Supernatural producers had to be holding their breath last week with the introduction of the much reviled new character of Ruby (Katie Cassidy). Fans have been pre-hating, the press has been pre-hating, and Dawn Ostroff is no doubt already sharpening the CW axe, so success was somewhat crucial. As it was, the intro was just a teaser – albeit a wedged in teaser with a thoroughly comic snarl – which gave fans every reason to say “We’ll give her some more time.” Well, episode two is upon us, and if you like spoilers, you might get a slightly sinking feeling about how Ruby plays into episode two.
The episode itself is a shot back into the episodic mode for Supernatural. Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Sam (Jared Padalecki) are on the lookout for a parasite that steals children then imitates them. The name of the episode is, cheekily, “The Kids are Alright,” and it features a subplot that has Dean thinking he may have sired a young one.
Early word on the beat is that Ruby’s appearance in this episode is as wedged in as it was during the first. She appears, again to Sam, and drops some information regarding their history and a connection that apparently is implausible, according to the source.
The point to consider, I suppose, is that the rumored love interest plan was specifically engineered to aim Ruby at Sam, and Bella – who will be introduced shortly – at Dean. No, there is no reason not to trust Eric Kripke and his crew when they say that if the chemistry doesn’t work, it won’t happen, but this rings of a matchmaker from hell.
First, the girls obvious are getting their own mythological backgrounds that intersect with the boys. Even if there is no intent to force a romance onto the show, adding another mythological download seems like it may, in many ways, detract from the business at hand just as it did in “The Magnificent Seven,” and as it appears it will in “The Kids are Alright.”
On the upside, the girls may bring a new layer that is engaging and really captures our interest. There is no reason to think that couldn’t be the case. The worst case scenario, obviously, is that the girls become tangential storylines that break up the episodic and overarching elements of the show and bog it down with hyperbole and fluff.
Time, and Thursday, will tell, but knowing the savage devotion of Supernatural‘s fanbase, I doubt the producer’s cries to “give them time” are even necessary.
– Jon Lahonis, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of the CW)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
