Episode: Supernatural 6.07 – “Family Matters”
Original Air Date: November 5, 2010
Screencaps by rawr_caps.
In quite a stunning turn of events, we got real answers in this episode. All those threads and plotlines that have been presented to us over the past few weeks finally tie together in a very big way. Trust the writers, they know what they’re doing.
First up, we finally find out that Sammy has no soul! Well, we knew that from the promos, even if we didn’t figure it out sooner, but confirmation is always good. The question then becomes where is Sam’s soul now? Castiel seems to think it might still be stuck in the cage, which would make me tremendously sad. Dean was down there for four months, which translates into 40 Hell-years, and look how that affected him. Going by that calculation, we’re pushing 150 Hell-years on Sammy. That’s scary. Preferably his soul’s in Purgatory, where there is less torture and more waiting. But wherever it is, I hope he gets re-souled soon because he has lost his instincts, so he’s blindly trusting anyone who can help him achieve his goals. This new Sammy is intriguing me. He’s also less creepy when he’s working with Dean rather than working against him. But I’ll trust Sammy when Dean trusts him, so we’ve got a ways to go.
“You're stuck with the soulless guy, so you might as well work with me.”
Cas is still popping down when he can, but he’s certainly being snarky when he’s here. His little battle of wits with Grandpa was fun. The vessel may be scrawny, but his true form is as large as the Chrysler Building. I like that he’s making his true strength known more. Yes, we may be more fearful or in awe of Raphael and Uriel, but Cas isn’t a small player in all of this. His frustration at being underestimated or being taken for granted is coming out time and again. And Dean’s not immune to his sarcasm either. Cas is fighting a Heavenly civil war, but Dean seems to think the angel should be at his beck and call. Castiel’s tired of this and I’m ecstatic that he’s giving as good as he gets.
“Of course. Your problems always come first.”
The Campbell clan got a bit more interesting. Even though it doesn’t appear that Grandpa is flat-out evil, I still don’t like him. If he has to die a heroic death, so be it, but I’d rather he and the Winchesters part ways as soon as this is over. I am left to ponder what exactly he was promised to follow through on these blind orders to gather all the Alphas he could. My prediction is that it has to do with Mary. We know she and John aren’t in Heaven and they have brought up her name quite a bit. Maybe Grandpa wants to make sure her soul is released from Purgatory and sent up to Heaven where it belongs. If that’s the case, I hope he looped John into that deal as well because they should be bound together forever.
And the big, unexpected, turn of events this episode was the reveal! Who brought Sam and Grandpa back from the dead? Who is the mysterious figure that Grandpa is working for? Who knows where Sammy’s soul is? That would be my favorite demon Crowley. I’ll admit, I literally jumped for joy when he came out. He’s King of the Crossroads, now he’s King of Hell, and he’s looking to expand his property. Torture the Alphas and find out where Purgatory is because that’s a whole undeveloped area right there. And if anyone was going to be the Big Bad this season, I’m tremendously happy that it’s Crowley. As an aside, I still think the angels are tied up in this, too. As hard as it would be to break Sammy out of his cage, it would be near impossible to pull a soul down from Heaven, so I think he has an angelic partner. Whether that be Raphael, Balthazar, or dare I say Cas, I think there’s an angel/demon relationship going on. I’m eagerly awaiting how this will all play out.
“Location, location, location. I'm a developer. Purgatory is vast, under-utilized, and Hell-adjacent, and I want it.”
I wanted to touch on a few final odds and ends of the episode. First of all, Christian being possessed the whole time was both unexpected and a relief because I’d like to think that the real Christian wouldn’t be as much of an SOB as this Christian has been. I do hope that, even though his neck is broken now, he can pop up again from time to time to do Crowley’s bidding. And another shout-out to the Alpha Vamp. He’s both creepy and alluring at the same time. I like when the monsters have layers like this. It makes me hopeful for the Alphas that are yet to come.
All in all, this was a solid way to close out the three-episode arc they set up. And with the number of answers we got in such a short amount of time, the whole game plan has suddenly changed. Instead of waiting the whole season for answers to our first questions, we’re instead facing whole new questions. This season is sure to be interesting!
Rating: 5 / 5 Stars
Episode 4, Weekend at Bobby’s had already revealed that Crowely was King of hell. He had also revealed that he was looking to expand. I am surprised that Bobby neglected to share that info. With Michael and Lucifer caged, it stands to speculation that our dear Crowely would look to build an army of some of the most bad ass evil ? creatures that walk the earth. Who better than a soulless hunter to hunt them then our beloved Sam . I agree that an /demon partnership is responsible for Sam’s soullessness. I suspect Cas’ arch nemisis is also involved. And I would like to speculate that there is a very complex story line about that partnership with ulterior motives on both sides being played out over Sam’s soul.
“And I would like to speculate that there is a very complex story line about that partnership with ulterior motives on both sides being played out over Sam’s soul.”
Oh, of course! Raphael is already gunning to restart the Apocalypse, so he’s a likely angel to team up with Crowley since they’d both achieve their goals in all of this. I like him…I hope he returns.
First I would like to say that, the dialogue in this episode has been the best ever. “Of course your problems come first”. I am glad that Cas has stepped up and pretty much said that he is getting fed up with dealing with Sam and Dean’s problems. Not once has Sam or Dean asked how the Civil War is going and if they need to help Cas out like Cas has helped them out in the past. And I like how Crowley is the guy in charge now. And you bring up a good point about how maybe the Angel’s have a part in this too. Do you think that Michael might be playing a part in this while in Hell? Maybe doing some of Crowley’s work while down there. And I liked how they brought up the whole, demon’s don’t go to heaven or hell, just purgatory. I never thought about where they go when they die. I wonder if we get to see purgatory on SPN this season, will we see some of Sam and Dean’s past demons they killed.
I am just happy that they decided to give us alot of answers at this point in the season. I was almost afraid that we wouldn’t get any real answers until just after New Year’s. But yeah this was definitely a 5 out of 5 episode.
“Not once has Sam or Dean asked how the Civil War is going and if they need to help Cas out like Cas has helped them out in the past.”
Well, Sam’s not even part of that consideration since he doesn’t seem to know he’s supposed to care. Dean, however, has been seen to take advantage of both Bobby and Cas this season and it’s nice to acknowledge that, yes, they’ve done a tremendous amount for you and sometimes they need help, too. I’m hoping that Dean recognizes that soon.
“And you bring up a good point about how maybe the Angel’s have a part in this too. Do you think that Michael might be playing a part in this while in Hell?”
No, I think Michael’s out of the picture in terms of the current situation. Raphael and Balthazar, on the other hand, have much to gain. Cas…well, he’d be the dark horse in this, but anything’s possible!
“I wonder if we get to see purgatory on SPN this season, will we see some of Sam and Dean’s past demons they killed.”
I’m hoping certain individuals are hanging out in Purgatory, actually. It would be nice to see them again. (Gabe, I’m looking at you.)
“I was almost afraid that we wouldn’t get any real answers until just after New Year’s.”
I was very much surprised at how the episode evolved and how quickly we got these answers, only to open up a whole new set of questions. Go SPN!