My Random Thoughts: September 2008

Okay, so nearly a week later I finally have the blog for this episode up. But this is my first time doing that, so be kind. It took me awhile to figure out how I want to do this. I don't think in the future my Supernatural blogs will be this long. Those who've seen the show can skip to the Commentary. So with no further ado...Lazarus Rising!!

Summary:
The show began with the Supernatural traditional classic rock recap, this year set to "You Shook Me All Night Long" by AC/DC. Flashes of Dean trapped in hell play on the screen before we see him wake up in a pine coffin. After Dean claws his way out of his grave, he stands up and looks around to see that the trees surrounding his grave have been toppled over in a circle away from him.

Dean makes his way to a nearby gas station, and pilfers food, water and a nudie magazine. Looking in a mirror, he sees that he has no scars from the hell hounds, but there is a handprint burned into his shoulders. Suddenly the electronic devices around him start to flicker on and an unbearable sound grows louder causing the glass in the all the windows to bust out.

At this point Dean tries to contact Sam, but Sam's cell phone has been disconnected. Dean then calls Bobby, but Bobby hangs up on Dean believing that it's some type of cruel prank. Dean hot wires a nearby car to drive to Bobby's home. Believing that Dean is some type of shapeshifter or revenant, Bobby attacks Dean twice. Not until Dean cuts himself with a silver knife does Bobby believe that he is truly Dean. Even then Bobby throws holy water in Dean's face to ensure that Dean is not a demon. Once Bobby accepts that it truly is Dean, they reunite and hug.

Dean and Bobby discuss how it is possible that Dean could be up and walking around considering Dean has been dead for four months. Dean is convinced that Sam has made some type of deal to get him out of hell. Drawing on his knowledge of his baby brother, Dean calls the cell phone company and gets the GPS tracking on Sam's new cell number turned on. Sam is in Pontiac, IL, which is close to where Dean was buried convincing Dean and Bobby further that Sam had something to do with bringing Dean back.

When Dean and Bobby go to find Sam, a strange girl opens the door. When Sam walks into the room and sees Dean, he tries to attack Dean until Bobby is finally able to convince Sam that he is not an impostor. This is really his brother. The two reconnect and share a real hug. After the girl Kristy leaves, Dean and Bobby confront Sam. Sam denies having anything to do with getting Dean out of hell. In the last four months, Sam tried opening the Devil's gate or tried making a deal, but nothing worked. Choking up, he apologizes to Dean for not getting him out of hell. Dean tell Sam that it's okay and he believes him. Even though Dean and Bobby are both glad that Sam's soul hasn't been bargained away, they now have no idea who brought Dean back to life and what that being may want in return.

Dean wants to know why Sam was in the area near his grave. Sam tells them that after he was unable to get Dean out of hell, he started searching for Lilith in order to get some revenge. Sam was tracking some demons, and the demons suddenly headed in this direction the day before. Bobby suggests going to a psychic he knows, Pamela Barns, in order to try and get some answers. As Bobby goes to call Pamela, Sam gives Dean his necklace back. Sam asks Dean what hell was like, but Dean tells him that he doesn't remember a thing, hiding the fact that he has, in fact, been having flashes of memory.

When Dean and Sam are driving in the Impala to the psychic's home, Dean asks Sam how he managed to escape Lilith the night Dean died. Sam reveals that Lilith tried to kill him, but was unable to hurt him. Sam was immune to Lilith's powers. Dean continues to question Sam, and Sam confesses Ruby is dead and denies having used his own psychic abilities in the last four months.

When the three boys arrive at Pam's home, she tells them that she hasn't heard any news regarding Dean and how he got out of hell. She suggests holding a seance in order to get a peek at whoever was responsible. As she calls to whoever brought Dean out of hell, a being called Castiel warns her to turn back. Dismissing the warning, she continues calling to Castiel to show himself. Suddenly a power rushes through the room and Pamela's eyes literally burn in her head. When she comes to, her eyes are gone and she cannot see.

While Bobby takes Pam to the hospital, Dean and Sam go to a local diner. Now that they have a name (Castiel), Dean wants to summon him. Considering that Pam's eyes burned just from a peek at him, Sam is against this plan. He wants to find the demons that he had been previously tracking and see if they have any information on what's going on. Fortunately (or unfortunately) the other people in the diner are possessed by the demons Sam wants to talk to. The waitress sits down to talk.

The waitress starts taunting Dean, wondering why he's so special that he gets out of hell. Dean tells her that he doesn't know why he's out but he'd love to know why. She threatens to send Dean back to hell, but he calls her bluff. He knows that she doesn't know who brought him back, but whoever did is very powerful. She won't do anything to Dean and change angering Castiel. As Sam and Dean walk out of the diner, Sam argues that they should take out the demons, but Dean doesn't want to go up against that many demons at one time.

Later that night Sam sneaks out of the hotel room while Dean sleeps. Shortly after Sam leaves, the TV and radio switch on just like they did in the gas station earlier. The unbearable sound starts again, bringing Dean to his knees and blowing out all the windows and mirrors in the room. Bobby bursts into the room to drag Dean out.

As Bobby drives, Dean calls Sam. Neither tells the other what is going on and instead pretend everything is fine. Sam is sitting outside of the diner where the demons are, and Dean tells Bobby that the two of them are going to summon Castiel without Sam. Bobby tells Dean that this is a bad idea but agrees to go along with it.

Sam walks into the diner and finds the cook dead with his eyes burned out just like Pam's. The waitress attacks him, and the two fight until Sam realizes that her eyes are gone also. He asks what she saw, and she says it's the end. Sam then uses his psychic abilities to send the demon to hell. He checks the body, but the girl the demon was possessing is dead. At that point, Kristy comes in from the kitchen, and Sam addresses her as Ruby! He asks her what's going on, but she has no idea. Ruby reveals that whatever brought Dean back couldn't be a demon; it's too big for that. It's cosmic. Ruby asks Sam whether or not he's going to tell Dean what he's been doing. Sam says he'll tell Dean but he has to wait until the right moment. Dean's not going to understand and will be angry that Sam is using his abilities even if it is to get rid of demons. Ruby offers to back off, but Sam says no. Even though Sam still doesn't trust Ruby, he knows that he's saving lives. So whether or not what he's doing is right, Sam wants to continue.

Dean and Bobby set up in a deserted barn. They cover the barn with talismans from every religion and assemble an arsenal of weapons. Bobby then summons Castiel.. Just when Dean and Bobby start to get bored and think that nothing is going to happen, Castiel appears. The barn shakes and lights explode, and Castiel waltzes slowly into the barn. Dean and Bobby shoot at him, but he just keeps walking. Dean tries to stab him with the demon killing knife, but nothing happens. When Bobby tries to knock Castiel out, Castiel touches Bobby and puts him to sleep.

Dean demands to know who Castiel is. Castiel tells Dean that he is an angel of the Lord. He was sent by God to bring Dean back. Dean expresses disbelief, and Castiel tells him that good things do happen. Even though Dean doesn't believe that he deserves to be saved, God commanded for Dean to be saved. He has work for Dean.

Commentary:
Wow. Every year Supernatural just keeps getting better and better. This episode just blew me away. It set us up for an amazing year, and I am ready to go on that ride!! I love that this show is not afraid to take risks, and every time I love the way those risks play out. I can't wait to see how this "angel of the Lord" changes things for our boys.

I love the new title card. It's angel wings, reflecting where the show is going this year. When I first watched it, I thought they were bird wings flapping (not realizing they were angel wings), which is totally appropriate for Supernatural considering Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds freaked me out when I watched it. So the title card has scary connotations for me. Awesome! And just as a reminder we went from a lightening bolt for the season one title card, fire for season two and a cloud of black smoke for season three. Is it no wonder that I love this show so much? I get excited about the changing title card for Pete's sake!!

Okay, why does the sight of Dean crawling out of the ground freak me out so much? Maybe I have some underlying fear of being buried alive. The ariel shot of the fallen trees surrounding his grave was amazing. At that point you know something big has happened but you don't know what.

Busty Asian Beauties!! Awesome!!

Okay, Dean keeps Dad's cell phone charged a year after John is dead and gone, but Sam has gotten rid of his own cell phone only four months after Dean's death? Here's a question. Does Sam still have Dean's cell? Should Dean have tried his own cell phone number?

Bobby is the man! I love the relationship between him and Dean. Dean needs him as a father figure. That hug was so sweet! And the holy water in the face? Classic! Dean's expression was priceless. So typical of Bobby to cover all his bases and take no chances. After all, this is the guy who gave Sam a beer laced with holy water and made Ellen take a shot of holy water. He must just carry a flask of that stuff around.

I don't get all the Star War references, but I love that they're all over this show.

After three seasons, we finally get a real hug between our two boys. You can just see how much they mean to each other. And when Sammy gave Dean his necklace back? I nearly cried. I think this was my favorite scene in the show. And the running "Are you two gay?" joke? Perfect!

Bobby's reaction to Sam going after Lilith alone cracks me up: Who do you think you are? Your old man? I just love this because it just reinforces once again that Sam is exactly like his father. I think this gets to me because it shows how true to life this show can be when it comes to the portrayals of family relationships. Sam and his dad butted heads all the time. They couldn't be in a room together without getting into a fight. But the reason why they fought so much is because Sam is a carbon copy of his dad. And you see that in families all the time. Kids fight with the parent that take after because they're exactly the same!

IPod jack in the Impala. Nice! You were supposed to take care of her. Not douche her up!

The major freak out moment for me in this episode was Pam's burning eyes. I sat there and wondered "Ummmmmm….am I going to be sick?" When she opened her eyes, and they were gone…ewwwww!! I thought of putting a picture in, but I decided to spare everybody.

Dean's such a bad ass. When he called the demon's bluff in the diner, I was very impressed. Even though I must say, I was very shocked when he slapped her. Not sure why, but I was

Now I know there has been a lot of speculation about Sam going dark side because he's using his psychic powers. I have never liked that theory. In my opinion, Sam's psychic abilities are neutral. Neither good nor bad. I don't think these abilities came from the YED. I think he was born with these abilities and that's why he was chosen by the YED. So it is up to Sam to decide how he wants to use these powers. Right now I think he is using them for good (banishing demons back to hell), but I can see how they could be used as a temptation to the dark side. My opinion is that Sam's psychic abilities are not going away. So Sam and Dean need to accept that and decide how to use Sam's abilities for good and keep Sam on the right path. The problem is Dean is so hard headed when it comes to Sam's "the Shining." He's going to have a really hard time accepting the idea that they could be used for good. And one last thought. Castiel thought that Dean would be one of the few humans capable of seeing his true form. Maybe Sam is capable of looking at Castiel in his true form. Wouldn't that be interesting?

For those who would like to watch the season four premier of Supernatural, the show is available online at the CW. Next week (or in two days), the episode is entitled "Are You There God? It's Me, Dean Winchester?" I love it for the title alone. Judy Blume and Supernatural. Never thought those two would have anything in common.

Finally we have cause for celebration!! The season premiere viewers totaled 4 million, the highest ratings for the show since season one (when it was back on the WB). This is an improvement over season three when the ratings averaged 2.92 million viewers. This is very, very good news. Let's hope the show can keep this up.

Favorite Quotes:
I know. I should look like a Thriller video reject.

Are you kidding me? What don't I know about that kid?

Hey, Bobby. What's the deal with the liquor store? Your parents out of town or something?

I know. I look fantastic, huh?

Dude, I'm so in. Yeah, she's going to eat you alive. Hey, I just got out of jail. Bring it! You're invited too, Grumpy. You are not invited!

What makes you so special? I like to think it's my perky nipples.

This is a bad idea. I couldn't agree more, but what other choice do we have? We could choose life!

Because God commanded it. Because we have work for you.