The Winchesters Season 1 Episode 4 Review: Masters Of War
Megan Behnke
at
.
What happens when the past comes back?
On The Winchesters Season 1 Episode 4, the gang investigates the death of a war veteran and new information revealed about Carlos has John seeing him in a new light.
Meanwhile, Mary and Lata finally get closure after Maggie's death.
Right off the bat, it was such a well-done episode.
This episode gave us more details about John's military background.
And we also got to learn more about Carlos' background as well, which I absolutely loved.
What I also loved is that we got to see two different perspectives of how a veteran may act.
When John and Carlos had to go to group therapy for the case to get some information, Carlos was willing to share his experiences.
Circumstances may be different, but our traumas are the same.
Carlos
He opened up about his time, and after the case was done, he still went back to group.
Which could be a regular occurrence for him.
And I really hope that it is because it could be a consistent thing for him.
Then you have John, who we know doesn't necessarily like to open up, at least not right away.
We saw how the war affected him, and he admitted that he lost a buddy out in the battlefield after stepping on a landmine.
The way that he acted during the case wan't just because of the monster.
It's because of his PTSD that he has been trying to push down.
And I love the fact that Carlos was trying to make sure that John knew he was there for him.
Even if John didn't exactly take him up on his offer to talk.
We haven't really seen the two of them work together yet.
So bringing them closer by sharing their experiences in the war, albeit different, is the best way for them to get closer.
Even if it wasn't exactly by choice.
Someone else to open up this episode was Mary.
We learned very early on that Mary lost her cousin, Maggie, just over a year ago.
And it was because of hunting.
It’s her room. It’s closed for a reason.
Mary
After John nearly opened Maggie's door after he thought it was a bathroom, it brought up feelings for Mary and Lata that were, again, buried deep.
It's one of the reasons why Mary wants to get out of hunting.
But knowing that Maggie could have something that might help with the case, Mary and Lata decided to go into her room.
The two found postcards that Maggie wrote to herself after cases, and after talking, they chose to continue the tradition.
Mary also offered Carlos to sleep in Maggie's room.
I can’t keep the door locked forever. At some point, I’m gonna have to face what happened. And I think I know how.
Mary
It's such an emotional storyline and likely won't be the last time Maggie's brought up.
But I love that Mary and Lata were able to get some sort of closure.
And I'm hoping that we get to regularly see them, maybe even John and Carlos, write their own postcards post-hunt.
Though it does make me wish that tradition carried on with Sam and Dean.
Maybe it did, and we just never saw it?
Fighting the battle between good and evil isn’t easy. Especially when the first monster you have to face is the one inside yourself.
Dean
It's these little things that will bring the team closer together.
And remind them of why they're doing what they're doing.
With this case came yet more worry from Millie.
Now that we're four episodes in, Millie's worry over John hunting grows and I can't say I blame her.
Like any Winchester, John is one to fight first and ask questions later.
Monsters aren’t gonna play nice, and neither should you, John.
Mary
Whether it's in his blood or because of the military is unknown.
But considering Sam and Dean basically grew into the same motto, it's the former.
But when Mary and Lata enlist Millie's help with the case to save John and Carlos, she immediately stepped in.
And her going into instant Mama Winchester mode when she tried to check the boys out was both hilarious and heartwarming.
John’s been a fighter since he was four years old. You put him in a dangerous situation with an enemy, and he’s going to run towards that enemy. Every single time.
Millie
I feel like while she knows that she'll never really warm up to the fact that John is a hunter, she is still as proud as ever of him.
And I love that we were able to get her for a case.
Since hunting is the family business, it's highly possible we'll be seeing more of Millie with the team and taking down monsters.
Though if she does do more hunting, I am going to need it to be with Mary and Lata.
I love the girl power that radiates from the three of them.
And it can definitely show that girls can do anything guys can do.
Millie, Mary, and Lata are complete badasses, and I absolutely love that we've been getting more of them, whether it'd be individually or together.
I have been loving how deep into the characters we're getting.
And so personal too.
I'm hoping that if Carlos continues going to the group therapy, he and John will get closer, and John will feel like he can tell him anything.
But it may still be a while before he really starts opening up to him.
As we've seen on Supernatural, the Winchesters are not exactly the most open-book people.
And I feel like I can't stress this enough: I adore the chemistry between the characters just as much as I adore the chemistry between the actors.
You can already tell that Millie and John have such a great mother-and-son relationship, considering all that Millie has done for him and how protective she is.
But you can also see how close Mary, Lata, and Carlos are.
And bringing the five together just expands that family even more, even if some were skeptical at first.
The way that they're bonding makes me excited to see what comes next.
I have loved getting more backstories with these characters every episode, but what do you think? Are you hoping we get even deeper into the characters? What are you looking forward to exploring more?
Meanwhile, are you hoping that Millie joins more hunts? Or do you think she should leave it to the professionals? In my opinion, she's already a badass, so why not have her keep that status going?
As episodic traditions go, I am hoping the series sticks to the postcards and group therapy because consistency is always a good thing for TV and for the characters.
Share your thoughts below and be sure to watch The Winchesters online any time via TV Fanatic!
Megan Behnke was a staff writer for TV Fanatic, who you can follow on Twitter.
