Recap – “Sam,Interrupted”
Dean takes a look at all the nuts around and curses Sam for talking him into this. So taking this job was Sam’s idea? Well that’s a switch. Sam for some reason feels obligated to Martin, who saved their Dad’s ass more times than they can count. I’m not buying it. He mentions Martin was a great hunter and Dean emphasizes was, until Albuquerque. Sam dismisses that and tells Dean the other reason, it’s better they keep busy. It seems the last few weeks Dean has been worrying Sam. Dean hasn’t taken Ellen and Jo’s deaths well at all. He shouldn’t either. I’m surprised Sam is holding up, but then again, he did live without Dean for four months. That’s probably hardened him a little.
Okay, time to confuse me again. Dean gets defensive, saying he’s not going to wallow about it. “You always do this. You just can’t keep this crap in.” EXCUSE ME? Sam Winchester? The king of evasiveness and internalizing? There he goes throwing those stones in glass houses again. Of course, Dean probably doesn’t want to confide in Sam anymore ever since opening up to him in “Heaven and Hell” and “Family Remains” then labeled weak by Sam in “Sex and Violence” and “When The Levee Breaks.” Not to mention Sam tried to kill him both those times. That does put a damper on the relationship. “Watch me,” Dean says, and I’m thinking that’s a fair answer. Opening up hasn’t done him any favors. Either way he’s headed for doom.
Dean evades the conversation by finding Martin. They come over and he’s really surprised to see them. He notices they got big. How long has it been since they’ve seen this guy? It’s been this long and they’re going through this trouble? After getting the awkward exchanges of “you look good” out of the way, it’s time to talk business. So what are they hunting? Martin isn’t sure yet. The hospital has had five deaths in the last four months, suicides supposedly. Of course Martin hasn’t exactly seen the creature, but others have had a few glimpses. Not enough to go on. That naturally makes Dean skeptical, especially when he looks at a crazy woman ballroom dancing with herself. Martin swears something is wrong though and Sam believes him. Did he check the body? Um, no, he doesn’t go near bodies anymore.
Their little conversation is interrupted by that arrogant bastard, I mean the doctor, who thinks it be a good idea they all join the next group therapy session. Except Dean that is. “The relationship you have with your brother seems dangerously co-dependent.” I’ll say it is!! This is the first guy ever to find that abnormal though. Sam and Dean shrug at each other with a “whatever” and Dean stays behind.
Group therapy time! I must say, Sam really looks like a fish out of water there. For one, he’s so large! Also, he’s so pretty. Anyway, the guy who wants to start is the patient that saw poor Susan meet her violent end. He wants to talk about the monster. Arrogant bastard doesn’t. Jerk. “It’s not good for group.” The guy agrees, but has a good point. “You want to know what else isn’t good for group? A monster eating all our faces off.” He rambles on and the doctor shuts him down with the same eerie line he told Susan before she bought it. “There is no monster.” Sam and Martin listen but say nothing. Okay, that scene kind of went nowhere.
Dean is playing checkers with himself and winning when a hot brunette doctor in a white coat comes over to talk to him. She’s Dr. Erica Cartwright and she’s been assigned to his case. “You’re my shrink? Lucky me,” he says with a smile. “And you’re my paranoid schizophrenic with narcissistic personality disorder and religious psychosis. Lucky me.” Wow, that’s quite a diagnosis! Especially the narcissistic personality disorder. That’s pretty funny. She takes a seat across from him. He’s got questions for her. She’s got questions for him. So Dean does the lame “Quid Pro Clo Clarice” line from Silence of The Lambs and even does the little lip quiver (I have no idea what that’s called) that Anthony Hopkins is infamous for in that film. I should also mention that I hate Silence of The Lambs references. Its’ SO overdone. Why that is and Star Wars isn’t I have no idea, but it’s cliche.
She goes first. “How many hours a night do you sleep?” “Three or four, every couple of nights.” He’s still sane? I get about six hours a night and that’s not enough. He asks about the recent suicides there and if she’s noticed black smoke, sulfur, anything like that. Nope. She wants to know what that means so Dean tells her the truth. Demon signs, he hunts demons. Of course he’s saying this in a teasing sort of way like he wants her to think he’s crazy but adorable. He’s doing a great job. “How many drinks do you have a week?” Dean counts, again acting flippant, and comes up with over 50. That’s actually not bad considering his line of work. His question involves chills or cold spots, but she hasn’t noticed. He lets her know, even though she doesn’t care, that’s a sign of a ghost. So now she really goes for the burning question. “When was the last time you were in a long term relationship?” Dean wants clarification as to how long that is. Two months. “Never,” he replies. Now THAT is sad. Even Sam’s had one. To think, Sam and John are the only long term relationships he’s had. He goes onto his question, have the patients seen anything weird. Yep, all the time. Now this chick really goes for what hurts. “Let’s talk about your father.” Dean all of a sudden isn’t glib anymore.
Now Dean is walking somberly through the hall and Sam runs into him. Sam sees something is bothering him and he asks if he’s okay. Dean said he just got something and he’s not okay. I swear I’ve played that back twenty times and I have no freaking idea what he said. Sam thinks it was unusual. Dean wants to know if Sam found something. A patient claims he saw the creature. They’ll talk to him in an hour. Dean’s eager to talk kill and leave, for this place is giving him the creeps. Aw, what’s wrong Dean, too much abnormality for your abnormal life? He just doesn’t want to admit he’s fitting in.
In the most normal thing to actually happen to Dean in this place, a gorgeous woman appears behind him, stares at him with those longing eyes and then kisses him, practically shoving her tongue down his throat. Dean of course doesn’t resist. Sam watches like either they don’t have time for this or that they should get a room. It’s hard to interpret his bothered expressions at times. She says hi and introduces herself as Wendy, then even gives him a butt slap as she leaves. Dean’s all smitten, but Sam tactfully reminds him “Dude, you cannot hit that.” Dean isn’t convinced.
Sam comes out of the room with some sort of homemade lock pick and they go to the patient’s room. Except the guy’s screaming and kicking on the door window. Sam goes to pick the lock but Dean doesn’t think he’s working fast enough and wants to take over. Sam jumps at him all angry. “Back off Dean!” Ooh, something is amiss. They get the door open and the guy is hanging from the rafter. They’re too late, another red shirt.
Great recap as usual, Alice.
The end of this episode made me really nervous, too. I don’t know what else Dean really could have said to Sam since all he does is repress and repress, but it’s certainly not what Sam needed or wanted to hear. This is definitely going to have some ramifications down the line.
When I rewatched the episode, I noticed a really cool shot they did when Dean is watching the mirror in the hallway to see who the wraith is. The female doctor comes up to talk to him, then the male doctor comes by, says hello to Dean, and when they pan back to show the mirror, only Dean is in it. The female doctor isn’t there! But it’s really quick, and I didn’t notice the first time through, since I wasn’t really watching for it. But nice subtlety there, Show!
Lastly, when Sam encounters Dean after his first conversation with his fake doctor, he says he was “thraped,” like “therapy raped,” I guess. I think I read somewhere that this was a reference from “Girl, Interrupted,” but I don’t know for sure.
Again, great recap! I, for one, don’t care when you post them. I’ll still read!
Great recap, as usual, Alice! I love reading them because your comments always make me laugh. The end scene still makes me feel odd, even just reading about it, I’m not sure what to make of it.
That was a fun review Alice. Was laughing all through it. Especially Arrogant Sadistic Bastard Doctor! LOL!
You want a fully frontal? Me, too (in a very very quiet voice down here in my gutter). Though I’m afraid if I did get it I’d immediately pass out and miss the rest of the show. Though it would be worth it as I tape them and could catch up later. Heehee!
About the final scene, just what does Sam want Dean to do about Sam’s anger issues? A few episodes ago he was telling Dean he left with Ruby to get away from Dean and he wanted Dean to let him stand on his own two feet. When does he start doing that then? Dean has to support all Sam’s insecurities and never get any support for himself? Remember the boohoos from both Sam and Bobby last season? I don’t think Dean knows what to do about Sam and is dreadfully afraid he will lose him again, especially now when it is needed for them to be united at all costs.
I really liked when Sam all drugged up told Dean that he loved him and “booped” his nose. So cute! Oh, boys, you really get to me!
Alice, I have no problem reliving an episode a week later – I like watching them a few times, after a day or a week, so what? Thank you for this recap which is great, as always. You’re great at this – but I reckon you know that by now. Doesn’t hurt repeating it, does it?
Y’all must have had a great laugh at the Babar-joke, which unfortunately eluded me, as I was not familiar with that, sigh…
I wonder how many in-jokes I might have missed simply because I’m not American?
I’ve said so much earlier about this episode that I actually don’t really know what to say that wouldn’t be redundant.
There’s one point that did strike me, though, after re-watching it. That diagnosis they gave Dean… Either Dean played his role of being an arrogant a-hole so well or they just don’t know their DSM… The personality disorder is not so clear, and I doubt that the shrink in the beginning thoroughly explored their childhood (which would be necessary to even think of that diagnosis). If he did, the assigned ‘imagined’ shrink wouldn’t have to go there again, asking about Dean’s father (since Dean would know that he already answered those questions). It all sounds more schizotypal (but those are just my ears, sorry, I like to do my job right, as in not giving the wrong diagnosis).
I believe, Alice, what he said when Sam found him in the corridor was ‘I just got raped’, well that’s what I heard (any other word I came up with seemed weird) and – imagining whatever question the ‘doc’ might have asked him (especially perhaps in regard to dad) could have felt like violation to him… I don’t remember those lines from Girl,Interrupted that Ardeospina mentioned, but ‘thraped’ sounds about logical…
We’re given some great moments in this episode. I’d also love to see more of Sam being happily drunk, yeah, that was a Sam-fan-fest… loved it just as much as I felt moved by the ending… it really hurt to see them drive away in the mindset they were in…
Thanks, by the way, for not including me in the nutty staff, Alice – I’m relieved.
Alice, love your recaps. I do, I do… Best always, Jas
P.S: I can’t find this in any dictionary – what exactly is GED?
this might be a stupid question, but that’s just one of my most lovable traits- asking such questions…
😆 😎 😆
😆 The silver lining to an episode that stretches plausibility well beyond the breaking point? A really funny recap! Nicely done. Loved how you called Sam out, too–“the king of evasiveness and internalizing.” Totally. ‘Course, when he does finally try to open up a little he gets shut down, since Dean’s barely hanging on as it is… poor guys.
Jas, GED basically stands for General Equivalency Diploma (other words have been assigned to the acronym too, e.g. General Education Development, so don’t feel bad about any confusion!). A person who didn’t graduate from an actual high school can take an exam to earn a GED, which is the equivalent of a high school diploma. Hope this helps!
wow, thanks ElenaM – that’s interesting! That acronym has been used a few times, and now it makes sense to me – does that mean, Dean might have taken some exam along the road? He might … Thank you, learned something new now. 🙂 Jas
Good recap, Alice….You always pick up neat details….like the different ways the boys wore their robes. I saw that too, but I think that was an early effect of their subconscious surfacing. Like Dean said during Sam’s ‘drunken’ scene, he is a happy drunk. He’s not as serious as he lets on, and really should open up more. Certainly would help his relation with Dean. Maybe then we’d get some ‘pudding’ dances from Sam!
As far as Dean setting himself up as a failure, I hope not. We all die if they fail!
I caught the knife angle myself. You leave your ribs wide open if you strike with it straight, and are not in a good angle for a second strike. Someone should teach the boys Martial arts…or maybe not. They seem to do okay already.
We had two signs that Sam never told Dean about Ruby, one was in the initial interview. Dean and Sam were telling the truth, and Dean excused his brother‘s actions because he was ‘high’. I don’t know, maybe I was looking for something that wasn’t there, but the look on Sam’s face when Dean said that look sad to me. Maybe that was what pushed its second time appearance, when Sam hallucinated Dean repeating Ruby’s words. That also shows how afraid Sam is that Dean will find out. …not finding out that Sam still has powers, but that its proof, at least to Sam anyway, that he is a freak (which he isn’t). Ever heard the saying, “Oh what a web we weave, when first we practice to deceiveâ€. Poor Sam…..he should just tell Dean ALL of it. Would help the two of them immensely.
After the Sam fought the imaginary patients, and they dragged him away, did he yell “Dean, help� I couldn’t tell from the episode but sounded like that on the clip.
As for the final scene, I agree with Bevie. Both Dean and Sam have had piss-poor lives, which they have done nothing to deserve. Dean copes by denying (and it works), Sam by anger (and that doesn’t). Dean faced his subconscious by himself and got them both out, Sam faced his with anger, and he almost got himself killed (and that wasn’t the first time). I just don’t feel Sam’s directing part of his anger to Dean is really fair. And Sam has to realize that on his own. Dean can’t tell him. (And that is speaking from personal experience) What Dean did was give his brother the advice that helped Dean…and that was to bury it…….at least for now. And as for leaving Dean again, I don’t think so. He has left Dean three times now in the series, and none of them worked for Sam. And for the record, I don’t think Sam followed Ruby to get away from Dean…Fallen Idol was way out of character for both boys. He did it for the reason he stated in Heaven and Hell (at least I think it was Heaven and Hell)……because Ruby acted like Dean would have to Sam….like a big brother.
As for completely giving up…I don’t think Sam is that weak. He has a lot of Dad in him… and I don’t think it would sit well with Dean either.
Okay done rambling!
Pudding! 😆 Coffee snorting moment number 39852 …
I thought Dean said ” raped ” but my speakers are shot and I had the sound turned way down so I could hear any nearby short people throwing up, so really it could have been anything ( secret of a happy life folks … Have more buckets than family members 😉 )
Wow Great review!! I really enjoy it!
Did you do 2 reviews cause I read another days before from blogcritics and says: from Alice Jester, too. but they are very different, I like more this one.
I really really like it.