SUPERNATURAL: Sympathy for the Devil - Give Me My Remote : Give Me My Remote

SUPERNATURAL: Sympathy for the Devil

September 11, 2009 by  

Welcome back everyone! I hope you all enjoyed your summer and you’re ready to get back into serious television again, because Supernatural is back people! If you read my pre-premiere post, you saw that our fearless leader GMMR noted that she can’t read my posts until she’s caught up on season four (which she will be shortly). She’s tacked the whole series over the summer and I’m sure she’ll be eager to join the discussion soon. There were also a couple of admitted SPN converts in the comments on my last post (hi Kimber and Kelly!), and Patty’s racking up recruits like a military sergeant (no idea if sergeants do actual recruiting), so I’m looking forward to some new fans joining the discussions this year.

Before we even get to the episode, I have to give a shout out to the awesome “Then” sequence at the start – in particular, the inspired use of AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” as the soundtrack. Did that not get you even more psyched than you already were for the premiere?? Two seconds in and I was in my happy place; god I love this show so much. I also loved the new title card, with the white background and swirly blood-like splash of colour – very cool.

With that said, obviously, if you haven’t watched yet, there are SPOILERS ahead, so read at your own peril. Sam and Dean are back at the church, where Lucifer is rising from Hell (and I swear by the sound effects, I half expected him to bust out of there on a giant Harley). One minute they’re locked in, about to be confronted by the devil himself and the next, they’re watching Yosemite Sam on a Jet Blue-style airplane television screen. Wuuuhhh? For a split second I was afraid we were in for one of those “it was all a dream” tv clichés, and then I remembered what show I was watching – they would never do that to us (actually, they might, but you know SPN would even do that cliché in an awesome way). The plane suddenly flies over the beam emanating from the church where Lucifer is making his entrance and it looks like they may crash, however somehow they manage to land and the brothers get off the plane, wondering what the hell just happened.

They head to Chuck’s house, my second-favourite new addition to the show after the beloved Castiel, to see if he can shed some light on what’s going on. They find him in a state of post-traumatic stress disorder, surrounded by debris and looking like he was hit by a truck. He explains that Castiel was smoted to death by the archangel, causing him to explode all over Chuck’s house, even leaving a molar lodged in Chuck’s hair. Here’s why Chuck is great: we’re at a point in the story that things are pretty consistently intense, and Sam and Dean are in a dark place in their relationship as brothers. As a result, it just wouldn’t seem natural if the two of them easily slipped into lighthearted mode every week. Enter Chuck – just when you thought there was nothing to make you smile, he makes the understatement of the year by summing up the burgeoning Apocalypse with a defeated “this sucks ass”. Zachariah informs the guys that Lucifer is searching for a vessel and once he finds one things are going to get ugly. Of course Dean is still mighty pissed at the way he and Sam were used by the angels to start the Apocalypse, so he calls him an asshat. That’ll learn him. Zachariah explains that the Sword of Michael is up for grabs – the very sword the angel Michael used to send Lucifer to hell the first time. The demons want it, and so do the angels. Dean wants Z out of his face, so he uses Cas’ blood on the wall trick to get rid of them.

One of the most bizarre and hilarious moments of the show came when we saw a girl feverishly writing some Supernatural fanfiction of the slash variety. In her story, Sam was caressing Dean’s clavicle, while Dean reminded him how wrong what they were doing was. Uh…ya think?! Yet despite how very, very wrong this was, it was also hysterical. I’m sure that the SPN slash writers around the world were loving the recognition they received from the show. Prophet Chuck then skyped in, interrupting her writing to ask her to do him a favour. While Becky was freaking out that her heroes were actually real, Chuck asked her to get a message to them, which she was more than happy to do. She arrived at their hotel and proceeded to molest Sam while telling Dean he “wasn’t what she had imagined”. So I guess Becky’s a Sam Girl, huh? She tells them the sword is in a castle on a hill of 42 dogs. Say what?

After Becky leaves the guys call Bobby to the hotel to help them out. Sam is clearly tortured over what he did last year and the fact that he was responsible for breaking the final seal – he wants to express all of this to Dean, but Dean isn’t having it. Bobby is willing to listen, but then he pulls a very un-Bobby like move by blowing up at Sam and telling him he never wants to see him again if they manage to survive what’s ahead. Even though I thought something had to be up for Bobby to say those things, it was painful to watch. Sam, devastated, leaves for a little while and suddenly Dean recalls a business card of his dad’s for Castle Storage Facility at 42 Rover Hill. Convenient, that memory of his. Once they determine that the sword must be there, we learn why Bobby was acting so un-Bobby like – he’s possessed of course. We’re then re-introduced to our old demon friend Meg, now played by actress Rachel Minor. She wants Dean dead and she wants Bobby to do it, but of course Bobby is strong enough to resist the demon possessing him, and manages to stab himself. Meg takes off and Sam and Dean rush Bobby to the hospital.

Later, the brothers head to the storage facility, where they find some bodies as well as Zachariah and some other angels. Z tells Dean that he IS Michael’s sword, so to speak. He is the vessel that Michael must possess in order to defeat Lucifer. So THAT’S how Dean is supposed to defeat the big bad. Once again we’re reminded of how divergent the brother’s paths are – Sam chosen by Lucifer to break the final seal, and Dean chosen by…God, I guess, to ultimately defeat the devil and save the world. Pretty big stakes. But Dean isn’t having it – he knows that Michael needs his consent to possess him, and he’s not giving in. Z then pulls some horrible tricks to get him to agree – telling him that he’ll heal Bobby if he says yes and paralyze him if he refuses. He then breaks Sam’s legs, gives Dean stage 4 stomach cancer and finally removes Sam’s lungs. I love that this show gives us bad guys on both sides of purgatory – and Z is an extraordinary bad guy, isn’t he? I hate him so much, but I love having him on the show. Just when all hope is lost, who shows up? Castiel of course! He enters swinging, killing angels left and right, and orders Zachariah to fix what he’s done. It’s pretty easy to convince him, since Cas hints that the reason he is alive again (and the reason Dean and Sam were placed on the airplane at the beginning) is on the direct order of someone pretty important. Who else can this be but God, right?

I’m thinking that we’re in for the brothers, Cas, Chuck and some others working with God, while both sides battle and try to kill and/or use Sam and Dean. I’m also kind of scared that since they’re setting up Dean to be Michael’s vessel at the end, we may see Sam as a vessel for Lucifer at some point in order to set up a brother against brother battle. Am I getting ahead of myself? I hope so.

One more MAJOR point to be taken from last night is the possession of Mark Pellegrino’s new character by Lucifer. The show wasn’t called “Sympathy for the Devil” for nothing, huh? They set up that storyline perfectly, to the point where I was aching for this guy by the end. I could see why he would agree to be the vessel and want to serve justice on a seemingly hateful or indifferent God. The only question I have is, did Lucifer purposefully have the guy’s family killed to put him in the state of desperation he was in, or was L telling the truth, and simply drawn to this guy because of his mental state?

Things ended on a very sad note, with Dean explaining to Sam that he didn’t think any amount of apologizing on Sam’s part could make things right between them again. I mean, the guy did choose a demon over his brother, with disastrous results. After all of the brother angst of last year, I was kind of hoping for a return to the team dynamic early on, but the payoff wouldn’t be as sweet unless they make us wait for it, right? Besides, after what happened, it would seem a little strange if they were able to just put it all behind them right away. That being said, I absolutely want my big “we’re family and that’s all that matters” emotional scene and I expect we’ll get it at some point.

So much to talk about – how fabulous was this episode as a set up to the new season? For a show that had to take care of a lot of exposition, they handled it beautifully. Who else are you hoping to see return this year, besides Meg? Speaking of, do we like Rachel Minor, or do you miss Meg 1.0? So far, I’m on the fence. What about Becky the Slash Writer – do you want her to return? My feeling is that she could be funny, in small doses. Lastly, are there any two actors on tv right now who do the crying/trying not to cry thing better than J & J? Seriously – they kill me every damn time. Discussion starts……now!

Comments

25 Responses to “SUPERNATURAL: Sympathy for the Devil”

  1. Kimber on September 11th, 2009 1:13 pm

    Supernatural was great last night! I got into the series over the summer, and only managed to watch S4 in reruns (ending with the S4 finale last Thursday), but that was enough to hook me, and to give me a bit of insight into the backstory. I normally tape the episodes and save them for Saturday morning (because “bad things are less scary in the morning light”!), but I decided to give Thursday nights a go, and was rewarded. Great episode! I agree with everything you said .. Castiel’s return was awesome (LOVE him! Misha *and* Cas), Becky the slash writer was hilarious, and I would love to have her back, and the vessel about to become Lucifer … oh, dear. Disturbing, but pain, and yet … good. I like your idea of Lucifer possibly arranging the death of his family, in an effort to “line things up”. That hadn’t occurred to me before, but now you’ve got me wondering.

  2. ColoradoKila on September 11th, 2009 1:38 pm

    So frakkin’ glad SN is back, and they came back with a vengeance. Maybe it is just because I miss this show so much when it is away, but this episode was all kinds of emotions wrapped in one for me: giddy, sad, broken hearted, freaked out and thrilled all at the same time.

    1) I love it when Sam gives people pet names like “ass hat” – gives me permission to do it in real life
    2) Loved your point about Chuck adding a lighter element to the show, had not thought of it that way, I love bloggers/posters that are smarter than me!
    3) The hilarious ode to fan girls was awesome, hey, I can laugh at myself!
    4) Bobby/Demon & Sam scene – broke my heart to pieces, I knew it couldn’t be true, but it was so well acted it hurt my SN soul a little bit
    5) Could not agree more about hating my Winchester Brothers apart, I so want them to work this out, it pains me when they are like this, but I think they want us to feel this pain. Hopefully all the sweeter when they are together kicking demon ass again.

    Seriously spectacular opening to what I hope is an amazing season. The cast keeps getting better, each major and minor character has a path and has been cast pretty well IMO.

    Thanks for the recap. I am off to watch it again this evening. Once was not enough.

  3. Patty on September 11th, 2009 2:56 pm

    I loved the new title card. I will start with that! And the opening? Perfect.

    I am still confused about the airplane deal. Not sure if I buy God being behind it. Maybe Cas has a gang of powerful angels? I am not activily looking at spoilers so other than casting stuff anything I write at this point is pure speculation.

    That said, I think I might be a little disappointed if Dean was all “it’s OK Sammy, I forgive you for chosing that bitch Ruby over me.” There has to be some emotional crap these next couple of weeks. I don’t think the brothers will be apart for long though. It’s my firm belief that they are strongest together. To actually have a chance to win this war, it’s got to be THEM against Lucifer (and Zach the asshat) and whoever else. From the previews of next week? Exciting reurns of some of our favorite hunters! Yeah! Ellen!

    I have only watched once but will probably have more ramblings after I rewatch. I still have one friend I want to get hooked but she is a chicken and is still resisting!

    Oh! And I don’t know if I buy Dean as Michael’s vessal. WTF? Then why the storage unit thing? I am confused…

    I am just going to ramble now.

    Very bloody episode and more than a little gross at parts. Is Anna coming back? Was Meg only in this one episode? Maybe we will have a traveling meatsuit Meg. I saw that Kripke said they are really having fun with this season so maybe Chuck and the fandom will be a big help in fighting Lucifer? Lucifer brought down by the Sword of God and slash fanfic?

  4. Nicole on September 11th, 2009 4:31 pm

    LOL Patty with “Lucifer brought down by the Sword of God and slash fanfic”!! Only on SPN would that even be within the realm of possibility. I also thought the same thing you did re: Dean as a vessel – then why the storage locker detour? And does this mean that Dean may defeat Lucifer only in body, and not in spirit? As in, it will really be Michael doing all of the work? I don’t know if I like that idea… And I totally didn’t mention Ellen’s return next week – I’m so excited for that!

    Kimber – so glad you’re watching this year! I couldn’t agree with you more about Cas/Misha. He’s super dreamy, especially when he’s in ass kicking mode. And that subplot with Lucifer’s vessel WAS disturbing; I think the thing that got to me most wasn’t even the blood spilling out of the crib – it was his face, listening to Lucifer. His pain was palpable. I’m not overly familiar with him (mainly because I’m behind on Lost), but Mark Pellegrino seems to have some serious acting chops.

    ColoradoKila – thanks for the comments! I also love asshat and use it freely (incidentally, I think the first time I heard the word was on this very site). And I agree that the Brothers United are sorely missed – it’s going to be so great when they kiss and make up (in a non-slash way, that is). I think Patty’s right – we’ll likely see them unite sooner rather than later so they can spend the rest of the season becoming stronger and kicking butt. I think tears are in the forecast for when that ultimately happens – it’s been a long time!

  5. Kelly on September 11th, 2009 8:35 pm

    I was so ridiculously excited for the season premiere that I thought there was no way it could live up to my expectations, but, boy, did it ever! Astounding ep! There was so much I loved about it. It brought the funny, the angst, the action, the heart, and a great continuation of the story line. Two parts of the ep really stood out for me. The first was the storyline surrounding Lucifer’s vessel. Oh, how my heart broke for that guy. He’s reeling from this awful tragedy and here Lucifer comes, completely sympathetic to the guy’s pain and promising him justice. I too wonder if he’s responsible for his family’s death or just capitalizing on his mental distress. I do believe that Lucifer is a charming liar, speaking to the “vessel” in just the way that he knows he’ll respond to. So sneaky and manipulative to use the guise of the dead wife. The scenes with the baby monitor and bloody crib were just gut-wrenching. Although on a funny note, just when the guy was about to look in the crib and it was all tense, someone knocked on my door and I literally *shrieked*. We’re talking blood-curdling scream here. Heh… at least no nightmares!

    The second part that particularly affected me were the scenes between Sam and Dean where Sam was attempting to explain to Dean. As much as Dean was protesting that they simply needed to move forward, I knew that eventually it would come to a head. Dean has always been the type of character to go the avoidance route when dealing with tough issues (look how long it took Dean to tell Sam what had really happened to him in Hell), but there was no way he could continue to pretend that everything was okay. The end of the ep left me so sad that the brother’s relationship is fractured, but I’m excited for the emotional payoff that will happen when Dean is finally able to forgive Sam. I agree that it will be much sweeter if we have to wait for it, but the meantime is going to be difficult! As much as I love the mythology-driven eps of the show, I almost need a little monster-of-the-week business (including the funny!) after so heavy of an ep. I don’t usually get quite so invested in shows, but man, Supernatural actually makes me FEEL for these characters!

    Oh, and about the storage unit thing that Patty asked about– I think it was the evil douchey angel Zachariah who implanted the info in Chuck, who told Becky the creepy but hilarious slash girl, who told Sam and Dean so they would go to the storage unit. Because Sam and Dean had the hex bags, the angels couldn’t find them so they had to be lured to a place where the angels could intercept them. The talk of the “sword” at the storage unit was just a ruse.

  6. Joan on September 12th, 2009 8:17 am

    Good Lord I love this show! Seriously, I am a grown woman and this show gets to me more than any other TV series ever has. I loved ‘Alias’ and it was always my ‘go to’ show prior to my finding this fabulous show but my obsession, with all things Winchester, holds no bounds. There was so much to love about this premiere. There was action, laughter, an interesting storyline, jaw-dropping reveals and heart-breaking family dynamics. I hope Dean and Sam can find a way to mend their shattered relationship because the ending just killed me but I am glad the rift is continuing because it makes sense and Dean’s reaction to rings true and it is authentic. Sam means more to him than anything else. Trust is important to Dean and it is the core of the bond he has with his brother. Dean would do anything for Sammy and he has proven that. I don’t think it is going to be an easy road for the two of them but they are stronger when they fight together so I know they will find a way to mend their relationship. I just don’t think it is going to happen overnight. Jensen and Jared and Misha and Jim and ‘Chuck’ were fantastic. Oh, and the fan girl! HILARIOUS!

    I am so excited about where this season is headed!

    BTW – I love your reviews! I have been a faithful, longtime reader, but this is my first post. 🙂

  7. Nicole on September 12th, 2009 12:15 pm

    Hey Kelly – it absolutely didn’t occur to me that the angels had to lure Sam and Dean somewhere because of the hex bags – that would explain the need for the storage locker ruse. Good point! I guess now that they have Cas’ protection symbol CARVED ON THEIR FREAKING RIBS, they won’t have to worry about silly little hex bags anymore. I forgot to mention that scene in my review, but I loved J & J’s expressions when Cas told them about the rib-carving – too funny.

    Joan – thank you so much for posting and for the awesome compliment! I hope you continue to join in this season – I have a feeling there’s going to be a LOT to discuss every week. I completely agree with you about Dean’s trust issues with Sam – the brothers have done and sacrificed everything for each other over the last four years, so for Sam to not only choose to side with someone besides Dean, but the demon-bitch Ruby at that, has to be the ultimate blow. Whenever they end up resolving their issues, I will be there to watch, and I will probably be sobbing like a big baby. 🙂

    For anyone who didn’t get to see this on Thursday (like me – my dvr didn’t record it), here is the official promo for episode 2, “Good God, Y’all” (I will never tire of SPN episode titles – they’re like the icing on the cake):

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8QbORhvkT0&feature=related

  8. Kimber on September 12th, 2009 4:37 pm

    Nicole – thanks for the ep2 preview! Because I’m in Canada, and Supernatural also airs on a Canadian channel, the previews at the end are never shown. 🙁 So I usually miss out any previews for any American show, that our stations also air. I appreciated seeing this preview, and now I’m even more excited for next week (y’all!).

  9. Nicole on September 12th, 2009 5:26 pm

    No problem Kimber – I feel your pain as a fellow Canuck (T.Dot represent! Sorry – I hate the term T.Dot, but I couldn’t resist :)). On the digital channel that I watch it on (I think it’s the cw affiliate based in Georgia or something), I sometimes get a preview, sometimes not. I usually have to search them out online because of dvr cut off times, or the fact that it wasn’t shown at all. Frustrating! Btw, I love your icon – it always makes me smile.

  10. Jane on September 12th, 2009 7:02 pm

    When Sam and Dean flashed onto the plane which moments later seemed like it was about to go down, I half wanted them to appear on a certain island, maybe circa 1977. I could totally see them in Dharma gear, Dean cracking open some Dharma bear with LaFleur.

  11. melissa on September 12th, 2009 8:21 pm

    Does anyone remember if Sam was ever told that Dean “broke the first seal” when he was in hell? I wonder when that little piece of info. will come out? Considering Dean’s justifiable distrust of Sam, the writers could certainly put it to good use. Angst abounds….. Any thoughts?
    I still don’t get the plane scene. Did Dean refer to it as “soul plane”?
    Thanks for writing the review!!

  12. Evan Marie on September 13th, 2009 10:16 pm

    What an amazing episode, I knew there was a reason I loved this show so much and ‘Sympathy For The Devil’ was a perfect example why. A few of my fav moments were:

    -Chuck was awesome, him hitting Sam in the head with the toliet plunger, his lines were hilerous, ‘this sucks a**’ funny stuff
    -Bobby was amazing, him possessed was scary and awesome at the same time, his interactions with Sam both when he was possessed and when he wasn’t was heart breakingly good
    -Cas kicked butt, whom ever or what ever put him back together, turbo charged him. He kicked butt and owned those angels. Love me some Cas
    -Dean and Sam, Holy Mary Mother of Dean (and Sam) they were phenominal. They both break my heart, so much but I’m glad that they are being honest about his feelings and not glossing over things

    If this episode is anything to go by this season is going to kick butt.

  13. Nicole on September 13th, 2009 11:50 pm

    Hi Jane, Melissa and Evan Marie!

    Jane – I thought of Lost immediately too. I was waiting for an announcement that they were on Oceanic Flight 815!

    Melissa – A great point, and one that I neglected to bring up, but it also occurred to me while watching the episode. Dean is so angry at his brother for breaking the final seal, but he did break the first one. I am not 100% sure if Sam knows this but I can’t think of a scene where he found out. I could be just forgetting though – I’d have to re-watch the last few eps of season 4 to be sure.

    Evan Marie – some of my favourite bits about the episode! I love what Chuck and Castiel are bringing to the show, and Bobby has always been a beloved character for me (so hard to watch him verbally spank Sam!). And we all know by now the serious talent of Jared and Jensen, but it can’t be said enough!

  14. SB on September 14th, 2009 1:03 pm

    Hey, I’m waaaaay late to the party but I had my hands full this week with Vampire Diaries, but I just had to stop in and give my favorite show a little love! I thought it was great, right on down to Macaulay Culkin’s ex-wife as Meg! Yup, that was her. And I know Ellen is coming back next week, but I thought I caught Jo in there too! I think I may be in the minority, but I kind of miss her, so I’m really excited.

  15. Joan on September 14th, 2009 1:11 pm

    Hi Nicole! You are really welcome. 🙂 You are a true fangirl so that is why I love coming here and reading your reviews. Is it Thursday yet? Take care, Joan

  16. Nicole on September 14th, 2009 1:30 pm

    Hey SB! I see that the VD’s post is pretty popular! I haven’t watched yet – to be honest, it wasn’t even on my radar but now I may have to check it out.

    Jo is coming back as well (as is Rufus), but I just missed Ellen so much I neglected to mention the rest. I have no problem with Jo, but I think you’re right – she fell into the “female character on Supernatural” trap where female actresses are torn asunder by fans. Maybe she’ll get a little more love this time ’round. Besides – she was on Veronica Mars, so I am obligated to respect and admire her. 🙂 One of my favourite scenes from the show is when Sam goes dark and taunts Jo about their fathers (“My daddy shot your daddy in the heeeaaaadddd…..” – LOVE dark Sam!!)

    Joan – thanks again; I’m blushing! See you back here on Friday!!!

  17. SB on September 14th, 2009 3:48 pm

    Oh yeah, VD is a great guilty pleasure show, you should join the party!

    You know who I miss from the Harvelle’s gang? That guy … what was his name? The mullet guy that knew lots of stuff? ASH! I loved that guy. He was one of my saddest Supernatural killins. I’m going to have to pour one out for him on Thursday.

  18. Nicole on September 14th, 2009 4:27 pm

    Oh my god, Ash!! I LOVED Ash. I’ll pour one out for him too. Hold the phone!! I just did a very quick search for a great Ash quote, and instead found this:

    Series creator Eric Kripke stated that Ash’s apparent death “had to do with how much I hated the actual Roadhouse itself rather than anyone in it.” As for the character’s return, Kripke replied, “Ash is a possibility”.

    Well, well, well….this is from Wikipedia and I have no idea how old the quote is, but let’s keep the hope alive!

  19. angiep213 on September 14th, 2009 7:31 pm

    Way way way late to the party on this one…. I’m one of Patty’s twitter recruits. 🙂 Caught up on the whole series over the summer and am so in love with this show it’s probably a bit unhealthy.

    I didn’t take Dean’s ill feelings towards Sam as anger for breaking the seal, but more for everything that led up to him breaking the seal – sneaking around with Ruby, the demon blood, breaking their trust, the fight in the honeymoon suite and Sam effectly choosing Ruby over him by walking out when he gave him the ultimatum of ‘you walk out and we’re done’. While Dean loves reveling in the family angst, unfair blame hasn’t been too big of a factor in their relationship. Dean breaking the original seal has to come out eventually…. they both broke a seal. Not sure “calling it even” works when it comes to letting Lucifer roam free, but they both played their part. (though to be fair even though Dean may have broken the first one – the guy was in Hell being tortured after all)

    Loved loved love CrazyFanGirl and Sam moment
    “Can you stop touching me?”
    INSTANT NO. Can’t blame the girl, really. 🙂

  20. Nicole on September 14th, 2009 11:05 pm

    Hi angiep, so glad you took Patty’s advice to watch the show – I’ve been trying to get certain friends to watch but some still resist. As you now know, once you delve into the Winchester world, it’s pretty addicting. I think you’re totally right about Dean being more hurt and angry re: Sam’s betrayal rather than the fact that he broke the last seal. Dean did play a role in Lucifer’s rise, but he never betrayed his family like that. Also, the instant “no” from the fangirl had me cracking up – it’s what everyone would WANT to say, but most never would. 🙂

  21. SB on September 15th, 2009 12:31 pm

    ASH IS A POSSIBILITY! I would die, right here, right now, on the floor. And what did Kripke mean by hating the Roadhouse? Isn’t he the showrunner, and therefore, you know, in charge of stuff like that?

  22. Nicole on September 15th, 2009 5:26 pm

    Haha! Exactly – I doubt the CW was holding a gun to his head just to ensure that a roadhouse appeared in the show for a little while. If Ash came back, that would be pretty epic; they only identified him by his watch, right? Anyone could have been wearing that watch…

  23. Nayant on September 16th, 2009 3:40 pm

    Woohoo! I got 4 converts this summer: a sam-girl, a dean-girl and 2 impala-boys! ;D

    I just re-watched Sympathy and have to say: LOVED IT HUZZAH! It hit me like Goldilocks finding baby bear’s porridge and bed.

    For a while now I’ve been of the opinion that AC/DC makes every show better and hearing Thunderstruck, put me in my happy place too Nicole. Actually, it had me bouncing off the ceiling, cause just sitting down to the season premier, put me in my super happy place!

    Bobby was awesome, as were Chuck, Cas and the very chilling Z. I loved Nicki Aycox but thought Rachel Miner ROCKED it- sneering, snarky and sadistic- what’s not to love?!

    Glad to see the formula hasn’t changed, up front and center are the chick flick moments of Sam and Dean’s relationship which (to me) makes this show so very good. In addition this ep set the stage for a season of continued character development: for Sam (the Believer) the search for redemption and for Dean (the Agnostic) having to face that there really is a God. Can I just say, my favorite thing about this episode was that GOD remains unfathomable to all in the SPN universe, including the angels. Was it God that yanked them onto the plane, brought Cas back, cleared Sam’s demon addiction?

    Another thing I really liked about this episode was the seduction of the Vessel. Maybe seduction isn’t the right word, but how else does the devil convince you. Nicole, I don’t believe Lucifer had the vessel’s family killed, I think he was attracted to him- similar to the way, Cas found the accountant. This story line is going to be SWEET for sure! SPN’s creators stated implicitly at Comic Con, that Lucifer doesn’t lie and that he would be a very sympathetic character. The vessel’s back-story just encourages this even more.

    Regarding the ‘first seal’ issue brought up above, I don’t think it matters that Dean broke the first Seal, since Lucifer’s rising started way, way, way before that. For the Winchesters’ it started with Mary’s deal with YED. So, like the Iraq invasion, it’s done, we’re there, we’re stuck for the foreseeable future. Pointing fingers and playing a blame game wont help so why do it?

    For the supernatural character I’d like to see again it’s Missouri for sure! I have a feeling Bobby is going to be preoccupied with other issues (okay it’s not a just feeling, I saw the previews) so he’ll be unable to smack the bros into fixing their relationship. Missouri would whip them into shape faster than Dean could get his feet off her coffee table. 🙂

    The other character I’d like to see again- boy will this make me unpopular- is Bella. She was so tragic. I think she deserves some chance for redemption. Plus Sammy may finally live out his trench coat fantasy. 😛

    Gawd, I missed this show!

  24. Nayant on September 16th, 2009 3:52 pm

    Ohh forgot to add:

    Nicole: Thank you for your awesome review and recap as always!

    And Angiep215: I think you are spot on!

  25. Nicole on September 17th, 2009 9:40 am

    Hey Nayant! That is AWESOME about the 4 converts – good job! I hadn’t heard the quote from Comic Con about Lucifer not being able to lie, so that certainly clears up my question about Nick’s family. Thanks for posting that. I also like your point about the fact that this whole mess started back with YED and Mary – there isn’t really a point in laying blame when the entire Winchester family has been manipulated into participating in the big scheme. But again, I think Dean is more pissed about Sam choosing Ruby rather than breaking the final seal, so I’m sure he’ll manage to hold onto the angst for a little while longer (but not too long, please!).

    I have to say how happy it makes me to see all of you guys so into this show and contributing to the discussion – it really makes the show that much more enjoyable when you have a bunch of cool people to bounce ideas and questions off of afterward. It’s Thursday – only 11 1/2 more hours to go until episode 2!