Review - Supernatural 12x08 LOTUS - The Midseason Finale!

Oh hellatus…how I don’t like you, like at all! Just over one week without a new ep and I’m already whimpering a little! Doesn’t help that we were left with a WTAF cliffhanger! Doesn’t help that I watched the promo for the next ep and went “WHELP!” It made me sad and a little panicky! 

But hey, this is not a preview! 

(Also, sorry for the lateness…I was dragging it out!)

Okay, I’m going to be honest here, on first watch through, I wasn’t crazy in love with the idea of Lucifer jumping into the President. I kinda wished it was a really powerful senator, or even the Vice President, because I found myself being dragged out of the moment with random thoughts about Presidential security, and how the boys could get close enough to the President to draw Lucifer out! Or how a President would be able to talk his security detail into driving him to a motel no-tell to rendezvous with his girlfriend…at least in this day and age of hyper vigilance. But hey, they let him fly a plane and fight aliens in Independence Day soooo…..

It was just a little blip on the road (so far) for me, because, hey I can believe nearly everything the show tells me. Sparkle blooded, imaginary friends? Sure, I believe that. There’s a cage in Hell, yup, I’m on board. The Mark of Cain is actually a thing? Ooooh cool idea! God has a sister?! Okay let’s see where that goes! Though when the story is rooted in real life - it makes you examine story stuff a little more closely I guess - but Lucifer is Lucifer and I can’t imagine anyone saying “No” to him…except Sam Fuckin’ Winchester of course, and  I do seriously love the idea that Lucifer traded up and up and up. It’s smart and scary, because imagine who he could trade up into! There are lots of crazies out there! 

I loved how President Lucifer played out; I think the actor did a great job with toying with the deception. I do love how the devil can straight out tell people he’s the devil, and no one ever believes him! And my gosh, sitting him in front of a raging fire while he held his meeting was pure Supernatural genius…one of those fabulous shots our show does so damn well.

I also loved the idea of Lucifer possessing an Archbishop! I mean, he could probably even do it without even lying to get his yes. Because remember he reckons he never lies…. (sure sure Lucifer).  He’d just have to say he’s an angel, because that’s not a lie. Powerful men, no matter who they are, always seem to want more power - it’s an easy ploy and part of the reason I loved Lucifer going after the powerful men. 

That whole opening scene with the crosses spinning as the archbishop walked past was so damn creepy. The music, the glowing eyes…. CREEEEPY! Not to mention the resulting massacre. I do so like it when we see what Lucifer really is - not the sometimes campy, comic - albeit evil comic - relief. I remember how much I dug Lucifer killing all the Gods in Hammer of the Gods - it just seemed so right to see that. There’s a reason he’s the devil, and when we get to see his true colours, it adds power to all other scenes he is in. I love that in season 12 we’ve been reminded of Lucifer's true nature, and our complacency with Lucifer has been given a great big shake!

We finally got to meet Mr Ketch - coming to the assistance of the boys…with a damn grenade launcher! (One day Dean, one day). Ketch was younger than I was expecting, I don’t know why, but I’d pictured him older - even though I had at some point, seen a casting spoiler of the actor! It was interesting that he was moved off his Triumph into a Bentley. Another beautiful British form of transport - but seriously different to the bike! I was expecting him to be more leather clad than Savile Row! He was super posh (as opposed to cor blimey Mick), and groomed and smarmy and smug and instantly untrustworthy. He doesn’t care either way about the boys…which means he won’t care if he’s ordered to kill them, and his disdain for the “angel” was palatable - making perfect sense with what we know about the British Men of Letters and their very black and white view of the supernatural. Imagine when he meets Crowley…though maybe they could compare tailors! (P.S. Crowley most definitely does not wear Armani!)

Ketch’s trunk of goodies was interesting…the British Men of Letters have some neat toys, but then again so do our trusty, plaid clad Men of Letters - they’ve assembled a pretty cool stock of goodies themselves. Personally I’m always going to prefer a good decapitation rather than a yawnfest irradiation of vampires, and I think this was a really cool way to depict how different the two groups work. Sam and Dean are Men of Letters, they are Legacies, but they are also Hunters who know what it is to get their hands dirty and blood soaked. They’re not above that. They’ll do what they need to do, crawl through whatever mud they need to. There is no pretence with them, they don’t consider themselves too good for any of it (on the contrary half the time). It’s the job; they do it. The British Men of Letters on the other hand, are ego personified. Big upping themselves at every turn. They bring in others to do the work they consider beneath them, and as much as they think they know everything and can do everything better, you can tell that in a fight, Sam and Dean would whoop their pasty British asses for exactly that reason. Cool toys or otherwise. Hundreds of years of knowledge or otherwise. Sam and Dean are warriors…I sure don’t get that vibe from the British Men of Letters at all. 

I think Ketch did a very good job of getting the boys to tentatively trust him - he did good leg work in getting them into a position where they may not feel so openly antagonistic towards the British Men of Letters. Everyone is painting Lady Toni as an anomaly - she doesn’t represent how the British Men of Letters work - except we know she does….and Ketch is worse. But Mick dispatching Ketch to the boys’ aid, with exactly the tool they needed, was a very smart, and I think, a very deceptive manipulation. 

Sam has always been someone who can put aside his feelings in order to take the road that best serves the job. We’ve seen him do this again and again, he can take the emotion out of the decision making a lot more easily than Dean can, so though it surprised me, it didn’t shock me that he might reach out for back up, when faced with what appeared on the surface to be insurmountable odds…really, how do you get close to the President? He had second thoughts of course and hung up the phone, but putting the future of the world above his own feelings is very Sam…well it’s very Winchester. Sam’s not afraid of sacrifice, neither of the brothers are, Lord knows we all know that! I figure this was the door that the British Men of Letters needed opened…and Ketch stepped through and played his hand, (I’m still assuming the BMoL are evil shite). Did they know that the devil was on the loose I wonder? If they didn’t, their intel must be pretty damn crap! Now with Lucifer (temporarily) out of the picture, I think the focus is going to be on the Brits for a bit…once we get Sam and Dean out of wherever the hell they are!

I must admit I got a tad confused as to what the hell happened with Lucifer. I loved the end scene - the egg was crazy good, and man, I hope they hang on to that thing because, HANDY! I loved that it was Sam that got to expel Lucifer from Pres Jeff. I absolutely loved that. I loved that there were little jolts of power that kept impacting Sam as he held the egg thing tight - and that he got to tell Lucifer to go to hell, and Dean yelling SAMMMM in the background…yeah I’m always going to love that! But then I’m not sure exactly what happened… Lucifer said it wasn’t over, yep got that, then he went down the vent… Sam and Dean saw him go down the vent, so my take in the moment was that he got out of dodge and is somewhere collecting himself. Probably weakened like when he was ripped from Cas. But then the thing that confused me was Dean saying “We got him, we got Lucifer” and Sam looking amazed and please… Soooo Sam and Dean think he’s back in the cage? Is he back in the cage? Because I think going down a vent was a pretty average way of putting Lucifer back in the cage! I feel like the floor should have opened for that, or that there would be an explosion or something more impressive than just a vent! Maybe? Maybe not? Or are the boys just taking the win - they got him… in that they got him out, they beat him, they got him on the run etc etc. Are they going to be surprised that he’s still on the loose…if indeed he is, or will Crowley go have a peak at the cage and find it Lucifer free, or will he be there and pissed and in Mark Pellegrino, and the vent was just an easy exit route for the spell? Was the whole scene supposed to be inconclusive for us as an audience, because I know I wasn't the only one feeling unsure. I’d really like to know your thoughts on this one, because I’ve chatted about it with a couple of friends and none of us feel completely clear on what the intent of that final scene was - if he's in the cage, or not?

Speaking of escape…. SAM AND DEAN I WANT TO SLAP YOU UPSIDE THE HEAD. Honestly boys, you’ve got the POTUS on the floor - he’s okay, just out cold and with no memory of what happened - you’ve got the Secret Service outside the door…and you’re not escaping? Why again are you not escaping? ARGH! They should have bolted with Cas and the preggers girlfriend! Man. This is not good. This is not good way beyond last time they were caught not good…and of course, like I said, I watched the promo for the next ep and I’m now fretting for our locked up boys! I know they’re going to get sprung (and I read the interview with Dabb who spoke about who helps), so of course they’ll be okay, but seriously, what were they even thinking?!

And speaking of Kelly, the preggers girlfriend, I LOVE that a Nephilim has come into being. This could be a story that we might not even visit again this season, but a thread that can carry through to next season! Or maybe it's what brings Lucifer back into the picture - his kidlet! It’s one of those little plot points that make you go…”Ooooooooooo! Exciting!” I really love it, and can’t wait to see what they do with it. Cas is still way too trusting though…even when he’s more badass and pretty much powered up.

So we finish out the first half of the season with all our recurring characters in play and a couple of new, interesting plot twists and turns, and a couple of big questions. Rowena and Crowley have split - I imagine if they think Lucifer is locked up, they'll be detaching themselves from the Winchesters again...for now...unless Crowley and mum help out with the boys' escape! Kelly and her baby are in the wind - I betcha Cas is all over that one! We still have Mary out there, and wherever the hell her story is going, the British Men of Letters are lurking in the shadows ready to pounce having slightly ingratiated themselves with our trusty heroes, and apparently they will be back being momentarily “helpful”, and the boys...the boys are locked up in a very bad place…LOCKED UP AND SEPARATED…oh my gosh that kills me…. KILLS ME!

And Dean had the best line ever….

Kelly “No no you’re making it up it’s impossible”

Dean “Well, to be fair, so is teleporting…but…ta daaaa” 

OMG. Have I told you lately how much I love him?

Oh and favourite bit.... Sam and Dean huddling behind Baby. LOVE!

Have a wonderful Christmas/Holiday time! Stay safe and warm, or cool dependent on where you live…and keep those feels together for the next 5 weeks! We’re back January 26 (27th for me), and don't forget we're at the earlier time of 8!

Here’s the promo for the next ep…just in case you need it.

-sweetondean