An excerpt:

“In comparison, in the little (and I mean little) scene where First Sam meets Soulless Sam, we get nothing that’s on par with what we got on Dean. The pair of Sams circle around each other alright, but the camera shoots them from a distance, a little ways down a hill, with three-quarter shots starting at mid calf and ending somewhere a little ways above Sam’s head. There are almost no closeups and certainly no dramatic view points or reveals that would indicate in any way whatsoever that this character is important. The camera, in fact, tells us most certainly that he is not. “

An excerpt:

“Next up, the Gang studies the journal and gets the reference to H.P. Lovecraft. After the boys exchange amusing and amused looks, Dean remarks snarkily why on earth he’s supposed to know who that is.  This has a two-fold effect. First, it acts like it wants to totally negate the heretofore supported idea that Dean actually reads for pleasure and to improve his mind. I’d be more peeved with this reversal, if the idea didn’t, at the same time, also start shoving the lads to their former positions, with Dean as the uneducated muscle and Sam as the brainy encyclopedia. This points to the boys potentially going back to being brothers with each one having a role, and Dean was funny anyway, so there’s that.”

An excerpt:

“My favorite line of his in the ep is when the Soap Angel refuses to kill the Winchesters, and tells Crowley not to worry about it. Crowley starts growling, “Don’t worry about them? Oh, you mean like Lucifer, Michael, Alistair, Lilith or even Azazel didn’t worry about them?” That’s a long string of names of Big Bads and a nice reminder that you don’t mess with either Sam or Dean or they will Take You Out.”

An excerpt:

“After the hoe-down hilarity of last week’s ep, this week’s ep was a whole lot of something that wasn’t anything like a hoe-down and nothing like anything I’d be watching twice, if I didn’t have to. I’m not saying it was terribly bad, but at every other turn in the plot, I kept asking, why are they doing that? or why is he saying that to him? Not to mention the fact that it was Dean, Dean, Dean, all day, all night, all Dean, 24/7, and there was, at the same time, a mighty DEARTH of Sam.”

And excerpt:

“Magical Bobby is the first one to find the intel about the Phoenix and how its ashes can destroy the MOA. Up starts the funny lines, most of which are delivered by Dean. Here he asks, “Are we talking River, Joaquin, or the flaming bird?” Sam gives Dean a delighted smirk (as if to award Dean points for being so clever), and then his eyes get a little narrow, as if appraising Dean on some other and perhaps darker level. Am I reading too much into this, do you think? There’s still the issue of the Great Wall of Sam and how much is (or has) gotten through to be dealt with. I’m hoping it will happen soon because I think it’ll be a doozy when it does.”

An excerpt:

“Dean points to the back of the bus, not at the # 666, but instead at the hind end bus ad that shows Russo shilling his wares. When Sam gives him the Bitchface, we get another lovely quip from Dean, “Too soon?” (as in, too soon to poke fun?) and Sam retorts, “Yeah, Dean, six seconds is too soon.” This is funny, funny stuff, and when’s the last time, I ask you, since Sam and Dean had these types of exchanges? It’s been years. Years! I’m not saying that it didn’t make sense, that absence and the brothers’ distance, but it’s nice to see them more in sync in this timeline. Hopefully it will continue back in their real lives.”

Closeup Number 963