Some of the best episodes of Supernatural tend to be the ones that expand upon the mythology of the series, which is why “Malleus Maleficarum” was so memorable. We learned why Sam (Jared Padalecki) had been acting like a hardcore killer, more about Ruby’s back story and intentions, as well as the fact that all demons used to be human. The episode messed with our brains and what we thought we knew of the Supernatural universe, which left some viewers giddy and others skeptical. Read on to find out what some of our readers had to say about the exciting events in last Thursday’s episode.
dktamom had nothing but praise for the entire hour, raving, “This episode totally rocked! It grabbed your attention from the get go and never let up. I thought that the Dean and Ruby scenes were especially telling. It was really cool to see Sam’s desperation and determination to save his brother from the spell. This episode was classic Supernatural with a great story, fantastic acting, awesome(although sometimes gross) special effects and superb directing.”
Though most people seemed to love the twists, there were some who were still hoping Ruby (Katie Cassidy) would turn to the dark side. “I enjoyed this episode but I think I wanted Ruby to be evil and have an agenda with Sam,” meimei42 said. “Now Ruby is kind of this lost soul who is a demon but still remembers how to be human….well I don’t know, she’s *too* human or something. I hope this is just one of her ways of leading us on or something. I still want her to be evil and badass.”
Of course, one of the biggest reveals in the episode was the fact that demons are really humans that have gone to Hell and lost their humanity. This means the same fate will befall Dean (Jensen Ackles) when he kicks the bucket. “I’m really eager to see Dean’s reaction to this new development of all demons were human because we know he doesn’t want to become the thing he hunts,” eliza79 pointed out. “I imagine although he still doesn’t mind going to Hell if it means Sam is alive, he’s not gonna be as gung-ho as he was before. I find it ironic that Sam was suppose go to the ‘dark side’ but now if Sam doesn’t manage to get Dean out of Hell, Dean’ll be the one turning evil.”
One thing I wondered, as did reader lisanglas, is whether the reason given for Sam’s cold-blooded killing was an honest one. “As far as establishing a reason for Sam’s new attitude, I think it was a total red herring,” she wrote. “Either that or the writers are slipping. There hasn’t been enough groundwork to believe that Sam’s behavior is the result of trying to be more like Dean in order to survive in this ‘crappy world’ and win the war. The writers have been so wonderful at portraying the complex relationships on the show, the answer simply can’t be that easy – or one-sided. There’s gotta be another twist in the works.”
One of the most memorable, and disgusting, moments in the episode was when a man bit into a hamburger teeming with maggots. It was a definite reminder of how wonderfully revolting this show can be at times, which is all part of the fun. DeanFan seemed to sum it up best: “THE BOYS ARE BACK! It’s about time. This episode was AWESOME, but I don’t think I’ll be eating hambugers for a while.”
Did Ruby tell the truth about not being able to save Dean? Was Sam honest about the reason behind his murderous ways? Maybe we’ll find out more in this week’s episode, entitled “Dream a Little Dream of Me.” It airs Thursday at 9pm on the CW.
– Don Williams, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
(Image courtesy of the CW)
Staff Writer, BuddyTV
