S01.E20: Dead Man's Blood

[DittyDotDot]

After Daniel Elkins, a vampire hunter and John's mentor, is murdered, Sam and Dean are surprised when John himself shows up to solve the case. John discovers the vampires have taken an antique gun, which has the power to kill all supernatural beings. The Winchester family sets out to retrieve the gun from the vampires so they can use it to kill the demon that took Sam and Dean's mother.

[DittyDotDot]

This episode starts in the hole for me...I have a general aversion to most things vampire-y and really don't get everyone's current fascination with them. This also goes for most things witchy and werewolf-y. And they did not climb out of that hole by what they did with them as monsters. I think they maybe tried to hard to tell me that these were not my daddy's vampires and didn't do enough to actually make them different. Just because they have retractable teeth instead of fangs and you cut off their heads instead of stake them in their hearts did little to make me think otherwise. They live forever, feed off humanity and are hard to kill--sounds pretty typical to me. Sorry, that's probably enough ranting about this.

 

And, have I mentioned that Jeffery Dean Morgan lulls me into a coma whenever he's on my screen? He seems like a very affable guy and I don't have an aversion to him exactly, just that I can't stay awake when he's around. I don't know if it's his country drawl or his sleepy eyes or what, he just has that effect. I can't help it.

 

And then there's the I-can't-tell-which-vampire-is-which factor. I've never been a believer in that idea that you shouldn't cast two brunettes or two blondes or two whatevers because the audience won't be able to tell them apart, but after this episode I think there could be something to this. Seriously, there are two male vampires that I can't tell apart and two females ones also. It's almost like they cast the one and then thought they should cast an understudy just incase the other wasn't available, but someone forgot to tell the backup vampires that they weren't needed. Sorry, I know in the grand scheme of things this isn't really important, but it seems to always bug me when watching it.

 

So what did they do right? The family dynamics are perfect pitch. John's an overbearing parent and a crappy co-worker--it's his way or the highway--Sam doesn't work well under those conditions and Dean being stuck in the middle feel so perfect to me. I also love how Dean starts to stand up to his Dad. Dean is happy to follow along and just do the job until it John starts to get reckless and then he's not so happy to just follow along anymore. I also love the scene at the end where John comes in and starts with "you boys disobeyed an order" and the way Dean turns around like he's ready to take his medicine and spouts back "so, we saved your ass" makes me smile every time. That's so much of who I think Dean is, he'll do the hard work, but then instead of trying to run from the consequences he accepts them. That's one of the reasons I love him.

 

ETA: I forgot to add that I found Dean's amusement to vampires being real absolutely amusing. To bad they've spent the last few years screwing this up though with vampires being go-to monster for the show now.

Edited June 30, 2014 by DittyDotDot

[GirlyGeek]

I can't believe there isn't more discussion in the past about this ep.  huh

Well, its got good and bad, really.  I'm pretty split on this one.  Really, the biggest problem I have is the way they handled vampire lore.  Not a fan (and I love vampires) of the SPN vampire at all.

All the talk we've been doing during this re-watch (in the various threads before this one) about John is really summed up here in this episode.  

John plainly lays his cards on the table:  he barely survived after seeing his wife burn to death, then, we presume, he learned

Spoiler

it all happened because she made a deal with YED (and to save John's life!) and that Sam was in trouble/different/possibly dangerous,

he learned all about supernatural things and evil, and he 'stopped being their father and became their drill sergeant'.  He says it pretty plainly: all he had was his boys.  He couldn't stand to lose them, I imagine the more he learned about what could be coming for them, the more he withdrew and pushed them to be ready for danger.

Is it right?  No way and it screwed them all up.  Does he love his sons- absolutely.  I don't think anyone is debating that.  Its pretty clear he does.  

The conversation between Sam and John is great, too.  A little burying the hatchet and commiserating.  Asking about the college fund- "I used it for ammo"  LOL

On June 28, 2014 at 3:36 PM, DittyDotDot said:

So what did they do right? The family dynamics are perfect pitch. John's an overbearing parent and a crappy co-worker--it's his way or the highway--Sam doesn't work well under those conditions and Dean being stuck in the middle feel so perfect to me.

100%

Edited June 12, 2016 by GirlyGeek

[GirlyGeek]

S11 tie in:
 

Spoiler

The more I think about Mary being back in the boys' lives, the more I have a faint wish of the whole Winchester family being together again.  A second chance.  I know its sappy, but they never had that chance.  I think Mary would be horrified to see what her boys had gone through, I think she'd be shocked at who John turned into.  I think John never got to be the father he wanted to be (that we clearly saw in the Pilot).  Its all very sad.  Feeling sentimental today ;)

[SueB]

Well I'm about 6 days late for those doing a post S11 rewatch... but Real Life KICKED MY ASS this week.  And honestly, I wanted to savor these last three episodes of S1.

I too hated the vampires.  Here's what we learned (with OPINION):
- They're trailer trash vice old world elegance (as in the opposite of Anne Rice vampires).  Not essential but okay.
- They don't like the sun but they don't flambe (there's a new one). That's interesting.
- Cut off their head is the only way to kill them (*Buffy raises her hand* 'What about wooden stakes to the heart?' *John WInchester rolls his eyes* 'Nope. Grab a machete'). Okay. 
- They mate for life. Wait... that sounds Anne Rice-ish.  That's interesting but they seem to like threesomes too...
- Second set of teeth... hmmm... that' a new one I think.Okay. 
- Once they pick up your scent, they can track you for life. Inconvenient.That's really interesting.
- They're nearly extinct.  Well, if they are THAT difficult to kill, this surprises me some. Hmmmm.... I don't know about that.

So, my conclusion: They took vampire lore, chewed it up in a blender an reshaped it into whatever they wanted just to be different.  

And the family dynamics become crystal clear.  I'm not Team John, but Sam?  Sam you look like an asshole too.  Seriously, what's up with that driving stunt and getting all up in John's face?  Testosterone overload.  And then there's Dean, playing peacemaker and getting squashed for it. But Dean DID seem to eventually get through to both of them.  So some survival instinct must kick in because they actually must love Dean enough to come off their individual rampages.  Loved Dean saying "that goes for you too.... way to boss Dad a bit Dean, do that some more.. will 'ya?"

OTOH, John Asshole Winchester. How DARE you berate Dean about the Impala.  You sound like such a DAD. An ASSHOLE DAD at that moment. After all they've been through and you take Dean to task on the car.  You're just taking out your wee-wee and trying to assert it's bigger.  Men.  Sometimes they piss me off.  (My apologize to the male population on the board, I know you ALL don't act like this... but this was about as realistic display of 'men behaving badly' that I've ever seen).  Side story: My daughter and I were in the kitchen one day and my then senior in high school son defeated some snotty kid on an internet Call of Duty video game.  He stands up shouts "YEAH! Take THAT!" and POUNDS HIS CHEST three or four times.Darling daughter and I just stood agape. What WAS THIS ALIEN STANDING IN MY LIVING ROOM?!?!  And that was our first exposure to an adult-version of testosterone overload moment.  Please note, my gentle giant of a son does not normally act like this.  This episode reminds me that sometimes that stuff is just below the surface.  So, John is an asshole but good job on showing it manifested in a realistic way.

Through S11 spoiler:

Spoiler

I think after Dean rebuilt the Impala at the start of S2, it became not only his "home" but also his lasting testament to his Dad.  Tough, takes a beating, but doesn't give up.  And it gives me feels.

I also really like the end music when it seems like the three are at last  united on the same page and are going to do great things.   

[DittyDotDot]

20 minutes ago, SueB said:

Well I'm about 6 days late for those doing a post S11 rewatch... but Real Life KICKED MY ASS this week.  And honestly, I wanted to savor these last three episodes of S1.

Don't worry @SueB, I think we're all watching at different rates. I had to go back to S5 because my life gets crazy buzy from now until mid-August and figured you guys might catch up to me. But, I'm tempted to watch S2 with y'all. I do love me some S2. ;)

22 minutes ago, SueB said:

OTOH, John Asshole Winchester. How DARE you berate Dean about the Impala.  You sound like such a DAD. An ASSHOLE DAD at that moment. After all they've been through and you take Dean to task on the car.  You're just taking out your wee-wee and trying to assert it's bigger.  Men.  Sometimes they piss me off.  (My apologize to the male population on the board, I know you ALL don't act like this... but this was about as realistic display of 'men behaving badly' that I've ever seen).

Yeah, they're all acting like asshats...except Dean, who just wants to do the damn job! I really adore how they went for the messy family dynamic. Family is messy, but messy in a good way.

[GirlyGeek]

8 hours ago, SueB said:

OTOH, John Asshole Winchester. How DARE you berate Dean about the Impala.

Ugh, YES!  That line reminded me SO MUCH of Missouri from the episode Home, I had to check and see if they were written by the same writers.
 

That was pure douche from John

[mertensia]

Vampires being able to tolerate the sun isn't new, though; Dracula is seen several times during the day in the novel. The book also talks about decapitation (and the burning their hearts) as a way to kill vampires.

[auntvi]

On June 11, 2016 at 7:21 PM, GirlyGeek said:

Not a fan (and I love vampires) of the SPN vampire at all.

The show really does take a different view of vampires. Vampires in books and on TV tend to become sympathetic characters (Anne Rice vampires are my favorite). In Supernatural they are as pure evil in the later seasons as they are in this episode, with the big exception of Benny.

[AwesomO4000]

... And Lenore. Lenore fell off the wagon due to Eve, but she wasn't really evil.

[Katy M]

I don't like vampires either.  But, I'll put up with them for SPN's sake.  What kind of bugged me about the "scent for life" and "mating for life" thing is that you would think Kate would be super-pissed that they killed her mate.  And, she has their scent for life. Yet 11 years later and nothing?  I suppose we could assume that some other hunter got her. 

[bettername2come]

Supernatural's vampire mythology isn't my favorite version, but I do enjoy the dead man's blood weakness.

"You were just pissed off you couldn't control me anymore!" Control definitely seems to be a running theme of Sam's storyline. I'm torn between loving the consistency and just wanting him to have have control over his life. 

I love the Colt story voiceover by John. It's one of those moments that got used in "The Road So Far" so many times that it's permanently etched into my brain.

I enjoy the conversation with Sam and John later at the hotel. They come to a nice understanding and it fits well with who I want John to be - screwed up but loving and protective father. His "you're my children...I can't lose my children" later in the episode kind of hammers that home for me.

Dean's "I told you I'd come back" to the people the vampires have captive gets me just because he never said it before so I'm convinced he said it to himself as a promise because he hates leaving people behind. Dean with a crossbow! Poor giant Sammy all crouched down in that headlock with no leverage. Badass John with the Colt to save Sammy!

Why? Why do the "yessirs" have such a profound effect on me?

[The Companion]

John is here and I have trouble reconciling his desire to protect and his willingness to put his sons on harm's way. I am definitely Team Sam with regard to his father's attitude. 

You almost have to have vampires in a show like this, but they felt pretty meh to me. It also seemed inconsistent for them to turn the random woman they picked up after talking about how few of them there were. If they aren't making vampires often, you would expect some thought behind the ones they make. 

I do like the continued tension regarding what could have been. The yearning for something different, while recognizing what Team Winchester has done. 

[ahrtee]

What I liked best is the verification of Dean being stuck in the middle, especially in the scene where John and Sam were in each other's faces, Dean split them up and then they both stalked off to their respective cars, leaving Dean in the road.  I felt for him.  

[DeeDee79]

2 hours ago, ahrtee said:

What I liked best is the verification of Dean being stuck in the middle, especially in the scene where John and Sam were in each other's faces, Dean split them up and then they both stalked off to their respective cars, leaving Dean in the road.  I felt for him.  

As did I. Dean's discomfort always seems to be overlooked.