Supernatural Episode Commentaries Master Post
Supernatural Episode Commentaries Master Post
It occurred to me that I’ve done an awful lot of these Supernatural episode commentary/review things, peppered across years of time. On the off chance that visitors here would like to see what I said about a specific episode back when it first aired, I thought I might as well collect links to all my episode commentaries in one central place. So, welcome to my master list, and I hope you enjoy what you find here. You can get a good laugh about how wrong I turned out to be on some of my thoughts and guesses back in the day. I’m pretty proud about the ones I got right!
I'll also be doing a separate master list page for links to all my standalone Supernatural University meta lectures. Meta inevitably became a big part of my episode commentaries, so no perusal of the Supernatural University curriculum would be complete without a review of the episode commentaries, but the individual, in-depth discussions not specific to an episode will be more easily findable once that collective post goes up.
Season One
Sorry; even though I watched the series from the very beginning, I didn’t blog during season one, so I have no individual episode reviews or commentaries. I didn’t start blogging until the beginning of season two, when I felt I had to write because I was dismayed by the rampant negativity in the fandom over how the show and the Winchester brothers had changed since season one. Sounds really silly now, doesn’t it? But it keeps happening every single season ... guess I’ll just have to keep writing my commentaries to provide a balance!
I did write about a few of the season one shows during season four. You can find those writeups here:
Supernatural n-Book Club Dead Man's Blood, Salvation, Devil's Trap, In My Time of Dying. Watching these four episodes from the end of the first season and the beginning of the second, I can’t blank out my knowledge of all that happened later in seasons two and three of the Winchester family story. The resonances from these episodes and across time that I particularly want to explore are the Winchesters themselves; the Colt; and Daniel Elkins
Supernatural n-Book Club Entry Phantom Traveler; The Advent of Demons. My thesis is that the episode suggests that this was also the first time that Sam and Dean actually encountered demons up close and personal: drop by and see why, and whether or not you agree
Season Two
2.01 In My Time Of Dying, 2.02 Everybody Loves A Clown - I wasn’t blogging yet when these two episodes aired, but I talked a little bit about them both, and about the first season, in my very first ever blog entry, and that’s where this link takes you.
2.03 Bloodlust: Painful Shades of Grey
2.04 Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things - Or Be Dead Things Brought Back To Life
2.05 Simon Said - Watch A Great Episode of Supernatural!
2.06 No Exit: One Ghost Murders, Two Haunt Hearts
2.07 The Usual Suspects: Arresting Supernatural Television
2.8 Cross Road Blues: What’s Worth Your Soul?
2.09 Croatoan: He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother …
2.10 Hunted - Screaming in My Head
2.11 Playthings: I’m All Through With Promises, Promises Now
2.12 Nightshifter: We Are So Screwed …
2.13 Houses of the Holy: Higher Powers, Heavier Hearts
2.14 Born Under a Bad Sign: Messing With Your Head
2.15 Tall Tales: Limerick Justice
2.16 Roadkill: Unfinished Business
2.17 Heart: This Is The Way You Can Save Me
2.18 Hollywood Babylon: I Just Play The Part, I Don’t Write The Script
2.19 Folsom Prison Blues: We Pay Our Debts
2.20 What Is and What Should Never Be: There’s No Place Like Home
2.21 All Hell Breaks Loose, Part One: I Just Need the One
2.22 All Hell Breaks Loose, Part Two: There’s Nothing I Wouldn’t Do For You
Season Three
3.01 The Magnificent Seven: The Family That Slays Together
3.02 The Kids Are Alright: Here Comes Trouble!
3.03 Bad Day at Black Rock: A Lucky Break?
3.04 Sin City: All You’ve Gotta Do Is Nudge Humans in the Right Direction
3.05 Bedtime Stories: Once Upon a Time … nbsp;
3.06 Red Sky at Morning: Winchesters, Take Warning
3.07 Fresh Blood: One Last Good Thing
3.08 A Very Supernatural Christmas: We’ll Have to Muddle Through Somehow nbsp;
3.09 Malleus Maleficarum: That’s What Hell Is nbsp;
3.10 Dream a Little Dream of Me: I Don’t Deserve to Go to Hell
3.11 Mystery Spot: Dean’s Your Weakness. The Bad Guys Know It, Too.
3.12 Jus in Bello: If That’s How You Win Wars, Then I Don’t Wanna Win
3.13 Ghostfacers!: Don’t Be ’Facer-Haters ...
3.14 Long Distance Call: You’re All So Connected, But You’ve Never Been So Alone nbsp;
3.15 Time Is On My Side: We’re Trying to Do the Same Thing Here
3.16 No Rest For the Wicked: We Are Not Gonna Make the Same Mistakes All Over Again
Season Four
4.1 Lazarus Rising: We Have Work For You
4.2 Are You There, God? It’s Me, Dean Winchester: There’s a Bigger Picture, Here
4.3 In The Beginning: You Have To Stop It nbsp;
4.4 Metamorphosis: I’m A Whole New Level Of Freak
4.5 Monster Movie: Tackling A Straightforward, Black-And-White Case
4.6 Yellow Fever: That’s Fear; It Spreads and Spreads
4.7 It’s The Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester: One Step Closer To Hell On Earth
4.8 Wishful Thinking: Careful What You Wish For nbsp;
4.9 I Know What You Did Last Summer: Who Asked You To Save Me?
4.10 Heaven And Hell: It Wasn’t Your Fault
4.11 Family Remains: I Can’t Fill This Hole, Not Ever
4.12 Criss Angel Is A Douchebag: I Don’t Want To Be Doing This When I’m An Old Man
4.13 After School Special: I’m Looking For The Brutal, Funny, Maybe Even Painful Truth
4.14 Sex And Violence: You Two Have A Lot You Want To Get Off Your Chests
4.15 Death Takes A Holiday: Stop Lying To Yourself
4.16 On The Head Of A Pin: There’s No Going Back
4.17 It’s A Terrible Life: You Get To Change Things
4.18 The Monster At The End Of This Book: Chuck Is Writing The Gospel Of Us
4.19 Jump The Shark: Take It Any Way You Want
4.20 The Rapture: Heaven, Hell, None Of That Matters
4.21 When The Levee Breaks: How Can You Run From What’s Inside You?
4.22 Lucifer Rising: If There’s Anything Worth Dying For, This Is It
Season Five
5.01 Sympathy For The Devil: What I Need Is You
5.02 Good God, Y’All: I Don’t Trust Me, Either
5.03 Free to Be You and Me: People Can Change, There Is Reason For Hope
5.04 The End: We Keep Each Other Human
5.05 Fallen Idols: We Got Bigger Problems, Don’t You Think
5.06 I Believe The Children Are Our Future: Once You’re In This Fight, You’re In It To The End
5.07 The Curious Case of Dean Winchester: They’re My Years, I Can Do What I Want
5.08 Changing Channels: As It Is In Heaven, So It Must Be On Earth
5.09 The Real Ghostbusters: I’m Not Sure You Get What The Story’s About
5.10 Abandon All Hope ...: Last Words? Part One: Episode Summary Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
5.11 Sam, Interrupted: Monsters Are The Least Of Your Problems
5.12 Swap Meat: All You Gotta Do Is Say Yes
5.13 The Song Remains The Same: We Have To Try
5.14 My Bloody Valentine: Where Is Your Hunger?
5.15 Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid: My Job Is To Bring Him Peace, Not Pain
5.16 Dark Side of the Moon: How Are We In Heaven?
5.17 99 Problems: Must Be Hard, Being The Vessel Of Heaven And Having No Hope
5.18 Point Of No Return: When Push Shoves, You’ll Make The Right Choice
5.19 Hammer Of The Gods: This Is Me, Standing Up
5.20 The Devil You Know: You Want The Horseman Rings, Or Not?
5.21 Two Minutes To Midnight: Good Luck Stopping The Whole Zombie Apocalypse
5.22 Swan Song: I Got Something To Say Part One: Episode Summary nbsp; Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
Season Six
6.01 Exile On Main Street: You Can’t Outrun Your Past nbsp;
6.02 Two And A Half Men: Here I’ve Been Thinking We’re Family nbsp;
6.03 The Third Man: Whoever Has The Weapons Wins The War
6.04 Weekend At Bobby’s: Story Of My Life Part One: Episode Summary Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
6.05 Live Free Or TwiHard: I’m A Monster
6.06 You Can’t Handle The Truth: Maybe It’s Just … Sam nbsp;
6.07 Family Matters: You Pose An Interesting Philosophical Question
6.08 All Dogs Go To Heaven: You Wanted The Real Me. This Is It.
6.09 Clap Your Hands If You Believe …: The Truth Is In There
6.10 Caged Heat: I’m Ambivalent About What We’re Attempting nbsp;
6.11 Appointment In Samarra: I Screwed Up The Whole ‘Natural Order’ Thing
6.12 Like A Virgin: It Was A New Day Yesterday, But It’s An Old Day Now
6.13 Unforgiven: You Killed One Monster, You Made So Many More
6.14 Mannequin 3: The Reckoning: I Had To Deal With My Past Year, You Gotta Deal With Yours
6.15 The French Mistake: We Matter To That World
6.16 ... And Then There Were None: She Has A Message For You Part One: Episode Summary Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
6.17 My Heart Will Go On : This Is About The Souls
6.18 Frontierland: Maybe You Got To Go Find Him And Make History
6.19 Mommy Dearest: I'm Building The Perfect Beast
6.20 The Man Who Would Be King: Freedom Is A Length Of Rope
6.21 Let It Bleed: I Wish This Changed Anything
6.22 The Man Who Knew Too Much: I'm Not Leaving My Brother Alone Out There
Season Seven
7.01
7.02
7.03 The Girl Next Door: Nothing In Our Lives Is Simple
7.04
7.05
7.06
7.07
7.08
7.09
7.10
7.11
7.12
7.13
7.14
7.15
7.16
7.17
7.18
7.19
7.20
7.21
7.22
7.23
Season Eight
8.02 We Need To Talk About Kevin: Let's Do This
8.03 W hat's Up, Tiger Mommy?: It's All About The Sacrifice
8.01 Heartache: This Last Year Has Given Me A Whole New Perspective
8.04 Bitten: This Should Never Have Ended This Way
8.05 Blood Brother:
8.06 Southern Comfort:
8.07 A Little Slice Of Kevin:
8.08 Hunteri Heroici:
8.09 Torn And Frayed:
8.10 Torn And Frayed I Can't Enjoy A World I Need To Save
8.11 LARP And The Real Girl: Escaping Isn't What It Used To Be
8.12 As Time Goes By: As Long As We're Alive, There's Always Hope
8.13 Everybody Hates Hitler: Knowledge Is Power, Isn't It
8.14 Trial And Error: This Is My Perfect Ending
8.15 Man's Best Friend With Benefits: And Then Some Other Crap
8.16 Remember The Titans: This One Was Supposed To Be On Me
8.17 Goodbye Stranger: I Can't Take Any More Lies -- From Anyone
8.18 Freaks And Geeks:
8.19 Taxi Driver: No Reason To Think I Won't See You Again Somewhere Down The Road
8.20 Pac Man Fever:
8.21 The Great Escapist: When You Create Stories, You Become Gods
8.22 Clip Show: When They're All Gone, What Will You Have Left?
8.23 Sacrifice: It Was Always God's Intention, The Ultimate Sacrifice
Season Nine
9.01 I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here: There Ain't No Me If There Ain't No You
9.02
9.03
9.04
9.05
9.06
9.07
9.08
9.09
9.10
9.11
9.12
9.13
9.14
9.15
9.16
9.17
9.18
9.19
9,.20
9.21
9.22
9.23
I regret with all my heart that, shortly after Season 7 began, I was unable to find the time to keep this updated as I'd intended. However, I was irregular in Season 8, but I'm onboard for Season 9!
It occurred to me that I’ve done an awful lot of these Supernatural episode commentary/review things, peppered across years of time. On the off chance that visitors here would like to see what I said about a specific episode back when it first aired, I thought I might as well collect links to all my episode commentaries in one central place. So, welcome to my master list, and I hope you enjoy what you find here. You can get a good laugh about how wrong I turned out to be on some of my thoughts and guesses back in the day. I’m pretty proud about the ones I got right!
I'll also be doing a separate master list page for links to all my standalone Supernatural University meta lectures. Meta inevitably became a big part of my episode commentaries, so no perusal of the Supernatural University curriculum would be complete without a review of the episode commentaries, but the individual, in-depth discussions not specific to an episode will be more easily findable once that collective post goes up.
Season One
Sorry; even though I watched the series from the very beginning, I didn’t blog during season one, so I have no individual episode reviews or commentaries. I didn’t start blogging until the beginning of season two, when I felt I had to write because I was dismayed by the rampant negativity in the fandom over how the show and the Winchester brothers had changed since season one. Sounds really silly now, doesn’t it? But it keeps happening every single season ... guess I’ll just have to keep writing my commentaries to provide a balance!
I did write about a few of the season one shows during season four. You can find those writeups here:
Supernatural n-Book Club Dead Man's Blood, Salvation, Devil's Trap, In My Time of Dying. Watching these four episodes from the end of the first season and the beginning of the second, I can’t blank out my knowledge of all that happened later in seasons two and three of the Winchester family story. The resonances from these episodes and across time that I particularly want to explore are the Winchesters themselves; the Colt; and Daniel Elkins
Supernatural n-Book Club Entry Phantom Traveler; The Advent of Demons. My thesis is that the episode suggests that this was also the first time that Sam and Dean actually encountered demons up close and personal: drop by and see why, and whether or not you agree
Season Two
2.01 In My Time Of Dying, 2.02 Everybody Loves A Clown - I wasn’t blogging yet when these two episodes aired, but I talked a little bit about them both, and about the first season, in my very first ever blog entry, and that’s where this link takes you.
2.03 Bloodlust: Painful Shades of Grey
2.04 Children Shouldn’t Play With Dead Things - Or Be Dead Things Brought Back To Life
2.05 Simon Said - Watch A Great Episode of Supernatural!
2.06 No Exit: One Ghost Murders, Two Haunt Hearts
2.07 The Usual Suspects: Arresting Supernatural Television
2.8 Cross Road Blues: What’s Worth Your Soul?
2.09 Croatoan: He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother …
2.10 Hunted - Screaming in My Head
2.11 Playthings: I’m All Through With Promises, Promises Now
2.12 Nightshifter: We Are So Screwed …
2.13 Houses of the Holy: Higher Powers, Heavier Hearts
2.14 Born Under a Bad Sign: Messing With Your Head
2.15 Tall Tales: Limerick Justice
2.16 Roadkill: Unfinished Business
2.17 Heart: This Is The Way You Can Save Me
2.18 Hollywood Babylon: I Just Play The Part, I Don’t Write The Script
2.19 Folsom Prison Blues: We Pay Our Debts
2.20 What Is and What Should Never Be: There’s No Place Like Home
2.21 All Hell Breaks Loose, Part One: I Just Need the One
2.22 All Hell Breaks Loose, Part Two: There’s Nothing I Wouldn’t Do For You
Season Three
3.01 The Magnificent Seven: The Family That Slays Together
3.02 The Kids Are Alright: Here Comes Trouble!
3.03 Bad Day at Black Rock: A Lucky Break?
3.04 Sin City: All You’ve Gotta Do Is Nudge Humans in the Right Direction
3.05 Bedtime Stories: Once Upon a Time … nbsp;
3.06 Red Sky at Morning: Winchesters, Take Warning
3.07 Fresh Blood: One Last Good Thing
3.08 A Very Supernatural Christmas: We’ll Have to Muddle Through Somehow nbsp;
3.09 Malleus Maleficarum: That’s What Hell Is nbsp;
3.10 Dream a Little Dream of Me: I Don’t Deserve to Go to Hell
3.11 Mystery Spot: Dean’s Your Weakness. The Bad Guys Know It, Too.
3.12 Jus in Bello: If That’s How You Win Wars, Then I Don’t Wanna Win
3.13 Ghostfacers!: Don’t Be ’Facer-Haters ...
3.14 Long Distance Call: You’re All So Connected, But You’ve Never Been So Alone nbsp;
3.15 Time Is On My Side: We’re Trying to Do the Same Thing Here
3.16 No Rest For the Wicked: We Are Not Gonna Make the Same Mistakes All Over Again
Season Four
4.1 Lazarus Rising: We Have Work For You
4.2 Are You There, God? It’s Me, Dean Winchester: There’s a Bigger Picture, Here
4.3 In The Beginning: You Have To Stop It nbsp;
4.4 Metamorphosis: I’m A Whole New Level Of Freak
4.5 Monster Movie: Tackling A Straightforward, Black-And-White Case
4.6 Yellow Fever: That’s Fear; It Spreads and Spreads
4.7 It’s The Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester: One Step Closer To Hell On Earth
4.8 Wishful Thinking: Careful What You Wish For nbsp;
4.9 I Know What You Did Last Summer: Who Asked You To Save Me?
4.10 Heaven And Hell: It Wasn’t Your Fault
4.11 Family Remains: I Can’t Fill This Hole, Not Ever
4.12 Criss Angel Is A Douchebag: I Don’t Want To Be Doing This When I’m An Old Man
4.13 After School Special: I’m Looking For The Brutal, Funny, Maybe Even Painful Truth
4.14 Sex And Violence: You Two Have A Lot You Want To Get Off Your Chests
4.15 Death Takes A Holiday: Stop Lying To Yourself
4.16 On The Head Of A Pin: There’s No Going Back
4.17 It’s A Terrible Life: You Get To Change Things
4.18 The Monster At The End Of This Book: Chuck Is Writing The Gospel Of Us
4.19 Jump The Shark: Take It Any Way You Want
4.20 The Rapture: Heaven, Hell, None Of That Matters
4.21 When The Levee Breaks: How Can You Run From What’s Inside You?
4.22 Lucifer Rising: If There’s Anything Worth Dying For, This Is It
Season Five
5.01 Sympathy For The Devil: What I Need Is You
5.02 Good God, Y’All: I Don’t Trust Me, Either
5.03 Free to Be You and Me: People Can Change, There Is Reason For Hope
5.04 The End: We Keep Each Other Human
5.05 Fallen Idols: We Got Bigger Problems, Don’t You Think
5.06 I Believe The Children Are Our Future: Once You’re In This Fight, You’re In It To The End
5.07 The Curious Case of Dean Winchester: They’re My Years, I Can Do What I Want
5.08 Changing Channels: As It Is In Heaven, So It Must Be On Earth
5.09 The Real Ghostbusters: I’m Not Sure You Get What The Story’s About
5.10 Abandon All Hope ...: Last Words? Part One: Episode Summary Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
5.11 Sam, Interrupted: Monsters Are The Least Of Your Problems
5.12 Swap Meat: All You Gotta Do Is Say Yes
5.13 The Song Remains The Same: We Have To Try
5.14 My Bloody Valentine: Where Is Your Hunger?
5.15 Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid: My Job Is To Bring Him Peace, Not Pain
5.16 Dark Side of the Moon: How Are We In Heaven?
5.17 99 Problems: Must Be Hard, Being The Vessel Of Heaven And Having No Hope
5.18 Point Of No Return: When Push Shoves, You’ll Make The Right Choice
5.19 Hammer Of The Gods: This Is Me, Standing Up
5.20 The Devil You Know: You Want The Horseman Rings, Or Not?
5.21 Two Minutes To Midnight: Good Luck Stopping The Whole Zombie Apocalypse
5.22 Swan Song: I Got Something To Say Part One: Episode Summary nbsp; Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
Season Six
6.01 Exile On Main Street: You Can’t Outrun Your Past nbsp;
6.02 Two And A Half Men: Here I’ve Been Thinking We’re Family nbsp;
6.03 The Third Man: Whoever Has The Weapons Wins The War
6.04 Weekend At Bobby’s: Story Of My Life Part One: Episode Summary Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
6.05 Live Free Or TwiHard: I’m A Monster
6.06 You Can’t Handle The Truth: Maybe It’s Just … Sam nbsp;
6.07 Family Matters: You Pose An Interesting Philosophical Question
6.08 All Dogs Go To Heaven: You Wanted The Real Me. This Is It.
6.09 Clap Your Hands If You Believe …: The Truth Is In There
6.10 Caged Heat: I’m Ambivalent About What We’re Attempting nbsp;
6.11 Appointment In Samarra: I Screwed Up The Whole ‘Natural Order’ Thing
6.12 Like A Virgin: It Was A New Day Yesterday, But It’s An Old Day Now
6.13 Unforgiven: You Killed One Monster, You Made So Many More
6.14 Mannequin 3: The Reckoning: I Had To Deal With My Past Year, You Gotta Deal With Yours
6.15 The French Mistake: We Matter To That World
6.16 ... And Then There Were None: She Has A Message For You Part One: Episode Summary Part Two: Commentary & Production Notes
6.17 My Heart Will Go On : This Is About The Souls
6.18 Frontierland: Maybe You Got To Go Find Him And Make History
6.19 Mommy Dearest: I'm Building The Perfect Beast
6.20 The Man Who Would Be King: Freedom Is A Length Of Rope
6.21 Let It Bleed: I Wish This Changed Anything
6.22 The Man Who Knew Too Much: I'm Not Leaving My Brother Alone Out There
Season Seven
7.01
7.02
7.03 The Girl Next Door: Nothing In Our Lives Is Simple
7.04
7.05
7.06
7.07
7.08
7.09
7.10
7.11
7.12
7.13
7.14
7.15
7.16
7.17
7.18
7.19
7.20
7.21
7.22
7.23
Season Eight
8.02 We Need To Talk About Kevin: Let's Do This
8.03 W hat's Up, Tiger Mommy?: It's All About The Sacrifice
8.01 Heartache: This Last Year Has Given Me A Whole New Perspective
8.04 Bitten: This Should Never Have Ended This Way
8.05 Blood Brother:
8.06 Southern Comfort:
8.07 A Little Slice Of Kevin:
8.08 Hunteri Heroici:
8.09 Torn And Frayed:
8.10 Torn And Frayed I Can't Enjoy A World I Need To Save
8.11 LARP And The Real Girl: Escaping Isn't What It Used To Be
8.12 As Time Goes By: As Long As We're Alive, There's Always Hope
8.13 Everybody Hates Hitler: Knowledge Is Power, Isn't It
8.14 Trial And Error: This Is My Perfect Ending
8.15 Man's Best Friend With Benefits: And Then Some Other Crap
8.16 Remember The Titans: This One Was Supposed To Be On Me
8.17 Goodbye Stranger: I Can't Take Any More Lies -- From Anyone
8.18 Freaks And Geeks:
8.19 Taxi Driver: No Reason To Think I Won't See You Again Somewhere Down The Road
8.20 Pac Man Fever:
8.21 The Great Escapist: When You Create Stories, You Become Gods
8.22 Clip Show: When They're All Gone, What Will You Have Left?
8.23 Sacrifice: It Was Always God's Intention, The Ultimate Sacrifice
Season Nine
9.01 I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here: There Ain't No Me If There Ain't No You
9.02
9.03
9.04
9.05
9.06
9.07
9.08
9.09
9.10
9.11
9.12
9.13
9.14
9.15
9.16
9.17
9.18
9.19
9,.20
9.21
9.22
9.23
I regret with all my heart that, shortly after Season 7 began, I was unable to find the time to keep this updated as I'd intended. However, I was irregular in Season 8, but I'm onboard for Season 9!