The 5th Year Begins

The pilot episode of Supernatural's fifth season took me on a roller-coaster ride of emotions. Of course, I was seriously excited to see it. I waited almost 4 months for it! That may not sound like such a long time, but for one who considers SPN as the highlight of her every week, it seemed like forever. Call me a loser without a life if you want to; I don't care because that is just the way it is for me. 

Since it is the first episode, it aroused a lot of questions.

1. What happened to Sam? Why is he all normal? Where did all the black-eyed, blood-drinking go? Is it somewhere laying dormant inside him? Or - heaven forbid - will he end up as the devil's vessel?! As if the rift between the brothers is not deep enough.

2. As much as I rejoice over the fact that Castiel is indeed alive, I'd like to know how that happened. Chuck (the prophet) said that he exploded "like a water balloon of chunky bits" or something to that effect. Last season, he did mention that he had healing abilities. But the finale had him facing archangels alone, and we all know that only angels can kill other angels, and what he faced are archangels. So how come he's alive?

3. This may or may not be a crucial issue but I just would like to know how Bobby got possessed by a demon. After he stabbed himself to get rid of the pest hitching a ride in his body, I got the impression that he will more or less spend the whole season in that hospital bed or somewhere else being immobile. I do not support this. I want Bobby out and fighting with the boys until the end.

For now, those are the ones I can think of. The thing worth noting here is how the good side and the bad side ask for consent. See, the devil is also an angel so he needs a vessel to be able to move around on Earth. Michael the Archangel also needs one, which is Dean. The vessels need to first give the go signal before they can settle inside them. 

The angels asked for consent in such a brutal manner that one may think twice about categorizing them under "good". Zachariah broke Sam's leg and took away his lungs, rendered Bobby immobile from the waist down, and gave Dean stage 4 stomach cancer, just to push him to say yes. It was almost heartless but at least they were up front and honest with their motives. They clearly stated that the fight should start right away so Michael urgently needs his vessel. They will go to any lengths to get it and win.

The devil, on the other hand, appeared as an innocent-looking lady who put on a whole "I'm misunderstood" drama and utilized the misfortunes of the man (the vessel) to convince him to give his consent. How sly and cunning and oh so detestable yet effective. He/It got a yes while the angels failed miserably.

I am in no mood to delve into a theological reflection about this one, although I would like one of my Theo profs to watch this whole series and give me commentaries and stuff. It would be so cool if he used this as a material in class. 

The most memorable scenes:

Becky, the webmistress of Morethanbrothers.com --> a website dedicated to slash Sam/Dean fanfiction

Dean: A life as an angel condom? I'll pass. 

"We can't go back to the way we were. I don't think I can trust you anymore." ~Dean to Sam

This was the final, most heartbreaking dialogue in this episode. I sat stunned for a bit. I mean, SPN is distinguished by the strong brotherhood of these two characters. They are the epitome of bro-mance. I just cannot imagine the show if that was taken away. 

Don't give up on Sammy, Dean.