SPN - "Family Remains"

[feliciakw]

It's back. And about freakin' time, too. Withdrawal, I tell ya, is not fun.

Plus S1 creepy with S4 angst is for yay.

Not much in the way of the thinky thoughts on this one, though dodger_winslow has some really good ones. A lot of what she put into words I picked up on on a peripheral/subliminal level. (Mind you, I don't agree with her stance on everything in the ep, but at the core, I don't disagree . . . )




"Then" . . . a recap of Dean's story arc. And I found the editing to be somewhat distracting. I know why they did it the way they did it, but a new shot on every phrase is just . . . jarring.

"Now" . . . Okay, I'll say this up front. When I first saw the production stills from this episode, my first reaction was, "Oh! They're bringing Missy Bender back?" In many ways, this ep reminded me a little bit of "The Benders," a little bit of the XF ep "Home," (though not nearly as disturbing, and a little bit of "Bloody Mary" it its creep factor. You will also notice a couple homages to the original The Haunting, which I'll point out along the way.

I'm also told that the exteriors were, in fact, the same house used in the XF ep. Good call, janglyjewels. Thanks for pointing that out.

Doors opening by themselves and creepy children wandering out . . . ftw.

Title flash. I still really like it.

Impala, night. And countless fanfics wherein the Boys spend the night in the car are now validated. Heh. Sam sleeping in the back seat, and insomniac Dean looking for a job. They've been working non-stop for a month (of hiatus) and haven't mentioned the conversation at the end of 4.10 since. Hm . . .

And now, instead of nightmares, Dean simply isn't sleeping at all.

I also love how they take the time, from time to time, to point out that ghosts aren't the only thing that makes an EMF meter go off. And I also like the shift in focus to catch the reflection of the power lines.

Doll head in the closet. I believe my response was, "That's not right." I'm totally with Dean on the "That's super disturbing."

Aliases: Stanwyck and Bevar. Now, Stanwyck I get--Barbara Stanwyck, which I thought a little odd. But Bevar didn't ring any bells. So I did some 'Net surfing and discovered that Carol Bevar was in a couple of what look like bad sex comedies. Now, this is interesting to me, in that it might be indicative of the movies each of the guys likes, with Sam preferring the Hollywood classics (I know Stanwyck mostly from noir, but her career was long and varied, that's for sure) and Dean opting for sex movies and porn (big surprise there). It could also be a reflection of how they see themselves and/or each other. Assuming Dean is the one who has the IDs made, it would seem that Dean sees Sam as . . . classier, smarter, with more versatility and longevity, while Dean sees himself as low-class, expendable, with no future.

Or I could be reading way too much into it.

FBI agents wear matching ties. (Almost.) Heh.

Creepy girl in the window is creepy.

Person in the closet is also creepy. I will say that the direction and photographic direction of the creepy in this ep is very . . . creepy. And effective.

Hey, if the mom can figure out how to get a good zucchini garden, I'd like to talk to her.

D: So what now?
S: We could tell them the truth.
D: Really?
S: No, not really.

Kind of a role reversal there. Used to be Sam was the one who wanted to tell them the truth and Dean said no, absolutely not.

And then we have nods to The Haunting. I didn't really association the writing on the wall with The Haunting at first, but it totally could be. No, what made me think of The Haunting was the girl petting the dog and having her hand licked. Because I totally knew that wasn't her dog. Seriously. Then to have it confirmed, it's still downright creepy. (Btw, if you haven't seen the 1960 The Haunting, that scene is one of the scariest in the movie.)

Okay, are the interiors a rearrangement of the set that is Bobby's house? Because the windows look familiar, and the all configuration kinda reminds me of Bobby's, but not quite.

Ack! Impala's tires are slashed!

ACCCCKKK!!!!! Weapons are gone!!!!!

And the other vehicles are useless, too. Trapped! They're all trapped!

And suddenly the ghost has a lot more range than they expected. So it's back into the house, to a hopefully defensible position.

And Dean is taking this job very seriously. "I'm not letting anyone die tonight." Dean? I'm getting flashbacks to Sam in "Playthings" and other S2 eps. But more on that later.

It also seems to be their new MO that Dean stays with the victims while Sam goes to investigate. In "Monster Movie," there was, of course, a reason Dean wanted to stay with Jamie, but in this current scene, Sam makes the same suggestion: Dean "babysits" while Sam investigates. Must ponder . . .

"Fonzie." HEE!!!!

And . . . creepy girl comes out of the creepy closet, and . . . um . . . crosses the salt line. You know? I should have clued in earlier that she wasn't a ghost, because she didn't stutter or fritz.

And once he figures out she's a person, and alive, Dean steps back from the offensive and goes on the defensive. Hm . . .

The disappearance of Danny is very creepy, and rather disconcerting. No one noticed him get snatched? He went off by himself? Bzuh?

Creepy secret passages in the walls make me nervous.

The way Dean resigns himself to doing what needs to be done. Such a trooper.

"Please nobody grab my leg." Gah! *shudder*

Turning and running into the hanging . . .whatever? Made me jump. Bwah.

And you know, you know, you just know Uncle is gonna get it.

Stick figures of a boy and a girl. Huh.

And just as an aside: When Dean leans back against the wall, keeping quiet while the girl scurries away overhead? Jensen looks really good there for some reason.

And now . . . every death that Dean is even remotely in the vicinity of is going to weigh on him. Oh, Dean.

"Story ripped from an Austrian headline." Hey, if CSI can do it . . .

And I'm kind of endeared to the fact that Dean simply cannot seem to wrap his brain around how people can treat each other that way--especially family.

Okay, so the kid was locked up in the house her whole life, but she reads and writes. I'm not so much thrown by that as wondering how the child survived. Obviously the infant had someone taking care of her, because infants can't do for themselves. So someone somewhere along the line had to be giving the kid some kind of care. Yes?

"Like you know what Hell's like." Ooh. Um, yeah. But you know? I rather like that they're acknowledging that Hell isn't necessarily a metaphor to be tossed around. Not anymore. It's very real to Dean and . . . and apparently I'm too tired to form coherent thoughts anymore.

I also like that Dean is the smart one who figured out that dad was using the dumb waiter.

Ack! Night vision scene, especially with the girl crawling into the basement, was creepy.

And Dean. Desperate to save as many people as he can, hoping to make up for what he did in Hell. Oh, Dean.

Okay, what is with the random cross lying on the floor? I noticed the Mary statue on the end table at the beginning, too. Must these mentally disturbed families always be portrayed as religious? It doesn't add anything to this story.

Oh, excellent. Dean gets his sawed-off and his ivory handled Colt back. Yay. I'd hate for him to lose that Colt. It's his favorite pistol.

This of course begs the question as to how she broke into the trunk and snagged the arsenal to begin with, yes? Of course, I suppose she's well practiced in stealing things to survive.

Uh-oh. Creepy!Girl has a brother? Yep, there he is. Ack!

So. Creepy!Girl attacks the shed while Creepy!Brother is fighting with Dean.

You know? Creepy!Brother also explains the girl and boy stick figures painted in blood on the wall. I'm thinking they're twins?

Dean kills Creepy!Brother, a human death at his hands. And Dad kills Creepy!Girl, who stares creepily from where she lies in the field.

Yay! they got their arsenal back!

Opposite of okay, but together. You're listening, guys. Right?

And how sad is it that my first thought at seeing the beginning of the closing scene was, "Oh, no. Not again." Seriously. I don't mind these roadside confessionals, but seriously. Can't we split them up a little. I realize for the guys it's been a month since the last one, but for us the audience? It's back to back. We just did this. Writers, directors. Please. Change it up a little bit. Please? Set the Big Reveal in a laundromat while they're sorting their socks.

I like that Sam has a habit of cluing in on when Dean doesn't eat. Because Dean doesn't not eat.

And what can I say about that last reveal, really? It makes me twitchy for where they might be going with it, though I can't articulate why. It's good that Dean is bothered by it, too.

Now before I toddle off to bed, let me ramble a bit about the Dean-Sam comparison. In S2, Sam was very concerned, scared about what he might become. He didn't want to become a monster, become something he's not. Dean? Has now been there. He became a monster during his time in Hell. It's that role reversal thing again. Sam was afraid of turning, with Dean reassuring him it wouldn't happen. Now Dean actually did turn, and Sam is offering forgiveness. Dean knows whereof he speaks when he talks about the slippery slope and turning, and that gives his cautions to Sam that much more weight.

I've also come up with the theory that Dean did not remember his time in Hell when he first returned because if he had, he wouldn't have been able to function. They (the angels? God?) gave him time to settle back into life before allowing or making him remember. But you know? It's kind of important that he does remember. He's the only human who can appreciate what will happen if they fail. As Castiel said, Dean of all people should know what it means when the threat of Hell on Earth looms. Of course Dean is guilt ridden by what he did, what he became. He tortured other human souls. But he also knows now what will become of humanity, what must be prevented.

I just hope the brothers can help each other through their respective mine fields to a place that isn't so dark, a place that is, in fact, victorious.

And you know? Re-reading that last line tells me I really need to get some sleep.

Comments

[kalquessa.livejournal.com]

The scene with Kate and the dog and the...not a dog? Ew. Anyway, yeah, that scene totally made me think of the black-and-white Haunting.

And just as an aside: When Dean leans back against the wall, keeping quiet while the girl scurries away overhead? Jensen looks really good there for some reason.

I took particular notice of that moment and Jensen's brilliant acting skillz, too.

And how sad is it that my first thought at seeing the beginning of the closing scene was, "Oh, no. Not again."

Dude, I am so there with you, there. I am dead from roadside confessional, over here.

[leelust.livejournal.com]

Oh, nice review.
Couple of words though.
so the kid was locked up in the house her whole life, but she reads and writes
You know what? I'm not sure she can but she can communicate (she spoke with Danny, right?) so i think she could just ask him how to 'draw' those words to force 'threat' go from her territory. She totally can draw - we saw that.

And how sad is it that my first thought at seeing the beginning of the closing scene was, "Oh, no. Not again."
I think considering the beginning of the ep (Then part) thet should do it in the similar way to close that circle. First reveal in the end of 410 was made on the hood of Impala and this next reveal as new step in showing Dean's state of mind should be doing similar.

[feliciakw.livejournal.com]

Mmmm . . . I disagree. If they're going to do two almost identical scenes, stage them almost identically, and put them both at the end of back-to-back episodes, it becomes redundant. Either combine the two scenes into one, have it be a continuing scene (ala the end of Croatoan/beginning of Hunted), or put some time (for the audience, not just the characters) between the two scenes. As it is they risk becoming a cliche of themselves.

After watching it a couple times, I can live with it as is, but an audience's first reaction to such scenes should not be, "Here we go again." It lessens the impact of the reveal.

[leelust.livejournal.com]

I can't judge audience reaction i can speak only for myself and for me the impact was the same (what? I'm easy to please).
They couldn't put those 2 scenes together cos there must be some time went between them and so they couldn't repeat Croatoan/Hunted way of showing. And the last scene in 411 was closing the whole theme - they couldn't put in the middle of the ep - Dean's reaction was on those poor kids and he learnt about them only in the end. But, of course it's only my opinion :)

[kimmer1227.livejournal.com]

The Haunting FTW! That was one creepy movie. Me and my sis used to use lines from that movie to freak each other. "Why are you holding my hand so tight? I'm not holding your hand." *flails* Oh, memories.

My own wank on Dean's memories is that Lilith brought them back when she was visiting him in Yellow Fever. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

We've done much rambling about this episode, so I won't repeat myself. I have watched it over a few more times, and you know what? I still love the old fashioned horror of it. The ending doesn't bug me as much as it did. I suppose I'm at the acceptance stage of grief. I'm still excited about seeing what comes next.

[feliciakw.livejournal.com]

Re: Lillith in YF . . . that depends on how you interpret it. Was it really Lillith? Or was it Dean imagining Lillith as the most frightening thing he remembered at the time? I tend to think of her as Dean's!psyche!Lillith, but I think we are in total agreement that Dean did not remember more than the flashes we saw prior to YF.

I still say Monster Movie was the happiest we've seen Dean . . . ever.

Yes, the final scene is growing on me, as I look below the redundant surface. They could have staged it better, but what we got wasn't bad.

Yeah.

Must be off. Heading to the theater today. Something about a really cute guy in a 3D movie? Or something.

[just-ruth.livejournal.com]

What really disturbs me (and I told Dodger this in response to her response to my first comment - although I still see this, especially the ending and Dean's comments as another Kick-Sam's-Nuts episode) is the whole shift of empathy in the episode.

The family, with wooden acting and cliches aplenty, do not connect with me and they do not seem to connect to the Winchesters either.

Dean keeps turning to Sam and saying in anger/frustration, "Humans!" as if he is different than the human family he is trying to save. He's disassociating himself from them in some way that I find very troubling. He also manages to sound like Uriel and we know Uriel has no sympathy, no empathy for us pathetic mud monkeys.

The reveal that he feels for the monsters at the end is also troubling - are both Winchesters heading for the darkness, scorning humanity?

[feliciakw.livejournal.com]

I don't see Dean as trying to distance himself from humanity at all. When he says, "Demons I get. People are crazy," he's talking about humans that he truly doesn't understand. He doesn't understand how the Benders could hunt people for sport and then cannibalize them. He's disturbed, repulsed, even, that a man could treat his daughter and his daughter/granddaughter the way the man did in this episode. I love that about Dean, that with all the evil he's seen, there is still a point at which he cannot wrap his brain around the evil that humans perpetrate on one another.

Rather than sympathizing with the monster in this ep, I believe he was saying that she was a person, deserving of understanding of the motivations behind her actions. Of course she had to be stopped, but he understood her actions, which makes--in his mind--his motivations for doing what he did that much worse.

Dean has always been on the outside of society looking in at those he and Sam protect. And I don't think we need to worry too much about Sam and Dean distancing themselves from humanity. On the contrary, Sam wanted to use his evil-given powers to save people (the ends justifies the means), and Dean is willing to defy angels in order to save people. If anything, I think that, to an extent, could be their undoing.

It's a very deep and pondering question. It will be interesting to see if Show is up to handling it.

Does that make sense?

[just-ruth.livejournal.com]

Yes, this does make a lot of sense. Maybe I need to see this episode again once the computer starts to co-operate again (we think the fan is dying).

[izhilzha.livejournal.com]

The family, with wooden acting and cliches aplenty, do not connect with me

Wow, really? I thought this was one of the strongest guest casts we've had in a while. I really enjoyed them, and felt that the Winchesters did connect to them.


Dean keeps turning to Sam and saying in anger/frustration, "Humans!"

That reminded me of the line in "The Benders": "Demons I get, but people are crazy!" Attention was being drawn in this episode to the fact that humans are perfectly capable of extraordinary levels of evil, if broken enough or pushed too far. I didn't see Dean *not* empathizing with the humans, I saw him empathizing with their inability to avoid doing wrong, avoid what they had been made. The exchange that really stood out to me is the one that Dodger referenced--where Sam won't excuse the girl's actions, and Dean picks up his casual use of the word "hell" and reminds Sam that Sam knows nothing about hell, not really.

I sincerely doubt that Dean scorns humanity in any way. He's caught in remorse for what he did in hell, and is certainly in a dark personal place, but it hasn't made him evil...the cycle isn't ongoing. I have a lot of hope for Dean, no matter how broken he is right now, because his moral lines are drawn in the right places. *hugs Dean* *hugs Sam*