Episode Prompt and Discussion 8x10

[bowtrunckle]

The hiatus is OVER!

If you have a meta about the visuals in the episode, you're more than welcome to post it under "The Visual Story" posts. The episode discussions are not limited to thinky thoughts, but are intended to celebrate all visual aspects of SPN, thought provoking and/or squee worthy.

Comments

[bowtrunckle]

So Singer was the director this episode and, as expected, we got some very Singer-esque shots. In particular, the sequence of Castiel cowering in Crowley’s torture warehouse as he was having flashbacks of Naomi probing his brain with a strangely phallic looking drill (ewww). More than most of the regular SPN directors, Singer favors dollys (especially slow ones during emotional reveals) and zooms (to inject drama) as well as centered medium to close-up shots. If you’re interested in more detailed directoral-style blabber, in particular Singer's (and Manners', Scgricca's, Rohl's, Edlund's), go here.

Here's the scene from 0:00 to 0:58 in the embedded video.

The signature Singer style starts with Castiel walking backwards toward the wall and sinking to a sitting position alone in the middle of the frame as the camera dollys in and then zooms in closer, following him to the floor (screencaps 1 and 2). Between action shots of Sam and Dean trying to break down the door to Crowley’s torture chamber, Cas’s flashbacks, and Crowley yelling at the brained angel, the camera zooms in for a close-up of Cas’s freaked-out face (screencap 3). Finally, the sequence is capped by a fast zoom from a medium close-up to a close-up shot of Crowley’s face between his lines, “Holy Mother of sin … [FAST ZOOM] ... there’s an angel tablet.” The zoom is an interesting choice, being that it’s stands out like a visual exclamation mark and was timed with the beats in the script to exploit this reveal like nobody’s business. But it nicely shows how the director must coordinate the camera and the dialogue in order to highlight important plot points.



Screencap 1.



Screencap 2.



Screencap 3. It looks like there’s some distortion of Cas’s face in this close-up as if a wider-angle lens was being used, which lends visually to the idea that Cas’s reality is distorted, his perceptions bent and not everything is as it once appeared.

[hugemind]

It's kind of interesting that there is a slow zoom on Samandriel and then also on the bow-tie!demon just before the cheesy fast zoom. Maybe there were time constraints or Singer wanted to mix it up a little. But that LOL-zy zoom is a good example of something that evoked a different feeling in me than what it was probably supposed to. Another one is the music in the end: sad and gloomy and it totally conflicted with my "YAY, boys together again" feels.

[bowtrunckle]

But that LOL-zy zoom is a good example of something that evoked a different feeling in me than what it was probably supposed to.

Me, too. XD

And did you catch that the Viggo a.k.a. bow-tie!demon was also Evan Hudson from "Crossroad Blues" (2x08)? It's funny how more and more actors from previous seasons are getting recycled (and how they almost don't look like they've aged except for Missy Bender/Dean's half-Amazonian daughter). I guess the Canadian actors' pool is only so deep. ;)

[hugemind]

did you catch that the Viggo a.k.a. bow-tie!demon was also Evan Hudson from "Crossroad Blues" (2x08)?

Whuh. I totally missed that! They've been doing a lot of actor recycling this season. Maybe they're counting on us not remembering guest stars from, like, five seasons ago. :)