“Supernatural,” Episode 10.15 – “The Things They Carried.” Starring Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, and guest starring Travis Aaron Wade; Written by Jenny Klein; Directed by John Badham.
I feel like, in recent seasons, “Supernatural” has not returned from Hellatus with a bang, but with more of a hiss. Or a creepy whisper. I don’t mention this as a complaint. It’s just an observation. When the show goes on a break, it usually leaves us with dropped jaws and screams about feels, and when it returns it’s all “yeah, all right, here’s a cool story” in like a bored Helena Bonham Carter voice. It’s an interesting pacing choice, and while I’m definitely still not making an official complaint, it’s one I don’t fully understand.
Tonight’s return was a mostly stand-alone story, with a brand new monster-of-the-week. Well, kinda. Khan worms first appeared in episode 6.16, and while they weren’t particularly memorable beasties for me, the events of that episode certainly were. The worms that infested this episode’s victims were variants on the original mind control slugs, and this time around they only make you really thirsty. And also homicidal. Which, you know, whatever… Ten years in, you have to come up with some new legends and they’re not always going to be the next Pyramid Head, right?
So, no, they were not terrifying. They were gross, but not wonderfully scary. What made these particular nasties interesting was their origin. This variant of worm came over from the Middle East, snuggled up in the bellies of American soldiers. At present in the “Supernatural” universe, only one company seems to have been infected and the threat was, spoiler alert, eradicated by the brothers Winchester. They received a little assist this time around though, because apparently the degree of separation in the “Supernatural” ‘verse is approximately 3.25. Dean’s old nemesis Cole just happened to be buddies with one of the infected, and with his help they’re able to track their prey, asses the problem, and deliver a solution.
The episode title comes from a collection of short stories written by Vietnam veteran Tim O’Brien. The metaphor was not light, and it certainly returned full circle as the veterans’ plight echoed that of Sam and Dean: Will I go darkside? Can I come back from this? Will I have to kill my brother, or watch someone else do it? I’m specifically referring to the veteran characters in the episode, but certainly some of those sentiments could be said for any soldier who has experienced the utter atrocity of war. It’s not a thing that leaves you as it found you, and constantly trying to reconcile a new reality is more difficult for some. There is a part of me that believes the show was delivering an actual, real, message. Some might argue that paying tribute to the bravery and realities of soldiers via B-Movie monsters and brotherly angst is disrespectful, but those two elements are the heart of the show and to flip that to the side would be far more hokey and transparent.
It was a good episode. I wasn’t on the edge of my seat, but I also hadn’t made any guesses about the outcome. In fact, I didn’t even want to. I found myself lost in the story, which is really the highest compliment I can offer any narrative.
But, I did have one pretty serious issue. Our first semi-introduction to the worms came in the opening scene, and that’s where I have to frown a little.
I’m going to be honest here, and probably receive the entirety of internet hellfire for it, but I’m going to say it anyway: I don’t see misogyny in the show as others do. I just don’t. I mean, I see characters being asses to women frequently, but that’s because, at varying degrees of intensity and duration, these characters are in fact assholes. I don’t think that when a character speaks aggressively to a woman we are supposed to rationalize, forgive, or – god forbid – respect that character for doing it. When I see misogyny, I assess it, and most times I assign it to character defect. I have zero interest in following the continued tales of a flawless character. But I would also like to add that if you do take issue with the show’s treatment of female characters, I absolutely respect your opinion. I would never in a million years argue that your interpretation of a fictional world is wrong, because by definition it cannot be. Analytical thought reigns supreme, yo.
That being said: What the shit, opening scene? The rest of the episode firmly establishes that these worms build up to an intense, unquenchable thirst that drives its victim to instinctual, animal relief. You know, like drinking bath water and killin’ a dude. So why in the name of all that is cohesive narrative did our first known worm victim prepare his beverage like a ritual sacrifice? The show opened with a woman hanging by her feet, dangling over a bucket. Enter worm-dude the first, whereupon he slits her throat and allows the blood to drain into said bucket. The scene, as a carefully calculated slaughter, was counter-intuitive to the entire mythology that was set forth in the rest of the episode. I would absolutely still have a problem with it if the victim had been male. But the fact that it was a woman was just a little extra kick in the pants.
I’ll see you next week, when Dean may or may not hit on a nun who may or may not be evil. Hilarity will no doubt ensue!