Tired of the Reruns

This past Friday, I sat at my television at 8 p.m. anxiously awaiting a new episode of Supernatural. What I got was another rerun. I understand that television networks have various patterns and ideas on when to run new episodes of a television show, but giving us a rerun just a few episodes after another long stretch of reruns is just insulting.

The past several episodes have been really good and reminded me of the old days before Leviathan. There was a momentum building, and when I saw that Castiel was coming back in some form I was excited. Yes! We’re back to the good old days.

What happened? We got reruns. The momentum that had been building for the past several episodes is gone and instead we were left with a preview cliffhanger. Am I anxious to watch Supernatural again? Yes, but not nearly as much as I was.

If you want to give me reruns for a month or two in the middle of a season, go ahead. I don’t mind that. It gives people who didn’t get a chance to see some of the shows to get a recap. When you give me a slate of reruns, a couple of new episodes and then more reruns, it’s just insulting.

I really hope Castiel’s arrival or the Leviathan version of Castiel or whatever it is, provides some type of revelation for this Leviathan thing. We’ve been waiting too long and the network us just drawing out this pitiable season even longer.

I Miss Metallicar

One of the iconic images of Supernatural is the famous black Impala driving down the road as some classic rock song bellows in the background. That car has become synonymous with the show and this season we haven’t got to see it much.

Much of their traditional modus operandi was changed after the Leviathans made them public enemy number one. That car along with the rock star last names for their federal agents personas were replaced in order for them to keep a low profile.

Since then, they have been driving around in a junker and it’s really starting to annoy me. Dean lived for that car and he just gave it up. I know the creators are using this as plot devices along the lines of the Winchesters are completely on their own, but dudes, give us back the car. It’s getting closer to the end of the season and I have no idea what the creators hope to do about the Leviathan situation.

It seems to have become a non-issue, but they are going to have to address it sometime. When they do, I hope they have the sense to bring back the Metallicar. My guess is the brothers are going to have some epiphany that gives the confidence to once again become the people they once were. The guys that saved the world over and over again. The who the hell cares what they think brothers. When that happens, they are going to not give a crap about anything and take out the Metallicar as they go to face the bid bad together…again.

The Obligatory Call To Frank

I have really enjoyed the last couple of episodes of Supernatural because they complete got away from the Leviathan plot line that was supposed to be the big bad for this season. I have not been interested in this plot line at all and I think not many of the other fans are either.

 

The creators are seeing this and getting back to basics. The last two episodes have been really good. Friday's was all about a man who enjoyed being possessed by a demon and would go to any lengths to get it back. It was a creature of the week scenario, but it started with the Dean's obligatory call to Frank.

 

It's become a common practice to start the episode with a call to Frank to get an update to the Leviathan situation. The call always ends up the same way with no new information and the brothers can move on with the rest of the episode. It's a cheap way of telling the audience the Leviathan threat is still there, but we're going to focus on something else for now.

 

The first half of the season was very heavy on Leviathan, as they watched their ratings drop, the writer's had to put a spin on it and keep people interested. I suspect since the season is drawing to a close, the Leviathans will come back, but I don't expect it to be so doom and gloom. The one saving grace is that the next episode on March 9 features the return of Mischa Collins. The show's creators have said that he would return, but don't expect him to be the same ole Castiel. He's likely something or someone completely different.

Epic Supernatural Fail

A chance to integrate some real plot, deep arcs and—gasp!—a female character was lost just as it was being born.

I have brushed off attacks against Supernatural before, but never again. Will I still watch the show? Yeah. What can I say, I love those guys. But the writers sure are making them hard men to love. When we saw Dean, a once-professed family man, so callously kill a woman who was only working to save her child (something I sincerely doubt he’d do to, say, Lisa) at the beginning of the season, I was livid. Absolutely livid!

They have neglected to kill monsters before, such as the vampires who were vegetarians, and this mother really had no choice. She’d worked hard to not kill her whole life and was forced to do so. She wasn’t maliciously killing and she swore she’d never do it again—not to mention that she saved Sam’s life when he was a kid. But nope; our boys are cold, calculated killers.

This time, however, in episode 7.13, “The Slice Girls,” Sam actually killed Dean’s daughter—and Dean was perfectly okay with it (presumably). His daughter! I have to wonder if it would have been different if she’d been a guy… After all, the fan base is largely girls with crushes on Jared Padalecki and Jenson Ackles, so a girl wouldn’t have added to their fun.

But instead of having the boys be so callous and cruel and John Winchester-like, couldn’t they have taken a page from Bobby Singer’s book and showed some compassion? Hell, when Sam had no soul, or when he had demon blood, they didn’t kill him. They tried to help him, and you’d think that, Amazon or no, they’d have done the same for Dean’s own daughter.

Could you imagine what the show would have been like afterward? A third hunter, this time a girl? Maybe she’s on her own, maybe she tags along, maybe both; but I am SO ready for some female hunting on the show. Aside from an occasional, RARE episode, we haven’t really seen any since Ellen and Jo, which was years ago. Could you imagine the depth that would have come from such a curveball? The boys always say to get out of the business if you can, that a family can’t fit in the mix. But what if the family were half-monster—and simply unavoidable? What if an Amazon went rogue (after all, she had Dean’s blood) and became the first hunter of her kind, and maybe even got pregnant and had another daughter to form a hunting team? The possibilities here are really endless.

But no. We won’t see such a thing, since, like may bloggers have said (to my deaf ears), the show is decidedly misogynist, even perpetuates sexual violence tropes, and is obviously not going to feature a female lead, ever. I am fine with it being about the brothers primarily, but we’ve had plenty of people with long arcs or frequent appearances (though most have been killed, while the two youngest boys ironically stay alive) and it’s time for some good feminist monster butt-kicking.

I’m telling you, CW, I smell a spin-off here—or even the future of the series once the boys have had their run. Could she possibly be still alive?

Episode Recap: Plucky Pennywhistle's Magic Menagerie

It's been a pretty rough season and there haven't been many laughs, but Plucky Pennywhistles made me laugh out loud several times. It starts out with Sam being chased and attacked by killer clowns. The whole scene reminded me of the episode where Dean was running from the little puppy.

 

We then flash back a few days and the Winchesters are investigating the grisly death by Octopus of a local dad. We then see another dad impaled by a unicorn that has rainbows shooting out of its butt. The one thing that both victims have in common is there were at Plucky Pennywhistle's Magic Menagerie. The place was supposed to conjure images of Chuck E. Cheese and other children's party places.

 

It turns out the children are encouraged to draw their worst fears and someone is using those drawings and bringing them to life. As Sam interrogates and questions people, we discover he has a tremendous fear of clowns and it's a running gag throughout the whole episode.

 

I won't spoil the ending, but it was hilarious and a nice departure from the recent doom and gloom of other episodes. In past seasons, there were always a few episodes that the writer's decided to have a little fun with. No matter how bad things were getting, they always stopped to have a few laughs. This season has been one downer after the other, so it was nice to get back to basics even if it was only for one episode.

 

I hope this is a turning point and things start going their way. I am getting tired of the drama and look forward to a little more action...and the return of the Metallicar.

Episode Recap: The Slice Girls

Sam and Dean try to figure out what is killing men and cutting off their hands and feet while deciding if Bobby is staying around as a ghost or if its just their imagination. The Winchester brothers trade in their blue jeans for fed suit and jackets to investigate some gruesome killings.

 

While Sam checks out the lore on the computer, Dean visit the local watering hole where he meets a beautiful women and convinces where that he's a wealthy investment banker. The duo have a romp in the sack and the next day we find out not only is she pregnant with Dean's kid, but she's part of an ancient Amazon warrior race and her baby reaches adulthood in three days.

 

You can't help but notice that the strain of losing Bobby is really hitting the Winchesters. They not only lost a good friend, but their expert in all things occult. Sam gets an anthropology professor to help find out about the Amazons as Emma, Deans now teenage daughter, shows up outside his door. She says she wants to escape, but Dean realizes it's all a ruse and pulls a gun on her before she can strike, but can't pull the trigger. Sam shows up just in time and kills her.

 

Sam says it was no different that Dean killing his friend Amy, but as they drive away you can't help but feel bad for Dean who has just lost another family member. The question is still out there if Bobby is a ghost, but its looking more and more like he might be sticking around. I hope we find out soon.

The Fate of Castiel???

When Castiel first came on the scene as an all-too-serious angel with a conscience, we all loved his quirky reaction to the Winchesters. He fought against the forces of heaven and hell with Sam and Dean even though it meant falling from angelic grace.

He died two times and was brought back by the grace of God. Once the battle was over and he tried to rebuild the chaos in heaven, we started to notice a change. Perhaps he had lived among humans too long and had taken on a few of our lesser traits, but when he started making deals with Crowley, we knew it was the beginning of the end for our good friend.

When he took the souls of Purgatory including the Leviathans, Cas had a last second change of heart. His final acts were of redemption and sacrifice as he fought with all his might against the evil that had invaded him. When his body disintegrated in that lake and only his trench coat remained, we knew it was the end.

The creators of the show have openly said that Cas died and at the moment they weren't going to bring the angel back the same way as we had previously known him. Mischa Collins, who portrays Cas, is set to some back later this season, but likely as the vessel and not the angel. I honestly hope we have not seen the end of our angelic friend. I have missed his developing sense of humor this season and look forward to its return even if its only for an episode or two.

Supernatural Cleans Up At People's Choice Awards

While I am extremely disappointed that Friday night's episode of Supernatural was a repeat, it does afford me the opportunity to talk a little about the 2012 People's Choice Awards. I'm not one to follow most awards shows, because I often totally disagree with industry perspectives, but I do enjoy the People's Choice Awards. I like that the public gives their input. It's a jury of my entertainment-loving peers, which I respect.

I was pleased to see that Supernatural came out on top in two tough categories. With some seriously big contenders--Fringe, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries and The Walking Dead--Supernatural still won the Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy Show category. That says volumes about the quality of the show and loyalty of its fans. Those are some heavy hitters, and honestly, some of my other favorite, never-miss shows. Excluding The Vampire Diaries, of course. Gag.

And, as if that wasn't impressive enough, Sam and Dean pulled out the Favorite Network TV Drama category as well. Seriously. They dusted The Vampire Diaries, beat The Good Wife, schooled Grey's Anatomy and euthanized House. Yeah. That just happened.

For a show in its seventh season, winning both categories is really fantastic. It shows that even after the boys have died a time or two, conquered powerful demons, angels--including ol' Lucifer himself, and lost some major characters, they're still keeping their fans happy and voting. They were up against some stiff competition in both categories, but they still cleaned up at the People's Choice Awards.

Time After Time

I have to say that last night's episode, Time After Time, was a breath of fresh air. While it didn't go into any more about the Leviathan threat, other than a warning at the end of the episode, it did harken back to the more classic Supernatural of seasons past. Plus, the time travel episodes never fail to rock.

Throughout the show, Sam and Dean are continuing to figure out how to go on without Bobby having their backs. And while it's still weird to not have that consistent support, I was pleased that this was a Frank-free episode, because, let's face it, Frank is just no Bobby.

I'm wondering if my fears that Bobby will be replaced can rest in peace or if they're just looking for a good fit to see who makes hardcore Supernatural fans the happiest. Or, will the boys continue to meet up with and learn techniques from other past characters, so they can finally walk the cold and scary Supernatural world on their own?

This week, Sheriff Jodie Mills came back, not only to give them a lead, but work side by side with Sam to help find a solution to conquering the boys' creature of the week, Kronos, a time traveling, life force sucking, God—who accidentally warps Dean into 1944.

On Dean's end, his saving grace came in the form of Elliot Ness, who was also a hunter. The boys worked from both times to come up with a way to end old Zappy McTimerton and get Dean back in one piece.

Besides the very funny Untouchables references and overall Back to the Future flair, the episode was a great one and was just what the doctor ordered. At the risk of being stoned by other Supernatural fans who've been there from the beginning, I have to say I've been less than impressed with this season's flavor and am hoping that the remainder of season seven is as enjoyable as last night's episode.

Supernatural Is Back

Supernatural is back after the holiday break and the Winchester boys are living without the the great Bobby Singer. Bobby left a cryptic list of number on Sam's hand before kicking off and the boys are doing their best to understand what those numbers mean.

I won't get too into the plot in case you haven't seen it, but overall, I thought the episode was a good one and there were little signs that Bobby may not be gone. The episode did a great job of showing exactly how much the boys depended on Bobby's information.

Sam got into some serious trouble because he didn't go in there with all the facts. Dean knew the truth, but if Bobby had been there, Sam wouldn't have gone in unprepared. Both brothers ended up being saved by a 14-year-old. I am a little worried that the character of Frank, the not-quite-all-there conspiracy theorist, may be being set up as the next Bobby.

That would be a huge mistake because nobody can replace Bobby. Frank gave Dean some advice and was acting very Bobby-like through the whole episode. The good news is there was a subtle clue that Bobby may have stuck around. In the beginning of the episode, Dean was drinking a beer and suddenly all the liquid was gone, leaving Dean puzzled.

Was Dean on a binger and just not remember or is Bobby back from the grave and thirsty for a little Budweiser. I guess we'll have to wait until next week to find out.

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