Abaddon done messed up now!
Any time you put the Impala in the crosshairs you become public enemy No. 1 to Dean Winchester. As a fan it’s a gut punch to see the Impala suffer damage at the hands of Abaddon’s cronies. I actually wrote in my notes that seeing the car in that condition was harder to take than Kevin’s death. I don’t really mean that but it is fascinating to see how the writers have made a car such an integral part of the Winchester family. In a way, the Impala represents everything Sam and Dean fight for – family, tradition, and freedom. With it the brothers have been free to traverse the country and continue the family business of saving people and hunting things. When this episode ended the brothers had no blade and Crowley was in the wind. Yet they were left empty-handed at the one place that offers them refuge whenever their crazy lives take a turn for the worse. (You could have said the same thing about the bunker before we found out it housed the Wicked Witch and was haunted.) Something tells me Dean will have his baby back to new in no time and the Winchesters will be back in business by next episode.
Outside of the terrific scenes with Magnus this episode felt scattered and unfocused. Look, we all know Crowley is the show’s most eccentric ongoing villain. This season has seen the brothers form an uneasy alliance with the king of Hell as they try to stop Abaddon, so I’m glad we’re seeing different sides of Crowley. Part of his charm is that he’s a complex antagonist. But what the writers did in this episode with the addiction, the hotel, and the old movies was borderline slapstick. By the end of the hour Crowley had already kicked his addiction and in doing so made this plot development feel even more extraneous and unnecessary. Then there was the bizarre Snooki cameo that was shamelessly played for laughs and instead elicited crickets. (Is that a shark I see?) The art institute heist using demons was a cool move that had me extremely confused since it followed the scene with Sam, Dean, and Crowley in the park. Of course the swerve was probably intentional to throw the audience off and the gut punch of the poor girl getting her neck sliced (gag) had the intended effect. I hate pointless deaths like that!
The episode found its sweet spot once the Winchester found Magnus and his invisible mansion. As much as I enjoyed the actor’s portrayal of this eccentric spell master, I found Magnus’ powers bordering on Godlike. He was literally ripping off spells left and right like he was Harry Potter. It’s just too bad he didn’t turn on the invincibility spell or the super hearing spell as Dean snuck up on him. Alas, another villain gone too soon. Thankfully Supernatural isn’t short on recurring bad guys this season. I have to wonder where Castiel was during this episode. Having an angel on your side would definitely assist in tracking down Crowley, or better yet, the blade. I have to wonder why Dean didn’t ask Castiel to help him in the first place since it’s fair to assume the angel has the same kind of powers Crowley does. I mean, Castiel was a god at one point. I’d think he could search the ocean just as easily.
As we come down the home stretch of episodes in this ninth season I hope the writers can focus on each storyline and deliver the goods they’ve been promising all season. Crowley vs. Abaddon. Sam vs. Dean. Castiel vs. Metatron and Gadreel. There are a lot of plates spinning this season. Last year the biggest one crashed to the floor in the final hour. I hope lightning doesn’t strike twice.
Line of the week
“Are we just gonna let Hell go to Hell?!” – Dean
Next week on Supernatural
Henry Winchester visits a nun. That sounds like the start of a bad joke.
