Supernatural: Blade Runners

Filed under: Recaps & Reviews

Remember: stay close, do as I say and shut the hell up.

After going weeks without so much as a whisper from Crowley, Dean is worried. Crowley is supposed to get the First Blade for Dean in order to destroy Abaddon but all he can do is sit on his hands and wait. It turns out, Crowley is been holed up in a hotel room; shooting human blood into his arms and being "distracted" by Lola. When Crowley learns that Lola has been feeding information to Abaddon, he destroys her. Now that he has reached his lowest point, Crowley calls on the Winchesters for help. Sam and Dean get there quickly and realize that they need to get Crowley sober if they want to find the blade. The two of them bring Crowley back to the bunker and learn that the trail went cold after the blade traded hands numerous times. Sam and Dean do some digging of their own and get word that the current owner's name is Magnus. At that point, Sam remembers that the cover name the Men of Letters used was Albert Magnus. The boys know that everyone was massacred by Abaddon years ago but Crowley recalls that only the active members were present. The Winchesters find the records showing that Cuthbert Sinclair was kicked out of the old boys club for his radical ideas. If the Winchesters want the First Blade, they will have to get to Magnus first but they will learn the true reason why he's no longer in the bunker.

Following a short break, Blade Runners managed to marry the old with the new with only a few bumps in the road. Besides Crowley, this episode was focused on one thing: plot. Tossing the latest Winchester feud aside was a good idea with this much story as we learned that not all of the Men of Letters were as decent as their grandfather. Magnus showed was the Men of Letters could be if the power that they held corrupted them and was used for selfish gain. Even though he knew that the warring factions of hell would inevitably find him, Magnus instead chose to remain hidden and wait for opportunity to present itself. Of course, by the end of the episode Magnus is dead and Crowley has the First Blade but it finally feels like some of the pieces are starting to fall into place. For months, Dean and Crowley had their uneasy truce but a mutual understanding that they needed each others' help; that's gone. This leaves the Winchesters without the First Blade and back where they started.

Though it was squarely focused on the plot, the star of Blade Runners was unquestionably Crowley. After first being introduced to human blood by Sam, Crowley's addiction eventually took full control. His human emotions made him an unstable wreck who was letting his kingdom crumble around him while he stood idly by. Mark Sheppard ran the gamut of emotions in this episode as he showed us the vulnerable side of Crowley as well as the betrayed side after overhearing the blatant plan from Sam to kill him. Speaking of Sam, who would have thought that he and Crowley would have such good chemistry? Crowley listed all of the times that he helped the brothers and did everything he could to get Sam's approval while Sam continued to get more annoyed. It's a pairing that we have never seen before in Supernatural and it worked very well to inject some much needed humour into the episode.

Blade Runners did a lot of things right but that still didn't stop it from having some odd moments. The first being the tone of Crowley's addiction to human blood. Whether I was meant to feel sympathy for Crowley or laugh as his tearful crying was confusing. Obviously Supernatural didn't want to go full Trainspotting with Crowley's addiction but I couldn't take it seriously with the funny moments and the hotel room littered with grey corpses. Secondly, was Snooki's guest appearance really necessary? Considering the Jersey Shore (I can't believe I have to mention that show in a review) has been over for a few years now, it would have made more sense during the height of it's popularity. Snooki also seemed more concerned with making sure he hair was perfect as there is barely a shot without her flipping her hair back when she isn't staring blankly at Sam and Dean. In the scope of the episode, the scene felt needless and the episode would have felt more focused without another distraction. I'm sure there must be another way for Sam and Dean to find out that the demons aren't happy with Crowley.

Overall, Blade Runners has set things up nicely for the remainder of the season. Hopefully next week's episode, Mother's Little Helper, will continue as we learn more secrets from the Men of Letters and the lengths Dean will go to kill Abaddon.

Have a question or just want to talk Supernatural? Leave a comment below of reach me @Extra_Lives

Tags: Supernatural, Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester, Crowley, Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, Mark Sheppard

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