Hmm. So I... Hm. I have a lot of thoughts and feelings to discuss. This is probably going to turn in to quite the review. It's one of those ones where I really don't know how I'm going to fall on the scale when I grade it at the end. I'm just going to start writing, and I'll get to my thoughts through that.
Cons:
If I were to review this episode by comparing it to the milestone 200th episode, I might look on it with some disfavor. Why? Well, this was an episode centered around the nuclear Winchester family. So, the focus was on Sam, Dean, John, and Mary. And I'm cool with there being an episode focusing on that dynamic, and it's neat that Jeffrey Dean Morgan was able to come back and all that. But the 200th episode managed to focus on the themes of the show as a whole. It focused mostly on Sam and Dean, but it referenced everything from Adam to Destiel to Chuck to the Samulet and so much more. It was an episode that managed to be about the ever-changing, twisting road that is Supernatural over the seasons. This episode, by contrast, was kind of a "taking it back to basics" sort of episode, that encapsulated the original, long past, aims and themes of the show. Not a bad idea for an episode AT ALL. Just an interesting choice for such a big milestone. Barely any Cas, no Jack, no other recurring guests or even mention of them really... it felt like this episode existed in a time capsule, a little bubble that could have landed anywhere in any season and felt just as appropriate. Is that a bad thing? I don't know.
The elephant in the room here is that John Winchester was a demonstrably abusive father. Supernatural demonstrates that, but ever since his death back at the start of Season Two, the show has been inconsistent in how it's treated the memory of this character. It makes perfect sense, and is indeed good, that Sam and Dean themselves would have conflicting emotions. I don't mind that sometimes Dean brings up how awful John was, and other times seems to canonize him as some sort of a saint. That makes sense for his character. I don't mind that Sam has forgiven John for everything and has his own regrets about their tempestuous relationship. But here's where it gets a little more shaky for me. Think about it: from John Winchester's perspective in this episode, he's in 2003. He and Sam are not on speaking terms. He is continuing to emotionally and perhaps physically abuse and manipulate Dean, who idolizes him in an unhealthy way. Sam and Dean can remember their dad with rose colored glasses, but a more interesting, and more real, interpretation of the John Winchester that they should be meeting in this episode would be one that's so full of anger and grief that he lashes out at his two sons and can't accept Sam wanting to do anything outside of the hunting life.
I like that Sam and John had their big apology/reconciliation scene. I like that Sam expresses that he put their arguments aside a long time ago. But what about Dean? The problem is, John is right in the middle of things with Dean - from his perspective, he would have no reason for apologizing. And Dean would never ask for that apology, or express any anger. But Dean deserves to feel that anger. He deserves for his years of perspective to have taught him that his dad wasn't really a good father to him at all. He was, at minimum, neglectful, and Dean doesn't get to confront that in any meaningful way in this episode.
A couple of smaller notes: as I said above, I understand that this episode had a rather narrow focus on the Winchesters, but it did include a few other characters - namely, Cas and Zachariah. If you were going to do the whole timeline being rewritten thing, cool. If you were going to throw in a few cameos, cool. But this is the 300th episode, people! Is Zachariah really the best pull you have? No Bobby? No Naomi? No Charlie? Gabriel? Jody? Nothing? Time is being rewritten! There are so many creative cameos you could have done here, and it could have been brief, and not taken away from the focus on John. Zach just felt like a very odd choice for such a brief reappearance. Also, does killing him mess up the timeline even more? Time travel makes my head hurt.
I liked the random teens at the beginning of the episode, but it felt odd to cram in this story at the start of the episode, and then toss it aside for much of the run-time. There was just a bit too much focus on the kids to discount it as window dressing, and not enough focus to really bring them in to the limelight as characters in their own right.
Pros:
If I try to tear myself away from reviewing this as a milestone episode, I think I look at it with much more favor. John Winchester has long been a looming presence on this show, and I think the opportunity to focus on him, and more specifically, on his sons' memories and relationships with him, is a great concept for an episode. I personally think John sucks, and I might have wished for him to be treated a bit less kindly by the narrative in this instance. But I'm on Sam and Dean's side, always. I want what's best for them, and a happy family is what they want and totally deserve. I liked seeing that.
For me, I would forgive a hell of a lot of crap for just the moment with Sam and Dean washing up dishes after dinner. That scene for me was the one moment that most made this episode feel like the 300th. It's just Sam and Dean alone, talking about what a shame it is that they'll send John back and he won't remember anything, thus making the whole trip pointless. But Dean points out that as hard as their lives have been, he doesn't want to change anything because then, what would that make them? Dean says he's good with who he is, and with who Sam is too. That is freakin' HUGE. That is a capstone moment for Dean Winchester's character development, and it made me instantly misty-eyed.
Let's do a little check-in with the Cas corner here. Yeah, I might be slightly bummed he wasn't in more of the episode, but there are several things to discuss even so. First of all, Misha killed it with his performance as the back-to-Angel-basics Castiel that we saw. We see the wings, he calls himself an Angel of the Lord, and he kicks the crap out of Sam and Dean. First of all, I'm sure Misha took great satisfaction in that. Second of all, I love the way that Cas is used as a shorthand for everything that's wrong with this changing timeline. Before this moment, Dean was happy to accept the changing universe as recompense for having John back. After this encounter, Sam and Dean both know that things have gone too far. A world where Cas doesn't know them, and tries to kill them, is unacceptable. I also like that Sam and Zachariah paired off for the fight, leaving us with the delicious angst of Dean trying to stop Cas from killing him. (Again. Sheesh). I love that bewildered, heartbroken look on Dean's face when he realizes Cas doesn't know him. And I also love that as the episode ends, the real Cas, our Cas, returns to the bunker, solidifying his place among the core cast of the show, and among the family.
Another thing that I was struggling with a bit in this episode is that the focus was so much on the family, but the family seemed only to include the Winchester four. "Family don't end in blood" is one of the more powerful lines and sentiments from this show's long history. But as the hour progressed, I realized that this core message wasn't being disregarded. Sam and Dean fill John in on everything that he's missed, and they're clear to emphasize that they live in a bunker with an angel and with Lucifer's son. They don't have time to go in to all of the details, but they're sure to fill John in on the state of their family - Sam, Dean, Mary, Cas, Jack. That's family to them now. This important point is re-emphasized again as John has a moment with Dean, lamenting that Dean never got out of the life, and instead was pulled in by John's mission. He says he thought Dean would have a family of his own one day, and Dean instantly responds: "I have a family." This moment is strengthened by his later saying to Sam that he's good with who he is. Yes, he never settled down with a single romantic partner and had babies of his own, but he is not at all dissatisfied or unfulfilled when it comes to a strong family system. It's not just the Winchesters vs. the rest of the world anymore, and that's important to point out.
I know that I earlier said that I had some qualms about the opening sequence with the teens, but I actually really liked the stuff with the pawn shop, the magic items, and Sam and Dean on a regular hunt. It felt a little imbalanced within the pacing of the episode, but I also think it's important to note another key aspect of this story: an homage to the humble beginnings of Supernatural. Sam and Dean are on a simple hunt. They have to burn an item to defeat a ghost. There's a hilarious gag about the ghost of John Wayne Gacy, given Sam's hatred of clowns and fascination with serial killers. It's all very classic Supernatural. It's a sequence that could fit into the show in any season at all. It's also a chance for us to spend some time with Sam and Dean alone, doing what they do best. That was once the only heart of this show that mattered, and it's still one of the most important pieces to the puzzle. We also get John fighting Sam and Dean in the dark, in a nice echo of Sam and Dean's fight in the pilot. All of this serves to show that this 300th episode is about honoring the show's origins, instead of trying to encompass the whole thing. I have conflicting feelings about that, as shown above, but mostly I think it's done really well.
On a smaller note, I love the introduction of the concept that Sam and Dean go about town in Lebanon as the Campbell brothers, and that they've become something of a local legend. That was such a cool idea. I never really thought about their day-to-day reality, but it's cool to think about them being an urban legend, because it kind of brings the show around full circle. From hunting urban legends to becoming one! And the kids describing Cas and Jack was hilarious. Another moment to emphasize that Team Free Will includes all four of the boys.
And now to the performances. Because... holy hell. This episode starts to fall apart a bit if you scrutinize the plot too closely. John Winchester, as I mentioned, is not behaving very John Winchester-y. But this is about Sam and Dean getting closure, and let me tell ya... all four of these actors (Padalecki, Ackles, Morgan, and Smith) were giving it their all, and I felt every one of those heartbreaking, heartwarming moments. I'm going to rapid-fire some of the best things I noticed:
- The way John's voice cracked on the word "Mary" when he heard her voice.
- John and Mary holding hands, and John saying "my girl" to her... instant tears.
- The look on Sam's face when John said "I'm proud of you."
- The hug between John and his two sons, complete with all three of them crying.
- Dean saying "I love you too." Just like... wow. Dude has been throwing the love word around a lot and I am all about it.
- Dean flinching when Sam crushed the pearl.
- Sam saying that he thinks about John a lot and doesn't think about their fights, but thinks instead about not getting to say goodbye.
- Both Sam and John saying "I'm sorry."
- All of the overly sappy yet beautiful shots during the family dinner, of the family laughing, and sharing stories, and eating Winchester Surprise. The fact that this is the ONLY family dinner that they've ever had that way is just heartbreaking. But I'm so happy they got to have it.
Well, what did I tell you? This review is long. I knew it would be. 300 episodes, you guys. Holy crap. And we've got a Season Fifteen coming around the bend. I was really pleased with Jeffrey Dean Morgan's performance, and I thought Jared and Jensen killed it with the emotional material as usual. Are my thoughts conflicted? Yes. But is this one of those episodes that I'll probably go back and watch again? Also yes. It stands out, and it made me emotional. That's kind of all I can ask for.
8.5/10
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