Well, that's a helluva way to go into another hiatus, isn't it?

Has anyone else been incredibly sad that Jack has been suffering? Against all the odds, Jack (pre-death) was a kind and sweet boy. The son of Lucifer was closer to Sam, Dean, and Cas than anyone in his "family."

Thankfully, Supernatural Season 15 Episode 13 got to the bottom of that situation, and we don't have to continue without the Jack everyone loved any longer.

The memory lane that Supernatural Season 15 has been traveling was revisited on "Destiny's Child" with Sister Jo and Ruby sharing a backstory that led to Jack's redemption.

Genevieve Padalecki (Ruby) and Danneel Ackles (Jo) have been changed by Supernatural as much as their husbands, Jared and Jensen, so getting another crack at their characters works for me.

The fallen angel and the demon proved, once again, that when it comes to God and the higher powers, all bets are off.

Ruby shared something with Demon Sam, and while it could be said that she made a deal with Cas only to get out of The Empty, it has to be a little bit more than that.

Why do they call this place The Empty? It's full. It's full of sorrow and despair playing over and over again of angels and demons dreaming about their regrets. Forever.

Ruby

• Permalink: Why do they call this place The Empty? It's full. It's full of sorrow and despair playing...

There was something more to her from the moment she arrived on Supernatural, and Ruby didn't fail Cas when she offered to tell him the location of the Occultum. 

Who knew we'd get introduced to something so important so late in the game? The entire exchange with Billie sharing what she knew about it right down to Dean's guesses of where it had been were so fun.

Cas: The Occultum is divine in origin. It was housed for hundreds of years in an ancient temple before it was...
Dean: Plundered by pirates!
Cas: No.
Dean: It was dug up by tomb raiders!
Cas: No!
Dean: It was seized by the king of the dead and his warlords. Am I close?
Cas: Looted by invading Mongal hordes for trade on the black market.
Dean: Yeah, I was gonna say that next. That was the next one.

• Permalink: Yeah, I was gonna say that next. That was the next one.

It doesn't even matter what it was or where it had been. Jack ate the little ball and got transported to the Garden of Eden where he was transformed and returned to earth with his soul intact.

Given how well the hour was structured, the event was perfectly paced.

Jack was trying to kick his feelings into high gear by doing anything to find joy. He understood the concept of feelings and heart, but he'd lost touch with it when he lost his soul.

I used to feel things in my bones. It was glorious and sometimes unbearable, but I felt them. Now, I understand joy or sadness, but I know those things aren't in me.

Jack

• Permalink: I used to feel things in my bones. It was glorious and sometimes unbearable, but I felt them....

There was a little bit of Jack's spark when he was blowing his first bubble and downing junk food, but he knew none of it mattered.

Cas never stopped believing in Jack even when he had fallen as far as he could. He understood how Jack must have felt losing Dean and Sam's respect. Especially since his love for Dean and Dean's humanity never wavers, either.

Jack: I understand why Sam and Dead were angered by what happened to Mary.
Cas: By what YOU DID to Mary.
Jack: Yes. I see that I've caused them pain, and it's clear that things have changed. Especially with Dean. Will he ever forgive me?
Cas: You know, Dean, he feels things more acutely than any human I've ever known. So it's possible he could work through this. One day, he may explode, let it all out, breathe deeply, and move on.
Jack: How long will that take?
Cas: I don't know.

• Permalink: I understand why Sam and Dead were angered by what happened to Mary.

That Dean feels so fully joy and pain is one of the reasons it hurt Jack so much to lose his respect. Even if he couldn't feel guilt, the concept made perfect sense when weighed against Dean's humanity.

As soon as Jack entered the Garden of Eden, it was clear that he would be changed forever as a result. It's hard to imagine God would have allowed the place to flourish knowing how powerful it remained.

God knows everything, so it should have crossed his mind that Jack's soul could be returned through the Garden, and since he's the being powerful enough to take on God, that would be detrimental to Chuck.

But it seems that Chuck isn't thinking clearly anyway. He's busy tearing asunder all of the DoppelWorlds he's created.

That led to a fun side story in which DoppelWinchesters escaped their crashing world straight into the bunker. And since they didn't have a bunker of their own, that's one hell of a coincidence, isn't it?

But what fun would it have been if they landed elsewhere? It was just as fun as I expected their encounter to be, too. From the goofy sighs of both DoppelWinchesters to their car and Sam's man bun, it was perfectly ridiculous.

And they came thisclose to allowing a return from Jeffrey Dean Morgan since John is quite the businessman in their world and dad escaped through the rift with them only to be lost along the way. 

Money isn't everything, and the Doppels were open to spending more time with everyone just to experience how they live. But, off to Brazil they go. Brazil? Oy.

Another terrific callback to earlier seasons came with the return of Rachel Miner as Not-Meg aka the personification of The Empty. If you don't know, Miner got diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2010 became debilitating for her.

She made a comeback on Chicago Fire Season 8 Episode 17 before appearing as The Empty. On Chicago Fire, her character was in a wheelchair. And if you noticed that The Empty didn't rise, now you know why.

It was great to see her. She's as talented as ever and made The Empty as terrifying as it should be.

She almost got her clutches into Cas, but Jack was too fast.

And now Jack is back in his entirety, with a heart that is broken by what he's put Sam and Dean through. 

I do not doubt that Dean will forgive Jack.

You could see Dean's face softening as he realized the Jack he loved and protected had returned. He would have forgiven Jack without a soul eventually, but when the realization that Jack's just as much of a pawn in everything as they are, he'll forgive Jack.

That's not even the only development, as Dean has also conjured up a plan to ensure the world is balanced if and when they destroy God.

That means Amara's destruction as well as God's. But now that we saw Jack's soul returned, does ending God have to be the way it all goes down?

I wonder if they can find a way to restore a more benevolent God who isn't interested in messing with his creations for his pleasure. Maybe God is corrupted in the same way Jack was.

Will Supernatural really end with the destruction of God, or is there another way? After this hour, I'm betting on the latter. How about you?

My associate editor is going to laugh out loud when he read this, but I teared up when Jack was begging forgiveness. Alexander Calvert is still so youthful, and his emotions as Jack can wreck me.

Unfortunately, we have no idea when Supernatural will return. We need God to wave his magic wand and eradicate the coronavirus so we can get back to normal. But, until then, we can watch Supernatural online and relive the story while we wait for its conclusion.

There is hope for our future and the Winchester's future. Jack proved miracles happen.

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.