S14.E09 : The Spear

[raven]

Quote

Sam and Dean enlist the help of their pal Garth to gain inside information on what Michael may be planning; the brothers split up to each go after weapons that can aid in their fight against the Archangel.

Airdate 2018.12.13

[Pondlass1]

The final 3 minutes were EPIC!!!  

[Myrelle]

Heeeeeeeeeeeeeee's Back!!!!!

Amazing ending.

[DeeDee79]

@Pondlass1 and @Myrelle - two positive reviews from Dean girls? I'm now pumped for when I watch tomorrow!

[Katy M]

7 minutes ago, Pondlass1 said:

The final 3 minutes were EPIC!!!  

I agree, but I thought the rest of it was boring as all get out.  Although, to be fair, I have a super lot on my mind, and I just got some info before the show that I needed to look some stuff on the computer about, so I wasn't fully engaged.  But, I still think with the possible exception of Garth being controlled when he clearly didn't know it was going to happen and the last scene, it seemed like a snooze fest.

[Binns]

Wow, they went in a totally unexpected direction for me! Color me happily surprised to have DeanMichael back. I don’t think we got to see enough of him last time. 

[Myrelle]

Michael is such a great Big Bad.

Kudos to gal who was the place holder, but Jensen owns the Michael role.

Let's hope we get a bit more of him this time around.

*fingers crossed*

[Pondlass1]

So Dean is GONE? Totally GONE?  Don’t believe it.  But exciting to contemplate because it ain’t easy to keep Dean down. 

[Myrelle]

8 minutes ago, Katy M said:

I agree, but I thought the rest of it was boring as all get out.  Although, to be fair, I have a super lot on my mind, and I just got some info before the show that I needed to look some stuff on the computer about, so I wasn't fully engaged.  But, I still think with the possible exception of Garth being controlled when he clearly didn't know it was going to happen and the last scene, it seemed like a snooze fest.

I didn't think it was a snooze fest, but just par for the course with Dabb in charge.

But then Michael!Dean showed up again and I lost it. 

Edited December 14, 2018 by Myrelle

[gonzosgirrl]

I was watching on a delay and though the cheesy slo-mo walk and awful music was the end of the episode. Color me shocked that Michael!Dean is back. Though not for long if the 300th is going to be a real episode. I'd say maybe that's why there was no mention of Dean in the spoiler - but surely even Dabb wouldn't exclude Jensen from a landmark episode. So I'd say MichaelDean will be wrapped by then.

It was fun having Garth back, even if he was acting as soldier in General Sam's army.

[Pondlass1]

Oh I agree it was standard fare until  Michael entered Dean.  And way too much exposition.  The egg showed up because fans made a fuss that Dabb had forgotten. He had.

[gonzosgirrl]

Just now, Pondlass1 said:

Oh I agree it was standard fare until  Michael entered Dean.  And way too much exposition.  The egg showed up because fans made a fuss that Dabb had forgotten. He had.

He still forgot that Cas had the egg at the end of LOTUS.

[Myrelle]

6 minutes ago, gonzosgirrl said:

I was watching on a delay and though the cheesy slo-mo walk and awful music was the end of the episode. Color me shocked that Michael!Dean is back. Though not for long if the 300th is going to be a real episode. I'd say maybe that's why there was no mention of Dean in the spoiler - but surely even Dabb wouldn't exclude Jensen from a landmark episode. So I'd say MichaelDean will be wrapped by then.

It was fun having Garth back, even if he was acting as soldier in General Sam's army.

The Garth stuff was such a waste.

I mean, tbh, most of it was for me, too, except the Dean stuff.

I liked how Dean talked Kaia Sue out of giving him the spear. 

And I'm glad that Michael did away with both of the threats-he should have-he should be the most dangerous of all the archangels, IMO.

And I also think that they all should have been wondering why Michael gave up his One True Vessel so easily, for that matter.

[BoxManLocke]

So it took 9 full episodes for the show to essentially be back to where it was before the season premiere.

 

Only Supernatural.

[Aeryn13]

While it obviously will be wrapped up again in the next episode, I'm happy to see Michael!Dean again. So Dean really DID get him to leave, by constantly resisting. So Michael wanted to break him before coming back, okay.

I thought Dean was badass wielding the Spear for a bit. Thankfully Kaia's poser ass wasn't in the fight.

Berens typical stanning of Chief!Sam was prevalent. Making me roll my eyes.

And still too much focus in Jack. I need a fucking break from the character.

[Myrelle]

3 minutes ago, Aeryn13 said:

And still too much focus in Jack. I need a fucking break from the character.

This.

So much.

4 minutes ago, Aeryn13 said:

 

Berens typical stanning of Chief!Sam was prevalent. Making me roll my eyes.

And this, too.

But that ending made the episode, for sure.

And they knew it would.

[Bergamot]

19 minutes ago, Myrelle said:

Michael is such a great Big Bad.

Kudos to gal who was the place holder, but Jensen owns the Michael role.

Let's hope we get a bit more of him this time around.

*fingers crossed*

Mine are crossed too!

I think that the one thing that pleases me the most about the way things ended is that Michael made it clear that he wants Dean as his vessel. He didn't want Sam, or Cas, or even the writers' darling, Jack. Shockingly, he didn't even want one of those other two writers' darlings, Dark Kaia or Nick! He wanted Dean back, because Dean is his true vessel. He said he temporarily moved out because Dean was "squirming" too much -- I guess Dean was so much trouble that Michael could not properly "digest" him -- but he always intended to get him back. And that makes me happy. Even though I know it won't last long enough.

5 minutes ago, BoxManLocke said:

So it took 9 full episodes for the show to essentially be back to where it was before the season premiere.

I think it's revealing that this is what they used for last season's finale and again for the mid-season cliffhanger. Deep down inside they know what is the most exciting and intriguing storyline they currently have available. Now if they would only DO something with it, instead of subjecting us to all the other boring stories they have inflicted upon us this season.

[Myrelle]

1 minute ago, Bergamot said:

I think it's revealing that this is what they used for last season's finale and again for the mid-season cliffhanger. Deep down inside they know what is the most exciting and intriguing storyline they currently have available. Now if they would only DO something with it, instead of subjecting us to all the other boring stories they have inflicted upon us this season.

Again, THIS! So much.

[ILoveReading]

10 minutes ago, Aeryn13 said:

So Michael wanted to break him before coming back, okay

It would have been nice if this played out on screen.   What exactly did Michael do to crush Dean?  Dean didn't seem all the worried or concerned about Michael and why he left.  To much focus on Jack and his consumption. 

This also doesn't' really make sense with what the Djinn saw and his "you"  or why his vision went wonky.  That's not really 'breaking Dean" if he doesn't seem to notice or care that something strange happened.

13 minutes ago, Aeryn13 said:

And still too much focus in Jack. I need a fucking break from the character.

A-fucking-men

[Binns]

33 minutes ago, gonzosgirrl said:

Color me shocked that Michael!Dean is back. Though not for long if the 300th is going to be a real episode. I'd say maybe that's why there was no mention of Dean in the spoiler - but surely even Dabb wouldn't exclude Jensen from a landmark episode. So I'd say MichaelDean will be wrapped by then.

Sort of like the last time Dean was possessed and they needed to wrap it up in time for a Very Special Episode. 

[Myrelle]

I'm kind of hoping that Kansas City, MO was decimated.

No offense to the RL residents. ;-)

[ZennyKenny]

Ok first of all:

DEAN: If you're not going to give me the spear, then kill me.

BOTH MY WIFE AND I: Or you could not be so melodramatic and just ask her to join you!!

 

Ok, on to other thoughts:

- LOVED the Ode To Joy walk; was the a tribute to Die Hard?

- Yes! I'm super-excited the MichaelDean is back!

- was worried that Michael didn't kill Sam just because of plot armor, and I'm glad that they addressed it and it played into the plot.

- Yay Garth is back! So glad they didn't kill him off.

- those previews are confusing. Why would Michael let himself get taken and mind-probed like that?

- and finally... the snap. REALLY, SPN writers? REALLY. You're going to steal the infamous snap? For SHAME!

[trudysmom]

Maybe it happened too quick, after all the talk (talk talk talk), maybe I expect too much, but to me it was meh.  I appreciated how the pitch of Jensen's voice changed after Michael took over.  I had noticed earlier that Dean's voice seemed more gravelly than usual.  And is Garth still in the trunk?  I was decorating a cake and lost that bit. 

When I watched the 'next episode' promo and they showed Sam and Cas inside Dean's mind, I think I injured myself with how far back in my head my eyes rolled.  I must be a masochist to keep coming back to this show.

[gonzosgirrl]

I don't understand how Dean was 'broken' enough to satisfy Michael's need? In fact, they made a point of him saying he was not broken. He was, in fact, fired up for the fight. It makes no sense that Dean would just stay quiet this time. Maybe if Michael had killed Sam or Cas while he watched or something. As it played out, it seems to me Dean would be fighting even harder right now. Weird.

And thanks, Berens, for making Dean lie to TMNS about Jack being able to open the rift. It's funny, all I kept thinking while they were talking about her suddenly wanting to go back to the Bad Place was I wished she'd  just say, Didn't  you hear? That story didn't get picked up.

[AwesomO4000]

33 minutes ago, Aeryn13 said:

Berens typical stanning of Chief!Sam was prevalent.

I must have missed that. Was that when Sam screwed up, got himself knocked out, lost the egg and Jack and basically failed his part of the mission? Or was it when he went to get Jack and didn't realize that Garth was going to attack and let Garth throw Jack around?

This whole thing just seems weird to me... it's like writers want to show hints of Sam as leader, but at the same time, they have him screw up royally - a lot - even more than Sam used to screw up. It's like they can't help themselves.

[SueB]

That was AWESOME.  I so don’t want to wait til Jan 17th.

First viewing favorite bits:

- SLO-mo wall of BadAss.   The music definitely felt like a Die Hard shout out. 

- So the entire trap was to get the Spear and get back to his Dean while crushing his spirit.  Diabolical. But you can’t monsterize (is TOO a word) Kansas City without people noticing.  So I’m not sure how that’s going to work out.  

- Loved Garth coming off the bench.  Glad he’s not dead. 

-So Micheal!Dean is still the big bad.  So not surprised.  

[Cambion]

Divine Bovine!!!!!

 

I really liked this ep.  I'm still feeling the wowza! of those last minutes!

 

Just wanted to say as far as Michael breaking Dean:  We didn't see it because it didn't happen until Micheal jumped back in.  It was the same kind of thing as what Demon!Dean did to Cole.  (10.2 Reichenbach)

 

In this case Micheal left, he cracked the door, he gave Dean no indication of what made him leave.  He stayed basically quiet, and he let this go on long enough for Dean to start feeling like himself again.  Then Dean got fired up and was ready for battle and was THISCLOSE to ending Michael and by proxy putting an end to a lot of the PTSD happening inside him (I have it too and it is constant), then snatched Dean's victory and locked him up again?!?  

 

Absolutely diabolical!  Whether the writers actually meant that or if it was just an ironically, but miraculously placed blitzkrieg for Michael, all I can say is Damn!  I think we're going to be seeing some hurt!Dean in the last half of the season.

[S Cook Productions]

3 minutes ago, Cambion said:

Divine Bovine!!!!!

 

I really liked this ep.  I'm still feeling the wowza! of those last minutes!

 

Just wanted to say as far as Michael breaking Dean:  We didn't see it because it didn't happen until Micheal jumped back in.  It was the same kind of thing as what Demon!Dean did to Cole.  (10.2 Reichenbach)

 

In this case Micheal left, he cracked the door, he gave Dean no indication of what made him leave.  He stayed basically quiet, and he let this go on long enough for Dean to start feeling like himself again.  Then Dean got fired up and was ready for battle and was THISCLOSE to ending Michael and by proxy putting an end to a lot of the PTSD happening inside him (I have it too and it is constant), then snatched Dean's victory and locked him up again?!?  

 

Absolutely diabolical!  Whether the writers actually meant that or if it was just an ironically, but miraculously placed blitzkrieg for Michael, all I can say is Damn!  I think we're going to be seeing some hurt!Dean in the last half of the season.

I loved it too! The last few minutes. Wow. I liked how Michael was basically taunting Cas as he beat the crap out of him, like, yeah they sent you in first bye bye. That’s just the type of attitude I’d expect from a Big Bad...and all the more to mess with Dean. 

[Myrelle]

18 minutes ago, Cambion said:

Absolutely diabolical!  Whether the writers actually meant that or if it was just an ironically, but miraculously placed blitzkrieg for Michael, all I can say is Damn!  I think we're going to be seeing some hurt!Dean in the last half of the season.

IA. We should be seeing some seriously hurt!Dean; but also some Never Give-up Dean, too-because he never will-and that's who he is.

Edited December 14, 2018 by Myrelle

[AwesomO4000]

51 minutes ago, ILoveReading said:

What exactly did Michael do to crush Dean?  Dean didn't seem all the worried or concerned about Michael and why he left. 

I think it's pretty much what @Cambion said above.

When it happened, the first thing I thought of was season 7 Sam when he first hallucinated Lucifer. He asked Halucifer why would he make it seem like Sam was free from hell, and Halucifer explained what better torture than to make him think he was free, and then snatch it all away.

If Michael has powers like Gabriel and can manipulate reality, it might be interesting to find out that what looked like a short time as Michael was taking control to us and Sam, Castiel, and Jack actually felt like a really long time to Dean where Michael Mwah ha ha'd about how he could have Dean any time he wanted... similar to Lucifer's no matter what happens we'll always end up here speech and then created scenarios where he demonstrated that.

There are actually quite a few possibilities for what is going on in Dean's head. I'm looking forward to what's coming next.

[Jediknight]

1 hour ago, ZennyKenny said:

- and finally... the snap. REALLY, SPN writers? REALLY. You're going to steal the infamous snap? For SHAME!

Michael in Dean's mind as he was taking over: "You should have aimed for the head."

[bozodegama]

Doesn’t totally make sense.  What happens when Dean comes back now, What is he going to be doubly pissed at Michael.  Major drama with Dean and Cass?  Just too much stuff going on.

[Myrelle]

2 hours ago, gonzosgirrl said:

I was watching on a delay and though the cheesy slo-mo walk and awful music was the end of the episode.

I wasn't watching on a delay, but had probably imbibed too much wine at that point and thought the same thing.

And maybe that's why Michael!Dean blew me away in this one.

So there you have it-booze is the answer to being able to keep watching Dabbernatural.

;-)

[catrox14]

Well it wasn't great overall but Michael!Dean is back.  Jensen is so fucking good as Michael. Dean just disappears in every way, shape and form.  

Other than that, it was meh.  The music is far too overblown under Dabb. But I'm just happy to see Michael!Dean back and the bastards keep reeling me back in. And they know damn well what they are doing.

[ZennyKenny]

TONIGHT ON SUPERNATURAL: Experience the thrill of last season's finale cliffhanger! Again! Only this time, instead of happening in a church, get ready for it to happen in a:

 

REALLY!

TALL!

BUILDING!

[BabySpinach]

YASSSSS BITCH YASSSSS MICHAEL!DEAN IS BACK, BABY! THE SEXIEST ARCHANGEL/VESSEL COMBO MAKES HIS TRIUMPHANT RETURN!

Fangirling aside, this really highlights an insidious problem with Dabb and co. They're fully aware that Michael!Dean is what most people are interested in, but instead of developing the story with in-depth character interactions and narrative progression, they use it as bait to force us to continue watching while they shove their little pets and subplots down our throats instead. Shameless and manipulative. So as over the moon as I am about the return of Michael!Dean, I wouldn't be surprised if he's cast out/killed within the next episode or two and we're shoved into a dumb time-waster tangent again. Maybe we'll follow Kaia Sue's fascinating acclimatization to our modern world, or maybe see Jack get his first girlfriend. 

I dearly, dearly hope that what little Michael!Dean we get has some actual juicy stuff this time. Reveal something about Dean/Sam/Cas, damn it! Go deeper than surface level! It's LITERALLY your job to do that, writers!

Jensen's choreography with the spear was much more grounded and realistic than twirly wannabe-cool Kaia's. And I'm always a sucker for competent warrior Dean. Jensen's switch from Dean to Michael was also incredible, especially with his voice!

Ketch was surprisingly adorable in his brief appearance. He was so proud of himself for mailing the egg to them, d'aww.  

Can't help but roll my eyes at Kaia's threat to kill Dean if he doesn't bring the spear back. The mighty force of a 98 lb. girl against a 180+ lb. grown man, oh my! What's she going to do, kick him in the shins? He could render her entirely helpless just by sitting on her.

For my own personal vindication, I'd like to list the bitter spec that thankfully DIDN'T happen: Michael didn't ditch Dean because the latter was a weak/inadequate vessel (in fact, Dean was too strong and irritating to his possessor, so a big win, there!). Kaia Sue didn't heroically swoop in and kick Michael's ass while everyone else gaped. And Dean was, in fact, the one to convince her to give over the spear. He also wasn't relegated to the sidelines in the climactic showdown. Michael's non-Dean vessel was not Nick (YASSSS). Kaia's spear had nothing to do with Michael's temporary exit.

Overall, a LOT better than I was dreading, mostly thanks to that ending. A story can be mediocre/dull in the beginning and middle, but if you have a kickass ending, that's what most people are going to walk away with. 

Edited December 14, 2018 by BabySpinach

[ahrtee]

So this brings the amount of time Jensen has played Michael in nine episodes to, what, 12 minutes total?  15?  

Maybe we'll get a few more minutes in the next episode...

[devlin]

9 minutes ago, ahrtee said:

So this brings the amount of time Jensen has played Michael in nine episodes to, what, 12 minutes total?  15?  

Maybe we'll get a few more minutes in the next episode...

But what an impact those 15mins have had!!!! 

[Female83]

Jensen did say he'd be playing Michael for a bit longer so it wasn't surprising that Michael left his previous and obviously temporary vessel to retake Dean. I wonder how long he was using the female vessel. It makes him the second archangel after Raphael to use a girl vessel. I hope they don't kill Garth off. 

[ahrtee]

1 hour ago, devlin said:

But what an impact those 15mins have had!!!! 

Only to those of us who are desperate for any crumbs of MichaelDean.  Random actress had more time (and more interesting scenes) as Michael in this one ep than Jensen has had all season.  But I guess crumbs are better than nothing. *sigh*

41 minutes ago, Female83 said:

I hope they don't kill Garth off. 

Just a thought--Garth now has some of Michael's grace in him.  Does that make him able to wield the archangel blade?

And did anyone notice that Jack mentioned "his" Michael is still in the Cage?  (Maybe they'll bring back Adam-in-OriginalMichael.)  

[juppschmitz]

7 hours ago, Myrelle said:

Kudos to gal who was the place holder, but Jensen owns the Michael role.

Jensen would own ANY role on this show, including Sam, Cas and Mary...

[juppschmitz]

7 hours ago, BoxManLocke said:

So it took 9 full episodes for the show to essentially be back to where it was before the season premiere.

 

Only Supernatural.

Nothing of what happened this season needed to happen. Like, at all.

(Same cliffhanger, same shit is going to happen - Dean girls are excited, come back to watch next year, Michael will be gone in next to no time.)

[devlin]

58 minutes ago, ahrtee said:

Only to those of us who are desperate for any crumbs of MichaelDean.  Random actress had more time (and more interesting scenes) as Michael in this one ep than Jensen has had all season.  But I guess crumbs are better than nothing. *sigh*

 

I am a simple gal. I live off crumbs! Especially when those crumbs are so delicious!!!!!!!!!!

[gonzosgirrl]

I just wish they didnt have Dean lie to get the spear back. Now, not only will not!Kaia be pissed her weapon is broken, she'll be justifiably angry at him. Sure, desperate times and all that, but we know Dean could've convinced her without lying. Guaranteed there will be more dressing down of his character (both senses of the word) when Teenage Mutant Ninja Sue returns.

Maybe they could've spent less time letting random werepire Michael speechify to random Michael!Monsters and shown him breaking Dean.

And sorry, these 'nods' to other shows and movies are just too frequent not to feel more like lazy ripoffs than homages.

[Katy M]

2 hours ago, juppschmitz said:

(Same cliffhanger, same shit is going to happen - Dean girls are excited, come back to watch next year, Michael will be gone in next to no time.)

I can only hope as I like Dean, not Michael.  But, I'm actually afraid he'll be around for close to the rest of the season.  Maybe even the whole season heading into next year.

[PAForrest]

9 hours ago, Cambion said:

Just wanted to say as far as Michael breaking Dean:  We didn't see it because it didn't happen until Micheal jumped back in.  It was the same kind of thing as what Demon!Dean did to Cole.  (10.2 Reichenbach)

 

In this case Micheal left, he cracked the door, he gave Dean no indication of what made him leave.  He stayed basically quiet, and he let this go on long enough for Dean to start feeling like himself again.  Then Dean got fired up and was ready for battle and was THISCLOSE to ending Michael and by proxy putting an end to a lot of the PTSD happening inside him (I have it too and it is constant), then snatched Dean's victory and locked him up again?!?  

 

Absolutely diabolical!  Whether the writers actually meant that or if it was just an ironically, but miraculously placed blitzkrieg for Michael, all I can say is Damn!  I think we're going to be seeing some hurt!Dean in the last half of the season.

Okay, I'm going with this explanation because I too wondered when the hell Michael broke Dean, considering at the beginning of the season we blinked and Michael was already ditching his most perfect vessel. And there was virtually no build up to this reveal. Sorry, a few seconds of blurry vision does not build up make. All tell, no show. So this explanation makes a kind of sense I can go with and will, even if I'm not at all convinced Berens meant it that way, because Berens doesn't put any deep thought into what he writes - hence his befuddled reaction to Jensen's comments about what the Dean-Mary dreamscape scene meant in season 12.

So the episode was mostly a snooze-fest, with a couple of really embarrassingly bad musical interludes, until the last two or three minutes which were epic. But since two or three minutes of epic is a lot more than I ever expect from these producers now, I will, as others have said, lick the crumbs from the floor when we get them, because it's never going to be more than crumbs. And Jensen nailed it! And Dean!Michael was glorious!

Yet I fully expect Dean!Michael to be done for good at the end of the mid-season hiatus return episode - i.e., the very next episode. But I will enjoy the hell out of Jensen enjoying the hell out of getting to play Michael again, given how much he was promised and how very very little Dabb actually delivered. Of course, once that happens, what the hell is the story? Michael's remaining monster army? Nickifer? Jack sliding toward consumption again? All weak.

I do want to shake the crap out of everyone, especially Dean and Castiel, and make them realize that Sam really isn't the boss of them, so they need to stop acting like he is. I don't give a damn what the producers are trying to sell, it's annoying.

I kind of expected Garth to die - he didn't. I don't so much care either way, but at least it's one less pointless death since all Supernatural death is pointless now.

The Ketch scene was cute, I was glad to finally see him again. But is this how it's going to be with him - skyping from the UK?

I'm all for throwing Kaia Sue back to the Bad Place. Like gonzosgirrl aptly put it - her show wasn't picked up (heh!), time to move on!

Edited December 14, 2018 by PAForrest

[AwesomO4000]

38 minutes ago, PAForrest said:

I do want to shake the crap out of everyone, especially Dean and Castiel, and make them realize that Sam really isn't the boss of them, so they need to stop acting like he is.

But I thought Dean came up with the original plan and organized who would be going with who? I could be wrong though, since I haven't done a rewatch yet..

[gonzosgirrl]

52 minutes ago, PAForrest said:

The Ketch scene was cute, I was glad to finally see him again. But is this how it's going to be with him - skyping from the UK?

Yes, probably. Including him sipping a cup of tea so we know he's Britsh/in England. 

Wot.

Edited December 14, 2018 by gonzosgirrl

[Aeryn13]

I, too, thought that Michael`s plan was to break Dean by seemingly granting him freedom and close to victory. I mean, he was apparently annoyed and bothered by Dean trying to resist him, that Dean was fighting towards the goal of getting back home. So he unexpectedly grants him that goal, lets him return to family and friends, lets some time pass so Dean feels more like himself and more in charge. Then he even lets Dean get an effective weapon, almost taste victory and then, and only then, he repossesses him. At first they would break anyone`s spirit. 

Now I have no doubt Dean will be back to fighting him by the next episode so Michael underestimated his fighting spirit. But as plans go, this wasn`t a bad one. 

Couldn`t care less about Kaia!Sue. I mean, she had to know that unexpected things can happen in battle so she had to at least entertain the possibility that she would not be seeing it again. And who knows, by the time it becomes relevant, Jack might be fully-powered again. I hope her snooty ass doesn`t become any kind of threat. 

[tessathereaper]

11 hours ago, DeeDee79 said:

@Pondlass1 and @Myrelle - two positive reviews from Dean girls? I'm now pumped for when I watch tomorrow!

LOL Well the last 3 minutes were amazing...the rest...not so much. :)