Laura Akers" />
Psycho Drive-In logo
Search
  • PDI Press
    Featured
    • BETTY WHITE VS THE STUPID WORLD: The Movie

      Laura Akers
      January 17, 2022
      Fiction, PDI Press, PDI Press Writers
    Recent
    • BETTY WHITE VS THE STUPID WORLD: The Movie

      John E. Meredith
      January 17, 2022
    • Betty White Vs the Stupid World (Chapter Seven)

      John E. Meredith
      January 16, 2022
    • Betty White Vs the Stupid World (Chapter Six)

      John E. Meredith
      January 15, 2022
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    Featured
    • X (2022)

      Laura Akers
      April 22, 2022
      Movies, Reviews
    Recent
    • X (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      April 22, 2022
    • Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      April 15, 2022
    • The Adam Project (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      March 16, 2022
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
    Featured
    • Interview with Indie Horror Master, Chris Bickel

      Laura Akers
      July 13, 2018
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Interview with Indie Horror Master, Chris Bickel

      The Final Girl
      July 13, 2018
    • David Black: Carnies, Carnage, and the Creative Chaos of Darkness Visible

      Dan Lee
      March 7, 2017
    • Jaiden Kaine joins the Marvel Universe as new Luke Cage baddie, Zip

      Andre Lamar
      September 29, 2016
    • SDCC 2016 Interviews: The Cast and Creators of Batman: The Killing Joke

      Jason Sacks
      July 28, 2016
    • SDCC 2016 Interviews: The Cast and Creators of Syfy’s Van Helsing

      Dave Hearn, Paul Brian McCoy
      July 27, 2016
    • Wondercon Interview: The Cast of Damien

      Gary Richardson, Laura Akers
      April 16, 2016
  • News
    Featured
    • John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arrives on Digital 8/23 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand 9/10

      Laura Akers
      July 30, 2019
      DVD/Blu-ray, News
    Recent
    • John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arrives on Digital 8/23 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand 9/10

      psychodr
      July 30, 2019
    • X-Men: Dark Phoenix arrives on Digital 9/3 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD 9/17

      Paul Brian McCoy
      July 16, 2019
    • Avengers: Endgame arrives on Digital 7/30 and Blu-ray 8/13

      psychodr
      July 16, 2019
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
Breaking
  • X (2022)
  • Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
  • The Adam Project (2022)
  • The Batman (2022)
  • Entropy (2022)
  • Killer Sofa (2019)
  • RSS
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Who We Be
  • Contact
  • PDI Press
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
Home
Reviews

Supernatural 10.01 “Black” & 10.02 “Reichenbach”

Laura Akers
October 21, 2014
Reviews, TV

Supernatural is back for its tenth season, and it’s the same-ol’-same-ol’. For the most part.

It’s hard to believe that the show has made it this far, really. After all, it took creator Eric Kripke a decade just to get his show off the ground in the first place. Pitched first as a movie and then as a series involving traveling tabloid reporters, it was rejected over and over until he came up with the idea of Sam and Dean, brothers road-tripping and ridding the American heartland of all things paranormally evil, all while butting heads over everything from standard sibling fare to the nature of life. The show has moved networks (from WB to The CW) and nights (covering four out of the seven) over its years on the air, added and killed off most of its main characters (only pretty-boys Sam and Dean remain consistent). It starts every season with a look back over the last one, laid over a classic rock song, and ends each with a similar use of Kansas’s “Carry on Wayward Son.”

And still the boys prowl the heartland.

markofcainfirstblade

On the surface, it’s surprising that the show has a fanbase, let alone one as committed as it does. Having watched one episode early on, I’d shrugged it off as the usual CW fare: attractive actors used to cover over a poor concept and poorer execution of yet another vampires/werewolves/paranormal-flavor-of-the-month teen show. Only the fact that I’m supposed to be a geek journalist of some sort and I knew that I could be considered illiterate in not knowing the show finally drove me to marathon the series near the end of its ninth season.

Supernatural had me spellbound. Yes, it’s formulaic in a largely structural sense. But it’s also one of the best myth-arc-shows we’ve ever seen on television, and certainly the most ambitious and successful. True, The X-files took on aliens, government conspiracies, and family secrets. Lost covered time, faith, and science. But both, by their fifth seasons, were either largely incomprehensible in the case of the former or suffered from a tendency to ignore parts of its own storyline that had become inconvenient in the latter. Supernatural takes on heaven and hell and all the moral ambiguity between and within, while remaining just as compelling (and often more) that it was in those early years. And it doesn’t require ClifNotes to follow along on that decade-long journey.

samcole

In the season opener, “Black,” the series picks up on that story with Dean (Jensen Ackles) having been raised (or at least awakened) by demon Crowley (played by Mark Sheppard, who has been promoted to series regular for this season) who hopes to take advantage of the Mark of Cain—and its need for regular killing–that the older Winchester carries in order to consolidate the power that Abaddon wrestled away from the former King of Hell. Sam (Jared Padalecki), of course, is bent on saving his brother from the Mark and the demonic influence both around and inside Dean, while Dean seems just as set on enjoying his new form of conscienceless consciousness.

All of this is complicated by the fact that Dean’s more human past is coming after him in the form of Cole (Travis Aaron Wade), a man whose father Dean killed in front of him many years ago (we assume he had a good reason for this at the time). Cole has spent his life since preparing for a confrontation with the former Hunter and kidnaps Sam in order to convince Dean to meet with him. But as demonic brother reveals at the end of the episode, while he will kill Cole at some point in the future for any harm he does to Sam, he has no plans to come to his sibling’s rescue.

1280px-9x23_Castiel+HannahLockUpMetatron

This forces Cole to change his plans in “Reichenbach.” He lets Sam escape in the hopes of following him to his brother. Luckily (or not) for him, Crowley has become less enamored of Dean’s company (who could blame him after all that terrible karaoke?) and gives Sam directions to Dean’s location, and so Cole finally gets the confrontation he’s been hoping for. Unsurprisingly, Dean cleans his clock, but not before Sam manages to capture his brother and gives the First Blade to Crowley for disposal. And while Cole seems beaten in the present, Sam has opened his eyes to the paranormal world, setting the man up to be an ongoing threat this season.

In the meantime, across both episodes, we see the critically wounded Castiel (Misha Collins) attempting, with the help of angel Hannah (Erica Carroll), try to fix the problems at the supposed other side of the moral divide. Most of the angels have returned to Heaven, but some hold out, preferring a more human experience (with its free will) on Earth. Castiel is particularly sympathetic to such a desire, having an appreciation for humanity that’s antithetical for most angels, but is forced to kill one holdout in order to save Hannah. Hannah, just as intent on saving Castiel, visits Metatron (Curtis Armstrong) in the hopes of making a deal to restore Castiel’s grace, but he intervenes, making it clear that he’d rather die than risk loosing Metatron.

kareoke

So, as I said, it’s largely the same series: the brothers are at odds and in mutual danger, Castiel is trying to ride the fence between the human and the angelic, and Heaven and Hell are both in chaos. But it’s far from boring, largely because, as always on this show (and in real life), relationships are rarely predictable. Hannah, who used to be one of the straightest arrows among the angelic, appears to be largely re-evaluating her stance on several issues, possibly because of a growing attraction to Castiel. It’s becoming clear she’s willing to risk much to save him. Crowley, on the other hand, has become disenchanted at least a little with Dean, although that’s complicated by the idea that while the King of Hell might initially have seen the possibilities of the elder Winchester working for him, a big part of his motivation has also been a desire for a companion.

Sheppard delivers well on the script’s implication that Crowley feels rejected on almost a romantic level—and we have no idea what impact that hurt will have on his plans for the First Blade or the brothers. And Cole, his eyes opened to a world his father was obviously involved in (likely on the side of evil), is now a completely loose cannon.

crowleyromance

In other words, there’s a lot of set-up in these first two episodes, from the well-put-together “The Road So Far” sequence over Pat Benatar’s “Heartbreaker” (one of the best of these montages thus far) to the conversation between Sam and Dean at the end of “Reichenbach” about the utter lack of mercy in Dean’s handling of Cole. But it never really feels like set-up. The action and pacing work well enough together for the story to never feel bogged down or disjointed—it’s just as much of a ride as the rest of the series has been.

It’s good to be back on the road with the Winchesters.

(Visited 62 times, 1 visits today)

Share this:

  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

Jared PadaleckiJensen AcklesLaura AkersMark SheppardMisha CollinsSupernatural

ABCs of Horror Day 20: O is for Omen
The Flash 1.02 “The Fastest Man Alive”

About The Author

monsterid
Laura Akers
Voice of the People / Firebrand

Laura Akers is a teacher by calling and a geek academic by nature. Her often too-lengthy writing and her own personal musings tend to revolve around issues of gender, sexuality, identity, politics, religion (and all the other things you’re not supposed to bring up in polite conversation) in TV/film/webseries and other narratives. You can keep up with her ramblings on these subjects by following @laurajakers

Daily Top Ten

  • V/H/S (2012) ReviewV/H/S (2012) Review by Paul Brian McCoy
  • 2012 EZMM: Quarantine 2: Terminal (2011) & The Dead (2010)2012 EZMM: Quarantine 2: Terminal (2011) & The… by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy”Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy” by Dave Hearn
  • It Follows (2015)It Follows (2015) by Keith Silva
  • Better Call Saul 2.07 "Inflatable" Better Call Saul 2.07 “Inflatable” by Jamil Scalese
  • Peelers (2016)Peelers (2016) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (1984) vs The Hills Have Eyes 2 (2007)The Hills Have Eyes Part 2 (1984) vs The Hills Have… by Corin Totin
  • Conan the Adventurer Season One DVDConan the Adventurer Season One DVD by Karyn Pinter
  • Spartacus interview #5 (of 5): Katrina LawSpartacus interview #5 (of 5): Katrina Law by Karyn Pinter
  • Thor and Loki: Blood Brothers Advance DVD ReviewThor and Loki: Blood Brothers Advance DVD Review by Paul Brian McCoy
400x400 GI Joe Funko Banner

Weekly Top Ten

  • The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010)The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010) by The Final Girl
  • Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy”Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy” by Dave Hearn
  • Shakespeare's Macbeth (2010)Shakespeare’s Macbeth (2010) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Unnatural Selections: Two-Headed Shark Attack (2012)Unnatural Selections: Two-Headed Shark Attack (2012) by Brooke Brewer
  • Drive-In Saturday: The Big Bird Cage (1972)Drive-In Saturday: The Big Bird Cage (1972) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • House of Wax (2005)House of Wax (2005) by The Final Girl
  • Women in Horror: I Spit on Your Grave (2010)Women in Horror: I Spit on Your Grave (2010) by The Final Girl
  • Sick Flix: Guinea Pig 2 – Flower of Flesh and Blood (1985)Sick Flix: Guinea Pig 2 – Flower of Flesh and Blood (1985) by Corin Totin
  • Superman II (1980)Superman II (1980) by John Clark
  • Beautiful Creatures: Shin GodzillaBeautiful Creatures: Shin Godzilla by Dan Lee
400x400 UA Affiliate Banner

FACEBOOK

FACEBOOK

Latest Reviews

  • X (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    April 22, 2022
  • Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    April 15, 2022
  • The Adam Project (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    March 16, 2022

psychodrivein

Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E37 - G.I. Joe #12 / Three Strikes For Snake-Eyes!

It's the start of one of the most iconic Joe stories in it's entire history, and it includes the return of two pivotal characters from the past! Join Greg and Jaren as they venture into Rio Lindo to root out Cobra's next devious plot!
---
Watch Greg and Jaren at the link in our profile!

#AnythingJoes @anythingjoespod #GIJoe #MarvelComics #SnakeEyes
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 412: Good Omens (2014 BBC Radio Dramatisation)

Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch was first published in 1990 and was a comedy about Revelations and Armageddon.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#LostInTranslation #GoodOmens #NeilGaiman #TerryPratchett #BBC #MarkHeap #PeterSerafinowicz #JimNorton #AdamThomasWright #JosieLawrence #Charlotterichie #ColinMorgan #CliveRussell #JuliaDeakin #BBCRadio
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E36 - Lexington Comic & Toy Convention 2022

Greg & Jaren recount their experience meeting Larry Hama at the Lexington Comic & Toy Convention 2022. Plus, the latest news, recent acquisitions, and listener mail!
---
Listen to Greg and Jaren's podcast at the link in our profile!

@anythingjoespod #AnythingJoes #GIJoe #Mezco #LarryHama
Today at https://psychodrivein.com X (2022) Ti W Today at https://psychodrivein.com

X (2022)

Ti West is a director I haven’t fully enjoyed, though I would say X is his most accomplished film to date for me. 
---
Read more of Nate's review at the link in our profile!

#X #TiWest #MiaGoth #Slasher
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 411: The Secret of Marvel's Success

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has been dominating the box office since the release of Iron Man.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#LostInTranslation #Marvel #MarvelStudios #MarvelCinematicUniverse #MCU #IronMan #Avengers #MoonKnight #WandaVision #Hawkeye #RobertDowneyJr
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 9: All of Us Are Dead S1 E7-12

There are enough plot threads left dangling to give us a good launching point for a future second season, but if that doesn’t happen, All of Us Are Dead can stand as a solid one-and-done.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #AllOfUsAreDead #Netflix #LeeJaiKyoo #KimNamSu #ChunSungIl #JooDongGeun #YooInSoo #ChoYiHyun #OhHyeSoo #YoonChanYoung #LeeEunSaem #YangHanYeoi #JinHoEun #HaSeungRi #SonSangYeon #zombies
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 8: Return of the Living Dead III (1993)

Return of the Living Dead III is, quite simply, one of the best examples of the genre.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #zombies #ReturnOfTheLivingDead3 #BasilWallace #BrianYuzna #JTrevorEdmond #KentMcCord #MelindaClarke #SarahDouglas
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 7: Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)

While I really didn’t like Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City very much, I want to give it a fair shake.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #ResidentEvil #ResidentEvilWelcomeToRaccoonCity #WelcomeToRaccoonCity #JohannesRoberts #RobbieAmell #HannahJohnKamen #TomHopper #DonalLogue #NealMcDonough #KayaScodelario #AvanJogia #MarinaMazepa
Today at https://psychodrivein.com EZMM 2022 Day Today at https://psychodrivein.com

EZMM 2022 Day 6: Kingdom: Ashin of the North (2021)

Vengeance. That’s what Ashin is doing. That’s what she’s been doing from behind the scenes all along.
---
Read more of Paul's review at the link in our profile!

#EZMM #EZMM2022 #EasterZombieMovieMarathon #EasterZombieMovieMarathon2022 #Zombies #TheKingdom #TheKingdomAshinOfTheNorth #AshinOfTheNorth #Ashin #Netflix #JunJiHyun #KimEunHee #KimRoiHa #KimSeongHun #KimShiAh #ParkByungEun
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Latest Columns

  • Anything Joes: S01E37 – G.I. Joe #12 / Three Strikes For Snake-Eyes!

    Greg Engle
    May 11, 2022
  • Lost in Translation 412: Good Omens (2014 BBC Radio Dramatisation)

    Scott Delahunt
    April 29, 2022
  • Anything Joes: S01E36 – Lexington Comic & Toy Convention 2022

    Greg Engle
    April 27, 2022

TWITTER

My Tweets

Look Who's Talking

Oliver Ghingold
Oliver Ghingold - 2/18/2022
Muppet Madness: You’re the Director
Do you still have these tapes? I've been looking everywhere for them! I loved the Interactive Vision...
white swan
white swan - 12/22/2021
The Hills Have Eyes (1977) vs The Hills Have Eyes (2006)
I enjoyed the article though I would never call brutality gorgeous.
Shawn EH
Shawn EH - 10/26/2021
13 Days of Halloween Day 12: Halloween Kills (2021)
Very disappointing, it's true. And very mean-spirited murders of nobodies. And I don't even see how...
RSSTwitterFacebookinstagramtumblr

Archives

Large_rectangle_336X280
All work on this site is Copyright © each individual writer.
  • PDI Press
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
%d bloggers like this: