .So how about we just stop saying who should do what, when ,the boys are together there stronger and that's all am caring about the fact there back loving each other and not trying to kill each other .But can i just express how longggggg i have been waiting on this ! kindy of episode best episode since "weekend at bobbys" s6 ...It had feeling and had me crying i have not cried since then s6 ...I hope though in the final of s8 that dean or sam dosent die and do a whole s3 and s5 boringggg ,no , i want something smarter and cooler , i also hope one ae them dosent end up in hell or heaven etc... BORING lol .Again i want something we have not seen before something that grips you and makes you tense like the first time you saw "All hell breaks loss part 2" or "swang song" something that your hanging on the end of your seat with ..THATS GOOD TV....So yeh this episode was wicked! jermery has saved my show <3 the guy for that
I didn't say it was awful but the best I could do was okay because of the last 10 minutes or so. It was great until the hellhound fight then it tanked horribly. I know I'm in the minority but Sam's speech made me a combination of sick. I know to most it was an endearing moment but I couldn't buy it, even though Jared did sell it extremely well. I had hope of something new and exciting until then but once again, Dean is pushed to the background and Sam is once again the "chosen one" which makes Dean's speech about being a glorified grunt/bodyguard/babysitter for Sam during his quest as a chosen one once again. Like it happened in Season 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 . . . And now we get another half season of Dean angsting over Sam while Sam goes through all he has to go through and knowing that the quest will probably take Sam's life which will leave Dean wanting to be dead or whatever. Sorry, Sam-lovers, but I would actually like Dean to actually be able to be 'chosen' once and not replaced by Sam, Adam, or whoever else the writers pick out of a hat. With that in mind, why wouldn't Dean think of himself that way?
I like it when Sam is supposed to be the chosen one, it gives Dean a chance to be the hero. After all it was with Baby's help that Dean gave Sam the power to take back control from Lucifer and save the world. My problem with Sam's speech was where was this LOVE for Dean when he did not even look for him....FOR A YEAR!!!
No I didn't but I didn't think they would go that far with the domestic Dean and apparently Sam did forget his brother kept him fed as a child considering he made a comment about him thinking he didn't know that Dean knew what a kitchen was for.
Uum... Dean is also a MoL; he just thas not chosen to automatically enbrace this as part of their dual legacy yet - he is wary of the "Supernatural Motherload" as he should be - he pointed out to Henry in 8,12 that "at least we [hunters] aren't extinct" (like the MoL appear to be, Sam and him being the "sole heirs" to the "Batcave".
You're right. Dean's squeeing over the many varieties of tomatoes available, his evident enjoyment of having "their own kitchen", and cooking in it, seeing Sam obviously enjoying the hamburger Dean made him, as well as the loving care and attention that he put into "his first solo bedroom in a long, long time", and Sam's "Wow" of approval at seeing Dean's room are either little self esteem builders on their own or small signs that he's not as much in a hurry to die with his boots on as he purports himself to be. These are "Baby Steps".
Iagree with you though what else could boys have done differently? They could have looked for other demon signs thatcould indicate a "deal" being made 10 or a little more years ago- so that Dean could kill a hellhound and complete the other trials - but demon activity (per Bobby in 1.22 DT) only really ramped up in 2005 when Azazel was gathering the PsyKids. There may have been other deals made later in 2003 but it would take time to search for the demon signs. There's likely to be at least one more "opportunity" *this season* that will put Dean's "fatalism" to the test, far preferably unconnected to "helping Sam" complete the Hell closing trials. Cross fingers!
Ellie knew that Carl had gone to a crossroads; she told Dean that a "few years ago Carl got drunk" and told her. Ellie saw what happened to Carl and figured the same (evil thing) would happen to her because she also made a deal to heal her mom from Parkinson's disease. Margie failed to put that same 2+2 together. If you have a sec, read my new reply to Zoe.
I thought this was a very good episode. I'm very happy with the change of tone/direction in the last few episodes. I also have to say that I've seen more writing for Sam/Sam POV in the past two episodes than I've seen in a long time, so it's giving me hope. :) There were some signs that there was attempt to write more Sam POV in the first half, but the premise of who Sam was and how he would react was so messed up, it was hard to appreciate the positive.
As for the mytharc part, to be honest, I've never understood the "Sam always has the mytharc" argument - probably because I don't know how people define "having the mytharc." If it means killing the big bad, then Dean had the mytharc in season 2 when he killed YED, no one had it in seasons 1, 3, and 4, Sam had it in season 5, Dean sort of had it in season 6 when he killed Eve (although no one killed Cas), and Dean had it in season 7 when he killed Dick. If it means the character the mytharc is about, then John had it in season 1, Sam had it in season 2, Dean had it in season 3, Dean and Sam split it in seasons 4 and 5, Cas had it in season 6, and Bobby had it in season 7.
I also agree with what another poster pointed out - that we'll likely see similar trials on the angel side, that that will likely focus on Dean (as it should), with the personal connection being Cas. It fits that the Hell trials should be about Sam.
In response to the argument that these trials could have moved Dean's personal development forward, I don't see being a self-sacrificing hero - again - solving Dean's self-esteem issues. The show could have gone in the direction that these issues were dealt with in seasons 3-5, but they didn't, and at this point I don't think Dean will solve these on his own. And to be honest, I don't see a problem with that. One of the messages in this show has been that Sam and Dean need each other. They keep each other human. The point that Sam would have fallen to Lucifer without Dean's positive influence was made very clear in The End. Why is it so awful to think that Sam's optimism might be what Dean needs? Does Dean really need to be such a hero that he needs nothing from anyone else - ever?
I think we already dealt with the Purgatory tablet - that was Dean killing Dick. And we learned that these Word of God tablets come with an unexpected kick. So I'm guessing Sam will succeed with trials, with some difficulty, but that there will be an unexpected result when he thinks he's won. Hmmm.
Dean got to kill Azazel and Roman and Ruby and Zachariah. He's had lots of main arc stuff too. I'm a Dean girl and not bothered the slightest that Sam got this one.
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It was good, but not quite great, IMO. Still better than most of the other episodes this season, but definitely a step down from the previous two. But it was closer to great than okay, so the former got my vote.
ReplyDeleteI can't even. Feels all over the place. I loved that episode so much!
ReplyDeleteDean's speech hurt and then Sam killed the hellhound and has to do the trials and then his speech was laksjdfl;kajsdflkajsdf. Why you gotta give two painful brother speeches in one episode?
This trial thing so isn't going to end well for poor Sam. That did not look good at the end.
The horses were adorable, too. And the girl who got killed was familiar, but I can't figure out who she is.
Gah, this season continues to be amazing.
loved it all the brother speeches and Deans room and burgers def. top favs
ReplyDeleteDean thinking he was just a grunt and only Sam was worth saving was sad. His putting his Mom's pic in the first room he remembers having. I cried. Sam, bless his heart, is the one who does the killing. The look of pain on Dean's face, Sam's speech was heartbreaking. This time, Dean trusts him I know they are brothers again. This can't end good. Looks like we're going to have another tearjerker finale
ReplyDeleteIt was perfect. "Don't let JR and the gang out of your sight." LMFAO
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh, Dean was so cute with his "nesting" in that opening scene at the hideout. "Memory foam... it REMEMBERS me."
ReplyDeleteI'm actually glad Sam ended up killing the hellhound. I know Dean feels like he has to protect him, and it's one of the characteristics I love the most about him, but Sam is just as protective of his older brother. And I absolutely loved his speech at the end. He's fighting for the light at the end of the tunnel, and he wants to take his big brother with him. Both brother speeches killed me dead tonight - Dean thinking he's nothing more than a grunt and wanting more than that for his brother actually made me tear up.
I also think this'll be nice closure for Sam if he's the one to close the gates - I know Dean started the process, but Sam finished it. Both brothers feel that weight, but Sam's struggle with Ruby and the demon blood (at risk of starting a serious war here) seems to tip the scale to his side on the apocalypse angst. So if he gets to be the instrument that closes those gates forever? I think that'll lift a good part of it.
Holy crap...The episode was...A-W-E-S-O-M-E.Everything was as it was supposed to be.For starters,I teared up when Dean said "Hey mom".Awwwww :'( He's got his own room!!And he's decorating it :D He also cooked!!!I never imagined him making dinner :P Sam yes but not Dean!!!How about that :) Sam seemed more than excited about his food.I am glad Kevin is better now.He seemed really messed up at the beginning.When Sam and Dean got to the ranch I knew that ranch girl was the one to do with the demon deal,I am glad to see that Sam is the one who will complete the trials.Dean...WHY are you always so pessimistic :'( I get really upset when he behaves suicidal.He seems to believe that there is no hope for him.Sam is right.He's got friends,FAMILY and he is damn young!!!He can go on...I hope he starts seeing that soon.I adored the speeches the brothers exchanged...SO MANY FEELS!!!Brotherly love at its best.So emotional.Oh and Dean reallt needs to accept that he can never dfeat the hellhounds himself!!!He died of them,almost twice if Jo didn't save him and came close to a third one when he and Sam were in that house where they were holding up Brady.And of course tonight!!!So glad Sam got to show that bitch.He literally opened it up and bathed in its blood.I am a bit worried about him though :/ What's gonna happen to him now??From what we saw tonight in the episode and a glimpse from the promo,along with the recent spoilers he's gonna experience nosebleeds,headaches who knows what else...:( I wonder what the other 2 tests will be :S Well once more I will say that I loved this episode and that this season has become one of 3 favorites!!!
ReplyDeleteThat was an awesome episode. Loved the brother speeches and the scenes at the hideout. So sweet. The action was great too. Near perfect imo. The season is finally picking up. :D
ReplyDeleteGood episode. Sam's arm looked like a subway map as it lit up during the ritual. Almost thought he was going to drop a Benny!
ReplyDeleteKevin and the uppers have me thinking we'll get through the first two and then have a major malfunction.
And the demons are suspiciously quiet through all this.
So good. This was everything that I wanted for the Winchesters. It feels like a new basis for their relationship. Sam seeing a life beyond hunting and wanting to show Dean that he can have that too. I'm very happy.
ReplyDeleteI love horses and am taking a riding class currently so that just made an awesome episode even better.
ReplyDeleteThough I noticed how much horse sounds they put in the background. I mean, because of the number of horses at the stable I'm riding at, they're quite vocal, but they're not close to that vocal. :P
Ohhhh... that was so awesome!!!!! If they showed me a bit of Crowley I could said it was an absolubtely perfect episode.... But the didn't so I'm gonna say it was a perfect episode. So full of Mary feels. So full of family feels. And the hellhound... I loved them. And Sam killing the dog... Was so amazing!!!! Marry me Carver...
ReplyDeleteYeah I am worried about Kevin and his lack of sleep. Wish he'd understand he'd probably do better not just physically, but mentally if he got some shut eye. His mind would be sharper. So going with barely any sleep probably isn't going to make things move along faster.
ReplyDeleteI loved it, lots of great lines, but why wasn't Sam this worried about Dean all the time he was missing?? I loved the brother talks and Dean with his room and mom's picture. So Sam ends up the hero and going to close the gate. This season just keeps getting better and better..
ReplyDeleteYeah, my mom has a horse and he (and the others at the stable where she boards her) definitely do not make that much noise.
ReplyDeleteDéjà vu! In a good way! :D
ReplyDeleteSince I've been around horses more the past few years, it now bugs me how much horsey background noise shows and movies add. lol
ReplyDeleteI am really curious about the seven people who thought it was awful. Why?
ReplyDeleteGOD this was good. dean's room made me smile. dean speech was sad at 1st but then its like here we go again dean telling sam what to do and you do not do that to sam so I was like sam will be the one killing the hellhound and all that black blood WOW and sam speech made me cry to but OMG! not again with the worry I have to deal with this again poor sammy it like so many times with the soul thing and now this NOOOOOO! I am just happy dean can trust sam to do this as painful as its going to be.
ReplyDeleteI loved a lot about this one. Dean's talk to Sam made me cry. I haven't cried over SPN in ages. His bleak view is so sad, and there's not much to contradict him. Sam's speech was a great reminder of that speech he gave back in S5 Point of No Return, and I was very happy that Dean trusted him, again. I still think it ends bloody.
ReplyDeleteThat photo of Dean & Mary melted this cold heart. And Dean "Nesting." ... Need I say more. Hope the theme of Dean cooking continues until he's Top Chef. Sam's reaction to the burger made me laugh out loud.
There was alot of weakness in this too, especially how weak the family plot was - there were some really dumb things the writer left out there. But I'm not going to complain too much.
One small gripe I have affects demon deal continuity - I don't think Crowley can cheat like that. I know they did establish some shadiness in demon deals, like In the Beginning the YED isn't too forthcoming. But there was a structure demons had to follow, like a natural agreement that involves some free will.
ReplyDeleteIn Time for e Wedding and now this, demons flouting the rules and not making it clear there even is a deal, just sounds off to me. And didn't Crowley of all the demons pride himself that he kept to the rules?
I agree with you about the family plot. Sounded like a lame version of Dallas. And Ellie came across to me as a s**t. But I loved the episode.
ReplyDeleteLoved it right up until the last 5 minutes. I know I'm going to be in the minority but I truly wanted it to be Dean that killed the hellhound even tho I knew all along it wouldn't be. They went the predictable route. Just once I was hoping they would let Dean follow through on a course of action. I'm disappointed they went with predictability.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, everything else was fantastic. Dean decorating his room was adorable and Sam's reaction to it was touching. Really good scene. I loved Dean's speech about why it should be him that went thru the trials. He really does see himself as expendable. Sam's counter reasoning was wonderfully done. I love him telling Dean he was the best hunter he's ever seen. He called him a genius! how long has Dean been waiting to hear that kind of validation from his little brother? I'm not saying Sam's speech was wrong. But now the opportunity for Dean to chose life over sacrifice has been taken away from him. Of course he'll fight to keep Sam alive. I think it would've been more powerful to have Sam work to convince his brother he could find that light at the end of the tunnel for himself. Now Dean's just going to fight for the same reason he always does -- to save Sam. He's not going to suddenly see that light for himself now because he's still not fighting for himself. A missed opportunity but I wasn't really expecting it to end any other way.
So, I'm interested to see where they go now.
haters who thought it should be retired so their favorite shows will be renewed
ReplyDeleteAnother awesome episode, I feel so happy this show find his way again. All the story about helldogs was just great and for me the best part is the dialogues of trust between the brothers, Sam and Dean back to trust each other is a great deal.
ReplyDeleteI LOVED when Sam took Dean's burger with him to Kevin's, too! I also loved Sam's concern for Kevin... he was worried that Kevin would "burn himself out";he wants a "good life ever after" for Kevin.
ReplyDelete"...But now the opportunity for Dean to chose life over sacrifice has been taken away from him."
ReplyDeleteYou made a very powerful point, I hadn't thought of. It does bother me that, in essence, the show is doing this same plot outline for the third time. To be honest, I watch mainly for the performances, which were great tonight, and because I loved the show & characters so much.
I am just going to say this and I like what you said and all but I am thinking that and it hard to say but I think this season will be the season that dean has to let go of sam and really let go just let him do this not try to save him let sam do this. its like with s5 and 6 dean did not know how to let go and damn he had a year to do it and with s8 sam did the same thing letting go of dean and I know how OOC of him to do it but come on. if they are saying that they getting older then letting go is a part of life.
ReplyDelete^^^ This! Beautifully said.
ReplyDeleteWhat's more Sam seemed to be OK at first with Dean doing the trials - one of them had to do it and Dean's first concern is that Sam be safe. It was only accidental that Sam ended up killing the Hellhound because he wanted to make sure the gal who got out of her cuffs was safe.
But Dean did let go in season 5. He stood back and let Sam jump into the pit possessed by Lucifer. He was 'on board'. And in season 6, when Sam wantd him to come back with him, Dean said no. His responsibilities had shifted to Lisa and Ben and Sam had the Campbells to hunt with. So Dean has learned to let go. He just knows that Sam can move on and have a real life -- he can walk away from hunting -- and that he himself can't. Even if they do close the gates of hell and wipe all demons from earth, Dean will still hunt monsters. Sam is seeing it as an end to hunting, but Dean knows it's not. So it's not about letting go at all. It's about finding a future. Sam see's one outside of hunting, Dean doesn't.
ReplyDeleteYou're not alone, Sue...many fans wanted Dean to do the trials. There is at least one other tablet that the boys don't know about yet - the Angel Tablet. I'm reasonably certain that the AT contains instructions or trials too - for humanity's defense against Angels - "human" being the operative word. That leaves out Cas though he's intimately connected to the Angel Tablet storyline. I'm certain Dean will be the human champion against angel incursions.
ReplyDeleteNo one can make Dean want to fight to live rather just accepting death by going down fighting - he has to come to this realization himself. They can just show Dean they see the incredible value in Dean's life and that other people need him to live because he's loved, not just they need him to save them.
That's what bothered me about this ep, too. I knew, from the beginning, exactly what would happen. I want to be surprised again. I want them to make me go 'wow! didn't see that coming!" again. Love what the J's can do on screen and they are the reason I watch, I just want them to write better instead of copping out and going with what is -- at least for me -- incredibly predictable. This was a well done ep, I just knew all along how it would end up and that makes me sad.
ReplyDeleteI agree... I could done without some of the cliched family drama but the boys' superbly written emotional scenes outweighed the weaker parts of the episode.
ReplyDeleteMy first thought when Dean set up his room was … oh geez that means they're going to destroy it sooner rather than later.
ReplyDeleteDomestic Dean is the scariest monster they've had on the show in 8 seasons
"We are on the one yard line it is time to play through the pain." And THERE'S the Dean I know and love.
I cannot express how much I wish we'd had these last three episodes at positions 3-5 of this seasons.... More accurately, I wish they'd found the Men of Letters and their new Batcave 3 episodes into this season. We could have had this Winchester team as we walked through the other major story points. Instead of the snippyness and the lame Sam flashbacks.
I loved this episode.
That troubled me, too. Crowley seemed to be a stickler for the rules so I don't how "they" (I think there were at least three who made deals) didn't know it was a "standard 10 year contract" except for Ellie who "knew" it was her last night and knew that something evil was coming for her.
ReplyDeleteYep as to both ... the demons have been too quiet and they have the other half of the tablet. I have a feeling at least one of the necessary trials is on the other half. And Kevin is well on the way to a real stroke if he keeps up this pace.
ReplyDeleteI agree! I haven't been surpised since Souless Sam smiled when Dean was forced to become a vampire. Every plot has been pretty transparent for 3 years. The last real shock I had, was Lilith being the final seal. lol
ReplyDeleteDean's been "letting go" of Sam since S1 "Scarecrow."
ReplyDeleteYes, remember Crowley's speech to the sassy demon in Time for a Wedding? He was proud and insistent on holding to the contract. These little things matter.
ReplyDeleteDean saying "I'm nesting" makes up for anything.
ReplyDeleteI loved the entire episode Supernatural just keeps getting better and better I have no complaints a lot of people have ton of complaints about every episode wow I thought it was touching and other people seem to complain about Sam its like come on just enjoy the episode
ReplyDeleteI believe she said she knew that she wouldn't be going to heaven, but she didn't know that "monsters" were going to come for her. I don't remember any Crossroads demon mentioning Hell Hounds coming and dragging you to Hell.
ReplyDeleteI made a joke somewhere about the last episode that if the boys have a beer fridge in the library I wonder if they have pie in it or are they going to have Dean making some.
ReplyDeleteNow with the burgers I can't believe that they really did go through with Dean in the kitchen!!!
I found this to be a weird episode.
ReplyDeleteI should have loved it because of the brother moments, and with Sam and Dean being on screen together interacting for nearly the entire episode, yet there was something lacking and it didn't convince me somehow.
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It was the little things that stood out.
As soon as I saw Dean putting up the photo of him and Mary, I thought why just him and his mom and not Sam and John? Of course that was to reflect what the girl said to him later about her selling her soul for her mother and wouldn't Dean have done the same? Well Dean did sell his soul only it was for Sam, not for his mother!
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Then Sam's surprise at Dean's tasty cooking. In all those years Dean had never cooked for Sam? Hard to believe!
We saw Dean's room but i was curious to see Sam's too.
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Also the first half was rather boring, with very little excitement.
Then I was waiting for them to close the doors of the Impala in synch when they arrived at the ranch but they didn't. :(
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Perhaps I'm being ungenerous but this episode just didn't do much for me and it should have.
I just got the impression that the brotherly bond lacked in true feelling and intensity even although important things were said between them.
It was more like two co-workers than the brothers we have been used to.
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As for the tests, in a way it's logical that Sam ( demon boy) gets to close the Hell-gates while Dean ( angel boy) will without a doubt get to close the Heaven-gate so he can have his little talk with Castiel too.
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Then all the "I want you to settle down and have a family " thing seems a bit redundant now aftwr all the bitching by Dean in the first ten episodes about Sam choosing a girl over him.
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I'll have to think on the episode a bit more but I'm very disappointed with all of these writers.
They just haven't got what it takes to bring out the best in Sam and Dean and in the story-lines.
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The over two minutes we got with Kevin repeating the same actions over and over again was just some filler time to make up for a lack of creative ideas.
I gave the episode okay.
I voted Great, one of the few times I've voted above Okay this season (and the past 2 seasons). Dean is hilarious in their new lair, it brings out the funny man Dean instead of "I don't trust anything" Dean which is nice. Kevin was also interesting to see what how he's been pushing himself so he can get out of it. I'm curious though, if they close the Gates of Hell, do they send all the demons back at the same time, or do all the demons still topside remain until they're sent back down.
ReplyDeleteThe rest of the episode, particularly who was going to die... and in what order, was extremely predictable. Sam also being the one to do the trails was extremely predictable. It was still entertaining in a way, though.
Although, I thought the arguing family was simply annoying and too over the top. Also, I was really excited to see a Hell Hound but was extremely disappointed in both their size and the simplistic appearance of them. Very disappointed in that part of it, but still nice that they came back into play. And I would watch Sam/Dean go up against 100 Hell Hounds, then afterwards they can do one of those flying away camera shots with blood everywhere and Sam/Dean standing back to back with bloody knives in their hands breathing heavily. That'd be a cool final shot.
"Drop a Benny"...(snicker) I like it!
ReplyDeleteI raised Miniature Horses and let me tell you when something is outside they don't like, in my case a Bobcat, they will let you know about it. So they knew the Hellhound was there.
ReplyDeletei just knew Sam was going to be the one to do the trials. Every season so far Sam is always the one with the main storyline and when something happens to him- visions, the crap about him maybe going darkside, powers, demon blood addiciton, being lucifers vessel, coming back from hell, not having a soul, the wall being put up, the wall falling down and him losing his marbles and seeing lucifer- Dean always has to worry about him and wonder whats wrong with him this time. But when something happens to Dean- coming back from hell & purgatory, having drinking problem & depression- nobody including Sam seems to care. They just tell him to stop whining and get over it. I'm sick of Sam always getting the big storyline and being 'the chosen one' while Dean just stands in the background, worrying about Sam, saving Sam, protecting Sam, looking after Sam. Even when it looks like Deans finally getting a big storyline, they just drop it and give Sam the bigger & better one over and over again. I think I'm finally done with the show, I'm sick of the same thing time after time.
ReplyDeleteDean cooked when he was with Lisa, remember the breakfast.
ReplyDeleteInteresting theory about the heaven gate, if they have to close that too surely there will be tasks that need to be completed for that too? Is this Dean's purpose? Mkes sense in the context of the series.
ReplyDeleteDean talking about Sam settling down and having a family was IMO something he always wanted for Sam but because Dean was afraid he's end up alone and that he couldnt have that he was maybe blinded by his own feelings and that was why he was so harsh on Sam. I think its been quite clear through the series that while Dean is a hunter to the core he also wants a family and a home of sorts.
Dean will now have to help and protect Sam on the trials and Sam will have to help Dean see the light at the end of the tunnel.
For the record no one ever said Dean would come back from Purgatory with a drinking problem or depression. So far we havent seen him with either of those problems because they were never intended to be part of his storyline.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if Dean picked up his cooking skills during his year off hunting while living with Lisa and Ben? It seemed like all those neighbourhood BBQ's may have paid off.
ReplyDeletei love this chapter i voted awesome, What is someone i could say because they don't have published the renewal in the official facebook page of supernatural? thanks
ReplyDeleteGreat comment.
ReplyDeleteI think Dean just wanted Sam to say, YES, I looked for you. And yes Sam's flashbacks were a waste of show minutes. lol
ReplyDeleteDid you forget when he was making breakfast for Lisa and Ben? Dean kept Sam fed when they were little.
ReplyDeleteI gave it a 'great', even if I did have to stay up until 12:15 EST to watch it (stupid basketball game!) and then had to be out of bed by 4:30am for work today! AH!). These last 3 eps have the show really on a roll as we head towards the final stretch.
ReplyDeleteShot out to the special effects crew on this one. Stellar with the hell hounds and the light/spell thingy shooting into Sam's arm at the end.
Loved Dean's room. And his need for it. Perfect decor as well. LOL! And beautiful touch with the tiny pic of he and his mom.
I think Sam and Dean were dead on with their characterizations in this one. Dean needing to go head on, push Kevin to do the same and get this thing done now! While Sam, as he was mostly since the beginning of the series, always trying to see a positive end game, and now that he's done the end of the world thing several times, he knows what it can do to a person. So I appreciated that he tried to protect Kevin in that way. Great contrast with the boys, esp with putting Kevin in the middle of it.
Interesting that as soon as Dean found out the first trial was a hell hound, he went into this energetic almost happy mode...because he knew this was his way to give Sam that out that he wants so badly. Hello Kamikazi Dean! Seems to be his forte. :)
Unlike some, I don't mind the patter of Sam undergoing whatever and Dean having to save/protect him. It's what the show has always been about at it's heart and it's what seems to work best, esp with Dean. Despite the setbacks and bitterness in the past, etc...it's his job...no matter what.
Oh and Jared and Jensen rockin' the specks! Yeah! And who knew Dean could cook? Ha!
This ep, as with the last 2, felt like old school SPN to me. Great hour of television last night!
I think Dean's bitchin at Sam was not so much over the "girl" as it was hurt that Sam never said he looked for him. When Dean asked "Did you look for me" and Sam said nothing, that had to hurt. If Sam had said Yes I looked then life could have gone on...at least it would have for me and I would not still be bitter over this. lol
ReplyDeleteWell, Dean has always been the one associated with heaven-'the Michael sword, his vessel etc.'- so I see it as being logical that he would be the one to close Heaven and I can just imagine his satisfaction as he closes the heavenly gates on the 'dick' angels!
ReplyDeleteThen Hell was always Sam's story-line so it's only fair that he's the one to close Hell.
If purgatory needs to be closed too, they can do that together. :)
X
Both brothers are very complicated men and although Dean has gone on about wanting a family when he got the chance with Lisa and Ben, he was all too eager to go back to the hunting life as soon as Sam came back from the Cage, so I really don't know if that's what he truly wants.
Maybe it's just what he thinks he does.
X
As for Sam, perhaps once he wanted a family life up to and during the Stanford era, but since then he has always said that he had made his peace with hunting and that it would be dangerous for any of then to have a family.
That has been of course re-booted with Carver's Samelia theme but I don't think that Sam could be really happy with a suburban family life either.
X
The whole series was based on the co-dependency and brotherly bond between Sam and Dean and IMO that basic fact can never be changed otherwise it's no longer Supernatural but some other show.
Anyway I would like them to want to stay together to the bitter end, whatever that may be.
what an episode !! as I said it gets better and better, oh God they made me cry.. their speech to each other I LOVED IT ! Dean wants Sam to have the happy ending b/c its his perfect ending , Sam wants Dean to stay with him in his happy ending cause it"s not with out him! :'(
ReplyDeleteSam had me at (And if you come with me, I can take you to it.) oh God :'( is there anything beautiful than that !!!
I'm with you all the way here, and I'm quite happy to rant alongside you for a good explantion of why Sam didn't look.
ReplyDeleteIt just leaves such a bad taste in one's mouth that he didn't, but of course the the 'real Sam' would have ! :)
I know, but its another thing about Dean that got dropped. He seemed to be depressed and had drinking problem from 4-7 which got worse in 7, but since coming back from purgatory he's mircaulously recovered from both... a bit like his fear of hellhounds.
ReplyDeleteSo... Sam is the chosen one (again) and will do all 3 trials, and he's got the Men of Letters thing, and Dean's role will be what... to make sandwiches for Sam?
ReplyDelete"But now the opportunity for Dean to chose life over self sacrifice has
ReplyDeletebeen taken away from him. Of course he'll fight to keep Sam alive -- he
always has. I think it would've been more powerful to have Sam have to
find a way to convince his brother it wasn't a suicide mission and that
he could find that light at the end of the tunnel for himself. Now
Dean's just going to fight for the same reason he always does -- to save
Sam. He's not going to suddenly see that light for himself now because
he's still not fighting for himself. So Sam's impassioned speech was
beautiful but missed the point. Nothing changed. He can't force Dean to
fight for himself when there is no reason for him to. Dean will still
see himself as expendable in order to protect Sam. The writers missed
the ball there."
THIS! Excellent point!
Why couldn't the writers allow Dean to find it within himself to want to fight for his own life? Why can't they allow Dean to see that he is worthy of living? I am so disappointed by how this all turned out. They have gone right back to square one, where Dean is only worthy for how well he can protect Sam.
May after spending a year in purgatory, Dean feels like not much he needs to fear. He made it out and anything else is just gravy. ;)
ReplyDeleteprobably will be, along with him drving the car while Sam saves the world again, protecting Sam, worrying about him and taking care of him when it all becomes too much.
ReplyDeleteGlad I'm not the only one who sees this. I do have to wonder what Dean is supposed to do for the remainder of season 8? If anyone can tell me what his part in the mythology is or what part he actually plays in all this (besides protecting Sam as usual) I'm all ears. I'm just disappointed because they had a great premise that really excited me: Sam with the Men of Letters -- he could become the brainiac he's always wanted to be and still be hunting without the parts he obviously hates, and Dean with the trials and actual hunting -- cuz that's his strengths. A perfect way for them to work together but still be true to themselves. But no. Sam is now central to every plot line and Dean... I'm not sure what he's supposed to do. I guess I'm just sad that they didn't see the potential and went with predictability (which will ultimately renew the forced tension when Sam starts being less than truthful about what's happening again) instead. Oh well. Maybe season 9?
ReplyDeleteTry having all of his Hell memories wiped in an instant after spending most of the season just rubbing his hand to control memories that were supposed to kill him. We get a few sleepless references, one breakdown episode, then wipe... gone. Most story lines tend to be wrapped unsatisfactorily on this show.
ReplyDeleteRight, after the pure fear and purpose in Purgatory, Hell Hounds can't be that scary.
ReplyDeleteI did think that FINALLY the show was going to balance out the brothers' storylines with Sam finding his role as a Men of Letters and then that would leave Dean's role as a hunter and doing these trials. Sam would be able to use his skills as a researcher and Dean would be able to utilize his hunter skills, and then together they would plan the best way to approach the trials.
ReplyDeleteBut now, Sam has *both* the brains and the brawn with the Men of Letters and the trials, and Dean has... nothing. Well, he now has a kitchen so he can cook Sam dinner, I guess. *shrug*
I agree. But until Dean is in a situation where he has to make that choice for himself, it can't happen. Too bad they missed this golden opportunity to do that. :/
ReplyDeleteYep. And now we're right back to Dean's only reason to live is to save Sam. Too bad. They had such a great opportunity to move the entire show in a new and wonderful direction, but they chose to go back to square 1.
ReplyDeleteExactly. They set up that Men of Letters/Hunter thing so nicely and then just didn't act upon it. I'm confused as to why. I was actually excited about that direction. I'm sure Dean will hone his culinary skills in the kitchen. :) I just sincerely can't see what his part is supposed to be. I want to, but for the life of me I can't. I'm hoping they give him some part of the overall mythology but I'm not getting my hopes up. I was just starting to really love this season and now... now I'm just sad. It's like someone kicked my puppy. :)
ReplyDeleteDean was hilarious, loved the burger scene. And I loved when Dean wore the glasses, and automatically said "You look like Clark Kent" Then Ellie comes right out and says it, lol That was great. But my god, how obvious was it that she made a deal??? There was no surprise there.....I wanna know what went on with Sam's arm, and speaking of Sam, I LOVED the way he killed the hellhound, from throat to gut, that was awesome, Crowley is gonna be PISSED! lmao.....Well since Sam is taking on the tasks, looks like it's Sammy's turn to die again, ya know since Dean went last year....sigh...maybe we'll get lucky, and both of them will live and Kevin could die.....Poor Kev, I love hot dogs, as much as the next person, but hot dogs everyday, smh. Hell i'd throw up too.
ReplyDeleteSince when has Dean not been at the fore front. The mytharc the pov and exploration , his own hell , the relationships given to him, the insight , do you seriously think Dean will be hoovering around in the background while Sam gets the sl. Sam got the trials . Dean got Purgatory and Benny and Dean will be at the heart of what happen's in the future. As for Sam being the chosen one 'again' a fat load of good it did him last time and I dont suppose it will this time either.
ReplyDeleteRemember if it was not for Dean & Baby in Swan Song, bringing Sam back from Lucifer, the world would have been in a world of hurt. I always felt both brothers saved the world in that one. Sam for being strong enough to control Lucifer and Dean for taking that beating and telling Sam he was there for him.
ReplyDeletethank you :)
ReplyDeleteGreat comment about Dean has to come to that realisation himself. No one can make him and Sam can't take him there even if he wants to.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I liked Sam's speech but the little comment about Dean squeeing over 100 types of tomatoes gave me more hope about him eventually finding a reason to embrace life than Sam telling him he wasn't a grunt.
well we all knew it wasn't going to last so yes it was a waste of time, then again at least it gave Sam a storyline otherwise he wouldn't have anything in the first half of the season. It essentially took Sam fans 12 episodes to get a decent storyline.
ReplyDeleteI think this episode was the best of season 8. The first episodes - specially until episode 10- were horrible. I don't understand the difference betweeen the first part of the season - the amelia and benny's crap- and now we have this second part that it's being great. We have the brothers together again working together and instantly the quality of the season increased. As for the fact that Sam is the character to do the trials, i'm very happy about that, because this show has been told mostly through Dean's POV. not to mention the interaction that Dean has with all the secondary characters - everybody loves him more, everybody speaks with him more etc etc - and the fact that Dean was the only who killed almost all the big villains of the show so far - Azazel, Zacharia, Dick, Ruby, Sam only killed lucifer and lilth. We had episodes like IN THE BEGINNING, IN THE END, HEAD ON A PIN, not to mention all season 4 that was heavy Dean centric and the crap they did to Sam's character in season 7, writing his hell hallucinations in only 4 episodes with the lame idea that someone who spent 100 years or more in hell was alright with only rubbing his hand.. I loved the episode. it was awesome :)
ReplyDeleteOH I just had bad news, only one more issue of Supernatural Magazine..that really upsets me, I loved getting all the news about the show.
ReplyDeleteYes, of course, but when they were in the stable earlier with no hellhounds around in the middle of the day, the horses were still making a lot of noise in the background. They weren't even being fed, which is usually when I hear the horses get really vocal and stamp around.
ReplyDeletethis episode was really heart broken.
ReplyDeletesomething telling me from inside that the end of this season is just look like season 5 ( because what sam told dean that trust him was the same thing he told him in swan song episode ) but this time , dean keep hunting .
considering interview from carver that told us he want to give dean some peace but dean is just not the one to stop hunting and i don't want to see something like this, that we saw before.i want the true peace for dean , not this.i hope they didn't mean for it.
.
you are so right but if after all the stuff that will happen if sam dies again what do you think dean will do?
ReplyDeleteI called them and they told me why one mag and no more blame WB thats all.
ReplyDeleteI don't agree with everything since I see both brothers as researcher AND hunter, but you made me laugh so hard I snickered with the kitchen comment. That's an upvote for you!
ReplyDeleteDean having his own room and desk and bed was so cute, I was so happy for him! And his own kitchen! dean in glasses was awesome lol clark kent! This episode was awesome the story was solid and the brothers relationship was the highlight!
ReplyDeleteAccording to some people on this page, Sam's story was front and center throughout this season... I just don't see how two people can see the show so differently. To me it seemed that the Amelia flashbacks were only thrown in because there was nothing else for Sam to do. Whenever Dean had to go hunting with Benny or have a conversation with Castiel, Sam got to have a flashback with Amelia... but did we learn anything about Sam during any of those flashbacks? There was nothing Supernatural... No fighting, no action... basically all of the information we needed from those flashbacks could have been gleaned in the first episode this season. I didn't mind seeing them once I got over the jarring feeling of getting pulled out of the story for Days of Our Lives... but their placement became nothing but a joke for my family. Let's compare Sam drifting off to thinking about Amelia right after Castiel talks about smelling a bladder infection with Dean looking at his choices in a vending machine, seeing kids playing, then fighting for his life in Purgatory or tracking Castiel... The Purgatory storyline told us quite a bit about Dean and Benny... We kind of had to be filled in a bit about Castiel after he got out, but seeing him so devastated was pretty heartbreaking... Those stories had just a tad more impact that Sam fixing a sink.
ReplyDeleteAmen. I have never been as moved as I was during that episode. When Dean cranked up that rather brazen music and just blazed his way into the cemetery, my jaw dropped. I pictured him sneaking his way in there and being a witness. He basically went there and spit in the eye of two Arch Angels... One of them being Lucifer. That man really has a "pair" to be proud of :-)
ReplyDeleteDean was not the Myth Arc character in AHBL II, but he was still the one that kicked Azazel's butt... Just because Dean isn't doing the trials does not mean he will be in the background.
I believe I would feel safe to bet REAL money that the writers don't do what they did with Sam in the first half of this season and waste Dean's screen time having him fixing the sink, having picnics, and researching while Sam gets to interact on a personal level with a bevy of interesting, recurring characters and have Supernatural adventures... Although they did have Dean sit on the steps in the Everybody Hates Hitler scene while Sam got beat up... I can't remember the last time that Dean wasn't doing something exciting or interacting with characters on screen while Sam was doing something exciting... Maybe, I could count the time that Dean was interviewing the cop and the site of the Swim Team slaughter... While Dean was "just doing interviews", Sam was hallucinating... but that is something that doesn't happen very often unless Dean is knocked out.
Well we know Sam won't die -- they got renewed for season 9. :) but, hypothetically, if Sam did die and if he was successful in closing the gates, Dean would still hunt monsters until one killed him. That, to me, was the point he was making. Even if he did it and survived, he was still gonna die with a gun in his hand doing his job. Closing the gates of Hell will get rid of demons, but there will still be monsters to hunt and people to save. Demons aren't the biggest problem, just the most evil. So if he couldn't save Sam, Dean would keep hunting. He tried normal and it didn't work for him. Since coming back from Purgatory, he found himself and he knows who and what he is. That's what I believe he meant. The whole suicidal label was Sam's words not Dean's. Dean acknowledged that past experiences showed that one of them would probably die to achieve their goal, and he was adamant it was not going to be Sam risking that, but he never said he wanted to die. He's realistic not suicidal. Hunters die bloody. He's a hunter. Sam can walk away, he can't. That's why he doesn't see a light at the end of the tunnel for himself. That was my Dean Winchester pop psychology. :))
ReplyDeleteDean was not the Myth Arc character in AHBL II, but he was still the one that kicked Azazel's butt... Just because Dean isn't doing the trials does not mean he will be in the background.
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of the time that Sam was going to get his soul back... We had soulless Sam all year and so many of those episodes had a Sam that was totally unrecognizable and usually little more than a functional mute (I got that saying from a description of Gibbs on NCIS); in other words, seen, but not heard... especially during Main Street. Then, Dean dies temporarily and makes a deal with Death just to rescue Sam's soul from the cage and some Dean fans said that Dean's sacrifice was all about Sam, so Dean was again just rescuing Sam and his story was non-existent... But, in my opinion, if Sam wasn't off trying to kill Bobby that episode wouldn't have needed any Sam at all. We learned nothing about Sam from Dean's "Death test". We didn't see Sam. But, it was supposed to be all about Sam? We learned more about how far Dean would go to save Sam. We learned how hard it was for Dean to let that girl die... we learned all kinds of things about Dean... Yes, he did this for Sam, but it was all about Dean.
I believe I would feel safe to bet REAL money that the writers don't do what they did with Sam in the first half of this season and waste Dean's screen time having him fixing the sink, having picnics, and researching while Sam gets to interact on a personal level with a bevy of interesting, recurring characters and have Supernatural adventures...
Although they did have Dean sit on the steps in the Everybody Hates Hitler scene while Sam got beat up... I can't remember the last time that Dean wasn't doing something exciting or interacting with characters on screen while Sam was doing something exciting... Maybe, I could count the time that Dean was interviewing the cop at the site of the Swim Team slaughter... While Dean was "just doing interviews", Sam was hallucinating... but that is something that doesn't happen very often unless Dean is knocked out.
I called them also, that is how I found out, don't understand why WB would not want the mag published it is advertizing for the show.
ReplyDeleteTo the people who think this was a step back and Dean is once again just protecting Sam while he gets the cool storyline--um, this was about changing that dynamioc and making Sam protect Dean for once. Granted he's protecting Dean from himself, but it is a change from the norm.
ReplyDeleteTo the people who think Dean never gets a storyline--the season isn't over yet and there's a whole 'nother season to go. I'm pretty sure the Angel Tablet will be Dean's personal mission. Plus, even if Sam has to be the one to actually do the trials, it's not like Dean will turn into a 50s housewife and stay at home keeping the bunker nice and spiffy. He'll be there too. Teamwork: There is no 'I' in trials...wait...
I thought awesome episode but agree last 5 minutes hard to watch because sam's speech some stuff he says true about dean but his friends are MIA. I agree dean should done trials but still hoping for the angel tablet keep him in story. And I believe dean will die with gun in hand the light at end of tunnel that is all Sam not dean.JMO
ReplyDeleteWow what an episode .HELL HOUNDS YESSSSSSSSS I HAVE WAITED SINCE S3 TO SEE THEM :) THERE AWSOME! ....This was like the old spn and the boys speech :( was a tear breaker for me...I dont care if Sam is to do the trials ,because it's spn there's always a twist .Also people complain like "omg raging dean has all the story line " and now it's " sam once again stealing it".. Sorry but there has to be a balance and that had that in this episode.Sam desvers a wee bit of coolness Dean gets the car the women and hay (am a dean girl) but it's true . Am sure Dean will get something other than look out for sammy this final,.After all he got to kill yellow eyes with the colt ? .So how about we just stop saying who should do what, when ,the boys are together there stronger and that's all am caring about the fact there back loving each other and not trying to kill each other .But can i just express how longggggg i have been waiting on this ! kindy of episode best episode since "weekend at bobbys" s6 ...It had feeling and had me crying i have not cried since then s6 ...I hope though in the final of s8 that dean or sam dosent die and do a whole s3 and s5 boringggg ,no , i want something smarter and cooler , i also hope one ae them dosent end up in hell or heaven etc... BORING lol .Again i want something we have not seen before something that grips you and makes you tense like the first time you saw "All hell breaks loss part 2" or "swang song" something that your hanging on the end of your seat with ..THATS GOOD TV....So yeh this episode was wicked! jermery has saved my show <3 the guy for that
ReplyDeleteI didn't say it was awful but the best I could do was okay because of the last 10 minutes or so. It was great until the hellhound fight then it tanked horribly. I know I'm in the minority but Sam's speech made me a combination of sick. I know to most it was an endearing moment but I couldn't buy it, even though Jared did sell it extremely well. I had hope of something new and exciting until then but once again, Dean is pushed to the background and Sam is once again the "chosen one" which makes Dean's speech about being a glorified grunt/bodyguard/babysitter for Sam during his quest as a chosen one once again. Like it happened in Season 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 . . . And now we get another half season of Dean angsting over Sam while Sam goes through all he has to go through and knowing that the quest will probably take Sam's life which will leave Dean wanting to be dead or whatever. Sorry, Sam-lovers, but I would actually like Dean to actually be able to be 'chosen' once and not replaced by Sam, Adam, or whoever else the writers pick out of a hat. With that in mind, why wouldn't Dean think of himself that way?
ReplyDeleteI like it when Sam is supposed to be the chosen one, it gives Dean a chance to be the hero. After all it was with Baby's help that Dean gave Sam the power to take back control from Lucifer and save the world. My problem with Sam's speech was where was this LOVE for Dean when he did not even look for him....FOR A YEAR!!!
ReplyDeleteNo I didn't but I didn't think they would go that far with the domestic Dean and apparently Sam did forget his brother kept him fed as a child considering he made a comment about him thinking he didn't know that Dean knew what a kitchen was for.
ReplyDeleteUum... Dean is also a MoL; he just thas not chosen to automatically enbrace this as part of their dual legacy yet - he is wary of the "Supernatural Motherload" as he should be - he pointed out to Henry in 8,12 that "at least we [hunters] aren't extinct" (like the MoL appear to be, Sam and him being the "sole heirs" to the "Batcave".
ReplyDeleteYou're right. Dean's squeeing over the many varieties of tomatoes available, his
ReplyDeleteevident enjoyment of having "their own kitchen", and cooking in it, seeing Sam obviously enjoying the hamburger Dean made him, as well as the loving care and attention that he put into "his first solo bedroom in a long, long time", and Sam's "Wow" of approval at seeing Dean's room are either little self esteem builders on their own or small signs that he's not as much in a hurry to die with his boots on as he purports himself to be. These
are "Baby Steps".
Iagree with you though what else could boys have done differently? They could have looked for other demon signs thatcould indicate a "deal" being made 10 or a little more years ago- so that Dean could kill a hellhound and complete the other trials - but demon
ReplyDeleteactivity (per Bobby in 1.22 DT) only really ramped up in 2005 when Azazel was
gathering the PsyKids. There may have been other deals made later in 2003 but
it would take time to search for the demon signs. There's likely to be at least one more "opportunity" *this season* that will put Dean's "fatalism" to the test, far preferably unconnected to "helping Sam" complete the Hell closing trials. Cross fingers!
Ellie knew that Carl had gone to a crossroads; she told Dean that a "few years
ReplyDeleteago Carl got drunk" and told her. Ellie saw what happened to Carl and figured the same (evil thing) would happen to her because she also made a deal to heal her mom from
Parkinson's disease. Margie failed to put that same 2+2 together.
If you have a sec, read my new reply to Zoe.
not enough subsribers to offset the cost of making it most likely
ReplyDeleteI thought this was a very good episode. I'm very happy with the change of tone/direction in the last few episodes. I also have to say that I've seen more writing for Sam/Sam POV in the past two episodes than I've seen in a long time, so it's giving me hope. :) There were some signs that there was attempt to write more Sam POV in the first half, but the premise of who Sam was and how he would react was so messed up, it was hard to appreciate the positive.
ReplyDeleteAs for the mytharc part, to be honest, I've never understood the "Sam always has the mytharc" argument - probably because I don't know how people define "having the mytharc." If it means killing the big bad, then Dean had the mytharc in season 2 when he killed YED, no one had it in seasons 1, 3, and 4, Sam had it in season 5, Dean sort of had it in season 6 when he killed Eve (although no one killed Cas), and Dean had it in season 7 when he killed Dick. If it means the character the mytharc is about, then John had it in season 1, Sam had it in season 2, Dean had it in season 3, Dean and Sam split it in seasons 4 and 5, Cas had it in season 6, and Bobby had it in season 7.
I also agree with what another poster pointed out - that we'll likely see similar trials on the angel side, that that will likely focus on Dean (as it should), with the personal connection being Cas. It fits that the Hell trials should be about Sam.
In response to the argument that these trials could have moved Dean's personal development forward, I don't see being a self-sacrificing hero - again - solving Dean's self-esteem issues. The show could have gone in the direction that these issues were dealt with in seasons 3-5, but they didn't, and at this point I don't think Dean will solve these on his own. And to be honest, I don't see a problem with that. One of the messages in this show has been that Sam and Dean need each other. They keep each other human. The point that Sam would have fallen to Lucifer without Dean's positive influence was made very clear in The End. Why is it so awful to think that Sam's optimism might be what Dean needs? Does Dean really need to be such a hero that he needs nothing from anyone else - ever?
I think we already dealt with the Purgatory tablet - that was Dean killing Dick. And we learned that these Word of God tablets come with an unexpected kick. So I'm guessing Sam will succeed with trials, with some difficulty, but that there will be an unexpected result when he thinks he's won. Hmmm.
Dean got to kill Azazel and Roman and Ruby and Zachariah. He's had lots of main arc stuff too. I'm a Dean girl and not bothered the slightest that Sam got this one.
ReplyDelete