In the eighteenth episode of the fourth season of Supernatural, Mark watches an episode that is about the episode that Mark is watching, and that is the most succinct summary possible of this experience. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Supernatural.Â
Trigger Warning: For a brief discussion at the end about consent and one about suicide.
This could have been a mere gimmick episode, though I should admit upfront that Supernatural has done gimmick-y premises that ended up not-so-gimmick-y before. (“Mystery Spot” is a fantastic example, since the events in that episode still exist in Sam’s memory and still matter.) You could have taken this extremely meta premise and run with the joke for forty-two minutes. But what makes this episode so fulfilling to watch – and so disturbing – is that the writers take the concept, and they refuse to make it a joke. This is now canon, the characters have to deal with this, and the horrifying implications of all this for Chuck Shurley are forever unavoidable.
This isn’t funny at all.
But it is funny for a good twenty minutes, and by twisting the perspective of the show, the writers are allowed to poke fun at themselves and their fandom. I never got the sense that they were being particularly cruel about this, and if anything, the harshest criticism was reserved for “Bugs” and “Route 666.” THEY ACTUALLY CALLED IT THE RACIST GHOST TRUCK EPISODE OH MY GOD. There is some fun to be had with the slash fandom, online criticism, the size of the fandom, LARPing, THE EXISTENCE OF MISTY-EYED BOY TALK HALLELUJAH. But it’s fun, and the bulk of those references are in the first half of the episode, when all the Winchesters are concerned about is the weirdness of these books. And I appreciated that because it gives us two distinct tones that work well with one another. We have the period of discovery – where the Winchesters and the audience freak out because how the fuck is this possible – and then Castiel’s reveal, which significantly changes the direction “The Monster at the End of This Book” takes.
Truthfully, a lot of the initial comes from the sheer absurdity of how meta this is. Every book is named after an episode. Literally everything that we’ve ever seen on screen is described in the Supernatural books. And Chuck is a perplexing character because there’s no real reason for his… well, psychic ability? His mental connection to the Winchester brothers’ every waking moment? We don’t know! We struggle just as much as Sam and Dean do to understand the nature of what’s taking place. Of course, it presents a conflict for Sam and Dean, one that’s rooted in free will. If Chuck is able to give them slight details about what’s happening in the future, can they use that to their advantage? Dean wants to oppose the future, whereas Sam wants to exploit it. They’re both not bad ideas in and of themselves, but that doesn’t mean either character fully understands the other one. BECAUSE WHAT WOULD SUPERNATURAL BE IF DEAN AND SAM DIDN’T ANGST AT ONE ANOTHER.
It feels weird typing that. Did Chuck write that? Did I write that? What’s real anymore?
But the struggle between destiny and exploitation is important for a number of reasons. First, it allows the show to further explore the soul-crushing developments in Sam’s life, which… fuck. Y’all? I can’t do this. I’m calling it now. This is bad, there’s no way Sam’s powers end well, and I’m already ready to cry again. It hurts to think about this because truly, Sam’s stuck. I think that’s what this episode did for me. It made me realize that Sam is in a horrible place, and it’s largely because of what was done to him. He never chose to be infected with Azazel’s blood; he never wanted to be part of this world; he never wanted to fight Lilith; and as confused as he is at times, he wants so badly to do the right thing. So I think his desperation to face Lilith is due to his need to end this. Like Chuck says, I’m pretty sure Sam knows drinking demon’s blood is a bad thing, but what other option does he have in fighting some horrific demon?
So it’s fascinating to contrast this with Dean’s plan, which is to escape from this town to avoid Sam’s confrontation with Lilith. It’s not cowardly; in Dean’s mind, it’s strategic. They still don’t know how to take down Lilith aside from using the knife, but they need more than that. And while Dean doesn’t know about the demon blood, he’s aware Sam is still using his powers. But Sam isn’t strong enough. I think you can read Dean as returning to his original role in the series: as his brother’s protector. He doesn’t want Sam to be reckless when he finally faces Lilith. (Though I think he also quietly believes the claim that he has to end this all, not Sam.) And so he tries everything. He tries to resist every bit of Chuck’s prophecy. And even when he’s shown, over and over again, that what Chuck wrote down is what will happen, he still refuses to give up.
This is where “The Monster at the End of This Book” becomes some real shit. The writers introduce this framing device – a meta book series that chronicles the very show itself – and they stick with it. They don’t explain it away. They don’t make it disappear. By the time the credits roll, it is an undeniable part of the Supernatural mythology. Chuck is a prophet of the Lord, and his word is law, despite that no one wants it. It’s an uncomfortable exploration of free will, but the writers make it that way intentionally. If they can’t resist their destiny, no matter how awful it is, then how do their lives hold meaning? Is their meaning found in obeying that destiny? Does this episode mean that Dean will end the Apocalypse after Sam finally kills Lilith? Or is there something else at work?
Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of this all is Chuck, who is visited by Zachariah at the end of the episode. Once again, the angels in this show are presented in increasingly negative ways. (With one huge exception, of course: Dean emotionally prays for help, and Cas answers him, offering up a brilliant solution to the theological conundrum they’re all stuck in. And holy shit, that’s such a huge moment for both characters, isn’t it? I don’t think this is the last time we’ll see such behavior from Cas.) Zachariah informs Chuck that there is no way for him to escape the role of prophet. He’ll have to keep suffering from headaches and visions, and he’ll have to keep writing it all down. The angels will resurrect him if he tries to kill himself. It’s a position without an end in sight, and like the Winchesters, he has no choice in the matter. That’s so fucked up, y’all.
Which is why my sole complaint is due to the only misunderstanding of free will/consent. Lilith’s line about the dental hygienist “wanting” Sam is either one of two things: 1) Lilith is being super gross and teasing Sam with this, or 2) the writers actually think that’s how they get around the consent issue here. Without any other context clues provided in the script, it’s a horribly jarring moment that popped me right out of an otherwise engaging narrative. Why? Why was that line there? What were you trying to say?
Anyway, fuck this episode, I’m so drained, it’s all your fault.
The video for “The Monster at the End of This Book” can be downloaded here for $0.99.
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