TVSquad

Supernatural put the brakes on the big story arc this week to deliver a good ol' monster of the week episode. That was a little disappointing after "Hunted" set up the major story for the rest of the season, but it had its good points too. A lot of issues were resolved at the end of that last episode and that brought back a sense of spirit and adventure that we haven't seen from the Winchester boys for a while.

We did get a couple references to the ongoing story. Sam was talking to Ellen about tracking down Ava and later there was drunken Sam making Dean promise to take him out if he turns evil. That was a strange scene. The story of it was good, but the performance was lacking. Jared Padalecki is usually great in those scenes, but drunk Sam didn't really work. When he first started talking I thought that he had been posessed by Margaret. I didn't get that he was supposed to be drunk until Dean told us. I like the revelation that Sam thinks if he saves enough people that he can change his destiny, but I don't think we needed him to be drunk to reveal it.

Back to the weekly story, for some reason I picked up on Margaret being imaginary right away. Chalk it up to a great performance from Conchita Campbell (The 4400). She was rather menacing. Aside from murdering two guys and trying to kill Tyler and Susan, she just looked creepy. That was a good piece of casting. As was Annie Wersching (pictured) as Susan. And here's a weird bit of trivia for you. Annie played a character named Margaret on Angel.

The misdirection of Rose causing the deaths with the hoodoo she learned from her creole nanny didn't really work as I had already settled on Margaret, but it did make for a creepy scene. Going up the narrow winding staircase, the strangely lit attic, and when the camera spins to reveal Rose. Eeek. Good stuff.

I liked the ultimate resolution of the story, that Rose had been using the hoodoo to keep Margaret locked away but was no longer able to since having the stroke. And her agreement to die and stay there with Margaret so Susan and Tyler could be safe and leave was a nice parallel to the deal John struck to save Dean. My only issue with it was why Rose's spirit came back as a little girl. It's a minor nitpick, but something that stuck out.

This week also saw a return of wise-cracking Dean. He had a bunch of great bits. "Might even run into Fred and Daphne inside. Mmmmmm....Daphne." Signing in to the hotel as Jack Mahogoff. Outing Sam as a doll collector that likes to dress them up in tiny little outfits. Warning Sam not to go surfing porn. His distress over everyone thinking he's gay. Suggesting that Sam could have "hooked up some milf action." It's a Dean we haven't seen a lot of lately, and he was missed.

Overall, another solid outing for Supernatural. I'm anxious to see where we are headed with the big story, and to know what Ava's been up to for the last month. But this show, better than most, strikes a good balance between the story of the week and the big picture stuff.