Supernatural Think Tank - Anna's Thoughts on 12x23 "All Along the Watchtower"

I don't think we've ever had a two-hour episode of Supernatural before.  I mean, we've had two-parters of course, but never an actual episode that was two hours long.  This show is going on thirteen years old and we still have never had a two-hour episode.  For some reason I just find that odd.  Last week we had back to back episodes, which is something we've experienced before, I mean TNT runs marathons of Supernatural, although it was the first time we've had back to back episodes on "finale" day.  As much as I can watch Supernatural all day long, and actually have, I felt that a disservice was done by having a back to back with the last two episodes of the season.   I actually felt that a week in between would've better.  Let me explain.  First I will start by saying that I really liked this finale.  It was an exciting hour with an ending that has led to a myriad of possibilities heading into Season 13.   I'm very excited to see where the story will take us.  With that being said, I must confess that "Who We Are", in the way of emotional satisfaction, has provided me with so much joy and contentment,  it was so well done, dare I use the word...."perfect" that in all honesty, any episode that followed, no matter how good, could never compare.  I look at "Who We Are" as the J2 panels at conventions.   The finale was more along the lines of whoever follows J2.   Don't get me wrong,  whoever follows J2 could be awesome and enjoyable and even if you'd never seen them before, you would end up loving them.  Still no matter how awesome that person might be and how glad you were you got to see them, it's Jared and Jensen's panel that you remember the most.  It's they that filled your heart with such happiness.  It's seeing them that has made your life complete.  I know of what I speak, because I speak from personal experience. (I know it's not the same for everyone, but I think the majority understand where I'm coming from).   This is how I look at the last two episodes.

The reason I think that a disservice was done is because having such different episodes follow each other didn't allow the fans the time to fully enjoy the full awesomeness of both for a sufficient amount of time. Sometimes when one episode is deemed superior than everything else done so far, the episode that follows immediately, no matter how good, doesn't get the same love and appreciation it might have gotten if shown at a later time.  There's too much room for comparison and sometimes the emotionally level is different.  "Who We Are" was such an incredible episode that it deserved an entire week of the fans swooning over it, talking about it, and basking in the emotional satisfaction that it gave to so  many people.  It truly earned it's time in the spotlight.  "All Along the Watchtower" was a good episode.  It wasn't the same as "Who We Are", but how many episodes are?  Still it gave us a lot of closure, special moments, humour, drama, and  literally a door to so many possibilities of where our boys can go next season.   It really provided everything that makes for an exciting season finale, and I thought it deserved it's own night so it can be appreciated for it's own merit. 

Goodbyes

It's not unusual so see characters we've grown to love meet their demise on Supernatural.   Whether we love to hate them or we just plain have grown so fond of them, unfortunately no one is safe in the Winchester's world.  We've lost some pretty awesome characters in the last two episodes.  Some we loved and some we loved to hate, but all so very entertaining.  I feel like we lost some really good ones this year and it made me a little sad.  I really enjoyed Arthur Ketch.  I will admit to him being among my favourite villains and I loved all his scenes.  He wasn't on for very long, but I myself will miss him.  We lost Eileen too and that one hit a lot of people hard.  I liked her and I liked her relationship with the boys, especially Sam.  I appreciated that not only was she a woman hunter who was quite capable, but she was also one had lost her hearing and yet didn't let that stop her. I really would've liked her character to have survived to fight along the Winchesters in the future.  Rowena.  I always loved Rowena.  I know her character was one that was divided among the fandom, but I always found her to be quite the force to be reckoned with.  She was clever and always a step ahead.  She looked out for herself of course, but still she managed to help the boys on more than one occasion.  I even think, much like her son, that she had grown quite attached to Sam and Dean Winchester.  I loved her relationship with Crowley and had honestly hoped to see more of that develop.   I didn't think she deserved an off screen death, I thought at the very least, if she was to be one of Supernatural's victims, she earned the right to her very own death scene.  I will admit that I do secretly hope that this isn't the last we see of Rowena.  From all the tweets that we've been getting from Mark S. I must admit that his death wasn't all that much of a surprise.  We've often heard Crowley speak of how he wasn't happy with Hell or his job as King.  I kind of wonder now if  Crowley's comments in the past weren't a clue to how Mark was feeling about his character.   Mark tweeted that his was a fitting end to how he'd been feeling.  I guess even Mark felt that Crowley hasn't been really given that much to do as a character for quite sometime now.  I guess he saw fit to go on his own terms, much the way Crowley did.   I will miss Mark.  He made Crowley a fascinating character.  He literally made me like the "King of Hell".  I found him to be snarky, clever and even vicious.  Crowley even showed, to his disgust, signs of actual humanity at one point.  Crowley certainly has done much for and against the Winchesters.   He's been one of the most interesting and entertaining villains I've ever seen.  I think I'll miss him most of all.  He was the daringest devil we knew. .  As for our angel friend,  I don't really think he's gone.  I'm sure he'll be back, the only question is in what way?  Kelly wasn't all that interesting a character in the beginning, but towards the end I had started to feel for her.  She was a mother that never got to be who loved a child spawned from Lucifer himself.   She fought for her child to the end and her last message to him was one of love.  Hopefully that will be of some importance in the future.  In the end, she had a touching death.

Quandries

The one thing  I can say this episode did a fantastic job with was to raise more questions.   If this finale's goal was to cause rampant speculation among the fandom, then it most certainly did it's job and it did a damn fine one at that.  I know for myself,   I've got speculations coming out my , what did you think I was going to say.  My biggest question has to do with Cas.  I've noticed a lot of people wondering if this was even the real Cas who died.  I understand why this question would be raised.  When I watched the first time, I had noticed that Cas had been a little different when he went in and came out of the portal the first time.  He wasn't completely honest with Kelly when she asked where he went.  There was a moment when Cas looked out the window at the portal that he had what seemed to me to be a smirk on his face.  I too thought at that moment, wait, is this even the real Cas?  Then I watched it a second time and it occurred to me that this most likely is the real Cas, that it was the real Cas that died.  I don't think that A/U Cas would've recognised the boys the way he did.  I don't think there was time for A/U angel Cas to jump into Cas' vessel or even a plan for them to develop such a scheme.  I realised that the smirk Cas made when looking at the portal could've actually been the moment when he had come up with the plan to trap Lucifer there.  With careful consideration I've come to the conclusion that the real Cas was killed at the end of the episode.  The only question that remains is in what way will they bring Cas back?  Will Cas stay dead and Misha get to play a new version of Cas?  A/U  Cas? or maybe he gets to be a really cool version of Jimmy Novak (wouldn't that make Misha happy if he could talk in his normal voice).  That could be so cool.  Whichever way show decided to go on that, what a great way to reboot his character. Cas hasn't really been that interesting for quite awhile now.  An alternate universe could be a really great idea for so many reasons.  One being that Show can literally go from A/U world to Sam and Dean's world, this way Jared and Jensen still get the days off they need, and we get to see characters in another universe that can return because there they aren't dead.  I think it would be so awesome if the first half of s13 was spent by Sam and Dean dealing with the Nephilim, hunting and saving people, and trying to find a way back to save their mom.  Then at some point in the second half of the season the boys enter the A/U world, perhaps with the help of the Nephilim, and search for their mom while meeting up with all the old characters who have died in the past, including A/U Cas,  "dick angel".  I mean that's just one of many ways this new story could take us.  I'm so excited to see which direction will they actually go.  Is Rowena really dead?  What of the Nephilim?  Will he be evil?  There has been some speculation, even by Jared, that because Sam was Luci's true vessel and because he was the one who first saw the Nephilim, that perhaps there will be some kind of a connection?  Jared was thinking more along the lines of an intellectual one?  Wouldn't that be so very cool and interesting?  Could Sam influence the Nephilim to the side of good?  Will the Nephilim bring Cas back?  Can he?  I mean the only one we've ever seen bring an angel back from the dead is Chuck.  Will we get to see Sam and Dean unite the American hunters? Will they create a better version of what the BMOL tried?  There are so many questions.  So many possible storylines.   This finale could breathe new life and open up so many more stories for the Winchesters to tell.  It's all so very exciting. 

Accolades

This is the part where I acknowledge the truly extraordinary talent that is both Jared and Jensen.  These two beautiful souls have once again reminded us of the true heroes Sam and Dean Winchester are.  The real life brotherhood of Jared and Jensen seep into their characters and we all get the privilege to see their authentic bond shine through each and every scene.  I've so enjoyed this season and where the boys are at in their relationship.  It's been such an amazing journey thus far and I look forward to next season as I once again watch these two incredibly talented actors, who by rights should have at least three Emmys a piece on their shelves, bring to life the most amazing characters that have ever existed on television.  Misha did a good job, giving me hope that perhaps the character of Cas can once again find a story and a purpose.   Sam Smith did a wonderful job as Mary this season.  I really liked her moment of redemption for finally getting to punch the devil in the face, but more than that, she sent him to another world that can't get any worse and found a way to protect the real world that her sons are in.  That was a very satisfying moment for me.  I only hope the Nephilim doesn't turn out to be like it's daddy.  Kelly Kline wasn't all that much of an interesting character in my opinion, but I must admit that Courtney Ford did manage to elicit sympathy from me in the end.  I really felt for her during the last two episodes and I thought she did a wonderful job playing at the mother who would never get to be.  Mark P is always a delight and truly the one and only Lucifer in my book.  He  brings both menace and terror, while offering humour at the same time.  Mark has great chemistry with all of the cast and has very quickly become part of the SPN family.  I hope we get to see more of him next season.   What can I say of Mark S.  He made Crowley his own.  Mark has been a part of Supernatural since S5, and oh what a grand entrance he made.  Crowley is truly one of the most entertaining villains I've ever seen.  I will definitely say that Crowley has never been a stagnated character.  He's been villainous, self serving, and often downright cruel.  He's been enemy and frenemy towards the Winchesters.  He's been an addict, and tainted by humanity.  I don't think Crowley ever truly recovered from being injected from Sam's blood. (He is Sam f***ing Winchester after all) .  Still though Crowley's character had deeper layers than your run of the mill villain.  He actually craved at being loved.  It's why I think he truly wanted to be the King of Hell.  I don't think it was about power, as according to his speech to the boys, he hated his job.  I think Crowley had always wanted the adoration of his fellow demons.  We've seen him crave the love from his mother and he even craved the affection of the Winchesters.  As far as villains go,  Crowley even managed to have a sense of honour, never backing down on his deals.  Crowley was always depicted as smart, always ten steps ahead, which is why he has managed to survive for as long as he has.  He is after all the only player  on the board who has never underestimated those "denim clad nightmares".   Mark brought class to Crowley and in the end, though Crowley let his hate for Luci and pride get the better of him, he went out by his own terms.  In the end, even though he seemed to have lost, he won, because it was his final act that did enable the spell to work, trapping Lucifer in an alternate universe.  I will very much miss Mark S and the character which truly belonged only to him.  I hope some day we will get to see Crowley again.  He is and always will be the one and only King of Hell. 

Quotables

“I stomped on her face ‘til the white meat showed, and then set her on fire just in case. Ah, gingers. It was messy and screamy, but it had to be done.”

-Lucifer to Sam and Dean about killing Rowena 

“I have read 74 books on child-rearing and there is one thing that they all agree on. Everybody poops.”
-Cas to Kelly

“I kind of always wanted to punch the Devil in the face.”
-Mary to Sam and Dean

Sam: So, why are you here?
Crowley: Well, whenever there is a world ending crisis at hand, I know where to place my bets. It's on you. You big beautiful lumbering piles of flannel. So if you'll forgive my transgression, I'll make it worth your wile.
Dean: Which means?
Crowley: After we put Lucifer back in his Cage, together. I'll seal the Gates of Hell. You'll never see another demon again, apart from of course, yours truly.
Mary: You would do that?
Crowley: Why not? They stab me in the back, I'll happily stab them in the front, the sides and right up their little black-eyed asses. So, do we have a deal? 

 

Dean: “On a scale of 1 to 10, how bad is this?"
Sam: “I don’t know. I gotta, a hole in reality to a bombed-out apocalypse world? I’m gonna go with 11"   

" I have faith in us. You, me, mom, Cas and Crowley, sometimes.”

-Dean to Sam   

"This is what you do when I'm not here. Type?"

-Crowley

Sam: Dean, wait.

Dean / Mary: Seriously?
Sam: He worked the Cage spell with Rowena, maybe he could help us.
Mary: What if he can't.

Sam: Well, then we kill him.

Lucifer: Oh, no no no. You had your chance. You could have put me back in the Cage.

Crowley: You're right. It is personal. You humiliated me. I-I hate you, deeply, truly. And I'm gonna enjoy wiping that smug, self-satisfied look off your face. Personally.
Lucifer: You mean this one? Come on, Crowley. You know whatever you try, you're gonna lose.
Crowley: You're right. Bye, boys.

Castiel: It's a doorway to another world.

Dean: Anoth-- what, like Narnia?

Castiel: No. No through there it's Earth, but-but different. It's an alternate reality.

Sam: So, it's a bizarro world? Or -- or like that place we got zapped to where we were, uh, actors on a TV show.

Dean: Oh, yeah. The supernatural wasn't real. And you were Polish.

Lucifer: Oh. Sweet toy.

Dean: Yeah, I got it off an old-new pal of mine. See we have this bet, see if it works against an archangel. So, say hello to me little friend.

Well it's hellatus time again folks.   I want to thank you all for taking the time to read my ramblings.  I hope you all have a wonderful summer.  Thank you Amy for allowing me to share all of my thinky thoughts.  I hope to see you all again in October.

Happy Hellatus!!!!

-Anna