When academics go to Hollywood!
We were extremely excited to see Kevin mentioned on the S10 sneak peek promo with a big question mark, and to hear Bob Singer tease that maybe he’d be back – because we love both the character and the talented actor who plays him. We sat down to chat with Osric Chau over dinner at VanCon, and invited photographer Karen Cooke to join us and snap some photos (Karen’s beautiful photos are featured in Fan Phenomena: Supernatural too).
Season 9 has had me all over the map, as you’ve seen from my weekly episode reviews here – some things I’ve loved, some things I’ve hated – so I didn’t know what to expect of the season finale. I couldn’t help remembering some finale episodes in the past, especially the ones that left me gutted and unable to think about anything else for days (weeks?) afterwards. All Hell Breaks Loose….No Rest For The Wicked….Swan Song….I still can’t watch those episodes without reaching for the tissues. Last season’s finale was also powerful, both for Sam and Dean’s moment in the church and for the gorgeous shot of falling angels that closed out the season. Would Season 9 end with a bang like these, or would the strange pacing and sometimes disconnected storylines diminish its impact?
By the time yesterday rolled around, I ended up pretty excited – and more than a little nervous. Much of what amped up my anticipation was how excited Jared, Jensen and Misha seemed to be about the finale. At DCCon, when I asked Jensen if he was happy about where Dean’s storyline ended up this season, he said something so provocative (“Oh wow. They went there”) that I ended up eagerly awaiting the finale too. Then at the Upfronts, the boys said over and over that they were shocked by the ending, in a good way. So by 9 pm, I was so anxious I couldn’t even sit still to watch the damn show!
The pressure is on for the last few episodes of Supernatural Season 9, which means every moment has to count. That’s probably an unfair expectation, but watching “King of the Damned” this week, I found myself resenting the clock ticking down WAY too quickly.
I also found myself setting my expectations rather high, which is dangerous when you’re a passionate fan, but I couldn’t help it. I may have been muttering, “you only have a few more episodes to play alot out, Show, don’t mess it up!” Maybe.
The writers of this episode haven’t always been my favorite in the past, but some of their recent episodes have made me more hopeful, so I went into this episode with some cautious optimism. Did it pan out? Yes and no.
This week’s episode wasn’t a ‘normal’ Supernatural episode, which means this won’t be a ‘normal’ episode review. Everyone knew that ‘Bloodlines’ was a backdoor pilot for a new CW show as well as an episode of Supernatural, so my expectations were different than usual. Which was a very good thing. Otherwise, I might have been jumping up and down screaming at my television WHEN THE HELL ARE WE GETTING BACK TO THE MARK OF CAIN STORYLINE??? Or I might have been repeatedly tweeting #NeedsMoreSam&Dean. I didn’t expect much progression in the main story arcs since this was essentially a standalone episode in order to introduce new characters and setting – but I have to admit, it’s difficult having a standalone this late in the season, when all I can think about is OMG we only have three more episodes!!!
Supernatural is a versatile Show. It’s one of the things I love most about it; it’s part of what makes watching the Show live every week kind of like riding a rollercoaster in the dark. You can’t see the track, so you have no idea which way it’s going to toss you next. It’s both jarring and exhilarating, but it’s rarely boring. And yes, I love rollercoasters.
This week is the Popular Culture Conference in Chicago, which means I get to hang out with other academically inclined folks and have deep discussions about some of my favorite things – including fandom, the reciprocal relationship between fans and the things we love, and of course, Supernatural. That doesn’t leave me much time to do a review of this week’s episode (so this will be a briefer review than usual). But Robbie Thompson sure as hell gave me a lot to talk about!
I love meta episodes. Any time a character has mentioned “subtext” in the first minute of the Show (while breaking the fourth wall and staring into the camera, no less), I’m a happy camper. My daughter Emily, however, is generally not a meta fan. She likes Supernatural, and she loves to take it apart and critique it, but she usually prefers her characters not to talk back and the fourth wall to stay firmly in place. Imagine my surprise when we watched Show together last night and she announced, “I liked it!”
Supernatural is on a roll. Once again, I was swept along by this week’s episode, the hour going by way too quickly – and that’s exactly how I like it. Adam Glass’ script and Misha Collins’ directing were a heady combination, with the rest of the stellar cast and crew all bringing their A game for the first-time director.
When we spoke to Misha at VegasCon, the first thing we asked him about directing was, “So, do you have the bug now?”
I went into this episode cautiously, because these two writers’ efforts don’t always work well for me. But I try to always be open minded about this Show, and it paid off – because this time Eugenie Ross-Leming and Brad Buckner penned a kickass episode that I LOVED! The dialogue, the plot, the characters, the progression, all worked for me. And Serge Ladouceur’s directing was spot on. What a pleasure to sit down and write a review full of squee (though also full of plenty of trepidation – this is Supernatural, after all!)
I’ve had so many different thoughts about ‘Thinman’ that my head is still spinning – once again, I woke up this morning already writing this review in my head, which I suppose isn’t a bad thing (unless of course I was supposed to do something else this morning….cough…work…cough…) There was alot I loved about this episode. In fact, Jenny Klein should expect a tackle hug next time I see her for the Weechesters flashback scene alone (fair warning, Jenny).
I love that we saw some progress with the Mark of Cain story arc, which is a road I’m anticipating going down even as I’m biting my nails about the dark places Show intends to take us. I’ve been theorizing about the Mark and what its impact on Dean has been already, and am intrigued by the possibility that part of what it does is pull the wearer away from those he loves, isolating him from family and turning him away from love and affection and his own humanity, so he can kill without remorse or regret. It’s a punishment more than a gift, influencing those he loves most to turn away from him. And that’s terrifying. One of my favorite themes of the Show is Dean’s understanding of why he and Sam are better together, especially after he glimpses a future without Sam in ‘The End’: “We keep each other human.” It’s true. Sam has repeatedly been the one thing that keeps Dean from going darkside, from becoming the vicious killer that he secretly believes he is. If the Mark can separate Dean from Sam, how close to that internal self image will Dean become?
I’m assuming Eric Charmelo and Nicole Snyder intended that title to refer both to the physical transformations of the MotW’s victims and to the emotional purge of Sam’s speech to Dean in those all-important last five minutes of SPN. Nice touch, writers.
Once again, the episode was split into two parts – and once again, I have more to say about the second. The first was a rather tragic story of a monster-trying-to-be-normal, a classic Supernatural theme. I was a bit worried that there would be too much insensitivity and ‘fat jokes’ for me to just sit back and enjoy, but I think the script did a decent job of avoiding that, so I was able to enjoy the ride. The special effects were disgusting (and awesome), the guest actors were memorable, and despite the chill between the brothers, the humorous scenes still worked. Dean with powdered sugar all over his face (and Sam’s expression haha), the awkward conversation about sex and ‘extra padding’, even some of their snarks at each other made me laugh. There was suspense, some scary scenes, some gorgeous cinematography with the boys and their flashlights. The brothers worked together as seamlessly as ever – there’s nothing wrong with their working relationship at least. We got boys in suits, and in dress shirts and ties lounging around motel rooms, which is always a big plus.