Hiding in Plain Sight
Going through Kevin’s notes, Sam recognized a symbol from a Stanford class that he actually believed would lead them to Metatron, so Dean reluctantly packed up his sick brother and they headed to Colorado. As Dean investigated the lodge they checked into, Sam was having dizzy spells and kept hearing a strange ringing noise, but his own investigation of the hotel came to an abrupt end when he collapsed from a terrible fever back in his room. Dean brought his temperature down with an ice bath but Sam was up and runing the moment he was conscious.
He was convinced he had discovered Metatron’s location and led Dean down the hallway, but recounted a strange tale of when Dean used to read stories to him as a child. Even back then, Sam told himself he could never imagine going on a quest like King Arthur because he “wasn’t clean”. And everything became clear, because Sam told Dean that what the demon trials were doing to him was cleansing him…purifying him of his demon blood. This blood has been in his system since Azazel dripped it into his mouth at six months old and it’s been a catalyst for so many terrible things in his life. While I loathed the destruction of continuity in the episode “Taxi Driver”, I’m literally thrilled at the embracing of it with regards to Sam’s demon blood. Could that mean that Sam can go back to being fully human when the trials are complete?
Getting Back in the Game
It turns out that Sam had found Metatron, who has literally been deep undercover for a very, very long time. So long, in fact, that he had never even heard of the Winchesters, despite Sam pulling a Reese Witherspoon (hilarious scene!). They quickly brought him up to speed on the status of the archangels (two trapped in the cage, two of them dead) and he regaled the boys with a fascinating tale of how God plucked him from Heaven’s secretarial pool to transcribe the Word of God. As it turns out, God wanted to bail on the world, but decided to leave some important instructions behind before he went. After his departure, the archangels whined for their father and, when they realized he wasn’t coming back, they decided to take over the universe themselves. But to do that, they needed the Word. He walked away while they decided to play apocalypse, control the lesser angels and basically screw up the world.
I know a lot of Supernatural fans might be tired of the business of Heaven and Hell, but I found Metatron’s tale fascinating. While I’ve always enjoyed the salt-‘n-burn aspects of the show, I have to admit that I’ve always embraced the broader Heaven and Hell mythologies. Maybe it’s the lapsed Catholic in me that enjoys it so much. Maybe I just really like the grandiosity that the angelic story brings, but I rejoined in Metatron’s tale and can’t wait to see how his knowledge is utilized. He also explained that Sam is “resonating” (ie. essentially connecting to the Word of God, or it’s source on earth: Metatron). He didn’t talk about the demon blood cleansing, but Metatron seemed pretty unconcerned about the side effects to Sam, leading me to believe that there’s a way out of this for him without permanent damage.
Of course, there’s choices to be made here. Dean gave Metatron the choice to join them in their quest, which led to him saving Kevin from Crowley and healing him. And Metatron told Dean that he too had a choice: “What is it going to take to do this and what will the world be like after it’s done?” Have Dean and Sam really stopped to consider the ramifications of closing the Gates of Hell beyond their need to kill demons?
Earlier today, I posted a Supernatural speculation article I had co-written with a fellow recapper that examined the various possibilities for the remainder of the season. We correctly hypothesized Sam’s demon blood cleansing, but we also bring up the queston of what could happen if the Gates to both Hell and Heaven are closed. Despite one of our theories being proven right, the rest is still worth a read because the fate of so many characters is still up in the air.
It’s clear that Metatron is going to help the Winchesters with the Third Trial, which both be and Kevin reveal is “curing a demon”. Naturally, the Winchesters are confused about how to accomplish this or even what it means. The photos for next week’s episode shows the return of Abbadon, which leads me to believe they’ll try to cure her. But the truth is, I think they might try to cure Crowley when all is said and done. Imagine the ramifications of curing the King of Hell. On the one hand, it could possibly have negative effects for such a terrific character in terms of how we perceive and enjoy him. On the other hand, the outcome could prove very interesting.
In the final moments of the episode, Dean swerved his car to avoid hitting Cas, who was bleeding in the middle of the road and calling for help. Like in previous seasons, the Winchesters are reuniting with their fellow soldiers and preparing for the final battle. We only have two episodes left and the possibilities of what could happen now that Metatron has been introduced, Naomi is running scared and the questions of how Sam and Dean will complete the third trial (and what it could mean in the long run) are fascinating. Like I said, “The Great Escapist” didn’t start out on a super high note, but it sure as hell went out on one. Bravo, Ben Edlund.
The past returns to haunt the Winchesters in next week’s penultimate episode of Supernatural when three former guest stars reappear just as Crowley tries a new tactic to take down the Winchesters. Watch a preview here.
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Thanks once again for the review! I wanted to say two things. First, like you, I liked this episode. To pick three things: I was fascinated by Metatron’s tale, I laughed when Kevin agreed with Crowley’s assessment that he knew it wasn’t the Winchesters because they were too polite, and I thought Sam’s memories when he talked about the demon blood (and Dean’s reply) were touching.
Second, unlike you, I got Sam’s demon blood thing backwards! That is, back around 8.15 or so, I wondered in a comment to you if Sam was being slowly destroyed by his demon blood. I thought maybe closing the gates of hell would destroy the demons that were topside, and that moving towards that goal was the source of his illness. That came to mind partly because I figured it was Sam’s turn for end-of-season “punishment” if you will. You’ve been watching, thinking, and writing about the show for much longer than I have – this is the first season I’ve watched in “real time” – so it doesn’t surprise me that, of the two interpretations of what Sam’s demon blood might be doing, you got it right. Also, I’m so glad you did! Just because I thought Sam was headed to a sad pseudo-end because of his demon blood, does Not mean I wanted it to happen. :)
I think you’re right that for the third trial they’ll try to cure Abaddon, and maybe even Crowley, but now that Sam has said he was being cleansed (and therefore still has some demon blood in him), will the “demon” they succeed in curing for the third trial be… Sam?
I don’t think Cas broke free because of the tablet, I think he did because of Dean. They even knew what a threat Dean was to their control of Cas. Once the first break happened, the tablet took over.
I’m glad Dean and Sam mentioned that they should have kept Kevin in the bunker.
Unless they “cure” Crowley and he becomes even more dangerous, I’m not sure where they’ll go with him. He’s become a much darker character this season. If they could believably write some of this away and have him as more gray again (which I think suits him), and Abaddon becomes the queen of Hell, I’d be happy. But I rarely get what I want with Supernatural…
I was pleased to learn some of Castiel’s backstory, and the show attempting to explain why the angels were initially seen as emotionless – they were being mindwiped. I like the idea of Cas having a more complex history than we realized. I don’t think this takes away from his relationships with Sam or Dean, just because he rebelled before he met them. He’s still overcome just about everything for them (especially Dean), and always sees them as his home.
Loved your review, Clarissa! This episode has been one of my favorite of the second half of Season 8! It’s totally got me excited again in a way that the last couple of episodes did not (even though I did enjoy Pac-Man Fever and love Charlie). I think it was mostly just that I was glad to get back to the mythology episodes and away from the filler stuff. And I have to admit glad to get back to my favorite character, Castiel.
Like you, I’m a big fan of the heaven and hell/angels and demons myth-arcs of the show. I love the salt-and-burn stuff too, but it is usually the main mythology stuff that keeps me on the edge of my seat.
I adored all the Cas stuff in this episode. Love that he’s always been a bit of a rebel. Totally the best angel in the garrison, is our Castiel. I really hope the show gets back to having Cas working with Dean and Sam soon though. Team Free Will is absolutely my most favorite part of SPN.
I agree with you Clarissa. The first half was surprisingly tedious for Ben Edlund, but the last half was great.
I loved the story Sam told about Galahad and the emotions he had, while imagining himself cleansed of the demon blood. And I liked Metatron and LOVE that there is another good angel to help the brothers! Wish they didn’t violate the Grand Canyon canon, that the brothers never visited – John would never have taken them on any vacation like that, anyway. No continuity.
But this episode is yet another one that passed by without Dean “having his hands full” as per Carver, unless you count lifting Sam into the bathtub.
Great review. I love Castiel more and more with every episode!
I am not the biggest Angel/Castiel fan. I feel sometimes they hinder rather than enhance the story but I thought Metatron was a good introduction .However for me the greatest thing was Sam having a voice , Sam telling us about Sam and not being told through someone else mainly Dean and it was a breathe of fresh air and insightful how he has been feeling since childhood and Jared was wonderful
The third trial sounds odd because how do you ‘cure’ a demon but if anybody can Dean and Sam can but wether the closing of the Gates is a good thing or will actually end up causing even more problems than solve remains to be seen. I loved both brothers in this and Crowley and Kevin has some steel in him . So all in all a very good episode.
This was such a great Castiel episode. It was good seeing him being so crafty and badass and caring so deeply and I love the reveal about the “crack in his chassis.” I’ve always felt that Dean spotted something about Castiel that was already there, that Castiel had a questioning nature inherently, and Dean broke that open, but it was always there in Castiel himself.
In the crypt scene in Goodbye Stranger, Castiel stopped beating Dean and healed Dean before he picked up the tablet, if I’m remembering right. Maybe touching the tablet more permanently severed the link, but I’m getting the impression the characters–including Cas and Dean themselves–think it was only the tablet, but it wasn’t, it was a combination of Castiel’s strength of will and his friendship with Dean.
Kevin is awesome, I hope he’s around in season 9. I also really enjoyed the introduction of Metatron, and how he fit in with the season themes about how you can only hide for so long.
As I commented on the spec post, the idea that the trials are purifying Sam’s blood, and not transforming them, intrigues me so much. I’m enjoying that flip on expectations. I was disappointed when the show decided to do something wrong with Sam again. But we got a lot here about Sam himself and his perception of himself. Maybe this will bring him closer to finding an in-between, some sense of normalcy even if he doesn’t leave the hunting life.
Still hoping for a mytharc connection for Dean, but I’m really liking his character development this season and how he’s assembling his superteam of heroes, and the importance found family members have to him, along with his bond with Sam.
@Dot – I agree with you re: the crypt scene. I do believe that Castiel and Dean’s friendship helped Cas break the hold (as well as his “rebellious” streak that we learned about last night), because we saw that he was questioning Naomi even before he touched the tablet. I think it’s a lot like “Swan Song” in that respect. But I think weight should also be given to the tablet itself. It clearly has properties that we can’t even begin to guess. I think it was a combination of that and his friendship with Dean that helped Cas break free. And not a moment too soon!
@Clarissa – the tablet does seem to play a role and have some kind of effect on Cas. He touched it and it glowed. I really wonder what it all means, and what it means for Dean that Castiel said he has to protect it from angels and “from you.” Dean specifically? All humans? It does seem like Cas, Dean, and the tablet are kind of connected by the story already, at least thematically. Whether that means an actual link between all 3, I’ll have to wait and see. But definitely, their friendship played a big role–and it’s poignant that neither of them seem to realize yet how big a role, they just know that they do care (they are terrible at talking about it, natch).
@ Clarissa: Did you forget to cover Dean’s role in the episode? There was Sam. There was Kevin. There was Cas. There was Crowley. There was Naomi. Oh, there’s a new character, Metatron. Where is Dean?
This episode finally did it for me. After 8 years of never missing a live viewing, Edlund did quite masterfully make it clear that there is no pay-off for Dean ever having a story. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing on my screen — was it June Cleaver in jeans? No, that’s most definitely Jensen Ackles. Jensen playing Dean playing June. Not what I want to see.
@Salt and Symbols – no, I didn’t forget to cover Dean’s role. Dean is on the show and continues to be an integral part as he’s always been. If you choose not to watch it because of how you feel, that’s totally fine. But I’m enjoying his character as I always have. But if you’re done with the show, then why are you seeking out recaps? Wouldn’t you just walk away from it? You’ll save yourself stress if you just let it go if you’re not happy.