SPN: Scenes I Love . . .
Supernatural, Season 1
Episode 15, “The Benders”
Written by John Shiban
Directed by Peter Ellis.
Here is another offering from the writer who brought us “Skin”, “Scarecrow” and “Dead Man’s Blood”, among others, so that’s a promising start. Like “Skin”, “The Benders” explores dark themes exposing the worst depths of human nature, in an episode inspired by the real-life Benders, a 19th-century family group credited with being “America's First Serial Killer Family”. Based in Cherryvale, Kansas, the group were believed to be responsible for at least 12 and up to 20 brutal killings in the 1870s. The spree ended when brothers of one of the victims came looking for him. The Benders disappeared before they could be apprehended, but when their home was searched several bodies with smashed skulls were discovered buried in the basement of their home. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/53672/bloody-benders-americas-first-serial-killers
It's a notable coincidence that the gruesome family shared a couple of commonalities with The Winchesters: not just the Kansas setting but, also, the head of the family (aka “Pa” Bender) was named John. Shiban’s story similarly involves the search for a missing brother, but it also takes the opportunity to draw intriguing and disturbing parallels between his Bender characters and the Winchester family dynamic.
Additionally, both the Supernatural Then and Now podcast and the Supernatural Wiki webpage have noted that the episode shares common themes with The X-Files, “Home”, a story that “features a secluded family [with] a long tradition of inbreeding, and violence toward anyone who comes close to its members. Both episodes play on the same themes: a strong (and perverted) sense of family and a vision of horror that isn't brought by demons or creatures, but humans. It is often said to be the scariest and most disturbing X-Files episode.” http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/1.15_The_Benders
It happens that “Home” was directed by our very own Kim Manners, and Shiban was a story editor for the episode, so we can be sure that the parallels are no coincidence.
The episode opens with a young boy hearing a strange noise (that he will later describe as a whining growl) while watching a scary movie, and he looks out the window to witness a man being snatched and dragged under a car. After the title card, we find Sam and Dean pretexting as state police to interview the boy. On discovering the kid (Evan) was watching Godzilla Vs. Mothra Dean becomes distracted:
DEAN: (excitedly) That’s my favorite Godzilla movie. It’s so much better than the original, huh?
EVAN: Totally.
DEAN: Yeah. (He nods towards SAM.) He likes the remake.
EVAN: Yuck! (SAM glares at DEAN and clears his throat. DEAN stops.)
http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/1.15_The_Benders_(transcript)
It’s a cute brother moment that supplies some light-hearted humour before the plot starts to turn grim.
The action cuts to a bar and we find Sam in full research mode:
SAM: So, local police have not ruled out foul play. Apparently, there were signs of a struggle.
DEAN: Well, they could be right, it could just be a kidnapping. Maybe this isn’t our kind of gig.
SAM: Yeah, maybe not. Except for this-Dad marked the area, Dean.
Earlier in the season, that would have been good enough for Dean. In “Asylum”, for example, he treats a reference in the journal to Roosevelt Asylum as akin to an order from John. But much has changed since then. At the conclusion of “Scarecrow”, Sam declared his intent to fully commit to hunting with his brother, while the events of “Faith” shook Dean’s faith in his father. Now Sam is the one citing the authority of the journal, whilst Dean is the one expressing scepticism: “Why would he even do that?” he asks, to which Sam responds “Well, he found a lot of local folklore about a dark figure that comes out at night. Grabs people, then vanishes. He found this too-this county has more missing persons per capita than anywhere else in the state.” Dean concedes that’s weird, still he continues to question:
DEAN: Don’t phantom attackers usually snatch people from their beds? Jenkins was taken from a parking lot.
SAM: Well, there are all kinds. You know, Spring Heeled Jacks, phantom gassers. They take people anywhere, anytime. Look, Dean, I don’t know if this is our kind of gig either.
DEAN: Yeah, you’re right, we should ask around more tomorrow.
http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/1.15_The_Benders_(transcript)
At this point, Sam is ready to pack up and leave so they can get an early start the next day, but Dean is less enthusiastic:
The whole exchange is more than a simple exposition about the case; it subtly demonstrates that there has been a reversal in the brothers’ dynamic. Now Sam is clearly the one driving the hunting, while we see the first hints of the weariness with the job that Dean finally admits to in season two “Croatoan”. It’s another fine example of tight writing that makes good use of a stock expositional scene to push the characters’ story along.
On Sam’s insistence, Dean reluctantly agrees to leave the bar, but he visits the men’s room first while Sam goes out to the car alone. Big mistake. By the time Dean emerges from the bar, Sam has become another of the county’s missing persons.
TBC
.
Please follow the "episode rewatch" tag to be notified when new reviews are posted.
.