WFB Deja Vu Review – Supernatural 9.02 “Devil May Care”

Have you ever heard the saying “Hindsight is 20/20”? It means that we are all wiser about the past once we know the future. Well the writing team at Winchester Family Business thought we would test this theory on Supernatural’s season 9 storyline!

Local TV affiliates usually rerun the entire Supernatural season during Hellatus. In the United States, the CW started the reruns last week. While a few of us were live-tweeting the season’s premiere, “I Think I’m Going to Like it Here”, I was struck by how differently we all perceived events, dialogue, character’s motivations, lighting and just about everything else in the episode since we knew the ending of each plot line. There was so much foreshadowing we couldn’t detect the first time around! This gave me an idea for a new series of articles.

Each week during Hiatus, several of the writers will rewatch an episode of season 9. We will then combine all our observations into one commentary. This will be much more informal than our usual, detailed reviews. Instead of analyzing, theorizing or explaining, we will offer random thoughts about the episodes. I think it will be fun to see our different perceptions, styles and biases all in one place! Some of us see meta while others focus on canon. I see and hear writing cues. Some are serious, some are sentimental and some are, well, full of snark! You’ll get us all in one place! We may overlap each other and have the same observations or we may contradict ourselves, but that by itself should be revealing!

Even if your TV network doesn’t have the same rerun schedule, you can still watch your own recordings or on-line streaming. Many fans have a rewatch ritual during the off-season anyway, so we are suggesting that we all experience the season over again together, but this time through the wisdom of hindsight! If you missed last night’s show, rewatch 9.02 then come back and read our ramblings. We may need a new title for our articles (I had to get your attention somehow!), but see what you think of our random insights!

Nightsky

·         Dean realized that Castiel doesn’t have a harp! Can’t really envision Cas strumming away at the harp anyway. Weird visual there.

·         At the beginning of the episode, Dean flippantly asked, “What Would Sam Winchester Do?”. It occured to me that this very well could have been THE theme for the whole season. Dean must have wondered for months what Sam would do when he found out he was possessed by an angel.  As fans, we continually asked each other, “What will Sam do when he finds out “he” killed Kevin? What will Sam do when he catches Gadreel? What will Sam do if he is faced with saving Dean against his will? What will Sam do to save Demon!Dean?”  Up until the very last second, we were all asking, “what will Sam do?” In a way, Sam’s decisions and actions are still a major part of the season’s cliffhanger finale. What do you think? Should this be our official S9 theme…or at least part of it?  

·         Dean, you thought Crowley was the junk in your trunk then. Little did you know that might actually happen now that you are a demon.

·         Sam, that’s a darn small notepad for wanting to write down the name of every demon on earth.

·         “S.A.M. into S&M”. Only Sheppard could say that clearly enough to be understood.

·         KEVIN!! I forgot we would be seeing Kevin…and Abaddon’s first appearance…..and normal Dean…and the brothers talking to each other without hate, anger, resentment…So much that I miss. A lot has happened this season!

·         Ice cream and strippers. I wonder which one comes first.

·         “Riding Down the Highway”. Miss the great rock music in each episode. Music has considerably lightened up this season. A lot of good music, but still, not rock.

·         Kevin Freakin Solo!!

·         Memories of the “Sacrifice” dialogue haunting Crowley. This episode was only two shows after that epic masterpiece. So much has happened to make us, and the brothers, negate that fleeting breakthrough in the church.

·         Crowley: “That’s how I show love”. What’s with this guy and love? I’m going to start watching for Crowley mentioning love on other occasions. I think this may be a core character trait that is being built across seasons.  

·         Crowley was telling the truth about Mrs. Tran. He could have “given her back” to Kevin.

·         Crowley: “There’s always another prophet waiting in the wings”.  I wonder if the writers knew way back then that they would have Metatron shut off the prophet mill.

·         Dean: “You gotta know who the monsters are” – foreshadowing.

·         Dean’s protective instincts applied even to a young hunter he just met. He sent her away to save her from Abaddon.

·         Abaddon foreshadowed Dean as a demon! “You are the perfect vessel” then all that talk about him being possessed.

·         Ezekiel apologized to Dean for taking over Sam when Sam was getting beat down. Gadreel is so innocent here.

·         Gadreel said that Sam knows that Dean stopped the trials out of love. At least Zeke is telling us what Sam thinks. I’ll take anything I can get. Plus I’m happy to know Sam felt Dean’s love. This got SO messed up. HOW did it go so sideways???…

·         …then Dean tells Zeke: “If this goes sideways…” Zeke: “That is not going to happen”. Oh Gadreel.  This scene convinced me to trust you. I’m glad it did, too. I believed in you no matter what you did. Your actions devastated both Dean and Sam, though.

·         Crowley’s go-to is making deals. Always finding an angle. He is in chains and he starts negotiating demon names for concessions.

·         It would have been nice if Dean had believed Kevin about Mrs. Tran. Would have saved her months of captivity.

·         Dean to Kevin: “You, me, Sam and Cas. We are all we got.” I wonder if the writers knew they were going to destroy every bit of that team.

·         Sam: “I feel better than I have in a long time. I’m happy with my life in the first time in forever. Things are good.” I credit Gadreel for giving Sam some good days.

·         Overall impression => This episode felt so much like “old time” Supernatural. I hadn’t realized how bitter and isolated the second half of the season became. It was really nice to have “boys” again. I miss them. A lot.

Bookdal

·         Crowley’s character development is always that he has a deal going so what does that mean for his involvement with Mark of Cain storyline? I think it’s a long con. 

·         Crowley states what we all know – The brothers are selfish about each other. They’ll sacrifice others for the other. Is this why Crowley encourages Mark of Cain? Has he figured out the way to defeat the brothers is to separate them? 

·         Hunters are still bitter about Sam’s Lucifer thing. Wish they’d deal with that more. 

Gerry

·         Gadreel to Dean: “You did it out of love.” On the rewatch, I was struck by this continuing theme in the examination of right and wrong. Clearly, the possession was a violation of Sam’s autonomy. Does it matter why Dean did it? Gadreel says yes, and interestingly, later on in the season, Castiel agrees. Cas doesn’t dismiss the violation, but he does say motivations matter. To further complicate the situation, Gadreel’s own motivations drive his arc and eventually managed to change the opinion I had formed of him after Kevin’s murder. Motivations matter. I think that’s something the angels are learning through Cas. It’s something Sam and Dean usually know—except when they hurt each other. Then they have to relearn it, which is the ultimate purpose of this possession arc.

·         Abbadon to Dean: “I’ll use your body. . . “ Despite the emphasis on understanding why Dean did what he did, the episode doesn’t skimp on pointing out the violation inherent in possession. Abbadon’s threats to Dean in their final scene foreshadow what will actually happen to Sam later in the arc. His body has already been taken over and will later be the instrument of Kevin’s death, a scene which will cause nightmares night after night for Sam. Possession, whether by angel or demon, takes away free will in an abhorrent fashion.  And only Supernatural could make such a serious point in such a scorching hot scene. Abbadon and Dean had chemistry to burn. I can’t believe the writers didn’t take advantage of the fact throughout the arc.

·         Crowley to Kevin: “Think they care about you? You’re going to lose, Kevin, everything.” This was just heartbreaking, not least because Crowley has a point. People close to the Winchesters tend to live short lives. However, I don’t think it’s because the brothers are selfish or cavalier about other people. I think it’s because they are involved in a war. We saw Dean grow from boy to man during season two and what he found inside was the ability to lead. To be a leader, he has to be able to make hard decisions. He has to know how to use people. I don’t think that means he doesn’t care about those people. Dean grieved Jo’s fate in “Abandon All Hope,” but at the same time accepted he had use her death strategically. War is not pretty.

I think much the same is happening in this episode with Kevin. Dean genuinely wants to protect Kevin, and believes Kevin is safer in the bunker. He also knows Kevin is an asset they need and therefore he wants the prophet close to hand.  It’s a very fine line between care and utility, and it’s a line Dean walks best with Sam to guide him, as we saw in “The End.” Dean’s compromised relationship with Sam as much as Gadreel’s Trojan horse entry into the Batcave will lead to Kevin’s death.  Sam will soon understandably see Dean’s need for him as selfish, but I think the show’s narrative posits Dean needs Sam to stop the part of him that can make difficult leadership decisions from taking him over, turning him into something monstrous.

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So there you have three different writers who were all struck by very different aspects of “Devil May Care”. What did you see on your rewatch? Feel free to add your thoughts, or comment on any or all of our observations. You can pick one or several. It’s a full week until the next rerun, so we have time!