Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Supernatural 10x10 "The Hunter Games" [Contributor: Deena Edwards]


"The Hunter Games"
Original Airdate: January 20, 2015

The last time we saw Dean Winchester, he was on his knees in a room full of dead loan sharks, bloodied knife in hand. This episode picks up a short time after, and for the most part, everything is anything but back to normal.

It starts out, surprisingly, not on the brothers, but on Crowley, being chased and eventually stabbed to death. Luckily, it turns out to be just a dream (or, more accurately, some kind of vision--- demons don’t sleep, right?) and when he comes to, much to his dismay, Rowena is right by his side, all sugary toned and full of motherly concern; the sincerity of said concern can be left to debate. “Darling, what can I do?” to which he responds, “Not a thing, you evil bitch.” She corrects him, “Not a thing, you evil bitch, mother.” Their relationship is strained, to say the least. I can’t speak for everyone, but I love all of their interactions. Any scene of theirs is 99.9% snark and bitterness, and I sometimes actually forget they’re not mother and son in real life, because they’re so believable at it on screen. It’s also really great to have more of a peek into Crowley’s past, learning about the woman that obviously had a huge effect on how he turned out. Unfortunately for him, she’s clearly not up to any good, having pulled out a hex bag from underneath the King of Hell’s throne right after he leaves the room.

We find Dean sitting by himself, flashing back to the murders he committed when the Mark of Cain took over. The Winchesters, Dean especially, are no strangers to guilt. Over the span of the past ten seasons, it’s safe to say they’ve left a lot of dead bodies in their wake, but even though those loan shark guys were far from undeserving of it in my opinion, this seems to be the worst, the Mark taking more of a toll on him than any of them could imagine, pushing him further and further out of control. In the next room, Sam and Castiel are discussing Claire’s reaction to the bloodshed, which quickly shifts over to Dean’s actions, both unaware he’s entered the room until he starts talking. “There was a time I was a hunter, not a stone cold killer. You can say it. you’re not wrong. I crossed the line.” He’s adamant on getting rid of the mark--- burning it off, cutting it off. He doesn't care, he just wants it gone, and I can't say I blame him. These guys already have a lot weighing on them without adding a higher body count to the mix.  Castiel assures him it’s not that easy, although adding that there “may be another way,” which doesn’t sound vague or dangerous at all.

Enter Metatron, the angel we all love to ha -- oh, who am I kidding? We all just hate him. From casting out the angels to making Gadreel kill Kevin, he's been a thorn in everyone's side far too long. Being the Scribe of God, they assume he’s their best bet for information in getting rid of the Mark, so they chain him up and let the interrogation begin. He’s surprised and somewhat amused to find out that not only is Dean still alive, but he’s also “gone nuclear.” At first, Metatron is all too happy to help, informing them their first step is retrieving the First Blade. It’s not a plan Sam is fond of, but right now, it seems to be their only choice, so they call Crowley to meet up. Meanwhile, Mother Rowena’s up to no good again, using her witchcraft to eavesdrop on their conversation, and sends one of Crowley’s lackies, Guthrie, off to retrieve the Blade. She has an ulterior motive, of course. It’s not for her, but so that it looks like Guthrie was just another backstabbing, distrustful demon, and Rowena saved the day, yet again. Just another ploy to earn her son’s trust, and part of a bigger plan, I’m sure.

With Sam and Cas out of the room, Dean takes the opportunity to try to get the information his way, via torture, just like the good old days. Metatron resists, though, even with Dean slicing away at him with the angel blade until Castiel and Sam burst into the room, separating the two. He did let one thing slip, though. “The river ends at the source.” Whatever that phrase means, we don't know yet, but I'm sure it'll come into play soon.

After Castiel leaves with Metatron, we have our usual BM (brother moment) of the episode. Sam refers to what Castiel said earlier about needing a powerful force to rid Dean of the marks effects, adding that maybe Dean needs to be part of that force himself by trying not to give in to the Mark's desire to kill.

Having left earlier in the episode, we find that Claire's been spending her time with a couple of dangerous drifters, who eventually convince her to agree to meet with Dean to talk, only so they can attack him. Of course, when it comes down to it, they're no match for the eldest Winchester. He's seconds from killing them both with the man's own weapon before Claire snaps him out of it, and he's able to stop himself from taking it too far, thus proving that maybe there was some truth after all to Sam's words before. They can't just depend on a cure-all for the Mark; Dean has to fight it.

All in all, I have to say this episode was a major step up from the midseason finale, and kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time! I'm really excited to see what the rest of this season holds, and to find out exactly how this whole "get rid of the mark" thing is going to go down. Will they be able to stop it before it causes Dean to go dark side again?

Memorable Moments/ Quotes:
  • The “ROAD SO FAR” intro was so awesome it legitimately gave me chills.
  • “I will not apologize for being a career woman!”   Okay, Rowena may be a manipulative, sum of the earth witch, but she’s a strong, independent, career-driven, manipulative scum of the earth witch. 
  • “Why do you assume I’m not going to be helpful?”  “Because you’re a dickwad.”  “But I’m your dickwad.” A+ writing here, folks.
  • “Dean Winchester’s a monster.”  “It’s possible there’s a little monster in all of us.”
  • “You never sung me a lullaby. You dosed me with whiskey until I passed out.”
  • “You don’t cook, I don’t eat. It’s a perfect arrangement.” I could never be a demon. I like food far too much.
  • How quickly Crowley said “where?” when Dean called asking for them all to meet up. He’s obviously not quite over his old bromance.
  • “I’ll uh, I’ll text you her number. I like texting. Emoticons.” Cas, stop being so cute. It’s getting out of hand.
  • “I’m settling a score that’s taken way too long to settle.” Dark Dean is my favorite, okay? Him torturing Metatron was a huge throwback to one of my favorite Supernatural episodes of all time, season five's “On The Head Of A Pin.”
  • “Kevin’s death? All on you.” The exact moment I wanted to punch my television set.
  • I wanted to literally applaud when Castiel finally dragged Metatron off, even though we  all know this isn’t the last time we’re gonna be forced to see that scumbag, ugh.
  • CHARLIE'S BACK NEXT WEEK?!?!
Welcome Deena to her weekly Supernatural recaps! We are so excited to have her so be sure and check back for more of her thoughtful recaps. :)

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