7.21 Reaction

[ash48]

Perhaps CONFUSED?! UNDERWHELMED, ANNOYED! What the hell was that?!

Yeah.. so, um... TURN BACK NOW because I am seriously struggling to find anything good to say about this one. Sorry. :(

I can't pinpoint whether it was bad direction, bad writing, bad acting or the fact that the writer was also the director (writer/director is a tricky combo to get right). It was Ben Edlund so I'm surprised it was so awful. He's written some pretty good episodes (Bad Day at Black Rock probably my favourite of his) but his directing is yet to impress me. This is his second directing gig for SPN (other one being The Man Who Would be King) and to be honest I'd think like to see it stay that way.

It was both too much and not enough. Too much new information (most of which made little sense) and not enough... well, everything else. It lacked energy and the pacing was woeful. It lacked the crucial element of tension. The was no build up - no urgency what so ever (compared to say last week that had us on the edge of our seats). It's not really fair to mention the bad acting because I think a director is mostly to blame for that but wow... there were some seriously medicore performances in there. I'm sorry but Hester never convinced me. Meg was better than last time I thought but there were still some issues.

I suppose I enjoyed Misha's performance. There were some nice laugh out loud moments but because the whole episode had that feeling of "what the hell is going on" he was kinda lost in there. There were some lovely little moments but they were surrounded with some truly awful ones. Something I did like was the feeling that he really was seeing "everything". I actually think that an opportunity was missed here to appreciate Castiel's plight. Or to connected with him in any way.

I suppose the thing that annoyed me the most was ALL THAT was going on in the hospital and NO ONE WAS AROUND! Ever! Hospitals are busy places... or did I miss something? Was there an explanation for why they could be going in and out like it was their home, chase and knock people out on the grounds etc.? Did I zone out and miss that? I just. IT MADE NO SENSE!

I did like Kevin Tran, but again because there was so much going on his character drew little interest or sympathy.

Our boys were sidelined and became observers. They seemed so out of their depth, (which might have been the whole point), but by doing that I felt we lost the connection to what was going on. We were left as damn confused as they were.

Some of the jokes seemed to be there just for us. Which, ok, sometimes that's fun but in an episode like this it felt try-hard. I'm not sure it ever made up it's mind what kind of episode it was going to be. It started of a little quirky, got quite serious, then there was that strange moment with action music, moments where Cas was "connecting" with first Sam and then Dean. Throw in suggested Cas/Meg romance and... yeah. A COMPLETE MESS!

So the boys now know how to kill the Leviathans. I probably should be more excited about that but I think because the way it came about seems so contrived I have little excitement for it. I suppose it might depend how they use that information now.

There's a lot more but I think I'm just depressing myself the more I write.

ACK!!! I DON'T KNOW?!! Is it just me? Am I being too harsh? Does it need a second viewing to appreciate it? (please no!) Other than some funny one liners was there actually anything good about that ep that I missed?

Sorry to be so negative. It's not usually like me. I always try to look for the positive but I'm struggling with this one. Thank God there are 2 more episodes. Please Show be building up to something interesting - something that actually involves the boys rather than having them watch other characters. Something that makes some sense would be good...*sigh*

Comments

[ruby-jelly.livejournal.com]

OK - just watched ep 21, and wanted your opinion, how sad is that? Why did the angel's bleed black goo, but Castiel red blood? Phooey; go and read your ops now, 'cos feeling impatient! :(

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Hee... out of the whole ep it was the very last bit that I liked the best. The angels at the end where "filled" with black goo and killed (like Cas was when they took him over in the beginning). Leviathans trump angels (which probably makes no sense because why didn't Cas really die when he was over taken by them?). I think both angels and demons bleed red - well, their vessels do (ack! don't even get me started on the constant holes re vessels...) so that makes sense to me.

But.. (do you mind if I keep whinging?) I find it all too convenient that they need the blood of a fallen angel to help kill the Leviathans. Hmmm.. handy that they happen to know one.... (though God knows all I suppose so maybe he knew that they were going to need that when The Word was written. Maybe it's all part of him cunning plan...*nods*)

[ruby-jelly.livejournal.com]

I kept feeling impatient - hey, get back to the action, please. And then they were hanging around the hospital; just hanging around chatting! And then Sam left, LEFT, the damn rock in the bag, on the floor, unsecured. Dean playing "Sorry". I think there was a lot of double information to be gleaned, but I felt myself getting irritated! I was more anxious than them, which may have been an effect of reacting to Kevin's experience, rather than their laid back time in Cas's room. BUT, why hang around when they could go to ground and be safe?

I'm ashamed to say, that when they returned to the hospital room with Kevin (WHAT?), I thought: sound stage, same set, easy filming / reducing costs!

Background Sound could have been used to indicate a busy (or sleeping) hospital ward, even if we didn't actually see other patients. Just doors opening, trolleys, yells, conversations, etc.

And when Dean started in with the heavy duty angst, I just got impatient, but they were addressing the "You started all this", I guess. Although, I did love Castiel's opinion of Sam's personality, hee heee.

You're right - Edlund should stick to writing, and I think he favoured Cas over the Winchesters, especially with worthy lines. I did like how Sam said "Hello Castiel". It was respectful, awed, affectionate. Of course, that's the actor choice. But, I'm with you, I hate seeing the Boys side-lined

You know: just bugger. If Show doesn't deliver, just poop. It was a little self-aware too, with such exposition as:"Crowley isn't this years problem" or similar.

Feeling really disappointed, but thankfully, Season 8!!! Woo hoo!!

Good-bye Castiel, and thanks for all the fish, ummm, blood.

[fourtenpm.livejournal.com]

My opinion of the episode improved somewhat, though not much, upon second viewing. The jokes are not really funny, 'cause they are trying too hard to be funny. Especially the sex torture dungeon line, I mean, that is the first thing popping out of a 16-year old honor student in AP?　

I actually liked the idea of angels being pissed off by Castiel's smote/disappear act, but, Hester's anger was way too forced, more like a menopausal unstable woman than a righteously angry angel; and what's-his-name, I mean the other angel, seemed too eager to please. These new angels are just off.

I have made my peace with the general swiss cheese plot line of the show though, it amuses me.

Good thing about this episode? Well, Sam and Dean seem to be back to the place where they can communicate with eyebrows again.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Oh? Improved on the second viewing? Hmmm... maybe I better try it then.

Some of the jokes were weird - especially in the way they were repeated. Like we wouldn't have got it the first time. Like the sex torture dungeon and the transformers joke. And yeah... why would he even say that?

I get that other angels would be pissed at Cas's disappearing act. That does make some sense I suppose. Maybe it's because it feels like a story line from last year that it felt so jarring.

Sam and Dean seem to be back to the place where they can communicate with eyebrows again.

Hee. Yeah. I like it when they do that. They are definitely much more on the same page these days. Which is nice. :)

[zebra363.livejournal.com]

The only thing I liked about it was Dean patting Sam on the arm at the end. I've been keen to see your reaction to check if I was being too harsh! Sam not having heard of the angel Metatron was particularly jarring.

Meg's voice bothered me much more this time. Some of those angel-heavy scenes reminded me of S4 (do not want).

[ash48.livejournal.com]

The only thing I liked about it was Dean patting Sam on the arm at the end

Ha! Yes! You know.. when that happened I actually said out loud (to myself!) that's the only brotherly moment in the whole episode. I suppose we should be grateful we at least got that...

And Sam not knowing the name of the angel is very jarring. One moment he's the geek that knows everything, the next he isn't. I know it was purely in there for the Transformers joke (but wow.. how laboured was that joke? !)

The angels just aren't doing it for me. I didn't mind some of them in S4 (mostly because they had purpose) but now? Definitely feeling tacked on and pointless.

Oh Show. This is why you make me nervous going into each episode.

xx

[greyowl88.livejournal.com]

Omg! What a bizarre episode! I loved it! \O/

Now, I'll read what you have to say.. :)

Oooh... you hated it... I personally really liked the crazy feel of this episode. For me it was mostly a Castiel episode with everything else happening "on the side", nearly rushing past.
I understand the things you don't like, but somehow they by-passed me and I enjoyed this "complete mess". ;)

Maybe I'm the only one who likes this ep. lol. But hey, can't always be part of the crowd. ;D

I hope next week will give you more of what you like again. I do prefer you squeeful after an episode. :) *hugs*

♥♥♥

[ash48.livejournal.com]

I am so happy you liked this episode! \o/ You might indeed be the only one but at least that's one!! (Hee.. I mean, I'm sure there are other people who loved it, a lot of reactions I've been seeing have been "what the...?"

I think Castiel did shine in many parts but because I'm not really invested in his story so much I wasn't that interested. Though he did make the episode bearable in terms of a lot of his lines and his innocence.

I ALSO HOPE I'M SQUEEING NEXT WEEK! I too hate it when I'm not squeeing.... :(((

But YAY for enjoying it. <33333333

[virtualpersonal.livejournal.com]

OMG, I thought I might be the only one who thought it was quite a boring/lackluster episode. Last week's epi was absolutely awesome, but this one... I have to say the promo was better/more exciting than the episode itself. I guess they're just spoon feeding us some info, kind of like a whole lot of exposition that wasn't dressed up well enough that we wouldn't notice, lol

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yeah... it's weird. They have had plenty of episodes to tease the information out and then suddenly BAM! have all this exposition. I was so excited to find out what was inside the clay but then ended up being confused about the way it was handled. I mean... the boys know better then to play with something they're not sure what the consequences would be. What if people had died from their actions. *shrugs* I suppose it's also in their nature to dive head long into something.

I'm hoping by next week I'll be able to put this one behind me.

xox

[killabeez.livejournal.com]

There were some moments in this ep that I really liked, but my overall opinion is pretty much exactly the same as yours. I think you beautifully articulated everything that bugged me.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yeah - there really were some nice bits and they would have been enough if all the surrounding bits were so...um... difficult and awkward.

xx

[cassiopeia7.livejournal.com]

I liked the ep a bit more than you did . . . but still, I agree wholeheartedly with your post. Considering that this was an Edlund episode, it was surprisingly lackluster. Just . . . not that good.

There were some lovely little moments but they were surrounded with some truly awful ones.

THIS RIGHT HERE. And the good moments just made the rest of it look that much worse. D:

ACK!!! I DON'T KNOW?!! Is it just me? Am I being too harsh? Does it need a second viewing to appreciate it? (please no!) Other than some funny one liners was there actually anything good about that ep that I missed?

Nope, it's not just you, and you're not being too harsh . . . but I do NOT recommend a second viewing, as I ended up downgrading my initial impression of the ep after such a re-viewing.

Honestly, I would have expected such a hit-and-miss exercise from Dabb & Loflin, but Edlund? No, in his hands, this should have been a MUCH better ep.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yes!

And the good moments just made the rest of it look that much worse.

I think that's spot on. There were moments that I was getting right into it and then... wham! awkward moment that slowed the pacing down. I even forgot to mention my favourite part (that my home town, Perth, got a mention) THAT'S how distracted I was...

The fact that it was Edlund does surprise me. Personally I don't think directors should direct their own scripts. I think it's often better for someone else to interpret what a writer meant. That way we don't rely on the writer alone to tell us his story.

xox

[altruisticinteg.livejournal.com]

I think I was giving Mr. Edlund too much credit in his writing when I first watched the ep. I was thinking that maybe the whole thing was meant to be a disjointed mess as a way to have the audience get inside the headspace of Cas. Where there are moments of information and clarity and then a silly moment of amusement (for them at least). But… in all honesty, I think we had some really good eps this year and Imo, comparing this one to the others, the quality of writing here just doesn’t come close to them.

Some of my other shows leave me with only little gems that I love and the rest of the storyline is complete BS and over time I’ve developed the habit that instead of getting frustrated with aspects of the show that gets me upset or pissed, I focus on things that I like. So, instead of asking why Sam was so dumbed-down in this ep, I focused on Dean patting Sam’s arm and (what I took it as) references to Dogma. Also, I’m not a huge Castiel fan and that’s why I was feeling a little lack lustered about the ep.

The trailer for next week's ep has left me nervously waiting for what's to come.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

I was thinking that maybe the whole thing was meant to be a disjointed mess as a way to have the audience get inside the headspace of Cas.

Oh yes. I did wonder the same thing. That's why I wondered if Sam and Dean were there as observers so WE could feel the whole mess of how Cas was seeing things. I suppose Ben may just have been that clever (because it certainly was a mess), but it's dangerous to do that if the audience is actually left feeling nothing, or confused.

So, instead of asking why Sam was so dumbed-down in this ep

I know! So sad to see that happen...:(

I focused on Dean patting Sam’s arm

Happy place. One tiny brotherly moment - but at least there was that. Makes me wonder if Jensen actually threw that in. The boys don't casually touch each other much. I liked that it could have been a way of grounding themselves after such a muddle of a case.

The trailer for next week's ep has left me nervously waiting for what's to come.

I haven't seen the trailer as I try to stay clear of spoilers but I am seriously considering a peek because I am mightily worried for where this is going to go. (I might need to know if Cas is in it. I think I'll need to prepare myself for that possibility....)

[mithborien.livejournal.com]

Heh, just to add to all the 'what the hell was that', how was Meg able to kill the angel? I thought only angels could kill angels or did I miss something?

[ash48.livejournal.com]

She had the angel sword. I suppose anyone who has that can kill an angel? Though I'm not sure where she got it from...maybe from the last episode we saw her in?

Perth got a mention though. :DD I forgot to include that (so HAD to make a separate just for that!). So something good came out of it...;)

xx

Hey Ash

[vyperdd.livejournal.com]

The highlight for me was where Cas got sent when Dean did the angel-banishing sigil.... Perth!!!! Our hometown!!! And it got even better by the fact that Dean has heard of Perth and knows, at least, what country it's in. And with the mention of racing dogs, it sounds like Cas was at Cannington Greyhounds. LOL

The rest was pretty much as you've described it, even on re-watch it didn't grab me like most SPN eps have. Maybe it will improve after we see the last 2 eps, but I'm not holding out much hope for that.

So surprising that a Ben Edlund ep was such a let-down. He usually delivers really great eps. Let's hope he makes up for it with his eps next season.

Re: Hey Ash

[ash48.livejournal.com]

HA! You know, when I was watching this I jumped for JOY at the mention of Perth and I thought THAT'S how I'm starting my review. But then I got caught up in the WTF of it all and forgot to mention it.

I was thinking about it tonight and thought I HAVE to mention that in a separate post. OH Man! What I wouldn't give to be able to manip a pic of Cas at Canningtom Greyhounds.

It kinda blows me away that Dean would even know that there was a Perth in Australia. Colour me IMPRESSED!

I can't believe I forgot to mention it. /o\

xox

[debbiel66.livejournal.com]

This is the first (FIRST!) Supernatural ep ever that I've had the opportunity to watch but haven't watched yet. I just feel really lukewarm and decided to read your post because we usually agree and feel like I may just skip altogether.

*sniff*

Really, I don't like angel plotlines anymore. Can we get back to Sam and Dean please?

Still....there's season 8 for us to look forward to!!!!

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I'd love to say give it a go but my heart really isn't in it. Even the positive reviews I've read haven't convinced me. But still... some people did like it.

I think it was possibly too angel and demon heavy for me. Whenever they are around little seems to make sense. Rules keep changing and I suppose I'm just not that interested in them. I actually don't mind Cas (actually his performance was the most entertaining) but having Meg and the other angels and a new prophet.... just too much for me.

But.

S8 has give us something to look forward to yeah? I wonder if they might do away with the overall season arc Big Bad. It's hard to imagine where they could go now. Unless they go back to the Lucifer story line...

At the moment I'm just hoping the next two episodes give us something to be excited about. ANYTHING with Sam and Dean would be AWESOME!<333

[destina.livejournal.com]

I think since I don't expect the show to make sense in a plot capacity anymore, I really enjoyed this one. There was so much subtle character stuff in this episode - the Sorry! game was one of the most amazing things ever - and I loved the new prophet.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Hi!

Great to hear that someone liked it. I mean, I've seen a few positive comments so that's good. I suppose I wish I could have caught on to the subtle character stuff. I spent to much time nursing my whiplash from it going all over the place. /o\

xx

[runedgirl.livejournal.com]

I actually enjoyed this one too, though last week's ep was so good that it set a high bar for Edlund to reach this week. I'm pretty good at handwaving plot holes, I admit, but I liked the 'crazy' feel of this one - it seemed too much not to be deliberate. I'm not a huge Cas fan, but I really enjoyed this iteration of Cas, and his non-sequitur filled ramblings seemed a fitting showcase for the craziness going on around him. I liked Kevin and Hester's heartfelt "WTF is going on here?!", which I interpreted again as a mirror of the audience reaction they were going for. It's entirely possible that I give Show too much credit, but it worked for me nevertheless.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Hey there. I'm really glad it worked for you. I really do wish it had worked for me because I much prefer to be squeeing rather than scratching my head.

I did wonder if the "all over the place" feel was deliberate. I can see that it could have been, I just... argh....found it hard to know which story line to follow and whereas I normally hand wave the plot holes I found them just too distracting. I think the empty hospital caused me the most problems and because the episode started with that it had me off kilter from the beginning.

But yay! I'm glad you enjoyed it. :))

xx

[maenad.livejournal.com]

Apparently I am very stream-of-consciousness today. :)

Our boys were sidelined and became observers. They seemed so out of their depth, (which might have been the whole point), but by doing that I felt we lost the connection to what was going on. We were left as damn confused as they were.

I read somewhere (and I can neither remember where nor find it again, so I can't actually vouch for it) that the last three episodes were filmed around the time Jared Padalecki's kid was born, so the characters were deliberately sidelined in order to give him time off without having Sam randomly vanish. I realise that doesn't necessarily make the structure of the episode better, but I thought Of Grave Importance and The Girl with the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo handled it pretty well, so in the end I just said 'two out of three ain't bad,' waited until that Meatloaf song got out of my head, and forgave them. :)

So the boys now know how to kill the Leviathans. I probably should be more excited about that but I think because the way it came about seems so contrived I have little excitement for it. I suppose it might depend how they use that information now.

I suppose I don't mind this, because it's about what I expected. The item in the suitcase was too small to be anything but an instruction manual, and since we've established that they don't do ancient languages, they were probably going to need a translator. I'd agree that there might have been a better story around it, but the basics had to happen. As Charlie says, the really evil ones always need a special sword.

Some of the jokes seemed to be there just for us. Which, ok, sometimes that's fun but in an episode like this it felt try-hard.

Yeah, it was hit and miss. Dean's thing with the tablet made me chuckle, because it gave me the chance to yell 'Yes! Me! For the love of archaeology, be careful!' But Sam's transformer thing was just weird, because it was played straight - like he thought he might have to deal with a race of killer robots now. I’d believe them making a joke - 'So we've got a memo from some dude who's one letter away from a transformer?' - as an excuse for a bit of exposition, but this … The dog track in Perth thing was kind of amusing - but then I thought, well, the Antichrist. Apparently Australia is where lost monsters go. And that ... is a tad worrying. :)

Something I did like was the feeling that he really was seeing "everything". I actually think that an opportunity was missed here to appreciate Castiel's plight. Or to connected with him in any way.

I have trouble here, because Castiel episodes aren't really for me. I'm okay if he lives! I'm okay if he dies! I'm okay if he flutters off into the sunset! I find it hard to get worked up about him, so I often struggle to tell whether his plots aren't working, or whether I just don't care enough. That I said, I guess it was interesting to see him using madness as a retreat from guilt. It was useful for making him basically functional again, but then ... 'nothing is so bad when you see everything' sounds like a godlike perspective to me, which is creepy and goes back to the original problem with Castiel.

I'm sorry but Hester never convinced me. Meg was better than last time I thought but there were still some issues.

I did like the commentary on the uselessness of angels. They must have sided with Castiel, but are now trying to follow instructions from their absent god again. They switch between yelling at Sam and Dean for taking away their purpose, at Castiel for not delivering on the whole 'freedom' thing, and falling back into Must Obey God mode while pretending anyone cares what they think anymore. I think the bones of a good idea were there. But we had Angry, Betrayed Angel #1 and Sad, Forgiving Angel #2, who felt more like archetypes than people.

I enjoyed Meg's speech, though. She might still by lying about Crowley being her ultimate target, but the rest of it sounded very true to her character. In season one, she was basically the demon version of Dean, her tragedy being that she never had a Sam. But then, Castiel started out as angels' dark version of Sam so I suppose she does have one now. I'm curious to see what they do with her. :)

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Thank you (as always) for your interesting thinky. Reading this makes me think I did indeed miss some important moments.

That's curious out Jared and his baby. I heard a couple of things. One being similar to what you said here (though I didn't know it was 3 episodes) and other saying that he wasn't taking time off and he would be in the final episodes. Something like that. I thought they did a great job of "side lining" the boys in the last 2 episodes. I am sure the show can "survive" and make really interesting episodes without them as the focus. But with this one they also came across as incompetent. Which, for me, is the worst thing they can do. Sam would most definitely have known that angel AND he wouldn't have left the Word of God alone to run after Meg.

Hopefully this means the next two episodes will have the boys being more clever and more involved.

As Charlie says, the really evil ones always need a special sword.

Yeah. It did have to be something special so I suppose this is it. I wonder why Dick wanted to get hold of it? I mean, by finding it they have let loose the information on how to kill them. There must also be something on there that's beneficial to them. I would hope that he didn't want to find it just so no one else could. That would irk me.

so I often struggle to tell whether his plots aren't working, or whether I just don't care enough.

Yeah. Me too. My reaction to the episode isn't because Cas was in it. It just so happens that when he's in an episode so are other angels and demons and that often results in confusion (for me!). They seem to keep changing the rules each time they appear. I really really want to get into Castiel but I just don't care enough to be that interested. I did like his childlike innocence and the way his thoughts went all over the place. (even though that was also frustrating because some answers may have been nice at times).

So um? Is Lucifer gone do you think? Was that the upshot of all that. Cas took on Sam's hallucination and in Cas's brain it ended up just going away? (grrrrr, if that's the case....)

I just do not know how to take Meg at the moment. I have to confess that I am disliking Rachel's performance enough for me to almost shut off when she's talking. And yet, I think her dialogue was interesting. I think I may end up reading the transcript for this episode rather than rewatching it and see what I get from it.

I want them to have a purpose for her. I've always liked the idea that they explore "good" demon the way they did "evil" angel. And I've always found Meg fascinating.

So yeah. We'll see. I'm a little nervous now for the next 2 episodes. I wish sometimes I wasn't so damn invested! ;)

xx

[cherry916.livejournal.com]

This was definitely a miss for me (I think it was almost as bad as The Man Who Would Be King) it just had too much going on, I was confused for most of the episode and couldn't keep up with anything. I think important things were mentioned but since I was so lost I likely didn't catch them or forgot them. It was interlaced with some good moments, but it was drowned out by the horrible pacing and just random moments that weren't really necessary especially being so close to the finale.

I normally do like Edlund's writing but he seems to have a thing with Castiel, and it shows with this episode. I guess I preferred more of Sam and Dean, I thought some of their dialogue was off and even after all this I still think Dean should be more angry. He just seemed frustrated more than anything, which is perfectly fine given what he's been through this year but I guess I expected more anger on his part given all that he lost and almost lost from what Castiel did.

This episode really disappointed me. It's likely one I'll only watch once and never again.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yeah. This. I also wondered if Edlund has a thing for Cas because he certainly got most of the good lines - and a lot of the story. Though I'm still trying to work out where we are with now with Cas. He's back to being an angel, he's still sorry for what he did, he's a bit crazy and he's not going back to heaven. I think. I wonder if he'll going and find the person he married...?

I hope the next two episodes are a lot stronger.

xx

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yes - it was the manufactured feel that really rubbed me up the wrong way. I know I was supposed to laugh when Meg said something about her only being a nurse on TV but it felt like a huge nod in our direction and I really didn't want it.

I think the ninth hour solution is annoying also. It would have been better if they had found the Word sooner and spent the next few episode trying to work out what it meant instead of jamming it all into one episode. They might have even been able to find the prophet themselves so it looks like they are actively doing something rather than just being observers.

I have actually been really enjoying S7. It's sure had some weak spots. I think the problem is that it seem to start so strong and it now has a feeling of petering out. It should be amping up instead!

I am looking forward to seeing what Jeremy does though! :)

[el1ie.livejournal.com]

I've watched it twice now and it's still getting the - WTF did I just watch - vote.

Two episodes from the finale and it's like watching a bad comedy routine interspersed with bad dialogue, bad characterisation and stupendously lacklustre performances.

Just why is Meg there at all? I just don't understand any of her motives here and hardly any of her dialogue again. Yes, it did lift it back into a horror show when she attacked those demons, but I'm still not sure why, I have to presume Crowley is yet to make another appearance or is he still benched for this year and they're keeping him in play for next year? Some weird reason I suppose.

The 'only an angel can kill an angel' is a total lie then? The weapon is the answer. - *ho hum*

Sam, Dean and the transformer conversation was weird the first time, second watch through it was absurdly jarring, as was that ridiculous running around after Kevin.

The hospital was, I expect, the one that only ever exists in TV land, where all the old metal beds have flaking paint and horse hair mattresses and patients get experimented on by borderline insane doctors who bore holes in their skulls on a whim - in other words this was Asylum up and running. No hospitals exist like that, just look at the staff they take on - Nurse Masters? Yeah, ok, hand wave that too.

It must be catching though, the stupid I mean,. One of my main problems with the Leviathans has been their increasingly stupid henchmen, I find Dick an oily creepy and vicious little shit, but I've never found him worthy of a SPN villain of the season, he's no where near terrifying enough. Season started off well, the Leviathan inside Castiel really got me excited for the season, but they've been getting really over the top stupid, with the eating themselves shit. Once all the menacing horror gets lost in the stupid then somehow our boys end up acting like chumps too and that really, really annoys me.

SPN used to be really chilling, maybe that's me, maybe I've always found the unknown, the spirits, the Latin, the exorcisms - freaky as shit and scary - hmmm, maybe that's my personal bias from the convent? But all that used to have an air of intensity, of the macabre - nowadays it's more like the goon show has been splattered with gore. The more human they made the demons the stupider they became, the more human they made the angels the more like dicks they became, now they have Dick running the shop and it's kind of not frightening or mysterious any more, shit, it's not really that funny any longer either.

Just two episodes to go, they're going to have to pull out all the stops to find some kind of cliff hanger for this year, and yes, I agree with you, if the boys aren't in peril, if the cliff hanger doesn't affect them personally, then you lose your connection with the audience, I think that's been a big problem this year, it's not been personal enough for us, yes they've lost everyone, they're on their own, but saving the world? Been there done that already, there's no tension in doing it all over again. It's been wonderful watching them heal and work together, but to what end? It's been ages since Dean threatened Dick outside the hospital when Bobby died and I'd like to see more of that please, side-lining them in filler episodes is all well and good, but these last episodes should be building up a head of steam and ramping up the battle and the tension around the Winchester boys and I'm not feeling it AT ALL.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Oh wow... some great thoughts here.

Two episodes from the finale and it's like watching a bad comedy routine interspersed with bad dialogue, bad characterisation and stupendously lacklustre performances.

That's it in a nutshell. And it makes me sad to think this has happened so close to the end of the season. I just hope this isn't and indication of where it's heading.

Just why is Meg there at all?

I'm wondering that also. I figure there has to be a reason - perhaps something to with how they will finally defeat the Levis. Or maybe bring Crowley back into it. I will be surprised if we don't see him again. I think he will play a role in the finale - but I'm only guessing.

The 'only an angel can kill an angel' is a total lie then? The weapon is the answer. - *ho hum*

Exactly. Things keep changing. Though Dean killed Zac so anyone with the angel sword AND black goo can kill an angel it would seem.

It was at the point where they were chasing Kevin around the grounds to action music that I started to eye roll. Up until then the episode was creating a certain "feel" and then it abruptly changed to almost slap stick. And the irritation with the empty hospital was really getting to me. No sense.

The Leviathan issue is interesting. I totally get what you are saying and I am concerned I might be beginning to feel the same way. The thing for me is that I've enjoyed this new take on "evil". I like that they are aligning corporations with "evil" because to me it's very believable and not a far stretch from the truth. Probably very cliched but to pit Sam and Dean (blue collar guys) against Dick and major corporations - (white collar evil), interests me.

I have enjoyed the infighting and the "each out for their own" mentality of them. I don't even mind them being somewhat stupid as long as Sam and Dean don't become stupid along with them.

I found Dick particularly chilling in the last episode - but more in the menacing kind of way rather then a creepy supernatural way.

But yeah... I can see all those problems you mentioned. And now that we are near the end I am concerned that they are just not going to have a satisfying enough conclusion. I just...I don't know. I am going to reserve my overall opinion of them until I can see what they do with the last two episode. I am worried that I won't look back with as much fondness that I have had for them.

Last paragraph is spot on. We were promised Sam and Dean against the world but we really didn't get that. I think the first half of the season was very strong - especially the way the lost Bobby, but because the boys have been side lined recently it feels like they aren't really part of what's going on. Or.. there's no real urgency on their part. Dean is still pretty feed up. Sam seems to have no real purpose so we have lost the "drive" that they had.

They are working well together, which is great, but I agree. It has to mean something.

Nothing became of Dean's drinking (they may be leaving that for next season maybe?) and now it seems Sam's head is all well and fine and all of that angst is now gone. They've even made peace with Cas and Meg it looks like. So yeah.... I have no idea what they could do now that would create the kind of cliff hanger or edge of your seat drama we are used to at the end.

I hope they prove us wrong.
<33

[bythedamned.livejournal.com]

I gotta say, I'm pretty glad this is a un-glowing review. Cause I watched the whole thing with a sort of 'eh?' look on my face, wondering if I was missing something. (Like anything resembling fondness for Cas... who said that?)

I agree, the ep didn't flow well, some of the jokes we should get felt weird, the whole Cas/Meg implication was just blegh material (though I do like the assumption that when the angels find Sam and Meg in a room they want to "kill the demon and her lover".

Something I did like was the feeling that he really was seeing "everything". I actually think that an opportunity was missed here to appreciate Castiel's plight. Or to connected with him in any way.

Maybe because they are the same cage-scars as Sam's, and he seemed to be doing remarkably well comparably? he has no remorse, no pain, seeing Lucifer wasn't a big deal to him. he obviously doesn't think his plight is much of a plight, so it kinda seems like he came out on top here. kinda hard to sympathize with :/

And speaking of, I actually thought some of the responses to what was going on were the best part. When Hester went to angel-stab Cas and Meg stopped her, did you notice neither of the boys moved to help? Not even Dean. That's quite a statement in and of itself.

And before all that, when they open the Word of God, the thunder tells them not to, and they could care less (typical for Dean, less so for Sam, until recently). then in the morning, the radio had reports of every woman more than 8 months pregnant going into labor (4 weeks premature is still a big deal!) and all the power-outage related deaths, and again they're unphased. it says a lot about how much they've been through, and the scope they're used to fighting on that this doesn't even bother them. and it maybe also suggests...dare I say it... that they're not really the good guys anymore. they're not fighting for good just against evil, which is not the same thing. they've been beat down, and they're sticking to their side because it's theirs, but they haven't really been concerned with the cost of one individual innocent life in a long time (and isn't that supposed to be the hallmark of the good guys?)

I guess I feel like I learned a lot from this ep, but none of it came from the Word. (Also, did it bother anyone else that Sam didn't know who Metatron was? Granted, I learned from a Kevin Smith Movie (Dogma) but I thought Sam was the one who prayed and was up on all the angel lore?) argh, yeah, exactly like you said. too much/not enough, who knows. jeez.

I'm with you on hoping the next 2 eps give us some great brother-centric moments, preferably in some way we can understand and/or relate to.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yeah - them assuming Sam was Meg's lover was a nice call back to season four. I did like that continuity.

did you notice neither of the boys moved to help?

yes yes!! You know, it was so weird. When Cas was being beaten I thought we'd get an angsty shot of the boys reacting - maybe even a jump forward but no. They were remarkably placid. I couldn't figure if that was bad directing or we were really to assume that the boys just don't care what happens to Cas.

I DON'T GET IT!! One minute they voice concerns, talk of him as a friend etc. (even though they were pissed by what he did) but then they leave him in a mental hospital, not mention him at all for a couple of episodes and then react like that when he's being hurt. *head shake* Maybe they really can't forgive him for what he did.

Dean going ahead and breaking open the clay even though it was getting the thunderstorm reaction was interesting. At first I thought it was out of character for them but what you say here is true. They really don't seem to care that much about their actions - especially when there are clear danger warnings.. I wonder if this is a new "thing" for them or if it's part of this being a bad episode.

I worry that if Sam and Dean have a "don't care" attitude then it's hard for us to. Equally, it could be an interesting direction for the characters to go - not realising how far is too far. It's been a long time since they cared about demon vessels, maybe other people could start becoming casualties. Hmmm.... interesting....

I feel like there was a lot of information to be gleaned from this episode. I think I'll wait to see what meta comes out of it to see all the stuff I probably missed.

And I think the dumbing down of Sam was a sticking point for a lot of people. A few have mentioned it here. Show should know by now that making them do dumb things (leaving the Word!) makes us annoyed. especially things like having him not know who Metatron was for the sake of a lame joke.

So. *finger crossed* for our boys to be back for the next two episodes and they have a couple of surprises up their sleeves.

xx

[rhymephile.livejournal.com]

I like reading your reviews and the comments from your Flist because I'm basically the only one around here who likes Cas, LOL. I enjoy seeing a different perspective.

To me, this episode seemed like every single moment in which we were to learn something was interrupted. All of Castiel's scenes felt truncated. I kept wanting more explanation, more information, more of *anything* to explain exactly what happened to him. Same with Kevin. Same with Meg, even.

Everything just felt *off* in this episode. I did enjoy the moment Sam had with Castiel in which he tried to understand what was happening. Sam has always been the empathic one, and it showed.

I'm annoyed with Rachel Miner's portrayal of Meg with her voice affectations and the way she speaks. I miss original Meg.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

because I'm basically the only one around here who likes Cas,

ha! I have to jump down here because that makes me smile. :) My darling friend greyowl88 loves Cas! :D And in fact I don't dislike him at all. For me it's a shame that whenever there's a Cas episode there has to be the accompanying demons and angels in the story line. I really did like Cas in this episode - he added a brevity that it desperately needed and Misha's performance was consistent. I just found the surrounding story confusing. And they seemed to dismiss what happened to Lucifer. Has he gone now? Completely? That will be a complete fizzer if that's that.


All of Castiel's scenes felt truncated.

Yeah. Questions were asked and it felt like we were going to get some answers, but no. Cas went off on a tangent and we were left needing more.

I have wondered how Cas fans have reacted to this episode. I had wondered if it was that I'm not particularly invested in his story that I didn't like it. But I'm sure it was more than that. I felt the overall episode lacked structure and tension. And that really had nothing to do with whether Cas was in the episode or not. That's just bad directing and writing.

I seriously miss original Meg. I agree Rachel is just not cutting it as Meg at the moment (sadly because I really loved the character and I think there is potential to do something interesting with her. Other than be Cas's love interest).

thanks for your thoughts hun.
xx

[werty30.livejournal.com]

I agree about the empty hospital. That looked super cheap.

The whole episode was like new!Cas, chill and zen and not making a lot of sense. "Watch me or don't watch me, dude, whatever. LOL, cat penis." Possibly I would have liked it more if it didn't follow the previous episode, which was fast-paced, filled with tension and and cool visual effects. But after The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, this one felt lackluster.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Maybe they're running short of money. Or saving it for the finale or something.

I think you could be right about it following The Dragon Tattoo episode. It had so much energy it would be a hard one to follow. Actually, I would really have liked this early in the season anyway. I would liked for them to have found that tablet and spend a few episode looking for the 3 things they need to kill the Leviathans. That way they would have driven the action rather than the other way around.

[redteekal.livejournal.com]

Okay I havta respond cos I'm hopeless like that. I agree on a number of points - but to be honest I don't think any episode after the Dragon tattoo one would fare too favourably simply because of the strength of that episode. But it certainly isn't in my bottom five this season.

I liked Cas in this and was able to sink into his amusing change so that I could ignore this niggling thing annoying me in the back of my mind about the Lucifer issue being pretty well totally invalidated and made to be a not so huge problem afterall. It's been trivialised and I'm not happy about that BUT I don't think that's the end of it. So that is giving me a little hope.

I don't think the Leviathan killing thing ends with blood of a fallen angel, I felt that this was like step one of the levi killing plan. It is NEVER that easy on Supernatural.

What grated on me was Sam not knowing who Metatron was. That should have been a Dean line completely. And Sam would know who Megatron and Metatron was. Dean would say: "It was written by a Transformer?"
The jokes were all Edlund's head pretty instantly.

I still didn't like Meg. I found it interesting that Jared felt the need to point out (very unprompted) that Rachel Miner is awesome and a brilliant part of the cast etc etc - almost as if there has been some back lash about her portrayal that has been noticed perhaps? I miss Nicki Aycox.

I think Misha really enjoyed this episode. I liked his conversation with Sam - Cas came out with some very frank observations and I did find him echoing my sentiments a lot in terms of how I feel about things in the boys lives. The angel conversations were a little bizarre and the hospital thing I just chalked up to Supernatural once again taking massive liberties with peoples' suspension of disbelief. But then I'm all in love with my show right now because of last week's episode and the looming finale and also SEASON 8 is official!!! So yes I'm wearing my supernaturally rose coloured glasses and I freely admit this ;-P

Yes there were some flaws, a couple that were gaping but on the whole I enjoyed the Cas' centric ness of it - I enjoyed Dean's approach to Kevin Tran and I found it fascinating that Sam was the one to step in and break the devils trap. And I liked the title (says the English teacher) and I liked the potential it set up. So I do hope for your own squee's sake next week's knocks it outta the park for you! (((HUGS)))

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Yay! It's nice to read a positive review. I'm not sure why I was so down on it but it just rubbed me up the wrong way I suppose. I can normally suspend by disbelief without trouble (especially on this show!) but the longer that hospital scene went on the more annoyed I got with it.

Interesting that Jared "defended" Rachel. Her performance just isn't living up to her earlier scenes. I know she can do it (I didn't mind her early Meg stuff) but she's just lacking that special something at the moment. I feel for the actress because I know she has been in pain (apparently).

I keep saying I don't mind Cas, and I really don't, but I suppose I'm not too fond of the Cas-centric episodes. I did liked Misha's performance though (it seem very...um... Misha like).

I want to be VERY excited for the last 2 episodes. I really hope they are Sam and Dean centric. They have introduced the "old" characters back so I'm a little worried they might take center stage.

But I shall just CHILL!! SO excited we have another season. \o/

Hope you are still having a great time! <33