How appropriate an episode entitled “Meta Fiction” that revisits the Winchester gospels would open with what I believe is the first Winchester shower scene in Supernatural history. This week’s episode was packed with all sorts of meta references that have scarcely been seen since Chuck the prophet was last on the scene. In his writer’s chair was Metatron, who opened the show with an appeal to camera that asked what makes a good story. Is it the plot? Characters? Does the writer give a story meaning or does the viewer assign value to the words they read or the pictures they see? Supernatural answered that question with the return of a beloved character that literally caused me to yell an expletive at my TV. I had no idea when the hotel porno came on what was happening until the door opened…
…and there stood GABRIEL! Of all the returning characters I thought might cameo this season, Gabriel was near the bottom of the list. I loved Richard Speight Jr.’s portrayal in Seasons 2 and 3 before it was even revealed that Loki was in fact Gabriel. The Trickster and his episodes are iconic among Supernatural faithful. I still remember when his true identity was revealed. Obviously I was disappointed when Gabriel was exposed as nothing more than a delusion brought on by Metatron to inspire Castiel to lead. The archangel was a livewire that could have added a nice spark to this season. Instead we’ll have to keep our fingers crossed that we’ll see some Casa Erotica reruns before the finale.
“Meta Fiction” essentially just moved the pieces around the board. That said, this was a fun episode because there were plenty of pieces to move. Throwing Metatron, Gadreel and Gabriel back into the mix shows why the writers made Season 9 the angel season. These characters have rich histories and are fully formed. With the amount of setup we’ve seen in the past 18 episodes, I sincerely hope that Metatron ends up being a worthy adversary. Time and time again we’ve seen season-long “big bads” fizzle out – Eve and Dick Roman come to mind. Metatron is such a slimeball (watch that scene in the ring of fire again) and his powers have been built up so much that anything less than an earth-shattering showdown with the Winchesters and Castiel would be underwhelming and disappointing. If they swerve from the angel storyline to deal with the war for Hell in the final minutes (the bizarro version of last year’s finale reversal) I will drive to Canada and set fire to the Impala in front of Jensen Ackles.
Not really. But I would be really upset.
This was a big episode for Castiel, who ended the hour as the leader of a seemingly doomed group of troops. I don’t understand why Castiel played right into Metatron’s hands by summoning these angelic soldiers. Metatron (through Gabriel) reiterated that Castiel had free will, so it’s not like he’s being coerced. Watching Metatron type out the story as it happened seemingly implied that Metatron can control fate, but we know that’s not the case. His powers remind me of Chuck’s prophetic powers. Perhaps Metatron has assumed the prophet’s role following Kevin’s death? That would make sense. He said he knew the ending to this season’s story. Maybe he killed Kevin so he could inherit that ability? Metatron as a character is obsessed with stories in all forms – TV, movies, and books – so having him ruthlessly seek out the power to know the ending to his own story is an appropriate move.
We’re closing in on the end of yet another season. There are a lot of plates spinning and I have faith that the writers won’t let them wobble and smash on the floor. Give us a satisfying conclusion in Heaven and Hell, let the Winchesters avenge Kevin’s death, and set up a juicy cliffhanger to launch us into next year.
We don’t ask for much.
Lines of the week
“We have some off-the-menu items, but this ain’t Diagon Alley, man.” – Shop Guy
“Used most of my juice to get back into porn. Thhhaaattt came out wrong.” – Gabriel
Next week on Supernatural
This seems like an odd time for Jodie and vampires.
