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llywelaNot quite as coherent as I'd like, thanks to my upstairs neighbour robbing me of so much sleep this weekend. But still, here's the precis.
Let's start with the basics. I like to be amused. This episode amused me enormously, as well as touching me in all the right places. Job done. Marvellous.
Sam: "I hate this plan, Dean."
Dean: "Yeah, I got that the first ten times I heard it."
So, Dean and Sam conduct a little random B&E purely in order to get themselves arrested, and GLORY BE TO HEAVEN ABOVE! They are wearing GLOVES! Hallelujah and about time...
...of course, it figures they'd only resort to gloves the one time they actually want to get caught!
Henrickson: "You think you're funny."
Dean: "I think I'm adorable."
Ah, so true – and the delivery is what makes that line so perfect.
Dean always reacts to authority figures the same way: he throws his defences up as high and as wide as they'll go, armour-plated. But Henrickson's arrival rattles him, and it shows, and props as usual to JA for his wonderfully subtle acting, combining how shaken Dean is at the Feds getting there so quickly with his usual bright, brittle cockiness in the face of authority, having to rapidly restrategise to allow for this new and unwelcome development, and trying not to let that show.
Henrickson: "Oh yeah, keep that game face on. Try and cover up how cornered you are."
Why do the writers keep feeling so obliged to have their guest characters spell Dean's defence mechanism out for us? We get it! Really, we do.
Henrickson mentions that, after Milwaukee, Dean's brother is now a suspect in a murder case himself. Now, he could mean that Sam is implicated in the Milwaukee bank deaths along with Dean – although there were two deaths for Sam to be implicated in there, not just one, and there's no reason to connect Sam in particular with either one, especially as we are told that both are being pinned on Dean. Or it could be a reference to the events of either Born Under a Bad Sign or Heart, take your pick. It's kinda vague. If the latter, it means the brothers didn't get away quite as cleanly as they might have hoped. Sam is beginning to build himself up quite the rap sheet too now – so much for ever being able to return to law school, should he want to some day.
Henrickson's double act with his partner is really lame. 'Nuff said.
I find myself wanting to see Henrickson interviewing Sam now. Those two have never interacted, and Henrickson seems so sure he's got Dean all figured out, it'd be interesting to see what he makes of Sam, whose game face is so very different. Would he reach the same conclusions as the cops in Baltimore and interpret Sam as the corrupted innocent, try to get him to turn on his brother with judicious application of both pressure and incentives? Or would he consider Sam as much of a lost cause as Dean and take a harder line?
I love all the non-verbal, eye contact style communication we get from the boys, like when they first meet with their lawyer, Mara Daniels, and quickly check with her that they are actually being sent to Green River Detention Centre. Getting into that particular institution was the entire point of this insane little exercise, so it kind of matters to them that after all this they do actually get sent there, although of course they can't say so in front of her. Confirmation from Mara is followed up by a quick moment of silent communication between the boys: confirmation of their destination also confirms that the job they are trying to work is definitely on, and that they are pretty much committed to it now. And then again when they realise how tight of a timescale they are going to be operating under – having to get the job done and themselves out of jail before they can be extradited to face more serious charges elsewhere.
This legal dilemma isn't going anywhere any time soon, and I really appreciate the repeated recurrence of this problem. It adds so much realism to the world Dean and Sam inhabit. And that Sam is so nervous about putting themselves into this situation deliberately, it being as precarious and unpredictable as it is, is entirely understandable.
Dean: "Don't worry, Sam. I promise I won't trade you for smokes."
Once they arrive at the jail, Dean's got his game face more or less permanently in place; he needs it to get the job done. That smartass attitude is his shield, and he uses it to get done whatever needs to be done to finish the job, presenting it to Sam, as well as the outside world. If the idea of deliberately getting sent to jail is freaking him out at all, he doesn't want anyone, but anyone, to know about it – can't afford to show any sign of weakness in there – including Sam, because Sam's already freaking out in his own right about it, and this was Dean's plan, so he has to hold it together for both their sakes. It's like high stakes poker – can't let anything show.
Sam: "Dean, this is, without a doubt, the dumbest, craziest thing we've ever done. And that's in a long sordid career of dumb and crazy."
Sam, on the other hand, really, really doesn't want to be doing this, and he lets it show, pretty much all the time. His expressions throughout are priceless - in particular when he meets his roommate, and for what has to be one of the few times in his life is confronted by someone even bigger than he is!
Dean: "Just 'cause these people are in jail doesn't mean they deserve to die. And if we don't stop this thing, people are going to continue to die. We do the job wherever it takes us."
I really like Dean's fervour, kinda like in the good old days of season one when the prospect of saving a life, any life, was what kept him motivated. I also like that his devil-may-care attitude slips a little there, allowing Sam and us a glimpse of what lies beneath. It feels like a really, really long time since we saw Dean initiate a hunt, at least when it wasn't about chasing after Sam. Actually, it feels like kind of a long time since we were told which of the boys initiated their latest hunt, apart from last week's, of course, in which it was made clear that the destination was Dean's idea and that finding a job once they got there was Sam's.
Sam: "Look, Dean, be straight with me, all right? You're doing this for Deacon…we barely even know the guy."
Deacon, apparently, is an old army buddy of John's. "We know he saved Dad's life, we know we owe him," Dean insists. All of which kinda begs the questions of how exactly this Deacon managed to get in touch with them, and how he knows about the ghost-hunting thing. But when the background is as vague as this, it hints at a richer history than we are being told, peripheral to the story as it is. And it's nice to hear of another old contact of John.
Sam wonders if maybe Deacon is asking a little much, but Dean firmly tells him it doesn't matter. "We may not be saints, but we're loyal. And we pay our debts. Now that means something to me, and it ought to for you. I'm not thrilled about this either, man, but Deacon asked us to hunt this thing down and that's exactly what we're going to do."
And this is how the job came about, and it makes sense – going into jail, given their circumstances and how long they've been on the run from the Feds, is a ridiculous enough notion that there would have to be a really good reason for it, over and above the concept of saving criminal lives. That it is a favour owed on John's behalf to an old friend of his proves strong motivation, especially for Dean, who has so completely absorbed John's old army principles and ideals. However angry he was with his father earlier in the season, he's come to terms with his death sufficiently that he needs to do this for him now, to pay off that debt. It's all about loyalty, duty and obligation.
Canteen. Sam regards a forkful of spaghetti with deep suspicion. From the colour and texture as it comes across on screen, he has my deepest sympathy. He leans forward to sniff the offending portion as cautiously as if he suspects it may be poisoned, and then lets it drop back onto the plate with a sniff of disgust. Sam clearly likes his food to be, y'know, food. Dean's not so fussy, and, as we have seen on so many occasions, will eat just about anything put in front of him, especially if he doesn't have to pay for it.
I really love the different attitudes they have toward food. I also love that Sam consistently looks kinda shell-shocked about the fact that he ever let Dean talk him into doing something as crazy as this. Dean gives every impression of being completely comfortable with being in jail, regarding it as a new and interesting experience and never doubting for a second that they can get themselves back out again. Sam, in contrast, never seems all that far from the beginnings of panic over the prospect that they just might not.
Sam: "Sure it's him?"
Dean: "Pretty sure."
Sam: "Dean. Considering our circumstances, I'm gonna need a little bit better than 'pretty sure'."
Dean: "Really pretty sure."
All the case exposition over lunch is necessary, I know, to bring the audience up to speed – but it's also the kind of detail they'd have gone over with a find toothcomb before ever getting themselves arrested, and so really shouldn't need to discuss again now…
Ahem. Anyway. The exposition gives the audience what we need to know. And then Sam manages to not look where he's going and walk right into some giant slab of muscle, which isn't the brightest thing he's ever done. I love the guy, Lucas, that he runs into, just because, whoa, he's got such amazingly manic, crazy eyes! Sam's all about trying to brush it off and make a fast getaway, but Dean is immediately back at his side, with no intention of backing down. Dean does have that obsessive need to protect Sam all the time, whether he actually needs protecting or not, and it kind of is his fault that Sam's here in the first place, what with the jail infiltration being Dean's idea and all. It is just totally in character that Sam would want to keep his head down and avoid drawing anyone's attention to himself, while Dean feels obliged to act tough and try gain respect. He just can't stop himself rubbing people up the wrong way.
I really appreciate the detail that once fighting ensues, Dean at first only fights defensively, trying to pin the other guy down and persuade him to give it up. It's only when that fails that he switches to offensive tactics, and puts the guy down almost immediately.
I also appreciate that unless you're really paying attention and have a suspicious mind, it's completely possible to be totally sucked in by the head guard having it in for Dean – this is Deacon himself, making a show of disliking this troublesome new inmate, the better to cover their tracks later. Deacon puts on a good show of being mean and tough, and Dean puts on a good show of being apprehensive, and Sam doesn't need to put on a good show, because he really, really doesn't want to be there and he's been letting that show right from the start!
Solitary confinement. Dean and Lucas languish in cells opposite one another. But hey, if they can see and speak to one another, it doesn't really count as 'solitary', does it? Dean sits on the floor of his cell, back against the wall, all quiet and contemplative. For the most part in recent episodes, all his customary defence mechanisms that he was struggling to maintain earlier in the season seem to have been well and truly shored up now, his emotional armour rebuilt and firmly back in place. Most of the time. But when he's alone like this, you can still catch a hint of that I can't do this any more the crossroads demon accused him of in his eyes, and I really like the subtlety of moments like this – it's what Hollywood Babylon was sorely lacking, with so much plot movement and so many extraneous guest character scenes to accommodate.
Dean isn't all that good at alone, so the silence doesn't last long, and that's another character detail that I really appreciate, that having got into a fight with this guy, he'd then try to strike up a conversation with him, no hard feelings, rather than sit there in silence. And he's really rocking the orange boiler suit look, it has to be said - it's all about the arms! When ghostly activity strikes up, his professional instincts fire into action immediately – but there's just no way he can save the other guy, what with being confined this like. That's the downside of this plan – being locked up really restricts your movements in terms of lifesaving. Also, it's probably just as well the ghost didn't attack Dean himself on this occasion, as he had absolutely nothing at hand to defend himself with.
The contrast of Henrickson and the lawyer, Mara, is pretty well done, although Henrickson's pettiness in dealing with her does lose him a few points. Understandable, though, as his search for those elusive Winchester boys has clearly been driving him a little bit nuts. It makes for an excellent contrast, though, his narrow-minded, black-and-white opinion versus her more open-minded approach, based on the same evidence.
I especially like hearing that both Detective Diana in Baltimore and eyewitness Sherri in Milwaukee have made statements in defence of the boys – Sherri especially, as for the longest time she believed the worst of them, and once she saw her shapeshifter double there was hardly enough time for a full explanation, so she's clearly been putting pieces together for herself since then, or at least trying to. Henrickson simply dismisses her as nuts, though, and there's a smidge of insight there into what happens to these people after the lifesaving has taken place and the boys have moved on – interrogation and disbelief. You either tell the truth as you saw it and have them all call you insane, or you keep it to yourself and have them think you're being uncooperative. Can't win.
Randall: "Why are you inside, kid?"
Sam: "'Cause I got an idiot for a brother."
Randall: "That'll do it."
When Sam strikes up conversation with Randall, who turns out to be a valuable witness, it's an excellent scene simply because when Sam first tries to talk to him, he has no clue that the man could be of any use at all to the investigation; he's just making conversation, because he's Sam. And then when he does realise who he's talking to, he slides so effortlessly into interview mode, all perky, bright-eyed innocence wanting to listen to the story. It's so much fun, especially as he spends just about the entire episode other than this being so very exasperated.
Dean: "It's like picking low-hanging fruit."
Sam: "You don't even smoke."
Dean: "Are you kidding me? This is the currency of the realm."
So many times we've been told of Dean's prowess at hustling, both poker and pool, so it's fab to catch even a glimpse of him in action. This is two episodes in a row where the brothers have had to interact with large numbers of people in an enclosed and structured environment in order to work a job – normally they keep a very low profile while working, living quietly out of crappy motels and only interacting with the very few people who relate directly to that case. It's interesting to see them pushed out of that comfort zone. Both times Dean has very quickly found his own level and established himself as just another one of the guys, needing to do so in order to build up contacts and 'currency', in contrast to Sam very much holding himself aloof.
Dean: "Flickering lights, clock stopped, cold spots – he did everything but yell boo."
Sam: "Well, what happened?"
Dean: "He walked right by me. Lucas wasn't so lucky; I mean the way he was screaming… Guy was a jerk, but he didn't deserve to go like that."
And just like that the cheerful cocky attitude we saw just seconds earlier is gone, utter seriousness about the job taking its place. That public face is so very much an act, and even Sam is falling for it more often than not. This is, apparently, the first time the boys have seen each other since Dean got hauled off to solitary the previous night, and they quickly exchange their new information. Dean gets in first, and Sam is shocked to learn how close his brother came to the spirit. Sam himself, of course, has learned from Randall what seems to be the vital information, and it's his turn to come up with a plan.
Dean: "You sure about this?"
Sam: "Pretty sure."
Dean: "Yeah, well, considering the circumstances I'd like a little better than 'pretty sure'."
Sam: "Okay. Really pretty sure."
Well, yeah – the circumstances involve Dean running interference so that Sam can sneak away and conduct a little judicious salting and burning right there in the jail. And running interference involves picking a fight with one of the biggest, toughest guys in there – so when Dean gets comprehensively battered by Tiny in this scene, bear in mind that it was Sam's idea!
Just how Sam manages to roam as freely as he does, and crawl around in the air vents the way he does without anyone spotting him is another matter entirely. Also you'd expect there to be some sort of headcount and for him to be seen to be missing, to have some form of punishment exacted, unless he's really fast. I know this is a low security jail, but still.
Also, when Sam sets fire to the bloodstained mattress, I really expected there to be some sort of commentary later about there being a fire in the jail, but it seems to go by completely unnoticed.
Infirmary – man, those are tiny cages they use to confine injured prisoners! Talk about claustrophobia. Also, Dean looks really, really battered – those bruises look painful. Nice makeup job, and nice acting. This is another of those quiet scenes where he's alone and so can let the devil-may-care act drop for a moment. I really like that he apologises to Tiny for using him so shamefully as a diversion and landing him in here. And Tiny likes that he apologises, too.
Tiny: "Truth is, I have low self-esteem issues. My old man treated me and my brother like crap, right up to the day he died."
Dean: "How'd he die?"
Tiny: "My brother shot him."
Yikes. And in that very short story there are so many contrasts and parallels to the Winchester family – dysfunction takes many forms.
Dean: "Poor Tiny, man. Poor, giant Tiny."
I really like how focused Dean is on the senseless loss of life caused by this ghost, no matter how criminal or otherwise the victims might be. He identifies with them so strongly – after all, his own circumstances prove how easy it is to end up on the wrong side of the law, and how hard it is to turn that around. Sam, on the other hand, remains wholly focused on their situation above all else. Having believed the job to be done, he's already arranged with Deacon to get them out. So they have very little time in which to find the real ghost.
Sam: "Give it to him."
Dean: "I earned these!"
Dean's reluctance to part with his hard-earned cash for bribes – whatever form that currency might be taking – is so consistent, and so is Sam's willingness to bribe away to his heart's content if it gets the information they need. Easy come, easy go. We've never once seen or heard of Sam hustling pool or poker to earn cash, though – always Dean.
Sam: "Dean, does it bother you at all how easily you seem to fit in here?"
Dean: "No, not really."
Like I said, Dean really does identify with the guys in jail, seeing them as people, rather than criminals. Sam's a bit more of a social snob, and more interested in working the job for the sake of the job than for the people involved.
Dean: "I just don't want to let Deacon down, that's all. We do owe him."
Sam: "Yeah, but we don't owe him our lives, Dean."
Dean doesn't actually look convinced about that. This guy saved John's life, and clearly the way Dean sees it is that as John's sons they've inherited that debt, and it's a big one. Seeing it through is something he very much wants and needs to do, for his Dad's friend, and for his Dad.
I really like Dean's conversation with the lawyer, Mara, trying to persuade her to help with the research but without being able to give her a good explanation as to why. As with Detective Diana in The Usual Suspects and Kathleen in The Benders, Dean recognises Mara as a potential ally, as opposed to the flat-out enmity with Henrickson. Some authority figures are a lot more open-minded than others.
Actually, I seem to really like all the Dean scenes. Maybe I should've just said that at the start and not bothered to explain why!
Anyway, Mara's incredulity is a lot like that of the defence lawyer in The Usual Suspects – they just can't conceive that the legalities simply aren't important to him, because he has his own ways of getting around those, that he has his own agenda going on over and above his current situation.
Dean: "You're just going to have to trust me on this."
Mara: "Why should I? Henrickson says you're a monster."
Oh, and he reacts to that. "I'm a monster?" And a little laugh of disbelief, because he's devoted his entire life to saving people from things they don't even know exist, and this is his reward. "Well, he's wrong, okay?" is all the defence he can muster. "I'm not what they say I am.
Mara: "Everybody says that."
Dean's looking a little bleak, now, maybe seeing that these legal issues really are going to follow him around for the rest of his life, however long or short that might be, and there's nothing he can do about it, no way to clear his name or to stop people like Henrickson assuming the worst about him automatically, no benefit of the doubt whatsoever.
Dean: "Look. If you're as smart a PD as I think you are, you can tell with just one look whether or not your clients are guilty, okay? Just like that. So I want you to look at me, really look, and you tell me: am I guilty?"
Such faith he has in the innocence of his own eyes, and that's in spite of all those nasty-looking Tiny-inflicted bruises. Mara looks. Dean meets her eyes unflinchingly. "We're not the bad guys," he insists.
So then there's the escape plan – it tickles me that Dean and Sam set up this fight out in the recreation yard as the trigger for the escape, and what they fight about is the timing of the escape itself, for anyone to eavesdrop. And this is where the other shoe drops with regard to Deacon's identity. Inside and alone with him, on the cusp of their escape, the boys continue to bicker about whether or not they should be going with the job not yet done, and Deacon looks from one to the other with great amusement now he has their attention, and I love him for that little gesture alone.
The bickering banter between the brothers is the best part of this episode.
"I can't thank you enough for this," Deacon says by way of farewell. "I know I was asking a lot, but you still came through. Your Daddy raised you right."
"Well, we owed you," says Sam, who seems to finally be getting it, or at least paying lip service to the obligation. Dean looks quietly proud, and pleased to hear Sam acknowledging it.
And the point is that they need people like this, a network of contacts they can rely on, that spider's web of loyalty and obligation – it's what people in their line of work have to have to fall back on in case of need, lacking any other ties.
I still want to hear more mention of John's other old contacts, the ones that didn't die last season – like Jefferson, mentioned in Asylum, or Joshua, who put Sam onto the faith healer in Faith.
So, Dean and Sam escape from that low, low security jail, and wow – that must be the easiest jail break ever. I guess the escape itself really isn't the point of the episode. The Impala is waiting for them right outside, and I can only presume Deacon must have moved it there for them to facilitate a speedy getaway.
Henrickson's fury over the escape is predictable. Probably should have kept a closer watch on them, really, rather than entrusting them to such a low security jail. I mean, he knew how clever and well trained they are, how good they've already proved to be at escaping from seemingly impossible situations. He was right there in Milwaukee.
He's got no reason to suspect Deacon is anything but what he seems to be – a prison guard who let a couple of cons get the drop on him. Mara the lawyer he gives a much harder time, and she defends those boys very stubbornly, whether she's doing so because she does genuinely believe in their innocence, because Henrickson has pissed her off so much, or a combination of the two. We weren't given much insight into who Mara is in this episode, just an inexperienced PD who ends up lying on behalf of her clients to help them escape. It'd be interesting to see her again, to find out if there's more to her.
In a startling reversal of their usual practice, Sam does the bulk of the digging this time around. Maybe that's his penance for his jail salt'n'burn plan resulting in such a nasty beating for Dean. It's Sam who does the burning, as well – his second salt'n'burn in one episode. They are both so sombre at the graveside - salt'n'burns just don't have the same relish these days, not since they burned their Dad.
Back to the car – Dean automatically goes to the driver's side, and Sam the passenger's. We haven't seen Sam drive the Impala all season, and the only time we've even heard mention of him driving the car was when he was possessed. This means he hasn't driven the car since that semi ploughed into it at the end of last season. Is that deliberate, a subtle nod to the trauma of being at the wheel for such a devastating 'accident', or to Dean's possessiveness of his rebuilt baby? Or is it not meant to be remotely significant that we've not seen Sam behind the wheel in nineteen episodes, despite the driving being so much more shared out last year?
Sam: "Thought we were screwed before."
Dean: "Hell yeah, I know. We gotta go deep this time."
Sam: "Deep, Dean? We should go to Yemen."
Dean: "Ooh, I'm not sure I'm ready to go that deep."
The legal situation the boys are stuck in looks set to run and run. And I have to run myself, now, so don't have time to elaborate on that in any detail!
Full recap to follow later in the week, when I've got my head screwed back on properly (fingers crossed!)
Let's start with the basics. I like to be amused. This episode amused me enormously, as well as touching me in all the right places. Job done. Marvellous.
Sam: "I hate this plan, Dean."
Dean: "Yeah, I got that the first ten times I heard it."
So, Dean and Sam conduct a little random B&E purely in order to get themselves arrested, and GLORY BE TO HEAVEN ABOVE! They are wearing GLOVES! Hallelujah and about time...
...of course, it figures they'd only resort to gloves the one time they actually want to get caught!
Henrickson: "You think you're funny."
Dean: "I think I'm adorable."
Ah, so true – and the delivery is what makes that line so perfect.
Dean always reacts to authority figures the same way: he throws his defences up as high and as wide as they'll go, armour-plated. But Henrickson's arrival rattles him, and it shows, and props as usual to JA for his wonderfully subtle acting, combining how shaken Dean is at the Feds getting there so quickly with his usual bright, brittle cockiness in the face of authority, having to rapidly restrategise to allow for this new and unwelcome development, and trying not to let that show.
Henrickson: "Oh yeah, keep that game face on. Try and cover up how cornered you are."
Why do the writers keep feeling so obliged to have their guest characters spell Dean's defence mechanism out for us? We get it! Really, we do.
Henrickson mentions that, after Milwaukee, Dean's brother is now a suspect in a murder case himself. Now, he could mean that Sam is implicated in the Milwaukee bank deaths along with Dean – although there were two deaths for Sam to be implicated in there, not just one, and there's no reason to connect Sam in particular with either one, especially as we are told that both are being pinned on Dean. Or it could be a reference to the events of either Born Under a Bad Sign or Heart, take your pick. It's kinda vague. If the latter, it means the brothers didn't get away quite as cleanly as they might have hoped. Sam is beginning to build himself up quite the rap sheet too now – so much for ever being able to return to law school, should he want to some day.
Henrickson's double act with his partner is really lame. 'Nuff said.
I find myself wanting to see Henrickson interviewing Sam now. Those two have never interacted, and Henrickson seems so sure he's got Dean all figured out, it'd be interesting to see what he makes of Sam, whose game face is so very different. Would he reach the same conclusions as the cops in Baltimore and interpret Sam as the corrupted innocent, try to get him to turn on his brother with judicious application of both pressure and incentives? Or would he consider Sam as much of a lost cause as Dean and take a harder line?
I love all the non-verbal, eye contact style communication we get from the boys, like when they first meet with their lawyer, Mara Daniels, and quickly check with her that they are actually being sent to Green River Detention Centre. Getting into that particular institution was the entire point of this insane little exercise, so it kind of matters to them that after all this they do actually get sent there, although of course they can't say so in front of her. Confirmation from Mara is followed up by a quick moment of silent communication between the boys: confirmation of their destination also confirms that the job they are trying to work is definitely on, and that they are pretty much committed to it now. And then again when they realise how tight of a timescale they are going to be operating under – having to get the job done and themselves out of jail before they can be extradited to face more serious charges elsewhere.
This legal dilemma isn't going anywhere any time soon, and I really appreciate the repeated recurrence of this problem. It adds so much realism to the world Dean and Sam inhabit. And that Sam is so nervous about putting themselves into this situation deliberately, it being as precarious and unpredictable as it is, is entirely understandable.
Dean: "Don't worry, Sam. I promise I won't trade you for smokes."
Once they arrive at the jail, Dean's got his game face more or less permanently in place; he needs it to get the job done. That smartass attitude is his shield, and he uses it to get done whatever needs to be done to finish the job, presenting it to Sam, as well as the outside world. If the idea of deliberately getting sent to jail is freaking him out at all, he doesn't want anyone, but anyone, to know about it – can't afford to show any sign of weakness in there – including Sam, because Sam's already freaking out in his own right about it, and this was Dean's plan, so he has to hold it together for both their sakes. It's like high stakes poker – can't let anything show.
Sam: "Dean, this is, without a doubt, the dumbest, craziest thing we've ever done. And that's in a long sordid career of dumb and crazy."
Sam, on the other hand, really, really doesn't want to be doing this, and he lets it show, pretty much all the time. His expressions throughout are priceless - in particular when he meets his roommate, and for what has to be one of the few times in his life is confronted by someone even bigger than he is!
Dean: "Just 'cause these people are in jail doesn't mean they deserve to die. And if we don't stop this thing, people are going to continue to die. We do the job wherever it takes us."
I really like Dean's fervour, kinda like in the good old days of season one when the prospect of saving a life, any life, was what kept him motivated. I also like that his devil-may-care attitude slips a little there, allowing Sam and us a glimpse of what lies beneath. It feels like a really, really long time since we saw Dean initiate a hunt, at least when it wasn't about chasing after Sam. Actually, it feels like kind of a long time since we were told which of the boys initiated their latest hunt, apart from last week's, of course, in which it was made clear that the destination was Dean's idea and that finding a job once they got there was Sam's.
Sam: "Look, Dean, be straight with me, all right? You're doing this for Deacon…we barely even know the guy."
Deacon, apparently, is an old army buddy of John's. "We know he saved Dad's life, we know we owe him," Dean insists. All of which kinda begs the questions of how exactly this Deacon managed to get in touch with them, and how he knows about the ghost-hunting thing. But when the background is as vague as this, it hints at a richer history than we are being told, peripheral to the story as it is. And it's nice to hear of another old contact of John.
Sam wonders if maybe Deacon is asking a little much, but Dean firmly tells him it doesn't matter. "We may not be saints, but we're loyal. And we pay our debts. Now that means something to me, and it ought to for you. I'm not thrilled about this either, man, but Deacon asked us to hunt this thing down and that's exactly what we're going to do."
And this is how the job came about, and it makes sense – going into jail, given their circumstances and how long they've been on the run from the Feds, is a ridiculous enough notion that there would have to be a really good reason for it, over and above the concept of saving criminal lives. That it is a favour owed on John's behalf to an old friend of his proves strong motivation, especially for Dean, who has so completely absorbed John's old army principles and ideals. However angry he was with his father earlier in the season, he's come to terms with his death sufficiently that he needs to do this for him now, to pay off that debt. It's all about loyalty, duty and obligation.
Canteen. Sam regards a forkful of spaghetti with deep suspicion. From the colour and texture as it comes across on screen, he has my deepest sympathy. He leans forward to sniff the offending portion as cautiously as if he suspects it may be poisoned, and then lets it drop back onto the plate with a sniff of disgust. Sam clearly likes his food to be, y'know, food. Dean's not so fussy, and, as we have seen on so many occasions, will eat just about anything put in front of him, especially if he doesn't have to pay for it.
I really love the different attitudes they have toward food. I also love that Sam consistently looks kinda shell-shocked about the fact that he ever let Dean talk him into doing something as crazy as this. Dean gives every impression of being completely comfortable with being in jail, regarding it as a new and interesting experience and never doubting for a second that they can get themselves back out again. Sam, in contrast, never seems all that far from the beginnings of panic over the prospect that they just might not.
Sam: "Sure it's him?"
Dean: "Pretty sure."
Sam: "Dean. Considering our circumstances, I'm gonna need a little bit better than 'pretty sure'."
Dean: "Really pretty sure."
All the case exposition over lunch is necessary, I know, to bring the audience up to speed – but it's also the kind of detail they'd have gone over with a find toothcomb before ever getting themselves arrested, and so really shouldn't need to discuss again now…
Ahem. Anyway. The exposition gives the audience what we need to know. And then Sam manages to not look where he's going and walk right into some giant slab of muscle, which isn't the brightest thing he's ever done. I love the guy, Lucas, that he runs into, just because, whoa, he's got such amazingly manic, crazy eyes! Sam's all about trying to brush it off and make a fast getaway, but Dean is immediately back at his side, with no intention of backing down. Dean does have that obsessive need to protect Sam all the time, whether he actually needs protecting or not, and it kind of is his fault that Sam's here in the first place, what with the jail infiltration being Dean's idea and all. It is just totally in character that Sam would want to keep his head down and avoid drawing anyone's attention to himself, while Dean feels obliged to act tough and try gain respect. He just can't stop himself rubbing people up the wrong way.
I really appreciate the detail that once fighting ensues, Dean at first only fights defensively, trying to pin the other guy down and persuade him to give it up. It's only when that fails that he switches to offensive tactics, and puts the guy down almost immediately.
I also appreciate that unless you're really paying attention and have a suspicious mind, it's completely possible to be totally sucked in by the head guard having it in for Dean – this is Deacon himself, making a show of disliking this troublesome new inmate, the better to cover their tracks later. Deacon puts on a good show of being mean and tough, and Dean puts on a good show of being apprehensive, and Sam doesn't need to put on a good show, because he really, really doesn't want to be there and he's been letting that show right from the start!
Solitary confinement. Dean and Lucas languish in cells opposite one another. But hey, if they can see and speak to one another, it doesn't really count as 'solitary', does it? Dean sits on the floor of his cell, back against the wall, all quiet and contemplative. For the most part in recent episodes, all his customary defence mechanisms that he was struggling to maintain earlier in the season seem to have been well and truly shored up now, his emotional armour rebuilt and firmly back in place. Most of the time. But when he's alone like this, you can still catch a hint of that I can't do this any more the crossroads demon accused him of in his eyes, and I really like the subtlety of moments like this – it's what Hollywood Babylon was sorely lacking, with so much plot movement and so many extraneous guest character scenes to accommodate.
Dean isn't all that good at alone, so the silence doesn't last long, and that's another character detail that I really appreciate, that having got into a fight with this guy, he'd then try to strike up a conversation with him, no hard feelings, rather than sit there in silence. And he's really rocking the orange boiler suit look, it has to be said - it's all about the arms! When ghostly activity strikes up, his professional instincts fire into action immediately – but there's just no way he can save the other guy, what with being confined this like. That's the downside of this plan – being locked up really restricts your movements in terms of lifesaving. Also, it's probably just as well the ghost didn't attack Dean himself on this occasion, as he had absolutely nothing at hand to defend himself with.
The contrast of Henrickson and the lawyer, Mara, is pretty well done, although Henrickson's pettiness in dealing with her does lose him a few points. Understandable, though, as his search for those elusive Winchester boys has clearly been driving him a little bit nuts. It makes for an excellent contrast, though, his narrow-minded, black-and-white opinion versus her more open-minded approach, based on the same evidence.
I especially like hearing that both Detective Diana in Baltimore and eyewitness Sherri in Milwaukee have made statements in defence of the boys – Sherri especially, as for the longest time she believed the worst of them, and once she saw her shapeshifter double there was hardly enough time for a full explanation, so she's clearly been putting pieces together for herself since then, or at least trying to. Henrickson simply dismisses her as nuts, though, and there's a smidge of insight there into what happens to these people after the lifesaving has taken place and the boys have moved on – interrogation and disbelief. You either tell the truth as you saw it and have them all call you insane, or you keep it to yourself and have them think you're being uncooperative. Can't win.
Randall: "Why are you inside, kid?"
Sam: "'Cause I got an idiot for a brother."
Randall: "That'll do it."
When Sam strikes up conversation with Randall, who turns out to be a valuable witness, it's an excellent scene simply because when Sam first tries to talk to him, he has no clue that the man could be of any use at all to the investigation; he's just making conversation, because he's Sam. And then when he does realise who he's talking to, he slides so effortlessly into interview mode, all perky, bright-eyed innocence wanting to listen to the story. It's so much fun, especially as he spends just about the entire episode other than this being so very exasperated.
Dean: "It's like picking low-hanging fruit."
Sam: "You don't even smoke."
Dean: "Are you kidding me? This is the currency of the realm."
So many times we've been told of Dean's prowess at hustling, both poker and pool, so it's fab to catch even a glimpse of him in action. This is two episodes in a row where the brothers have had to interact with large numbers of people in an enclosed and structured environment in order to work a job – normally they keep a very low profile while working, living quietly out of crappy motels and only interacting with the very few people who relate directly to that case. It's interesting to see them pushed out of that comfort zone. Both times Dean has very quickly found his own level and established himself as just another one of the guys, needing to do so in order to build up contacts and 'currency', in contrast to Sam very much holding himself aloof.
Dean: "Flickering lights, clock stopped, cold spots – he did everything but yell boo."
Sam: "Well, what happened?"
Dean: "He walked right by me. Lucas wasn't so lucky; I mean the way he was screaming… Guy was a jerk, but he didn't deserve to go like that."
And just like that the cheerful cocky attitude we saw just seconds earlier is gone, utter seriousness about the job taking its place. That public face is so very much an act, and even Sam is falling for it more often than not. This is, apparently, the first time the boys have seen each other since Dean got hauled off to solitary the previous night, and they quickly exchange their new information. Dean gets in first, and Sam is shocked to learn how close his brother came to the spirit. Sam himself, of course, has learned from Randall what seems to be the vital information, and it's his turn to come up with a plan.
Dean: "You sure about this?"
Sam: "Pretty sure."
Dean: "Yeah, well, considering the circumstances I'd like a little better than 'pretty sure'."
Sam: "Okay. Really pretty sure."
Well, yeah – the circumstances involve Dean running interference so that Sam can sneak away and conduct a little judicious salting and burning right there in the jail. And running interference involves picking a fight with one of the biggest, toughest guys in there – so when Dean gets comprehensively battered by Tiny in this scene, bear in mind that it was Sam's idea!
Just how Sam manages to roam as freely as he does, and crawl around in the air vents the way he does without anyone spotting him is another matter entirely. Also you'd expect there to be some sort of headcount and for him to be seen to be missing, to have some form of punishment exacted, unless he's really fast. I know this is a low security jail, but still.
Also, when Sam sets fire to the bloodstained mattress, I really expected there to be some sort of commentary later about there being a fire in the jail, but it seems to go by completely unnoticed.
Infirmary – man, those are tiny cages they use to confine injured prisoners! Talk about claustrophobia. Also, Dean looks really, really battered – those bruises look painful. Nice makeup job, and nice acting. This is another of those quiet scenes where he's alone and so can let the devil-may-care act drop for a moment. I really like that he apologises to Tiny for using him so shamefully as a diversion and landing him in here. And Tiny likes that he apologises, too.
Tiny: "Truth is, I have low self-esteem issues. My old man treated me and my brother like crap, right up to the day he died."
Dean: "How'd he die?"
Tiny: "My brother shot him."
Yikes. And in that very short story there are so many contrasts and parallels to the Winchester family – dysfunction takes many forms.
Dean: "Poor Tiny, man. Poor, giant Tiny."
I really like how focused Dean is on the senseless loss of life caused by this ghost, no matter how criminal or otherwise the victims might be. He identifies with them so strongly – after all, his own circumstances prove how easy it is to end up on the wrong side of the law, and how hard it is to turn that around. Sam, on the other hand, remains wholly focused on their situation above all else. Having believed the job to be done, he's already arranged with Deacon to get them out. So they have very little time in which to find the real ghost.
Sam: "Give it to him."
Dean: "I earned these!"
Dean's reluctance to part with his hard-earned cash for bribes – whatever form that currency might be taking – is so consistent, and so is Sam's willingness to bribe away to his heart's content if it gets the information they need. Easy come, easy go. We've never once seen or heard of Sam hustling pool or poker to earn cash, though – always Dean.
Sam: "Dean, does it bother you at all how easily you seem to fit in here?"
Dean: "No, not really."
Like I said, Dean really does identify with the guys in jail, seeing them as people, rather than criminals. Sam's a bit more of a social snob, and more interested in working the job for the sake of the job than for the people involved.
Dean: "I just don't want to let Deacon down, that's all. We do owe him."
Sam: "Yeah, but we don't owe him our lives, Dean."
Dean doesn't actually look convinced about that. This guy saved John's life, and clearly the way Dean sees it is that as John's sons they've inherited that debt, and it's a big one. Seeing it through is something he very much wants and needs to do, for his Dad's friend, and for his Dad.
I really like Dean's conversation with the lawyer, Mara, trying to persuade her to help with the research but without being able to give her a good explanation as to why. As with Detective Diana in The Usual Suspects and Kathleen in The Benders, Dean recognises Mara as a potential ally, as opposed to the flat-out enmity with Henrickson. Some authority figures are a lot more open-minded than others.
Actually, I seem to really like all the Dean scenes. Maybe I should've just said that at the start and not bothered to explain why!
Anyway, Mara's incredulity is a lot like that of the defence lawyer in The Usual Suspects – they just can't conceive that the legalities simply aren't important to him, because he has his own ways of getting around those, that he has his own agenda going on over and above his current situation.
Dean: "You're just going to have to trust me on this."
Mara: "Why should I? Henrickson says you're a monster."
Oh, and he reacts to that. "I'm a monster?" And a little laugh of disbelief, because he's devoted his entire life to saving people from things they don't even know exist, and this is his reward. "Well, he's wrong, okay?" is all the defence he can muster. "I'm not what they say I am.
Mara: "Everybody says that."
Dean's looking a little bleak, now, maybe seeing that these legal issues really are going to follow him around for the rest of his life, however long or short that might be, and there's nothing he can do about it, no way to clear his name or to stop people like Henrickson assuming the worst about him automatically, no benefit of the doubt whatsoever.
Dean: "Look. If you're as smart a PD as I think you are, you can tell with just one look whether or not your clients are guilty, okay? Just like that. So I want you to look at me, really look, and you tell me: am I guilty?"
Such faith he has in the innocence of his own eyes, and that's in spite of all those nasty-looking Tiny-inflicted bruises. Mara looks. Dean meets her eyes unflinchingly. "We're not the bad guys," he insists.
So then there's the escape plan – it tickles me that Dean and Sam set up this fight out in the recreation yard as the trigger for the escape, and what they fight about is the timing of the escape itself, for anyone to eavesdrop. And this is where the other shoe drops with regard to Deacon's identity. Inside and alone with him, on the cusp of their escape, the boys continue to bicker about whether or not they should be going with the job not yet done, and Deacon looks from one to the other with great amusement now he has their attention, and I love him for that little gesture alone.
The bickering banter between the brothers is the best part of this episode.
"I can't thank you enough for this," Deacon says by way of farewell. "I know I was asking a lot, but you still came through. Your Daddy raised you right."
"Well, we owed you," says Sam, who seems to finally be getting it, or at least paying lip service to the obligation. Dean looks quietly proud, and pleased to hear Sam acknowledging it.
And the point is that they need people like this, a network of contacts they can rely on, that spider's web of loyalty and obligation – it's what people in their line of work have to have to fall back on in case of need, lacking any other ties.
I still want to hear more mention of John's other old contacts, the ones that didn't die last season – like Jefferson, mentioned in Asylum, or Joshua, who put Sam onto the faith healer in Faith.
So, Dean and Sam escape from that low, low security jail, and wow – that must be the easiest jail break ever. I guess the escape itself really isn't the point of the episode. The Impala is waiting for them right outside, and I can only presume Deacon must have moved it there for them to facilitate a speedy getaway.
Henrickson's fury over the escape is predictable. Probably should have kept a closer watch on them, really, rather than entrusting them to such a low security jail. I mean, he knew how clever and well trained they are, how good they've already proved to be at escaping from seemingly impossible situations. He was right there in Milwaukee.
He's got no reason to suspect Deacon is anything but what he seems to be – a prison guard who let a couple of cons get the drop on him. Mara the lawyer he gives a much harder time, and she defends those boys very stubbornly, whether she's doing so because she does genuinely believe in their innocence, because Henrickson has pissed her off so much, or a combination of the two. We weren't given much insight into who Mara is in this episode, just an inexperienced PD who ends up lying on behalf of her clients to help them escape. It'd be interesting to see her again, to find out if there's more to her.
In a startling reversal of their usual practice, Sam does the bulk of the digging this time around. Maybe that's his penance for his jail salt'n'burn plan resulting in such a nasty beating for Dean. It's Sam who does the burning, as well – his second salt'n'burn in one episode. They are both so sombre at the graveside - salt'n'burns just don't have the same relish these days, not since they burned their Dad.
Back to the car – Dean automatically goes to the driver's side, and Sam the passenger's. We haven't seen Sam drive the Impala all season, and the only time we've even heard mention of him driving the car was when he was possessed. This means he hasn't driven the car since that semi ploughed into it at the end of last season. Is that deliberate, a subtle nod to the trauma of being at the wheel for such a devastating 'accident', or to Dean's possessiveness of his rebuilt baby? Or is it not meant to be remotely significant that we've not seen Sam behind the wheel in nineteen episodes, despite the driving being so much more shared out last year?
Sam: "Thought we were screwed before."
Dean: "Hell yeah, I know. We gotta go deep this time."
Sam: "Deep, Dean? We should go to Yemen."
Dean: "Ooh, I'm not sure I'm ready to go that deep."
The legal situation the boys are stuck in looks set to run and run. And I have to run myself, now, so don't have time to elaborate on that in any detail!
Full recap to follow later in the week, when I've got my head screwed back on properly (fingers crossed!)
