Supernatural: The Gamblers

Filed under: Recaps & Reviews

How the Winchesters got their groove back.

Desperate to get back to their old selves for the inevitable battle to end all battles with god, the Winchesters are off to Alaska on a quest to get their luck back. Back at the bunker, Castiel gets home but finds nothing but a note from Sam letting him know where they went. Moments later, the bunker gets a phone call. It's Sheriff Evans from Oklahoma who has new of a wanted suspect the FBI has been tracking – Jack Klein. After arriving in Alaska near the place where Garth directed them, they get a tip from a diner server that the only thing near them is a "magical" bar where people go to win big. It all seems like bust since the last person that went there was hit by a transport truck and killed. Knowing that is the place, the Winchesters head down to the bar where they eventually meet Pax, the manager that runs the bar. He lays everything out very clearly: a simple game of pool but if you lose too many times, your luck runs out. When you're out of luck, it might be the end. With no money, a flat tire on the impala and the creator of all existence holding a grudge against them, the Winchesters are going to have to play for it.

With a solid story and a focused perspective, The Gamblers hit the mark in delivering a good episode of Supernatural. After last week's disappointing episode, I was skeptical that Supernatural would be able to turn the "luck" element around into something meaningful but I was proven wrong. With The Gamblers, the pacing was consistent throughout and always had a new mystery and surprise whenever the story plot started to drag. The first being the mystery of finding the bar, the call with Sheriff Evans about Jack, the games being played for luck and eventually leading into Fortuna's reveal. Each new reveal added to the story as we learned something new rather than overcomplicating the plot. Supernatural doesn't often make parallels to something serious but The Gamblers handled this well. Showing that winning is never enough and that it keeps those affected by it trapped and unable to escape their "curse" was both sensitive to the subject and authentic to fans of Supernatural.

Though it wasn't the focus, the return of Jack Klein is a huge deal for Supernatural and what was even better was how this was all done in a single episode. In a very smart move, it was Castiel that received the call from Sheriff Evans to investigate. Not knowing if this was Jack or the demon that inhabited Jack's body that he melted, Castiel was torn and apprehensive on what or who would be inside the body of the person he calls his son. Fortunately for us, Jack Klein is back and on a mission from death to become so powerful that he may be able to kill god. It's a huge shift for Supernatural and one that will no doubt guide the rest of the final season while raining so many new questions. What will happen to Jack once he has all this power? Can Billy be trusted? Why does she want god to die? It can go in any number of directions but they are all equally exciting.

The Gamblers was a good story that also have the return of Jack. Hopefully this keeps up when the show returns with Galaxy Brain on March 16th (Mondays now...weird, right?).

Tags: Supernatural, Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester, Castiel, Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, Misha Collins

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