Preview and Episode Discussion – Finale – 6.21 and 6.22
This Friday “Supernatural” will air its last two episodes for the season finale which gives the fans a double-dose of fire-and-brimstone.
Episodes 6.21 “Let It Bleed” and 6.22 “The Man Who Knew Too Much” are hour long back to back episodes, although a two hour movie was contemplated originally. Kripke states, “There are so many mythology balls up in the air,” he stated during the PaleyFest panel, “in the end, in order to tie up all the loose threads, it’s very episodic.” He continues saying, “Because of this, both episodes will stand alone, with certain aspects of the mythology tied up in the first hour, and another group tied up in the second hour, all leading up to … a cliffhanger ending!” Kripke also conceded “that there are a number of “curveballs and twists” in the season’s final episodes, which have certainly thrown our brothers for a loop.”
As for the content of the episodes, Kripke warns that the season is “building to a left hook that I don”t think [fans will] see coming.” He said fans can look for everything to “come to a head,” including the war in heaven, and the mystery behind Purgatory. “It”s just sort of turning everything up into a high boil,” he explained.
Executive producer Sera Gamble stated, “We heard pretty early that we should be prepared for them to air on the same night. We had so many threads to tie up this season; we didn”t end up telling one story that stretches over two episodes. Instead, they work as companion pieces and separate episodes.” Gamble included that both episodes are brother-centric and “very much about Sam and Dean coming together.” “I would say that the last couple of episodes are pretty dark,” she continues. “The situation is rather desperate for Sam and Dean and they truly have to ban together to get the job done.”
At PaleyFest, Jim Beaver also commented on the remaining season saying, “The last few episodes of the season are very much a team effort. My sense of it is it”s not a lot of us going off on our separate ways. It”s a lot of us working together on the big questions facing us and we answer a few of them – but not all of them,” he said. He wouldn”t state what questions would be answered, but offered this taunt: “Certain relationships among the group have some rather climactic shifts. Don”t expect the four of us to all be relating the same way at the end of the season as we were at the beginning.” Now, that has to be about Cas!
The first episode of the two part finale deals primarily with Dean”s storyline this season, which found him struggling with his identity. Executive producer Ben Edlund feels that Lisa and Ben’s return will “test Dean”s resolve.” He continues, “It”s going to [force] him to choose what kind of hero he”s going to be. As we always knew, one day or another, he was going to have to make some choices like that.”
“He started this season completely out of the hunting life, and he has a lot of fears about the worst version of himself in that situation, who he could turn into and the bad he could do to other people,” Sera Gamble stated. “There”s a reason he has so few people in his life, and it”s because he has a lot of fears about what he could bring into their lives, what he could do to them. He has to face that in this episode.” And on “Supernatural” “facing your fears” mean one thing. “We look at those issues through a Supernatural lens, which is fun because then they get really bloody,” she says with a laugh. Which is of course what we all want to see, right? (Smile)
6.21 “Let It Bleed”
The episode was originally titled “The Haunter of the Dark” after a novel by Howard Phillips (H.P.) Lovecraft. “The Haunter of the Dark” is a horror story in the Cthulhu Mythos genre and was written in November 1935,
“The Haunter of the Dark” is about a terrible supernatural creature (Cthulhu) which is very knowledgeable, but demands outrageous sacrifices in exchange for that knowledge. Apparently this creature takes over the main character but is then struck by lightening and killed. The novel also uses an ancient artifact known as the Shining Trapezohedron to summon the creature. Maybe this is where Dr. Visyak comes into the picture.
Cthulhu
Despite the numerous illustrations depicting the creature, it was a spirit or entity that possessed others. The book describes it as “a spreading blur of denser darkness against the inky sky, something like a formless cloud of smoke.” Sounds like a demon to me. And it possesses Lisa for some reason. (As only a demon!Lisa would hold an bloody knife to her son’s throat.
Who or what brings it back is unknown but if it possesses such a wealth of knowledge, I’m guessing it may well have some answers about some of the mythology plots of the series, like the war in heaven and how to open Purgatory. I can see Crowley being behind this, though why he decides on Lisa for the host needs to be explained. Maybe he is just ticked at Dean. Or maybe he needs Dean”s involvement somehow and chooses Lisa as bait.
The novel goes on to describe the Haunter attacking and devouring its prey in the most horrid of manners, charring the body and bones and leaving a yellow residue.(sulfur?) This same residue is apparent when the creature moves across the ground, charring whatever it touches, and it”s speculated to be able to dissolve bone and tissue. If this is the MOTW this time, I”d say they pick an excellent one for the end of the season!
As per the book, the creature was banished by light and could not cross a lighted area. Maybe that”s why they are in a dark basement. If Gamble decides to keep the same methodology for the creature, I”m thinking a good dose of angel light could solve the problem.
The title “Let It Bleed” is from a Stones song in the 1960″s and one fan stated it isn”t a big leap from the song to the “Haunter of the Dark” as the song actually mirrors the final days of Robert Blake who was annihilation by the creature.
The lyrics remind me more of the Dean/Lisa relationship. “Well we all need someone we can lean on/And if you want it, you can lean on me”. Which eventually spirals down to “Well, we all need someone we can bleed on/And if you want it, you can bleed on me.” Being able to count on a friend when you need him is very apropos for them, and “bleeding” is definitely one of the things SPN does in spades. I was hoping that doesn”t mean literally for Lisa, however one of the photos released for the episode doesn”t seem to bode well for her.
Of the episode Jensen Ackles said, “I can”t say necessarily how, but that story will be explored and it will be explored heavily. I think there”s a part of [Dean] that was left with them. But I think he knows deep down that it would never work. And I think that”s going to be a very emotional situation that he”s going to have to deal with.”
The trailer for the finale and its extended version, gives more information about the episodes but as the clip is a mix of both hours, the order of the scenes is ransom. Some are obvious though.
First we see a bloodied Sam telling himself, “This is your last chance”
Castiel asking Balthazar, “Are you with me or not?”
Dean telling Castiel, “We were family once” in the same cellar as the door to Purgatory which Cas appears to be standing in front of and we see Crowley (possibly in the same place) saying, “You can’t trust anyone these days”;
Demon!Lisa smiling and holding a terrified Ben hostage while Dean watches in horror.
We see an overturned impala in the street outside the same building that was destroyed by angel light in the shorter version of the trailer. We also see Sam, just having escaped from the car, running around to the driver”s side. Is Dean still in there? YOWZA!!
Additionally we see a bloody females hand, wearing an engagement ring, shedding blood on a Lovecraft manuscript, one page of which reads “by H.P. Lovecraft, March 15th, 1937” (the day he died).
We shift next to a very demonic fight in a basement with bodies strewn all over, a very malevolent face of a demon that is thrown, by an invisible force, away from an unconscious man tied to a chair. (Really hoping this time it isn’t Bobby, but if it is, I’m hoping that invisible force is Cas!)
Many thanks for putting up what is possibly the most important preview for this season. 🙂
may i repost this? great preview!!
may i repost this? great preview!
Yes, as long as you credit us, and Sablegreen most importantly, as the original source. Provide a link!
thanks muchly!
Glad you liked it enough to repost it. Can you tell me where? Would love to see it.
Glad you liked it enough to repost it. Can you tell me where? Would love to see it.
is that Sam getting out of the car? because if it was flipped over, then he’s getting out of the driver’s side… it does look more like that Sam, though.
Whenever a car overturns, it will always land of the hood because of the weight of the engine. Whoever got out, and it does look like Sam, got out on the passenger side. Freaky!
ah, of course – you’re right. Either way, it doesn’t look good!
Dean is the heart of Supernatural and what pray Mr Edlund is Sam ? no wonder alot of Sam fans hit the roof over the episode 2 wks ago . Iand Bens interviews . iIf Dean is the heart then Sam is the soul I get tired of the dismissive attitudes of the writers of Supernatural where Sam is concerned .
I actually agree with Edlund that Dean is the heart. Since season one he was the one who cared more about keeping the family alive and together. But the question becomes, what is Sam? Sam used to be the one with the drive, the smart one, the one who saw more complexity and shades of gray, the strategizer. That all got tied up into the Lucifer storyline, and Dean is being seen more and more as the one with the plan. So the question is, what is Sam now now that his whole demon blood story arc is over?
Thanks Sablegreen, as if my appetite hadn’t been whetted enough!!
Less than 20 hours….
Your welcome. Love doing these. Now less than 7 hours! YEA!!!!!
I can wait but there are thunderstorms forecast in our area. 🙁 Does anyone know of a good site to watch after the fact if our power goes out.
Thanks so much for the preview. :)z5va
This just ramps up the excitement even more! Wow, you saw things in the extended promo I completely missed. This is going to be epic.
BTW, I did not get the impression Sam didn’t recognize Lovecraft’s name, but that he was surprised Dean didn’t, although I could be wrong about that. I cannot love more that Lovecraft is getting into the act!!! Also, I think that is probably Moishe Campbell. Moishe is a Jewish name; hence the New York reference. That’s our Sera!
I love Lovecraft getting into the act too. He wrote some great pieces. And thanks for the spelling of “Moishe.” I really couldn’t find it online.
Thanks for the comment. Glad you liked it.
I am so, so very scared… all the mayhem and the heartbreak and the darkness… not anything new, I know, but still…
I’m very interested to see how they put Lovecraft in the story. He wrote some great stuff, but wasn’t exactly the nicest person imaginable.
Tomorrow for me, here in Europe… stocked up on chocolate, tissues and everything else necessary…
Great preview, Sablegreen!!!
Love, Jas
I will start. I honestly was impressed with the way Gamble wrote Dean Winchester. I didn’t think she knew the real Dean but she did. I was very impressed with “Let It Bleed” and I hope everyone else was too. And I’m so glad Lisa and Ben lived. Gamble was spot on with how Dean would react and adjust and as sad as it was, it is what Dean would always do. Sacrifice himself for his friends and loved ones. Sorry Ben doesn’t remember Dean as I always hoped he would follow in Dean’s footsteps, But Dean is right…it is the best choice for them.
Kripke’s rendition of “The Man Who Knew Too Much” was great. I for one will not be pulling my hair out this summer. The boys and Bobby are as I remember them from the earlier years. As for Cas, he sacrificed a lot to save heaven and the boys won’t desert him now. Dean never leaves anyone behind.
Sorry Balthazar is gone. Cas was wrong in that, but no one stays dead on SNP so I hope the boys get him back. And Crowley is alive. So cool! Want to guess who’s side Crowley will be on next year? Love the way this is all going.
Hope you all had as much fun with this as I did. I was really impressed with both scripts. The handling of Sam’s wall was fine and I’m glad that is behind them now. I am really looking forward to s7. Hope you all are too.
I agree with you. It was a fantastic finish to the season.
I think Cas has to come back crashing to Earth before all is said and done. You know what they say. Power Corrupts. Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely. He’s gone even one step further than Lucifer did. Lucifer never claimed to be God. He simply was angry that God had chosen humans over angels and was throwing a temper tantrum. Cas has now taken on the mantle and I wonder how that will end up.
I felt goose bumps at the way Kripke handled Sam’s Wall. I wasn’t sure if were going to be stuck with a comatose Sam for the summer or an insane one or what. He’s much more functional than I had expected! I loved how it took Sam facing off with both his Soulless self and his Hell self and fusing the two back in to himself. Fantastically done and I bow to Kripke.
Gamble handled Lisa and Ben’s exit perfectly. WE had Sam shove Dean at them in Swan Song and we had to find a way to handle them. Dean would not break a promise to Sam—especially a last request. So, you knew he would be wit them. Somehow you had to deal with the aftermath that would emerge once hunting caught back up to him. I had both Lisa and Ben on my list of who I thought was the ones to die. I’m pleased that they won’t—despite how sad it was to see Dean let them go. He knew it was the right thing to do after all the danger they had been in because of him. I thought it was handled beautifully.
Oh, and my big win? Hearing the song Play With Fire. Perfect choice for the show’s subjects of the night—both Cas’s plans and for Sam’s attempts to put himself back together again. I knew it two notes in—see my name. Major Stones fan, so it just made me giddy.
I’m anxious for the Fall to see where this goes next, but I’m not as torn up as they had us believe we would be. Sam and Dean are squarely on the same team again. Despite Cas’s obvious new God Complex, I think he’s still the Cas we all know and love under it all. And Crowley’s still out there to raise a little Hell. All good things for the story.
I just think it’s great to see the Heart (Dean) and the Soul (Sam) of the show back where they belong—united and together as a force. Cas might think he’s all that and a bag of chips at the moment, but he’s obviously falling into the same pitfalls others have when opposing the Winchesters. He’s underestimating them and in the end it’ll cost him dearly.
Either way, I look forward to rewatching the season and putting together the essay that won’t leave me alone. We learned a lot this season and it’s been a fun ride. Let Season 7 not only match it, but top it!
I totally agree with you. I thought it was a great way to end this season. It’s a shame that Cas is going to have to learn that age old lesson that power corrupts. Maybe Chuck/God will come back next season to reign in Cas and take him down a peg or two. For now, I’ll be content with re-watching this Season and previous ones. 😀
My money on who will provide Cas’s epic smack down? Dean’s BFF, none other than Death. Death said he’d reap God—Real God, one day. What is a newly minted “God” to him?
Either way, I think it’ll be a wild ride.
Whew, I finally have some time this evening to chime in on this.
I’m still stuck on “Whoa!” I swear, I can’t get past that. It’s funny, that very same quote that Far Away Eyes said is what I thought as soon as the final shot. “Absolute power corrupts, absolutely.”
I have to admit, this is a very different finale that went along with a very different season. I LOVED poor Sam having to face himself like that. To think, he faced himself, bloody and broken by all those memories of Hell, and chose to accept them anyway so he could wake up and be there for Dean. Just beautiful. That and it’s about time Jared got to play opposite himself. Lord knows Jensen’s had to do that enough times.
Then there’s Castiel. Sadly, it was “evil” Castiel that killed Balthazar, the one that already got the souls. I know he wouldn’t have done that if he was himself. He valued friendship. I think he went ahead with the plan because he felt he had nothing to lose because his friends had abandoned him. I’m sure he had no clue what was going to happen. He didn’t realize what that kind of power does to a being.
Poor Dean. I get why he went with the memory wipe of Ben and Lisa but still that had to hurt. He remembers what they had. I just wonder, his turning away Castiel, it really did make a mess of things. If he had stood by his side, if it may have turned out different. Maybe not either. Who knows.
Bobby’s old lover was a monster? Oh, that had to be a shock for him. At least he hasn’t been a monk all these years.
So much more to absorb, all requiring a rewatch. I’m likely going to break the review up based on each episode. We’re going to be taking a heavy look at season six for the next month or so. There’s way more there than meets the eye.
You know what they say about great minds—
I really don’t know where they intend to go with this. I thought I had things figured out to an extent before tonight and they managed to blow my mind completely with what they did do.
I have to admit, in the scenes where Sam faced off with his Soulless self, I thought for a moment he was facing a version of Lucifer that his head had created—that quote Soulless Sam said threw me off track, the one about being in Sam’s grapefruit. I agree with you. It was fantastic acting on Jared’s part.
Now if my brain would, much like yours, get past “woah” I could work on my own essay on this season. Now that it’s complete I feel it was really good (though I felt that way pretty much straight through). Oh the humanity of waiting!
Wow. Wow, wow, wow. Head swimming at this stage! Well worth the 2 FREAKING HOURS it took me to download.
I’m trying to take the two episodes as individuals but it’s hard. It’s a shame they weren’t shown on two separate nights to allow valid discussion on both.
Dean had Lisa and Ben mind-wiped? Damn him. It saddens me that the boys world has just gotten a little smaller, again. They really are the Three Musketeers / Amigos now.
Castiel broke the wall, as a [i]distraction??[/i] Castiel, you fucking pup you! Jeez, that should have been an indicator right away that there was no turning back for Castiel. And how on earth was he planning on fixing it later? Did Castiel know the souls would turn him into a God? Though I have to say, Castiel played Crowley BEAUTIFULLY! All the souls, Raphael gone, all in one fail swoop. You might be a pup but your planning skills are awesome.
Poor Bobby’s monster ladyfriend is dead. Awww. ‘Bobby Singer, paranoid bastard’. Bobby, you’ve always been awesome and now you have one of the lines of the season. Kudos, my friend.
The acting all over was amazing. Dean, when he was talking to Lisa and Ben in the hospital. Devastation. And the three Sam’s? Sweet Jesus JP dude, but you can act!
The battle in Sam’s head… I read a fiction yonks ago about Dean having to go into Sam’s head and meeting a truckload of different Sam’s inside there. An absolutely amazing story (made me bawl like a baby. If anyone knows what it is…..) and ever since then I’ve hoped for something like it on the show. So Sam knows what he did as Soulless Sam. He knows what the Cage was like (but we haven’t seen it yet). Thank you, everyone in SPN for this episode. (Actually, did JP not hurt his head when Soulless Sam died cos he that ground an awful wallop?)
Castiel a God? Didn’t see it coming. They’re gonna need a bigger angel killing sword. Tee hee.
Can’t WAIT for next season!
Everything you said and more. I’m still trying to wrap my head around what we saw last night and fit it together with the rest of the season.
And the acting of everyone on this show was stellar. My other favorite line besides the one you pointed out was Crowley’s “And exit stage Crowley!” That one stuck out to me right away.
Definitely will need a re-watch for both as there was so much to take in at one time.
I loved that Balthazar came through for Dean in helping find Lisa and Ben.
I’m not happy that they killed Balthazar off. I really liked his character, he reminded me so much of Gabriel/Trickster. I think he would of made a great ally for the brothers.
I understand Dean’s decision to wipe their memories clean. I feel he did it more for Ben then for Lisa. I think it was an attempt to spare Ben the horrors that he had witnessed. The death of his mother’s boyfriend, seeing his mother being possessed and putting a knife to his throat and then stabbing herself. Having to take a gun and actually shoot people and possibly killing them. Lets face it that was a pretty traumatic experience for a child to go through.
However it still won’t protect them from the supernatural world. Some evil entity can still use them as ponds to get to Dean. They may not remember who Dean is but Dean sure as hell knows who they are.
For some reason though I don’t think we will be seeing them again. I think maybe the Writers/Sera had wiped their memories clean as a way to putting the Lisa and Ben storyline to rest. Maybe they thought killing them off would have been taking it a little too far. I could be wrong of course, but it was just a feeling I got.
Sam facing off his memories was brilliantly done. Kudos to Jared! He was fantastic.
It will be interesting to see how he deals with these memories and how they impact him.
I was surprised Castiel let Crowley go at the end. I thought for sure he was next on the hit list. But I guess Cas has other uses for him.
Castiel! Oh Castiel!
I have to say I’m not sure how I feel about what they have done with him.
I think it’s great for Misha to get a chance to play the heavy and possibly the big bad.
But as a fan of this beloved character, I worry that they have and will take his character to a point where he cannot possibly be redeemed by either Dean, Sam and Bobby or by us the audience. But then maybe that is the plan. Maybe season seven will be Castiels last.
Is it weird that I am this depressed because of a fictional character? I don’t know if there is any way they can redeem Cas next season, but I hope they try rather than just kill him.
I’m not sure how they’re going to stop Lord Castiel. All I can see happening is either Cas comes to his senses or God/Chuck comes and knocks him down a peg. Or maybe Death comes to take care of it.
Oh, Tim the Enchanter, I think the story you’re looking for is Inner Sam by KKBELVIS.
“You know me, you know why..I’m not leaving my brother alone out there.” The most powerful and meaningful line in the entire finale as Sam s about to accept the Hell memories. That is what true family to for another, taking on the pain for the sake of another.
Which is why, in my opinion, Cas was never “family”. Since his arrival he NEVER took accountability and NEVER took responsibility and ALWAYS blames others. And on top of it he would rather sacrifice others as an ends to a mean and once he ran out of sacrificial lambs only then maybe, maybe he will sacrifice himself as a LAST resort. Where as the Winchester brothers would rather sacrifice themselves before all others.
Maybe if Cas actually own his part in actively (and with full knowledge) in bringing on the Apocalypse, then I may be more generous towards him. But he never did and it was the first of the lost list of unforgivable acts on his part. So him declaring himself a god is canon to his characteristics since season 4.
Breaking Sam’s protective mind wall, torturing and killing the monster doctor who never hurt anybody, and then stabbing Balthazar in the back; Cas had already hit irredeemable level, as if he didn’t already when he knew the real Sam was still trapped in hell and yet tried very had to convince Dean to leave his brother in the cage.
I would like to see in season 7 the revisiting of Sam’s memories of Hell and connecting it to Dean’s own memories of hell. Now is the time to deal with BOTH Sam and Dean’s hell trauma. Dean would do anything to help Sam so maybe he could finally deal with his own issues that he ignored all his life. If Dean realizes that he can help Sam by helping himself then that’s progress.
I 100% agree with you. I love Cas to an extent, but I have never seen him come clean with letting Sam out of the Panic Room. If he had simply left Sam in there it is possible they would have never killed Lilith and broke Lucifer free. He has never taken responsibility for that. It does suit his character to have gone dark side and his hubris is the biggest weakness he has—probably has always had.
And I agree with you on Sam taking those Hell memories in the way he did. That’s the brotherly bond at work there. I do think we will see some handling of Sam’s Hell in season 7. Sam is better off with that whole situation than I had thought, but I think it goes to back to what Hell Sam told him: you’re not strong enough to take these memories. It’s the line that gives Sam the strength to take them and function. He’s stubborn when he wants to be. I hope that we see the brothers handle their Hells together, too.