{"id":4572,"date":"2015-04-03T13:00:21","date_gmt":"2015-04-03T20:00:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=4572"},"modified":"2015-03-24T09:45:55","modified_gmt":"2015-03-24T16:45:55","slug":"mark-watches-supernatural-s09e08-rock-and-a-hard-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2015\/04\/mark-watches-supernatural-s09e08-rock-and-a-hard-place\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Supernatural’: S09E08 – Rock and a Hard Place"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the eighth episode of the ninth season of\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i>, the Winchesters and Jody Mills are certain they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re tracking down a dragon, and then EVERYTHING IS UNCOMFORTABLE FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For talk of sex work, racism\/racial stereotypes, sexism, consent<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are parts of this episode I truly loved. (JODY MILLS IS NEARLY ALL OF THEM, I LOVE HER SO MUCH.) Others? Lord, sometimes this show feels like it can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have any middle ground. It can either be spectacular or just utter garbage, and holy shit, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. THAT ONE SCENE IS SO AWFUL.<\/p>\n

Let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s talk about things.<\/p>\n

Born-Again Virgins<\/b><\/p>\n

Now, look: I think there are a whole lot of issues surrounding the concept of virginity, the way this country talks about it, and how it is valued and devalued in others. I grew up with people who truly believed that you could become a born-again virgin, so there are aspects of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rock and a Hard Place\u00e2\u20ac\u009d that were EERILY real to me. Obviously, this juxtaposition is played for humor in\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>because there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s nothing more absurd than Dean willingly choosing to not have sex until marriage. So, because this is\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i>, a real-life issue like virginity and religion is not done with a whole lot of nuance. None of these characters are taken seriously; they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re all the butt of a joke and not much more than that.<\/p>\n

Of course, Suzy is the most egregious example of this. Her entire role here is\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 what? To be a sex fantasy for Dean? Once she serves that specific purpose, she has no other contribution to the plot aside from standing around. Like, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know even know where to start with this character! If someone who did sex work of some sort is telling you that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve stopped and left that part of their life behind,\u00c2\u00a0that is not an invitation to keep trying to invalidate them<\/i>. Like, that felt so universally gross to me!!! But let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s say that Suzy truly was conflicted by her role in the church, and\u00c2\u00a0that<\/i> is what the show wanted to portray. The problem here is that the whole seduction scene plays out exactly like porn. EXACTLY. I get that it was probably the point of the gag, but that doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t make it seem any less sketchy and objectifying. Is\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i> trying to say that sex workers or those who do porn just\u00c2\u00a0cannot<\/i> separate their work and their personal lives? Maybe not, but this sure felt like it.<\/p>\n

But as difficult as it may be to navigate that sort of story, I am absolutely certain of my feelings on the whole\u00c2\u00a0Casa Erotica\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>joke: WHAT THE FUCK. Stereotypical \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Latin\u00e2\u20ac\u009d music? Like half those things DON\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T EVEN BELONG IN THE SAME SONGS. Jokes about tacos in porn? Horrible Spanish? Look, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, I know that my connection to any sort of ethnic group is tenuous at best because of the billions of issues surrounding me being adopted, but this was so, so, so bad. The show does nothing but give us the most typical stereotypes imaginable, one after another, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s outrageously terrible. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not just one unfortunate racist trope; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s like TEN OF THEM ALL AT ONCE.<\/p>\n

No, thank you.<\/p>\n

Sheriff Jody Mills<\/b><\/p>\n

It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s always fascinating to me to see how characters in this show deal with the supernatural. From fear to humor to sarcasm, that reaction is varied and often says a lot about a character. Jody Mills intrigues me so much because Kim Rhodes imbues her performance of Jody with a combination of angst and curiosity. I love that the events of the season eight finale matter so much to her character here in \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rock and a Hard Place,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d to the point that her growth since then totally relies on her near-death. That manifests in both a positive and negative sense, too, and I appreciate how complex that is in her.<\/p>\n

For example, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear that her interest in religion is her attempt to find a positive stability amidst the violent chaos of the world she now knows.\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i> treats this with respect, even when we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in the middle of a season-long arc about how angels are utter jerkbags. She\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not the butt of a joke here, and that scene she has with Sam is treated with a whole lot of respect. That doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t mean she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s closed herself off to the world, either. Jody\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s got this wide-eyed excitement for the supernatural. At times, she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s shocked by other creatures revealed to be real, but she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also\u00c2\u00a0constantly<\/i> willing to tackle whatever fucked up thing that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s thrown at her. Why is that? Why not just give up? Why not turn an eye away from all of this and go back to a simpler world? Well, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t imagine Jody\u00c2\u00a0could<\/i> do that if she wanted to, but she does contact the Winchesters about the mysterious disappearances, knowing full well she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s inviting more weirdness into her life.<\/p>\n

She does it because she wants to help. She does it because she knows no one else will. And goddamn, I respect her for that.<\/p>\n

Shouldn<\/b>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t Be Alive<\/b><\/p>\n

I really need to learn to stop falling for the misdirects provided by the \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Previously On\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6\u00e2\u20ac\u009d segments. This wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t dragons at all! It was\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 an old god continuing their work after most of their worshippers disappeared. As neat as Vesta was, this was a very repetitious story. It hadn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even been that long since we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d had an episode about a disposed\/forgotten god, and the framework of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rock and a Hard Place\u00e2\u20ac\u009d doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t deviate much from what we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen before. However, Vesta\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s purpose aside from providing the mystery here is to RUIN SAM WINCHESTER. Look, this is such a huge disaster that I just can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel anything but\u00c2\u00a0sadness<\/i> for Sam anymore. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even know if I can be frustrated at Dean because he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s gotten so far into this deception that there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not a single easy way out of this. He honestly got so close to telling Sam the truth. Understandably so! Sam BLAMES HIMSELF for his physical health, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s gut-wrenching to watch.<\/p>\n

But what would it have solved at this point? If Dean told Sam the truth, Sam almost certainly would have rejected Ezekiel and then died. He\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in such a bad state that\u00c2\u00a0a god wouldn<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even eat him<\/i>. So what do you do now? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s such a mess of consent and good intentions that the only option I see left is to wait it out and hope for the best, which is a pretty shitty option. Oh god, I honestly thought the truth would come out here, and I WAS SO NERVOUS. Now, I shall just remain nervous for all the subsequent episodes. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a good plan!<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Rock and a Hard Place\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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

– The Mark Does Stuff Tour 2015 is now live and includes dates across the U.S., Canada, Europe, the U.K., and Ireland. Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features for Mark Watches will be the remainder of\u00c2\u00a0The Legend of Korra<\/i>, series 8 of\u00c2\u00a0Doctor Who<\/i>, and Kings<\/i>. On Mark Reads, Diane Duane’s Young Wizards<\/i> series will replace the Emelan books.
\n<\/b>-\u00c2\u00a0Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!
\n– If you would like to support this website and keep Mark Does Stuff running,\u00c2\u00a0 I’ve put up a detailed post explaining how you can!
\n<\/a>– Please check out the\u00c2\u00a0 MarkDoesStuff.com<\/a>. All Mark Watches videos for past shows\/season are now archived there!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"