Part 1
Trailer
www.supernatural.warnerbros.com
After Dean’s death at the end of Supernatural Season three, I was curious as to how Season four would follow on. What a sight it was to see him dragged out of hell and back on the road with his brother Sam, doing what he does best, finding evil and vanquishing it in as many different and creative ways as possible.
The majority of this part of the season deals with Dean’s return from the pits of hell, finding out who made his return possible and for what reasons. After this is established, the boys hit the road on a mission to stop a demon from opening the door to hell for the devil himself to walk among us. Along the path of stopping the oncoming apocalypse the guys run into many otherworldly and supernatural things. We see the dead return to haunt hunters for not being able to save them, a man turning into a flesh easting monster, a wishing well that grants actual wishes and a ghost sickness that gets Dean pretty much terrified. There are also two episodes that deal with a fallen angel, a girl that gets both heaven and hell fighting over her.
There are some gruesome scenes attached to this season, as you would expect, but not as many as you would see in a modern day horror film. There are the occasional eyeballs being burnt out of their sockets and people getting the occasional stabbing or two but nothing to damaging for the soul. The only things to make me flinch were the snap of a few arms – ouch! There are the one or two raunchy scenes for both Dean and Sam, as you would expect from two boys on the road, but each done tastefully and not too revealing.
Unexpectedly there is quite a bit of humour present, more than the previous seasons. This is especially noticeable on two episodes. The first in which a ghost disease causes Dean to lose his nerve and get scared of everything from teen boys and heights to cats and dogs; he gives an excellent imitation of screaming like a five year old girl. The second is in a narrative completely set aside from the on going apocalypse storyline in which the boys investigate deaths by a werewolf, a mummy and a vampire. When filmed in black and white, this episode takes on an old horror movie atmosphere gone wrong. The back history we get from an episode involving the yellow-eyed demon from the boys past is very informative at the end. However, for some time it did have me confused, but concluded with a viewer gaining more knowledge of the boy’s history than you had at the start.
The brotherly relationship Dean and Sam share is great to see onscreen. From their emotional reunion to their displays of sentiment trying to protect each other to arguments and the odd falling out. The stories these guys go through may be unnatural and false, but there chemistry on screen is completely believable and enjoyable with Jensen Ackles (My Bloody Valentine) and Jared Padalecki (Friday the 13th remake) giving some outstanding performances.
We have been fulfilled, excited, anxious and wanting to scream at the TV for this part and I am very much looking forward to seeing how it all ends. Will the demon succeed in bringing about the apocalypse and letting hell lose on Earth and what other supernatural forces will the lads run into next. Season four is rounding up on ITV2 at the minute and will be released to DVD shortly.
Michelle Moore