Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Supernatural 8x06 "Southern Comfort"

I think this was maybe my favorite episode of this season so far. Am I allowed to say that? Of course I'm allowed, what is this? It's my own damn blog. Sheesh. This may be due to the fact that I kind of love Garth. He's so not your typical hunter, and really comes in as a breath of fresh air.

Recap/review of Supernatural 8x06 "Southern Comfort" by freshfromthe.com
Garth: the detector of tension between Winchester brothers.
Just how did he come to be in this episode? Why, the brothers ran in to him working on a case, of course! See, a woman killed her husband in a most unseemly manner, but has no recollection of doing it. Decapitations generally not being common, both the Winchesters and Garth caught on to the case, with Garth posing as a Texas Ranger. In Missouri. Ha.

Sam and Dean soon find out that Garth has sort of become the new Bobby after he gets multiple phone calls from other hunters with questions and whatnot. Dean is, of course, less than enthused with this idea, but lets it fester for awhile, because that is what Dean is best at, letting his feelings fester until he can get possessed and blurt them all out at once with guns pointed at heads. Whoops, did I just give away the ending? Whatever, you've surely already watched it.

After another person gets murdered, the gang figures out, thanks to one of Bobby's old journals, that they're dealing with a specter. You know, green ectoplasm gives it away. Specters are sort of avenging ghost types. They eventually figure out, after many random comments about Confederate versus Union soldiers and the Civil War, that the specter came from the Confederate version of the tomb of the unknown soldier. So they salt and burn, and Sam finds a mysterious hair or piece of thread or some crap, because he always finds the random tiny stuff, which is, like, super duper important later.

Recap/review of Supernatural 8x06 "Southern Comfort" by freshfromthe.com
Dean, all the cool kids wear fringe jackets. Duhhhh
Because guess what! The specter ghost is not dead after all! What a surprise! It turns out that the kids who broke into the grave a few days before, thus releasing the dude in the first place, took a penny with them. Why a penny and not the guns, we may never know, general stupidity perhaps, but ANYWAY, the penny found its way to the killer woman and the other two killers, and oh me oh my, we better find that thing right away! To the Impala!

Well, actually, they split up, and Dean ends up getting stuck with the penny. Uh oh! Possessed Dean sure has a lot to say to Sam. Like, why didn't you look for me in Purgatory? And, come to think of it, why are you always being so betray-ful in the first place? Demon blood? Ruby? No soul? Oh yes, that time when you traveled around with Samuel for a year and left me to think you were dead? Well shit, it's true when you put it like that, that's some pretty crappy stuff. Anyway, there's a scuffle, but Garth manages to get the penny away from Dean. All is well! Or IS IT?!

While all of this was going on, we had some more Sam flashbacks to his time with Amelia the vet. It turns out that Amelia was married, and her husband had recently died in Afghanistan. She tells Sam all of this in a post sexytimes sad truth reveal, and then wants him to leave and go and shoo and not look at her with the sad puppy eyes. Well, Sam is not having it, and tells her that he understands, having recently lost his brother. Sad puppy eyes all around!

Back in the present, Dean bids a grudgingly fond farewell to Garth, basically giving him permission to take up Bobby's mantle after all. It helps that earlier Garth told him the what for - that Bobby belonged to all hunters and not just the Winchesters. You go, Garth.

But that's not all. Because clearly we need a patented by the Impala real bro talk. Sam basically confronts Dean about having these thoughts about him betraying him and such, but Sam throws it on back, saying that at least he's tried to be up front about what happened while Dean has kept these secrets about Benny and what really went on. Which is, you know, true. Sam also basically told Dean that he might kill Benny one day. Yeesh. That's way harsh, Tai.

Random Thoughts:

- What happens to these people who've murdered others while possessed? I mean, we never really stop to think about that, do we? Do they all just go to prison or the nuthouse? I guess they must. Sad trombone.

- I swear that lady was on a previous episode, maybe as the woman who set herself on fire at the gas station back in, oh, season two? Am I hallucinating?

- I know a lot of people are going to be on Dean's side, but honestly I kind of agree with Sam. Look, I get it, Dean's upset that Sam didn't try harder to get him back, but I feel like we haven't really gotten that whole part of the flashback story yet. Or maybe we have. Sam didn't know where he was. How was he supposed to find out? But Sam calling Dean out on being on this high horse since he's gotten back? Yeah. I totally get that. Don't we know by now that keeping secrets never ends well? ANYway.

- I kind of had the same reactions as Dean when Garth was trying on the Bobby-isms for size. Not because he was doing it wrong, but because those sayings were done to absolute death already, and we're trying to bring them back? Please GAHHG no. Garth trying to grow out a beard to be more Bobby-like, however, was sort of cute. Mostly because it was not mentioned or thrown in our faces like whoa.

- I gotta say, Sam sure seems to know what to say to win over a lady. Though no one resists the power of the puppy dog eyes. NO ONE. Especially not a vet!

Quotes:

Sam: So how does that make this our kinda thing?
Dean: Because, Sam, Kevin's in the wind, you're sulking around like a eunuch in a whorehouse, and I can't help but ask myself, when is decapitation not my kinda thing?

Sam: Hold up. Are you the new Bobby?
Dean: You shut your mouth.
Garth: Yes.
Dean: You shut your mouth.

Dean: What do we got, a ghost with an Oedipus complex?
Sam gives him a look.
Dean: I don't know what that means.

Dean: That's not how you wear it!  (re: Garth wearing Bobby's hat)

Sam: Burn a confederate soldier's bones in a town full of rednecks? Sure!

Previous Episode -- Next Episode

6 comments:

  1. Great review and the episode while flawed had Garth so that's always good.

    As for the Bobby thing, it's ok to give a hat to Garth but to write a character that's clearly not Bobby in the same mannerisms is not cool. Seriously Garth works because he is the gamer nerd who is a hunter that manages to save the day based on pure luck and circumstance. People can relate to that. Apparently the new showrunners think otherwise cause now he's a younger Bobby. Auuugggghhh!

    Also as for Dean he has no place holding a grudge towards Sam for living his life, after all Dean shacked up with Lisa for a whole year. So why he's blowing up on Sam knowing that he had bouts of unspeakable torture in the pit is uncalled for. This is season 8 it's time to give up this petty crap.

    Speaking of Sam wants Benny dead now, and Dean is against it because Benny isnt hurting anybody and the two shared a bond. Well now isnt he Mr Hypocrite again. Dean killed Sam's friend Amy last year because she was a monster even though she was only acting on her maternal instincts to save her son. God havent these writers watched the previous episodes?

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    1. Yeah I'm kind of annoyed that they seem to forget everything they've already been through. Sam can't understand Purgatory? Dude, he was tortured in Lucifer's cage. I think he can get it.

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  2. I love this season of Supernatural and this episode only increases that! It was great to see Garth back and to take up his role as the new Bobby, although nobody can replace him. My coworkers at DISH are finally finishing catching up with season 7, so soon they will be able to watch this amazing season. Luckily for them, I have recorded every episode with my Hopper from DISH so that they can watch the entire season once they are finished, and I don’t have to worry about deleting anything else. I am really looking forward to seeing Sam face off with Benny at some point this season, and to see Dean’s reaction to it!

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    1. Look, I appreciate a comment as much as any indie blogger, but not ones that are blatantly used as a marketing device. Gonna have to start deleting these.

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  3. Your reviews are like a breath of fresh air. I so loved this episode I went to Television Without Pity forum to share, and all I found was hate and vitriol (that's my new word of the week). I tried to defend my love, but got shot down horribly. So, if you have any sort of common sense, stay away from there.

    What can I say? You captured all I had to say, plus more. And do it better. Thanks!

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    1. Aw, thanks! I try to add a touch of snark but never get too crazy hateful. I don't understand those who watch shows just to hate on them. You hate it? Stop watching it, maybe? What a concept! Thanks for reading! :)

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