Supernatural: Don't You Forget About Me
December 28, 2021 7:01 AM - Season 11, Episode 12 - Subscribe
Claire thinks some recent murders in town are the work of a supernatural entity and calls on Sam and Dean for help, but when they arrive in Sioux Falls, Jody Mills tells them that Claire has been attacking ordinary people and accusing them of being monsters.
Quotes
Dean: [pulls out his takeout food from a bag and places it on the table, looking very excited]
Sam: What the hell is that?
Dean: That? That's the Elvis.
Sam: Elvis?
Dean: Mmm-hmm.
Sam: [reaching out to touch it] Is that a -- ?
Dean: That's a glazed donut.
Sam: Yeah.
Dean: Two, actually. One topside, one on the bottom. Now, your inferior versions, they'll just take one donut, split it right down the middle. Mmm mm. [clicks his tongue] Boom! [blows a kiss]
Sam: Alright, well uh, I hope you enjoy it. [slides "the Elvis" away from him and towards Dean] Wow.
Dean: You know there are starving children out there.
Sam: Dude, I'm not gonna survive hundreds of monster attacks to get flatlined by -- by some double doughnut monstrosity.
Dean: The Elvis!
Sam: Whatever it -- how many calories are in that thing?
Jody: [to Alex at the dinner table] 'Kay, uh, well, um, I may have -- I've -- definitely seen birth control pills in your backpack.
Alex: ...
Sam: [cringing] Oh, we're going there.
Dean: Okay.
Alex: Oh my God.
Jody: Hey, if we can't talk about it we shouldn't be doing it, right?
Sam & Dean: ...
Jody: Right?
Dean: What?
Jody: [to Alex and Claire] Okay. I'm not gonna tell you that you are too young to be having sex, or you.
Alex: Who's she gonna have sex with? She doesn't talk to anybody.
Jody: Hey. Um, what I will tell you is that birth control pills are useless against STD's. Whoever you are with needs to suit up! Every time. Always. No pulling up the drawbridge early.
Alex: I know -- I get it!
Jody: And don't expect the guy, as much as I love Henry, to always show up packing. [turning to Sam and Dean] Am I right?
Sam: [looks down at his plate and takes another bite]
Dean: What?
Jody: Seriously?
Trivia
In this episode, the stuffed toy Grumpy Cat that Castiel gave Claire from "The Hot Topical" in "Angel Heart" (ep. 10.20) can be seen on her bed.
Sam is bemused by a photo of a weasel riding a flying woodpecker. The photo was taken in an English park in 2015 and became known as the "weaselpecker" photo. The least weasel is a diminutive but fearless carnivore known for attacking larger animals, including birds. European green woodpeckers spend a lot of time on the ground eating ants. Best guess is that the weasel jumped the bird, who then tried to escape. Happily, the photographer has reported that after the dual flight depicted in this photo, both the woodpecker and the weasel went their separate ways unscathed.
The episode title refers to the Simple Minds hit, which is also famously on the soundtrack for the 1985 movie The Breakfast Club.
When Sam and Dean are talking alone in the school hallway, there is a mural painted on the lockers featuring the anime Yu Yu Hakusho.
Part of the plot is similar the Pygmalion storyline, which is used in the classic stage and film musical My Fair Lady, and the 1999 movie She's All That and many others. The premise is that an aristocratic man claims, in a wager, that he can transform any frumpy girl into a classy and elegant socialite by means of etiquette lessons and his own influence. In this episode the story is inverted, as the "socially superior" popular boy is revealed to be a predatory asshole and a vampire whom Alex punches and Claire beheads in self-defense.
When Mr. Phelps is found dead hanging by one leg from the flag pole, it is obviously a dummy that is hanging from the pole. In a humorous reference to the prop, the janitor later states that he thought it was a dummy when he found the body.
Quotes
Dean: [pulls out his takeout food from a bag and places it on the table, looking very excited]
Sam: What the hell is that?
Dean: That? That's the Elvis.
Sam: Elvis?
Dean: Mmm-hmm.
Sam: [reaching out to touch it] Is that a -- ?
Dean: That's a glazed donut.
Sam: Yeah.
Dean: Two, actually. One topside, one on the bottom. Now, your inferior versions, they'll just take one donut, split it right down the middle. Mmm mm. [clicks his tongue] Boom! [blows a kiss]
Sam: Alright, well uh, I hope you enjoy it. [slides "the Elvis" away from him and towards Dean] Wow.
Dean: You know there are starving children out there.
Sam: Dude, I'm not gonna survive hundreds of monster attacks to get flatlined by -- by some double doughnut monstrosity.
Dean: The Elvis!
Sam: Whatever it -- how many calories are in that thing?
Jody: [to Alex at the dinner table] 'Kay, uh, well, um, I may have -- I've -- definitely seen birth control pills in your backpack.
Alex: ...
Sam: [cringing] Oh, we're going there.
Dean: Okay.
Alex: Oh my God.
Jody: Hey, if we can't talk about it we shouldn't be doing it, right?
Sam & Dean: ...
Jody: Right?
Dean: What?
Jody: [to Alex and Claire] Okay. I'm not gonna tell you that you are too young to be having sex, or you.
Alex: Who's she gonna have sex with? She doesn't talk to anybody.
Jody: Hey. Um, what I will tell you is that birth control pills are useless against STD's. Whoever you are with needs to suit up! Every time. Always. No pulling up the drawbridge early.
Alex: I know -- I get it!
Jody: And don't expect the guy, as much as I love Henry, to always show up packing. [turning to Sam and Dean] Am I right?
Sam: [looks down at his plate and takes another bite]
Dean: What?
Jody: Seriously?
Trivia
In this episode, the stuffed toy Grumpy Cat that Castiel gave Claire from "The Hot Topical" in "Angel Heart" (ep. 10.20) can be seen on her bed.
Sam is bemused by a photo of a weasel riding a flying woodpecker. The photo was taken in an English park in 2015 and became known as the "weaselpecker" photo. The least weasel is a diminutive but fearless carnivore known for attacking larger animals, including birds. European green woodpeckers spend a lot of time on the ground eating ants. Best guess is that the weasel jumped the bird, who then tried to escape. Happily, the photographer has reported that after the dual flight depicted in this photo, both the woodpecker and the weasel went their separate ways unscathed.
The episode title refers to the Simple Minds hit, which is also famously on the soundtrack for the 1985 movie The Breakfast Club.
When Sam and Dean are talking alone in the school hallway, there is a mural painted on the lockers featuring the anime Yu Yu Hakusho.
Part of the plot is similar the Pygmalion storyline, which is used in the classic stage and film musical My Fair Lady, and the 1999 movie She's All That and many others. The premise is that an aristocratic man claims, in a wager, that he can transform any frumpy girl into a classy and elegant socialite by means of etiquette lessons and his own influence. In this episode the story is inverted, as the "socially superior" popular boy is revealed to be a predatory asshole and a vampire whom Alex punches and Claire beheads in self-defense.
When Mr. Phelps is found dead hanging by one leg from the flag pole, it is obviously a dummy that is hanging from the pole. In a humorous reference to the prop, the janitor later states that he thought it was a dummy when he found the body.
Bit surprised that they didn't actually use sound clips from 'Don't You (Forget About Me)' - lots of other TV shows/ movies have.
The boys not speaking up on condom/ barrier protection usage - I think it might be partially the writers room who don't often have the opportunity to decide whether to use a condom or not.
But I did like that it's an indication that the boys aren't as upright (and responsible, Sam in particular) as they want to think of themselves.
There's also a thing when a cis-presenting male is semi-propositioned/ flirted with by an inappropriately young female as part of discovering their own sexuality. It can be uncomfortable if the target holds the propositioner in some degree of respect.
But the subtext I got here is that the boys are actually aroused/ interested but - especially can't - because of Mills. Yuck.
posted by porpoise at 7:37 PM on December 28, 2021
The boys not speaking up on condom/ barrier protection usage - I think it might be partially the writers room who don't often have the opportunity to decide whether to use a condom or not.
But I did like that it's an indication that the boys aren't as upright (and responsible, Sam in particular) as they want to think of themselves.
There's also a thing when a cis-presenting male is semi-propositioned/ flirted with by an inappropriately young female as part of discovering their own sexuality. It can be uncomfortable if the target holds the propositioner in some degree of respect.
But the subtext I got here is that the boys are actually aroused/ interested but - especially can't - because of Mills. Yuck.
posted by porpoise at 7:37 PM on December 28, 2021
I didn't have that interpretation about San and Dean being attracted to the girls at all. Yuck! I just think that they're both uncomfortable with the idea of girls that young being sexually active, even though they were both interested in the opposite sex while they were teens/young adults. I think it's meant to be more guilt at their own past bad behaviour than any current yearnings. If anything, it's that Sam and Dean see parts of themselves--the need to hunt (Dean) or the desire for a normal life (Sam) in Claire and Alex and while they're sympathetic to those impulses, they understand that life is more complicated than that, and that balance is necessary, which means accepting the supernatural realities while recognizing that family and normal life is important, too.
I also think a part of their awkwardness is because the Winchesters never spend time around young (minor or just above the age of consent) women and have no idea how to relate to them as people--or understand them as maturing people. Sure, they might interview co-eds whose roommates have been murdered, but that's not really interacting with them on a more personal basis. Sam might be slightly more experienced in this matter, having actually gone to college and interacted with people his own age, but that has been a while ago by now, and he's lived a completely different life over the past 11 years, and has likely lost any ability to relate. Dean, in contrast, has never been shown with young girls. Young boys? Sure. We've seen him act as a big brother/father/uncle type of figure to boys, but rarely to girls. I get the sense he's got some old-fashioned notions that girls are supposed to be pure and sweet and untouched, and if anything, it's his job to protect them and prevent anything "bad" from happening to them.
Why was Baby's window down in the last scene? The car was wet. It had been raining. That window should have never been left down. Dean knows you don't leave a car over night with the windows down, precisely because it can rain. Or animals can get in, or a million other reasons.
posted by sardonyx at 7:01 PM on January 1, 2022 [1 favorite]
I also think a part of their awkwardness is because the Winchesters never spend time around young (minor or just above the age of consent) women and have no idea how to relate to them as people--or understand them as maturing people. Sure, they might interview co-eds whose roommates have been murdered, but that's not really interacting with them on a more personal basis. Sam might be slightly more experienced in this matter, having actually gone to college and interacted with people his own age, but that has been a while ago by now, and he's lived a completely different life over the past 11 years, and has likely lost any ability to relate. Dean, in contrast, has never been shown with young girls. Young boys? Sure. We've seen him act as a big brother/father/uncle type of figure to boys, but rarely to girls. I get the sense he's got some old-fashioned notions that girls are supposed to be pure and sweet and untouched, and if anything, it's his job to protect them and prevent anything "bad" from happening to them.
Why was Baby's window down in the last scene? The car was wet. It had been raining. That window should have never been left down. Dean knows you don't leave a car over night with the windows down, precisely because it can rain. Or animals can get in, or a million other reasons.
posted by sardonyx at 7:01 PM on January 1, 2022 [1 favorite]
Full honesty, I have a kitchen and use it, but the delightful novelty of real food I did not have to plan or prepare myself never wears off.
They were not super helpful to Jody in that conversation as the other adults at the table, though I guess they barely know Alex and their relationship with Claire has not been such that I imagine she welcomes their advice on her sex life. I imagine they see Jody as both a realer adult and authority figure than they are, and there's maybe also some panic and maybe morbid curiosity for how this talk goes for teenage girls in the 2010s, since I can only imagine how Sam and Dean got it from John. But yeah, the best they can offer on short notice seems to be to freeze, then attempt to vanish under the table.
I read this page before rewatching the episode, but I personally didn't get any weird vibe off their interactions with Alex or Claire, they seemed firmly in their That Is A Kid box to me. Sam was giving Claire the talk I feel like he's given other hunters who seem to be giving up the chances he wishes he could have back. And Dean probably enjoyed trying to intimidate Alex's boyfriend more than was strictly necessary, but that's because Dean likes to feel like he's protecting people (whether they need or want it or not) and keeping a teenage boy in line is something he understands, I don't read it as him wanting that with Alex in any kind of way. But there’ve for sure been questionable-to-sketchy comments made about young women in general on this show, and if I had gotten that sense here it would’ve super grossed me out too.
posted by jameaterblues at 9:59 PM on January 20, 2022
They were not super helpful to Jody in that conversation as the other adults at the table, though I guess they barely know Alex and their relationship with Claire has not been such that I imagine she welcomes their advice on her sex life. I imagine they see Jody as both a realer adult and authority figure than they are, and there's maybe also some panic and maybe morbid curiosity for how this talk goes for teenage girls in the 2010s, since I can only imagine how Sam and Dean got it from John. But yeah, the best they can offer on short notice seems to be to freeze, then attempt to vanish under the table.
I read this page before rewatching the episode, but I personally didn't get any weird vibe off their interactions with Alex or Claire, they seemed firmly in their That Is A Kid box to me. Sam was giving Claire the talk I feel like he's given other hunters who seem to be giving up the chances he wishes he could have back. And Dean probably enjoyed trying to intimidate Alex's boyfriend more than was strictly necessary, but that's because Dean likes to feel like he's protecting people (whether they need or want it or not) and keeping a teenage boy in line is something he understands, I don't read it as him wanting that with Alex in any kind of way. But there’ve for sure been questionable-to-sketchy comments made about young women in general on this show, and if I had gotten that sense here it would’ve super grossed me out too.
posted by jameaterblues at 9:59 PM on January 20, 2022
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Poor Alex, learning that the loving boyfriend she thought she had was actually a vampire and an asshole who had nothing but contempt for her. While Claire is gung ho to be a hunter, Alex wants a normal life, but I honestly think a girl who has been abducted and raised and exploited by vampires is going to be way too damaged and dysfunctional to ever have one.
Both Sam and Dean ate Jody's cooking like they'd never seen food before. Surely they do at least some healthy home cooking now that they have a kitchen...?
Sam and Dean's manifest discomfort when Jody's talking to Alex at the dinner table about protection is hilarious. They're both good at giving kids/teenagers guidance on any other topic, and they have no problem being frank and forthright about sex with each other or with other adults, but the sexual education of teenaged Alex and Claire is something they'd much prefer to leave to Jody. They couldn't even back Jody up when she wanted them to confirm that Alex should be prepared with condoms instead of expecting her partner to have them on hand.
I loved Dean helping Jody with the dishes without being asked.
posted by orange swan at 7:21 AM on December 28, 2021