The title of this episode calls to mind hijinks and wacky comedy.

This hour was anything but.

There is so much to unpack about this episode, I will most likely miss something on this pass. I want to get something out of the way right up front, though. Besides the fact you know this is ALL SPOILERS.

Eileen.

I am so heartbroken. Hey producers! We WANT Sammy to be in a relationship. Please stop killing his love interests. It’s Dean we don’t want attached. FYI.

And of course I’ll address the elephant in the room. Yes, she was a girl. Yes, she died on Supernatural. A LOT of people die on Supernatural. The gender debate, as well as the ‘using death as a lazy writer’s crutch’ debate are entire blogs unto themselves. Whole conversations. Books, even. As such, I will not go into it here. I will not refer to Eileen’s death as a gendered thing, and will only cover it as a part of the story.

It’s where we join our story, Eileen’s death. Seeing her return just to die made me so sad on several levels. Seeing that Ketch was responsible? Not surprised. He is a man of principle, after all, and his principles stated that she killed a BMoL. Therefore, death sentence. I woke up thinking about Ketch this morning, though, and I’d like to go a little more in depth with him at the end of this. I do enjoy that the writers are keeping us guessing on his arc, and I look forward to seeing which path they’ve chosen.

I felt unutterably bad for Sam getting the news about and investigating Eileen’s death. Though she did serve another purpose in the story besides man pain. Proof of a pattern, as well as the clue laden letter she posted to them days before her death. I still think they would have found Ketch’s INCREDIBLY OBVIOUS mic without her help, but she did help them get at least just a little ahead of the game.

And when Mary encountered her hunter friend, Rick, that game took a hell of a twisted twist. At first, I thought it was a shapeshifter. Until poor Mary awoke in the BMoL’s Container Castle. It turns out Miss Lady Bitch Pants Suit is actually pretty good at her job, after all. Brainwashing is a new low, even for them. Oh, excuse me, Miss LBPS, “realignment”. And what was with all that crap she said to Mary about John? How dare she. I don’t care who’s locked in the bunker with the boys right now. I will never like that woman.

Raise your hand if you’re surprised the good Dr. Hess is in Crowley’s pocket? Now, we all know Crowley is slippery but why was he really at Castle Container? I think we all know that, as well. He was there to find out the BMoL’s intentions with the Winchesters. I fully believe he’d never let these stuffy numbskulls hurt our boys.

But he has problems of his own, now doesn’t he? When the boys called him to check up on the hellhound and he lied through his teeth, I knew for certain he was soon going to have to crawl to them for help. We saw Lucifer getting ready to break free, and I knew he’d get his ass handed to him. Then drag it, bumped and bruised, to the Winchesters. I was not disappointed on these points. Ah! Haha, surprised I hadn’t seen it sooner. He’s their way out of the bunker. He doesn’t believe in their loyalty enough without leverage, and will secure their help by going the extra step and getting them free.

Speaking of the bunker, once the Winchesters tricked the BMoL and the BMoL tricked them back, me laughing at the ease with which they took the guns and took back their home, I realized Ketch had brought his ace in the hole. Because we can’t appear to be slacking on the job, now can we, Ketch? Ah, sorry, my Ketch argument bled over. More on that below. Either way, it was pretty heartbreaking to see the boys watch Mary leave. Not because they could possibly think she’s been turned willfully. They have to know it’s against her will.

Alright, I’m already running long. I’ve missed about a thousand things. Hopefully I’ve hit most of the big things. I think the biggest, for me, is that the season finale is next week and the BMoL is coming to a head. The nephilim is coming to a head. There’s potential for a temporary pact between enemies as they work together to kill or cure Luci’s child. Mary is, as always, willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for her family. Not everyone is going to survive. I fear for Ketch, Mary, Crowley, and Lucifer. I don’t think the producers are ready to break the fandom just yet, so Castiel stays. But Jody’s coming back (two thumbs WAYYY UP), and I swear to god I will join the gender chorus if she dies.

In truth, it’s a bloody and brutal game the Winchesters play. What’s happened to Mary is a fate worse than death. If they can see a way to clear her without sending her back to heaven, I’m down for that. I prefer that. There’s so much more that can be done with Mary Campbell Winchester.

Here’s this week’s P.S.

The character of Ketch has really ensnared me. I love a well written character. Two of them have kept me coming back for twelve seasons and counting. Below are my clues that Ketch may not have been as two dimensional in this week’s episode as you might think. There was more than just that scene with Mary.

Clues:

1-He lies to Dean about having seen Mary. Ketch knows she’s still in touch with her boys. He KNOWS it. She told him as much. Why would he tell a lie he was so sure they’d catch? Does he underestimate them that severely? Or did he want them to figure it out? And if so, why?

2-Hess threatens him with command. There is no way in the world Ketch wants to be a leader. He’s no leader. He’s really, really, really against being put in charge. He doesn’t want to answer to Toni, but he also doesn’t want to be The New Mick. Bet he has a contingency plan in place against such a thing.

3-Here we are again. Obvious mic is obvious, Ketch. Simply a plot device? I don’t think so. I think our boys could have found the mic in the speaker just as easily. They are skilled investigators, after all. I feel like this is at least the second time Ketch warned them about the bunker. They should not have come back at the end. How many times does he have to tell them, they don’t have the only key?

4-Let’s talk about that scene with Mary. What do you think he was feeling as he walked in? As he walked out? My thoughts: Guilt. Both counts. He knows what Toni has been doing with her, and it tears him up. He knows what her family means to her. Seeing her ready to kill herself rather than hurt them, it showed him something he’d never seen. A depth of feeling he didn’t think possible. You could say he was acting. That he felt she was weak. David’s performance was so subtle, so nuanced, so delightful, it could really go either way. But Ketch let her get close enough to get the gun. She gets his guard down. Makes him feel something.

And wasn’t Samantha Smith something, as well? Such desperation. I just wanted to scream for Mary.

5-Bringing Mary along to trap the boys in the bunker was more than back up. He literally told them exactly what was going to happen. Warned them time after time. And built a backdoor into the plan so she wouldn’t have to hurt them. A cunning “escape”.

Now this, this was what I thought about when I woke this morning. He locked them in the bunker with Toni. Changed the locks. Reversed the airflow. One would think this was pretty clearly trying to kill them. But. But. Since when have we seen him “try” to kill anything or anyone? He just does it. There’s a reason why he didn’t just do it this time. Be it plot device, or character arc, well that remains to be seen. Just know, if TPTB choose not to redeem him, they could have. The story put it all in there. To me, it would be a hell of a missed opportunity if they don’t.

(All photos and screenshots property of the CW)

pps, I just realized I have been sorely lacking on pics of Sammy. Will fix next week. Promise.

This week’s episode was helmed by two of my favorite people in the behind the scenes universe of Supernatural. One of my new favorite writers, Steve Yockey, handed his material to the ever awesome Richard Speight Jr. to direct. An excellent combination, I thoroughly enjoyed the episode from start to finish.

First of all, the “Then” segment? Season 1 episode 1 Dean? Such a baby, oh my goodness. He and I are the same age. Was I such a baby when the show was born?

To the episode. Since it was two episodes in one, I’d like to take a bit of a different approach. I’m thinking I’ll talk about each story individually, then we can wrap with how they dovetailed together in terms of theme.

Let’s begin with Mary and Ketch. Because I love Ketch. Did you know that yet? And yes, after this episode, I still love him. I think he’s beautifully ruthless. And he plays his cards so close to the vest. The exception, of course, was the scene in the corridor with Mary. When she rejected him, reminding him their tryst was a “one time thing”, he was hurt. It could not have been more clear as he verbally lashed her that he thought his charm and good looks would change her mind. If that’s not proof of emotions, I don’t know what is.

And if he’s human, as his feelings for Mary prove, he can be turned.

Now, as I’ve said before, I could be completely off base about this. I know for certain I’m injecting my own desires into this and am coloring my ideas with those feelings. The parallels I see between Ketch and Dean are so clear, I want Ketch to be saved just as Dean has been. But I will admit it would be almost just as powerful to see what would have happened to Dean had he not been redeemed. To watch someone stay on that black and white path and fall because of it.

But I do so love a good redemption arc. I enjoy exploring the dark pathways we can take and still come out into the light at the other end. It’s because of this I see the light in Ketch and want him to be saved.

We get a glimpse into his methods in the sterile BMoL torture room, where Ketch is in his element. Enjoying the bloodier things in life. Raise your hand if you were surprised he enjoys torture. No? Sorry, Mary, you were the only one not expecting it.

Sort of tells you what kind of lover he must be.

Ahem. Sorry. Anyway, his sense of the Men of Letters’ complete rightness, his total faith in their methods and mission statement, was fully exposed in this episode. He has not only the desire but the need to eliminate the “things that go bump in the night”, and he believes there is a stark divide between humans and monsters. We knew this. But when he fought with Mary and made the statement about the psychic girl, I finally considered what he would have done to Sam if he’d met him in season 4. I honestly don’t think I’d considered that before. He would have killed Sammy without hesitation, and as we know, that cannot stand. The line in the sand was never more clear. Ketch must either be turned, or be destroyed. We simply cannot have that sort of threat running around.

In the end, he defeated Mary in combat, though he got his ass firmly handed to him first. “Enochian brass knuckles only work on angels.” Yeah, they’re still brass knucks, dude. His use of the taser, while a bit dirty, should not have been unexpected. The thing I couldn’t believe was Mary’s total shock at finding the dossiers on each of them.

Side note, does this mean we’ll get to see Garth again sometime soon??? I hope, I hope, I hope. DJ Qualls is a joy.

Her boys knew what they were getting into the the BMoL. Well, her eldest did. I just can’t believe they haven’t found that damned mic yet.

So, speaking of the boys. Our raison d’etre. We catch up with them talking over what just happened with Castiel. Broke my heart to watch Dean say he didn’t recognize the man staring back at him. I love Cass and so do our boys, but that feathery asshole can make some pretty poor decisions. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt, again, in that he was being controlled by one of the more powerful beings we’ve ever encountered. But I don’t think Sam can fix the Colt. And if he can, it won’t be ready until season 13, at the least. 

But they get a call from Alicia and Max, the witch twins from Asa Fox. Now see, these two had potential as a spin-off. Believe me, I’ll be getting back to that. We’re going to go a little long because I have a rant about the spin-off situation. I hope you’ll stick with me.

At any rate, they go on a witch hunt. Enjoyably, they interact with Alicia, Max, and their mother. All the while Dean keeps trying to contact his own and they keep missing each other. Knowing that we saw the twins’ mother get murdered at the beginning of the episode, I spent a large portion of this wondering how they were going to react. What their goodbye scene was going to be like. It was nice to find out more about the twins, to know that Max was the witch and Alicia was basically just the hunter. They have a nice balance, and are certainly people the BMoL would not suffer to live.

The hunt goes as expected, as necessary, and they find their mother is not who she purports to be. The scene where Max finds his mother’s body, after having been so convinced Alicia was worried over nothing, was particularly touching. I love that the Winchesters didn’t really try to talk to him. They’ve been there. They know. They felt his pain as he did.

I found myself concerned with the twins’ survival throughout the episode, and when Alicia died I was not sad. I was pissed. This is not how this should have gone, guys. Yes yes of course Max ran the boys off, picked up the ring, and brought his sister back to “life”. Once again, for the second time this season, the Winchesters did something I consider completely out of character. They should have stayed to destroy the ring and help burn the bodies. I wanted to scream at them, if it was one of you dead up there, would you give a shit if you had to sell your soul to bring the other back to life? When the power sat right there on the floor? No. No you would not care.

Good lord, both of them have done that for the other. Leaving without cleaning up the mess was reckless and made no sense. The only thing it did do was leave the door open to see Max and Alicia again. And possibly kill them because now Max has crossed a line. On the rewatch, however, I discovered that Dean very well knew what was going to happen. And he allowed it anyway. So, I’ll give Steve a pass on that one.

Now these two storylines dovetailed quite nicely together. From the shifter Ketch and Mary were interrogating to Castiel running off with Luci’s babymamadrama, this episode was about family.

The BMoL are Ketch’s family, he’d do anything for them. Mary put herself in great peril to discover the secrets Ketch was trying to hide from her, so she could warn her boys. Max lost everything, including his soul, in order to maintain his own family. And the boys watched over all of it, having been in each and every one of these positions before. One of the very best things this season has given us is their bond. They are a united front like they haven’t been in so very long. They have each other’s backs, no matter what. It’s quite lovely.

Also, it’s bad news for anyone that comes between them and what they want.

Notes:

-So Miss Lady Bitch Pants Suit is back. Like she didn’t learn her lesson the first time around.

-Seriously, Mary kicked Ketch’s ass. Girl can punch.

-But it seems no one actually knows Mary’s deal. Hm.

-Seeing the Colt like that is so heartbreaking. I can’t even.

-Witches, man. Witches.

Alright, so here’s my P.S.

I don’t know if the CW still wants to do a spin-off of Supernatural. The first attempt failed something miserable. I have thoughts and theories as to why. Think about the successful spin-offs you know. One that comes to mind is Frasier. Look at that character. He was in several episodes of Cheers. I don’t even know how many per season. A healthy handful. We met his wife, we heard about his drama, he dated Diane. He was a part of the show. When he went off to get his own show, we followed, not just because we liked the character and not just because we liked Cheers and wanted more. We followed because we’d heard bits and pieces of his story and we wanted more. We gave a shit about him.

When they tried to spin Supernatural off the first time, they tried to give us a one off. Bones made this same mistake. Just one episode, introduce some random stranger and say “poof! You care about them because we said so!” No. It doesn’t work that way. With few exceptions, we have to meet a character at least twice before we have anything close to empathy for them. Before we want to hear more about their story. I feel like TPTB with Supernatural cannot see the spin-off material literally staring them in the face.

Let’s go back to season 3. I thought Agent Henrickson would have made a wonderful hunter. I would have enjoyed watching him learn the ropes and kick some ass. Nope. Killed him in the same episode where he found out the truth.

Fine. My next thought was Charlie. Her adventures in Oz would have been fantastic! The boys could come to Oz from time to time! She could fight all KINDS of supernatural foes in Oz, and make such a variety of allies it would be stupid. Nope! Killed her.

Side note: I cannot take credit for this idea but someone in one of my groups mentioned that Charlie could have sent a clockwork person back from Oz. Maybe it wasn’t the real Charlie that died?

Ok, so that’s two options down. The first time I saw Alicia and Max, I thought they’d make a great spin-off. I’d watch it, for sure. They have a rich backstory, a great dynamic, and no doubt a very interesting life. Well. We see what happened with that.

I’m sure you’ve all heard of the Wayward Daughters. I’d watch the hell out of that, too. Hire Kim and Briana and make this happen, people.

My point, and what makes me so angry I just wrote like six thousand words about it is that TPTB really don’t seem to be able to see the forest for the trees. They keep taking these golden spin-off opportunities and imploding the shit out of them. Just once, I’d like for them to see what they have.

(all pics and screenshots property of the CW)

This week, I find myself incredibly grateful Supernatural is available to watch in full, including the “Then” segment, on the CW app (or their website) because somehow my broadcast began after the first five minutes.

Though the first five minutes are almost always the same, they’re part of the whole formula that puts my brain in Supernatural mode. Without them, I end up feeling lost for a few minutes, especially when I know they’re missing. What they would have told me this week was that this episode was going to be, for the most part, a Monster of the Week. And the thing about monster of the week is that this show is expert at them. Like a well oiled machine. It makes me quite comfortable, knowing what to expect. Plenty of Sam and Dean, being Sam and Dean.

So, to the case. Sheriff Taxidermy was a great suspect for this case, considering the killer was wearing a stuffed goat head. But I also completely suspected stick-up-his-ass supervisor from the get-go. Especially once the boys interviewed him. He just seemed a little…you know. Off.

Side note: in episodes like this, I enjoy the banter between Sam and Dean in places like the diner. Think that’s my favorite part. I mean, do Jared and Jensen even need a script for this anymore?

Meanwhile, Ketch and some of his boys “broke into” the bunker. I mean, one, I wish the Winchesters would get a run of the mill lock on that place. Something, rather than leave it accessible to the BMoL. And any other Men of Letters in the world. I mean, the Winchesters sleep there. I don’t know if I’d be OK with it once I’d found out there were other Men of Letters, and any of them could get into your home. The Brits have already shown they can’t really be trusted. I mean, the first time one of them came into the bunker, she shot Sam and then had him tortured. Not someone you want with a key to your house. And to top it off, they appear to be thieves as well.

Side note 2: weekly shout-out to the set department. I’m pretty sure Bobby was a ghost at least twice on the Addams Family house set, and it’s hard to hide that staircase, but I appreciate the effort. I’m sure it takes a lot of imagination and hard work to make the same sets look different and I like to acknowledge how hard the set department must work. Seems like a huge undertaking. Your excellent work does not go unnoticed.

Backing the sheriff into a corner, Sam and Dean find out the truth about the killings. A pagan god. Yeah, pretty sure Dean was right in that the Colt can take care of this. I mean, we haven’t yet found out the fifth thing the Colt can’t kill (have we? Correct me if I’m wrong), but I doubt it’s some random pagan god. Not considering how many we’ve seen on this show.

As I said before, the formula makes me comfortable, and to my delight they continued to follow it. One of the boys, this time Dean, gets taken by the monster. The explanation of why the monster is getting fed adds up to Will Scarlet, the meat plant supervisor, and we find Dean in the freezer with two dead bodies and a pagan god.

And no Colt.

We know our Dean, though, and we know Sam will kill himself to save him, so the only worry we have is whether or not the good guy of the week will die to solve the case. He lives, Dean gets the crap beat out of him by a pagan god, and every time pagan gods get mentioned I think of the Christmas episode.

All in all, I found the episode itself enjoyable, comfortable, and what makes Supernatural what it is. The backbone of my favorite show. Its meat and potatoes. Our reminder that Jared and Jensen are the heart and soul of this show. They could easily be phoning in episodes like this by now. But never, not once, have I gotten that feeling from them. Not in twelve seasons. Though we know neither Winchester is about to die by the hand of some random pagan god on a Monster of the Week, they still put every bit of effort in helping us believe they are fighting for their lives. And I love them, for that and for so many other reasons.

Notes and theories:

-whoever’s decision it was to not show the god in full form was a brilliant, and I’m sure, money saving one. In horror you do not always need to see the monster. Sometimes, suspense is better.

-poor Dean didn’t get to use the Colt. Again. Well at least he got laid.

-I liked the set-up of the town’s history. You really got the sense of a larger story that will continue once the boys leave.

-The boys carving their initials into the table definitely achieved the desired effect. Got a little misty watching that brother moment.

-Alright, seriously. Was that a bug Ketch planted? The blond one already planted a bug in the wall speaker. What was up with the one Ketch slapped under the table? AKA the most obvious bug known to man? Even the one in the speaker was unrealistically large. This was is just impossible.

Naturally, I have theories. Was it really a bug? At first I worried maybe it was some sort of explosive device. Or some other sort of BMoL toy that will harm the Winchesters. But. The more I think about it, the more I think it’s some kind of clue for the Winchesters to find. I still think it’s probable that Ketch is going to switch sides. But seeing what he saw along with doing what he did when Mick tried it convinces me he’s going to be a hell of a lot more discreet about it. Some in the fandom have shown surprise Mick was killed so quickly. My answer to that is that he was to be an example. To Ketch, specifically. Don’t be an idiot about it, that’s the example. The old men and their dogs, they don’t care about individuals in the organization. They only, only, only care about their precious Code.

Not to mention Ketch stealing that photograph. What is clearly one of Dean’s favorite possessions. Not only is Dean sure to notice its absence, why does Ketch want it? Because it’s a picture of Mary? Because it stands for childhood innocence or a mother’s love? Maybe something Ketch never had? Or something he misses, perhaps.

Or something else entirely. For a moment, I’ll entertain that I’m giving him too much credit and he’s simply doing these things to follow orders. To find out and understand as much as possible about his adversary. By studying Sam and Dean’s relationships to others, he can understand where their weak points are and leverage them.

Time will tell. See you April 27th.

(All photos property of the CW)