After-thoughts: Episode 5.10 Abandon All Hope

Abandon All Hope is my Jus in Bello for season 5 - the hunters fought in a confined environment, heaps of people died, lives were scarified and there was no happy ending for the good guys. I don't know how you feel about Jus in Bello, but it happened to be one of my favorite episodes from season 3.

Abandon All Hope almost feels like a movie to me. After last week The Real Ghostbusters, we get right back into the mytho heavy story on an epic level. What I find interesting and this is the reason why I love Supernatural so much is the way the writers give us clues here and there foreshadowing the future of the characters and story. I never feel that the story is going in circle, going nowhere. Supernatural is one of the most layered shows on television, this season is full of twists and surprises. There is never a dull moment on the show.

Sam, Lucifer and Detroit

Let me talk about Sam, Lucifer and Detroit first. It is the second time Detroit is mentioned in season 5. It's going to happen. Something big, bloody and heart-breaking is going to happen in Detroit and the Winchesters will once again be in the center of it. In The End, future Dean said something happened in Detroit, and that was where Sam said YES to become Lucifer's vessel. We don't know how and why, but it is going to happen.

Talking about angel vessels, why hasn't Michael appeared to Dean in a dream like Lucifer did to Nick? In recently interviews, Eric Kripke and Sera Gamble indicated that we will see Michael. I can't wait to see what they have planned for us.

There are only 12 episodes left in season 5, so the Detroit event will take place before the end of the season. (CRAP! I need stock up Kleenex!) Detroit is a significant location on the show, just like Lawrence (where it all began) and Wyoming (where the Devil's Gate is), I'll be keeping my eyes on Detroit for sure!

The Colt

Abandon All Hope also tells us something about the Colt. John Winchester said the Colt was made by Samuel Colt and it can kill anything. We've seen the Colt killed vampires (eat it Twilight!) and YED (and stunt demon 1,2 and 3). In this episode, we found out there are five things in all of creation that the Colt can't kill, including Lucifer. I wanted so badly for the Colt to return and to play a big part, but that's ok. But dang! How do you kill Lucifer?

You are functioning.. morons.. moron

New demon, Crowley is played by the brilliant Mark Shepperd. I love his Godfather like mannerism and his accent! 'We need to talk, privately.' I love him from the second he appeared!

I like the modern look of the Crossroads.. under the highway! I like how Supernatural re-invents itself. Finally, we have a male sales person from hell! Who thought of it?! Seriously!

So Crowley wanted Lucifer dead so that he (and his race) can survive. Does Crowley have another agenda? He wanted Sam and Dean to take the Colt and kill Lucifer. Was it a trap? I'm not so sure.

When the Winchesters and the Harvelles arrived in town with Huggy Bear Pretty Boy Angel, Lucifer didn't really try hard to keep them there or smite them or anything. Yes, there were some confrontations, but Lucifer almost didn't really care about the Winchesters. He did try to recruit Castiel and when Sam confronted Lucifer, he didn't expect Sam to say yes anyway. He didn't force them or anything. It seems to me that Lucifer just wanted to unleash Death. If Crowley's agenda was to help Lucifer by delivering the Winchesters to him, then Lucifer should either smite Dean or give Sam a keynote speech with PowerPoint Presentation as to what he should say yes. So yeah, I am not so sure if Crowley is helping Lucifer here. But then again, Crowley could be like Ruby, may be he is trying to gain their trust for a greater evil.

By the way, can Death kill demons too?

Lucifer is confident and arrogant and I hate it when he is acting like as if he knows Sam is going to say yes. That bothers me in a way that this is all going to be very sad and bloody.

How awesome was Mark Pellegrino? He is a fantastic addition to the cast! I really enjoyed his performance in this episode.

The Harvelles

Ellen and Jo are two of the strongest female characters on the show. I knew they were going to die, I wished they didn't, but that was a good heroic send-off. I am impressed with Jo. She has grown up and she would have been a great hunter should she didn't die. Ellen's tears broke my heart. Samatha Ferris and Alona Tal really nailed the death scene.

Any SGA fans here? This is like the death of Dr Carson Beckett. I couldn't revisit that episode for awhile because I can't believe he just died and it made me sad to watch it again.

Dean and Jo

Personally, I thought the Dean and Jo scenes in Abandon All Hope were done beautifully. Whether Jo was introduced as a potential love interest or an allied, Jo is a good supporting character just like her mother Ellen.

There are some sparks between Dean and Jo in season 2 when they first met, which was playful, nothing serious that would turn into a romantic soap opera. It was pretty obvious that Jo liked Dean, but Dean wasn't thinking about it (Dean? Relationship? Yeah right!). Like Sam said, Jo was like a sister to Dean. But in this episode, Dean was trying to hit on Jo for the first time since Everybody Loves a Clown. Both scenes in Everybody and Abandon are symmetrical, while Dean was checking Jo out, Sam was looking at something else (newspaper clips on Ellen's wall or commenting about the drinking game.)

Interpret Dean and Jo anyway you like, this episode provided a good closure.

You've got to give Jo some credit after watching Abandon All Hope. The way she saved Dean, all guns blazing on the hellhound, was pure bravery. She would fight and defend for him, whether it's for love or just friendship. And for this, I would have liked Dean to say a bit more to Jo around or before their goodbye kiss. Say something Dean!!! She was loyal, she understood what was it like to be a hunter, she was not a monster, she was strong and she was playful and she was not afraid of going after something supernatural.

Finally, I thought the editing was good. I am glad they didn't chop up the hellhounds/ death scenes, which added extra strength to the part of the episode, making it a lot more emotional. It was a good send-off for Ellen and Jo. The death scene was really well done, it's very sad but it's really well written and designed. It wasn't like the death scene of other hunters on the shows such as Ash, Elkinds or Caleb.. Their death scenes were either short or you don't see it at all. This confirmed the status of Ellen and Jo, they are part of the family.

I am not in the television business, I am not a writer but I appreciate and admire people who have the talent and the passion to write good story for viewers to watch. For this, I can never hate Supernatural. I am 200% behind the show. Personally I can't find anything that I don't like about the show, nothing ever bothered me except I want to see JDM to return for at least one episode. This truly is the best show on television right now.

I swear the review of Curious and The Real Ghostbusters are coming! I am just really busy with stuff happening in my life (all good thought, don't worry!), but December will be a great time to catch up.