Reply To: Let’s all talk about Abandon all Hope (S5 E10)
Just; wow. I had not watched this one in awhile and it was one of those episodes that felt like it was 90 minutes long in the best way. So much was crammed into this one! Sometimes there are a ton of characters and they ALL have great lines and a purpose.
It starts with meeting Crowley for the first time. I love the way he is introduced. Combating homophobia in a demon deal! I just love him.
Many times in this episode, I LOVED the jump cutting of the supernatural beings (Cas, Crowley, Reapers) appearing and disappearing a flash. The difference between the human-seen world and the supernatural being world was GREAT and just made me feel like so much more was (is?) going on that meets the eye. Cas appearing and disappearing to move around the town of Carthage was especially good.
We have the “last night on earth” photo at Bobby’s. Cas doing shots. Dean getting shot down trying to convince Jo that her last night on earth should include a roll in the hay with him and she chooses “self respect” instead. I have to think that Dean fell in love with her a bit more for REJECTING him that night!
We get a lot of time with Lucifer and Mark Pelligrino is AMAZING. I always liked the way they decided to make Lucifer somewhat sympathetic. Very persuasive and sometimes “nice” – but then the callous way he disposes of people and demons shows you he really isn’t very empathetic at all.
I loved the scene of Dean shooting Lucifer in the head with the barrel entering the frame from the side while Lucifer is talking to Sam.
It’s unnerving that Lucifer is not bothered at all by Cas zapping Sam and Dean to safety in the end – it’s like he is just certain that he’ll get to inhabit Sam at some point so waiting isn’t a problem.
I really liked Bobby talking to a falling-apart Dean via CB radio. That whole exchange was great.
I enjoyed finding out more about Lucifer as he talked to trapped-in-holy-fire Cas.
The invisible hellhounds are always so scary.
But this episode belonged to Sam Ferris and Alona Tal. I’ve been rewatching since the SPN finale and this episode; specifically the two of them, this was the first time since I started the rewatch that I had tears in my eyes. Watching Jo make the practical decision and Ellen decide to go down with her daughter. It was so sad and so beautiful and so brave. I loved Ellen’s satisfaction at being able to blow up the hellhounds even though her daughter just died in her arms. The little blow of her hair with the breath of the hellhound next to her was PERFECT! As was her smug smile knowing that she was about to take them all out in one giant fireball.
Dean kissing Jo goodbye was incredibly touching, but it was Ellen and Jo that just destroyed those roles and were, arguably, the bravest characters we’ve seen up to this point (including Sam and Dean, to this point).
Also, what a great evolution of Jo from “kid sister/hunter wannabe” to the bravest one in the room – the one thinking most like a practical, strategic hunter; how to save the most people with the fewest casualties.