Long Distance Call: A Supernatural Episode Review
You can read my review of the Supernatural episode "Long Distance Call" at pinkraygun.com. Thank you!
An excerpt:
However, Wardrobe needs to realize that Sam is now a strapping tall lad with pecs out to there and shoulders as wide as an axe handle. We’ve seen the pictures. He can pound nails with his neck. He can decapitate a vampire man with a ( Read more... )
An excerpt:
However, Wardrobe needs to realize that Sam is now a strapping tall lad with pecs out to there and shoulders as wide as an axe handle. We’ve seen the pictures. He can pound nails with his neck. He can decapitate a vampire man with a ( Read more... )
i just tried to comment but it doesn't look as if it took it? maybe it was too long - i see now i have to put it in 2 comment windows here at LJ!! anyway, i didn't even finish but here is what i had so far (under my susannaheanes username). take it or leave it!
love, s.
comments as i read thru:
1. i think the hands-in-pockets thing is becuz they want to punch something. to me it showed tension and angst and omg wtf amigonnadonao? punching didn't actually make sense, and also - if they started hitting something the tension was so high they might not stop.
in conclusion: hands-in-pockets worked for me. i'm just sayin'.
2. Dean does research on the laptop while Sam lounges... umm, yeah. this episode was all about role reversal. also, Sam is pretty sure this is NOT the gig he wants to be investigating, and he's resentful and recalcitrant. ok, he's pouty. but it looks good on him, so yeah.
3. The room does not contain the usual disarray that I’m used to seeing. Budget cuts for props, maybe? I believe metaphorically this is supposed to show at this point, they're running out of time, running on empty, living stripped down lives. I know when I am in a hurry and thinking about everything except the necessities, I'm just as likely to leave my purse, current projects, and even my shoes in the car and go out and get them later when I need them, IF I even have time to attend to them. It would not be unlikely, since the boys have so little anyway, I can see them leaving everything except maybe a change of underwear in the car. Also, maybe do not need to prep or clean guns or equipment from the last hunt (already done? didn't use?). Anyway, it didn't appear off to me until you mentioned it, but I re-watched a few scenes and this is the impression I got: stripped down, desperate, at a loss for what to do, running on empty, running out of time.
4. Maybe Sam’s reticence to believe comes out of the fact that he’s all out of hope and can barely breathe in and out. At any rate, he can’t take it and goes off to help the chick. Dean is furious. And hurt. The woefully sad piano chords build while Dean goes and sits in a chair to try and push the hurt back inside.
My, my. You really DIDN'T like this episode, did you? LOL. But consider: Don't you think Sam is hurting, too? It is apparent that he has no idea how to help Dean, and he's nursing the fact that yet again, Dean has kept something significant from him: Ruby ain't helping, she lied, and he doesn't have a back-up plan. He's devastated. The fact that he goes off to help Lainie instead to me is analogous to what some of us do every day: nose to the grindstone, we go to work and do what little good we know how to do, in spite of the fact that we know the world is going to hell in a hand-basket. But we shoulder on, and sometimes we eventually look up and the answer is there. Sam is hoping for something to drop into his brain, or out of the sky, and otherwise, is marking time doing what he believes he CAN do: help a civilian.
5. Sam would never never, never, EVER leave Dean. He did, though, in 3.09. Remember? It was to go do what he thought he knew how to do, what he believed would work in that instance. He's lost. He believes he can do his brother absolutely no good. Has no idea what use he is to his brother anymore. People who feel that way DO tend to slink off & angst or bury themselves in something that can make them forget for awhile: for Sam, it's work and drink. For Dean, it's sex, work, and drink. Dean's done it. Sam's doing it now. See? Complete role reversal. Show is telling us this in a MAJOR way. Stay tuned....
(cont'd below)
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6. Sam figures out what the MOW is from a single phrase (and all the other little details stacked up behind it). Well, either this is a plot hole, which I’d hate to think, or it’s just Sam. He must have a catalog of monsters in his head, and the catchphrase “come to me” triggers something off and the file drawer opens and bing, out comes the information.
Jared fangirled Sam all to pieces at EyeCon for remembering this snippet of information that supposedly was in John's journal. Jared said, "The thing I love most about Sam is his analytical mind. He can put together pieces of information from months, even years back." And then he named that as one example of an instance where Sam does that, and he also referenced Sam's ability to memorize extensive passages in Latin. We saw that in Jus in Bello. Therefore, I assume we're only going to see more of Sam's Extremely Ginormous Brain Wowing Us All With It's Encyclopedia of Weirdness. The End.
7. [Sam is] watching and adding what he’s learning to the database in his head. See? You noticed it too (see #7).
And now I'm outa time & not finished but work calls. I'll come back & see what you think of all this silliness I've just spouted.
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Yeah, Sam's got a ginormous brain, and that's a fact. I don't really have a problem with him knowing what a crocotta is, because it is something he would know. I think that I was still complaining that random chick let him in the house when in real life she should know better in the same paragraph as the comment about him knowing stuff, and the two comments got mixed up. I should have been more clear. Sam is the smartest thing on the planet and I love him for it! He would beat all our asses in Trivial persuit!!!
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I could buy your theory if I had actually felt there was some underlying aggression that the boys were feeling. Even with that agreesion, it doesn't make sense that they do it in almost every scene. I mean, they even do it at the museum, and what's there to feel aggressive about there? If they were cold and had to put their hands in their pockets, then the dialog should indicate it. Just didn't work for me, I guess.
2. Dean does research on the laptop while Sam lounges... umm, yeah. this episode was all about role reversal. also, Sam is pretty sure this is NOT the gig he wants to be investigating, and he's resentful and recalcitrant. ok, he's pouty. but it looks good on him, so yeah.
If this is the gig Sam is pretty sure they should not be investigating, then why oh why does he suddenly decide to go help random chick? If, if, if when he finally decides to take the job, then maybe I could see him doing it full out - but only if Dean wasn't in danger. I like Sam lolling on the bed, oh, I do, I really do. Still, his fingers must have been itching to get at the computer.
3. The room does not contain the usual disarray that I'm used to seeing. Budget cuts for props, maybe? I believe metaphorically this is supposed to show at this point, they're running out of time, running on empty, living stripped down lives.
Now this I could buy. I think if I hadn't been in such a lousy mood, I could have seen this more clearly, so thank you for pointing it out. When you're under a deadline, you sometimes leave your stuff in the car in readiness for the next day. Yeah. I can buy this. (Still doesn't explain why there is almost nothing in the trunk of the Impala, but you're right.)
4. Maybe Sam's reticence to believe comes out of the fact that he's all out of hope and can barely breathe in and out. At any rate, he can't take it and goes off to help the chick. Dean is furious. And hurt. The woefully sad piano chords build while Dean goes and sits in a chair to try and push the hurt back inside.
...But we shoulder on, and sometimes we eventually look up and the answer is there. Sam is hoping for something to drop into his brain, or out of the sky, and otherwise, is marking time doing what he believes he CAN do: help a civilian.
Mmmmm, yes. Sam is hurting, so he's keeping busy, trying to do something else rather than sit and brood.
He's soldiering on...I guess I wanted to see this expressed somewhere, in Sam's eyes, or something he says, even to himself. But I gots nothing from Show.
5. Sam would never never, never, EVER leave Dean. He did, though, in 3.09. Remember? It was to go do what he thought he knew how to do, what he believed would work in that instance. He's lost. He believes he can do his brother absolutely no good. Has no idea what use he is to his brother anymore. People who feel that way DO tend to slink off & angst or bury themselves in something that can make them forget for awhile: for Sam, it's work and drink. For Dean, it's sex, work, and drink. Dean's done it. Sam's doing it now. See? Complete role reversal. Show is telling us this in a MAJOR way. Stay tuned....
I can't put it off to a role reversal. I know several people think that's what's going on here, but I just can't see it. Role reversal means, to me, that Sam would go all out hunting and killing and that Dean would sit and brood and do research. Well, I guess, that's what they do, because Sam kills the MOW while Dean is back at the motel. Still, it felt off kilter to me because they weren't their normal selves even in flip mode. And if Sam goes off because he doesn't feel he can help his brother (I like your reference here to 3.09) then Show should have indicated this. If Show was trying something fancy, it failed because it failed to communicate it to the audience.
(P.S. I love all of your insights!!!!!)
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but seriously - you can flat out blame jeremy carver if you want. i think he SUCKS as a writer, even if he does manage to get in a few kind of neat details every now and then. i read alot into the characters that may not even be there, and it is possible i even read too much because i was eyeball deep finishing up writing Communion, which is where Sam Saves Dean From the Pit of Hell Through Sex. 'cuz you know, that is totally what NEEDS to happen, but it's television, so it won't. Sigh.
Maybe we put this episode down to "Gee, what was really happening they totally couldn't show onscreen." Better yet, WE NEEDS AN ACRONYM for this phenomenon. Howsabout
OSS - OFF SCREEN SEX or
SOS - SEXXING OFF SCREEN or
ASS - ANGST SOLVED (BY) SEXX
These were just the initial ones that occurred to me. I obviously need to stop and have lunch, brain cells misfiring. LOLZ
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Normally, yeah, like you, I'd be giving Show the benefit of the doubt, and I normally do, right? I'll say something like, "Well, that doesn't make sense but I'll let it go on account of Sam and/or Dean is so freaking Awesome and Beautiful!!!" But this time, I couldn't do it. I just couldn't let it go unremarked upon. My bad mood, a pinched nerve, and some awfully sloppy work on Show's part all combine into my review this week.
As to Mr. Carver...let's see what I can say that's incredibly diplomatic and pointed at the same time without pulling the temple walls down on top of my head. I don't normally pay attention to which writer wrote what or which director directed what with one exception and that is the ep "Heart." Still my all time top fave, on account of the tremendous impact it had on the boys and on me, and I thank Kim Manners from the bottom of my heart forever and for all eternity. Otherwise, I can't recognize anyone's stamp on a particular ep, though I fancy I can recognize a Kripke-written ep a mile off, because there's always such power in them.
So let's just say Carver writes a good ep, a decent ep, which I believe he can and he has. It could still be ruined by a myriad of things, such as bad direction, or even the boys being off their stride that week. Conversely, a badly written ep can be saved by good direction and by the boys rising to the occasion and putting in the missing texture that has come to represent the typical excellence of this show.
But, When I saw the little bits from Buddy TV, where they filmed the J's backstage practicing an argument from this ep, I thought, wow, do they always run through their lines like this? Without any feeling behind it? I'm not an actor, so I don't know how it's done, or if this is their usual method. Certainly getting the lines right is important, but I had the funny feeling that the run-through lines had the same emotional impact as the lines did when they were filmed. That's what hit me, the sense this week that they were just getting the job done, basically phoning it in. Maybe that swayed me in my review, I can't be certain.
On the other hand, yeah, the boys work HARD, they work long hours, and they are brilliant at bringing Sam and Dean to life. My word, how my life would be so different without Show, and how much I adore it - so to actually say something critical this week just about KILLED me. My fingernails are gone and there is no more ice cream in the house. Had this ep appeared earlier in the season? Or had it appeared when I was not in a bad mood? Or even, if I were to see this ep this summer, without being under duress, or with the expectation of a clever review? I'll wager I might (MIGHT) be singing a different tune, but I doubt it. Given the story arc, it's a little late in the game for the lack of emotion and angst we got.
Yeah, the acronyms are HIL-arious!!! I'm always making stuff up that happens off screen, I know I'm not alone in this! But when I have to make stuff up for the ENTIRE ep to explain everything? Wow. Not good.
Good luck with Communion! Are you doing it for the big bang?
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Which brings to mind two things: 1) it's amazing how many times different sources in fandom dovetail and come to the same, complimentary, or dovetailed conclusions and how we feed so directly off of one another and back into Show and 2) The writer's strike is to blame for alot of missing episodes, missing scenes, and like you and runedgirl point out above, a lot is missing overall, even within what we DO get. HAY. FANDOM WILL FILL IN THE MISSING BITS, yo. That is OUR job as a part of the Supernatural Family. I love how Jared welcomed fanfic into the "Family" with open arms at EyeCon. And he's right: we are a necessary and vital part of what keeps the show going.
I'm always making stuff up that happens off screen, I know I'm not alone in this! But when I have to make stuff up for the ENTIRE ep to explain everything? Wow. Not good.
Back to your response just now - I agree with just about everything you say there. I think the boys *are* tired, but yes, running lines means just that: running them. Making sure you have all the words down, not the inflection and angst (altho' I thought it was great that Jensen flings out his hands in frustration at one point just like Dean will when they film). I know only a smattering about acting, enough to get me in trouble. I was in theatre for years as a dancer, a stage hand (at times I worked lights AND sound, lmao), and a costumer. Rarely as an actor. But yeah, that's all they were supposed to be doing.
But (if you'll permit me to say something I've said over and over at susannaheanes): unlike you, I don't believe for a minute Kripke will save them. I do not credit Kripke with being God, I think if it weren't for Robert Singer and J2 and Sera and Kim and the others who pull together to make the incredible piece of art that is Show every week, all Kripke could give us was a pretty damn good idea initially for show, a skeletal sort of framework for where it needs to end up, but without them, in the end it would be just like Boogeyman. I mean, come on. One of the WORST episodes (to me) came from Kripke's pen (Mag7), although he did better with earlier epi's Shadow, Devil's Trap, and IMTOD. But I've always said that Supernatural is a beautiful piece of collaborative art, and while he may be driving the bus & providing the impetus, I don't trust him for a second not to fuck it all up at some point. MY trust is in Jensen, Jared, Robert, Kim, and Sera, and all the other hard-working crew. Together hopefully THEY will keep it going the way it should go. Thank God Kripke DOES apparently listen, and will continue to do so (LMAO GOOD-BYE BELA).
I mean, you see my icon. If I could get it tattoo'd on my soul, and there it would be. But that would embarrass him no end, so I won't. But I think about it.
*huggles you*
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RE: Fanfic: Well I've always thought fanfic was part of the whole, and I don't mind thinking or feeling that I've got to fill in the blanks on my own. Or grab some amazing fanfic to do that for me. It just seems excessive to have to dig SO hard for it this time around. It felt like there was nothing I could hang my hat on, nothing to get me started. No "prompts" as it were to point me in the right direction. Normally show has plenty of prompts and texture and little easter egg-type treats spread about, so I fully anticipate that next week's ep will satisfy me much better in this regard.
Re acting/running lines: I can see that, truly. I enjoyed seeing that bit of them behind the scenes, and I realize that running through is not the same as being "on" when you are filming. Maybe it would have been better if I'd not seen them, though I don't think my opinion would have changed all that much.
Re Who Will Save the boys: I don't pay attention to who does what, but if I had, I'd be willing to bet that you are right. Kripke set the path, but it's the team who gets the wagon there. Or the bus, if you prefer. : D
I just usually think of Kripke when I think of the heart of Supernatural, though normally in my reviews I just refer to Show - it's almost as if I knew that Kripke wasn't soley responsible for everything that we see.
RE icon: I love your icon and have admired it for some time. When I see it, there's a song with those exact same lyrics that jumps into my head! Plus it's So true, because after He made Jensen, he broke the mold.
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the team who gets the wagon there
i like that way of putting it! more along my luddite mindset.
HAY. I hope you are feeling better. I just now read back thru enough to realize that you weren't feeling so well. And you know, that really sucks if a show doesn't come off and you're already feeling out of kilter... just makes it worse! But I hope in my heart of hearts that we'll get at least something of what we were meant to get out of 3.15 and 3.16. I think the writers' strike really did hurt the show because of compressing so much into so little time. I was talking to blacklid and she said while she was looking at screencaps there is one with dates on it - when the phone company techie dude in the basement is looking up all the calls made from the antique phone number. And the last call was made APRIL 24, 2008.
THAT'S JUST OVER ONE WEEK BEFORE DEAN'S DEAL IS DUE ON MAY 2nd. HOMG.
In light of THAT, it either makes More or Less sense for Dean & Sam to have been so out of kilter in 3.14.
erm... I'm going to the freezer. I'm pretty certain there is some Dutch Chocolate Cookie Double Fudge left in the carton... just as soon as I can get my thumb out of my mouth.
*shudders*
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Oh man WHAT a catch. That blacklid, she is smart. I saw that exact same date and didn't make a thing of it. Question then, how are we all sure that May 2 is the date that Sam came back from the dead? What is the reference, do you know?
I thank you for your kind sympathy. The doctors have been of no help. They've got many suggestions but no answers. Ah well. I'm going to keep trying.
Yes, if the boys are out of kilter, I would like for Show to have acknowledged that. Like, if one of the boys had said something like, "YOu're being a real jerk lately," or "I can't take it anymore," or something. You know? Just so we don't have to guess like this.
I am picking up Haagen Dazz butter pecan on the way home. I deserve it! And so do you!
:::humming:::
When He rolls up His sleeves
He ain't just putting on the ritz
There's thunder in His footsteps
And lightning in His fists
The Lord wasn't joking
When He kicked 'em out of Eden
It wasn't for no reason
That He shed His blood
His return is very close
And so you better be believing that
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
And when the sky was starless
In the void of the night
(God is an awesome God)
He spoke into the darkness
And created the light
(God is an awesome God)
Judgement and wrath He poured out on Sodom
Mercy and grace He gave us at the cross
I hope that we have not
Too quickly forgotten that
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God (Our God is an awesome God)
He reigns from heaven above
With wisdom, power, and love
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God (Our God is an awesome God)
He reigns from heaven above (He reigns)
With wisdom, power, and love (With wisdom and power)
God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
Our God is an awesome God
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you wrote the words - hee. *blushes*
Luddites \0/ Take it easy & put your feet up & enjoy that nice bowl of goodness, k?
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Butter Pecan, baby, here I come!!!
And thank you for the lovely discussion today! It was a whole lot nicer than working on work!
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you're welcome and thank you, too!
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