TV Review – Supernatural Season 3, Episodes 6-10 (2007-08)

Click here to see my commentary on Episodes 1-5, 11-13 (Episode 13, “Ghostfacers,” includes an actual gay character), and 14-16.

3.6 Red Sky at Morning
Original Air Date. 8 November 2007

Overall 4.0 / 5.0
No Gay Content

Monster: Ghost
Summary: People are mysteriously drowning while on dry land, each of them having seen a mysterious Ghost Ship beforehand. Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) investigate. Thief and blackmarketeer Bela (Lauren Cohan), meanwhile, is trying to recover yet another supernatural artifact to sell, when she too sees the Ghost Ship.

I had heard bad things about this episode before I saw it, but I really liked it. The story struck the right balance with Bela – she’s irritating enough to play off the boys well, while still being sympathetic. Also, the scene between Dean and Bela when they’re preparing for the cocktail party is simply awesome. After Bela says, “You know, when this is over, we should really have angry sex,” the expression on Dean’s face is priceless. I watched the scene twice.

Meanwhile, the interest elderly Gert (Ellen Geer) showered on Sam was cute, but I thought they overplayed Sam’s revulsion. Sam is a nicer guy than that.

3.7 Fresh Blood
Original Air Date. 15 November 2007

Overall Quality 3.0 / 5.0
No Gay Content

Monster: Vampires
Summary: A vampire (Matthew Humphries) feedis young blonde women a few drops of Vampire Blood, which he positions as a drug, and turns them into vampires. Meanwhile, Gordon (Sterling K. Brown, who is convinced Sam is the antichrist) has gotten out of prison, and he’s determined to slay Sam.

Some aspects of Supernatural are simply stellar: Dean’s and Sam’s depth of characterization, the strong acting from Ackles and Padalecki, and the wit and humor in the scripts.

Other elements, however, disappoint. I include the treatment of minorities in this category.

The lack of any real gay content frustrates me, as does the inconsistent tone of the occasional gay reference, but at least gay people aren’t alone in being treated poorly in the Supernatural universe. Black men have it even worse. Every major black male role has been a villain/antagonist, and most of them have been killed. I complain that the overarching stereotypes of gay people are that, if you’re gay, either (1) you are bad, or (2) bad things will happen to you. Well, the same can be said of African American on in the show.

Let me clarify one point. It’s not that I require the show to treat every black (or gay, or some combination therof) character as a saint. What I want is balance: if they’re going to have a bad guy, fine, give me a good guy too.

I agree that bad things happening to people is pretty much the standard plot in Supernatural. So it’s contextually appropriate, and I reiterate, I don’t require minority characters to be singled out for happy treatment. But there’s a big difference between bad things happening to minority character and bad things happening to non-minority characters, both within the show, and within the larger context of media portrayals.

Within the show, there are guest stars who help the boys, who are helped by the boys, and who have a happy ending (relatively speaking). Mostly, they’re white girls. Within the larger context… it does raise the question, does the show have any kind of moral obligation for reponsibile presentation? I say yes. I suggest there’s a problem in the world with how minorities are portrayed in the media; and by not helping, these kinds of portrayals make the situation worse. I call it morally irresponsible to turn a blind eye to the reality of the world with the argument, “But it fits our show.” Give me a storyline where it had to be that way, where a Causcasian good guy couldn’t have been African American, or where the gay guy had to be the one to die.

Again, those portrayals don’t intrinsically bother me. It’s that they’re the only examples of inclusion.

It raises a question: Would I rather have an actual gay character who dies (a negative stereotype), or no gay character at all (defamation by omission)? It’s not a happy choice, and I fail to see why I should have to make it at all.

3.8 A Very Supernatural Christmas
Original Air Date. 13 December 2007

Overall Quality 4.5 / 5.0
Gay Content 0.5 / 5.0 (the barest hint)

Monster: Pagan Gods
Summary: An unlikely pair of pagan gods who have given up on waiting for their followers to offer sacrifices and have taken matters into their own hands. They’re posing as “Santa” and slaughtering people. The show includes several flashbacks flesh out the Winchester boys’ history, including where Dean got the gold amulet he always wears.

Not as funny an episode as I would have expected, but still very nicely done. I love when they do theme or spoof episodes. The rapport between the brothers, always the show’s strongest element, takes center stage.

There’s a great moment when the boys pose – by implication – as a gay couple.

3.9 Malleus Maleficarum
Original Air Date. 31 January 2008

Overall Quality 4.0 / 5.0
Gay Content 1.5 / 5.0 (strong suggestion of lesbianism)
Gay Positivity 1.5 / 5.0 (not positive)

Monster: Witches and Demons
Summary: A coven of witches and a couple of magical murders: the Winchester boys investigate! Naturally, there’s more to this story than meets the eye, including a demon (Tammi, Marisa Ramirez) who’s all too happy to find Sam in her grasp. Ruby (Katie Cassidy) helps.

A surprisingly entertaining episode with some funny lines. Wait for the one where the witches are casting to spell to lower their mortgage rate. Overall, I liked the episode, but I am irritated by the gay content.

The show has really hit its stride this season. The writing, stories, and acting are spot on. But they have miscued on virtually every moment of gay inclusion. It’s so frustrating.

In one scene, Ruby approaches the demon Tammi as though they were formerly lesbian lovers. While I liked Dean’s reaction (Ackles has some great facial expressions), it also reveals the whole purpose of including that undercurrent: to titillate. The fact that both of the “lesbian” characters are demons, doesn’t help. In fact, coding a character as gay or gay-esque is a classic way of enhancing their alienation from the audience and thus their villainy. Plainly stated, using gay coding to establish villainy is hateful and homophobic. Using lesbian coding to titillate the audience (especially men) is juvenile.

Remember what I said about the overarching portrayals of gay people in the media? If you’re gay, the portrayal likely posits you as bad (like being demons), and/or that bad things will happen to you (like getting beaten up and/or killed).

I wouldn’t be complaining (well, nearly as much) if we’d met a gay hunter by now, or some other good gay character who doesn’t die.

It’s like every time Supernatural includes gay content, they’re trying to portray the worst stereotypes. It’s maddening, especially since it’s such a great show otherwise.

Episode 10. Dream a Little Dream of Me.
Original Air Date. 7 February 2008

Overall Quality 3.0 / 5.0 (entertaining, but not as strong as most of the eps have been)
No Gay Content (well, barely any)

Monster: Somebody with the power to infiltrate others’ dreams
Summary: Bobby (Jim Beaver) has lapsed into a coma from which he will not wake. Sam and Dean must delve into his dream to rescue him; but who will rescue them from their own?

The dream sequence between Dean and himself is well-done, although I thought it came on a little strong. Still, Dean’s reaction – and what he does to his alternate self – makes for a very powerful and revealing moment. Also, I enjoyed the bittersweet moment when we realize Dean is dreaming of a normal life with people who love him.

On the other hand, I thought they could have done much better with this episode. The villain was dumb, the internal logic of how he did his thing and how Sam overcame him was silly, and outside of Dean encountering himself, I thought they could have done a much better job of exploring the characters’ psyches.

For example, Dean’s dream of Lisa (Cindy Sampson, from the episode “The Kids Are Alright”) with the picnic – I thought it would have been much more moving to see Dean dreaming himself a complete life, the way Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) found himself in an immersive Victorian Christmas environment in Star Trek: Generations. In other words, an all-encompassing, seductive vision from which he wouldn’t have wanted to wake, would have revealed the powerful emotional longing that the stoic Dean doesn’t otherwise show.

Briefest of gay comments. Sam dreams of Bela (which was fantastically funny), and when he wakes, Dean asks who he was dreaming about.

“Angelina Jolie?”
“No.”
“Brad Pitt?”
“No.”

What was interesting to me was the tone – neutral. It didn’t come across as gay-baiting at all. What a breath of fresh air after the gay content of the season thus far.

Tags: Dean Winchester, Defamation by Omission, Gay Supernatural, Gay Villain, Heterosexism, Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Sam Winchester, Supernatural