[rating:3/5]

I had high hopes for this episode. After two totally filler episodes, we finally got to see angels and the return of the fallen heaven mythology, not to mention Castiel and Kevin. This episode looked exciting, relevant and full of my favorite things. And it was enjoyable. It was better than the last two and was fun to watch. It didn’t really live up to my expectations, though. Despite the fact that we had plenty of Cas and Dean one-on-one scenes, there was no payoff in regards to the drama of Dean throwing him out into the dangerous world. Their conversations were shallow and dull. I would have liked to see Dean concerned for Cas or even Cas angry with Dean for abandoning him. All we got was Dean prepping Cas for a date. That’s not the kind of angsty emotional bonding I wanted, guys. Also, looking back on the episode as a whole, I realize that pretty much nothing actually happened. Still, we did get to see some hilarious and adorable work from Misha Collins, so I’ll give the episode reasonably high marks.

The episode starts with a classic Supernatural cold open where a suicidal man is attacked and blown up by a mysterious man with magical abilities. The inside of his room is completely splattered…pink? I’m really not sure why, but the bloody intestine mix is definitely hot pink.

We find Cas working in some unspecified convenience store, creeping on the patrons and mimicking their every move, trying to figure out how to be human. It’s one part creepy, nine parts adorable. It also reminds me of why he’s forced to learn all by himself and that makes me angry with Dean and Ezekiel all over again. His annoying boss seems to be into him, but Cas is uncomfortable and confused trying to handle it. As he adjusts the newspapers in the store, he notices the suicide report on the man from earlier.

Back at the bunker, Kevin explains that he can’t read the dead language Metatron’s spell is in. Dean gets a call from Cas, saving him from research and alerting him to the possible case. “Hello to you too, Cas”, Dean says indignantly when the former angels starts the conversation off without any introduction. Don’t even start with me, Dean Winchester. If I were him I wouldn’t even be calling you! While they’re talking, Cas, in one of many cute moments in this episode, breaks the Big O Slush Machine and spills the drink everywhere. Dean heads out to check on the case, leaving Sam behind.

Boss lady finds Cas’ toothbrush and sleeping bag in the supply closet, alerting us to the heartbreaking fact that Cas is living on the floor of a convenience store. “I wanted to be thorough with inventory so I worked late last night, and taking a nap here was easier than going back home to my bed. Which I have, of course, a bed, and a home,” he stammers unconvincingly. However, all women on this show are either evil, dead, or dumb, and since she isn’t the first two, she buys it, and, impressed, invites him over to her house.

Dean learns that the last four owners of the dead man’s house were extremely depressed people. However, their deaths were clearly not suicides, given the fact that they all exploded to the point of near-vaporization.

Sam and Kevin have no luck researching how to read the spell, so Dean suggests they talk to Crowley. “We’re not keeping him chained up for the one-liners,” Dean points out, although I tend to disagree on that particular point.

At a nearby school, the creepy man from earlier (who I now realize is Tyler from Revenge, in case anyone cares) vaporizes another victim. However, the victim is not suicidal or seriously struggling this time. She’s just a teenager whose boyfriend has dumped her.

Dean finds Cas working in the store creeping out the customers with his total lack of social skills. He’s very rude and very judgmental of Cas’ job and doesn’t understand why Cas isn’t happy to see him. Ooo, I understand! Pick me! Pick me! Cas tries to explain that he has responsibilities and a purpose here, but Dean is all snark. “So you went from fighting heavenly battles to nuking taquitos?” “Nachos too,” Cas replies, and it’s nice to see the often misguided and mistreated angel have some self-confidence.

Crowley is disinclined to help them read the spell, even though he admits that he can. When Sam threatens to turn him over to Abaddon and wounds his pride by saying that she’s scarier then he is, Crowley pretends to agree, but then proceeds to crumple up the spell and throw it at Sam’s head. Crowley is almost too lovable, isn’t he?

Cas explains to Dean that he failed at being an angel, but that in a convenience store he has a shot at getting things right. When he overhears Cas and the boss talking about their date tonight, Dean lightens up and assumes that Cas is doing this for a woman. He’s completely incapable of understanding Cas’ feelings here and it bothers me. Dean has never been a good friend to Cas, nor really a good person, but his characterization here is still ridiculous and disappointing. He drags Cas along to the crime scene to try and convince him that he’s a hunter.

When Cas gets there he realizes he knows what is doing this. It’s a type of angel that serves as medics and mercy killers for the mortally wounded during battles and they’re not to be messed with. They have a name, but it’s Enochian and I’m not even going to try to spell it. They apparently can sense pain and are eliminating suffering people out of mercy, whether the people like it or not. Cas is nervous and Dean decides to go after the angel alone. He stares at Cas expectantly, waiting for him to poof off to his date, forcing an awkward “I need a ride” out of Cas. Can I just say that I love the human Castiel storyline? It’s so fun to see our resident fish out of water that much more out of water. I wouldn’t have thought it possible.

At his boss’ house, Dean gives Cas advice on his date and how to button his shirt to impress the lady. That’s seriously about as deep as the conversation goes. On the way up her steps, a nervous Cas steals a rose from her front porch to give to her. “Nice touch,” says Dean. No, not really, actually. It’s clearly her rose! It’s all for naught, however, because it turns out that Cas is not going on a date with the woman. He’s babysitting her child while she goes on a date. She leaves in a rush with a very concerned Castiel left behind.

Meanwhile, Crowley agrees to translate the spell if Kevin and Sam give him some blood to allow him to call Abaddon. Specifically, he wants Kevin’s. “I just have a policy of not giving blood to the demon who’s murdered my mother”, Kevin replies. However, he concedes, and Crowley calls up Abaddon, which goes about as well as you’d expect it to. After being placed on hold (a new and frustrating experience for the King of Hell), Crowley finally gets in touch with Abaddon, only for her to insult him and explain that she is voiding all his contracts and taking down his regime. He is very, very unamused, snapping at her that she “will burn.” He then translates the spell for them, but unfortunately, it says that the spell cannot be undone. The angels are stuck on earth.

Meanwhile, baby Tanya wakes up and starts crying. “Please. Please don’t,” Cas whines. The baby doesn’t listen, of course, so Cas rocks the baby and starts singing to her. I can’t decide if I love or hate this scene. On the one hand, Misha Collins is hilarious and I love zany Cas moments, but on the other hand, it’s really out of character. Seriously, why? What I do love in his moment of sympathizing with the baby for her confusion towards the strange world?

Dean talks to the local cops and realizes that one of the exploding people was married to the angel’s vessel. He recognizes that the man’s truck was outside of the boss’ house and goes to help Cas, who has just opened to door to find the angel staring back at him.

The angel, by the way, is super creepy in a self-righteous sort of way and declares that he will wipe all suffering off the planet, one person at a time. Cas, of course, is his next target. Dean rushes in to save him and is immediately thrown into a wall. Well done, Dean. Still, he proves himself slightly useful by sliding the angel blade to Cas so he can anticlimactically kill the angel, saving them all.

Tanya’s mom comes home and tells Cas he’s special because he cares about people so much, continuing her campaign of mixed signals. Back at the bunker, Crowley sketchily injects himself with blood.

Dean kind of sort of apologizes to Cas for kicking him out, but it’s really not heartfelt and it doesn’t make up for anything. Cas is conflicted because he wants to help the angels, but Dean tells him he’ll take care of it and lets Cas go off to his ordinary life. It’s a sweet moment, but I still haven’t forgiven the older Winchester for the hour leading up to it.

In the grand scheme of the series, this was a very average episode. The most fitting word I have for it is forgettable. Next week is a return to the show’s scary roots and I hope that will impress me more.

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Georgeanne Oliver is Blast's Site Editor.

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