My thoughts after watching 4:17 - It's a terrible life

This episode surprised me. I was expecting another What is and what should never be (episode 2:20), but I didn't, which is fantastic! Dean and Sam had no memory of who they were, they lived in a corporate world as Director of Sales & Marketing (Dean) and Tech Support (Sam). Something 'not natural' happened, strange things happened to their colleagues that caused them to commit suicide. Full recap can be found on BuddyTV. I'll discuss some of the highlights here.

Where do I begin? OK.. let' start with the irony.

Dean Smith










Occupation: Director, Sales & Marketing
Favorite beverage: soy latte
Favorite food: salad
Diet: Lemonade with cayenne and maple syrup
Favorite music: None, but he listens to NRP
Car: Toyota Prius
Family: Bob, Ellen and little sister Jo
Boss: Mr Adler

Sam Wesson











Occupation: Tech Support
Favorite beverages: coffee
Favorite food: unknown
Favorite music: unknown
Car: unknown
Family: unknown but was engaged to Madison.
Boss: unknown

Dean Winchester











Occupation: Hunter
Favorite beverages: beer and possibly purple nurple
Favorite food: cheese burger and pie
Diet: What diet?
Favorite music: classic rock
Car: 1967 Chevrolet Impala
Family: John, Mary and little brother Sam
Boss: None. But looks like he will be getting a lot of mentoring from Zachariah.

Sam Winchester










Occupation: Hunter
Favorite beverage: demon blood
Favorite food: unknown.. whatever Dean eats I guess
Favorite music: unknown
Car: Travels in 1967 Chevrolet Impala
Family: John, Mary and big bro Dean
Boss: none

Dean was so corporate, totally reminded me of someone I know. Sam was tech support. Funny, I was having the SAME printer problem the other day at work but I was the one on the other side of the phone.

Deep down, Sam Wesson knew he was supposed to be doing something else. He always knew. He was convinced that his dreams were real, it's like he lived this life before as hunter.

Whereas Dean, he was a typical corporate executive, he earned good money, he had a bring future and received a great bonus from his boss Mr Adler. He was happy I guess, his life was better that others who worked in a cubicle. So he'd never given much thought about sea-change or whatever, he was a corporate drone who was concerned about company profit, the GFC and his portfolio. Hearing Dean saying those words were really funny!

At the end, Sam was trying to convince Dean that they should hunt together as partners. But Dean was more concerned about the realistic details: the money, the living standard and health insurance.

Zachariah - the pep-talk

I will start by saying this: I like Zachariah. I think he is a good angel. And I think he is a good boss. I think he is a mentor that Dean needs. When Zachariah was revealed as an angel, I was expecting another Uriel. But instead I see this angel who is actually giving Dean some encouragement and I think Zachariah geniunely believes that Dean can do it, he will be successful, he will stop it. I think perhaps Zachariah will give Dean the resources he needs to fight.

Everyone who is close to Dean said a few words to comfort him. But it doesn't matter how many times they say "It's not your fault", Dean is not going to feel better and he can never forgive and forget what he's done. He broke the first seal and he tortured souls in hell. So the pep-talk was important.

The introduction of Zachariah is important, because I personally feel that this is it, it is happening. He is getting his ducks in a row and preparing for battle. Perhaps Zachariah is doing what he does best as a boss, to delicate tasks and pairing up angels with humans to fight this war. He needs his soldiers to stay sharp and strong, his soldiers need to be clear about their objectives. That's why he is here to give Dean the pep-talk and to make sure Dean doesn't forget who he is and what he does best - HUNTING. He is one of the best hunters in the business, he loves hunting, saving people. Zachariah reminds Dean that he is better than he realises, he should stop whining about his hole, his daddy issues and all his insecurities. STAND UP AND BE WHO YOU REALLY ARE!

Like Obama said "YES WE CAN!." Dean! YES YOU CAN DO IT!

It's an interesting filler episode. It's a filler episode until the last 5 minutes, which makes it possibly the most important turning point for Dean at this point of the story arc. If the writers decided not to address a solution or closure to Dean's insecurity and guilt now, this could drag on and on and becomes one of those perpetual pathetic moments in soap operas. Should this not addressed at this point of the story and if Dean has to make an important decision about the apocalypse etc in the near future episodes, I don't want to see the writers to just quickly write/ address it in 5 seconds and I will be like "huh? that's it? he has just decided to do that now?".

Other random thoughts

Ghostfacers - Check out their website seriously! Dean and Sam getting some ghost hunting advice from the GF. JACKPOT! REAL GHOST HUNTERS! And GF was referring to the Winchesters. Classic! Love the GF!

Don't call me Sammy - "Did you just call me Sammy?" Sam "Don't!"..

Dean drinking WHAT? - Whatever detox thing Dean was drinking.. can I have some of those?!

Overall, it was a filler episode up until the last 5 minutes. It was a funny and clever episode. Sera Gamble doesn't disappoint! It's 4 out of 5 for me.

The song that was played at the beginning of the episode was A Well Respected Man by The Kinks. You can download this song from iTune.