First Impressions Review: 14x13 "Lebanon"
Finally getting this review done!
I'll admit that I initially had some issues with this landmark, 300th episode.
At first, I didn't even believe that JDM was returning to the show. How could it happen when the show wasn't ending yet? I'd gotten it built up in my mind that the only time he would ever re-appear was for the show's ultimate finale. So when the Tweets showed up about his return, I was the only doubting Thomas saying I'd believe it when I saw it. Yeah, eventually even I had to believe it.
My other problem with JDM's return was more personal. My dad died in May of 2006 and a mere 4 months later, John died on the show in 2x01 "In My Time Of Dying". I felt his death hard and for months it was if I was mourning along with the boys in our shared loss of fathers. And here they were, all these years later, getting their dad back. It just seemed so unfair. I'll never get to see my dad again and here's my favorite show, throwing that impossibility in my face. It hurt.
Eventually, I saw the episode stills and my feelings softened. By the time I watched the episode I was actually eager for it. I couldn't have imagined that weeks before.
But let's get to the episode review, shall we?
The boys are at a pawn shop...to check out the special merchandise in the back. Turns out they're after a skull that was owned by a fellow hunter who was killed recently. Heh. Dean kills the dude with one shot. "They always talk too much." LOL
Why is there so many different forms of handwriting in that book of the pawn shop guy's supernatural items? Wouldn't it all look the same?
So the boys are known as the Campbell Brothers to the locals in Lebanon. Cute! :)
You know, if the writers of the ep had been smart, they would have switched the names of the 2 local teenage girls: Stacy & Max. 'Cause Stacy says, "Gotta bounce". A line that was uttered often by another Max on Dark Angel. I thought of it right away! If only SPN's Max in this episode had said it. *sigh* So close, writers! Though it is Max who steals the Impala...
Heehee! Sam totally striking out with the postal worker while Dean just pours on the charm and it works!
That John Wayne Gacy spirit was super creepy! And of all the times for Sam's lighter to not work.
So the boys end up telling the 3 kids: Eliot, Stacy, and Max - what they really do and they have to keep it secret.
So how did using the pearl go wrong (right?)??? Dean wants to get Michael out of his head. He seemed to concentrate real hard while holding the pearl. Maybe his mind wanted Michael gone, but his heart wanted John back? It did say the pearl would grant the "heart's desire" or something like that.
Great entrance of JDM here, btw. All the red light and darkness and pointing a shotgun at the boys before the big reveal.
So for John it's 2003. No wonder he thought Sam was supposed to be in Palo Alto.
Mary & John's reunion is so beautiful. And the boys sneaking off with Dean resisting because this is what he's wanted since he was 4 years old. He looked like a star-struck little boy. Awwww, Dean!
So much LOVE for Sam's talk with John. Jared did a beautiful job! I'm so glad Sam finally got some closure and got to say goodbye at last to John. "But you did your best, Dad. You fought for us, and you loved us, and that's enough."
I knew it! You can't mess with time without there being repercussions. This is what Sam worried about. Now he's a kale-eating dude making TED Talk videos and Dean is still a hunter and wanted by the police. Oh, yeah...then we have Zachariah and Castiel! So cool to have Zach back! :)
Heh, so Lebanon causes interference for the angels. The warding of the Bunker perhaps? Or maybe why the Bunker was built there in the first place? All that Zach & Cas know is that someone has been messing with time.
But this is a Cas who has never known the boys so...he's ready to kill, kill, kill. Bad news for the boys!
Dean gets his moment with his dad, too. I've read some fans were a little disappointed he didn't get more of a scene with John, but I think Dean heard what he needed to from John. He told Dean he was proud of him and that he wanted him to have a family. Of course, Dean has a family...one that's beyond blood. ;)
So glad they finally got to enjoy their dinner together, to live in that magical moment, after John's urging. He chose gratefulness and got the rest of them to do the same. There's smiles and laughter and longing looks.
Nice talk with the boys while they're washing the dishes. Sam kind of wishing they didn't have to send John back and Dean being okay with it because if they changed their lives that much they wouldn't be who they are today. At one time, Dean wished things had been different (hello, "What Is And What Should Never Be"), but now..."And I'm good with who I am. I'm good with who you are. 'Cause our lives -- they're ours. And maybe I'm just too damn old to want to change that."
So many tears over this goodbye scene!!!! Wow.
How did they get through this? I hope they didn't have to do too many takes, because I'm sure it was draining on all of them. I really have no words. I broke when John hugged his boys. Their faces! And then Sam crushed the pearl, and did you notice he took a long time to look up and see that John was gone? And poor Dean, looking the whole time, flinching when Sam crushed the pearl, his face looking so lost. And Mary going from holding John's hand to it being empty...heart-crushing.
And that final scene! John waking up in the Impala (old lights & plates, too!), in the rain, answering the phone and talking to Dean...telling him he had "one hell of a dream"! He remembers!!!! Sorta. Nicely done, show.
Final Thoughts:
My initial problems aside, I truly loved this 300th episode. I'm glad the boys (and Mary) got this short time with John. I mean, all of us would want that with our departed loved ones, wouldn't we? If we had a day or an hour or 5 minutes, we would take it. It was great seeing JDM again and he didn't miss a step after all these years. Bravo, SPN!
Quotes:
Eliot: I mean, think about it. Where did they even come from? Them or their weird sidekick with the trench coat. And what about that kid with the dumb Bambi look on his face all the time?
Sam: Dean, listen to this -- uh, hangman's rope, fairy dust, John Wayne Gacy's cigar box.
Dean: So we're talkin', like, 31 Flavors of weird, huh?
Sam: You're not gonna believe this. It's called the Baozhu. It's one of eight ancient Chinese treasures. I-It's a pearl that grants wishes.
Dean: A serial killer clown, I mean this is like the best worst thing that's ever happened to you, because you love serial killers and hate clowns.
Sam: I-I know you need -- or you want some sort of rational explanation for what happened here, but there isn't one. My brother and I, we hunt things. Evil things that shouldn't exist.
Dean: And we are damn good at what we do.
John: So, you saved the world?
Dean: More than once.
John: Then it's all true. God, the Devil, you boys smack in the middle. Now you live in a secret bunker with an angel and Lucifer's kid.
Sam: Yeah, yeah.
John: And you've done this whole time-travel thing before?
Dean: A few times. Actually, uh, our grandfather, your dad -- he's the one that helped us find this place. I think he'd be real happy to know you're finally here.
John: Right, Man of Letters.
Sam: Yeah, we're Legacies...because of you.
John: So you've been busy.
Sam: A little bit.
John: I just wish I'd been there to see it.
Dean: Dad, none of this would have happened without you.
John: It's good. It's fine. I-I went out takin' out Yellow Eyes. I mean, that was the point, right? I mean, get the thing that killed Mom.
John: I screwed up with you a lot, didn't I?
Sam: Nah, it's okay.
John: No, it's not. Sammy, tell me the truth.
Sam: I don't wanna talk about that.
John: You didn't have a problem talking about it before you left.
Sam: Dad for me? That fight that was a lifetime ago. I don't even remember what I said, and -- I mean yeah. You know what? You did some messed-up things. But I don't I mean, when I think about you and I think about you a lot I don't think about our fights. I think about you I think about you on the floor of that hospital. And I think about how I never got to say goodbye.
John: Sam. Son. I am so sorry.
Sam: I'm sorry, too. But you did your best, Dad. You fought for us, and you loved us, and that's enough.
Dean: According to the Internet, you run a law firm and love kale. Wait till you check out your, uh, wannabe TED Talk.
Dean: Well, I mean, I'm still hunting, but you're Internet famous. So, what -- is there two of us running around here?
Sam: No, I don't think so. I think it's a temporal paradox. We pulled Dad here from 2003, right? So time is self-correcting. Our timeline is changing to this new one.
Zachariah: Earth -- where you're always stepping in something. Come on, Constantine.
Castiel: I don't understand that reference.
Zachariah: Yeah, we sensed a -- well, let's call it a disturbance in the Force. And in Heaven, well, we're -- we're not super fond of those.
Zachariah: So, I'm going to ask one more time -- who's been playing Back to the Future? And you're going to tell me, or he -- What's the phrase I'm looking for? He -- oh -- murders you all.
Zachariah: What did you do, Sam? What did you do? Say it. Speak, Ubu, speak.
Dean: Basically, uh, if you don't go back, Sam never gets back into the life, um, and Mom, she, uh...
John: What?
Dean: Well, without everything that we did -- with God, The Darkness -- she never comes back. Sam thinks that she'll just fade away.
John: Okay. I mean, me versus your mom? That's not even a choice.
John: Dean. I, uh -- I never meant for this.
Dean: Dad, we pulled you here.
John: No, son. My fight. It was supposed to end with me, with Yellow Eyes. But now you -- you are a grown man, and I am incredibly proud of you. I guess that I had hoped, eventually, you would get yourself a normal life, a peaceful life, a family.
Dean: I have a family.
John: All right. Near as I can tell, we have two choices. All right, we can think about what's coming. Or we can be grateful for this time that we have together. Now, me I choose grateful. So, to whatever brought us together, we owe you one. Amen.
Sam: See them, at dinner? The way they looked at each other? They just seemed happy. It doesn't feel fair to get all this and then have to throw it away and I know we have to. It just feels like...Once we send Dad back it's like none of this ever happened. He -- He just goes back to -- to to being Dad.
Dean: You saying you wish things would be different?
Sam: Don't you? Can you imagine -- Dad in the past, knowing then what he knows now? I I think it would be nice.
Dean: Yeah. I used to think that, too. But, uh, I mean, look, we've been through some tough times. There's no denying that. And for the longest time, I blamed Dad. I mean, hell, I blamed Mom, too, you know? I was angry. But say we could send Dad back knowing everything. Why stop there? Why not send him even further back and let some other poor sons of bitches save the world? But here's the problem. Who does that make us? Would we be better off? Well, maybe. But I got to be honest -- I don't know who that Dean Winchester is. And I'm good with who I am. I'm good with who you are. 'Cause our lives -- they're ours. And maybe I'm just too damn old to want to change that.
John: My girl. I miss you so damn much.
Mary: Me too.
John: You two. You take care of each other.
Sam: We always do.
Dean: Good to see you, Dad.
John: I am so proud of you boys. I love you both so much.
Dean: I love you, too.
John: Dean. No, I'm okay. I just I just had one hell of a dream. Yeah. No, it was a good one. I'm on my way back. I'll see you soon.
I'll admit that I initially had some issues with this landmark, 300th episode.
At first, I didn't even believe that JDM was returning to the show. How could it happen when the show wasn't ending yet? I'd gotten it built up in my mind that the only time he would ever re-appear was for the show's ultimate finale. So when the Tweets showed up about his return, I was the only doubting Thomas saying I'd believe it when I saw it. Yeah, eventually even I had to believe it.
My other problem with JDM's return was more personal. My dad died in May of 2006 and a mere 4 months later, John died on the show in 2x01 "In My Time Of Dying". I felt his death hard and for months it was if I was mourning along with the boys in our shared loss of fathers. And here they were, all these years later, getting their dad back. It just seemed so unfair. I'll never get to see my dad again and here's my favorite show, throwing that impossibility in my face. It hurt.
Eventually, I saw the episode stills and my feelings softened. By the time I watched the episode I was actually eager for it. I couldn't have imagined that weeks before.
But let's get to the episode review, shall we?
The boys are at a pawn shop...to check out the special merchandise in the back. Turns out they're after a skull that was owned by a fellow hunter who was killed recently. Heh. Dean kills the dude with one shot. "They always talk too much." LOL
Why is there so many different forms of handwriting in that book of the pawn shop guy's supernatural items? Wouldn't it all look the same?
So the boys are known as the Campbell Brothers to the locals in Lebanon. Cute! :)
You know, if the writers of the ep had been smart, they would have switched the names of the 2 local teenage girls: Stacy & Max. 'Cause Stacy says, "Gotta bounce". A line that was uttered often by another Max on Dark Angel. I thought of it right away! If only SPN's Max in this episode had said it. *sigh* So close, writers! Though it is Max who steals the Impala...
Heehee! Sam totally striking out with the postal worker while Dean just pours on the charm and it works!
That John Wayne Gacy spirit was super creepy! And of all the times for Sam's lighter to not work.
So the boys end up telling the 3 kids: Eliot, Stacy, and Max - what they really do and they have to keep it secret.
So how did using the pearl go wrong (right?)??? Dean wants to get Michael out of his head. He seemed to concentrate real hard while holding the pearl. Maybe his mind wanted Michael gone, but his heart wanted John back? It did say the pearl would grant the "heart's desire" or something like that.
Great entrance of JDM here, btw. All the red light and darkness and pointing a shotgun at the boys before the big reveal.
So for John it's 2003. No wonder he thought Sam was supposed to be in Palo Alto.
Mary & John's reunion is so beautiful. And the boys sneaking off with Dean resisting because this is what he's wanted since he was 4 years old. He looked like a star-struck little boy. Awwww, Dean!
So much LOVE for Sam's talk with John. Jared did a beautiful job! I'm so glad Sam finally got some closure and got to say goodbye at last to John. "But you did your best, Dad. You fought for us, and you loved us, and that's enough."
I knew it! You can't mess with time without there being repercussions. This is what Sam worried about. Now he's a kale-eating dude making TED Talk videos and Dean is still a hunter and wanted by the police. Oh, yeah...then we have Zachariah and Castiel! So cool to have Zach back! :)
Heh, so Lebanon causes interference for the angels. The warding of the Bunker perhaps? Or maybe why the Bunker was built there in the first place? All that Zach & Cas know is that someone has been messing with time.
But this is a Cas who has never known the boys so...he's ready to kill, kill, kill. Bad news for the boys!
Dean gets his moment with his dad, too. I've read some fans were a little disappointed he didn't get more of a scene with John, but I think Dean heard what he needed to from John. He told Dean he was proud of him and that he wanted him to have a family. Of course, Dean has a family...one that's beyond blood. ;)
So glad they finally got to enjoy their dinner together, to live in that magical moment, after John's urging. He chose gratefulness and got the rest of them to do the same. There's smiles and laughter and longing looks.
Nice talk with the boys while they're washing the dishes. Sam kind of wishing they didn't have to send John back and Dean being okay with it because if they changed their lives that much they wouldn't be who they are today. At one time, Dean wished things had been different (hello, "What Is And What Should Never Be"), but now..."And I'm good with who I am. I'm good with who you are. 'Cause our lives -- they're ours. And maybe I'm just too damn old to want to change that."
So many tears over this goodbye scene!!!! Wow.
How did they get through this? I hope they didn't have to do too many takes, because I'm sure it was draining on all of them. I really have no words. I broke when John hugged his boys. Their faces! And then Sam crushed the pearl, and did you notice he took a long time to look up and see that John was gone? And poor Dean, looking the whole time, flinching when Sam crushed the pearl, his face looking so lost. And Mary going from holding John's hand to it being empty...heart-crushing.
And that final scene! John waking up in the Impala (old lights & plates, too!), in the rain, answering the phone and talking to Dean...telling him he had "one hell of a dream"! He remembers!!!! Sorta. Nicely done, show.
Final Thoughts:
My initial problems aside, I truly loved this 300th episode. I'm glad the boys (and Mary) got this short time with John. I mean, all of us would want that with our departed loved ones, wouldn't we? If we had a day or an hour or 5 minutes, we would take it. It was great seeing JDM again and he didn't miss a step after all these years. Bravo, SPN!
Quotes:
Eliot: I mean, think about it. Where did they even come from? Them or their weird sidekick with the trench coat. And what about that kid with the dumb Bambi look on his face all the time?
Sam: Dean, listen to this -- uh, hangman's rope, fairy dust, John Wayne Gacy's cigar box.
Dean: So we're talkin', like, 31 Flavors of weird, huh?
Sam: You're not gonna believe this. It's called the Baozhu. It's one of eight ancient Chinese treasures. I-It's a pearl that grants wishes.
Dean: A serial killer clown, I mean this is like the best worst thing that's ever happened to you, because you love serial killers and hate clowns.
Sam: I-I know you need -- or you want some sort of rational explanation for what happened here, but there isn't one. My brother and I, we hunt things. Evil things that shouldn't exist.
Dean: And we are damn good at what we do.
John: So, you saved the world?
Dean: More than once.
John: Then it's all true. God, the Devil, you boys smack in the middle. Now you live in a secret bunker with an angel and Lucifer's kid.
Sam: Yeah, yeah.
John: And you've done this whole time-travel thing before?
Dean: A few times. Actually, uh, our grandfather, your dad -- he's the one that helped us find this place. I think he'd be real happy to know you're finally here.
John: Right, Man of Letters.
Sam: Yeah, we're Legacies...because of you.
John: So you've been busy.
Sam: A little bit.
John: I just wish I'd been there to see it.
Dean: Dad, none of this would have happened without you.
John: It's good. It's fine. I-I went out takin' out Yellow Eyes. I mean, that was the point, right? I mean, get the thing that killed Mom.
John: I screwed up with you a lot, didn't I?
Sam: Nah, it's okay.
John: No, it's not. Sammy, tell me the truth.
Sam: I don't wanna talk about that.
John: You didn't have a problem talking about it before you left.
Sam: Dad for me? That fight that was a lifetime ago. I don't even remember what I said, and -- I mean yeah. You know what? You did some messed-up things. But I don't I mean, when I think about you and I think about you a lot I don't think about our fights. I think about you I think about you on the floor of that hospital. And I think about how I never got to say goodbye.
John: Sam. Son. I am so sorry.
Sam: I'm sorry, too. But you did your best, Dad. You fought for us, and you loved us, and that's enough.
Dean: According to the Internet, you run a law firm and love kale. Wait till you check out your, uh, wannabe TED Talk.
Dean: Well, I mean, I'm still hunting, but you're Internet famous. So, what -- is there two of us running around here?
Sam: No, I don't think so. I think it's a temporal paradox. We pulled Dad here from 2003, right? So time is self-correcting. Our timeline is changing to this new one.
Zachariah: Earth -- where you're always stepping in something. Come on, Constantine.
Castiel: I don't understand that reference.
Zachariah: Yeah, we sensed a -- well, let's call it a disturbance in the Force. And in Heaven, well, we're -- we're not super fond of those.
Zachariah: So, I'm going to ask one more time -- who's been playing Back to the Future? And you're going to tell me, or he -- What's the phrase I'm looking for? He -- oh -- murders you all.
Zachariah: What did you do, Sam? What did you do? Say it. Speak, Ubu, speak.
Dean: Basically, uh, if you don't go back, Sam never gets back into the life, um, and Mom, she, uh...
John: What?
Dean: Well, without everything that we did -- with God, The Darkness -- she never comes back. Sam thinks that she'll just fade away.
John: Okay. I mean, me versus your mom? That's not even a choice.
John: Dean. I, uh -- I never meant for this.
Dean: Dad, we pulled you here.
John: No, son. My fight. It was supposed to end with me, with Yellow Eyes. But now you -- you are a grown man, and I am incredibly proud of you. I guess that I had hoped, eventually, you would get yourself a normal life, a peaceful life, a family.
Dean: I have a family.
John: All right. Near as I can tell, we have two choices. All right, we can think about what's coming. Or we can be grateful for this time that we have together. Now, me I choose grateful. So, to whatever brought us together, we owe you one. Amen.
Sam: See them, at dinner? The way they looked at each other? They just seemed happy. It doesn't feel fair to get all this and then have to throw it away and I know we have to. It just feels like...Once we send Dad back it's like none of this ever happened. He -- He just goes back to -- to to being Dad.
Dean: You saying you wish things would be different?
Sam: Don't you? Can you imagine -- Dad in the past, knowing then what he knows now? I I think it would be nice.
Dean: Yeah. I used to think that, too. But, uh, I mean, look, we've been through some tough times. There's no denying that. And for the longest time, I blamed Dad. I mean, hell, I blamed Mom, too, you know? I was angry. But say we could send Dad back knowing everything. Why stop there? Why not send him even further back and let some other poor sons of bitches save the world? But here's the problem. Who does that make us? Would we be better off? Well, maybe. But I got to be honest -- I don't know who that Dean Winchester is. And I'm good with who I am. I'm good with who you are. 'Cause our lives -- they're ours. And maybe I'm just too damn old to want to change that.
John: My girl. I miss you so damn much.
Mary: Me too.
John: You two. You take care of each other.
Sam: We always do.
Dean: Good to see you, Dad.
John: I am so proud of you boys. I love you both so much.
Dean: I love you, too.
John: Dean. No, I'm okay. I just I just had one hell of a dream. Yeah. No, it was a good one. I'm on my way back. I'll see you soon.