In the tenth episode of the ninth season of\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i>, Dean becomes desperate to help his brother. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i>.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Trigger Warning: For talk of consent<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n Look, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m still angry. VERY ANGRY. But there are things I liked here a lot, and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m certainly intrigued by the dual war unfolding here. It makes this season feel crowded in a\u00c2\u00a0good<\/i> way, and the parallels add weight to the story. However, this episode is tainted by Kevin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s unavoidable for me. As I expected, Kevin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s death served a purpose we see here: to give character development to Dean and to offer a new path for Gadreel. Both of these things are, outside of that context, fascinating changes to this season. But I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t divorce them\u00c2\u00a0of<\/i> that context, you know? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s now built in to the season\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s arc, so it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s difficult for me to view it in any other way.<\/p>\n I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m saying that because I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s important to acknowledge how past episodes affect the ones that come after it, and I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t often get to talk about the negative impact of story choices. Many of the missteps that\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i> has made were contained to single episodes, but this is not. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s all over the show now. I do want to make sure that I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m also analyzing these stories and this show as it moves beyond what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just happened, too. (I realize it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s kind of weird saying that because this aired over a year ago. Lord, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m so close to catching up to y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all!) \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Road Trip\u00e2\u20ac\u009d opens with an indication that at least in some sense, Dean\u00c2\u00a0has<\/i> to move on. He gives Kevin Tran the hunter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s funeral pyre, and then he sets about to immediately<\/i> do some of the damage done by his actions.<\/p>\n Sort of? I mean, obviously, he wants Gadreel out of Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s body, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s also willing to do practically anything to get that accomplished. I wonder, then, how sympathetic this show will be towards this struggle of Dean\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s. I always wonder how much of my own perception of\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural<\/i> as Dean\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s show affects how I read this shit, but I definitely feel like the writers are not as harsh here on Dean as they have been on Sam. Castiel is quick to assure Dean that he did what he thought he had to do \u00e2\u20ac\u0153for the right reasons,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know that Sam\u00c2\u00a0ever<\/i> got that same treatment from anyone for doing the exact same thing. Why is that? Is my memory skewed here? I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve always thought that this show was largely from Dean\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s perspective, and that feels like it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the case here.<\/p>\n Still, he\u00c2\u00a0is<\/i> working to fix things. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s easier said than done because THIS IS SUPERNATURAL<\/i>, EVERYTHING MUST HURT PERPETUALLY. So how do they do that here? They give Dean a choice: he can help expel Gadreel from Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s body by allowing Crowley to access Gadreel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153factory settings.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d In exchange, Crowley gets to go on a ROAD TRIP. It is very wacky and lovely because that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the only thing that can happen before everything goes to shit on this show. Hey, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve recognized that pattern! I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m learning!<\/p>\n I think, though, that this is how the writers attempt to parallel the journey between Dean and Gadreel. Both of these characters are so desperate to rectify the mistakes they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve made that they turn to increasingly desperate solutions in order to cleanse themselves. In Gadreel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s case, he falls for Metatron\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s manipulative tactics in order to pursue the glory that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s promised him. (Seriously, Metatron is\u00c2\u00a0terrifying<\/i> here because I can see exactly how he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s exploiting Gadreel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vulnerabilities.) For an angel locked away in Heaven\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s prison SINCE THE LITERAL BEGINNING OF TIME, killing other angels and humans is an absurd thought. He can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even fathom how murder will improve his reputation, and yet? He does it. He kills Thaddeus and Kevin and Abner. (So wait\u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Gadreel\u00c2\u00a0wasn<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t<\/i> in love with Abner? I TOTALLY READ THAT AS A ROMANCE, ahahaha. Surprise, they were just \u00e2\u20ac\u0153friends.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d)<\/p>\n Dean\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s desperation manifests not only in his decision to bring Crowley along, but in letting him visit Cecily alone. Of course, nothing is more indicative of the risks he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s willing to take than the deal he makes in the final act of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Road Trip.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0That\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>choice \u00e2\u20ac\u201c to allow Crowley to possess Sam in order to compel him to eject Gadreel \u00e2\u20ac\u201c gives us one of the better scenes this season. The very idea of Sam being possessed by TWO supernatural beings at once is ridiculous, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so compelling to watch. I found it rewarding because it was rooted in Sam finally learning the truth and getting the chance to choose for himself. Now, that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the central aspect of Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s story at this point. For the entirety of this season, he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s been stuck on the sidelines because he was left in the dark. His confusion over lost time or his exhaustion was constantly pushed aside by Dean\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s lying and selective truths. So what happens when he learns the truth? What happens when he remembers?<\/p>\n I knew it wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be an easy thing to watch, but holy shit. IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S SO FUCKING BRUTAL. I suppose that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a good thing, though, because I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s important that Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s feelings about this are given the respect they deserve. It was strange to experience all of this through Crowley, though I shouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have been surprised that he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d live up to his end of the bargain. I guess it was weird to see Crowley trying to legitimately help someone, and in this instance, he was helping Sam navigate something truly terrible and traumatic. (I had a moment where I wondered if Crowley\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vessel would wake up and Dean and Cas would talk to him. WOULDN\u00e2\u20ac\u2122T THAT HAVE BEEN INTERESTING?) But the show reserved most of Sam\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s anger for the final scene of \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Road Trip,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d a painfully uncomfortable confrontation that is clearly not over at all. I mean, how could it be? As forgiving as Sam has been in the past, this was a million times worse than anything else that had ever been done to him.<\/p>\n So I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m glad that the show is, for the moment, giving some space for Sam to be angry. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s no easy resolution here. Sam is furious \u00e2\u20ac\u201c justifiably so \u00e2\u20ac\u201c and the show does not invalidate that. Even though Sam and Dean part for the moment so that Dean can track down Gadreel, Sam makes it known that this is not over. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a bigger problem at hand. Oh god, WHAT IS IT??? What wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t addressed here? Sam took issue with Dean choosing for him, which has been an issue for a while between these two. Could this be a reference to Dean\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s inability to let Sam go? I need to think about this one a bit more because I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t quite know what Sam was referring to.<\/p>\n Anyway, at this point, Crowley is free, eager to finish off Abaddon. Malachi and Bartholomew are still warring. Gadreel and Metatron are still working together, and I have no idea how they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re going to choose the angels for the rebuilding of Heaven. Are they even going to bother with the Winchesters at this point, or will they disappear for a while? Where does Castiel fit into this? I mean, he stole another angel\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s grace. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not going to be looked up positively, is it?<\/p>\n THERE\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S A LOT GOING ON HERE, Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ALL.<\/p>\n The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Road Trip\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> In the tenth episode of the ninth season of\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural, Dean becomes desperate to help his brother. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Supernatural.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[590],"tags":[591],"class_list":["post-4585","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-supernatural","tag-mark-watches-supernatural"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4585","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4585"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4585\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4585"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4585"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4585"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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