To that familiar Road So Far tune of ‘Carry on my Wayward Son’, we’re reminded of where ‘Supernatural’ has taken us this season. Castiel, taking in too many souls from Purgatory, unleashed the Leviathan before being destroyed. Bobby falling to a bullet and returning as a ghost. Our favorite demon Meg with a grudge against Crowley helping the boys. Cas’s return—though he’s not quite there. Kevin Tran, a seriously dedicated student turning into a prophet of the Lord, able to read the Word of God as everyone jockeys for his services. Our Favorite Road So Far: Leviathan, Bobby, brothers by themselves, Cas’s return, Meg’s return, Kevin as prophet…Word of God. So you see, there’s quite a bit to touch on and only an hour to do so; can the finale provide an answer to where we go from here? Only one way to find out…
NOW
Last time we left our two big baddies, Dick had summoned Crowley within a devil’s trap. But Dick doesn’t want to kill the King of Hell, most specifically because he’s smart enough to know Crowley’s planned for just an attempt on his life. Instead, as Crowley quips, they begin “…negotiating like proper psychopaths”. In exchange for giving the Winchesters a fake vial of his demon blood, Dick offers Crowley free-range demoning for Crowley and demon-kind, Canada to be exact. They settle on a deal and whearas Dick doesn’t pepper the former crossroads demon with a big, fat kiss they do begin a rather lengthy contract evaluation that lasts the night and, after done, Dick believes he’s pretty much made an airtight deal.
On the other end of things, Sam and Dean are back on the road, searching for the bone of a righteous soul. Sam suggests calling in Cas but seeing as he’s still crazier than a wet bag of cats, Dean pushes the idea aside. On the radio they get word of Dick holed up at Sucrocorp, something Bobby(moonlighting in the maid’s body) knows as well. After finally sniffing out the most righteous of nuns, Mary Constant, the boys summon Crowley who doesn’t show right away. Instead it’s Meg who comes a-knockin. Apparently Emo boy, aka Castiel, is back and, when Dean approaches him, the angel is philosophizing on the topic of animal cruelty. He finally gets his mind turned around, at least temporarily, and informs everyone that the angel Garrison is no more and Kevin is gone, taken by the Leviathan. During their convo Crowely finally appears and he’s a bit pissed at Cas though the angel’s barmy behavior has him thrown for a loop. He shakes it off and after telling the good guys (and bad girl) where he’s been the King of Hell willfully double crosses Dick. He offers them his blood and reminds Meg that he will be calling on her soon.
Trying to find his way to Sucrocorp, Bobby is temporarily knocked out of the maid. She pleads for him to leave her be but his rage is such that he can only see Dick, his killer, as a salve to his rage. Speaking of Tricky Dick, the Leviathan’s no dummy and realizes Crowley’s probably betrayed him. He tasks his administrative assistant to bring him the arm. We get a quick glimpse of Kevin locked in a room when they throw in Paulie, a girl who’s no doubt under the influence of the turkducken concoction. Prepping for battle, the Winchesters mix the blood and cover the bone with it and Cas shows up, providing the Winchesters with an all-natural Dick-Free meal.
Something big is happening at Sucrocorp as several big wigs—all Leviathan—roll into town. The chemist tells her to get dressed and when he escorts her out Kevin (who stole a bobby pin from her wardrobe) starts on picking the lock to escape. The Winchesters hack in to the cam feed but are confused when they see Dick’s all around; the crafty Leviathan boss had copies of himself made to confuse his enemies and it works to perfection. Meanwhile the real Dick injects Paulie with Additive 3.0 which kills the host, breeding out the food they don’t want, i.e., skinny folk. Kevin overhears Dick’s summary and tries to escape but is stopped before he can excit.
As the boys try to figure out which Dick to attack, they see Bobby in the maid’s body. Sam tells Dean to sit tight and he goes to retrieve Bobby. Sam tries to reach his deceased uncle but Bobby has nearly graduated to the no turning back spirit of vengeance phase. When he sees himself choking Sam he jumps out, giving the maid her body again. The next day Sam informs Meg about the multiple Dicks and Dean sees a weird reaction from Cas. Tired of his former bestie’s treaty of non-involvement, he reminds Cas just how the Leviathan got here but it does no good; Cas jumps away, intent on playing Twister by himself. Meg points out how Cas could help identify the real Dick. They need to find him and after strategizing a bit Bobby reappears to the boys. He knows he’s gone too far and needs to be dealt with. He gives Sam and Dean sage advice; kill Dick because it’s part of the job and when it’s their time, go. They get set to burn the flask and before it goes up in flames Bobby salutes them. “Here’s to runnin into you guys on the other side,” he says “…only not too soon.” They finally put him to rest and though we never see him immolate, the raw pain etched across the brothers’ faces is enough to portray their loss. From the stairs, Cas watches on sadly.
When Cas returns, Dean helps him to run an errand. He takes Dean to the Impala which had been hanging out in storage for most of the season. Cas admits to why he’s been so distant; he believes he’s cursed and any help he provides will only be tainted. When Dean dismisses his excuse, Cas detects an underlying note of forgiveness within Dean and finally volunteers to go with him. Dick knows they are coming so they are going to announce themselves…Big. But instead of the boys ringing the bell, it’s Meg who drives it through Sucrocorp’s sign and takes out the guards while the other three slip in. Crowley uses that moment to call in his marker on her, to Meg’s less than delight. Inside the building Cas acts as bloodhound, tracking down the real Dick. Sam finds Kevin who tells him of the Leviathan plans to kill with Additive 3.0 and tells Sam the entire place needs to be destroyed. Sam and Cas end up finding the real Dick and Dean stabs him with a decoy bone before Cas, who’d been tossed aside seconds beforehand, comes up behind Dick and holds him in place while Dean uses the real one and takes him through the throat. Dick explodes in a spray of black goo. Though Sam and Kevin are still around, the tag team special of Dean and Cas (along with the exploding Dick) are nowhere to be found. Making sure he gets the final word, Crowley appears, taking Kevin for himself and thanking Sam for taking out the Hell King’s biggest impediment. He’s ready to do some housekeeping with the Leviathan who are now leaderless, and having a God’s prophet in his back pocket can only help.
A voice calls to Dean waking him; he’s slow to get to his feet and find he and Cas in a dark forest surrounded by red eyes and hungry growls. They’re in Purgatory and are far from being alone. When Dean scans the darkness, Cas ends up disappearing, leaving him alone in the worst of places.
I’m not really sure where to start. There were some seriously wonderful moments in this where several of our questions were answered. Bobby finally giving up the ghost, Dick’s dead (though that was quite the anticlimactic battle), Crowley leaving with the upper hand…again. And what season of ‘Supernatural’ would be complete without quite the wonderful cliffhanger. In this case, Dean and Cas stranded in the next closest thing to Hell. With his brother gone, Bobby no more and even Meg out of commission, Sam is well and truly alone. Will he figure out where Dean and Cas have disappeared to and, if so, who will he call on for help? It’s a tough position to be in but he better hurry because there’s a good chance Dean won’t be lasting too long in his new ‘home’.
The Good:
- After months of being kept under wraps (literally) the Impala was back, albeit not driven by the Winchesters nor given much screen time. Still, it was a welcome site.
- Again, Mark Sheppard was amazing. His scenes with James Patrick Stuart made ‘Survival of the Fittest’ worthwhile in and of itself. The two actors just look like they’re having so much fun portraying the baddies that you almost find yourself rooting for them.
The Bad:
- For the second week in a row, we’ve been given a lackluster finish in regards to a fight. Despite his bad assery, Dick goes down a bit too easy for my likings. Not only that, his death was quite unimpressive (exploding into goo?).
- Well, it’s final, Bobby is officially no more. After seven seasons of providing fatherly advice and a trusted backup, Sam and Dean (if) he gets back from Purgatory, will truly be on their own. We’re gonna miss you, Bobby.
The Supernatural:
- So we get to see the final frontier. Purgatory, a place that houses only the souls of monsters, is currently Cas and Dean’s new address of record. Not good, my friends, not good at all.
If you missed the previous episode be sure to read our ‘Supernatural: There Will Be Blood’ recap to catch up.