Finally, after eons separated by fatherly absence and the responsibility of running Hell, Chuck and Lucifer face off. But there’s a lot more going on in “We Happy Few” than reconciliation. It’s about taking Amara down and to do that, our Winchesters need to broker some very unlikely alliances and hope it’s enough to take down the Darkness.
But first, The Conversation.
Like Dean the week before, Lucifer has some choice words for Chuck and his fatherly disappearance. But whereas Dean was from a position of a cynic who refused to believe in God and suffer the disappointment of a fool, Lucifer’s issues of abandonment cut so much deeper. His initial response to Chuck’s presence is that of a petulant child, refusing anything but a true apology from Chuck. It’s a bit of a surprise when, after the brothers get the two to sit down, Sam sides with Luc’s contention that Chuck is so focused on proving that he’s right, he ignores Lucifer’s very visible pain. “You were my Father and you forsook me,” Lucifer says, summarizing all his anger and hurt into eight words. Somehow, it reaches Chuck.
“I did,” he says. “I was supposed to love all Creation equally. I wasn’t supposed to have favorites. But you…you were mine. I gave you the Mark because I loved you the most. Because I thought you were strong enough to bear it. And when I saw that I was wrong…when I watched my choice devour my most cherished son, I hated myself. And so I punished you. And I am so sorry.”
I’m getting emotional just typing it…
Now, maybe millions of years of neglect can’t be completely erased with one heartfelt apology, it’s a damn good start. And now that Luc and Chuck are on the same page, it’s time to put Operation: Ambush Amara into effect. But there’s a small problem: the initial battle to put Amara into the Box took the combined might of all four archangels and God. With three of the archangels out of the fight, it’s time for the gang to get a bit creative. In addition to that, they’re handcuffed a bit because, as Chuck says, the harmony/balance in the universe requires Amara to exist—her Yang to Chuck’s Yin. So what’s the recruitment plan?
Oh, nothing outside of gather Rowena, Crowley, and the Heavenly Host.
It’s not as simple as that, especially trying to convince everyone to work together, but the gravity of the threat Amara poses gets everyone to buy in. Dean’s the only one not truly about this whole “keep Amara alive” aspect of their plan and Chuck who points out the reason; some part of Dean doesn’t want Amara to be hurt and, if Chuck takes her out for good, no more worrying about where his loyalties lie.
Now that the plan is in place, all they need is the carrot. Rowena plays her part, drawing Amara to the warehouse/ambush site and initiates Phase One of the assault. Though Amara shrugs it off, the Heavenly Smite knocks the Darkness off her feet. Crowley and his demonic horde step up for Phase Three and, when a brutalized and bleeding Amara stumbles into the warehouse, Luc skewers her with what looks like the Spear of Destiny.
Seemingly beaten, an angry and defiant Amara stares up at a saddened and guilt-ridden Chuck. She demands to know her crime and Chuck replies “the world needed to be born and you wouldn’t let me.” She accuses Chuck of dabbling in creation for nothing other than to fuel his ego. He admits that may have been part of it but offers more insight.
“There’s a value, a glory in creation,” he tells her, “that’s greater and truer than my pride or my ego. Call it Grace, call it Being, whatever it is it didn’t come from my hands. It was there, waiting to be born.” With a final apology, Chuck initiates the Mark—one that Sam must now carry—only to have Amara overpower him. She takes him down, refusing to kill her brother before he gets a chance to watch his creation burn to ash.
“Welcome to the End.”
The Good
- For three weeks in a row, Rob Benedict is masterful as Chuck. His conversation with Lucifer was one of best scenes of the entire year. His expression of grief, regret, and fatherly duty and neglect is a powerful reminder of how good acting draws you into a character who’s only been a part of the show for a handful of episodes over the last several years.
- Staying with the acting, Misha Collins continues to impress. He captures Mark Pellegrino’s tone and mannerisms with stunning accuracy and when we get to see a snippet of the true Castiel—if only for a moment—that portrayal of the Morningstar is all that more effective.
- It was pretty cool seeing all the forces of God come together, despite their differences. Though it should have been enough to take down the Darkness, it wasn’t. But a valiant effort nonetheless
The Bad
- Amara gaining her second wind, though understandable from a narrative perspective, seemed too incredulous to me, especially considering the beat down she received prior to facing down Chuck. Remember, the Heavenly Smite hurt her big time a few months back, but now she can take that on top of the attacks from Hell, witches and Lucifer?
- And down goes another prophet. Was it really necessary to have Donnie bite the bullet so soon after introducing him? Maybe Amara’s ingesting his soul will pay dividends but, as it stands right now, it was an unnecessary decision.
The Supernatural
- Crowley taps his inner Trump with the “Together, we can make Hell great again” speech to his Hellish constituents.
- The nod to The St. Crispin’s Day speech from Henry V is given in both the title “We Happy Few” and Sam’s “we assemble our band of brothers” line during the planning stages of the Amara assault.
- The single most comic moment had to be Dean’s declaration on the composition of an apology: “Yeah, and the great thing about apologies is you don’t have to mean ‘em, you know? I lie and tell Sam I’m sorry all the time.” Remind me never to take Dean’s apologies to heart.
