Supernatural: King Of The Damned
May 9, 2014 7:53 AM - Season 9, Episode 21 - Subscribe
Cas asks Sam and Dean for help in interrogating an angel POW (them being the torture experts) while Abaddon drops in on Crowley with someone from his past.
- Abaddon's demise felt a bit anticlimactic, but given the number of narrative balls in the air this season that might be unavoidable. It seems like Dean/Mark of Cain/First Blade might end up being a bigger bad than she was.
- I loved the "interrogation" scene. I was expecting an angel sword torture scene, and it was nice to see the brothers using their wiles for once, even if it was in a very cartoony way.
- All in all, I dug this episode. After the boring derail of "Bloodlines", it was nice to get back to the fun season arc stuff.
- When do we get to see Cain again? He's awesome.
Outside of that Cain (Timothy Omundsen is fantastic in everything) episode, the whole season has been a pretty big snore. Making the dispensing with Abaddon sort of trivial was initially annoying, but in retrospect, I'm glad they handled it that way, although if this means the Metatron crap is now supposed to be super-climactic by comparison, I'm not sold. Gadreel and Cas's recruitment of him are kinda groovy, though.
But overall it is long past time to shut down the dog and pony show for good.
posted by FelliniBlank at 10:19 AM on May 9, 2014
But overall it is long past time to shut down the dog and pony show for good.
posted by FelliniBlank at 10:19 AM on May 9, 2014
I'm pretty suspicious of Castiel at this point. I'm wondering if the Angels that attacked Castiel and Gadreel, thereby convincing Gadreel to act as Castiel's spy, were sent by Cass to make Gadreel think he's backed the wrong side.
Abaddon's death was way to quick. I was expecting more of a fight, but I suppose it really drives home the point that Mark of Cain Dean is pretty unstoppable now. Wonder who he'll stab next?
I love fanfare! Everyone's watching the same trashy tv as me!
posted by Arbac at 11:21 AM on May 9, 2014 [5 favorites]
Abaddon's death was way to quick. I was expecting more of a fight, but I suppose it really drives home the point that Mark of Cain Dean is pretty unstoppable now. Wonder who he'll stab next?
I love fanfare! Everyone's watching the same trashy tv as me!
posted by Arbac at 11:21 AM on May 9, 2014 [5 favorites]
I'm pretty suspicious of Castiel at this point. I'm wondering if the Angels that attacked Castiel and Gadreel, thereby convincing Gadreel to act as Castiel's spy, were sent by Cass to make Gadreel think he's backed the wrong side.
Didn't Metatron convince Cas to re-enter the fray as part of the narrative he was designing? The whole thing is weird and sketchy.
posted by brundlefly at 11:57 AM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
Didn't Metatron convince Cas to re-enter the fray as part of the narrative he was designing? The whole thing is weird and sketchy.
posted by brundlefly at 11:57 AM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
Dean does deserve a chance to go bad for a while finally after all this time. "Sam and Cas get to be evil; how come I never get to be evil?
posted by FelliniBlank at 12:16 PM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by FelliniBlank at 12:16 PM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
I'm just happy that there's nothing seriously wrong with Sam right now. He's always addicted to something or missing something or has something extra sitting in his noggin.
posted by brundlefly at 12:37 PM on May 9, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by brundlefly at 12:37 PM on May 9, 2014 [2 favorites]
viggorlijah, I guess after season 8, season 9 is so MUCH BETTER that I was impressed. Season 8 was "a light breeze might knock over the set." and "Acting!" so this is much improved.
I was suspecting Cas setup the assassins. It was right after Dean said something about angels not lying that he met with Gladriel.
And yeah, Abaddon's death was kind of a let down. Also, if the God damn Devils trap bullet is so effective, why not just use that on all demons. Shoot first, stab later.
I'm pretty sure they knew they had the renewal in the bag when they filmed these last episodes, so I'll be curious how they wrap up the season.
posted by [insert clever name here] at 11:29 PM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
I was suspecting Cas setup the assassins. It was right after Dean said something about angels not lying that he met with Gladriel.
And yeah, Abaddon's death was kind of a let down. Also, if the God damn Devils trap bullet is so effective, why not just use that on all demons. Shoot first, stab later.
I'm pretty sure they knew they had the renewal in the bag when they filmed these last episodes, so I'll be curious how they wrap up the season.
posted by [insert clever name here] at 11:29 PM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
And someone tell me, why wouldn't you carry the goddammit hell hound glasses with you everywhere?
posted by [insert clever name here] at 11:30 PM on May 9, 2014 [2 favorites]
posted by [insert clever name here] at 11:30 PM on May 9, 2014 [2 favorites]
If they actually carried out half of the clever things they found, then most episodes would be wound up in 5 minutes flat. They should be wearing flak jackets with pockets full of dead man's blood, hexbags, GPS trackers, etc.
Supernatural has taught me not to think while watching. And to treat all the giant plotholes as opportunities for better. Also, to expect any female character to die horrifically within a season. Charlie's exit to Oz was a high point - possibly the high point - of this season for that alone.
posted by viggorlijah at 4:22 AM on May 10, 2014
Supernatural has taught me not to think while watching. And to treat all the giant plotholes as opportunities for better. Also, to expect any female character to die horrifically within a season. Charlie's exit to Oz was a high point - possibly the high point - of this season for that alone.
posted by viggorlijah at 4:22 AM on May 10, 2014
Ah, Dean. It's not enough to knife Abaddon but in continuing the fine tradition of Dean Has Serious Women Issues, he's gotta wail on her meatsuit until Sam tells him to stop?
It is getting a bit tiresome to set up a villain with a capital V in the beginning of a season, only to dispatch of them before we get to the season finale. Shepherd and I agree that having the past couple of episodes be series arc-light was a weird misstep, given that we have to wrap this all up somehow.
Supernatural, I love you, but you're bringing me down.
posted by Kitteh at 4:57 AM on May 12, 2014
It is getting a bit tiresome to set up a villain with a capital V in the beginning of a season, only to dispatch of them before we get to the season finale. Shepherd and I agree that having the past couple of episodes be series arc-light was a weird misstep, given that we have to wrap this all up somehow.
Supernatural, I love you, but you're bringing me down.
posted by Kitteh at 4:57 AM on May 12, 2014
I have a hard time believing Abaddon would just sit there and not run away. Like, clearly Dean has the Blade That Can Kill Me, and he can summon it to himself with the Force. I’m going to try my has-failed-twice-now Force Strangulation again because it’s going to work this time instead of cutting my losses and preserving my life.
I was never very fond of her, but this was a poorly written end.
posted by royalsong at 9:43 AM on May 13, 2014 [3 favorites]
I was never very fond of her, but this was a poorly written end.
posted by royalsong at 9:43 AM on May 13, 2014 [3 favorites]
Supernatural, I love you, but you're bringing me down.
Yeah, we've had some good years, but I'm at the point where I wouldn't be all that sad if Supernatural just broke up with me.
posted by FelliniBlank at 7:06 PM on May 13, 2014 [2 favorites]
Yeah, we've had some good years, but I'm at the point where I wouldn't be all that sad if Supernatural just broke up with me.
posted by FelliniBlank at 7:06 PM on May 13, 2014 [2 favorites]
Quotes:
Crowley: I look to you, my trusted advisors, to restore confidence, to soothe those jangled nerves. Spread the word -- the king is back, and the kingdom is once again on sound footing. So, all those with me, say "yo!"
Everyone: ...
Crowley: ...
Abaddon: [appears behind him] Yo.
Crowley: ...
Abaddon: I mean, I'm literally with you, not with you with you.
Crowley: [snarling; to the demons who didn't inform him that Abbadon was about to show up] You betrayed me? No one in the history of torture's been tortured with torture like the torture you'll be tortured with.
Sam: [talking to Ezra, an angel they're questioning] I see. I got it. So, you heard a rumour about Metatron's secret portal [uses air quotes] and you decided to run with it.
Ezra: It's not a rumour. He showed me.
Dean: Oh. I get it. He's a fan.
Sam: A fan. Yeah.
Dean: You're a fan! Look, just cuz you're hot for Metatron... or Beiber... or Beckham, just cuz you know everything about them doesn't mean that you actually *know* them.
Sam: Or that they even know you exist.
Dean: Ohhhh, that's cold, Sammy.
Sam: I'm sayin', man.
Dean: Maybe your operation's been hacked. You know, Metatron's got somebody on the inside.
Castiel: I was sure everyone here was loyal. Finally united by a common cause.
Dean: Well, that's the problem. See, you don't think anybody's lying. I think everybody's lying. It's a gift.
Sam: Ughhhh... come on, Crowley! You really, uh, uh, have to hide the blade in a corpse? Not, not with a corpse, but *in* a corpse?
Dean: I gotta say, it's not the first place I'd look.
Crowley: Hello, Dean. Love the crazy bloodlust in your eyes.
Crowley: I'll cheer the day when the last trace of humanity leaves me. [shudders] Feelings.
Angel in Bar: What about Metatron?
Ezra: Well, uh... He's come to depend on me. So, you know, we're tight. And I have to say, I've come to appreciate the Met-man's vision.
Angel in Bar: His vision? He threw us all out of Heaven!
Ezra: No, no, no, no. Big picture. He's giving the place a makeover, bringing back the chosen few, starting with the, uh, chosen chosen few, if you, uh, know what I mean.
Crowley: Do I get no credit for warning you this was a trap?
Sam: ...
Crowley: "Poughkeepsie" ring a bell?
Sam: [gives Dean an annoyed look]
Crowley: I sense drama.
Gavin MacLeod: [reading newspaper] Some Buccaneers beat the Saints? Can this be?
Gavin MacLeod: You sold your soul? Sold it? For an extra three inches of willy?
Gavin MacLeod: "Why do I hate you"?
Crowley: I mean, I beat you, starved you, came home drunk, beat you some more, woke up hungover, and, yeah, I beat you. In all fairness, I didn't really have any role models. My mother was a witch!
Gavin MacLeod: I can't be consorting with a demon!
Crowley: Not just any demon. I'm the king -- the king of Hell! And there you were worried the old man wouldn't amount to much.
Gavin MacLeod: If I was to accept you as my father, you could keep me from eternally burning in hell? No matter my sins?
Crowley: You're negotiating with me? That's my boy.
Abaddon: Join me in taking out the Winchesters and that ridiculous Blade, and then we'll deal with each other.
Crowley: To be clear... I'll not be joining you ever. Except at your death scene, where I shall burst into song.
Sam: The lore all says the same thing -- you change any one thing in the past, the ripple effect impacts everything that follows.
Crowley: Please. No one bends the rules like you two bend the rules. He's one misfit kid. He impacts no one.
Crowley: Mustn't snivel, Gavin. It might fit the old life. This one could be different.
Gavin MacLeod: I don't know the first thing about the 21st Century!
Crowley: You'll be fine. Just avoid cheap whiskey and cheap hookers. Look at me, getting all fatherly.
Gavin MacLeod: So this is goodbye, then?
Crowley: Yes. Forever. Unless, of course, I catch you smoking, in which case, I'll smack you stupid.
Crowley: [after getting in fight with his son] Squirrel. I hope you were nice to your father.
Dean: What?
Trivia
Crowley learned the meaning of Poughkeepsie as a warning in "Road Trip" (ep. 9.10).
The caller ID for Crowley on Dean's cell phone is 666.
At the beginning of the episode, Gavin is seen unscrewing a bottle top. The bottle appears to have threads on the outside of the top. After taking a drink, he then rescrews the top onto the bottle. This secen occurs in the year 1723, but screw tops for bottles weren't invented until the mid 1800s. Even then, the bottle threads were on the inside of bottles, not the outside.
This episode has the first appearance of Gavin, Crowley's son as played by Theo Devaney. The character previously appeared in "Weekend at Bobby's" (ep. 6.4), but in that episode he was played by Adam Groves. Reasons for the casting change are unclear. Towards the end of this episode Dean says, "I just still can't get over the fact that Crowley has a son," though he and Sam summoned Gavin in "Weekend at Bobby's".
The scene where Dean drops the Blade and it magically returns to his outstretched hand, is reminiscent of an important scene in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, where Luke uses The Force to retrieve his dropped lightsaber. It also parallels Thor and his hammer Mjolnir, in the movie Thor, in which "he that possess the power of Thor be worthy". Thor is able to hold out his hand and Mjolnir flies to it. The Supernatural series has had a few references to Norse mythology or Odin, Loki (the Trickster/Gabriel), and Thor.
At approximately 12:30, Sam mistakenly calls Dean "Sam".
Gavin is from the past and yet he clearly has a hole in his chin from a piercing.
posted by orange swan at 3:25 PM on November 21, 2021
Crowley: I look to you, my trusted advisors, to restore confidence, to soothe those jangled nerves. Spread the word -- the king is back, and the kingdom is once again on sound footing. So, all those with me, say "yo!"
Everyone: ...
Crowley: ...
Abaddon: [appears behind him] Yo.
Crowley: ...
Abaddon: I mean, I'm literally with you, not with you with you.
Crowley: [snarling; to the demons who didn't inform him that Abbadon was about to show up] You betrayed me? No one in the history of torture's been tortured with torture like the torture you'll be tortured with.
Sam: [talking to Ezra, an angel they're questioning] I see. I got it. So, you heard a rumour about Metatron's secret portal [uses air quotes] and you decided to run with it.
Ezra: It's not a rumour. He showed me.
Dean: Oh. I get it. He's a fan.
Sam: A fan. Yeah.
Dean: You're a fan! Look, just cuz you're hot for Metatron... or Beiber... or Beckham, just cuz you know everything about them doesn't mean that you actually *know* them.
Sam: Or that they even know you exist.
Dean: Ohhhh, that's cold, Sammy.
Sam: I'm sayin', man.
Dean: Maybe your operation's been hacked. You know, Metatron's got somebody on the inside.
Castiel: I was sure everyone here was loyal. Finally united by a common cause.
Dean: Well, that's the problem. See, you don't think anybody's lying. I think everybody's lying. It's a gift.
Sam: Ughhhh... come on, Crowley! You really, uh, uh, have to hide the blade in a corpse? Not, not with a corpse, but *in* a corpse?
Dean: I gotta say, it's not the first place I'd look.
Crowley: Hello, Dean. Love the crazy bloodlust in your eyes.
Crowley: I'll cheer the day when the last trace of humanity leaves me. [shudders] Feelings.
Angel in Bar: What about Metatron?
Ezra: Well, uh... He's come to depend on me. So, you know, we're tight. And I have to say, I've come to appreciate the Met-man's vision.
Angel in Bar: His vision? He threw us all out of Heaven!
Ezra: No, no, no, no. Big picture. He's giving the place a makeover, bringing back the chosen few, starting with the, uh, chosen chosen few, if you, uh, know what I mean.
Crowley: Do I get no credit for warning you this was a trap?
Sam: ...
Crowley: "Poughkeepsie" ring a bell?
Sam: [gives Dean an annoyed look]
Crowley: I sense drama.
Gavin MacLeod: [reading newspaper] Some Buccaneers beat the Saints? Can this be?
Gavin MacLeod: You sold your soul? Sold it? For an extra three inches of willy?
Gavin MacLeod: "Why do I hate you"?
Crowley: I mean, I beat you, starved you, came home drunk, beat you some more, woke up hungover, and, yeah, I beat you. In all fairness, I didn't really have any role models. My mother was a witch!
Gavin MacLeod: I can't be consorting with a demon!
Crowley: Not just any demon. I'm the king -- the king of Hell! And there you were worried the old man wouldn't amount to much.
Gavin MacLeod: If I was to accept you as my father, you could keep me from eternally burning in hell? No matter my sins?
Crowley: You're negotiating with me? That's my boy.
Abaddon: Join me in taking out the Winchesters and that ridiculous Blade, and then we'll deal with each other.
Crowley: To be clear... I'll not be joining you ever. Except at your death scene, where I shall burst into song.
Sam: The lore all says the same thing -- you change any one thing in the past, the ripple effect impacts everything that follows.
Crowley: Please. No one bends the rules like you two bend the rules. He's one misfit kid. He impacts no one.
Crowley: Mustn't snivel, Gavin. It might fit the old life. This one could be different.
Gavin MacLeod: I don't know the first thing about the 21st Century!
Crowley: You'll be fine. Just avoid cheap whiskey and cheap hookers. Look at me, getting all fatherly.
Gavin MacLeod: So this is goodbye, then?
Crowley: Yes. Forever. Unless, of course, I catch you smoking, in which case, I'll smack you stupid.
Crowley: [after getting in fight with his son] Squirrel. I hope you were nice to your father.
Dean: What?
Trivia
Crowley learned the meaning of Poughkeepsie as a warning in "Road Trip" (ep. 9.10).
The caller ID for Crowley on Dean's cell phone is 666.
At the beginning of the episode, Gavin is seen unscrewing a bottle top. The bottle appears to have threads on the outside of the top. After taking a drink, he then rescrews the top onto the bottle. This secen occurs in the year 1723, but screw tops for bottles weren't invented until the mid 1800s. Even then, the bottle threads were on the inside of bottles, not the outside.
This episode has the first appearance of Gavin, Crowley's son as played by Theo Devaney. The character previously appeared in "Weekend at Bobby's" (ep. 6.4), but in that episode he was played by Adam Groves. Reasons for the casting change are unclear. Towards the end of this episode Dean says, "I just still can't get over the fact that Crowley has a son," though he and Sam summoned Gavin in "Weekend at Bobby's".
The scene where Dean drops the Blade and it magically returns to his outstretched hand, is reminiscent of an important scene in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, where Luke uses The Force to retrieve his dropped lightsaber. It also parallels Thor and his hammer Mjolnir, in the movie Thor, in which "he that possess the power of Thor be worthy". Thor is able to hold out his hand and Mjolnir flies to it. The Supernatural series has had a few references to Norse mythology or Odin, Loki (the Trickster/Gabriel), and Thor.
At approximately 12:30, Sam mistakenly calls Dean "Sam".
Gavin is from the past and yet he clearly has a hole in his chin from a piercing.
posted by orange swan at 3:25 PM on November 21, 2021
I agree with the above commenter that Abbadon would have vanished when she saw Dean coming at her with the blade. I do wish Demon Barbie could have gotten better character development and a better arc.
My goodness the MacLeod family has its issues. This episode contains another mention of Crowley's mother being a witch. I do appreciate the consistency of this biographical detail and I wonder if it was always the plan to introduce Crowley's mother into the mix.
I don't know how on earth Gavin could possibly make his way in the world with no resources and no capital and no skills or understanding of how the 21st century world functions. You'd think Crowley could have at least set him up with money and connections.
posted by orange swan at 3:29 PM on November 21, 2021
My goodness the MacLeod family has its issues. This episode contains another mention of Crowley's mother being a witch. I do appreciate the consistency of this biographical detail and I wonder if it was always the plan to introduce Crowley's mother into the mix.
I don't know how on earth Gavin could possibly make his way in the world with no resources and no capital and no skills or understanding of how the 21st century world functions. You'd think Crowley could have at least set him up with money and connections.
posted by orange swan at 3:29 PM on November 21, 2021
Gavin being appalled that buccaneers beat the saints is probably only an okay time travel joke but I laughed anyway.
That they both were fine rummaging around inside a gooey rotting corpse with their bare hands, go get a plastic bag or something Jesus GOD.
Also I was not on Fanfare when season 9 was airing and reading the comments from 2014 about how Supernatural had been on too long is like finding graffiti on the walls of Pompeii.
posted by jameaterblues at 8:00 PM on November 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
That they both were fine rummaging around inside a gooey rotting corpse with their bare hands, go get a plastic bag or something Jesus GOD.
Also I was not on Fanfare when season 9 was airing and reading the comments from 2014 about how Supernatural had been on too long is like finding graffiti on the walls of Pompeii.
posted by jameaterblues at 8:00 PM on November 21, 2021 [1 favorite]
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The only bright spot was Crowley's son. I liked his question about exactly how much he could sin, given his father is the king of hell. I doubt he'll be helping old ladies cross the street wherever Crowley's stashed him away.
All that for Abaddon and she gets knifed. Most boring villain arc ever.
posted by viggorlijah at 8:03 AM on May 9, 2014 [1 favorite]