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Supernatural: Hibbing 911

"Oofta. Ate the whole kit and caboodle, that's for darn sure."

I don't know if any episode of Supernatural could be considered "nice." But this one sort of was. There was a good old fashioned monster hunt, Jody Mills survived yet another episode, and Jody even found a brand new and cool female friend to hunt monsters with.

Supernatural is such a guy show, so I really enjoyed the feminist undertone throughout the entire episode because it's just not something they've done often. (Or at all. Have they ever done this?) It was an acknowledgement that Jody has a job usually held by guys, and that women in law enforcement tend to experience some sexism. It was also a nice nod to the fact that women who are not so young and not so skinny can be damned good at their jobs, too. About halfway through, I started worrying that Donna would turn out to be the very clever and deceptive monster they were hunting – especially after her ex Doug called her "a wolf in sheepskin." I'm happy they didn't go that way.


The monster sitch confused me, though. Since when have vampires chowed down so completely on their victims? Have I forgotten something? I don't think vampires work all that well on this show, anyway. Sheriff Cuse Unsuccessfully-Born-Again-Vampire-Guy and his cadre of ex-buddy vampires was the weakest part of the episode.

So moving right back to what I found more interesting, it's lovely to see how much the Winchesters love and respect Jody Mills, even though they did hurry to the Sheriffs' retreat when she told them not to bother. They were cool with Donna, too, and didn't dismiss her the way her fellow (and by fellow, I mean male) sheriffs did. I think my favorite moment was when Dean told Jody to give Donna "the talk," making her part of the club.

It was also something of a relief that Dean wasn't feeling all homicidal this time, although it felt like it was too good to be true. I don't think Dean's urge to kill is just going to go away. Next week is the mid-season finale, and I bet the Mark of Cain hits the fan, big time.

Bits and pieces:

— This was Kim Rhodes' ninth appearance as Jody Mills. Her first was in "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid," four years ago. I'm almost embarrassed to report that all I wrote about her first appearance was a three line bit.

— In the last episode featuring Jody ("Alex, Annie, Alexis, Ann,") she adopted a vampire lure named Alex. We didn't get to see Alex this time, although Jody checked in by phone. Alex is still a problem child. It would be unrealistic if she weren't, after all that trauma.

— Brianna Buckmaster (Donna) was in a ninth season episode called "The Purge." And again, all I wrote about her appearance was a three line bit. I enjoyed Donna's appearance in this episode; she was fun. I particularly liked the way she channeled Frances McDormand in Fargo.

— The graffiti scene with the blood replacing the spray paint was clever. Okay, gross.

— The Sheriff's convention looked a bit small and poorly attended. Hiring a lot of extras can be pricey, I suppose.

— This week: Hibbing, Minnesota and the Men of Letters bunker in Lebanon.

Quotes:

Dean: "I love the smell of parchment in the morning."

Dean: "He-Wolf, She-Wolf: A Study of Werewolf Transgenderism. Six hundred pages, volume one."

Dean: "How's Alex holding up?"
Jody: "Awesome. Already head of the cheerleading squad."
Sam: "Wow. Really?"
Jody: "No, Sam. She smokes grass under the bleachers. But at least she's not luring men to their deaths."

Jody: "He does seem like kind of a dick."
Donna: "Yeah. But he was my dick."

Deputy: "You ain't the first feds to roll through here and come up with nothing. Sure is cute to watch you try."
Dean: "Oh, pal. The FBI doesn't do cute."

Sam: "This time, try to be a little less defensive of your pretend job."
Dean: "You know, this badge means something."
Sam: "I made it at Kinko's."
Dean: "Yes, you did. Be proud of that."

Donna: "Hakuna matata, lady."
Dean: "That's what I'm talkin' about."

Fun, but not that memorable an episode. Two out of four squeezed out tubes of sunblock,

Billie
---
Billie Doux has been reviewing Supernatural for so long that Dean and Sam Winchester feel like old friends. Courageous, adventurous, gorgeous old friends.

20 comments:

  1. I was pleased to see Frank Ewanuick (Sheriff Cuse). I'm Canadian and I fondly remember him as Hank, from a fantastic show we had here called Corner Gas. And you know, I'm always pleased when Jody survives another episode. I had hoped they would have a snippet of a scene when Donna, fresh from her "baptism" in the Supernatural world, would tell her ex husband off back at the convention. Oh well, you can't have everything. I, too, thought... hmmm... no trouble from the Mark of Cain this time? Way too easy.

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  2. Though I felt like the MoW plot was extraordinarily weak, I enjoyed the character interaction side of this episode very much.

    Perhaps we could have The Donna & Jody Show as an alternative spin-off to Bloodlines?

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  3. I second that! Buddy cop show with Jodie as the world weary veteran and Donna as her overenthusiastic new partner. Sign me up!

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  4. I actually wondered if this was their latest attempt to set up a spin-off. It's much better than the last one, if so.

    As I was watching, I realised this actually passes the Bechdel Test. And then I realised that although I can count on one hand the number of episodes that did so from the first 9 years of the show (I can think of 2 right now) it's at least the 3rd, maybe the 4th episode top do so in this 10th season. Has someone finally decided to so something about Supernatural's problematic attitude towards women?!

    (though they've always been pretty good at mothers and female cops - way back in the first season they had a good female cop character, and there was Linda Blair in season 2 as well. And Charlie's cool. Basically, they're good at characters the boys don't want to sleep with, but as soon as it's a potential love interest or really any pretty, young, straight girl, it all goes south).

    Anyway, I agree with everyone - good fun, even if the monster was rubbish. I think the Mark of Cain was the reason Dean wanted to take the case (not because he thought Jody couldn't handle it), and he was definitely lying at the end, he kept clutching his arm. I'm quite enjoying this arc, but it does need some proper attention paid to it soon!

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  5. LOVED the "Shut the fffront door!"-exclamation by Donna.

    Didn't love the MotW. At all. I'm dissappointed that, sometimes S&D act like total amateurs - just so we can get monsters blabbing about why they kill whilst S&D get free and kill them ridiculously easy.

    The show has gone on too long for S&D to get stumped, surprised or even caught, IMO.

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  6. Don't know if my next comment went through. I've always picked up on a "vibe" between Jody and Sam. I know she's older... and? I've also been wondering how they're going to end Supernatural. Here's a possibility. Dean dies (I know, I know... I love him too). However, he dies at a time when things are relatively organized in Heaven, but Castiel needs him up there ("We've got work to do"). Sam ends up with Jody. Dean will have fulfilled his purpose on Earth (saving Sam... and us). Sam gets to live out a relatively normal life, knowing that his brother will be waiting for him when his time comes. Don't get me wrong, I'm willing to go wherever the Supernatural PTB decide to take us. But if one or either of the Winchesters dies in the end, I would like it to be happy in its own way.

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  7. If this was their attempt at a backdoor pilot, you'd think they'd have given it more press.

    But, then again, because of the failure of the last one, maybe they're just trying a couple things and then waiting to see fan reactions?

    I agree with Billie and Julliete. I love, love, LOVED the strong women vibe I got from this episode. Don't get me wrong, I like my bro shows, but it's always nice to have a competent, non-token girl thrown in there too.

    Honestly I think the only decent love interest we were ever given (that was given lots of independent development and is not hated by the fanbase) was Sarah Blake. Probably because Sam didn't sleep with her.

    Huh. Seems to be a trend, yeah...

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  8. Same town from the season 1 episode "The benders".

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  9. This episode was also screaming "SPIN OFF" to me all the time.

    Nice characters, bad plot.

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  10. It's so funny -- as much as I loved Jody and Donna, I didn't once think "spinoff". Maybe I should have. And that's why comments are such a good thing. :)

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  11. Heather, I don't know about Jody, but I wouldn't be at all surprised if SPN ended with Dean dead and in heaven (with Castiel, who'll either have his grace back or grow a soul), and Sam alive with a family - basically the inverse of Swan Song!

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  12. Juliette, I didn't consider Castiel getting a soul and he and Dean both being humans who are now in Heaven. This would be an interesting twist, especially for all the fans who've been saying that they want to see more of Castiel as a human. And of course, if Castiel and Dean go to Heaven, we should get an opportunity to see Bobbie at least once more. Kevin will have to go too. He can't stay as a ghost to stay with his mom forever. He will turn vengeful (and that would affect Sam, wouldn't it?).

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  13. And Crowley ends up in Oz with Charlie and Dorothy!

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  14. Whoa, wait a minute! It's Kit and Caboodle? I've been saying Kitten Caboodle for years now. I now have to re-evaluate my whole life.

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  15. Of course, someone put together a promo for the Jody & Donna Supernatural spinoff. :)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6CMsOYWklM

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  16. I really enjoyed the female energy of this episode. Donna is a lovely addition to the team. I hope we see more of her.

    Having said that, how much fun is that promo? I've seen a lot worse put together by the networks.

    And, maniacmuppet -- LOL.

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  17. I just wanted to answer about the vampires eating the whole victim. That was bugging me, too, but then they kind of explained it during the obligatory monster monologue at the end. The sherriff Vampire taught them not to waste and to use everything. Iguess they were kind of hippie vampires.

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  18. The episode was absolutely delightful. Sheriff Mills was awesome as usual, Donna was a hoot, and their interactions with the Winchester boys made for some very amusing moments. Most notably the one ending in "You want to give ther the talk?"

    I really love the relationship between Sheriff Mills and the boys, and it was exemplified in the scene where she asks Dean about how he's doing. She knows not to push too hard, but she makes it clear she's there for him if he ever wants to talk. And Dean's gratitude for her offer shows just what high regard he has for her, considering how NOT the "share your feelings" type he is.

    Nice to hear a realistic progress update on Alex, it would seem off if she'd become well-adjusted within a year.

    I'm not sure "The Adventures of Jody & Donna" would make for a successful spinoff, but I could definitely see them teaming up to take the lead in an episode to give the boys a break, maybe one of the episodes Jensen directs, like when they had reduced screentime in Weekend At Bobby's.

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  19. I liked the episode but agreed about lame hippie vampires.

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