421: 'When The Levee Breaks'
Wr: Sera Gamble
Dr: Robert Singer
Synopsis: Sam is locked in Bobby's panic room to cleanse his body from demon blood. However, after several seals are broken Bobby wants to set Sam free to help stop the Apocalypse and Dean seeks out Castiel for help.
Review: This might not be the most action-packed of episodes, or the most revelation-heavy, but that doesn't make it any less epic. The ace up Sera Gamble's sleeve is his expert understanding of Supernatural's two most important elements: Sam and Dean Winchester. The writer has such a potent handle on the motivations that drive the brothers, and indeed the psychological demons that haunt them, that it coats every line of dialogue with an organic sheen, making each harrowing step in the deterioration of their relationship appear naturalistic rather than a forced movement of the plot. And more impressively, the two-handers are actually few and far between. For the vast majority of 'When The Levee Breaks', Sam and Dean are apart, separated first by bars and then by distance. The fact that their ultimate confrontation seems thoroughly logical is a testament to Gamble's ability to delineate their differences in original and engaging ways. Dean's battle with his conscience is played out superbly by having Bobby as his sparring partner; having been represented as something of a wise elder figure in episodes past, he actually begins to question the moral high ground here, apparently unable to cope with the severity of what 'cold turkey' appears to be doing to Sam. Refreshingly, it is Dean who has the 'upper hand' and is able to make the tough decision; his assertion that he'd rather see his brother die than become 'the kind of creature (he) feels compelled to kill' (quoth Castiel) is one of the episode's many highlights.
Sam, meanwhile, is haunted by hallucinations of key figures in his past, each one drawing him further toward his ultimate fate. The brief torture sequence with the best Allister of them all, Christopher Heydenhal, is terrific, keeping the gore to an absolute minimum and generating terror merely through its suggestion. The appearance of wee Sam from 'After School Special' is a pleasant surprise and leads to a wonderful piece of massively Freudian psychoanalysis. But it's the manifestations of Mrs. Winchester and Dean that work most beautifully. While they are clearly distorted versions of the characters, twisted by Sam's somewhat addled psyche, the alterations are only minor tweaks. There is sufficient similarity to the actual characters for the moments to be believable and, more importantly, for the viewer to understand how Sam could come to see them in this light, thereby allowing us to afford him some sympathy. And that is the delectable essence of the episode: in the face of so much anger, resentment and disappointment, so many harrowing words and decisions, Gamble refuses to take sides, preferring instead to illustrate the ambiguity of the argument and showing us how both parties have come to the gargantuan impass that now separates them. Oh sure, there's scope for the viewer to agree with one brother or the other, but the important thing is that we understand the positions of both. This is no black and white scenario. The shades of gray are innumerable... which is something that Him Upstairs is evidently aware of too.
How about Castiel freeing Sam, eh? Talk about your shockers. This is wonderfully executed by the director: the revelation is methodical and understated, with Cas simply appearing in the corner of the shot and not jumping out at us with accompanying overly-dramatic music, screaming "It was me! I did it! Are you surprised?!" Actually, the lack of artificial dramatics is another commendable element of 'When The Levee Breaks': Robert Singer takes a leaf out of the late Kim Manners's book and, in the same vein as superlative season opener 'Lazarus Rising', keeps the soundtrack to a minimum, making only sparse use of musical underscore. Not only does this inject a greater level of realism into the episode, but it also makes it extra eerie, delivering the most epic of character arcs in the quietest fashion. In turn, this creates the perfect set-up for next week's season finale, which promises the struggle to prevent the breaking of the final two or three Seals, a confrontation with Lillith and, most delectably of all, a probable showdown between the brothers Winchester. Who will prevent the apocalypse? Will ANYONE prevent the apocalypse? Will Sam and Dean resolve their issues? Just how much wrath will Deano unleash on Castiel once he finds out what he has done? And perhaps most crucially: exactly how is Eric Kripke going to tie up all of these disparate elements in 45 minutes? We'll have to wait and see. If the finale's anything at all like the rest of this most outstanding of seasons, however, I have nothing but the blindest of faith. 9.2
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