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Supernatural: Mother's Little Helper

This was a serious, dark, fill-in-some-backstory episode. With evil nuns.

It was nice to see Henry again. He was such a sweetie. Masquerading as a priest, getting off on saving lives while saying "Gee" and "Gosh." But Josie's backstory was sad. No family, in love with Henry, a woman becoming part of an organization for men only back in the fifties, and she was well aware that women weren't usually taken seriously. I hope Josie isn't still conscious in Abaddon's body.

But stealing souls? Did I miss something? According to Ruby, if I'm remembering correctly, it takes a long, long time to make a soul demonic. "Sister Agnes" just said that Abaddon was creating a demon army and that there were "factories." She didn't answer when Sam said it would take a million years.

I did also like that the soulless thing was a callback to soulless Sam a couple of seasons ago, and that Sam handled it well and didn't take it personally. And Sam's new cell phone exorcism app was the best thing ever. Points for former nun Julia Wilkinson, too. She was fun. And she even lived through the episode. I wonder why? It wasn't like Abaddon to leave a witness.

Moving on to our B plot, it seems pretty obvious that Dean started hitting the sauce because he knows the Mark of Cain is going to make him dangerous to Sam. And of course, that was what this episode was about: people losing control and endangering their loved ones. It would be nice if Dean confided his fear to Sam, but of course, we can't have that.


At least Dean had his buddy Crowley. And Crowley appears to actually like Not Moose these days. He was even trying to get Dean to confide in him, to confess how frightened he was of this Cain blade situation. Or that maybe Dean isn't frightened, that the First Blade was his "precious." The thing is, Crowley may be embracing his addiction to human blood and hanging out with Dean, but he's still Crowley and completely untrustworthy with an agenda of his own. Right?

Bits:

— I particularly liked the scene with the white soul thingies returning to their bodies, accompanied by violin music. Lovely. Not that they would be happy to have their lives back after what they did when they were "out."

— Dean got the Impala's paint job fixed. Of course he did.

— John's mother's name was Millie.

— The intro to Henry and the Men of Letters also took place in 1958.

— Loved Dean racking the pool balls without a rack. He has many skills.

— This week: Milton, Illinois. Sam was Agent Leiter. Was that a James Bond reference? Wasn't Felix Leiter CIA?

— This episode was directed by our own Misha Collins. Great job.

— The next episode airs April 15.

— Thanks so much to sunbunny, who reviewed the previous episode while I was moving. I hate moving.

Quotes:

Crowley: (to Dean) "You're lying to Sam like he's your wife. Which kind of makes me your mistress."

Julia: "I say 'demons' and you don't bat an eye when everyone else around here thinks I'm nuts on toast."

Crowley: "Unless Abaddon likes ten cent wings, stale beer and the clap, I doubt that she's here."

Crowley: "Just between us girls, how did you feel when you sunk the First Blade into Magnus's head?"
Dean: "Not half as good as I'm gonna feel when it's yours."
Crowley: "Love it when you talk dirty."

Julia: "I'm an ex-nun, sweetie. 'Complicated' is my middle name."

Crowley: "I know that Cain gave you his mark for a reason. And I know that, rather than embracing it, rather than looking at it as the gift that it is, you're sulking like you lost your knuffle bunny."
And I'm going, what's a knuffle bunny?

Crowley: "I'm going to go water the lily. Care to cross streams?"
And the song "You're No Good" was playing. Perfect.

Sam: "Can I ask you something?"
Julia: "If it's for a date, I'm sorry. I never date anyone under sixty-five. Too much drama."

Pretty solid. Three out of four knuffle bunnies,

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

10 comments:

  1. Good episode, but yeah it had a few holes. Why didn't Abaddon kill the nun? i'm positive it takes a long time to turn human souls into demons (otherwise, both Sam and Dean would be demons).

    I wished they hadn't given Josie a crush on Henry. It seemed unnecessary. I really liked her, though. I wonder if there's a way to get her back. That would be awesome. She could tell the Winchesters about their grandpa and impart (Wo)Men of Letters wisdom. And then she and Charlie could become bffs.

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  2. I always like the backstory episodes. Plus, it gives the two leads a bit of down time which, by this time in the season, is probably welcome.

    I loved the visual of the souls. For some reason, the light and the way they moved struck me as simply perfect.

    The writers obviously love writing for Crowley. He gets some of the best lines ever.

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  3. When Crowley said the line about the knuffle bunny, I screamed, "Mo Willems!" I teach kindergarten, and my kids always love his books. We have learned a little about him - he used to work for Sesame Street - that shows in his books. I have a DVD of Mo Willems the author narrating the third knuffle bunny story, and he actually pronounces the "k," so it's k-nuffle bunny. I love the references that this show throws out!

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  4. Well, Trixie and her dad pronounce it k-nuffle, but Trixie's first friend Sonia pronounces it nuffle, so ... :) My daughter absolutely loves the Knuffle Bunny trilogy (and the hubby and I are quite fond of them, too), so I adored the reference here. (Mo Willems' pigeon books are big favorites 'round here, too. The range of expressions that man can get out of relatively simple drawings is wonderful. And the books are so much fun to read aloud with your kids.)

    This was a pretty interesting episode. I liked the backstory, Julia, and the revelations about what Abbadon is up to. And the phone exorcism app was delightful. I'm not convinced that Crowley is "embracing his addiction" as he said. That just seemed to be part of his play with the faux hunter. He wasn't acting at all like he was on the sauce, so I think it was all part of messing with/prepping Dean for whatever comes next.

    I noticed that both Sam and Dean were in "Milton" places. Sam was in Milton, IL, and the bar Dean was hanging at was called "the Milton" (you could see it on the window when he was outside talking to Crowley). So probably a deliberate allusion to Paradise Lost. Interesting.

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  5. The Exorcism App really made me smile, despite the fact that Sam was being choked...again. Seriously, has that boy ever had his hyoid checked for fractures?!

    You should know, Billie, that your lovely reviews of Supernatural and Buffy are what got me into reviewing (and actually working up the guts to post online) myself. You are just so funny and witty and you really put a great spin on things (the story of how you got into it also gave hope to my friends as well as myself...we're fans with a penchant for analysing as well).

    Your reviews also convinced me to give Supernatural a try. Friends had been bugging me for MONTHS to try it out, but I had been putting it off (I have a weak stomach and cowardly tonsils) because I wasn't sure if it was the right fit. So where did I go? Doux Reviews to check out what Billie had to say about the show. And now I'm hooked...

    I would close this off by saying 'keep up the good work', but that would falsely imply that you are in danger of ever stopping in the first place so I won't even go there. Love the reviews, love the discussion the generate, and name you as my inspiration when it comes to writing. You guys are awesome!

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  6. Emily, I just loved your comment. I enjoy all your comments. And congratulations on taking that big step and posting your reviews online.

    And I'm so pleased we have another Supernatural convert!

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  7. I don't comment very often, but I love this site. The reviews are great and you guys actually LIKE the shows you review. So thanks :)

    I wonder if Abaddon left the nun alive because she didn't realize the nun was alive until later. Henry wouldn't have believed that the situation was handled if another person died, and then Abaddon wouldn't be able to study the Men of Letters. So maybe she decided to scare the girl into silence rather than try to deal with the mess. She probably would have died if she had tried to talk.

    I'm hoping they eventually explain how Abaddon is supposed to turn these souls into demons so quickly. Ruby definitely said that it takes a long time. Maybe she's found a way to speed it up?

    Also, I think it's really sad that poor Josie's sacrifice was ultimately in vain (though it was still noble). Henry was still separated from his family in the end.

    Mandy

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  8. Thanks, Mandy -- and I think you have a good point. Maybe I needed that spelled out for me. (That Abaddon didn't realize Julia was alive until later.)

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  9. I loved this episode and it was great to read that Misha directed it! I also thought that the casting people did a great job with the actresses who played the 1950's nun and the present older lady AKA former nun. I think Abaddon knew the young nun was still alive but didn't care/have time to deal with her because she still had Henry to cope with and it would have made Henry really suspicious if anyone else died...just as prior poster pointed out.
    Amazing how Crowly has managed again to help push one of the "boys" into slipping into his wiley plans! Man sure did earn his spot as "King of Hell"! 😉
    😀 As far as souls thing...maybe being at the top of the Chain gives better tricks/ideas for turning souls into demons? 🤷

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  10. Why is Crowley still so heavy on the queer-baiting stuff after we've seen him with a woman? I get the argument that he could've always done this as a heterosexual for the righteous joy of making 'phobes uncomfortable but Dean never gave off anything more than genial awkwardness

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