S07.E18: Party On, Garth

[Demented Daisy]

Garth calls Sam and Dean for assistance in battling a ghost that you can only see when drunk.

 

 

This is supposed to be one of the funny episodes, right?

[DittyDotDot]

Yeah, I think funny is what they were going for, didn't hit that mark for me exactly. Garth was fine the first time, but each time he comes back gets worse and worse for me. Sorry Dj Quails, it's not you, it's the writing, IMO.

 

Even though I wasn't excited that Bobby was a ghost, I did like the end scene.

[DittyDotDot]

And, Garth is no longer enjoyable...this episode didn't hold up any better on re-watch and was extremely jarring after The Born Again Identity. I usually like a little comic relief with this show, but this one is more stupid-silly than funny-silly and it just doesn't sit well considering where we're at in the season. I can't believe this show fell into the one-drink-equals-instant-drunk trap--I don't care if it was a kid or Garth who never drinks, it still takes more than two seconds to feel the effects--and I seriously doubt that Dean can even get drunk anymore, but whatever, right?

[Goldmoon]

Garth would be a very hard character to balance correctly.  He must be smart and brave enough to stay alive, and silly enough to be funny.  The sock puppet was enjoyable.  The scene where the Japanese bus boy blessed the sword reminded me - in an unfortunate way - of the episodes of Psych where Shawn and Gus kept insisting that a Chinese American associate could do all kinds of things that they had seen in the movies.  I hope Dean was nicer about asking.

[Demented Daisy]

My husband loves this episode.  I think it must be a guy thing....

[Diane]

It must be, because it just grates on my last nerve.

[mertensia]

I find it enjoyable. Garth is just...awkward. He just is just as some people are and it's a nice bit of reality.

I liked the idea of the shoju and of course Sam would get yhe cab driver who never goes above 25 or 30.

[RulerofallIsurvey]

So, watched this last night, right after Born Again Identity (cause I couldn't go straight to bed with all that heavy stuff on my mind).

• Wow, I like Garth.  He's hilarious.  I know some spoilers (and am watching season 11 now) but someone please tell me he doesn't get killed off.  I'd like to see him again.  
• Sam and Dean drunk was hilarious.  And Dean actually did get drunk in the office, IMO.  What was he drinking?  Was that tequila?
• Still very high functioning drunks - I'm impressed.
• Good job goes to Sam for being able to accurately direct Dean toward the Shoju? Shojo?  Anyway, I was impressed that he could give 'clock' directions to Dean on which way to turn.  Then again, I have a problem telling time on analog clocks without numbers when sober.  I also get left and right confused.  ("Your other right" is something I hear often from friends.
• Good Job goes to Dean for being able to follow said instructions fast and accurately!  Since I have a tendency to get left and right confused, I would have been swinging the sword the wrong way.
• Good job goes to the kid for ducking just in time to avoid Dean swinging the sword. Nice reflexes!
• I hope they kept the sword.  Could come in handy.  They should use it again for something.

Aww...they both got hugs from Garth at the end.  Party On, Garth!

[DittyDotDot]

You know, I've really decided it's not Garth here, but the episode itself. Garth is like Charlie for me; he's fine in small doses. There are episodes when Garth and Charlie take over and the episodes feel more like self-indulgence for the writer's, but I don't think this is one of them. What I do like about Garth is he's the opposite of a hunter, yet he hunts. And, I like how Garth tries to make the most out of a crappy job. Kinda like Dean used to do back in the day. 

My entire problem with this episode is the contrivances with the drinking. Sam and Dean drinking in that office rather than taking the surveillance footage back to the hotel and everyone getting drunk two seconds after taking a drink just doesn't work for me.

I have to admit though, Sam trying to get the cab driver to step on it, cracks me the hell up. "I like to drive safe." HA!

On 5/11/2016 at 0:27 PM, RulerofallIsurvey said:

I hope they kept the sword.  Could come in handy.  They should use it again for something.

Didn't they already have the sword? I mean, there's one in the trunk, right?

[Katy M]

I recently just re-watched this episode, and I just love the fact that they leave the price tag on the sword.  It makes me wonder if they bought it, if they were planning on returning it after. 

On ‎8‎/‎20‎/‎2016 at 8:04 PM, DittyDotDot said:

My entire problem with this episode is the contrivances with the drinking. Sam and Dean drinking in that office rather than taking the surveillance footage back to the hotel and everyone getting drunk two seconds after taking a drink just doesn't work for me.

Yes, it takes longer than that to get drunk.  And, I realize that Tess was a little girl and had never drunk alcohol before, but she literally took one little sip of that drink.  One little sip of what looked to be a screwdriver should not have made her that tipsy.

[Hanahope]

So I hand waved the whole 'drunk' bit to just enough to be affected, which helped explain how the young girl could see the Shogo. 

I thought the episode was fine, Garth is fun, but it was clear the episode was to establish for sure that Bobby was still around.  Which yay, I like Bobby the friendly ghost, it'll be fun to see how he can help the boys out more. Dean better never lose that flask.

[bettername2come]

I legitimately thought the guy in the opening was Ansel Elgort for a second before realizing I recognized the guy from a Nickelodeon show. Sam driving is just weird at this point. I like Dean mocking the beer only to change his mind when he tries it. I like Garth's ingenuity with different identities. I don't like that Sam and Dean almost always choose FBI nowadays. Japanese chef I feel should've asked more questions about the back alley deals he making, but people have responded to way weirder requests from the Winchesters and Dean was polite and paying well for a few translations and readings. I like Garth. I rarely miss him when he's gone, but when he shows up I appreciate his kindness and weirdness and DJ Qualls' comedic timing. Hey, Sam went National Security instead of FBI when he hails the cab. That's slightly different. Sam does not need more head injuries! They dragged out the official Bobby ghost reveal longer than I thought. Poor Ghost!Bobby when Dean doesn't seem him after all those clues. To quote a Hunter from a completely different show, he's got two stupid boys. They embarrass him in front of his dead friends. 

[RulerofallIsurvey]

Rewatched this last night.  I remember liking Garth better the first time through this one.  He kind of grated and this time, I wondered the same as Bobby: How is that guy even still alive?  Still, he's kind of a sweet, goofy guy so I don't want him killed off or anything. 

Felt sorry for the children left behind of the family that lost two sons and the mother. 

I really, really liked the Japanese restaurant worker.  He was cool.  I supposed it helped that Dean paid him for his time, but I don't think he expected to get paid.  So in that respect, it was really nice of him to take some time and translate a weird, creepy box for them and then later do a strange shinto blessing over a samurai  sword with running bottled spring water for these crazies.  And it was really nice of Dean to compensate the guy for his time. 

I don't mind the drinking - except the little girl - but I'll hand wave that away that she took a bigger gulp than it seemed.  The scene in the office had some time lapse element to it (Dean went through the whole bottle of whatever he found that he liked) so that didn't bother me either.  I still rather like the scene.  I especially like the fight against the shojo and how it was choreographed with each fellow showing up one by one. 

On 8/20/2016 at 8:04 PM, DittyDotDot said:

Didn't they already have the sword? I mean, there's one in the trunk, right?

I don't remember if there is one in the trunk (I guess there is now!  Lol!)  Dean said he'd hit the pawn shops looking for a sword - so I interpreted that to mean they didn't already have a samurai sword. 

[Iju]

yall need to give garth some love! he's a great character :( 

BOBBY AS A GHOST...I NEED MY BOBBY. IDC HOW I GET HIM I WANT HIM.

[The Companion]

This one was silly and a bit ridiculous, but I liked it. It wasn't amazing, but I thought it was enjoyable. I like the idea of an entity you only see when drunk. The back alley translation deal was funny in its randomness. Something about the spring water to replace a spring got me.