I totally had that song on 45, by the way.
“Pac-Man Fever” was an amazing episode. It was a one-off that still tied into the season arc, and when Supernatural does that well it’s always a good time. Well, “good” in the Supernatural way, not in the normal people way. In the angsty, bittersweet, OH MY CREYS AND FEELS kind of way.
Last night, fan favorite Charlie Bradbury happens to be in Kansas when she stumbles upon a possible hunt and looks up the brothers. They team up for an adventure that includes quips, gore, video games, and Djinn all the while touching on Sam’s ailing health and Dean’s brotherly concern. Charlie gets captured by the Big Bad and Dean has to injest some African Dream Root to join her in her dream, and in the process learns a lot about why Charlie is Charlie. Let’s discuss, shall we?
The ‘meh.”
- Jennifer is the Djinn? Jen- Djinn? AHAHAHA really? Not awesome.
- There was a brief return to the Dean “I’m Dean and I know what’s best all the time for everyone” of old, but it didn’t last. This does, however, seem to be a recurring device in the season, and one could argue that it’s hard for old habits to die hard and Dean shouldn’t just change overnight, but one could also argue that writers can’t change overnight but maybe they should. I’m undecided, myself, on this point, and don’t really care for now. As long as there continues to be growth I don’t mind a little relapse into bossy-Dean every once in a while.
- The teaser’s flash forward. In hindsight it seemed a bit unnecessary.
The “yay!”
- The beer toss. Supernatural got yet another guffaw out of me.
- OK I tried to avoid talking about it in the review but can we just talk about Dean’s
sexifiedretro hair because that should totally be a thing from now on.
The “amazeballs.”
- Charlie Bradbury. What an amazing character. What an amazing idea. She quips without ever sounding like a Diablo Cody character. She has the best tee shirts. She can hack. Charlie is us. Charlie is the perfect representation of the female fanbase of this show. We hold conversations solely with our favorite movie quotes. We want to be effortlessly pretty (which is not to say we want to conform – in fact just the opposite. We just want to feel confident and comfortable in our own skins, and Charlie seems great at that). We want to hunt with Sam and Dean freakin’ Winchester. Charlie is all these things, and I cannot commend the person that made the decision for her to not be a love interest with enough honor. Thank you for this strong, non-secondary female. We love her!
- Agents Hicks and Ripley. Yisss.
- I literally squeed “ohmahgod a shopping montage in Supernatural!!” Only seconds later Charlie sulked “but… montage….” Need I say it again? Charlie Bradbury is one of us. And her aliases are amazing, too.
I have to end with a personal note on this one. Charlie stated in the episode that her mother “made me who I am.” If I loved Charlie before last night, I loved her a thousand times more by the end of the episode. My mother read to me every night too, and as a result I could read by the time I was three. I devoured books, and I too credit my mother for making me who I am in a very specific way. But like Charlie, I had to say goodbye to my mother as well, and by the end of the episode I was bawling so hard it scared my pets. But it wasn’t a bad cry at all – even thought Charlie isn’t real, it still felt comforting to see someone deal with and be strong in my own situation.
There are only three episodes left in Season Gr8. I hate that feeling. Wanting to see all three episodes NOW NOW NOW and anticipating the goosebumps that will arrive with “Carry On My Wayward Son” coupled with the dread of waiting months and months for the next season. Bah, it’s always worth it.
Oh, and PS – Charlie was wearing a Lying Cat tee shirt. If you don’t know who Lying Cat is, go to your LCS right now and pick up a Saga trade. You won’t regret it.