Supernatural Review: Get Well Soon
Sean McKenna
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If you’re looking to kick your New Year’s resolution of losing a few pounds into overdrive, maybe it’s time you found a Peruvian Fat Sucker. Just be careful not to let them hoover you to death.
That’s right, Sam and Dean found themselves at a wellness spa on Supernatural Season 9 Episode 13 hunting creatures that reminded me of Q*bert. They just happen to really, really love fat.
Guess you could call this a light and breezy episode. Well, right up until the final Winchester conversation.
Sam in short shorts instructing yoga. Dean playing kitchen lady. There was enough humor to go around, and when the two brothers are working together their back and forth makes for a laugh. The same for their interactions when things get awkward, like Sam trying to high five his yoga class or Dean getting pumped up about fitness.
Even a silly comment about “sweet potatoes” and pudding was funny.
The female police officer was a totally goofy caricature with her overt perkiness and exaggerated accent. It just wasn’t working here, even if the whole case involving fitness and Peruvian Fat Suckers was supposed to be a break away from the dark tale the Winchester brothers have gotten themselves further involved with.
The monsters themselves, while neat they had turned their powers for good, didn’t really stand out beyond that. But, really, how could they? They are Peruvian Fat Suckers. It’s hard to take seriously when you mistake their name for “Fish Tacos.”
That said, Sam’s fight scene in the dark was pretty cool. I was glad there was a bit of action involved and we got to see Sam handle the situation. Yes, Dean ended up coming in at the last second to chop off that ugly vacuum tongue-thing, but that’s why they work together. Because they work well together.
But it was interesting that this episode would also play up the “good” monsters and “bad” monsters notion, especially since it was used with Garth just last week on Supernatural Season 9 Episode 12. We get it, not all monsters are vicious and violent enemies, but that’s a topic discussed multiple times and something most viewers could discern by now after watching nine years worth of this show.
So I am glad that Dean was able to agree with Sam about sending the girl sucker back to Peru rather than ganking her, but it did seem odd that Sam didn’t mention letting Garth live as a first example. Yet that’s not really the issue between the brothers.
Sure, there was some amusing banter about “being honest” more at the start of the hour, but everything turned super serious by the end. And it’s tough watching the brothers not happy together.
I get that Sam’s upset, and he still can be, but the two really need to come up with a compromise in order to move forward.
I’m glad the two had the heart to heart as painful... as it was to watch. Sam’s admission about Dean being the hero, saving his brother, sacrificing because he doesn’t want to be alone; it all rings true. But that’s not all a bad thing.
There is good in what Dean does, the same as there is good in what Sam does. The two have both been successful and both made mistakes. It’s definitely what makes them human.
But I’m not sure I buy Sam’s statement about not sacrificing himself for his brother. Didn’t he save Dean, heck the world, by jumping into the cage with Lucifer in Supernatural Season 5? And maybe his comment is a foreshadowing of something to come in which he’ll be faced with that choice.
However this rift, as much as it needs some time before the healing, is a lot less fun to watch than when they used to goof off and be on that same page. They're at this messy moment that looks like things might never be fixed. But I still maintain that they care about each other beneath all the problems.
They need to start finding a way back to what made them work great together rather than the ways they bring each other down. I still think it’s going to take some time to work back to that point, but I’m hoping by season’s end.
And sure, some conflict between Sam and Dean can be good for the show, as much as any mythic arc and larger story that delves into dark areas can be good. But it's a lot harder to enjoy, even the lighter, fun episodes, when the lead characters aren't having the same fun they should be.
It's going to take a lot more than a relaxing spa treatment to fix the brother problem, but I'm definitely ready to see the Winchesters back on the same page.
Will Sam and Dean fix their brotherly relationship by the end of Supernatural Season 9?
Sean McKenna was a TV Fanatic Staff Writer. He retired in May of 2017. Follow him on Twitter.
