By: Ben Edlund
**Spoilers**
If you have not yet seen this episode, please go and do so before proceeding.
Let's just all take a moment of silence to appreciate the fact that the FBI thinks that Sam and Dean Winchester are a pair of murderous psychopaths taking a deadly roadtrip across America. Because they kind of are...only they're deadly to monsters, not to people. Can we also appreciate that Sam managed to take out two armed SWAT team members (he was unarmed, for the record) and steal their gear so that he and his brother could escape?
BEN EDLUND EPISODES ARE AWESOME! I have yet to think of one thing that man has touched that didn't turn to gold a la King Midas, and this episode is no different as it brings the supernatural and real-world sides of the Winchester boys' jobs to the forefront. Aside from the fact that they've been living on the fringe of society their entire lives (it's a wonder Sam got that full ride scholarship, really it is) and that most of their income comes from fraud and theft, we often forget just how Sam and Dean look to those outside the hunting life. To the civilian eye, these boys are highly-trained, deeply psychotic serial killers who criss-cross the country desecrating graves, chopping off heads, and generally leaving a path of destruction in their wake. Sort of like Dexter, I suppose. And that assessment is true...but while we've seen the real story behind it (the ghosts, the vampires, and the other nasties) most people don't. Episodes where Sam and Dean's lifestyle catches up with them on the law enforcement side of things are so wonderful because (a) it forces the boys to work together and showcases what little badasses they really are and (b) it helps to bring the often removed and fantastical lives of the Winchesters solidly into the real world, giving an anchor.
Favorite Moments & Random Thoughts:
- As soon as I saw Dean exit that bank and release the hostage through the eyes of the evening news, I knew this was going to be a good episode. Supernatural uses a lot of time-jumps for their pre-credits scenes and, for the most part, they are all used to great effect. This one certainly made me sit up and take notice!
- Dean is using his (fake) FBI status to pick up a girl while Sam looks on disapprovingly. Why am I not surprised?
- On that note, though...why is it that these early episodes are the only times when Sam attempts to clean up to fit into his FBI persona? I'm pretty sure that hair as long as his is would be against regulation...
- "Freaking cops." "They're just doing their jobs, Dean." "No. They're doing our job. Except they don't know they're doing it so they suck at it."
- Ronald the conspiracy theorist just makes me laugh. Not only is he a Whovian and a guy who makes references to Terminator 2, but the guy is just genuinely likable. Definitely one of the more interesting supporting characters on this show. He did a jolly good job of gathering information on the cases, basically did all of Sam and Dean's research for them, and had a lot of determination to stop this thing from ruining another life, even if it meant getting himself in trouble. Oh sure he got the 'mandroid' bit wrong, but to be fair would we all really fair any better?
- I do think it was a little bit weird and even OOC that Sam shut him down and tried to tell him that there was nothing weird or inhuman going on out there. (Oh the irony!) I guess we can give it a pass, though, because it was lamp-shaded by Dean whenever he observes how creepily good at playing a federal agent Sam is.
- The eye-flare thing still creeps me out. And it makes me laugh that Dean has a personal vendetta against shifters because one framed him for murder.
- FBI Agents and security system maintenance workers. I forgot just how much the Winchesters played dress-up in these early seasons! (How do they keep finding uniforms that will fit Sam?)
- "I like him, he says okie dokie." It's a sad realization of the boys' lives that even the simple act of liking somebody has to be tempered by the knowledge that if they turn out to be the monster, the Winchesters will have to kill them with no mercy. No wonder they're so isolated from everyone but each other!
- Why does it not surprise me that Dean took advantage of the security cameras to eye up some curvaceous female bankers? (I am equally not shocked that Sam rolled his eyes and scolded Dean. Those two are so predictable!)
- Where did Ronald get that enormous gun? Um, correct me if I'm wrong, but you can't exactly stroll into a gun shop anywhere in America and just pick one of them up...right?
- Clearly he didn't think this thing through very well. He should have cut the phone lines and taken out the security cameras first. Did it really not occur to him that storming into a bank with an assault rifle might trigger the attention of the police?
- "Just don't shoot anyone...especially us."
- It is both funny and sad that Dean considers walking anywhere without a weapon of some kind being naked, not to mention the fact that as soon as the power is cut in the bank he immediately knows how to size the situation up and what the cops will be doing. John trained his boys well. (Just look at how Sam just looks bored whenever they are all locked in the vault.)
- I've said that before and I'll say it again...shapeshifter skin is just disgusting.
- Does Dean realize just how lucky he is that someone in that bank was such a cultured snob as to have TWO silver letter-openers?
- All the montages of the coppers showing up around the bank (punctuated by Dean groaning and Sam laying on the snark) really help to give this episode an edge and an epic feel. And I mean epic in the sense that the crap is hitting the fan...not in the 'fantastical quest' kind of epic way.
- Their attempts to take care of the bumbling, clueless Ronald are both hilarious and rather sad. This is really an episode that pushed Sam and Dean as characters...and it's awesome.
- One thing I really love about shapeshifter cases (aside from Dean's personal vendetta against them) is the fact that these creatures can literally become anyone. They can lead you on a merry game of round robin and you'll never know who is friend and who is foe. That type of switcheroo is used to great effect in this episode, fencing the boys in with the cops on one side and the monster on the other...and they have no idea who to trust or who to take a stab at. Throw in a hapless conspiracy theorist with a gun and a mouth that babbles too much, and they're in a pretty bad place.
- The death of poor Ronald (done in slow-motion and absolute silence) is a real proverbial kick in the gut. He was such a nice guy, even if he was a bit of an idiot about how to talk to the police, and Edlund really makes sure that we have time to get to know him before he is killed off. That's the important part of killing a character...making sure we actually feel for them. If the audience hasn't had time to connect to a character as a person then no amount of slow-motion horrified screams of "NOOO!" and sad music will do the trick.
- I still think it was dumb of Sam to send Dean outside with the hostage. Sam's face isn't the one that's on the criminal database, after all.
- And then the (real) Feds show up...led by Special Agent Victor Henriksen.
- Victor Heriksen. The guy with the last name that nobody can seem to agree on how it is spelled. (Hendrickson? Henriksen? Hendriksen? Hendricksen? WHAT?) Bleurgh. I HATE to think what is on the FBI's official profile of the Winchester family as Victor was making some pretty clear implications there, what with making jabs at their upbringing and calling Sam the Bonnie to Dean's Clyde. But despite all of that, wow is Victor awesome! He's the sort of character that you feel like you are supposed to hate because he's running Sam and Dean into the ground, but he's just too awesome to dislike. I mean...look at him! He's snarky, he's tough, he's dedicated, he's smart, and he's just so adorable as he runs about attempting to understand the world of the Winchesters from the outside. How can you not love this
character?!
- A little shout-out to Jensen Ackles right here for the way he handled the phone call scene? Those types of scenes are not easy because you're reacting to lines said over the phone instead of playing off an actual person.You have to convey emotion in a way that makes it believable to the audience that you're listening to someone on the other end of the line, and yet you can't overdo it or else you just look like a silly mime. Well he nailed it...the confusion at the agent knowing his name, the 'oh crap' moment when he realized what was going on, the amusement at Victor's calling Sam 'Bonnie', the grief and anger at the agent badmouthing John, and finally the despair whenever he learns that they have one hour before the firefight begins are all perfectly brought across. Ackles really is amazing.
- Where did the shifter get that second slip and pair of underwear from whenever it was impersonating Cherie? Did it grow that with the skin like in the anime?
- Also, Sam and Dean's reaction to Cherie fainting is just hilarious. They look back between the two bodies with literal 'Huh?' expressions on their faces. It's like something out of Scooby Doo.
- Then Dean just shrugs and goes to stab her. Good job Sam was there to stop him, too bad he ended up getting choked by the shifter and then, just to add insult to injury, kicked between the legs.
- From there on out the build-up is over and the climax just keeps on pounding towards conclusion. Dean chases the shapeshifter down into the basement while Sam is left to get her doppleganger to safety (and somehow avoid being shot or arrested. This is the moment when Sam coolly turns around and takes out TWO ARMED SWAT TEAM MEMBERS with a couple of well-placed blows, stealing their clothes and leaving them handcuffed in a supply closet. Let's just all stop for a moment and appreciate that...
- Thank goodness Sam found a SWAT uniform that was made for a 6'4 man, eh?
- I also really want to know how they explained the presence of the Cherie shifter in the official report. That would be interesting to read.
- And the use of Styx in the end of this episode gives me chills. One of the best usages of classic rock in this show ever!
This is one of my favorite episodes of Season 2. I just love stories where Sam and Dean are on the run from the law because it makes them work together, gives us an Outsider POV on their lives, and it firmly grounds their story in reality again. They have to put their real-world skills to use. Any episode featuring this kind of story is a lot of fun, but I'd have to say that Nightshifter is the best out of the lot. I give it a 5/5.
What did you think? Do you agree with my rating? If not - what would you say differently?
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