Recap – “Live Free or Twihard”
So much went into this 42 minutes. A lot of it is unlike anything we’ve ever seen on this show before. I’ll do my best to analyze, but forgive me if some scenes leave me at a loss for words!
I’m going to skip over a lot of the first part here. It’s long and quite frankly, I don’t get into the vampire craze. I’ve never really dug vampire lore. I’ve never read “Twilight” or seen any of the movies, I’ve never seen “Tru Blood” and while I do watch “The Vampire Diaries” that’s more for their good character driven stories than it is the vampire stuff. So, while this spoof here is okay, emo vampire lures the girl and it’s super easy, it didn’t do much for me.
Girl in in a bar, she’s underaged, she has a fake id, she meet the emo vampire she came to see, they talk, mostly about her really bad poetry online, he woos her, he resists biting into her when she starts bleeding (wait, that’s a clue), he takes her into the alley and the dumb girl is expecting a room full of velvet. I do like her observation instead about the outside of his place. “It smells like pee.” This is “Supernatural,” so no romance here babe. Girl gets attacked by big vampire with some really wild hair that looks like Animal from The Muppets and that’s it for her.
Two things came out of this opening sequence scene that struck me. First, a few of these goth dudes were drinking Rogue Dead Guy Ale. It’s really good, yet quite expensive beer. Not something you expect in a goth bar. More like a yuppie tavern, despite the name. Ah well, they deserve the product placement. Also, I didn’t catch this initially but read about it later and thought it was funny. Sera Gamble is a huge fan of the Twilight series. She knows all her facts. Apparently, the scene where Edward meets Bella is when he catches an apple she drops. So, in this scene, Robert the vamp end ups catching Kristen’s apple…as in iPod by Apple. So there you go Twilight fans, you’ve been spoofed by technology!
If there’s EVER an episode that represents shattered glass, it’s this one. Poor Dean, my heart is breaking just thinking about it.
We’re outside the Limestone Police Department and judging by the girl’s fake id from earlier it’s Limestone, IL. Dean is outside next to the Impala talking to Lisa on the phone. Yep, he’s close by and hopes to wrap up a few things before coming to see her. Lisa is really excited and aww, aren’t these two sweet. Dean of course jokes that he’ll have to make sure he’s not followed, and will have to take side streets and all that. “Just shut up and get your ass home,” she says. Hmm, she’s calling it his home. I wonder if Dean still sees it that way. She is getting tired of the phone thing and can’t wait to see him, but still warns him to be careful. Oh, poor girl. Her heart’s in the right place, but this arrangement is going to end so badly. I hope its not death for her.
Dean hangs up and Sam arrives. Oh yeah, tender moment over. Sam wants to know what he’s stoked about, but Dean moves onto the case. Six girls have gone missing in seven days which is definitely unusual for the area. “And cute,” Dean says, noticing the pictures. Sam finds that amusing. “Ice cream comes in lots of flavors Sam.” Hmm, interesting joke considering he just got off the phone with Lisa. Sam is all business, for these six girls are all in the their late teens and fit a profile. A seventh is missing now, so it’s time to go visiting.
Might I note this is the boring part of the ep, so if I speed along here and there, don’t mind me. They talk to the dad, who calls his daughter good and naive, but girls can be hard. Sam and Dean have no idea what that means into they go into the girl’s room. It’s all decked out in vampire. There are posters of the hot vamps that are obviously Twilight ripoffs including a life sized one on the back door. “These aren’t vampires man, these are douchebags,” Dean says.
They look around and Sam finds her laptop. He opens it and up comes one of those vampire douchebags as the desktop background. “That’s just…uncomfortable,” Sam says. Considering Sam’s shared a cage in Hell with Lucifer, that says a lot. Sam finds her, oh let’s say social networking account, and tries to guess the password. Dean picks up a copy of “My Summer Blood” and wow is it ripe. “Look at this. He’s watching her sleep, how is that not rapey?” Sam isn’t in the mood for jokes since he’s trying to concentrate.
Dean doesn’t care, for he’s still having fun mocking the book. “He could hear the blood rushing inside her, almost taste it. He tried desperately to control himself. Romero knew it was impossible.” That’s actually funny, for that’s exactly the struggle Dean has later when he’s turned. It isn’t so romantic, is it? Dean stops for he’s had enough. “Romero, really?” Sam obviously, proving he’s definitely not himself, tells Dean to shut up. Normally Sam is great at tuning Dean out. “This is a national bestseller,” Dean says appalled, not caring too much that Sam is getting agitated. He tells Sam to try Lautner for the password, since that kid is everywhere and it’s a freaking nightmare. Nope. Sam asks how many t’s are in Pat- that’s it! Pattinson.
Her inbox is full from some guy claiming to be a vampire. They speculate whether he’s for real or not. After all, girls like Kristen here would make for easy prey for vamps. “These chicks are just throwing themselves at you. All you’ve got to do is write, I don’t know, write bad poetry.” ‘Bout time Sam made a funny. They figure out she met the guy at a place called The Black Rose. Vampire or perv? Um, both? Next is a gruesome scene of a bloodmobile being robbed. Okay, next!
Sam is on the phone, verifying with the person on the other end that he’s 100 percent sure its vampires. It’s Grandpa! Aww, family moment. Yep, young girls go missing, bloodmobile van gets jumped, this is the fourth town. Except this last time the driver was found with his throat ripped out. How lovely. Sam is having trouble connecting all the dots. “If they’ve already got walking, talking juice bars, why bother with the bloodmobile, it doesn’t add up.” Samuel tells Sam to find the nest and figure it out. Oh, don’t say that Gramps. You have no idea how far Sam will go to follow that order.
Now the brothers are in the goth bar from earlier. Dean notices as far as emo goes, they’ve hit ground zero. Dean even notices the waitress outfit. “She wears all that rubber to the beach?” Sam isn’t in the mood for conversation, for he’s too busy scoping. He even ignores Dean’s question, “When was the last time we had a beer together anyway?” Just before Sam decided to say yes to Lucifer, in Bobby’s yard. That’s when. That is so sad. Sam instead starts pointing out candidates. They come up with three, until one of them starts kissing another guy. Two! Sam and Dean make their moves. “You’ve got Effron, I’ve got Bieber.” Dean again and his pet names. Gold star to the person who remembers my special pet name for Dean.
Great recap, Alice, as usual! This was such a dark episode that I didn’t know what to think when it was over. I’m still processing but can’t wait for next week when hopefully the truth will out!
BTW, Dean was say a Jewish toast when he drank the cure – L’Chayim – which means “To Life”. Very apropos, don’t you think? 😉
Very nice recap – I enjoyed reading it.
A small quibble. 😛 I thought the password to the girl’s computer was “Lautner”. Sam typed in that name as the password, and while he was waiting for that password to fail, he asked how “Pattinson” was spelt (in anticipation of typing “Pattinson” as his next attempt). However, “Lautner” worked.
Reading your recap reminded me of how heartbreaking this episode was for Dean – being turned into a vampire and thinking he was going to have to be cut down, having to say goodbye to Lisa (again !) and nearly drinking her in the process, and of course, discovering how Sam betrayed him and allowed him to be turned.
Thanks, Rose, for explaining the toast. 🙂
Hi Alice
I so love your recaps…and this one I’m sure was definitely a hard one to do.
I burst out laughing when you referenced that Boris looked like Animal from the Muppets….so true…all he needed was a set of drum sticks and a chain around his neck and waa laa it would be him.
I have to say aside from the drawn out beginning and Sam’s character annihilation it was a really good episode. It was creepy and dark and I loved the camera effects and of course Jensen was fantastic. And I loved the building that the nest was in aswell. It did look like an old Bank or maybe an old Train Station.
Now before you get on me about my comment on Sam. I am keeping my fingers crossed and deeply hoping/believing that Sera will do good by Sam and a acceptable, redeemable, forgivable, anythingable answer will be provided soon. And that we will get our brothers back and finally move on from this story line.
I am still very curious as to why and by whom both Sam’s were resurrected and how they crossed paths. And I am also looking forward to more on the Alpha story line.
I do have one little nitpic as I mentioned in Elle2’s review, I don’t see how Dean saw Sam smirk. From the filming stand point Dean’s eyes were shut at the time. He may of caught a glimpse of Sam standing there but could not of seen the smirk.
Thanks again Alice for the great recap.
Thanks for the recap, Alice. It’s especially good handy given that I couldn’t bring myself to watch it a second time. I’m waiting for (another) Sam redemption before I rewatch.
Some really good observations here and some quintessential Supernatural moments; making the cuddly, hairy dude the head vampire honcho, 21st century vamps, projectile vomiting, Dean trying to jibe Sam into resurrecting Sammy and Sam all work, work, work.
I was thinking about the turning (as it shall from hence forth be known…) (1) If Sam wanted a hunter on the inside, why not himself? Maybe, given his propensity for blood, he doesn’t trust himself and (2) He felt Dean was more honourable and thought he’d never take human blood. Turned out he was right.
I don’t know though, maybe I’m just having a ‘glass half full’ day but looking at the screencaps and looking at Sam’s face while watching Dean being turned, I don’t think he planned for it to happen. He’s got a bit of the WTF face going on. However, now that it HAS happened, why not use it to your advantage? Still doesn’t take away from the fact that he didn’t try to stop it though.
While I’m not happy (cos I’m quite sad) about Sam, I am intrigued, very intrigued AND invested, very, very invested.
“Dean hangs up and Sam arrives. Oh yeah, tender moment over. Sam wants to know what he’s stoked about, but Dean moves onto the case. Six girls have gone missing in seven days which is definitely unusual for the area. “And cute,†Dean says, noticing the pictures. Sam finds that amusing. “Ice cream comes in lots of flavors Sam.†Hmm, interesting joke considering he just got off the phone with Lisa.”
I think the above exchange represented a brotherly moment … of sorts.
Sam’s questioning what Dean was so stoked about is rhetorical, as Sam saw him on the phone and easily guessed that it was Lisa. That is, Sam is teasing Dean about the latter’s acting like he’s in love.
Dean’s “ice cream” quip is an attempt to deny it, which Sam knowingly brushes aside.
***
I wasn’t quite as overwhelmed by this ep as you — although I did think it was very good. I think it would’ve worked better if the Kristen story had remained more in the foreground of the plot. After all, they were initially planning to rescue her. Having to gank her should’ve been a little less offhanded.
Alice, Alice, Alice — I was so much like you with this episode.
Happily watching until THAT occurred! After I finished yelling, hyperventilating and whimpering, the show was over and I couldn’t tell you what the rest of it was about until I watched it again with a broken heart, but knew what would happen so it wasn’t such a complete shock the second time.
How Sam can be redeemed is absolutely beyond me right now, and perhaps Dean beating the crap out of him won’t cure Sam, it sure will make me feel better, and maybe Dean too. This must be fixed soon, and better than just another “I’m sorry Dean” as that got old some time ago.
I’m hoping right now that that isn’t Sam in any way whatsoever. I don’t want to have to see Sam and remember how he used to be and isn’t any more. Just can’t forgive him for that if it really was him.
The second time I watched I discovered the badass mofo that Dean still is. LOVED how he went through the whole nest and rested with his boot on Boris’ severed head. Woot!!!! 😈
Jared loves to play the bad guy, but I hope he realizes how awful it is to watch a once beloved character disappoint in every possible way. I want to love Sam again and have the brothers close again and trusting completely each other. Right now I wouldn’t trust Sam to pick up dinner. Sam’s gone off on Dean about not letting him be an adult. He doesn’t deserve to be after this episode. If he is not kicked out of the Impala he should be kept on the shortest leash available. Hope this is not dragged on too long! 🙁
Even so, can’t wait till the next episode, and that is the point of it all, I guess. Riveting and unbearably hurting for our beloved boys!
Great recap/review. It was an awesome episode. Loving how the new writers and directors are bolder and are doing new things this year.
I really was not liking Sam after this episode, (and I consider myself a Sam girl) but now I am having compassion for him. :cry::
Alice, I am getting this vibe that you enjoyed the beatdown that Sam got from Dean. 😀
Great recap.
Were the new vamps stupid before they were turned or did they get stupid when they became vamps? If you see someone coming at you with a sharp knife why do you keep walking to them??? 😀 😀
I like Daddy!Dean, giving advice to the children out there. But I love Vamp!Dean even more. 😀 He is a badass, and can take out a whole coven of vamps within minutes including their big hair leader. (and that is without drinking a drop of blood, he should give some lessons to Stefen Salvatore) 😀
I think that Vamp!Dean would have wiped the floor with Vamp!Gordon.:D
I was waiting for Sam to come to Dean’s rescue, but the MoFo was just standing there. WTF WTF WTF
Poor Dean, having to deal with the super senses of being a vamp and an a**hole of a brother. Even when Dean is cured, all Sam wanted to know was details about the coven. WTF. (I was saying that alot during this episode, they should have called this episode ‘WTF Sam’.)
When Dean was watching Lisa in her bedroom, I had a flashback to the Pilot, when YED was standing over the crib, also when John was in the hotel room in ‘Shadow’.
Grandpa gets a cookie for yelling at Sam. 😀 Sam WTF
Love the stupid ‘rhymes with witch’ who wants Dean to help her when he sees her in the lair. She changed her mind about being a vamp, too late.
Is it just me, or are there no good little girls in SUPERNATURAL? All the children that have been victims are boys, but the girls are evil. Can anyone think of a girl that was in danger? Just thought of one, Tyler from ‘Playthings’, but she did have an evil imaginary friend (who was a girl).
I urge everyone to go to zimshan.livejournal.com/225640.html, she talks about how season 6 Sam is different. It is called ‘The Enigma which is post-Hell Sam’. She wrote this last Friday afternoon, before ‘Truth’, but after seeing ‘Truth’ and seeing the previews for next week, her picspam makes even more sense.
It is like when Dean took the crowbar to the Impala, he started and couldn’t stop until his arms got tired.
He started beating on Sam, when Sam didn’t try to defend himself, then Dean just got crazier because that really did mean that Sam was empty inside. ‘Cause if you don’t even care about yourself then how can you care about anybody else.