“Supernatural” Episode 10.3 – “Soul Survivor;” written by Eugenie Ross-Leming and Brad Buckner; Directed by Jensen Ackles; Starring Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, Misha Collins, and Mark Sheppard.
I know I’m supposed to write reviews that keep you reading, but I’m going to go ahead and lay all my cards out right now: “Soul Survivors” = first great episode of the season. Like, Tony the Tiger guh-reat. It was one of those hours of television that held my attention so thoroughly that I neither snacked nor took many notes, which unfortunately does not bode well for my review but we’ll power through it.
We pick up with Sam and Dean, together again. Kind of. But also not really. Sam has Dean captive in the bunker, demon trapped and cuffed while he performs the ol’ demon cure. You remember, right? The blessed blood and the rites and the what not? That one. Cas and Hannah are still Midnight Running it, trying to get to Dean before Cas’s borrowed grace goes caput. Crowley is clearing the disloyal from Hell, Cole is nowhere to be found, and most of tonight’s action was mere incidental to the advancement of two major plot points. I normally try to be as spoiler-free as possible, but I’m afraid it’s unavoidable tonight.
The “Chug in my ‘Supernatural’ Drinking Game:”
- Sam’s flashback. Chug. I hope it’s limited to just the one. Way back when, an entire season was peppered with flashbacks to Sam’s ‘normal’ life, and ye tho’ it balanced out in the end, the flashbacks became laughable to the point where I would, aloud and alone, do the Wayne’s World “DIDDLY DOO, DIDDLY DOO” every time the screen went wobbly. The singular reveal of Sam’s compromise will, I think, remain much more powerful without revisits to his time between seasons. And whoo, was it a doozy. “Supernatural” has gone pretty dark, but the twisted Gift of the Magi deal-gone-wrong was particularly disturbing, probably since it came from Sam. Which is awesome.
The “Hannah. Just… Hannah:”
- I’m still not feeling it. I don’t yet see her point, and it’s still cycling between mooney eyes and calling to action. Hannah wants Cas to lead the strays back to Heaven. She also maybe wants to give him a note that says “do you like me” with they yay or nay check boxes. Quit it. Either set a romance on course or leave it alone – Ross and Rachel they ain’t. And as far as leading the troops back to Heaven, I need to see some seasonal relevance before I give any kind of crap about that story. The Earth-bound angels are like the giants in Skyrim; leave ’em alone, everyone has a good time. Mess with them, get clubbed so hard you wake up in another town.
- I’m gonna do that corporate HR thing, the one where you have to give a bunch of positives when presenting a negative. The above might have been long, but it’s centered around one major complaint, so here’s what I like about Hannah: Erica Carroll. The actress is playing the role with admirable subtlety and restraint. Her frustrations and embarrassments are handled with the same businesslike quiet. Not to mention the fact that production values require her to work in makeup that seriously evens out her striking beauty to make her into a soldier more focused on a cause than impressing us with aesthetics.
The “Jensen Ackles Appreciation Society” Moment:
- I’m not going to pretend to be an expert on television direction or tell you that I can spot all the nuances that delineate the differences in directors’ style. Hell, I’m not even going to tell you I look for it. My opinion stands that a television show, under most circumstances, shouldn’t have style differences within a season because it’s a cohesive narrative. That being said, Jensen Ackles made some cool choices and framed some interesting shots in his fourth directorial outing. The visuals especially stood out after Dean’s break-out, as he and Sam played cat and mouse through the labyrinth of the bunker. Dean’s dark figure framed in red-alert lighting was a beautiful shot, and the almost subtle tribute to “The Shining” was glorious. Ackles even threw in a brief Nicholson moment, and I’m unclear if it was an intentional impression, as Dean loves his pop culture, or if it was supposed to just be a gleeful nod to the stuff in Supernatural’s DNA. I like it either way.
- The final shot of a cured Dean in his room was beautifully lit; soft light fell on the actor’s face, while behind him the room was dark and muddled. The shot straight up looked like a Euclase painting, which is a high compliment by the way. Euclase is a wildly talented artist who may or may not be a sorceress. Just kidding, she’s amazing and you should leave her much praise.
- Crowley’s intervention and saving grace (HA) was cunning and wonderfully choreographed. His swift *fwip* of an angel blade left just enough time for viewers to gasp a “did he just…” before Adina’s Grace came spilling forth. I’m also loving the continuing ambiguity of the King of Hell – as evidenced by his court sessions, Crowley is not powerless in ridding himself of problematic demons. One wonders, Mark of Cain or not, could Crowley have disposed of Dean at any time? Yet he didn’t. He wanted to help get the band back together, if possible. It’s a wonderful thing, not knowing if Crowley has a little bit of love left, or if he has more diabolical proceedings in the works. That’s a great villain.
The Shot that Spawned a Thousand Fan Fics:
- Oh, you know exactly which shot I’m talking about.
- Castiel’s heroic entrance into the bunker mirrored the same device used for Crowley’s: The viewer could have had a moment of confusion or suspicion right before the hero’s reveal. Both scenes used this without pomp, which made for an effective and enjoyable tension.
The Quibble:
- It was extremely important to know about Sam’s flashback stunt, in which he tricked a schmuck into selling his soul, but I felt that Dean’s rant on “who’s the monster now” was just a bit heavy handed. We were shown, so we didn’t need to be told in multiple shots that each brother is a monster. “Supernatural” fans are very smart and analytic – I assure you we would have that conversation without it being shouted at us.
It was a minor beef with an otherwise exemplary episode. Dean’s restored, rest assured Baby will be tidied up, Cas is at least temporarily back in the Heavenly saddle, and Crowley is back at the throne. Next week’s Hallowe’en episode looks to be a one off Monster of the Week with a sprinkling of that Supernatural humor and a guest spot from one of my favorite werewolves. I used to hate Tuesdays. They were just Monday Junior, but now it’s pretty much my favorite day of the week.