S10.E13: Halt And Catch Fire

[Tara Ariano]

Sam and Dean try to stop a ghost who is taking revenge against a group of college students by killing people through various electronic devices.

[Tippi Blevins]

So when Andrew poofed away, did he go to Hell? Did he just cease to be? Heaven's still not open for business to the general public, right?

 

What kind of metabolism does Dean have that he can eat like that, spend most of his time driving and reading, but have that physique?

Edited February 11, 2015 by Tippi Blevins

[SueB]

 

Heaven's still not open for business to the general public, right?

I think they did fix it (in offscreenville...see my @SnazzyO text to Clarrissa). 

 

In 10.3 Cas said:

 

CASTIEL:

Hey, maybe you should um … take some time before you get back to work. Allow yourself to heal. It’s, uh … I don’t know. The timing might be right. Heaven and Hell—they seem reasonably back in order. It’s quiet out there.

emphasis mine (transcript courtesy of SuperWiki).

[Frost]

I enjoyed the 'monster of the week' aspect of this episode.  It seems like forever since we've had a good vengeful ghost plot.  I wasn't too fond of the heavy anvils and labored parallels though.  How on earth does Dean deciding that helping people/hunting things is how he wants to spend his time because it's his "peace" equate to Andrew giving up killing people in a vengeful fury?  I've never had the impression that the Mark is something that Dean can just give up so how are their situations similar?  It's too bad they felt they had to shoe horn in the parallelism because overall this was a fun and scary episode.

[Tippi Blevins]

I wondered because the angels were still using that backdoor at the playground, like Heaven wasn't just generally open again. 

[AwesomO4000]

I enjoyed the 'monster of the week' aspect of this episode.  It seems like forever since we've had a good vengeful ghost plot.  I wasn't too fond of the heavy anvils and labored parallels though.  How on earth does Dean deciding that helping people/hunting things is how he wants to spend his time because it's his "peace" equate to Andrew giving up killing people in a vengeful fury?  I've never had the impression that the Mark is something that Dean can just give up so how are their situations similar?  It's too bad they felt they had to shoe horn in the parallelism because overall this was a fun and scary episode.

 

I agree. I tried to ignore the anvils, because I was enjoying the episode. I also liked that they stuck with the main case story without flipping erraticly back and forth, so it kind of felt like an old-school episode.

 

But then again, they hooked me with the Avett Brothers' song. That's actually one of my favorites of theirs and I didn't really expect to hear that kind of music on the show. I wasn't so familiar with the other songs in the episode, but it seems like they didn't skimp on the music budget for this one, and I was appreciative.

 

::Grumble, grumble:: Damn typos.

Edited February 11, 2015 by AwesomO4000

[SueB]

 

I wondered because the angels were still using that backdoor at the playground, like Heaven wasn't just generally open again.

I kinda held out hope that they'd address it at least.  The other option, however, was that Kevin was still haunting Mrs Tran and Reapers were going insane. So.... offscreenville is at least a less horrible thought.

 

 

What kind of metabolism does Dean have that he can eat like that, spend most of his time driving and reading, but have that physique?

You must have missed that moment in "All Hell Breaks Loose, Pt 2" when Dean said "and I get to stay fit and handsome as long as I'm living" and the Crossroads Demon went in for a second kiss (because why wouldn't you?).  /personalheadcanon

 

Episode thoughts:

I want to rewatch again.  I liked Dean-the-therapist and Sam getting to save the day this time with quick thinking.  Brainsmush head was suitably gross but I didn't care for I'msleepingwiththeTAblonde or Imanassholefratboy(s).  

Edited February 11, 2015 by SueB

[catrox14]

Sigh. I really did not care for this episode. Yes it had an old skool s1 vibe, but jeez WTF was up with Dean.  Look I get they wanted Dean back to eating his crappy food, and drinking but seriously Dean was never gluttonous about food. Yes drinking too much yes... but not food.   Bleh ...that was weird and not even funny.

 

I hope that Dean's gluttony was just a rebound from trying to go cold turkey and next week he'll just be back to eating burgers and fries and steaks and drinking beer and whiskey in his normal manner.

 

Dumb!Dean resurfaced again with him seemingly not understand jackshit about snapchat and what not, and yet he was just using a dating app? Sigh...

 

Dear show, I do not need s1 Dean Winchester back. I need a reasonable and organic progression of Dean's journey and that doesn't mean taking him back to acting like he's 26 again. 

 

I'm totally confused about Dean and the MoC now.

 

Does  Dean think he can control the Mark? Or he just has to move on and not give into the bloodlust?  Are they saying that Dean just wasn't strong enough to fight it before or he just didn't believe hard enough? 

 

It was a lovely speech by Jensen and he sold that shit but what the heck did it even mean? Dean said I'm giving up but I"m fighting till I can't fight anymore? Okay that's nothing new.  Did I miss something where Dean had given up?  

 

Please let it be demon!Dean trying to worm his way back out by convincing Moc!Dean that he can control it. Because otherwise...WTF is going on? 

 

On the plus side....Sam was very Sam here... in a good way.

Edited February 11, 2015 by catrox14

[cassandle]

First of all, I love Old Man Dean and his unfamiliarity and annoyance with modern technology and fads.  And Like others have said it was nice to see an good old haunting again.

 

I am confused though by Sam being annoyed at Dean wanting to fight the Mark on his own.  Isn't that what Sam wanted him to do a couple episodes ago?  Am I misremembering that?  Or have the writers forgotten what they wrote?

[TrininisaScorp]

Man, the "Then" part felt like it was 10 mins long.  I don't know that we needed that much backstory for this MoW.   These type of "angry ghosts" stories are always fun, if filler, so I was fine.

 

They got a LOL from me from "Gen X?" said with disdain and the retort back from Sam and scornful look from Dean.  I also enjoyed Dean's glee about the cafe at the college.  That's so in character and, yet also everyone's reaction the first time (and only the first time) in the dining hall at school.

[Wynne88]

I absolutely loved the truck going off the bridge and straight into this season's title card.  That was gorgeous editing.

 

I liked Dean's enjoyment of the cafeteria food, but I do wish they hadn't emphasized his lousy table manners.  They frankly aren't believable unless he's trying to gross Sam out - which he isn't going to do IMO in front of a bunch of college girls.  Dean is perfectly capable of behaving in a socially acceptable manner in the normal course of things and it just feels like the writers are going for a cheap laugh.

[catrox14]

 

I absolutely loved the truck going off the bridge and straight into this season's title card.  That was gorgeous editing.

 

That was pretty badass.  I LOVE this season's title card and I wouldn't mind if they made that a permanent title card. To me it's the best one. 

[supposebly]

These writers have no clue about their own show. Whoever did this should be fired.

 

So, Dean is a complete Luddite now? And has no clue about deleting files? The guy who learned from Frank?

 

And he's never eaten that much. That was so overdone, I got embarrassed watching having Jensen Ackles having to play that. So, I'm blaming the director too.

 

And that final speech was straight out of a Hallmark movie. A bad one. And one I had heard in some way before but this time, I have no idea what it meant. Neither Dean nor Sam really made sense in that scene.

 

Sam was fine until that last car scene. Oddly enough. The case was not bad either although the solution was rather lame and Hallmarkish too.

[catrox14]

First of all, I love Old Man Dean and his unfamiliarity and annoyance with modern technology and fads.  And Like others have said it was nice to see an good old haunting again.

 

 

Respectfully, I totally disagree with the notion that Dean is an OLD MAN that hates newfangled technology because it's been proven completely false in the show time and time again as false.  

 

It's insulting to this viewer that they keep doing this to Dean for laughs. 

 

I mentioned upthread that I didn't want the show to regress to s1 Dean...but I'm rethinking that.  Because s1 Dean was a fucking genius even if he was a horndog.  He invented a fucking EMF detector out of a walkman. He studied lore and he uses the computer all the time.  He knows what dating and language apps are and how to put them on his phone.  He knows about the internet. 

 

As, supposeably said, Dean is NOT a Luddite.

 

Stop doing this show. It's not funny.

[Demented Daisy]

So Dean's going to fight the Mark and "go down swinging", huh?  Instead of trying to find a cure for the Mark?

 

Have TPTB forgotten that if Dean dies with the Mark, he becomes a demon?  Am I supposed to believe that Dean is going to control the Mark as long as he's alive, but when he dies, he's going to become a demon again?  And he's okay with that?

 

Screw you, show.

 

Based on the teaser for next week, I assume he changes his mind, but what a case of freaking whiplash.  He wants to get rid of the Mark, he's okay with trying to control it.  Then they find Cain, so... ?

[Xenith22]

I enjoyed the 'monster of the week' aspect of this episode.  It seems like forever since we've had a good vengeful ghost plot.  I wasn't too fond of the heavy anvils and labored parallels though.  How on earth does Dean deciding that helping people/hunting things is how he wants to spend his time because it's his "peace" equate to Andrew giving up killing people in a vengeful fury?  I've never had the impression that the Mark is something that Dean can just give up so how are their situations similar?  It's too bad they felt they had to shoe horn in the parallelism because overall this was a fun and scary episode.

It was not the mark that Dean is giving up, it is spending the days/hours looking for a way to remove the mark that he is saying he is giving up.  I believe the parallel here was about obsession.  Andrew with revenge, and Dean with trying to remove the mark.   Though yeah...there was no logical reason for Dean to give up completely on the cause, instead of just still looking but not isolating himself in his room for weeks at a time?  Pfffft.

Edited February 11, 2015 by Xenith22

[Demented Daisy]

 

So ummm...Dean smashed his own phone and the sorority girls phones.  (Unnecessarily I might add...you can turn the Wifi function off pretty easily.)  The only phone they had was a random one that they just discovered in the couch cushion.  In otherwords there is NO POSSIBLE WAY THAT SAM HAD THAT PHONE NUMBER!  Holy production screw ups...

 

Didn't Dean text him from that phone?  I assumed Sam's phone grabbed the number when Dean texted.

 

Edited because Dean texted, not called.

Edited February 11, 2015 by Demented Daisy

[ItsABear]

It's insulting to this viewer that they keep doing this to Dean for laughs. 

 

 

As, supposeably said, Dean is NOT a Luddite.

 

Stop doing this show. It's not funny.

 

This annoyed me while I was watching the show.  While Dean might not be up to date on the most current social network apps, he knows about the internet, and has used various apps in the past.  

 

Count me in on the disbelief at Dean having such poor table manners.  While Dean has been shown to have an appetite in the past, and occasionally eating in a disgusting manner, it was usually with the intent to either gross Sam out, or because there was only Sam around. 

 

I was also a bit creeped out by Dean ogling the college girls.  He's what? 36 now?  It seemed creepy to me.  Maybe guys have a different view.  If it were a 36 year old woman ogling them, it would definitely be creepy.

I was glad while Cas was mentioned a couple times, he was off screen, as was Crowley and Rowena.  I'd be perfectly happy not to see Rowena again! 

I wondered because the angels were still using that backdoor at the playground, like Heaven wasn't just generally open again. 

 

I thought the reason they had to use the back door is because they all lost their wings when they fell.

[rue721]

Good Stuff:

 

I liked that they took the MotW seriously, and I liked having just the one case as the A-plot and a quiet character-driven story as the B-plot. It felt like this episode was solidly written. Like the writers had at least tried this time, they didn't shoot themselves in the foot or give up on storylines or anything.

 

There were even some good lines imo. I liked the conversation between the redhead and Dean while she sat in her little circle of salt saying that at least on the upside, killing that guy had done wonders for her GPA. And I liked when she yelled that they should go down to the basement because the reception's really shitty down there.

 

But, Idk. The MotW just wasn't that interesting and the character stuff didn't make *any* sense to me. I felt like the writers didn't feel like they had a good feel for the characters, so they just threw in a bunch of gimmicks and prayed that some of them would be amusing or appropriate? And overall, I can't say I enjoyed watching this one, or plan to ever watch it again.

 

I'm torn. I'm happy with where the show seems like it's trying to go in terms of its writing (w/r/t the episodes' plot structure and pace, and keeping the beats relatively small and more naturalistic), but I think this particular episode didn't come together.

 

Not-So-Good Stuff:

 

And that final speech was straight out of a Hallmark movie. A bad one. And one I had heard in some way before but this time, I have no idea what it meant. Neither Dean nor Sam really made sense in that scene.

 

IA about the Hallmark movies. This was like I Know What You Did Last Summer brought to you by Hallmark. It also seemed stuck in a really weird time warp. The girl who tried to silence the ghost by unplugging her laptop and then freaking out when it apparently still had battery power and didn't turn off right away cracked me up. Was that supposed to be a joke? I honestly couldn't tell.

 

I also agree about that speech not making sense. I literally don't understand what Dean even was saying he wanted to do. When he said he couldn't take the false hope anymore, I got that. But everything else was really contradictory and confusing? And every time Sam would ask a clarifying question, Dean would answer in a way that made it even more befuddling. Idk. I guess Dean's not going to study up in the bunker anymore or something? But he also don't want Cas to do stuff, either? Wtf is Cas "so close" to finding out, anyway?

 

I don't really think doing nothing is an option, since if left to his own devices, won't he eventually either become a demon or yak up his insides again?

 

Can the show please give us some ~lore~ on the Mark of Cain? Because this thing of having zero information makes the whole storyline so confusing *while* keeping it at a standstill.

 

Sam was fine until that last car scene. Oddly enough. The case was not bad either although the solution was rather lame and Hallmarkish too.

 

I cracked up laughing so hard at Sam's facial expressions in the last ~1min of the episode.

 

He looked to me like he was thinking that Dean had lost his damn mind, and then at the very last second he was in the episode, he even cut his eyes to the side like he was getting set to starting his own plan to circumvent Dean (and Dean's weird blather about giving up/not giving up).

 

While Dean might not be up to date on the most current social network apps, he knows about the internet

 

IA with your whole post, ItsABear, but reading this in particular made me laugh.

 

One of the funniest lines in this whole series, imo, was when Samuel was talking to Dean at Lisa's house (I think it was in the S6 premier?), and Dean was irritated and told Samuel to go ahead and call him a "soccer mom" and get it out of his system or whatever. And Samuel goes (this is from memory, so probably not exact), "'Soccer mom,' eh? Well, I'll have to look that up on the intrAnet." LOL.

 

But yeah, this season Dean is occasionally written as an elderly person. Not just in terms of him apparently being a time traveler to ~The Internet Age~. I mean with the loss of impulse control, too! Like with the ridiculous eating and the love for the (college cafetaria's) buffet. And even the hand tremor! I don't get it.

[Ferniesfreckles]

Damnit, now I'm cravin ramen noodles!

And taquitos and I believe I even saw tamales on his plate! Where do you find tamales in Vancouver?

I like seeing hungry, horny Dean. He might be trying to overcompensate but this is the Dean I know and love. Even Sam seemed amused and made jokes about it.

I think Dean is saying that he's going to keep doing his job, and he'll worry about the Mark only when he has to.

One day at a time.

[mertensia]

Yeah I think Dean is sick of looking for information that isn't there- as he pointed out to Sam. "If Cain knew how to remove the mark don't you think he would have?"

Yes! Something beside vampires and werewolves.

A glimpse of Smart Dean- he was the one who suggested that deadguy was travelling through the electrical wires. It turned out to be WiFi but he had a smart guess.

[Morrigan2575]

I liked this episode but I rather enjoy ghost stories.  I enjoyed the humor with the Gen X comment vs the Christine comment as well as the food scenes.  I also loved the message about finding peace which is what Dean seemed to need, accepting what is and figuring out the best way to live with it.  I also enjoyed the truck going off the bridge into the title sequence, that was really cool.  Finally, I liked (in a ewwww gross way) the death by stereo.

[bethy]

I'm so glad I wasn't the only one completely befuddled by Dean's last speech. I just... what?

Dean with the ogling and eating was like a parody of early seasons Dean or a bad fan fic. I kept thinking there would be some sort of explanation for it, but no.

I think Dean stays so trim and pretty eating the way he does the same way a guy of Sam's build eats only salads and smoothies and doesn't waste away. Maybe Dean's eating for Sam? I actually read a fic like that many years ago.

[2Old2BAFangirl]

I'll be in the minority because I liked this episode well enough.  I've really been enjoying S10 for the most part and I think it has to do with the brothers behaving like brothers again. 

 

I saw the re-emergence of Dumb!Dean too, and I really dislike how they make him stupid to advance their plot.  But, I also saw him smiling and goofing around with Sam which made me smile.  I didn't care about how ridiculous he was being eating his ramen noodles, he was having a good time and I liked it.  And I also didn't care about him getting whiplash trying to look at all the college girls, that seems like a Dean thing to me.  I guess when Dean seems somewhat happy, then I'm happy.

 

Has the ghost's wife been on Supernatural before?  She looked so familiar but I could not figure out from where!  It's driving me nuts.

[Pete Martell]

I mentioned upthread that I didn't want the show to regress to s1 Dean...but I'm rethinking that.  Because s1 Dean was a fucking genius even if he was a horndog.  He invented a fucking EMF detector out of a walkman. He studied lore and he uses the computer all the time.  He knows what dating and language apps are and how to put them on his phone.  He knows about the internet. 

 

Season 1 Dean also said "What's Myspace?" and admitted that he never read books.

 

Dean's intelligence always varies on the episode, it seems.

[Pete Martell]

I liked this episode but I rather enjoy ghost stories.  I enjoyed the humor with the Gen X comment vs the Christine comment as well as the food scenes.  I also loved the message about finding peace which is what Dean seemed to need, accepting what is and figuring out the best way to live with it.  I also enjoyed the truck going off the bridge into the title sequence, that was really cool.  Finally, I liked (in a ewwww gross way) the death by stereo.

 

The music scene reminded me of a horrific, beautifully grisly death in a Hitchhiker episode. For me it worked better there because the music really did seem to get louder. Here, I didn't notice a big difference.

 

(the episode is not safe for work)

 

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1cpgjp_the-hitchhiker-s01e04-lovesounds-dvdrip-99rip_shortfilms

[mertensia]

2old2BAFangirl she looked liked the woman in the shower at the beginning of Wishful Thinking to me but I am slightly faceblind so I am probably wrong.

[Pete Martell]

And that final speech was straight out of a Hallmark movie. A bad one. And one I had heard in some way before but this time, I have no idea what it meant. Neither Dean nor Sam really made sense in that scene.

 

I thought the speech made some sense, even if the back-and-forth over what to do about the mark has become contrived. Dean is tired of waiting for the mark to be taken off. He's tired of being defined by the mark. Now that he has seen others who can control things put on them, as the ghost ultimately did, he's going to stop letting the mark control him (if he can) and just try to live a normal life. 

 

My problem with the scene is it, like most of the episode, was so overwrought. A lot of the main dramatic scenes in this were cheesy and overly done, which I will blame on the director, who doesn't seem to have directed all that many episodes I can say I'm fond of, although a few were OK. 

 

This is one of those times I really miss the roughness of the first two seasons. When you do pure MOTW episodes, you need it.

[catrox14]

And another thing, why is Dean getting updates on what Cas is doing via Sam?  Why isnt Cas talking to Dean himself considering that was his best  friend. Is Cas freezing Dean out of his life?  Why arent we seeing Dean telling Cas exactly what happened and how it happened when he took on the Mark? 

[mertensia]

Maybe Dean doesn't want to talk to Cas.

[catrox14]

The stupidity of Cas and Dean not talking to each other needs an explanation

[mertensia]

Cas is driven when he is on a mission. Dean may not want to try and deal with Cas in that state when Dean just wants to learn to live with the Mark.

[Primetimer]

You would think Dean had never seen a woman or a French fry before.

Read the story

[catrox14]

Cas is driven when he is on a mission. Dean may not want to try and deal with Cas in that state when Dean just wants to learn to live with the Mark.

 

 Dean knew Cas was working on leads to find Cain . He wasn't stopping him from doing it. Also, why isn't Cas just living in the bunker in case Dean loses his shit again.  Cas is the only one with the kind of power to stop Dean.

[Pete Martell]

 Dean knew Cas was working on leads to find Cain . He wasn't stopping him from doing it. Also, why isn't Cas just living in the bunker in case Dean loses his shit again.  Cas is the only one with the kind of power to stop Dean.

 

Cas has a limited lifespan/powers, so may want to use them while he can to try to find out where Cain is. I think Cas going around trying to get answers while Sam (who may not be able to physically stop Dean at his most MoC but is better at everyday life with him) stays with Dean is probably the best solution. 

[DittyDotDot]

I probably should see a doctor about this neck pain....whiplash much? Dean's abstaining from everything, EVERYTHING! Oh wait, no, Dean's a drunk, A DRUNK!. Oh wait, no, Dean's a glutton, A GLUTTON! And not only a GLUTTON and a DRUNK, but a complete luddite to boot?

 

Okay show, let me give you a primer on Dean Winchester. Dean is not completely unfamiliar with the modern world and gadgets, he just finds them annoying--as do I. I realize you think your audience is too stupid to know what the hell your talking about, so you have Dean act like an idiot so Sam can tell the audience what's what...here's the thing, show, not an idiot! Please try to remember this in the future.

 

Did I call it last week or what...Charmelo/Snyder=mixed bag. I will give it to them that there was a bit of an old-school Supernatural vibe to it, but not in a good way. It felt very Bloody Mary with a pinch of Roadkill and a tablespoon of Long Distance Call mixed in. I think they got the salt (heh), but forgot the sweetness, IMO. And since I've already gone there, maybe Bizarro Sam, Interrupted? It does have the accepting-who-one-is thing, but not sure it completely works. I'll have to think on this more.

 

So, the good to end on: it was a ghost story and there was some salting and burning, all it needed was some digging. Oh and death by stereo was something different, I guess. But, death by GPS has to be one of the best ideas ever! ;)

 

 

Has the ghost's wife been on Supernatural before?  She looked so familiar but I could not figure out from where!  It's driving me nuts.

 

2old2BAFangirl she looked liked the woman in the shower at the beginning of Wishful Thinking to me but I am slightly faceblind so I am probably wrong.

 

Yes! Mrs. Armstrong. I'm so glad others are playing the What-Other-Episode-Was-He/She-On game too. It's fun!

[catrox14]

Cas has a limited lifespan/powers, so may want to use them while he can to try to find out where Cain is. I think Cas going around trying to get answers while Sam (who may not be able to physically stop Dean at his most MoC but is better at everyday life with him) stays with Dean is probably the best solution.

Cas was powered up full bore again from the angel that Crowley killed. He had the juice to stop demon! Dean and blow the doors off the dungeon and the bedroom Claire was in. I don't recall any discussion that as of this point in time Cas was in any danger of his replacement batteries dying anytime soon.

I just need an line of dialogue to explain why Cas seems to be talking to Sam and, not Dean. It's weird and to me it's contrivance to keep Dean and Cas apart for fear of igniting Destiel again.

[Pete Martell]

I like MOTW episodes and I don't think they are automatically bad, or deserve to be sneered at as "filler." And I enjoyed the goofy fun of the last episode by this writing team ("Ask Jeeves"). I also liked the performances from the wife and from the main girl, Delilah. They were a little glossy, typical of the show in recent years, but still, it was nice to see a return to the early days where Dean and Sam were so often caught up in stories with young ingenues/final girls. And even though the writing was too oddly overwrought, I liked the scene where Delilah asked Dean how he coped with guilt and regret. I also thought Sam and the wife had a nice bit of chemistry - she seemed like his type (she reminded me of poor Sarah Blake, my OTP for Sam).

 

I also thought some of the outside shots were beautiful. The last one in the car, with Sam's hair lit by the sun, was practically made for tumblr gifs. 

 

And I think the IDEA wasn't bad at all, and was used to good effect in the setup of various deaths - "TRINI" luring the first guy to his death while yelling at the girl with him to get out; the DM with the blonde girl, telling her over and over that she hadn't been a friend and everyone would know, as the girl became upset and increasingly frightened. 

 

Here's what bothered me, beyond what was already mentioned (Dean leering at college girls over and over again, to the point where I started to wonder if someone would call campus security).

 

- The dialogue was so basic and clunky, especially the blonde girl with what seemed like a middle-aged person's idea of "what the kids say." I actually pitied the actress. 

 

- They lingered too long on the death scenes, especially the blonde girl. It took away all the power of the scene. More is less. Less is more.

 

- I felt like they wrote an episode for an early season without respecting the journey the characters have taken since then. I was really bothered by the bit where Dean and Sam talked about how Dean would be upset if he died and Sam drove his car. That already happened. I realize Dean wouldn't say, "Hey Sam remember when I died and you drove my car," but I wish they'd at least tweaked the lines.

Cas was powered up full bore again from the angel that Crowley killed. He had the juice to stop demon! Dean and blow the doors off the dungeon and the bedroom Claire was in. I don't recall any discussion that as of this point in time Cas was in any danger of his replacement batteries dying anytime soon.

I just need an line of dialogue to explain why Cas seems to be talking to Sam and, not Dean. It's weird and to me it's contrivance to keep Dean and Cas apart for fear of igniting Destiel again.

 

There was no discussion, but he looked visibly weakened by that exercise, to me. 

 

I don't really think they believe Destiel will be ignited by one-sided phone calls. I think since Sam had already been in communication with Cas when Dean was a demon, and Dean doesn't really like to talk about what he's going through, they keep the lines open.

[DittyDotDot]

I just need an line of dialogue to explain why Cas seems to be talking to Sam and, not Dean. It's weird and to me it's contrivance to keep Dean and Cas apart for fear of igniting Destiel again.

 

I'm not sure it has anything to do with Destiel bullies this time. I've taken it to being that Sam and Cass are like desperate parents trying to solve a problem for their child. I'm not saying that Dean is a child and/or that Sam and Cass are actually Dean's parents. But in this situation, they kinda are. They're collaborating and trying to work out options while Dean sits in his room obsessing and studying. They're trying to fix the situation for Dean and I think that's a lot of what that final speech of Dean's was about. He's went along with their ideas and let them try to help him, but it's gonna be up to Dean to fix it in the end.

 

I felt like they wrote an episode for an early season without respecting the journey the characters have taken since then. I was really bothered by the bit where Dean and Sam talked about how Dean would be upset if he died and Sam drove his car. That already happened. I realize Dean wouldn't say, "Hey Sam remember when I died and you drove my car," but I wish they'd at least tweaked the lines.

 

That's exactly how I felt. I was totally yelling, that happened...TWICE! I generally prefer the MoTWs, so I was actually looking forward to this one. This writing pair is weird though. They do have some interesting premises and ideas, but they rarely land the characterizations and dialogue. Sam and Dean are always much more one-dimensional caricatures of their early selves in their episodes. It really seems someone should be looking over these scripts better.

[catrox14]

felt like they wrote an episode for an early season without respecting the journey the characters have taken since then. I was really bothered by the bit where Dean and Sam talked about how Dean would be upset if he died and Sam drove his car. That already happened. I realize Dean wouldn't say, "Hey Sam remember when I died and you drove my car," but I wish they'd at least tweaked the lines.

 

Yeah I didn't reallyunderstand that stuff at all. I just fell terrible for Jared and Jensen,. I mean surely Jensen can't be happy when Dean is devalued. Sure he does his best but he is so protective of Dean that he can't be happy with the way he's written at times. Same with jared.

 

m not sure it has anything to do with Destiel bullies this time. 

 

I am saying that I think the showrunners are taking pains to keep them apart to avoid dealing with it one way or the other. Again my comment was not directed at Destiel leaning viewers nor do I think they are bullies.

[Latverian Diplomat]

Count me in on the disbelief at Dean having such poor table manners.  While Dean has been shown to have an appetite in the past, and occasionally eating in a disgusting manner, it was usually with the intent to either gross Sam out, or because there was only Sam around. 

 

I was also a bit creeped out by Dean ogling the college girls.  He's what? 36 now?  It seemed creepy to me.  Maybe guys have a different view.  If it were a 36 year old woman ogling them, it would definitely be creepy.

 

 

 

Dean with the ogling and eating was like a parody of early seasons Dean or a bad fan fic. I kept thinking there would be some sort of explanation for it, but no.

 

Quite possibly giving the show too much credit, but I thought all of this was hinting that Dean is still having problems with self control that are emerging in other ways. Like trying to squeeze part of a balloon, and having the rest of it expand to compensate. So he keeps a lid on wrath for once, but lust and gluttony get out of control. The fact that it was so blatant and so out of character that Sam noticed it seemed like a signal to me that we, the audience, were also supposed to notice it.

 

The two strikes against this possibility are this 1) seemed like a standalone episode in most other respects and 2) storyline was such an obvious lift from I Know What You Did Last Summer that it doesn't make me think there was much ambition in the writing of this at all. 

Edited February 11, 2015 by Latverian Diplomat

[catrox14]

Quite possibly giving the show too much credit, but I thought all of this was hinting that Dean is still having problems with self control that are emerging in other ways. Like trying to squeeze part of a balloon, and having the rest of it expand to compensate. So he keeps a lid on wrath for once, but lust and gluttony get out of control. The fact that it was so blatant and so out of character that Sam noticed it seemed like a signal to me that we, the audience, were also supposed to notice it.

 

The two strikes against this possibility are this 1) seemed like a standalone episode in most other respects and 2) storyline was such an obvious lift from I Know What You Did Last Summer that it doesn't make me think there was much ambition in the writing of this at all.

I barely remember I know what you did last summer. What was the lift that you saw?

[Altered Reality]

I've seen this episode twice now and I'm still wondering what show I was watching.  There were some elements of Supernatural, but other elements felt like they were created by someone who's working knowledge of the show and the characters were 3rd hand at best.

 

Things I did like, the opening sequence with the truck looked good, the sat nav misguiding the victim isn't a new concept, but it was well done here.  I really liked that the innocent girlfriend was spared (though I'm sure she was traumatized for life).  And it was nice to see a slightly different take on the vengeful spirit as the MOTW.  The quiet conversation between Dean and the college girl (I never did catch her name) was good.

 

Things I didn't like, making Dean so stupid and crass.  He is not.  He might not recognize the brand name of a specific app., but he sure as h-e-double hockey sticks knows what GPS and sat nav are.  Gaaaaah!  And the food thing, no show just no.  The bit with the poor table manners almost felt like something they did BTS while goofing around (and that I can see) and the director decided to use it. And openly ogling the college girls?  He's perfectly capable of being a lot more subtle than that!  And at what 36-37?  I think he's a bit old for college girls. The dialogue with the wife and the spirit?  Where did that come from?  I don't know who said it, but Hallmark movie was right on the nose with that.  And I refuse to even try to figure out what on earth that final speech/conversation was about.  Convoluted, nonsensical mess that was, it'll just give me a headache trying to parse it out.

 

Hmmm, trying to end on an upbeat note, Sam didn't bug me at all this episode (I'm afraid he sometimes does).  So that's good, right?

Edited February 11, 2015 by Altered Reality

[supposebly]

 

They frankly aren't believable unless he's trying to gross Sam out - which he isn't going to do IMO in front of a bunch of college girls

 

It wouldn't even be funny any more. For God's sake the guy is 36 years old! 76 if you count Hell Years. Trying to gross Sam out was somewhat funny in season 2, at this point, it's just not.

[Demented Daisy]

I was really bothered by the bit where Dean and Sam talked about how Dean would be upset if he died and Sam drove his car. That already happened. I realize Dean wouldn't say, "Hey Sam remember when I died and you drove my car," but I wish they'd at least tweaked the lines.

 

Including, IMO, the bit about killing Sam if he made the Impala stink of taquitos.  ;-)  Uh, Dean, you love taquitos.

 

Edited February 11, 2015 by Demented Daisy

[catrox14]

So Dean's going to fight the Mark and "go down swinging", huh?  Instead of trying to find a cure for the Mark?

 

Have TPTB forgotten that if Dean dies with the Mark, he becomes a demon?  Am I supposed to believe that Dean is going to control the Mark as long as he's alive, but when he dies, he's going to become a demon again?  And he's okay with that?

 

Screw you, show.

 

I'll bet you dollars to donuts Dean will have forgotten how he became a demon, since he is now a dumb as rocks gluttonous Luddite who skeeves after college girls.

Of course my pointless hope is that it's a sign that demon! Dean who just does not give a shit what anyone thinks is lurking and it comes out in that gross behavior.

 

[Pete Martell]

Maybe the mark desperately hates them.

[rue721]

I barely remember I know what you did last summer. What was the lift that you saw?

 

The whole premise -- bunch of college kids goofing off in their car kill a man on the road and make a pact not to tell anyone, but then the man they killed comes back and starts killing them.

 

Of course my pointless hope is that it's a sign that demon! Dean who just does not give a shit what anyone thinks is lurking and it comes out in that gross behavior.

 

I always love your theories about demon!Dean lurking and showing himself by Dean acting like an asshole. It would even kind of fit, considering I guess he liked doing terrible karaoke for the same reason he'd like to eat noodles like he'd never had spaghetti or ramen before.

[catrox14]

Including, IMO, the bit about killing Sam if he made the Impala stink of taquitos.  ;-)  Uh, Dean, you love taquitos.

 

Oh. My. God's. That is perfect. I am about ready to put this episode in the pantheon of shit episodes like the" episodes that shall not be named 1 & 2".

I hated how in the dog familiar episode Dean got some real character growth and yet we don't remember that because of how gross and OOC everything else was. Just like this episode. If I were a sane person and had exercised the good sense to turn off this crapfest episode, I would have missed that lovely bit of acting from Jensen and some really important character stuff from Dean.

[Latverian Diplomat]

I barely remember I know what you did last summer. What was the lift that you saw?

I don't think I've seen the whole thing (at least not in one sitting) but four college kids (two guys, two gals) kill an innocent person in a careless traffic accident and avoid responsibility. Revenge killings start a year later. Admittedly, not an original idea to begin with, but it seemed similar enough to me to be quite obvious. Then again, I'm old enough to remember Christine :-)

Edited February 11, 2015 by Latverian Diplomat