“Supernatural” Episode 10.20 ‘Angel Heart.” Starring Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, and Misha Collins. Written by Robbie Thompson; Directed by Steve Boyum.
Once every so often during AHS season, I get really stoked when I know an episode written by Tim Minear is coming up. I love Tim Minear. But even our favorites are capable of the rare dude. See also: Jane Espenson (I loves me some Jane Espenson, and boy do I want to love OUaT – but WOW I do not get that show). So I see “written by Robbie Thompson” on my screen during the first act of “Supernatural,” and I just go ahead and move up to the edge of my seat and smile a lot. And sometimes even our favorites fall a little flat. And before you stop reading here I want to clarify that I don’t think anyone is infallible and I still frickin’ love Robbie Thompson. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
This episode was all about Castiel and his redemption quest. He had a mighty need to save Jimmy Novak’s daughter from a course of self-destruction. The topic was approached earlier in the season, and we learned that Claire Novak lived a life of bad choices after Cas took the wheels on Novak’s body and her mom split as well. Claire is now on a mission to find her mother so she can tell her off for that whole abandonment thing. And Cas decides to help. Which doesn’t sound as ludicrous when you realize that Amelia Novak only left to find Castiel and try to get her husband back. Castiel enlists the help of the Winchesters because they know all about the rebellion phase, and away we go.
There were definitely some cool elements at play here. The addition of the Gregori into the Supernatural Bigbadopedia was cool – I love it when they go deep catalog with the Christian lore because some of that Old Testament stuff is way scarier than any classic or modern horror trope. And – small warning for a giant spoiler – the happy ending after a tragic fourth act was a rare moment of genuine warmth in a show that loves to destroy our feels. Also it’s nice to hear Misha Collins not using his Batman voice.
I had two major issues with the episode. Well, one is a quibble, I suppose. But the other is still leaving me confused even today.
Issue the first: This might have been a great episode (barring issue two, see below) had it aired earlier in the season. Maybe a lot closer to the original Claire story. Put to put this at the very end of a season that, for me, already had some weird pacing problems was just a mood killer. There’s only three episodes left, we have our course firmly set, and plop here’s some filler. So that’s my quibble.
Issue the second, bordering on deal-breaker: I really don’t think that the best way to show Dean’s continuing and escalating descent into madness and violence via the Mark of Cain was to show him bonding with a 17 year old runaway on the Putt Putt course. This could definitely relate back to issue the first – if the episode came much earlier in the season there wouldn’t have been so much stress on the impending doom. But it just had me dumbfounded. And Cas’s assertion that Dean “lost it” during an interrogation was pretty overstated. I don’t think any of us would have batted an eye if Dean smacked a hostile witness around without the Mark. Dean’s a butthole. This was nothing new.
Also? It totally just occurred to me that a ’67 Impala is like the least acceptable car for sneaking that ever was. Bublubububububub… that’s the sound of the exhaust on a ’67 Impala and you ain’t sneaking up on shit with that going on.
Anyway. This was a pretty disappointing episode. But “Supernatural” does have a way of bringing things full circle and making me eat my complaints with a sheepish grin. I definitely hope that’s what’s going on here. There’s an unprecedented 11th season on the horizon, and we always root for our favorites to stay on point.