{"id":2996,"date":"2013-11-07T13:00:51","date_gmt":"2013-11-07T21:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=2996"},"modified":"2013-11-07T13:19:51","modified_gmt":"2013-11-07T21:19:51","slug":"mark-watches-supernatural-s01e05-bloody-mary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2013\/11\/mark-watches-supernatural-s01e05-bloody-mary\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Supernatural’: S01E05 – Bloody Mary"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the fifth episode of the first season of Supernatural<\/i>, the boys try to find the source of an apparent Bloody Mary spirit that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s killing people. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch Supernatural<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Now this<\/i> is a much better example of what this show can do! And then it also granted me my wish of more Winchester feelings<\/i> by punching me in the heart a couple million times. I should really stop utilizing this super power of mine because it never truly pans out for me.<\/p>\n

Anyway, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bloody Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d has got a lot going for it that makes me excited to see what else is in the future for Supernatural<\/i>. Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s discuss it!<\/p>\n

Fucked Up American Road Trips<\/b><\/p>\n

I think that after five episodes, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve got a much better grasp on one of the narrative standards of this show that I know I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m going to love: Dean and Sam travel across the United States and investigate fucked up things. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like American Gods<\/i> with more scope (since it deals with more than just gods), and I love that the writers aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t straying from exploring everything<\/i>. See, this episode isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t just about the Bloody Mary legend. Instead, we get so much more information about the pervasive nature of the myth, including all its variations, and then the writers explore the concept of revenge narratives for ghosts, and then there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the whole bit about mirrors and souls, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear that the writers are<\/i> researching the origins of all these apparent phenomena. And the world of the supernatural is so dense, so varied, and so disparate that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easy to see how much the writers can use for future storylines. On top of that, the geographical importance of certain tales is respected as well, and that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s awesome!<\/p>\n

I Get To Yell At Things<\/b><\/p>\n

I wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t kidding in my review of the pilot: I LOVE YELLING AT PEOPLE IN HORROR MOVIES. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so fun! Actually, most of the best experiences I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve ever had in a theater were watching horror movies with a bunch of people who (respectfully) yelled at the characters on the screen. There were plenty of chances for me to do so in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bloody Mary,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d particularly when Donna thought it was a great idea to yell the titular chant at a mirror because THAT ALWAYS ENDS WELL IN YOUR LIFE, DOESN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T IT? Oh my god, stop it<\/i>.<\/p>\n

I can guarantee at least 236% more yelling in the future.<\/p>\n

Validating Charlie<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the best<\/i> things about \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bloody Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is the way that the Winchesters behave towards Charlie. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a very common trope to have people within horror narratives experience a moment where they question their sanity, particularly when they feel like they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re the only person who can sense whatever weird, supernatural thing is happening to him. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m sure we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll see more of it on a show like Supernatural<\/i>, but I adore the way in which this pans out for Charlie. The writers fall into the trope immediately, having Charlie freak out about the dramatic and horrifying events around her. And then Dean and Sam support her<\/i>. This was one of the most endearing features of The X-Files<\/i> for me, which is that often, Fox Mulder believed the unbelievable as a way to provide comfort for others who also experienced this sort of terror. Here, Sam and Dean explicitly tell Charlie that they will believe her. They do not ever belittle her for being afraid. They protect her in ways that most people would view as absurd, and I love that. And if this is an aspect of the family business that continues in the future, then sign me the fuck up, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, because it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fantastic.<\/p>\n

A Vehicle for Feelings<\/b><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bloody Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is remarkably solid for a number of reasons, but I think drawn most to the way that the Winchesters still matter<\/i> as characters. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not just supernatural detectives and hunters in the narrative. No, this story is still very much about them, and details of the case they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re on reflect on what they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re going through. In this case, the writers parallel the guilt that Charlie feels after her boyfriend committed suicide post-break-up with the guilt that Sam feels over Jess\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death. I had this huge point ready in my mind as I watched Charlie confess why she thought Mary was after her, but then the text itself addressed how fucked up it was that the Bloody Mary still went after Charlie, even though she wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really responsible for her boyfriend\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death. In that same vein, the writers address Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s insistence on blaming himself for Jess\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m still uncomfortable with the very obvious fridging of Jess because Adrianne Palicki is such a fantastic actress and I wish we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d gotten more of her, so I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to ignore that. At the same time, there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a great rapport between Sam and Dean in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bloody Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d that makes it feel<\/i> like these two characters are actually brothers.<\/p>\n

It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fascinating to me how quickly these two have grown closer after years apart, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s neat to see how Sam has just slid back into being a hunter again. As much as Dean wants to pretend that he doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t like talking about feelings, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d argue that he really does<\/i> want to take care of his younger brother, that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll do anything to keep him safe and make sure he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s doing well. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s able to recognize that Sam is torturing himself over what something else<\/i> did, and he does his best to convey this idea to him. The respect here is mutual, too! Sam even says as much, though he does choose to keep his secret about Jess\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death to himself. (HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE,\u00c2\u00a0 Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ALL. How did he have dreams of Jess\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death before she died<\/i>???)<\/p>\n

MUCH CREEPY<\/b><\/p>\n

Yeah, this episode is also super fucked up<\/i>. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s violent in a way that feeds on images of body horror. The way Mary appears in reflections is NOPE FOREVER. But it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s that final confrontation \u00e2\u20ac\u201c laced with Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s guilt and self-doubt \u00e2\u20ac\u201c that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s truly scary, one of the creepiest things I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen so far. Oh my god, when Mary came out of that mirror The Ring<\/i>-style, I was done in every universe ever. JUST NO. NO!<\/i> Unlike the resolution in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Phantom Traveler,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d this one was far more clever and satisfying. Dean turned Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s demonic revenge on herself. <\/i>Holy shit, that was awesome.<\/p>\n

In the future, though, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d like it less if things came out of mirrors<\/i>. Yeah, that is NOPE UNTIL THE END OF TIME.<\/p>\n

The video commission for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Bloody Mary\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded right here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– If you would like to support this website and keep Mark Does Stuff running, I’ve put up a detailed post explaining how you can!<\/a>
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