NuWho Review: Series 8 Episode 9 "Flatline"

By: Jamie Matheison

**Spoilers**
If you have not yet seen this episode, please go and do so before proceeding.

        This episode was like...like everything that Fear Her SHOULD have been. Never before has the 'smudge' tool on photoshop been so terrifying.

       I think part of the reason I've always hated Fear Her so much (aside from the irritating presence of Rose) was because it just felt like a massive blunder and a waste of a great idea. The idea of being controlled/sucked into a drawing on a paper like a type of two-dimensional voodoo doll should have been creepy. And, here, that idea is refined and re-woven to give us a pretty cracking good episode.

    One thing that has been interesting this series has been Clara's relationship with The Doctor. Because of her insistence on keeping up her job and home life and his radical personality swing towards Old Grump, their relationship has been tumultuous and rocky. Which is nothing but a good thing, character-wise. It has, however, made it so that they work well as a team but often quarrel. And in this episode Clara is given a chance to step into The Doctor's shoes because he is trapped in his TARDIS. She has to take control of the situation and use what she has observed and learned on her travels with The Doctor to keep her cool and work things out, something that both reminds us of the difficulties of The Doctor's normal job and helps Clara to understand him a little bit better.


Favorite Moments & Random Thoughts:

- "These readings are very 'ish-y'."

- I feel like I've seen a shrunken TARDIS somewhere before...maybe in Classic Who. Seth? Can you remember?

- Why did that community service worker follow Clara and start spewing forth information about his aunty or gran (can't remember which)? Normally whenever I see people acting strangely I just let them go about their business, not offer up stories from my personal life. That just felt weird and almost put me on the wrong foot with that character.

- "I'm, um, I'm The Doctor!" "Don't you dare!" Hahahaha!

- "I love a good locked-room mystery."

- The Doctor being a sulky child while Clara usurps his usual position and scolds him is just precious.

- Ugh. Why did they have that awkward and strange phone-call to Danny? At least he didn't assume the worst...but what exactly was the purpose?

- The 2D creatures sounded a little bit like recordings of humpback whales whenever they were talking.

- Green Shirt Guy#3 had the most epic death scene EVER whenever he was grabbed by a giant, stone hand and dragged backwards through the tunnel, shrieking all the way. I know it was supposed to be scary or something, but I was practically sobbing with laughter the longer it went on.

- I appreciate the Addams Family reference...it was one of the most strangely adorable TARDIS scenes ever. Reminded me of a mutated, blue-shelled snail.

- That dimensional box-thingy that the TARDIS eventually turns into looks like a mini Pandorica.

- Rule #1 is 'use your enemies' power against them'? I thought it was 'The Doctor lies'.

- "Clara, my Clara. I HAVE chosen well." Okay, Missy. Are we ever going to find out what's up with you? Or is it just your job to lurk in postscripts and spew vaguely cryptic sentences every once and a while?

        All in all this episode was good fun, had a few legitimately tense scenes, and did wonders for furthering the great character development Clara has been given this series. I really think that it will hold up to multiple future re-watches as well and, if I may say so, was something that I enjoyed even more than Listen. It felt fresh and new and also capitalized beautifully on the before-untapped potential of Fear Her (I can't believe I just said that...) Flatline is a 4/5.




What did you think? Do you agree with my rating? If not - what would you say differently?

NuWho Review: Series 8 Episode 10 "In The Forest of the Night"

By: Frank Cottrell-Boyce

**Spoilers**
If you have not yet seen this episode, please go and do so before proceeding.

     This episode felt like something out of a modern Red Riding Hood tale...and it was AWESOME! Easily my favorite episode of this new series and newly one of my favorite Doctor Who episodes of ALL TIME! Now everyone who has read on this site for a while knows that I am a sucker for fairytales...especially fairytale references or fairytales retold in a new and exciting way. So, needless to say, this episode was right up my alley.

      But that doesn't guarantee that I would like it. Remember, I close to loathed the Robin Hood episode and that is one I should have LOVED. This episode, though, had great atmosphere that, along with beautiful cinematography and fun characters, just made for a fun, fun ride. The imagery alone of London covered in a thick layer of trees is interesting and the story kept us all guessing as to who the real culprit (or villain was) but was gripping enough to keep attention on the screen. I'll also say that the kids in this episode were what made it. Giving Clara a job as a teacher was probably the best thing ever done for her character as it seems to be the catalyst for pushing her forward as an actual person rather than just eye-candy there to make 'witty' remarks. I actually spent quite a bit of time squeeing over Clara in this episode, which is something I NEVER thought I would get the chance to say.


Favorite Moments & Random Thoughts:

- The Doctor and children is something that is always perfectly adorable. The kids in this episode are written WORLDS better than Courtney the Annoying Brat.

- "That's the problem with being the last of your species...no one to ask whenever your TARDIS won't start." Or, y'know, it could be because you threw the manual into a supernova, Doctor.

- I didn't know that having a sleepover at a museum was an option. I'm also disappointed at the lack of Night at the Museum jokes!

- What I want to know is why, whenever Danny, Clara, and the kids are wandering around, why don't they run into dozens of other people wandering around and staring at the Sleeping Beauty-esque forest? Huh.

- "The government emergency program, Cobra..." Why do I suddenly feel the urge to scream 'COBRAAAA!' and start singing the GI Joe theme song?

- This episode is great because it's a forest and the Sonic doesn't do wood.

- "Farewell to the Ice Age, say hello to the Tree Age." 

- I'll bet Sexy is laughing at The Doctor's distress over the band of 'rugrats' that are now inside the TARDIS.

- What exactly was the purpose of having Maeve's mother going about looking for her? I get that this was supposed to be emotional and all that, but she literally added nothing to the plot. It was just kind of pointless.

- OH MY GOSH THE FAIRYTALE REFERENCES IN THIS EPISODE WERE EPIC!!!!!!!!!!


- Danny fending off the tiger with a torch like it's a gigantic kitty was the best.

- "Class project: save the earth."

- Clara keeping on her game face and smiling as she walks with Danny and the children to the picnic she thinks will be their last on Earth just so they wouldn't be scared and would have a good final memory...that made me want to cry. I am officially in love with Clara. That was one of the sweetest and bravest things a companion has ever done.

- MISSY! *shakes fist* WHAT IS UP WITH YOU?! Not that I'm interested...it's just nagging at me. If she's going to be at the end of almost every episode, then surely she serves some kind of purpose? One would hope?

         In case you couldn't tell, I really, REALLY liked this episode. It had a kind of magical feel to it that calls to mind Blink or The Doctor's Wife and the characters were all a lot of fun. The kids were adorable, Clara and Danny finally got caught kissing, Danny figured out that Clara was lying but was perceptive enough not to fall into the typical romance clichés about it, and The Doctor was absolutely brilliant. I know I didn't say a whole lot about this one...but you really have to see it to understand. My words will not do justice. In The Forest of the Night is a 5/5.




What did you think? Do you agree with my rating? If not - what would you say differently?

Classic Who Review: Series 13 Story 5 "The Brain of Morbius"

*SPOILERS AAAAAAAHHHH!!! BEWARE!*

The Brain Of Morbius

You ever get that feeling where you just want to watch something scary? Almost like a craving?... I by no means am a fan of horror and have never watched a horror movie or a horror show because in the film and TV industry "horror" just means rampant gore. But I will say that in shows with many different episode types, the horror ones are always the best. In shows like Star Trek I seek out the scary bits. The same with Doctor Who. I think the reason is that when you make a horror movie you are making it for the 20+ crowd and can use simple gross out scares. But when you are making a scary one for a family show you have to use more 'civilized scares'. Using things that creep under your skin, things that seem eerily off, and thing that just wrong but really make you think. I would put this episode under the last category. think about it... Would you resort to becoming a monster to get out of being a lone creature of thought? Would you ever be so desperate for a body to Yearn to be a Frankenstein's Monster? This idea isn't new to Doctor Who. Did any of you face the dilemma in your mind of if you were dying and offered Cyberconversion, would you do it? I think things like this are truly scary because when you think about it, We could all see ourselves becoming the monster...

Random Thoughts

Seriously I have to give a big dark speech before jumping into funny stuff? Fine.

"Have you gone potty?!" Is apparently a way to say 'Have you gone crazy?!' BAAHAAHA!!

So if any of you were confused during the Night Of The Doctor minisode, this episode is the origin of Karn and its Sisterhood.

Doctor didn't anyone ever tell you not to drink anything in the company of mad scientists?!

The level of darkness in this episode amazes me. The headless bodies, The near beheadings, Burning at the stake, human sacrifice! Wow.

Were those fly creatures the same species as the one's in Planet of The Dead?

That poor assistant dude. Gets his arm lopped off, remains loyal. Get's offered as a sacrifice, Stays loyal. Told he had to get someone else to fix his arm, remains loyal. But I actually liked how he did have a breaking point. I saw quite a few bits of myself in him, and I liked that.

That gunshot had to be the bloodiest moment I've ever seen in the show. Not even the modern show has had a worse one.

While we are on the topic, how did that guy survive so long?! 

The Sisterhood and their fire pokers of death! Seriously why were these things so scary to everyone? I mean the Sisters honestly don't seem much of a threat so why does everyone treat them like the black death?

I absolutely loved that part with the Doctor and Sarah locked in the lab. It totally reminded me of some NuWho moments. It's times like these where he really seems to be just one person.

Gallifeyan sport is quite awesome. Mind bending is pretty darn cool. A game of pure mental strength with a possibly deadly outcome? Yes! Also regarding all those extra faces seen, apparently they were meant to portray other versions of the Doctor! I thought they just showed versions of Morbius. Most people don't regard the other faces as canon but it's really cool to think about.

That falling shot was... brilliant! Low budget at its best!

This is so weird... I liked this episode SOOO much but it doesn't seem like there is a whole lot to write about. Maybe I liked it so much that I wasn't looking for things to write about.

Conclusion

I wish I had more to say about this episode as it was just so awesome! But alas this is all I got... I feel like they tried to make this episode a " gross out scare" episode but it really didn't seem like that to me. This was an episode that really made me think "What would I do?" a question I still don't have an answer to. I saw myself in the characters and it really made me think. If you haven't seen this (Hey if you haven't seen this why did you ignore the spoiler warning?!) Totally do. And think about it... What would YOU do? 5/5

P.S

I'm looking for something to do next. I'm thinking of the episode where Sarah leaves, The hand of something something... Let me know if you have any ideas.

Supernatural Review: Season 10 Episode 4 "Paper Moon"

By: Adam Glass

**Spoilers**
If you have not seen this episode, please go and do so before proceeding.


       GAAAAH! Nooo! It burns! I'm melting! There was just too much character development and brotherly moments in this episode...I'm not sure I can take it!

      I jest, I jest. It was very good. We haven't had an episode like this since the latter half of Season 8 and we have DESPERATELY needed some. Sam and Dean are the heart and soul of Supernatural. Whenever they're not at least working together just the two of them as a team, things tend to break up a bit. Especially whenever the tension is dragged out insufferably. But now Sam and Dean are actually being honest and talking? Oh kill me now! I can die happily! This was beautiful...
   
        Kate the college werewolf returns. I didn't really like her in her ill-fated Season 8 episode, Bitten, probably because the lazily done 'found footage' format made me feel like someone had stuck my eyeballs in a blender. It got REALLY annoying after the first few minutes and - as things went on - made less and less sense as to why these college students would be filming all these things instead of freaking out like NORMAL people do. Needless to say I didn't really get a good first impression of this young werewolf, so when I heard that she was probably coming back for this episode, I groaned and resigned myself to another snooze fest.

     Ha. Haha. Hahahaha! Oh, Emily, you idiot! Nothing could be further from the truth because this episode was absolutely fantastic.



Favorite Moments & Random Thoughts:

- I loved the 'Then' montage at the beginning of the episode where we got to see a reel of all the werewolves the boys have ever fought over the years. For those who don't follow the news of the show, it kept us guessing as to who we might see this week. (You'll notice Garth didn't appear in the montage because he is not dead).

- 'Werewolf of London' was playing whenever the girl walked into the bar. Nice touch.

- One thing I don't like about these new werewolves is the way that their 'Full Moon' personas have been retconned. Wasn't the whole point of Madison's story that the wolf comes out as the moon rises and takes over totally, turning you into an animal? Like, you don't remember anything you do while under the influence? You don't have coherent thought?

- Oh gosh...Sam and Dean are sitting out with a case of beer, basking in the sun with their shades on, and wearing about four layers of clothing. *snort* How are these guys even on the CW?

- Osiric's legacy lives on...

 

- Sorry, dude. I'm pretty sure they're going to mention it in every episode that Jared has the sling on.

- "Besides. Werewolf Barbie over here."  

- Sam offers to kill another werewolf girl so Dean won't have to. I am still crying over Madison...this is not okay!

- THEY ARE DRAWING PARALLELS BETWEEN THE SISTERS AND SAM AND DEAN AND IT'S THE BEST THING EVER!

- A lot of my warm, fuzzy feelings towards Dean were somewhat dampened by the whole Gadreel fiasco last season. That was not okay and no amount of waffling by the writers will ever convince me that Dean did the right thing. He didn't. Even if Sam didn't have the history with possession that he does, it still wouldn't have been right. For the longest of times I feared that this would just be glossed over. That the incredible job this show does of showing cause-and-effect and consequences for your choices was being undermined. That it had possibly even jumped the shark. But now, oh glorious now, now we had an episode SOLELY DEVOTED to indirectly talking about Sam and Dean and Gadreel what with the obvious parallels drawn between Tasha and Kate and the brothers. Some of the shots of Kate visiting her sister in the hospital even directly were shot to look like scenes from I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here.

- Those weren't the only parallels noticed in this episode, though:

- Go ahead, rub salt in the wounds by reminding me of Sacrifice. This is some of the best writing the show has seen in a while (which, considering what show this is, is saying a lot) and I'm excited to see where this arc is going.

- We had three (THREE) brotherly conversations in this episode. Wow.

- "Oh you were a demon?Aw...I didn't realize that!" Sassy Sammy is the best.

- The reveal that it was Kate's sister doing the killing wasn't all that incredible. Did they really expect us to believe that it was Kate?

- And Sam ends up being strangled again...twice in one episode. Why am I not surprised?

- There's definitely something off about Dean and I'm willing to bet that it's intentional rather than just character bleed because both Jared and Jensen are scarily good at switching between different versions of their characters effortlessly. He may be cured, but the ride isn't over yet.

- Sam took out two werewolves with his dominate hand in a sling. Let me repeat that: SAM TOOK OUT TWO WEREWOLVES WITH HIS DOMINATE HAND IN A SLING. The Winchester boys are awesome.

- "I am just trying to do the right thing, man, because I'm just sick and tired of doing the wrong one." 

           In case you can't tell, I really, REALLY enjoyed this episode. We got the brotherly moments that we've so desperately needed without it delving into fluffy OOC territory and the character development happened by leaps and bounds. Worlds was done for Kate's rather bland character and she's definitely someone I would be interesting in seeing again on the show. The Winchesters should have given her Garth's number. The writing was tight and witty and really raised some excellent points about Sam and Dean that addressed things that desperately needed to be addressed. Maybe the brothers are beginning to heal instead of just slapping a plaster over the festering wound and soldiering on. This is good. This is very good. Great episode. Paper Moon is a 5/5.




What did you think? Do you agree with my rating? If not - what would you say differently?

Twenty Reasons To Actually Watch SPN Seasons 1 - 3

       

      Would you believe that there are actually those who skipped Seasons 1 - 3 of Supernatural? Makes sense, seeing as how there are fans who advise newcomers to just start in with Season 4 and ignore everything before that. I can't believe I'm actually having to talk about this, but here I go:

DON'T SKIP TO SEASON 4! JUST DON'T!  

 Why would you EVER tell a new fan to skip ahead? Is it because you don't like John? Is it because you only like Castiel? Is it that you prefer the brothers fighting and putting each other down and suffering constantly? Is it? If so...fine. You're entitled to your own way to watch Supernatural and you're entitled to your favorite character. But, for the love of all things holy, please don't ruin the experience for new viewers? They need to see the early seasons to understand what is going on and to get why people are acting the way they are acting.

1: Foreshadowing

      Seasons 1 - 3 are where we see the bond between Sam and Dean established. We learn about Sam's psychic abilities and a LOT of foreshadowing for the Apocalypse story arc is put in place. You've got the Yellow-Eyed Demon, who we later learn was named Azazel and put in place by Lucifer to watch over Sam and prepare him as a vessel. We are introduced to Bobby Singer and to Gabriel the archangel. Lilith is set up as the big bad. Ruby proves herself to the boys as an 'ally'. And we get the first beginnings of the questions about faith and angels and God that this series tackles. There's also the incredible episode Home where Sam and Dean return to their old house in Lawrence and encounter the ghost of their mother. I can GUARANTEE that if you skip these early seasons you will not understand what is going on and will probably misjudge a few characters because you will have jumped in at a bad point in their lives. In fact, I am going to tentatively blame the terrible Season 9 writing on the fact that some of the writers Jeremy Carver is bringing in haven't even seen Seasons 1 - 3. Which is really a shame because those seasons contain some incredible writing, story arcs, and TONS of foreshadowing for later in the show.

2: The prank wars

        Ah yes. God forbid that Sam and Dean actually act like brothers, rather than the utterly broken liars that they are. (Note the sarcasm...I'm still bitter over the Gadreel fiasco.) Probably the most famous prank war happens in Season 1's Hell House...highlights include Dean threatening Sam's hair and Sam gluing Dean's hand to a beer bottle...but all throughout the seasons there are lovely little touches. Usually of Dean deliberately messing with and annoying Sam, but certainly Sam gives as good as he gets. Tall Tales is another one of the utterly glorious episodes where Sam and Dean are bickering and getting on each other's nerves in that special way only siblings can.

3: John Winchester

        I seem to be oddly alone in loving this most controversial member of the Winchester family. But, whatever you think of him, if you want the full picture of the complex, frustrating man that was Sam and Dean's father then you really need to watch the early seasons. I feel like a lot of people who hate John skipped to Season 4 and are just going on gifs and heresay about his character. I'm not trying to make him out to be any kind of saint...but I don't think that you can judge him without watching his full story. Besides, if nothing else, you should watch it for the chance to see Jeffrey Dean Morgan kick some serious vampire butt with Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles at his side.

4: The Trickster

        Back before we were all getting emotional over archangels and Grey's Anatomy parodies, there was this little character known simply as The Trickster. He was mysterious, powerful, and had a very twisted sense of humor. He was implied to be a demigod of some kind and was known for killing Dean 200+ times on a Tuesday and for making some poor frat boy slow dance with an alien. Really you don't want to miss out on the early episodes of Loki. You just don't. They're some of the best comedy this show has ever produced and Mystery Spot at least is a fine little character study for Sam.

5: Ghostfacers

            These are the characters who have outlived EVERYBODY ELSE ON THIS SHOW! And how can you possibly call yourself a fan of the show if you haven't paid your respects to the characters who managed such a feat? (And, no, #THINMAN doesn't count.) The Ghostfacers belong solely to pre-Series 4 Supernatural and to a web series that ran as a companion from their titular Season 3 episode. Seriously. These geeks are some of the best characters ever to come out of this show if for no other reason than the fact that they represent what we would probably look like if we were dropped into the Winchesters' world.

6: Dr. Ash Badass

        Sometimes I really miss Harvelle's Roadhouse and the colorful array of characters that paraded through its front door and slept on its pool table. The latter, of course, is a reference to the mullet-wearing MIT drop-out who works as Sam and Dean's hacker for a while. And what else is there to say about him? Ash is just a cool, fun character who - sadly - is only seen in Season 2...except for one short cameo in Dark Side of the Moon which, if you haven't seen the earlier seasons, must leave you utterly bewildered and confused.

8: Lisa and Ben

        How can you hate this mother-son duo? They're ADORABLE! Even if you don't believe that Ben is Dean's kid, you have to admit that he was pretty freaking cute. Okay. So I know a lot of people didn't like Lisa. Good grief! If you go on YouTube and do a search for any clips involving the time Dean spent with them you'd better make sure that little eyes aren't reading over your shoulders, because the language can get pretty offensive. Personally I didn't understand the high amount of vitriol and disgust that she seemed to evoke...until I realized that many people have not seen Seasons 2 and 3 where the Braedons are introduced and where we begin to see Dean subconsciously dreaming of maybe one day having a family with them. If you just start with Season 4, then Lisa literally comes out of nowhere. You won't understand the history and, as a result, you will not have a complete picture to base your judgement off of.

9: Things were simpler back then

      Not that the show was lacking complexity by any stretch of the imagination, but certainly there was a lack of fatalism. There were no angels mucking stuff up, there was no Apocalypse, Sam and Dean weren't pathologically lying to each other, and the Winchesters were still only concerned with their family problems. It was nice. We got to see them take down some serious monsters as a team and the way that the brothers practically operated on the same wavelength. Seasons 2 and 3 also contain some of the best episodes that this show has ever produced, simple on the surface but full of complexities and great storytelling underneath it all.

10: Victor Henriksen

        You need to watch the episodes with this man in it, d'you understand me? You NEED to watch them! Not only do they chronicle the saga of Winchesters: America's Most Wanted, but Victor is just a great character who is a lot of fun to either love or hate. Either way you end up feeling about him, it won't be a loss. He's a smart, tough, dedicated FBI agent who picks up on the curious case of the Winchesters and makes it his mission in life to figure them out and bring them to justice. The interactions between him and Dean are simply priceless.


11: Playthings 

            This is one of those 'can't miss' episodes from Seasons 2 and 3 that I mentioned earlier. Basically it's Sam and Dean going to hunt an old, creepy haunted hotel with a weird dollhouse inside and two little girls that evoke The Shining imagery. Oh yeah and we the boys playing with dolls, Sam diving into a pool from a balcony, and one of the strangest and sweetest grandmothers ever depicted on this show. I won't say anything more because I don't want to spoil it for you, but there's some really great writing in this episode that builds up to a rather surprising twist ending.


12: A Very Supernatural Christmas

        This is, to date, the only Christmas special that this show has ever done and good LORD is is awesome! It has everything you could possibly wish for. There's killer Santas, dark comedy, and even a bit of tear-jerking cuteness as we get a peek into Sam and Dean's childhood. We learn the significance of Dean's amulet and Dean is forced to replace all of his swear words with 'fudge'. Oh...and we also get to see the boys singing Christmas carols. How could you turn that down? No. Seriously. How? If you haven't seen this, I'm just sorry. 

13: Sarah Blake

        Yes SPN needs more female characters. I agree with that. We especially need more female characters like the practical but understated Sarah Blake from Season 1's Provenance. This particular love interest of Sam's is often forgotten (probably because he didn't actually sleep with her...or because she was only in one episode) but if you neglect to see her episode, then you're really missing out on a lot. For starters, we see Dean go into full-on awkward-big-brother-councilor mode in his efforts to find Sam a little bit of happiness. Secondly, Sarah is just a great character! She and Sam were really cute together and she managed to be capable without being over-the-top tough or unbelievably careless. I wish she had stuck around a bit, I really do.


14: PA!Dean

         I could watch Dean eating mini Philly cheese steaks all day. Hollywood Babylon is a gem of an episode because, not only is it SPN successfully parodying itself, but it takes jabs at the CW network (with some well-placed quotes) and at the system of Hollywood in general. And Dean gets to be a personal assistant to one of the studio bigwigs, pigging out on the free food and seducing the lead actresses as he goes along with Sam watching in utter bemusement from the sidelines. He is in his element!

15: Azazel/The YED

        Did you know that the whole reason Sam and Dean were raised as hunters in the first place exists almost solely in the first two seasons? Azazel, more commonly known as The Yellow-Eyed Demon, is the baddie who kick-starts the whole tragic story of the Winchesters whenever he visits Sam's nursery and kills Mary, giving John his drive to seek revenge and basically being the catalyst for why things are the way they are in our two main character's lives. Yeah. I'd say that he's a pretty important piece of the puzzle! He's the reason Sam has psychic powers. He's the reason Mary is dead. He's the reason John got into hunting. He's the reason this 'Jessica' chick keeps being mentioned (she was Sam's girlfriend who was murdered, btw). And, yes, he is VERY important! GO WATCH HIS SEASONS!


16: Linda Blair as a detective

       I have a confession to make: I have never seen The Exorcist. Nope. Not once. Not even once. And I'm not planning to either...it's really not my kind of movie. That being said, you CAN'T deny that Linda Blair is a pretty freaking awesome actress. And, what do you know, Supernatural was lucky enough to get her to cameo in one of their episodes (Season 2's The Usual Suspects) where she plays a no-nonsense Baltimore cop who gets caught up in the insane world of Sam and Dean Winchester. Her episode is just great - pea soup jokes and all - and she really worked well, her character meshing beautifully with the boys. She's just honestly a joy to watch and feels like a real character with a real story to tell, for all that she's only ever in one episode. And her story is quite good too. Again, not going to spoil it, but it's definitely worth a watch.

17: Killer clowns

        Oh poor Sam...yes, the boys fight off a literal killer clown. At a carnival. In a funhouse. And it is the best thing EVER! The episode Everybody Loves A Clown is important for three reasons. (1) it involves the first real conversation that Sam and Dean have after their father's death. (2) it contains Dean driving a minivan and lip syncing to a cheesy Air Supply song. (3) it involves a KILLER CLOWN. How can you not fall in love with that? I'm not a fan of clowns myself, but I really enjoyed this story. It's got some great characters and an excellent twist that I'm not going to touch so I don't spoil it.

18: Nightshifter

         This may just be my favorite Supernatural episode EVER. Sam and Dean being awesome? Check. Complex story with surprising twists and turns? Check. Agent Victor Henriksen being his wonderful self? Check. A cool monster? Check. It just has EVERYTHING and showcases both of the boys' skills (both supernatural-world and natural-world) along with a game of monstrous round-robin that leaves everyone guessing. There's great side-characters, a compelling case, and one of the BEST music moments that you will EVER see on this show. I get CHILLS!

19: Weechesters

        Pretty much any episode bringing out the younger versions of Sam and Dean will push my 'squee' button and instantly make me fall in love with it. But did you know that if you skip over the first three seasons of this show you miss several opportunities to travel back in time with these kids and watch the two heroes of the show grow up? That would just be a shame. So just don't.

20: Blond!Meg & Sam!Meg

         Yes. Long before Meg was playing with Hellhounds and flirting with angels she was the nemesis of Sam and Dean. Called the 'Daughter of Azazel' (we're never told if she's his literal daughter or if that was just a lie to mess with the Winchesters), Meg is a thorn in the boys' sides for several years. She is indirectly responsible for the death of their father, personally killed many of their allies, and possessed Sam on one memorable occasion. If nothing else you should make sure to watch her early years for the chance to see Jared Padalecki play her. No. Seriously. Every actress (or, in that case, actor) to play Meg has utterly convinced me that they are possessed by the same person. It's a little bit cool and a lot terrifying and you're really missing out on something big if you don't get to see Meg: The Early Years.

Supernatural Review: Season 10 Episode 3 "Soul Survivor"

By: Eugenie Ross-Leming & Brad Buckne

**Spoilers**

If you have not yet seen this episode, please go and do so before proceeding.

           Did anybody else think that Dean was cured WAY too easily? Like I'm almost suspecting a hidden twist in the next episode to reveal that he's still part demon because I don't really believe that this show is capable of copping-out and wasting such a perfect potential. Then again, he does still have the Mark of Cain, so we'll see.

        Anyway. So the status quo is (for all appearances) restored with Crowley in Hell, Castiel in Heaven, and Sam and Dean studiously NOT working through their personal issues on Earth. Yeah. This episode was rather anti-climatic...and yet very exciting at the same time. I'm not going to call it a cop-out, because it really wasn't a flop. Not at all. A lot of good stuff happened in this episode. For instance, we finally had Dean acknowledge what a tangled-up and even unhealthy relationship he and Sam share whenever he tells Cas that Sam shouldn't think it normal to just out-of-hand forgive the brother who swung a hammer at his head and tried to kill him. This is good. From what I've heard this season isn't really going to have a Big Bad in the traditional sense, so maybe we'll finally get Sam and Dean to deal with a few of their (many) issues before one of them is on the brink of death.

       ...NAH!

Favorite Moments & Random Thoughts:

- So this episode starts out with Sam (playing dress-up again, what d'you know) infiltrating a clinic to steal some blood for Dean. This scares me. Why isn't Sam just using his own blood? It's not like he's completing the Trials again and Father Wotshisname wasn't incapacitated by curing his demon, so why not? Do Sam and Dean not share a blood type? Or is there something else going on? Until we get a set-in-stone confirmation that Sam is NOT back on the demon blood, I'm afraid to believe otherwise. 

- Also gave us a look at Sam in doctor's garb. Seems like this season is going to bring back the brothers + cosplay like in Seasons 1 - 3. I miss that. I get that now they're older and can pull the FBI gig off with less chance of contest, but I still miss the costumes.

- "Sammy. You know I hate shots." "I hate demons."

- You know...Dean called Sam 'Sammy' more in this episode than he did in all of Season 9. And yet it was somehow worse because he wasn't saying it in an affectionate or even teasing sort of way. Sometimes I really hate this show...

- So Cas and Hannah are once again road tripping, this time because Castiel is on his way to the Bunker to support Sam because he knows that Sam may need him to smite Dean if the cure doesn't work.

- We got to see more of Lester the Cheating Husband in this episode. And wow. What a mess! Lester didn't have to make that deal. He didn't even hesitate, he stepped right up to that demon and signed away his soul. Sure maybe Sam shouldn't have led him there, but this is nothing new. We've seen Sam go all 'dark side' before whenever Dean is gone and he's on a mission to save him (Mystery Spot, I Know What you Did Last Summer) I am worried about the demon blood, because they keep hammering in how Sam has gone so dark. We haven't really seen anything out of the norm for the Winchesters yet, but to be honest I am both scared and excited to see where they take this. Last season it felt like the show was treading water. Maybe now it can kick back into high gear again.

Sam, you big nerd...

- It's interesting the way in this season we get to see the high-level demon side of Hell and it just looks like a dirtier, less-pristine version of Heaven. Kind of makes you wonder, from some of the things said, if Hell isn't just literally the other side of the coin from Heaven. Like your eternal torment is based on your worst memories. 

- "It's Hell. You wait in line. That's what you do." Queuing for all of eternity? Crowley, you monster...

- Crowley having flashbacks to his good times, howling at the honeymoon time with Dean is both hilarious and a little bit creepy.

- Castiel and Hannah road tripping is officially the best thing about the angels since Balthazar. I think I've figured out why the angel story line has become so...brackish recently. I think it happened when they made Castiel a season regular. And I KNOW I'm going to get some weird looks for saying that, but hear me out. Before whenever we dealt with angel politics, it was cosmic. They were dangerous and mysterious and close to all-powerful. The only person not poop-your-pants afraid of them was Crowley; and even he gave them a wide berth. We also didn't see the inner-workings of their society and hierarchy back then. Any battles that happened mostly happened off-screen and were steeped in less Montagues vs Capulets and more Holy Bible & Dante. That made them seem different from most angels portrayed on screen, gave them a rich mythological place, and kept them from growing stale. In Season 9 we were taken deep into the ranks of the angelic civil war. This is in direct contrast to Season 6 where the same type of story line takes place...except we are put into the Winchester's shoes by being kept on the outskirts of things. Heaven and Hell have also been downgraded simply because we've seen them. It was much better whenever we had to fill in the blanks from our imaginations. Where this all started to go wrong was when Castiel was made a season regular, much as I do like him. He's just around too much. With angels, a little goes a long way. But maybe this season will prove me wrong. It certainly looks like it will do so. "Why can't you people just sit on clouds and play harps like you're supposed to?"

- Why did Crowley save Cas? I'm scared now. Crowley never does anything without a bigger plan in mind.

- Dean's whole 'blaming monologue' to Sam is just painful to watch. Not because of Jared or Jensen, no. As always they do a PERFECT job...but that is what makes it hard to watch. For so long now Sam has blamed himself for all sorts of things (he and Dean REALLY have issues in the 'self-loathing' department) and one of the biggest sore spots has been the death of Mary (even though it couldn't have been his fault) and all the times he has let Dean down (a festering wound that should have been healed in Sacrifice, but was ripped open again throughout Season 9). Yeah. This just hurt.

- Saw this in the promo, prepared with chocolate and shock blankets, still nearly died from it. Not cool, writers, not cool. They'd BETTER have a talk about this on the hood of the Impala!

- I do, however, feel like this episode was really setting up some great improvements and talks between the brothers that will at least get them to the point where they're understanding each other a bit better. I also appreciate the way that the writers don't seem to forget how very awful it was for Dean to shove Zeke into Sam's head in Season 9. I've always been a Dean fan, loving him and respecting him as a character despite his flaws, but as my fellow SPN watchers on this site know...that choice REALLY ticked me off. Like REALLY ticked me off. I may have thrown a few things at my screen and spent the next few days muttering insults every time I thought about it. Sam had every right to be angry. He had every right to tell Dean that he didn't trust him. And I'm not sure, but it looks like the writers might actually be acknowledging that fact and working to fix it so that the narrative isn't quite so strictly Dean-skewed. Let's hope so. It's about time this issue was resolved.

- Love the way that Dean escapes and then Sam immediately does the smart thing by collecting all the keys and then locking the Bunker down.

- The flashing red lights and deep shadows only make the atmosphere of Dean Winchester hunting his little brother down with murder in his heart all the worse. They accentuate the hellish nature of what's going on.

- Would Ruby's blade have worked on Dean? It didn't work on Abaddon and she didn't even have the Mark...

- Cas came in to save the day...after Crowley shoved some stolen Grace down his throat. Are we going to deal with how this whole 'angel battery recharging' thing works at any point?

- It was interesting, though, how they intentionally showed Cas and Dean's contrasting eyes...Dean's black and demonic, Cas' shining with the light of heaven.

- Dean is cured now. All I can see is Cole, after playing through the pain and researching demons, showing up later in the season to douse Dean with holy water...just to find, much to his bewilderment, that it doesn't work. 

- While I do think that it happened a little bit too soon , I am very glad that Dean is apparently cured by the end of this episode.

- At least Dean did acknowledge how messed up their lives are that him swinging a hammer at Sam's head is hardly going to be the most difficult thing Sam will have to forgive.

          So yes. I do think that this episode was very good. It didn't have much of a plot and, quite honestly, I could probably have done without the Castiel-Hannah scenes (nice as they were), but it was an enjoyable enough experience. Jensen and Jared were spectacular. Demon Dean was scary and hurtful. And, while it ended on a slightly unsatisfactory, downer note, over-all I think it will hold up to many future re-watches. For those worried about Dean being cured so soon, I say that I feel your pain, but that in this I see shades of god!Castiel in Season 7, so don't worry...all will work out. Soul Survivor is a 3/5.

What did you think? Do you agree with my rating? If not - what would you say differently?

NuWho Review: Series 8 Episode 8 "Mummy on the Orient Express"

By: Jamie Mathieson

**Spoilers**
If you have not yet seen this episode, please go and do so before proceeding.

         After last week's utter disappointment and annoyance-fest (where, looking back again, the only redeemable feature was Clara yelling at The Doctor) I went into this episode with low expectations and, as a result, was pleasantly surprised.

       I am also currently battling off the mother-of-all cold viruses, so I apologize if this seems somehow less coherent than usual. Anyway. So this episode sees us finally getting the chance to see the Orient Express in Space as well as dealing with the mystery of a killer, invisible-except-to-the-victim Egyptian mummy. I expected at least one 'Are you my mummy?' joke to crop up somewhere within this episode...and I was not disappointed.

       Because this week was slightly lighter fare than the terrible Kill the Moon, the melodrama and dark humor really worked with the contrasting atmospheres of Orient Express and Laboratory to give us a fun, bizarre romp through space.


Favorite Moments & Random Thoughts:

- The opening to this episode with the zombie-walking mummy and the determinate calm and sophisticated lady freaking out in an utterly British sort of way was just hilarious, though the reveal of the Orient Express in Space called back to mind both The Big Bang where The Doctor mentions a case on that train and Voyage of the Damned where the Space Titanic was revealed in the exact same way.

- The songs Foxes is singing reminds me a bit of 'My Bad Angel' from Daleks in Manhattan.

- Clara and The Doctor were absolutely ADORABLE this week! I'm glad that they let Clara be mad at The Doctor for weeks after the last episode. She didn't just forgive him out of hand.

- "Might be nothing. Old ladies die all the time. It's practically their job description." 

- The Doctor looks so...so old and broken whenever he tells Clara that this will be their last hurrah. He looks twice as sad whenever Clara tells him that he can come around for dinner. I'd bet my boots that he's remembering Jackie and Donna and Amy and Rory right there.

- Y'know? I really like Perkins.

- Miss Pitt looks uncannily like Mary Watson. Jessica agrees with me, so it can't be all my fevered imagination...right?

- And she opened the lock by smashing a high heel into the computer. Yep. Definitely Mary's long-lost sister.

- 66 seconds. I would agree that is terribly specific for an immortal, unstoppable force...but I watch SPN, so I'm quite aware that sometimes these things are specific.

- I love the way The Doctor drops everything and runs whenever Clara says that she is trapped.

- "You mean you can't save me?" "Ah. Well that is implied, isn't it? This is, probably, the end for you. Make it count! Details!" Geeze, doc, don't sugarcoat things.

- The images of the stricken cooking staff floating through space reminds me of The Impossible Planet.

- I really like the way that Gus is just so obscenely cheerful and matter-of-fact about the whole thing. Dark comedy at its best!

- "You know, Doctor. I can't tell if you're a genius or just incredibly arrogant." 

- A vampire mummy? That sounds like a bad SyFy movie. The long-lost brother of Sharknado.

- There is a nice bit of continuity in this episode too where The Doctor mentions how Gus has been trying to lure him to the Orient Express for a while, referencing the TARDIS phone call in The Big Bang that I mentioned earlier. Nicely done, Mathieson!

- Whenever Clara took The Doctor's advice of lying to Miss Pitt, I threw my box of kleenex at the screen. No. NO! We are NOT going there! Nonononono! (But they did.) Fortunately Clara was able to take The Doctor to task and convince him to go ahead and replace Miss Pitt with himself.

- "I'm The Doctor and I will be your victim this evening. Are you my mummy?" HAHAHA! YES! YES! They DID fit one of those jokes in!

- I wish Perkins had gone with The Doctor. He would have made a great companion. And we need someone to travel with The Doctor who isn't from 21st Century Britain.

- "Sometimes the only choices you have are bad ones. But you still have to choose."

- I hate the ending with Clara lying to both Danny and The Doctor. I just have a feeling that this is going to end badly for her...

            All in all this was a fun episode. I do think that the reveal and defeat of the mummy might have been a bit weak in terms of tension and resolution, but the rest of the episode holds up extremely well even under multiple viewings. Mummy on the Orient Express is a 4/5.

What did you think? Do you agree with my rating? If not - what would you say differently?