SUPERNATURAL: The Real Ghostbusters

Howdy, partners! Well, “Changing Channels” had the esteem of being my favourite episode of the season for one glorious week, but alas, it is no more. Last night was an awesome blend of true hilarity and genuine scariness, while also seeming like a really nice mix of early SUPERNATURAL and the more recent seasons. On the one hand there was the old-school ghost story that kind of felt like seasons 1-3, along with a healthy dose of the ultra-meta self-awareness that they’ve been exploring since last season. From the second the Winchesters entered the First Annual Supernatural Convention I was hooked. I mean, you had a lineup of Impalas outside, loads of pseudo-Sam and Deans mulling around and whisper-talking to each other, and then the Scarecrow popped by with a beverage and some lame jokes. My heart leapt when I saw the angelic soul who had the forethought to honour the fallen hero Ash, complete with mullet wig and sleeveless flannel shirt. There’s a special place in heaven for people like that.

I really and truly loved every aspect of the story, from the ghost story to the blossoming romance between Prophet Chuck and Fangirl Becky (and her delusional whirlwind relationship with Sam), to the backdrop of the convention that had more laughs-per-minute than Carrie Prejean’s current media blitz. Kath tweeted that the episode made her want to go to a SUPERNATURAL con, and I completely agree! Something tells me that there would be many more females at a true SPN con than were represented in the tv version (and the attendance would be a billion times larger) but the spirit would be the same, albeit shriekier. I’ve heard that Richard Speight, aka The Trickster, has even performed musical numbers at past cons – how fun is that?

So the boys are at the con under false pretenses, but it turns out that there really is a ghost problem at the Inn. A really freaky ghost problem. I loved the evil ghost children, the woman saying “naughty, naughty” over and over again, the scalpings – it was all super creepy and fun. I could barely look at the screen when the evil kids had the knives poised above Sam and Dean’s foreheads – stressful! But we’re not here to rehash the baddie of the week, are we? We’re here to dish on the other aspects of the show that made the episode so unique.

Watching the scenes where the attendees were questioning Chuck, especially the German guy dressed as Hookman, I kept thinking “this is like a message board come to life”. If you’ve ever been on the iMDB page for the show, you know that every question he threw at Chuck has been discussed to death over there. The weapons getting lost (if and when they ever get that Colt back, they’d BETTER buy a few bungees for it, lol), the repeated use of evil kids, etc. Then there was mention of a panel focusing on the homoerotic subtext of the show – ha! Well, I don’t need to tell you that this is a big thing in the SPN fan world. Should we fans take it as a thinly veiled threat that the guy who complained was offed by the very characters he was dissing? Subtle, Kripke…

Speaking of homosexual themes in the SPN world, I loved Sam and Dean’s bizarro-world partners in crime. Everything from the vocal impressions, the fighting about being out of character, and the complaints that the books make grave digging seem really easy when it’s not, all the way to the fact that they got to be the ultimate heroes of the story. Plus, they were an actual gay couple, playing Sam and Dean – how very slash fic! Oh, and let’s not forget the “Dad said I might have to kill you” talk while “Rufus” and “Bobby” were forced to play along and listen to the whole thing. I was dying!!

Throughout the episode, Dean was pissed that the fans were having so much fun with their lives, which are obviously not so fun when it’s real and you have no choice but to live it, impending doom and all. But in the end, Bizarro Sam and Dean were able to turn the event into a Teaching Moment (© Oprah) and show Dean that it’s totally badass and awesome to wake up every day and save the world. Dean used to have this attitude when they first started out – he was the one that had to convince Sam to join him on this journey in the first place. But in recent years, understandably, that feeling has been overshadowed by all of the tragedy they’ve seen, the destruction to their own relationship, and now the impending Apocalypse. I think it was helpful to Dean to step back for a moment and realize that despite all of the negative, his life is undeniably cool. And that he and Sam are doing a lot for the world, even if most people will never know about it.

Leading us into next week’s much heavier-looking “Abandon All Hope”, last night concluded with Becky declaring her love for Chuck and breaking Sam’s heart in the process (not really). She then conveniently remembered that Lilith didn’t have the Colt – Bella had given it to Lil’s right-hand man instead. This was a scene from a book that Chuck didn’t even remember – a nice touch I thought, because you know that the fans obsess over details and know infinitely more about the mythology than the writers and stars of the show a lot of the time. I loved the very ending of the ep, with Sam threatening Chuck about the fact that he wanted to publish more books (prophet’s don’t make a ton of coin, ya know?) – “We have guns. And we will find you”. Ha!

Next week, it looks like the hunt for the Colt is on, and Jo and Ellen are back! The promo is embedded below, check it out:

So how much did you love “The Real Ghostbusters”? What moments stood out that I didn’t get a chance to mention? After next week, we have a (gasp!) TWO MONTH break before we get new episodes, so be sure to watch and discuss with us while we can! Find me on Twitter at @TONicole.