The Nerdy Girl Express writers and twins Stacy and Tracy Miller are back for Season 13 for The Miller Twins Talk Supernatural. They will share their thoughts on heroic Winchester brothers, Sam and Dean (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) as well as other characters on The CW’s longest running show.
This article contains spoilers so if you haven’t seen the episode “Lost and Found” please do not continue reading.
Tracy:
One of the prevalent themes throughout Supernatural’s tenure as The CW’s longest running show is the notion of good versus evil. Coupled with this thematic element has been the lingering influence that choice governs the path in which humanity walks. Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) have wrestled with both internal and external demons. Yet, even on those occasions when the allure of evil beckoned (for Sam, an addiction to demon blood was the evil catalyst while Dean fought the murderous urges visited upon him from The Mark of Cain), the Winchesters are legacies of good and are fully prepared to always sacrifice themselves to save the world.
With Jack, Supernatural is seemingly invested in focusing on a new frontier: Does nature or nurture dictate the choice of whether one is good or evil?
In the episode “The Rising Son”, we saw how Jack’s “road so far” is already paved with confusion as Lucifer’s son struggled with understanding his emerging powers and fought a seduction to evil.
With both Crowley and Lucifer gone, Hell is without leadership. But not for long. Enter Asmodeus (Jeffrey Parise), a powerful Prince of Hell, who immediately installs himself on the throne. Asmodeus’ first order of business is to vanquish “the corporate lackeys from the age of Crowley.” Parise is quite chilling as Asmodeus. I’m looking forward to seeing all he has to offer as this character. The lesser demons left standing are charged with finding Lucifer and Jack.
Meanwhile, Sam and Dean (with Jack in tow) are making the long drive back to the Men of Letters bunker. Because an arduous trip is still ahead, the brothers and Jack check into a motel. It is clear that Sam and Dean remain at odds in their philosophies regarding Jack. Sam sees their roles as protectors of the Nephilim as well as helping to teach Jack how to harness his powers for good. In contrast, Dean is certain that Jack will eventually turn evil.
Alexander Calvert continues to play Jack with a mixture of vulnerability and confusion that serves the character well. Jack is thirsty to understand what he is. He gets flashes of his communications with Kelly and also the contact he had with Lucifer. In addition, Jack is afraid that because of his powers he will unintentionally hurt people. Of course it doesn’t help that when Jack feels threatened or experiences pain, some of his powers are unleashed.
It isn’t long before the brothers and Jack are joined by Donatello (the prophet we met in Season 11 not one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles). Apparently, Donatello was drawn to Jack’s power.
In the Alternate Earth, survival is the name of the game for Mary. Lucifer insists that he won’t kill Mary because he wants to trade her for his son. The logistics of how this trade will occur is a big question mark at this juncture given that there is still that nagging problem of the closed rift to the Earth proper. But Lucifer is optimistic. Not even an army of angels doubting that he is Lucifer or the Michael of the Alternate Earth (who killed the Alternate Lucifer) can rain on Lucifer’s parade: Satan is steadfast that he will be reunited with his son.
Asmodeus is able to shape shift. Assuming Donatello’s form, Asmodeus takes Jack to a Gate of Hell. There, subterfuge becomes the order of the day as Asmodeus attempts to entice the malleable Jack to release the hideous beasts called the shedims. Fortunately, Sam, Dean and Donatello arrive just in time. When Asmodeus attacks the men, Jack uses his powers to save them. At this point, Jack chooses good. Still, Dean remains unconvinced that Jack will continue to deny his evil pedigree as Satan’s spawn and the elder Winchester issues an ominous warning that he (Dean) will be the one who will kill an evil Jack.
Foreshadowing, anyone?
Stacy:
In Supernatural “The Rising Son,” who and what actually is Jack was the central theme. Yes, he’s Lucifer’s son and a Nephilim but does that mean he’s evil and out to destroy the world? Does the apple fall far from the tree? Sam and Dean (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) were determined to find out. And they continued to be split on their opinions: Dean thinking the Spawn of Satan is evil, while Sam felt he (Jack) was just a confused kid. My view is although Jack may not be evil now, there’s always the possibility that he will someday give into the darkness inside him.
While the Winchesters were dealing with their “Adventures in Angel Kid Babysitting,” Hell was poised for a new leader with both Crowley and Lucifer booted out of the basement. Enter Asmodeus, played by Jeffrey Parise. For anyone who is a General Hospital fan and has seen Parise’s work as Carlos Rivera, they know they’re in for a treat now that he’s joined Supernatural as the villainous Prince of Hell. In Jeffrey Parise’s hands, Asmodeus will be the season’s love to hate character. He’s suave, with an understated charm and is the perfect foil for Sam and Dean. And anyone in Hell who was loyal to Crowley or Lucifer had better watch out because in Asmodeus’ own words “There’s a new sheriff in town.”
Back to Two Winchesters and an Angel Kid, Sam, Dean and Jack check into a motel to get some rest before they continue to the Men of Letters bunker. We got to see a humorous scene where Jack seemed to imitate Dean’s moves, right down to grabbing a beer. Dean becomes parental and pulls the bottle from Jack’s hands “How old do you think you are?” Dean asks. Jack provides his actual age, down to the seconds. But I guess being a little over three days old is no big deal as Jack continues to drink his alcoholic beverage. In order to protect Jack, he gets inked with the demon tattoo, which Sam refers to as their family crest. I guess it sort of is if you think about it. Interesting, the tattoo vanishes from Jack’s skin as soon as it’s put on. Castiel was able to get the demon tattoo in Season 9, so is it immune to spawns of Archangels?
And remember Prophet Donatello (Keith Szarabajka) last seen in Season 11? Well, he’s back having been alerted to Jack’s presence. Sam and Dean give him a Season 12 recap (excluding the British Men of Letter story line). If Donatello wants to stay safe, he needs to get out of Sam and Dean’s orbits as they don’t have a good track record for with prophets. Or Nephilims for that matter. Crafty Asmodeus disguises himself as Donatello and manages to trick Jack into leaving the motel with him. Asmodeus’ goal? To have Jack open a gate to Hell in the ground to release some nasty looking Hell creatures known as the Shedims. Not that I wanted the world to be in peril from these Hell beasts, but it would have been cool to see them as Supernatural’s CGI budget doesn’t allow as many opportunities to see scary monsters.
Meanwhile in the Alternate Earth, Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino) and Mary (Samantha Smith) are trying to figure a way out. Lucifer is keeping Mary alive in order to trade her to Sam and Dean in exchange for his son. Lucifer gets miffed when the angels of that Earth don’t believe he’s really Lucifer. But one person does: This Earth’s Michael (Christian Keyes). Soon the estranged brothers engage in a fight (This was better than the “big battle” between Lucifer, wearing Sam and Michael, wearing Adam in the Season 5 finale “Swan Song” which was more of a talk fest than flying fists). Will Michael defeat Lucifer in this world too?
As the episode ends, Jack is stabbing himself with an angel blade. He knows it can’t kill him but he worries that the pain may cause him to hurt someone someday. But if he does, Dean promises that he will kill him. Will we see a Dean vs. Jack altercation in the season finale? Too soon to tell.
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The Miller Twins Talk Supernatural S13Ep2 “The Rising Son”
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