A loose end gets tied up… poorly.
The retribution for past actions seems to fall slightly on Sam as he is torn between reclaiming his lost year and abiding by Dean’s wishes to leave the past alone in lieu of staying alive.
However, I think the reckoning falls mostly on Dean as he had to deal with his decision to leave Lisa and Ben. The settlement of accounts in a nutshell occurred with the Lisa/Ben music montage as Dean drove back to see Sam. I’m hoping that wasn’t the writer’s way of tying off that story line and moving on.
If it is, someone’s paycheck should get docked for agreeing to that shabby send-off. They go to all of the trouble to make them seem significant in the first couple episodes of Season Six and then you’re given their blink and you miss its send-off. If this turns out to be the Lisa/Ben swan song then the story arc conclusion will equate to a big steaming pile of Wendigo (you know what).
Now, onto the spook of the week: I came across some viewers saying the mannequins were creepy. However, they were a little lackluster for my taste. Admittedly, I’m willing to give a small nod of approval toward the anatomy dummy with the moving eyes. The MOTW frittered in this episode. I liked the beginning and the ending, but the middle… not so much. Sort of felt like Season One’s “Bugs” all over again. It was an episode where I liked a handful of conversations and moments between Sam and Dean but the actual story and MOTW were poorly conveyed. I’m not going to recap this episode like I usually do as I’m more interested in chewing on the commentary.
I did love that we weren’t denied the angst of the aftermath of Sam’s seizure and subsequent journey down Hell’s memory lane. Jensen Ackles did a great job of conveying barely controlled panic and emotion as Dean begged his brother to wake up. Good stuff!
The ending of the episode was a nice cap to an otherwise flat balloon of an episode. It had beautiful bookends: the opening scene of unconscious Sam’s angst and then the Dean and Sam conversation at the end where Sam thanked his brother for getting his soul back and reminded him that he has his back for whatever they may face. There was a gentle softness in Dean’s eyes when he looked at his little brother, an affection we haven’t seen that clearly for a while. The Winchesters are rebuilding their relationship and I’m happy to see it. Man, have I missed it!
Episode Grade (two parts): Overall, D+ but an A- for the opening segment and brother conversations.
Some stats and info about Supernatural, “Mannequin 3: The Reckoning”
TV SHOW – Supernatural
SEASON/EPISODE – Season 6, Episode 14
AIRED ON – February 18th, 2011
NETWORK/STREAMING SERVICE – CW/Netflix
GENRE – Drama, Teen Dramas, Horror, Fantasy
CREATED BY – Eric Kripke
CAST – Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins, Mark Sheppard, Jim Beaver, Alexander Calvert, Mark Pellegrino, Samantha Smith, Ruth Connell
This review originally appeared on TV Geek Army.