Supernatural is known for a lot of things, but joy isn’t one of them. Sam and Dean rarely have fun. Instead, they’re constantly battling life-or-death situations and apocalyptic scenarios. So in “Beyond the Mat,” it’s refreshing to see the brothers enjoy themselves, even for a little bit, while reliving their childhood at a wrestling match.
Best Supernatural Quotes from “Beyond the Mat”>>
Yes, the simple joy of watching wrestling is captured perfectly in this episode that quite beautifully points out the similarities between the wrestlers whose bodies are left torn and broken after years of fights and the hunters who will inevitably have similar fates.
Wrestling with the Winchesters
A wrestler Sam and Dean loved as kids dies, so they decide to take a break from investigating the Darkness to pay their respects. It quickly becomes a case connected to several murders, but not before the brothers get to enjoy a wrestling match and relive their childhood. It’s rare and quite entertaining to see Sam and Dean so happy and innocent, with Dean rooting for his hero Gunnar Lawless while Sam flirts with manager Rio, the first woman he had a crush on as a young boy.
Like the Winchesters, I was also a fan of wrestling as a kid, and their unbridled joy is spot-on. Dean hilariously seems to think that wrestling is as real as monsters and he even gets into the ring after everyone leaves to bounce off the ropes. The Winchesters almost never have fun, so this is a nice change of pace.
Wrestling at the Crossroads
The murders are all connected to a crossroads demon named Duke who made a deal with Gunnar to help his career. Rather than collect Gunnar’s soul when the deal ran out, he used him to recruit others because Hell is in total chaos with Amara and Lucifer running loose. Duke tries to recruit a young hothead wrestler named Sean Harley (played by WWE wrestler The Miz), but he turns him down.
Sam and Dean arrive to fight the demon, but get stopped. Dean convinces Gunnar to be a good man, so the wrestler kills Duke (giving us yet another episode where the monster of the week is killed by someone other than a Winchester). But because his crossroads demon is dead, the hellhounds come for Gunnar, and he’s OK with it.
Crowley’s Great Escape
Casifer is forcing all of the demons to help him find another Hand of God to defeat Amara, but some of the demons prefer their former boss. One of the demons, Simmons, helps Crowley escape so he can take back his throne.
But when Crowley takes Simmons to his secret hideout where he keeps his own Hand of God, the Rod of Aaron, Casifer shows up. Naturally it was all a double cross and Simmons was working with Casifer the whole time. But Crowley knew that, so he grabs the Rod, absorbs its power, and attacks Casifer.
Simmons jumps in front and gets killed, thus using up all of the power in that particular Hand of God as well. These people need stop wasting the powers of all the Hands of God they find if they want to use one to kill Amara. Casifer regains the upper hand, but Crowley flees. I’m sure it’s just a matter of time until the King of Hell teams up with the Winchesters yet again to stop Casifer.
(Image courtesy of the CW)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
