Previously - My iTunes account said it downloaded both Like a Virgin and Unforgiven. I was excited, but they are both Like a Virgin. I guess that missing week is still screwing with iTunes. Thanks CW. Anyway, on Supernatural, the Winchesters killed things, Sam was back for a year, Dean was ticked, Dean spent the year with Lisa and Ben, it ended, Metallicar was beautiful untarped, Sam was RoboSam without a soul, Crowley wanted Alphas but couldn't deliver Sam's soul, the Alphas wanted an army for their Mommy, "freaks" and monsters go to Purgatory, Cas torched Crowley, Sam's soul was flayed, Dean wanted the soul in, Sam did not, Death was awesome, Dean failed at being Death, Sam almost killed Bobby to keep himself soul-free, Dean stopped him, Death re-souled Sam and built a wall in his mind. Don't scratch, Sammy. Yikes, that was a lot, all accompanied to Aerosmith's Back in the Saddle Again. I like Aerosmith. I like Supernatural's classic rock. Yet, this song and this previously didn't mesh for me. I miss AC/DC.
We open to a frightened young woman (future victim) in a two-seater plane with her boyfriend, flying in a huge storm. Idiots. Brainchild Boyfriend comforts Victim by saying more people die in showers. Great! Is that supposed to help? Shut up! Victim isn't impressed and if they actually made it through, I'd suggest dumping the idiot who didn't think it would storm. Don't you check weather data? Victim sees something's shadow in the window, but Brainchild mocks her. He tells her to relax by visualizing a beach but the shadow thing takes him right through the window. He is now renamed Dinner. Victim screams as the plane heads down.
Back at Bobby's, the camera zooms in on Dean's tapping fingers. It's a little odd. Cas diagnoses Sam as fully souled but doesn't know about the future. Dean gets snide for no reason and Cas suggests Sam will not wake up, causing Dean to snit some more. Listen Snippy, he said he didn't know, you forced him to answer, so don't get catty when you don’t like it. Cas reminds Dean that he was against re-souling Sam anyway. Dean: "What was I supposed to do? Let T-1000 walk around. Hope he doesn't open fire." RoboSam has been upgraded to Terminator. Cas pointedly says Sam's soul felt like "it had been skinned alive. If you wanted to kill your brother, you should have done it outright." He vanishes. I know people are upset about Cas this episode, but I understand his point. Dean asked for Cas' opinion and he said souling Sam could kill him or leave him in such agony Sam would beg to be dead. To Cas, Dean's decision is akin to leaving someone on life support even though they are in tremendous pain and have said they don't want it. Cas sees killing Sam as more merciful. If this thing had gone south, it might have been. Of course, I also see Dean's side. He wants his brother back and he will risk anything (even Sam himself) to get him. It's the Winchester way. Sadly, it also gets them in trouble every time. A future reckoning will come from this. [Edited to add, or Cas is just trying to hide his nefarious deeds. Yep, going with that one now.]
Dean glances worriedly at Sam before heading up to commiserate with Bobby. Bobby says not to lose hope. Dean notices a news article and wants to help with the job to escape the waiting. Bobby exposits Brainchild was flambéed 17 miles away and Victim is missing. They are interrupted by a soft spoken "Dean." I loved you RoboSam, but I missed that sympathetic voice. Sam's upright and the brother hug many were waiting for occurs complete with sappy background music. Even this cold heart was touched. This is no skimpy hug either. It's a full 10 second, 4-armed job with cameras on both brothers and complete with emotions dancing across their faces. Even the biggest anti-season 6 fan had to be happy. Next, Sam hugs Bobby but the feeling is not mutual. Sam is confused because the last thing he remembers is Bobby and Cas dying and him jumping into the pit. Dean asks if Sam's okay (good times) and Sam's starving (good sign). Sam eats sandwiches more gracefully than Dean, Bobby passive aggressives, and Dean tells Sam 1.5 years have passed. He comes clean about Death but conveniently neglects RoboSam. This never ends well. Dean and Bobby have an entire conversation with their eyes and Bobby silently agrees to keep mum.
That doesn't keep Bobby from sharing his concerns with Dean in the garage. He's having trouble reconciling this Sam with the one who tried to kill him 10 days earlier. Again, some people were ticked but I'd say that's rational. When a family member attempts to murder you it's hard to get over it. Dean says it wasn't Sam, but Bobby counters it was part Sam. In all honesty, Sam has gone to extremes to meet his goals before RoboSam came into play. Bobby has a point, but this Sam doesn't remember and needs some slack. Bobby agrees that they cannot tell Sam anything because it could crack the wall. Dean: "As far as I'm concerned, it's a gift horse and I'm not looking for teeth. I'm sending Death a damn fruit basket." Ha! Love that line! Bobby reminds Dean that Sam isn't dumb. He should hear it from them. Dean is adamant but he needs to listen to Bobby. Bobby: "..you better prep for the B side because when Sam realizes we're shining him, it ain't going to be cute." Truer words Bobby. The Winchesters need to stop lying to each other for their own good. Nothing good comes from it, only mistrust and angst, addiction and doubt.
Cut to Bobby and Dean heading out to hunt. Sam interrupts and is enthusiastic about joining them. Dean wants him to watch cable for a few days. Um, you said daytime TV sucks, Dean. Sam counters that Dean didn't rest after his hell sojourn and there's not much Dean can say. Bobby however lames excuses that he needs to man the phones for Rufus. I'm giving Bobby the benefit of the doubt here. He must want Sam to know something's wrong. Either that or Bobby is now brain dead because that was the lousiest excuse I've heard on this show. Sam's not fooled either and asks Dean, "What was that?" Dean: "One part age, 3 parts liquor." Bwah! Heading to Oregon, Sam exposits two other missing girls. It reminds me of season 1. I've missed that. However, he soon turns it into a discussion of Lisa and Ben, which reminds me of season 1. I've missed that too. Dean admits that he lived with Lisa and Ben for a year but it didn't work out. He ends the discussion by turning up the radio, which is playing Jethro Tull's A New Day Yesterday. It reminds me….you get it. This whole scene had me smiling and heading to iTunes for the music.
At Victim's house, her sister refuses to talk but Sam convinces her with his soft, persuasive voice. It surprises me how much I missed that voice. I didn't think Sam's return would affect me like it did. I'm a big fan of RoboSam, but it's nice to have real Sam back. Plus, it's shorter to type. Dean loves it even more than me, judging by his self-satisfied smile. Regrettably, all warm fuzzies leave with Victim's super sweet pink room. It's like cotton candy threw up. Victim's sister paints her as a wet dish rag with no personality and a need to please - if you read between the lines. She's Bella. She's also a virgin according to her diary. Sam balks at Dean stealing the diary and Dean loves it. But I'm confused since they haven't had a problem with taking information before - not even Sam. I get they want to show how un-RoboSam he is, but it kick starts the Things That Confuse Me List. Sam originally thinks it's about religion - girls "baking cookies for the Lord." Dean wonders if that's code, but it was awkward for me. Just like Dean's "I'm going to give Stan my most precious gift." Sam: "Well, that sounded really creepy coming from your mouth." Both statements did. Dean's "I think I delivered it" made me laugh though. Sam asks what likes virgins; Dean prefers more experienced women. Old Dean is back tonight too, folks, complete with eyebrow smirk.
Cut to St. Mary's Center, where 3 Catholic school girls complete with uniforms and white knee highs are walking. They split up and I wonder why their parents aren't there since 2 girls have already gone missing. One hears noises and gets attacked. Bye bye school girl. Or not. They interview Melissa in the hospital where she has a shiny new claw mark on her back. Sammy super empathizes and Dean plays forceful cop. She was attacked by a giant bat that stole her promise ring. Dean questions Melissa's purity. "Look no one is judging anybody here. Believe me. But should you really be wearing that ring?" Apparently Matt Barne doesn't count and I wonder if Melissa shares Dean's re-hymenated theory. I also wonder how dragons know who's pure. Outside, the brothers theorize about "Batman" and Dean adds de-hymenated to the dictionary. Sam: "So what kind of thing likes virgins and gold?" Dean: "P. Diddy." Sam rolls his eyes but I thought it was fantastic. Bwah.
In the pine encrusted hotel room (remember the fabulous ones in season 1), Google frustrates Sam. Try recapping White Collar. That's a whole other Google realm. He keeps getting World of Warcraft sites, which confuses Dean and me. Not much MMORPG-ing on the road. Sam skeptically suggests dragons but Dean says it's been a strange year. I guess if you have fairies and trolls, you can have dragons too. Welcome to SPN. Dean calls Bobby who disses the idea. Who knew Nessie was real? Bobby's making stew and is flabbergasted when Dean asks him to make a few calls. "To who? Hogwarts?" Bwah! Bobby asks about "Memento" (lots of references tonight) and wonders if Dean slipped up yet. Dean hangs up visibly shaken. Sam asks; Dean denies. He's not stupid Dean.
They research with Dean on the laptop and Sam with John's journal. Dean promises the Neverending Story isn't in there. Sam asks about skin walkers because they seem familiar to him; the dirt on the wall starts crumbling. However, Bobby rings with a name - Dr. Visyak, medieval history professor at San Francisco University. Poor Bobby's stew has gone cold. The man never gets a break. Dean wants to see the professor and leaves Sam to find the dragon's location. What? Aren't they in Portland, OR? San Fran is 600+ miles away - not a short jaunt. Why not bring Sam too if Dean is concerned about the wall? Lap tops are portable. Confused list appears again. Before leaving Dean suggests dragons live in Middle Earth; Sam says caves. Dean: "You're such a nerd." Hmmm? Wouldn't the Lord of the Rings reference suggest it's the other way around, Dean? Sam's confused too.
Since the girls are in a cage, I bet they're both wrong. Victim tries to wrench open the cage but a human with huge bat wings carries in a girl. So what? Dragons are shape shifters? Don't get me wrong; I'm glad there's no CGI-cheesy dragon here, but it's disappointing. Are there any monsters that don't take human form? Dragon Man breaks the girl's wrist and mumbles something. Ok, so dragons are shape shifters with special glowing hands. Good to know.
Dean arrives at Dr. Visyak's house, but only gets a response when he mentions Bobby. Apparently there's history between them. "Actually just kick him in the jewels. That's more poetic." Yikes! I sense it ended badly, but I want more back story here. This woman is awesome. Dr. Visyak claims dragons don't exist anymore. "Banner crop of crazy all around these days, Doc." She handles it well and exposits that the only way to kill a dragon is with a sword forged in dragon's blood, which she happens to have in the basement. How convenient! "Finding it took 2 decades, countless hours, and some really bad sex with an eastern Europe ambassador." Ha! She definitely needs to come back. She calls it the sword of Brunswick, but I can't find any reference to it. There is a story of Siegfried, a knight of the Middle Ages who slew a dragon with the help of a dwarf and bathed in its blood to become invincible. A bloody Achilles story. It's a fascinating tale of medieval murder, but I'm not sure it's the right one.
Anyway, the sword is encased in stone and Dr. Visyak says they need "a brave knight who is willing to step up and kill the beast." Sir Dean of Impala volunteers. As epic hero music swells, our knight pulls and yanks and strains and falls down. The music screeches to a stop. He tries again, music surging, while the Doc smirks. No avail. "SOB, that's really on there." I guffawed my way through the scene because of the music. Fabulous job sound people! Dean's new idea is to blow it up. Visyak balks but they need the sword to kill the beast. Unfortunately, the sword goes boom just like the rock. Dean's face is priceless as he sees the broken blade. "You've got insurance for this right?" Bwah! In other news, the professor did not remove the rest of her collection beforehand. Are you kidding me? Nice to know those medieval pictures mean so much.
Meanwhile, Sam has no luck either. Time to call Bobby, who suggests caves are too literal. Sam guesses sewers and Bobby goes to hang up. Sam stops him by asking about what happened last year. Bobby: "It had its moments. No more than usual. Got nothing to do with you Sam. How could it?" Bobby hangs up and Sam tries Castiel, who didn't get the no-tell memo. So after a year and a half of ignoring the Winchesters, Cas is back on beck and call duty. What's up with that? Did plot contrivance sneak on the set again? Cas goes to hug Sam - and again huh? - but Sam dodges him. Since when are angels into bodily contact? Did kissing Meg throw out a circuit? Sam hems and haws around the subject while Cas unsuspectingly gives him the no-soul info. Jared does a great job reacting to the news.
Back at the Pine Tree Inn, Sam is underwhelmed by the sword, but he has a plan. "Awesome. Who doesn’t love sewers?" Sam wants to confront Dean with his new knowledge but heads out anyway. Hours later, they still comb the sewers. Sam finds a pile of gold and an altar with an odd-looking book. Sam: "A little arts and crafty for a giant bat, right?" They hear girl's voices but as they attempt to open the cage, Dragon Man comes back. Dean stabs him and Dragon Man wants to know where Dean got the sword. "Comic Con" Best line of the night! Dragon Man goes glowy and his friend attacks Sam. The sword slips and although Dean is too short to reach it, Sam's gargantuan arms have little problem. Sam slices his guy and stabs Dean's. Cool death. However, Dragon Man vanishes.
Back at Bobby's, Dean revels in the dragon's gold hoard. Can't blame him; they rarely have money. Sam gets confession-eyed and apologizes to Dean. The jig is up. Dean is upset, explaining Death's Great Wall of Sam. Love that. Dean: "Trust me when I say that the things you don't know could kill you. That's not a joke." Sam: "Right, but I have to set things right." Dean says it wasn't Sam and there's truth in that. Sam counterpoints that he may have been Mickeyed but he still holds some responsibility for his actions. There's truth in that too. Supernatural always walks the fine line of morality and this one's hard to judge. I lean more towards not Sam's fault so move on, but that may be the "no emo please" side of me. Bottom line - Sam wants to know what he did so he can fix it. Dean says it's too dangerous, but Bobby interrupts with news of the altar book. Yuck! It's made of human skin and describes Purgatory. "It's like the backside of your worst nightmares. It's all blood and bone and darkness, filled with the bodies and souls of all things hungry, sharp, and nasty." Well fabulous! Purgatory is hell. Didn't we already go through this? Dean's not thrilled either as he reaches for the alcohol. Liver, Dean, liver. The book is an instruction manual to open a door to Purgatory. "I know a demon who would have loved to have known about that." Ah Crowley, I miss you. Unfortunately, Dragon Man tore the recipe out of the book, which was pretty smart of him. It tells them how to let out a monster called Mother of All. I guess we found Alpha Mommy.
Meanwhile, Dragon Man and buddy are at a cave. They pull a young, presumably pure, teen out of a van and march her in. Dragon Man reads Old Latin and fire erupts below. A little dragon blood and one virgin sacrifice completes the ritual. The girl burns on the way down and then rises out of the fire. The special effects were decent and Mother has a great evil stare. She just shouldn't open her mouth.
All in all, a great start back from hiatus. Sam is Sam, there's a new big bad with lots of potential, and the humor was out in force. So were the pop references. In many ways, it felt like a season 1 monster-of-the-week episode with season 4 mythology and you can't go wrong with that. Plus, we have brothers..together..hunting evil with Bobby helping them. That's classic Supernatural and there's no better TV than that.
Next week - Sam faces the consequences of his RoboSam days. Get out the hankies folks, because this one's destined to be a tearjerker. Well, except for the RoboSam parts.
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