Just about every week I think “wow, this has probably been the best episode of the season.” Every week. Supernatural Season Gr8 is on a steady incline, IMDB isn’t showing any breaks between the next five episodes, and I am confident the upward momentum will continue.
In the meantime, oh lawd the angst! The generational angst! On Wednesday’s episode, Sam and Dean met their paternal grandfather and learned the answer to a family mystery that could have changed the lives of three generations of Winchesters. They also battled a Knight of Hell in the form of an Evil Joan Holloway clone, and found what at least appears to be the supernatural equivalent of the Rosetta Stone.
The most interesting thing about this episode was the brothers’ reactions and defenses of their father. Sam, who usually scoffs at his father’s reputation, remained pensive and quiet, while Dean continued to sing John’s accolades. Sam, always so eager to write off his father’s parental skills, was defensive and sympathetic to Henry (which he could never afford his own father), while Dean was quick to fly off the handle because Henry was never there for John. It was a very interesting paradox and shed even more light on the brothers and their definitions of responsibility and loyalty. For Sam, love and respect are keys, while for Dean duty is always first on the list of responsibilities and priorities. What’s interesting this season though, is watching how those standards that have lasted for the seven and a half years we’ve shared with these men are slowly shifting their own motives and actions into the exact opposite of what we’ve come to expect – Dean showing mercy to a monster, Sam returning to the life of his own free will.
One of my favorite things about this show is how often they get the “supernatural” stuff correct. And if it’s not true to eons of legends, it’s very clearly based on just that, and the fact that it’s always so well researched and as factual as something like that can be lends credence to the writers and their evident love of what they do. “Abaddon,” the Demon Knight this week, is mostly mentioned as a location in religious texts. But in Revelations, he is a “King” of Hell (whoops, OK, they already used that title in their own mythology) or a fallen star who kept a key to a bottomless pit. Which is pretty awesome, since Sam and Dean need to throw a key into a bottomless pit. So that’s pretty fun.
I kept waiting for Cas to show up and really blow Henry Winchester’s mind, but I’m actually glad he didn’t make an appearance this episode. This was completely focused on the boys, on the family, and left a lot of room to grow in all the talk of the Winchester Legacy. This season had begun to feel like an ending to me, but with this episode I am hopeful that we will get to spend one more year with the greatest hunters that have ever lived.
So. Back to the big mystery. The box. Is it the Angel Stone? Is it just a translation key? And – most importantly – will the Winchesters throw it away for good? My guess is probably not – there are far too many potential plot expositions that can come from its existence. I’m betting that first the brothers will fight, Tolkien style, on whether to use or destroy its power, and then a race (hopefully BJ & The Bear style) will occur between Heaven, Hell, and Hunters.
Honestly, my only complaint this episode applies to far too many things on TV these days. Like, when did it become OK to throw up on TV? I am simply not down with this.