Dean and Crowley are staking out the office building, and Dean notices the guards. He assumes they’re demons, but Crowley knows they’re human shields. The demons are upstairs. Dean wants to find a way in through the back. Crowley is unimpressed. â€œYou Winchesters make everything so complicated.” Dean looks over and not only is Crowley gone, but he’s inside slitting the throat of one of the guards. Dean freaks out and runs inside where Crowley has taken out both humans in gruesome fashion and is cleaning off his knife. Crowley doesn’t understand Dean’s outrage. He ignores it and takes him over to the elevator, claiming a tight schedule. Dean is still disturbed, looking at the dead bodies. â€œNow you’re squeamish?” Crowley says. â€œPlease.”

 

Crowley puts Dean into the elevator and presses 12, but doesn’t get in himself. â€œGo get ‘em tiger.” Dean stops the door from closing, surprised Crowley isn’t coming. â€œNo, it’s not safe up there. There’s demons.” Dean gets that. Crowley tells him to do what he told him and try to be convincing. â€œIt’ll work like a charm, trust me.” He pushes Dean back into the elevator and the door closes, showing Crowley through the glass on the other end waving with an encouraging look. From a demon? Oh, that can’t be good.   A rattled Dean stands in the elevator alone, checking his pocket, seeing he’s only got the knife as his backup. He rolls his eyes, accepting he’s screwed. Okay, this is ominous.

 

Next is Brady in his office, who hears the commotion outside. He raises his eyebrows and opens the door with a wave of his hand. There’s Dean, taking out one of his guards with the knife. â€œDean Winchester,” Brady says. â€œWhat, no appointment?” Dean walks in a little out of breath, claiming it’s an eleventh hour thing. That is very true. He wipes the knife on a nice jacket on the coat hanger and Brady even turns a seat around with his mind control for him to take. Dean still isn’t sure it he should be doing this. â€œHow’s your brother?” Brady asks. Dean doesn’t answer, putting the knife in his pocket (blade side up??) and glaring at Brady with discontent. He takes a seat. Yeah, he’s really out of his element.   Brady, with a fake corporate smile, asks “What can I do for you?” You know how many times a corporate manager has asked me that and then used my request to stab me in the back? Oh right, Dean. (must not be bitter, must not be bitter). 

 

Dean goes into the routine he obviously went through with Crowley. Dean says it’s about what he can do for him. He brings up and he and Sam dropped “two of his jockeys,” (yes Brady got the memo) and they kept their secret power rings. That’s why he’s there. He heard some folks say that he wanted them back and he was willing to pay. Brady wants to know where they are and Dean replies not there. If he wants them, he can come with him and they can discuss the transaction. Right, Brady is going to buy that! That’s why Dean realized he was screwed.

 

“Who says I want them?” Brady answers. â€œWhat?” Dean asks, not getting the answer he was expecting. Brady repeats, this time much slower for patronizing purposes. Dean rather unconfidently claims “You know, folks.” Brady continues to stare blankly and Dean gives a nervous smile. Oh boy, I think Dean has been setup. Brady gets up and moves closer to Dean. Even if he could cram the rings back on War and Famine’s bony fingers, it wouldn’t do any good. â€œThey’re withered husks right now, fetal position on the floor, all thanks to you.” He doesn’t want the rings. He wants retribution. â€œAnd I’m going to rip it right out of your ass!” Ha! Crowley sent Dean in there knowing all the demons wanted was revenge on him. He is evil!

  

Next thing Dean is flying out the door with a nice gash on his forehead. Brady pursues looking very satisfied. â€œThis is so good (kicks Dean), therapeutic for sure. You know Dean I really owe you one buddy because I feel so good.” He kicks Dean hard three times in a row and is obviously riding the adrenaline rush to its greatest pleasure. Dean rolls on the floor. He’s screwed!

 

After a commercial break, somehow Dean gets to the elevator. Of course all that happened off camera, so I’ll fill in the blanks. Brady’s blackberry goes off.  There’s an important message from the lab about the “trials.” He takes the call.  Dean gets his senses about him but in his flee finds the stairwell door is locked, or not there. Luckily he got enough of a jump where he can wait for the elevator. See, it all makes sense.  Dean gets on the elevator while Brady yells out to him they’re just getting started. Yeah, like he’s going to run from a demon in an elevator. Also, why don’t you have the knife handy right about now Dean? The knife that probably cut you up a little bit in your pocket while Brady was kicking the crap out of you.

 

Despite the logic of running from a demon in the elevator, this is a really cool shot and one Robert Singer has done before with great success. As Dean waits nervously in the elevator, the camera pans full circle on him, showing his panic from all delightful angles. It starts with a half circle and has Dean resting against the back of the elevator, in some huge pain, waiting with baited breath for the door to open. Then Dean moves forward and the shot goes another half circle, showing Dean getting off of the elevator from behind. That little camera trick really heightens the anticipation for what’s to come. Well done.

 

The door opens and the wide shot shows Dean stepping out of the elevator alone. He looks both ways, coast is clear. Then the shot closes in and Brady is right behind him. Yikes!    He smacks Dean and he goes tumbling forward. â€œGood meeting Dean, I’m excited.” He goes for Dean and suddenly a bag with a Devil’s trap is thrown over his head by Crowley and he pounds a crowbar into his skull, about ten times. If Brady’s host wasn’t dead before, he is now. He falls to the ground.

 

Crowley smiles at Dean, who’s having a hard time pulling himself off the floor. Dean wants to know what the Hell was that. â€œThat was perfect,” Crowley says. â€œPerfect?” Dean asks very unnerved. â€œHe didn’t want the rings, he wanted me.” â€œImagine the surprise on your face. Your ignorance and misinformation, I mean it’s completely authentic. You can’t fake that.” Dean isn’t happy. â€œWhat, it went like clockwork,” Crowley boasts. â€œNot for me you son of a bitch,” Dean replies. â€œThat’s what you get, working with a demon.” Sorry, I shouldn’t be laughing over this, but I am. Dean should know by now and I love that Crowley isn’t bashful about it.



 

 

The Impala thunders down the road and it just occurred to me we’re 31 minutes in and even though these scenes have been pretty rich in dialogue and character exposition, they haven’t been rich on plot. Ah well, I’m still enjoying this. Dean wipes the blood off his forehead while Crowley carves a symbol into Brady’s chest. â€œHey hot stuff, watch the upholstery.” Huh Dean? Sam just put a hole in it and you’re worried about what Crowley is doing? â€œUp yours, mate,” Crowley replies. What he carved is a binding symbol so Brady won’t be smoking out. It locks him in the meat suit, which is an important piece of their bargaining strategy. Crowley then states that they don’t want I-50. They need to take 93 North. Dean doesn’t get why. They can’t take Brady back to Sam. Dean has to demand an answer that Crowley is reluctant to give. â€œThey got history, alright?”  Dean slams on the brakes and demands Crowley start talking.