S08.E20: Pac-Man Fever

[Demented Daisy]

While searching for Kevin, again, Charlie joins up with Sam and Dean as they track down a creature that's been liquefying it's victims. Plus, a new side of Charlie is revealed.

 

 

Dean in uniform.  That is all.

 

Oh, did something else happen in this episode?  Funny.  How did I miss that?

[DittyDotDot]

Dean was also quite the hugger in this episode, if I remember right. I think I like this one overall, but I remember being annoyed about the djinn off-shoot aspect. I think they could have come up with a better monster rather than screwing with an already established monster's lore some more, but whatever, that seems to be par for the course anymore. And, Sam was basically useless, if I remember correctly, but he was supposed to being altered at the molecular level or some such bullshit right? I'm really having a hard time remembering this one clearly, this may have been when I basically started to check out when watching the show. S8 was really wearing thin on my by this time.

[Amerilla]

I have to say, there might have been a bit of dust floating around my living room that caused some eye-watering during a couple of the scenes in this one - especially when Charlie was confronted with having to let go of her mom and Dean wordlessly embracing Sam at the end. The story itself wasn't much, but I thought Jensen and Felicia both brought it 110% in the emotion department, and Sam's suffering was particularly attractive.  

[mertensia]

Poor Dean; every hug goodbye with Charlie he looks sadder and sadder. He doesn't want to lose anyone else to hunting.

[rue721]

Charlie's video game nightmare was wonderful -- both Felicia Day and Jensen looked so fantastic in those outfits/scenes, anything could have been going on in that setting, plot-wise, and I would have been happy.

 

I remember being annoyed about the djinn off-shoot aspect. I think they could have come up with a better monster rather than screwing with an already established monster's lore some more, but whatever, that seems to be par for the course anymore.

 

That the villain was some random other variety of djinn didn't really bother me, but it did seem strange that after all the hand-wringing over Charlie losing her mom, they killed the djinn kid's mom right in front of him, Sam lightly mocked him about it, and then killed him, too. I mean, I can get behind them killing the djinns, but awkward context for the ruthless killing of mother/child (villains), right?

 

I have to say, there might have been a bit of dust floating around my living room that caused some eye-watering during a couple of the scenes in this one - especially when Charlie was confronted with having to let go of her mom and Dean wordlessly embracing Sam at the end. The story itself wasn't much, but I thought Jensen and Felicia both brought it 110% in the emotion department, and Sam's suffering was particularly attractive.  

 

IA. By the end of the episode, thuogh, I was also getting kind of frustrated with the laser focus on Dean and Charlie, since the actual victims in both their situations *weren't* Dean and Charlie, they were Sam and Charlie's parents/mom. Not that Dean and Charlie couldn't also be sad, and I liked their storyline(s), but the episode as a whole felt so lopsided to me because meanwhile, there was no counterpart arc/SL for Sam (or for Charlie's mom, who didn't *have* to be in a coma and a non-character, js). Maybe they were trying to give Sam a storyline/C-plot with the "can't hit the target at the shooting range" thing, but that was just about him convincing Dean to stop coddling him, so the choice was still Dean's and was just part of Dean's "letting go" storyline, imo. I think it would have worked better if there had been more of an arc that was about being on the other side of "letting go," like if there had been a more solid C-plot for Sam (or maybe, somehow, for Charlie's mom at least. Personally, I would have structured it as:  Charlie -- A-plot, Sam -- B-plot, Dean -- C-plot/same arc as Charlie, Charlie's Mom -- D-plot/same arc as Sam). 

 

I will say for this episode that it struck a reasonably good balance between violent/grotesque and childish/goofy, which the show seemed like it was struggling with *so much* this whole season. Though I think it still veered a bit too much into schlock, but maybe that's just because I feel like Charlie's got this "Fairy Princess!" force-field around her that warps the show wherever she comes into contact with it. It's not that Charlie is unlikable imo, it's just that the show and the other characters feel "off" around her.

[Iguana]

I really can't dislike this episode, if only because anytime I started getting pissed about the stupidity at it, Jensen as Dean would wonder across my screen in the army uniform and my brain would stop working and all I could see and think about was how gorgeous he was. So I guess this episode gets a pass on the shallow train and being all about the pretty.

[DittyDotDot]

Wow, this one is far better than I remember. It's not without some issues, but overall it really comes together fairly well and ties in nicely with the season. Of course, it's always a delight to my eyes when Dean gets to play dress-up, but there needs to be more to it than that for me to actually call it a win.

 

I actually like Charlie in small doses, but I also think Robbie Thompson might be too infatuated with his creation that sometimes I feel like she overtakes an episode. Here, though, I think she fits really nicely into Sam and Dean's world. I also really like the idea that Dean is showing Charlie the ropes. Jensen and Charlie have great chemistry throughout this episode and their final scene is a real heart strings moment.

 

I love Sam's reaction to Dean's hug at the end.

[Goldmoon]

Jensen as Dean would wonder across my screen in the army uniform and my brain would stop working and all I could see and think about was how gorgeous he was.

By the time he was in the dream, I had forgotten about the first minute of the episode.  Charlie is just too much Mary Sue for me, though she was further toned down here from her last appearance, which is much appreciated.  I was going to say FD can't act at all, and I cringed at most of her trying to skulk and bluff, etc., but she brought it with the emotion over Charlie's mom.  Not to be all sour grapes, but I really didn't think we needed that last bit of her reading to her mom.  We already knew what she was going to do by her conversation with Dean.  We didn't need to see the coda.  I don't like the last scene being anyone other than Sam and Dean, although I will give Cas and Crowley a pass on that.  Also, woman of letters?  Inviting her to help herself to their stash?  *shudders*  Kevin, I wish they would be as thoughtful of you.

[DittyDotDot]

Also, woman of letters?  Inviting her to help herself to their stash?  *shudders*  Kevin, I wish they would be as thoughtful of you.

 

Oh, that burns, let me tell ya. I just don't get their attitude towards Kevin, like at all. Just seems like they didn't really know what to do with Kevin unless he was in an episode. I'm not sure why it was so difficult for them, seems like there was lots of good stuff to mine there.

[GirlyGeek]

I really liked this episode on re watch, and just realized I forgot to drop in here and comment.
It may be slightly unpopular, but I like Charlie and FD a lot.  And I really, really, like Charlie and Dean's interactions.  They've got the little sister vibe going and, really, she's the only other person on the planet that Dean allows to hug him (other than Sam, of course).  Yes, Garth hugs Dean, but Dean looks like he wants to stab him whenever he does it, lol.
So, I always look forward to Dean and Charlie episodes.  

[RulerofallIsurvey]

This was kinda a fun episode.  Charlie didn't seem to bug as much as last time she was on.  Okay, who am I kidding?  There were things that still really bugged me.  Who's Mary Sue is she anyway?  Come on - she hacked NORAD as a teenager?  Sure she did.  And she has multiple aliases with passports, all set up?   Sure, she does.  And she's an excellent shot?  Sure, she is.  Then she goes on a ride along with Dean.  Were they trying to have their own Penelope from Criminal Minds?  Thank guck he cut the song off, cause while it is actually one of my favorites, the whole charlie changing outfits was getting really old really fast.  

Bright side: Dean looked scrumptious during that part.  

Oh, and I do love a man in uniform, so Thank You for that opening sequence with Dean.

Sam was being a real ass about being sick.  I wanted to pop through the tv and sit on his chest and force feed him that stew.  Not eating for 3 days is just really stupid.  Even if you're not particularly hungry, any intelligent person must realize that your body needs fuel.  Even if it's not a virus or bacteria based, his body still needs energy in order to complete the third trial.  Duh.  

And I want to try Dean's homemade stew.  It looked pretty good.  Was it this ep or last where Dean cooked Kevin eggs?  

I didn't like the 'let me take care of you' line from Dean.  Sam is a big boy.  (snort).  He's an adult.  He's - allegedly - pretty smart.  See above: he should know to take care of himself.  And it's not Dean's job.

The boys are happy that Charlie can only track them to within a 20 mile radius via their cell phones?  I'd be worried that she could track me at all?  Why is their GPS (obviously) turned on when they don't need it to be?  A 20 mile radius ain't really much.  Demons could easily narrow it down.  I'd maybe have been happy with a 100 mile radius. 

Speaking of GPS - Charlie, the Paranoid Super Hacker Extraordinaire - doesn't notice that Dean changed the settings on her phone?  Of course she doesn't. 

Kind of nice to see they haven't completely forgotten everything from over the years, like the African Dream root.

Saving Charlie by having her let go of her fear of losing her mother was kind of anti-climatic though.  Another metaphor for the guys to have to be able to let each other go?  (See me now banging my head on my desk.)

Okay, bright side again: Sick, wobbly Sam is cute.  When he's not being a complete ass about being sick.  I'll leave it at that.

[DittyDotDot]

5 minutes ago, RulerofallIsurvey said:

This was kinda a fun episode.  Charlie didn't seem to bug as much as last time she was on.  Okay, who am I kidding?  There were things that still really bugged me.  Who's Mary Sue is she anyway?  

::snort:: Apparently Robbie Thompson's. I have such a conflict with Thompson's episodes. I think he's a talented guy, but his episodes come off as self indulgent to me. Charlie episodes are especially so, in my mind.

[RulerofallIsurvey]

32 minutes ago, DittyDotDot said:

::snort:: Apparently Robbie Thompson's. I have such a conflict with Thompson's episodes. I think he's a talented guy, but his episodes come off as self indulgent to me. Charlie episodes are especially so, in my mind.

Grr..just remembered one more thing that really bugged me about Charlie.  After she proved herself sooo proficient at the firing range, she holds the gun barrel facing out to the side.  Not down.  Straight out to the side. I was cringing.  Anyone I know who knows anything about guns knows you hold a loaded gun barrel pointed down.  Now, I realize that there was (likely) no one in the firing range, off to the side, but it's still just basic gun safety that a Super Duper Ace Shooter Spy Wannabee should know.  (Rolling my eyes)

And I wanted to see Dean do the airplane thing.  (I used to get the train in the tunnel.)

[Dobian]

I really liked this episode and I really like Charlie.  It was very sweet when she hugged Dean after coming out of her dream.  And the scene with her reading The Hobbit to her mom at the end was pretty tear-jerking.  I hope they bring her back a lot more, and they better not ever kill her!

Edited August 3, 2016 by Dobian

[bettername2come]

Jensen looks good in the 40s Army threads. He would've made a good Cap. Poor disheveled Sam. I love that scene with him missing the beer bottle. I like Dean making plans to return to the LARPing. Jumping onto the case after reading the Supernatural books and taking one of the boy's place. Charlie is veering a little into Becky territory. I do like her "montage!" How is this the first time a form has stopped them? "Don't quote me to me." Heh, Sam stole Charlie's car. I relate to Charlie's power suit dilemma. "I hate that thing. I want one." I can buy Charlie not thinking they did anything to her phone. She didn't have a reason to assume they would. "Manly man friend." I like them bringing back the African dream root. And Sam having no qualms about punching Dean unconscious. I like  Dean kissing Charlie. Nice to see Winchesters hugging without dying. I like Charlie, don't love her and think her backstory's a little cliche, but a lot of the tragic backstories for the recurring characters are. The Jinn plot is the thing I care about least in this one. It's just there. 

[Wayward Son]

This episode was a lot better overall than I remembered! I still find Dean’s little “let go” speech absolutely nauseating and anger inducing. Hypocrisy is not your colour Dean. However, it was overall a well paced episode, it gave Charlie a compelling backstory and had some scenes I enjoyed like the shopping montage and the final scene with Charlie and her mum was genuinely moving. I think this episode was Felicia’s best work on this show. 

Edited October 24, 2017 by Wayward Son

[Iju]

the best thing out of this episode was sam's reaction on dean's hug. he looked so small and kiddish when dean walked off (but i guess that was the point of the shot).

still not sure what to feel about charlie. i don't hate her but i'm not really liking her. her character is too near the annoying meter to me. can't lie though, she does help the bros out.

"Charlie, why don't you go talk to the witnesses?" 
"But I don't want to miss the "bro-ment!"

it's the same as when becky was giddy when "they spoke at the same time!" thing. nice to see other people like seeing their relationship other than the viewers.

[The Companion]

On 8/29/2014 at 12:48 PM, Demented Daisy said:

 

Dean in uniform.  That is all.

 

Oh, did something else happen in this episode?  Funny.  How did I miss that?

Yes. Hot damn did he rock it. FD didn't look too bad herself. 

Unsurprisingly, I loved this one. It's in a really weird place in the season, but tossing that aside, it was really good. 

The emotional scenes really got to me. The line about just wanting to tell her mom she loves her. 😭 

It was a good mix of silly, gory and emotional. 

Oh, and I love that Dean was all in on LARPing again.