Sam’s at the police station talking to the dental assistant. He calls Dean, who is really doing research, but about possession of spirits and dopplegangers. Nice try Dean, but I’m sure Bobby had something that rudimentary already covered. Sam lets Dean know the dentist hung himself in his cell before he could talk to him and what the patient said was pretty harsh. “I’d have murdered him too.” I’m sure there would be a line. Dean is back with the pet names. “So root canal and russian roulette, both of them it’s like they were cursed, right? People were just compelled to puke the truth all over them?” Very good Dean. You get a cookie. Wait ‘til it happens to you. Sam does have a good counter argument. “Getting hit with the heavy truth, wouldn’t you go postal? I wouldn’t call that a curse.” Ooh, foreshadowing! Sam’s taking the morgue, Dean’s taking the dentist office.
This is the issue with the MOTW stories that often hits this show. The writers, especially the inexperienced ones, tend to go procedural when unfolding the story. Step by step, by the book unfolding the mystery. There are certain points during episodes like this where I have to wonder if I’m not watching CSI by mistake. This is definitely happening here. The next several scenes really bog down this episode for that very reason. Same thing happened during the first chunk of last week’s episode too. So, I might skip ahead a bit during these slower moments.
Dean checks out the dentist office, finds a receipt from “Harry’s House of Horns.” He saw a magnet for that place at Jane’s sister’s house. He goes there, the horn guy doesn’t know much and Dean strangely gives up kind of easy. Also, the horn guy must be the shortest man in the universe or something, for Dean towers over him. Imagine if it was Sam! They wouldn’t be able to fit in the same frame. But then the guy wants to know about his missing horn. A museum piece, about a thousand years old. It’s got a funky curved shape, like a U. It got swiped a few weeks ago, the same day Jane died. One Internet search later, guess what? It looks like Gabriel’s Horn of Truth. Man, I really hope Gabriel is the one that swiped it. I’m dying to see him back in the future.
So, it turns out this horn thing is just a diversion, a red herring so you will, to give Castiel an excuse to show up for Dean. It works, but it doesn’t help the clunkiness of this episode so far. Dean’s drinking whiskey now. Dean says out loud there’s a possible “loose nuke” down here, he turns around and Castiel is there! Dean looks like he’s ready to punch him, but he already learned his lesson on that back in “Lucifer Rising.” “Are you kidding me? I’ve been on red alert about Sam and you come because of some stupid horn?” Remember Dean, you’re not the center of the universe. Luckily, Cass is one angel that knows to be patient with you.
Castiel claims he’s asked him to be there and he came, but Dean’s upset he’s been asking him for days. Naturally he didn’t come about Sam. He doesn’t know what’s wrong. You know, I just had a thought, I could buy that the markings were removed from Sam’s ribs when he came back, or even when he was possessed by Lucifer, but Dean’s? The only explanation I got is when he was healed by Cass in “Swan Song.” It’s weird how Cass can find him so easily now. I miss the cell phone bit.
“Well that’s great, for all we know he’s just gift wrapped for Lucifer.” Again Dean, if it was Lucifer, he wouldn’t be trying to play uber hunter like this. He’d be plotting world dominance. Castiel grabs the bottle of whiskey and tells Dean he’s not Lucifer. He pours Dean a drink! Hee, he knows how to get Dean to calm down. Basically if Lucifer escaped the cage, they would have felt it. That and Castiel would be running to them like a bat out of hell screaming “run for your fucking lives” just before branding their ribs again.
Dean doesn’t know whether to be relieved or bothered by this bit of info. “What is wrong with him?” Cass doesn’t know. Dean brings up how Castiel used to be human, or like one. Castiel somberly mentions how he’s at war right now. I’m really sure this is all important for another time, plus Castiel needs to do the pained expression of strife too. Dean’s not the only one with problems. “Certain, regrettable things are now required of me.” In other words Dean, stop calling him so he can get back to torturing angels! He’s got priorities.
Dean breaks the ice by asking about Gabriel’s Horn of Truth. Cass is stunned to hear that. “We think it’s in town. Something’s forcing people-” Cass is gone. Dean shouts a sarcastic “you’re welcome” and turns around to find Cass behind him. Man, those angels love flaunting their power. Castiel tells him it isn’t the horn of truth. Dean asks where he looked since he was only gone for two seconds. “Everywhere,” Castiel answers, not sure what else Dean was expecting. Dean accepts Cass’ word and then gives him a nice seeing you. Castiel takes a few seconds to be sympathetic, for he is supposed to be the caring angel, and claims he’ll make some inquiries in regards to Sam. Aww, how nice, he remembers to be a friend. Right when Dean turns around though to talk about it, Cass is gone. “Yeah, thanks,” Dean says, drinking his whiskey. He’s not feeling the love.
Now how is it that the rest of this episode moves really slow but when Castiel arrives it’s short attention span theater? I know it adds to his MO but more Cass would not have hurt at all. Like skipping this next morgue scene. Did we really need another morgue scene? Sam finds out all the bodies are gone. There! Time with Castiel robbed for this?
Okay, NOW is where this all gets somewhat interesting. We are over 16 minutes in, it’s about time. Dean is in a bar. No, not Dean! Hubby says to me, “See, that chick is on TV. Something’s about to happen to Dean.” Very good dear. Bartender asks Dean if he wants another one. Dean says no, he’s working. Plus he’s already had a few. The phone rings, Sam fills him in. The bodies are missing, one of them died a whole week before everyone else. She wasn’t a suicide, but a car accident. It could fit. That would make her patient zero. He’s checking out her place right now. Dean will meet him there.
Alice,
Great recap as usual.
So much about this episode has already been said, so I won’t reiterate.
The thing about Cas finding the boys. He doesn’t show up unless they call (pray) to him. Maybe they are invisible to angel eyes unless they go shouting angel names.
Dean has shown like for animals (rabbits!) but not Yorkies. And Sam did have that dog during his run away time. Equal like maybe? Well, not now Sam, but Sammy Sam.
Thank you ever so much for referring to Sam’s shirt as skimpy! Though I believe it unfair that in this show, that is what we get to call skimpy. *shallow sigh*. And I agree that the tub should have been full of hot, steamy water….*more shallow sighing* The pic you put up to mention Sam’s hair? Great, but I couldn’t stop looking at Dean! The expression on his face…heh.
Thanks again for the recap!
Hey Alice,
I am pretty sure our lovely Goddess is driving a 1960’s Jaguar XKE otherwise known as an E-Type (possibly a 1962 in specific). 😀
Also, I was thinking. If Sam’s logic chip was working, he would have realized playing the sympathy card (especially with no soul/emotion) would not work on Dean. Not this time.
A more honest answer from Sam would have been more along the lines of “I probably need help, but since I’m such a good hunter I don’t know if I want help.” I think Dean would have believed that over the unconvincing “I need help.”
Friday is almost here! I have my fingers crossed for more answers cause Sam really does need help.
Don’t hot dogs come with onions and tomato sauce … That’s two of your five-a-day right there! Also mustard is sort of plant based, at least in theory …
I think it’s cunning the way Souless Sam has inverted all the little things that used to define the character. His hair is perfect, he eats proper Man Food, he has actual sex, he’s altogether free from the ravages of guilt … He has become James Bond. Yuk. Bring back the old shaggy, finnicky, embarressed one that we know and love! ( but lets have a bit more angst and bondage first, because we’re worth it … ) 😉
Good recap Alice. Loved the calendar as 2010 too. Don’t need to be reminded that they kept the boys apart for a year.
Dean did resist his first impulse, which was to kill Sam. That was evident when he put the knife down. But there was no way Sammy would get off scot free. Sam’s plea for Dean to feel sorry for him saved Sam. Maybe Dean still has some brotherly bond with Sam, although after what Sam did, it can’t be much. As to the severity, you don’t poke a hornet’s nest with a stick and expect not to get stung! How Sam could have thought his brother was not going to unload on him I don’t know. Sam lost his feelings not his intelligence. Sam really should have really spent more time in having that beer with Dean!
Maybe after a year of lying to people and getting away with it, he thought it would work here too. It was a while before I believed Sammy was really telling the truth this time. And I have to wonder why he waited until he actually was caught red-handed before he told Dean the truth. Sam is lucky Dean didn’t kill him.
Chuckle, Alice, I too am an American made…or, well, Canadian made, American made…..OH you know what I mean, gal. I grew up in a 66 Cutlass Supreme.
However, I had a number of friends who were European car nuts so I learned my exotics too. 🙂
And hey, guessing is good – think of it this way, you were right that it was a European car!!
One of the things that bothers me the most about that episode was Bobby’s reveal that Dean is his favourite. I’d always have thought that Sam and Bobby had more in common, and Bobby seems to understand Sam, so I was kinda hoping….
Seriously though, is Sam anyones favourite? Makes me sad.
Also, the eating tongue thing? Wrong, on so many fecking levels. The dentist thing…. wrong. Anything to do with teeth, wrong….
Out of interest, what questions would people have asked Sam and Dean had they been in that situation?
Well, I’m glad that I’m not the only one to notice that Sam is no one’s favorite. Bobby, Castiel, Ellen, Jo, everyone prefers Dean. And as if it wasn’t obvious enough, now they have the characters say it aloud. I didn’t think Bobby’s words were funny. I was sad to hear them. I wish Samuel was “good” so he could make a connection with Sam rather than Dean, for a change.
In this case, don’t forget that Bobby’s words were inspired by a Goddess out to have folks committ suicide so she could eat them. Do NOT take Bobby’s words as TRUTH. He may have spoken the truth in that moment, but moments change.
To me, even what Dean said under the curse of truth was not!truth. There was an element of truth to it but it was truth pulled by Veritas with one goal in mind – to hurt someone else.
And if it makes anyone feel any better, BOTH boys are my favourite. 😀
Great recap Alice,
I think this episode should have been called ‘Somebody give Dean a Hug, He needs One’. 🙂
Goddess spells should have a declaimer on them:’side effects include suicide and becoming lunch’. 😆
You are right, when you side with the MOTW and not one of the starring characters there is a problem. 😆
Remember in ‘Time is on my side’, Sam told Dean that they were already on a case ‘Dean’s deal’, This episode Bobby tells Dean, that the case he is on is ‘Sam’.
I think that Sam (in the form of Colin Ford) is standing in the cage with Lucifer and Micheal/Adam, and he is holding on to Dean’s amulet, waiting for his big brother to come and get him. But that is just me. 😀
I just thought of something, when did Lisa ever see Sam and Dean together? In ‘the kids are alright’, she never saw Sam, in ’99 problems’, Dean was there alone. How does she know what kind of relationship they have or had? IMO she is just a jealous ‘female dog’.
I promise that this will be my last Lisa bashing. 😛