13.13 - Devil's Bargain (SPOILERS!)
[Spoilers, spoilers everywhere!]
1. WTF, another Hellatus already?
2. The Big Reveal? HO-LEEEE HELL! O_o (After last week's spoiler debacle, I stayed the hell off Twitter and managed to remain unspoiled. Now if only the writers manage to come up with a legitimate, believable reason for it.)
3. Me last week, after being advised of the writers for 13.13: ... three minutes of Sam and Dean, three minutes of Lucifer and Castiel, three minutes of Mary, Michael, and Jack, three minutes of Rowena, three minutes of Sister Jo, three minutes of Asmodeus, plus six storylines that never quite merge, then repeat until the episode run time is up?
No Michael-Mary-Jack or Rowena, but on the other hand, we did get Ketch, Donatello, GABRIEL, a Brand-New Angel-Killing Machine™, a coven of idiot angels about whose story we're supposed to care, and not nearly enough Sam and Dean, so BuckLeming strikes again
I love the editor's sense of humor (and timing):
Jensen's expression, oh, my. (Eye-roll better captured in a gif, but I'll leave that to the techies.)
On Lucifer:
There's a rather uncomfortable balance between whimsical, wise-cracking, longing-for-his-son Lucifer and the horrid things he's doing. Hunting down fellow angels for food? Killing a Cupid? That's just LOW. And then we turn around and get jokes and something very close to a love scene? I'm not sure where the writers are going with this ...
Protip: You spot a guy looking at you like this ... RUN.
On Castiel:
I will never again love this character as much as I did during S4-5 -- too much has happened, and he's hurt/betrayed the boys too much. That said -- and nobody faint, now, but -- I kinda liked him this time around. No more "oh-how-cute-he's-trying-to-be-human!C
On Sam and Dean:
There are nothing BUT surprises for the brothers, from Lucifer being on earth, to AU Kevin Tran being alive, to Michael planning to lay waste to their world. For reasons that we now know, Sam is extremely unhappy to hear that Lucifer's back on earth. A blink, an inhale, a teeny flinch backwards. Such small motions from Jared, but such power in them. The cap doesn't do it justice, but there's someone out there who can gif it.
Dean explains the mission: "We grab Satan and we use his grace to open up a door between two universes, okay? Then we get Mom, we get Jack, and we get out. Slam the door before Michael follows us and destroys our universe. Now it's ... going to be harder than it sounds." The boy's just a master of understatement, isn't he? ;)
Sam helping Dean to his feet (and vice-versa): I shall never grow tired of it.
On Danneel / Sister Jo / Anael:
"Should I quake?"
I liked Danneel's Sister Jo and her "ka-ching!" business acumen. Girl's just doing what she's gotta do to survive, and if it's by helping humans rather than killing them, more power to her. Alas, she remained "Sister Jo" for less than five minutes before being revealed as yet another angel. By the episode's end, Anael has seemingly become Lucifer's left-hand woman (somewhere, Abaddon is spinning in her grave.) Still kinda hoping that she really IS on no one's side other than her own, and will double-cross Lucifer soon. It was interesting that Anael's depleted grace humanized her enough to understand "us/we" emotions like pain, hope, and love while Lucifer's human side was more about "me/my" feelings like hunger, cold, and loneliness. IDK, maybe Anael will be a Ruby-in-reverse, pretending to be on Lucifer's side until the crucial moment? She herself said that she felt liberated by her fall from Heaven, free from the angelic yoke, so what happens when Lucifer starts whipping angels into line? I see Anael/Lucifer conflict on the horizon.
Also? I like her sense of humor.
Hey, she didn't specify WHICH "fallen," so it still counts. ;)
On angel lust:
Was it just me, or did Lucifer's method of feeding on Sister Jo/Anael's grace make anyone else a bit uneasy? Licking-cutting-nuzzling-falling into bed together, soft music, dim lighting, and an overall seductive feel ... "You don't have to rush. We can do this slowly ..." The hotel grace scene felt oddly like 9 1/2 Weeks, but without the actual food. God knows I'm no prude (I'm in the Fandom of Slash Incest, FFS), but the bedroom scenes between Lucifer and Anael were sexually supercharged and felt IMO, kinda ... sleazy. No other angel fed on grace this way. Angels are supposed to be aesexual, no? Still, it'd be damned funny if Lucifer ended up addicted to Anael's grace. Sam n' Ruby, anyone?
On Ketch:
"I'm the lesser of ... at least ... three evils."
Say what you will about Ketch, he's got balls. How many mortals could have stood up to an angry Asmodeus charging at them like that without so much as a flinch? Then, Ketch explaining how he escaped the Impala's trunk -- "I'm Ketch." I'm torn as to whether that was delightfully cool, or disappointed that they're still handing off Crowley classics to other characters. "You're good, but ... I'm Crowley," anyone?
Dean has a different opinion: "Find out what he knows and put a bullet in him, burn his bones, and flush his ashes." Gee, tell us what you REALLY think, Deano.
On Asmodeus:
Hell's Colonel Sanders Asmodeus lurking outside of a chicken shack, contemplating a crispy chicken wing? Red-and-white striped chicken bucket and all. I was dying. Still gonna call him Foghorn Leghorn, though.
The Colonel was displeased with the latest batch of KFC. "Heads will roll," he muttered. "Ah say -- ah say, HEADS WILL ROLL!"
On Donatello:
"Chicken wings. Heavy lifting like this requires real brain fuel .... twenty-five buckets."
Kevin 2.0 is alive and well and downing chicken wings in the Bunker. But why on EARTH did Sam and Dean let Donatello -- their only hope for translating the demon tablet -- wander about alone to visit chicken shacks? (Yes, yes, it was bad writer shorthand -- turn Sam and Dean into morons in order to get Donatello alone and unprotected so Foghorn Leghorn could pick his brain to find out old Donny was the only person who could read the demon plaque, bla-bla.) But still. Surely the boys would consider that random angels or demons could endanger this Prophet of the Lord? You know, the only dude who could possibly help get Mary (and Jack) back? SAM AND DEAN ARE SMARTER THAN THAT.
On angels:
Duma: "Who are you to speak to me?" When all is said and done, you may want Anael on your side. Too late now.
Dear God, angels are stupid, stupid, STUPID, y'all. So eager to kneel at Lucifer's feet, after all he's done? Accepting him as their savior on super-vague promises to get them their wings back and increase their numbers? Promises from LUCIFER?! Yup. Angels be STOOOO-PID.
Also, Lucifer not just IN Heaven, but running the joint? Surely that's going to ping an alarm somewhere?
Amara? God? Anyone?
On the "Archangel-killing" sword:
That blade is mighty short. While battling an archangel, would one REALLY want to get that close?
On Gabriel:
Surprise, surprise, surprise!
Gabriel's mouth was wired shut, presumably by Asmodeus. So, same old Snark King Gabriel, then?
Putting Gabriel back on the board could be interesting, as he has always liked the boys. I don't know how or if this will come into play (he may have gone mad), but he had a definite soft spot for Sam and Dean -- to the point of dying for them. I pray the writers don't dismiss this. Or forget it even existed. Darn it, Show, this ain't the time for LOLcanon.
Also, if Gabriel's been alive and in Hell all this time, how did Crowley, Abaddon, or Lucifer not sense him? For that matter, how about God or Amara while they were around? Even if Gabriel was resurrected during Asmodeus's reign, one would think that Lucifer or Billie still could've sensed him. Eh, IDK. He's the Trickster, after all. Maybe he really has been spending all this time hiding out on Casa Erotica DVDs?
Gabriel also having a beef with Lucifer nonwithstanding, the only ones I want to see actually killing the Morning Star are Sam and Rowena. Damn it, they DESERVE this. Maybe Gabriel can hold Luci while they stab?
______________________
It wasn't a BAD episode, and I liked quite a few bits. "Devil's Bargain" just could have done with more ... cohesiveness? More linkage of the boys with the various and sundry plotlines spread all over? I suppose they needed the end reveal as a mid-season Hellatus cliffhanger, but maybe, just maaaaybe ... they shouldn't have two writers trying to work all their threads into a SINGLE episode?
I've just noticed how little I've spoken of SAM and DEAN. Had to go back and re-view to comment upon the Winchester parts. And therein lies the problem with this episode.
[Spoilers for 13.14!]So. Next episode airs on March 1st, does it?
In which Michael, Jack, Mary, and Post-apocalyptic Earth AU make an appearance. Probably a bit of AU Bobby and Kevin, too. *sideeyes Show* Don't be dropping no bombs on Jensen's birthday, show. This ep BETTER be good!
1. WTF, another Hellatus already?
2. The Big Reveal? HO-LEEEE HELL! O_o (After last week's spoiler debacle, I stayed the hell off Twitter and managed to remain unspoiled. Now if only the writers manage to come up with a legitimate, believable reason for it.)
3. Me last week, after being advised of the writers for 13.13: ... three minutes of Sam and Dean, three minutes of Lucifer and Castiel, three minutes of Mary, Michael, and Jack, three minutes of Rowena, three minutes of Sister Jo, three minutes of Asmodeus, plus six storylines that never quite merge, then repeat until the episode run time is up?
No Michael-Mary-Jack or Rowena, but on the other hand, we did get Ketch, Donatello, GABRIEL, a Brand-New Angel-Killing Machine™, a coven of idiot angels about whose story we're supposed to care, and not nearly enough Sam and Dean, so BuckLeming strikes again
I love the editor's sense of humor (and timing):
Jensen's expression, oh, my. (Eye-roll better captured in a gif, but I'll leave that to the techies.)
On Lucifer:
There's a rather uncomfortable balance between whimsical, wise-cracking, longing-for-his-son Lucifer and the horrid things he's doing. Hunting down fellow angels for food? Killing a Cupid? That's just LOW. And then we turn around and get jokes and something very close to a love scene? I'm not sure where the writers are going with this ...
Protip: You spot a guy looking at you like this ... RUN.
On Castiel:
I will never again love this character as much as I did during S4-5 -- too much has happened, and he's hurt/betrayed the boys too much. That said -- and nobody faint, now, but -- I kinda liked him this time around. No more "oh-how-cute-he's-trying-to-be-human!C
On Sam and Dean:
There are nothing BUT surprises for the brothers, from Lucifer being on earth, to AU Kevin Tran being alive, to Michael planning to lay waste to their world. For reasons that we now know, Sam is extremely unhappy to hear that Lucifer's back on earth. A blink, an inhale, a teeny flinch backwards. Such small motions from Jared, but such power in them. The cap doesn't do it justice, but there's someone out there who can gif it.
Dean explains the mission: "We grab Satan and we use his grace to open up a door between two universes, okay? Then we get Mom, we get Jack, and we get out. Slam the door before Michael follows us and destroys our universe. Now it's ... going to be harder than it sounds." The boy's just a master of understatement, isn't he? ;)
Sam helping Dean to his feet (and vice-versa): I shall never grow tired of it.
On Danneel / Sister Jo / Anael:
"Should I quake?"
I liked Danneel's Sister Jo and her "ka-ching!" business acumen. Girl's just doing what she's gotta do to survive, and if it's by helping humans rather than killing them, more power to her. Alas, she remained "Sister Jo" for less than five minutes before being revealed as yet another angel. By the episode's end, Anael has seemingly become Lucifer's left-hand woman (somewhere, Abaddon is spinning in her grave.) Still kinda hoping that she really IS on no one's side other than her own, and will double-cross Lucifer soon. It was interesting that Anael's depleted grace humanized her enough to understand "us/we" emotions like pain, hope, and love while Lucifer's human side was more about "me/my" feelings like hunger, cold, and loneliness. IDK, maybe Anael will be a Ruby-in-reverse, pretending to be on Lucifer's side until the crucial moment? She herself said that she felt liberated by her fall from Heaven, free from the angelic yoke, so what happens when Lucifer starts whipping angels into line? I see Anael/Lucifer conflict on the horizon.
Also? I like her sense of humor.
Hey, she didn't specify WHICH "fallen," so it still counts. ;)
On angel lust:
Was it just me, or did Lucifer's method of feeding on Sister Jo/Anael's grace make anyone else a bit uneasy? Licking-cutting-nuzzling-falling into bed together, soft music, dim lighting, and an overall seductive feel ... "You don't have to rush. We can do this slowly ..." The hotel grace scene felt oddly like 9 1/2 Weeks, but without the actual food. God knows I'm no prude (I'm in the Fandom of Slash Incest, FFS), but the bedroom scenes between Lucifer and Anael were sexually supercharged and felt IMO, kinda ... sleazy. No other angel fed on grace this way. Angels are supposed to be aesexual, no? Still, it'd be damned funny if Lucifer ended up addicted to Anael's grace. Sam n' Ruby, anyone?
On Ketch:
"I'm the lesser of ... at least ... three evils."
Say what you will about Ketch, he's got balls. How many mortals could have stood up to an angry Asmodeus charging at them like that without so much as a flinch? Then, Ketch explaining how he escaped the Impala's trunk -- "I'm Ketch." I'm torn as to whether that was delightfully cool, or disappointed that they're still handing off Crowley classics to other characters. "You're good, but ... I'm Crowley," anyone?
Dean has a different opinion: "Find out what he knows and put a bullet in him, burn his bones, and flush his ashes." Gee, tell us what you REALLY think, Deano.
On Asmodeus:
The Colonel was displeased with the latest batch of KFC. "Heads will roll," he muttered. "Ah say -- ah say, HEADS WILL ROLL!"
On Donatello:
"Chicken wings. Heavy lifting like this requires real brain fuel .... twenty-five buckets."
Kevin 2.0 is alive and well and downing chicken wings in the Bunker. But why on EARTH did Sam and Dean let Donatello -- their only hope for translating the demon tablet -- wander about alone to visit chicken shacks? (Yes, yes, it was bad writer shorthand -- turn Sam and Dean into morons in order to get Donatello alone and unprotected so Foghorn Leghorn could pick his brain to find out old Donny was the only person who could read the demon plaque, bla-bla.) But still. Surely the boys would consider that random angels or demons could endanger this Prophet of the Lord? You know, the only dude who could possibly help get Mary (and Jack) back? SAM AND DEAN ARE SMARTER THAN THAT.
On angels:
Duma: "Who are you to speak to me?" When all is said and done, you may want Anael on your side. Too late now.
Dear God, angels are stupid, stupid, STUPID, y'all. So eager to kneel at Lucifer's feet, after all he's done? Accepting him as their savior on super-vague promises to get them their wings back and increase their numbers? Promises from LUCIFER?! Yup. Angels be STOOOO-PID.
Also, Lucifer not just IN Heaven, but running the joint? Surely that's going to ping an alarm somewhere?
Amara? God? Anyone?
On the "Archangel-killing" sword:
That blade is mighty short. While battling an archangel, would one REALLY want to get that close?
On Gabriel:
Surprise, surprise, surprise!
Gabriel's mouth was wired shut, presumably by Asmodeus. So, same old Snark King Gabriel, then?
Putting Gabriel back on the board could be interesting, as he has always liked the boys. I don't know how or if this will come into play (he may have gone mad), but he had a definite soft spot for Sam and Dean -- to the point of dying for them. I pray the writers don't dismiss this. Or forget it even existed. Darn it, Show, this ain't the time for LOLcanon.
Also, if Gabriel's been alive and in Hell all this time, how did Crowley, Abaddon, or Lucifer not sense him? For that matter, how about God or Amara while they were around? Even if Gabriel was resurrected during Asmodeus's reign, one would think that Lucifer or Billie still could've sensed him. Eh, IDK. He's the Trickster, after all. Maybe he really has been spending all this time hiding out on Casa Erotica DVDs?
Gabriel also having a beef with Lucifer nonwithstanding, the only ones I want to see actually killing the Morning Star are Sam and Rowena. Damn it, they DESERVE this. Maybe Gabriel can hold Luci while they stab?
______________________
It wasn't a BAD episode, and I liked quite a few bits. "Devil's Bargain" just could have done with more ... cohesiveness? More linkage of the boys with the various and sundry plotlines spread all over? I suppose they needed the end reveal as a mid-season Hellatus cliffhanger, but maybe, just maaaaybe ... they shouldn't have two writers trying to work all their threads into a SINGLE episode?
I've just noticed how little I've spoken of SAM and DEAN. Had to go back and re-view to comment upon the Winchester parts. And therein lies the problem with this episode.
[Spoilers for 13.14!]So. Next episode airs on March 1st, does it?
In which Michael, Jack, Mary, and Post-apocalyptic Earth AU make an appearance. Probably a bit of AU Bobby and Kevin, too. *sideeyes Show* Don't be dropping no bombs on Jensen's birthday, show. This ep BETTER be good!