Episode 09×16 AKA Crowley’s a Junkie

Happy Winchester Wednesday, Hunter friends! Supernatural was all-new last night after a short hiatus (thank Chuck!)

Synopsis

Episode lights up on the boys in the bunker. Now, it appears that some of the Winchester Family Drama has taken a backseat (for now), and it was nice to see the brothers talking to each other. Oh, hey look producers, the fans like it when the brothers get along?!

Dean receives a drunk dial from Crowley–which had me positively in stitches–and there was a particularly great shot of Crowley’s phone when Dean calls him back. The caller ID simply reads, “Not Moose.” Crowley has become quite the blood junkie. In a montage that seems like it’s straight from True Blood, Crowley exsanguinates young men with the help of a foxy demon named Lola–who is actually working for the Queen Bee herself, Abaddon. By the time we see Crowley crying over Casablanca (sidenote: the movie is so sad it makes the King of Hell blubber), we pretty much figure that the Winchesters are going to have an intervention for everyone’s favorite sarcastic demon.

The boys find a crossroads and summon Snooki–it’s Nicole now–(yes, she’s a demon; it’s canon now), who tells them that Crowley’s been M.I.A. for a while. The New Jersey Devil disappears after the strangest 2 minute guest appearance SPN has ever had.

Moving on to Crowley’s silk pajamas. Yes, Crowley wears silk pajamas. He calls the boys and yet seems surprised when he finds them in his hotel room after he hits up the local blood bank for some AB-.

My life must be an AU, because who the hell would have thought that the Winchesters were gonna sober up Crowley?

“You’re just gonna let hell go to hell?” -Dean

To be honest, the boys’ idea of cold turkey is to chain Crowley up in the basement again. “Back in this fetid pit? Could at least have added throw pillows,” says Crowley. The boys are on the hunt for the First Blade again and Crowley is the best lead they have. Having traced the First Blade to Moroccan pirates, it somehow ended up in a museum, but the curator sold it to a private collector.

A private collector who just so happens to be a dishonorably-discharged Man of Letters, and Grandpa Winchester’s former mentor.

Performing a bad-ass teleportation spell, Crowley sends Moose and Squirrel to the home of Magnus (AKA Cuthbert Sinclair, douchebag extraordinaire). Magnus keeps Dean because, well, Dean is something worth collecting, and we get the feeling that Magnus knows something about the Mark of Cain that he ain’t telling the boys. Poor Sammy is forced to work with Crowley to save Dean (oh wait, isn’t that a sign of codependency according to the writers? Or maybe it’s just what the boys do).

Magnus is treating Dean like a prize Winchester stallion. The Mark of Cain + First Blade = unstoppable, according to him. When he puts the Blade in Dean’s hand, we know something’s up, because our dear Winchester doesn’t normally look so murderous and lethal. When Sam reappears in the warlock’s home, Magnus recognises that the younger brother is the leverage he needs to make Dean do his will. Crowley saves the day by freeing Dean of his chains (because that’s not symbolic of anything) and Dean uses the Blade to free Magnus of his head. More on the Blade in a minute.

Abaddon sends a message to Crowley by keying Enochian into the side of the Impala, and I now really want the King and Queen of Hell to have a smack down. Lots of leather, lots of snark, and a whole lot of bad assery. We end the episode with Crowley outsmarting the boys by taking the Blade, because he knows the Winchesters will end him if they have both Mark and Blade.

What This Episode Reveals About the Winchesters

Dean Winchester

Now that the First Blade has been seen and felt by Dean, we have a Dean who likes the power it possesses. What that power is, exactly, I can only guess is extreme homicidal rage. The Mark of Cain is more than a tattoo, and Dean is addicted to self-destructive tendencies (parallel with Sam’s S4 demon blood addiction, anyone?) In fact, I’m willing to bet my left clavicle that the inclusion of Crowley’s addiction was to draw attention to Dean’s behavior. Has anyone else noticed that Dean has been acting like an addict?

He continues his self-destructive path even though he’s aware, Sam’s aware, EVERYONE’S FREAKING AWARE.

He doesn’t really try to change, try to stop the feelings of self-loathing. He accepts the world on his shoulders.

He’s sacrificing relationships and existing in solitude. We know his relationship with Sam isn’t in a good place right now, but does he call up anyone else to have a chat? Garth? That angelic best friend of his? Nope. He’s isolating himself because he’s fully aware that he has a problem, but instead of dealing with it, he’s moving into the hardcore drugs now (see: homicidal rage of the First Blade sort).

Denial. Denial. Denial.

Taking unnecessary risks–see: taking Mark of Cain without more than a half-moment’s hesitation.

Sam Winchester

Our favorite Moose is not so hostile toward his brother anymore. I have hope that means he’s coming around, but more likely, the writers are creating a season 4 parallel, but this time, Dean’s the junkie. Perhaps Sam is realizing how much hell he put his brother through a few years ago, and perhaps Sam is willing to forgive himself a little bit now that he sees his brother going through the same thing.

As we discovered in “First Born,” Cain took the Mark to save his brother from Lucifer. Right now Dean has the Mark, but I think Sam is going to be the one doing the saving. At the beginning of the season, we saw how far Dean was willing to go to save Sam, at the end of season 9, will we see Sam do the same thing?

The Big Picture

Although this season has had some hit-or-miss episodes, I’m really enjoying the parallels to earlier seasons, particularly 4 and 5. Those seasons were just so big, so cataclysmic, and, although it’s a bit overdue, I’m glad the writers are addressing the emotional fallout from the apocalypse, Sam’s addiction, etc. These events wouldn’t leave the Winchesters unscarred, and this season we’re seeing how deep those scars really lie.

I wonder how the First Blade storyline is going to meld with the Metatron/Gadreel storyline. Much to my dismay, Dean, Sam, and Castiel have been separated most of this season, and I really want to know what’s going to happen when all the plots converge. You know they will. You know that finale that is less than ten episodes away is going to destroy us ever so brutally.

My thoughts are these: the writers have been very deliberate in keeping Heaven and Hell stories separate this season. Crowley never acknowledges Metatron and vice versa. We also haven’t seen Abaddon in a while, but we have seen that her lackeys and influence are everywhere the Winchesters go. To me this reads that Metatron and Abaddon are probably plotting to take over the world together–a new Lucifer and God, if you will.



Supernatural returns next week with Misha Collins’ directorial debut, and the return of Granddaddy Winchester.

xx-The Collectress