801: 'We Need to Talk About Kevin'
Written by Jeremy Carver
Directed by Robert Singer
Synopsis: One year after their battle with the Leviathans, Sam finally finds his
brother Dean, who reveals what happened to him and Castiel in Purgatory.
They soon reunite with the prophet Kevin and learn about another Word
of God... and an unbelievable opportunity.
Verdict: Another year, another change of show-runner, another quick-fire reunion for our favourite dysfunctional brotherly unit. The more things change, the more they stay the same, it would seem; Jeremy Carver's much-touted return to the Supernatural executive team still hasn't managed to rid us of the show's penchant for removing any dramatic impact whatsoever from its season-ending cliffhangers. As in previous seasons, bringing Sam and Dean back into one another's lives within the space of ten all-too-short minutes just feels like a cop-out, cheapening 'Survival of the Fittest's final moments and wasting a delicious opportunity to change the game altogether. Oh sure, we pick up a year later and we're gonna get some back-story via the tried and tested medium of the grainy flashback but then, don't we always? How about keeping the brothers apart for an extended period of time for a change? How about, you know, trying something different eight years in? No? Too much to ask? Thought so.
That irritating gripe aside, 'We Need to Talk About Kevin' is a fairly solid forty minutes of scene-setting and role-reversal that successfully presents Carver's statement of intent for the year ahead, simplifying the arc plot while retaining several much loved tropes and characters from seasons past. As usual, Mark Sheppard is superb as Crowley, stealing every scene he's in, and thankfully, he's actually established as a genuine threat rather than simply a darkly comedic observer, which seems to have been his go-to function for the last season or so. It's good to see Kevin back too, even if his supposed six month stint in the gutter stretches believability somewhat, and Dean's year in Purgatory shows promise, particularly given the acting chops on display from the guy playing his new vampy BFF. The only real disappointment is the sorry excuse for emotional resonance that poor Jared Padalecki's been saddled with; Sam ran over a dog? Seriously? This is the best the writing staff could come up with as a representation of the year he hung up his hunting boots? Dear, dear. (7)
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