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Supernatural, Ep. 10.06 to 10.11 doesn’t give many storylines their due

Supernatural, Ep. 10.06 to 10.11 doesn’t give many storylines their due
Kim Rhodes, Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Briana Buckmaster

Kim Rhodes, Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Briana Buckmaster

Supernatural, Season 10, Episodes 6 to 11
Airs Tuesdays at 9 pm ET on The CW

While Supernatural began the season with Dean back from the dead once again, the unique aspect this time was that he was back as a Demon, the Mark of Cain having accelerated the process that Ruby laid out in Season 3. Despite Sam curing Dean and turning him human, however, the effects of the mark continue to haunt Dean, making it the primary storyline over the past few episodes, which have introduced some intriguing new character turns, despite not giving a number of storylines their due.

The shift in focus to family is an interesting aspect of the season. With the core of Supernatural always focusing on the brotherly relationship between Sam and Dean, this is not a surprise, but the expansion into seeing what makes Crowley tick has been a particularly fascinating aspect of the season. While Rowena’s nefariousness doesn’t come as a surprise, Crowley himself has proven to be no slouch when it comes to detecting actions taken against him and preparing for them, so how he combats his own mother will be worth watching as the season unfolds. As Crowley points out, Rowena abandoned him long ago, which means she hasn’t had any influence in his upbringing, meaning that neither individual has the upper hand on the other. Rowena and Crowley being at each other’s throats also nicely contrasts with Castiel’s attempts to mend fences with Claire Novak. His desire to make amends for using Jimmy as a vessel for all these years is a nice nod to the Angel’s growing humanity, and how his re-entry affects Claire will be interesting to explore, particularly if it means the Winchesters will have a greater involvement in her life. With the lack of family connections and an Angel practically sitting on her shoulder in the form of Castiel, Claire is in a great position in her life to become a Hunter, especially since she’s aware of the existence of both Demons and Angels, and has been for a while. What life path she pursues at this point, whether it’s that of a Hunter or something else, promises to be worth a watch.

Erica Carroll, Misha Collins

Erica Carroll, Misha Collins

A growing concern of the season, however, has been the quick wrap-up of storylines. The first few episodes of the season showed an indication of this trend, and these past few episodes have further deepened it. The biggest example in recent episodes is the case of Cole. The idea of Dean being hunted by a human seeking vengeance for a loved one was an idea ripe with potential, especially since it introduced a level of moral ambiguity to the proceedings. Where Dean had previously been the target of vengeance by monsters, having a human go after him changes the equation by forcing the audience, and Dean himself, to consider the ramifications of collateral damage in the fight against evil, a topic that Sam himself wrestled with in Season 4. However, having the conflict boil down to a couple of scenes sells that potential short. This was also seen with both Hannah and Charlie. In Hannah’s case, not only did the encounter with her vessel’s husband lead to the loss of the Angel, it also brought an abrupt end to her quest to reunite the Angels in Heaven. The quick turnaround on two storylines that had the potential for further exploration was somewhat disappointing to see, as was the sudden end of Charlie’s time in Oz. The discovery of the Wizard being a truly malevolent entity, as well as the breaking of the key, both deserved more screentime, and for most of it to happen offscreen, and the rest to get resolved in one scene, cheapens the storyline’s effect, in addition to making it seem needlessly rushed. Hopefully this trend gets turned around soon.

Despite these hiccups, however, the season continues to be entertaining. The exploration of the ill effects of the Mark of Cain on Dean is a particularly strong aspect. While Dean’s upbringing made him one of the few ideal candidates to receive the mark from Cain, his emotional instability in many ways makes him the worst possible recipient, and it’s good to see the writers delve into that. The loss of Zachariah is particularly keenly felt, as he always held the mindset that Dean’s destiny was in hunting, and any attempt to say otherwise was him denying his true nature. His reaction to the Mark would have been quite telling. It was good to see Sheriff Mills return, and her budding friendship with Sheriff Hanscum was quite touching, with the added effect of redeeming the return of the latter, whose debut came in one of the show’s lesser episodes. Castiel seems somewhat unmoored this season, as he has bounced from one storyline to another without driving the action himself, save for select moments. Hopefully this doesn’t last for long. The possibility of Castiel and Charlie working together to help save Dean is an exciting one, and it’s good to see Charlie return, although the absence of Dorothy by her side is sad. The potential return of Cain is also a promising idea, especially with the First Blade back in action. How the season deals with the Mark of Cain, as well as the continuing fight between Crowley and Rowena, will be worth keeping an eye on in future episodes.

– Deepayan Sengupta

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