this week's Supernatural

[ratcreature]

I guess I must have much lower standards for acting than most of my f-list, because I didn't mind the current Ruby actress' performance. It's not that I thought it was awesome acting, but it didn't think it was awful either.

Overall I enjoyed this episode a lot. Like everybody else I liked that Sam confronted Ruby about using women as hosts, and that she then used a braindead woman as a host instead.

I wasn't squicked over the necrophiliac associations of that. First, it was obviously not a true corpse, because the body was still working with the help of life support machines, and that just switched over to Ruby. Also, in fiction I'm not even all that squicked by actual necrophilia. Okay, so it is slightly gross if a character uses a lifeless dead body as masturbation aid, not to mention that it is disrespectful if the person that body used to be didn't consent to be used that way, kind of like disrespecting funeral wishes is wrong. More so in fictional universes that allow for the option of after-death awareness (that dead woman could be around as a ghost after all, on top of her traumatized relatives who may think she miraculously recovered and then vanished or just don't know anything), but well, viscerally I don't really care that much. And animated dead bodies are eroticized so often (cold, hard vampire bodies etc.) that I'm really used to that.

I didn't find it OOC that Sam slept with Ruby in his downward spiral after Dean's death. And Sam and Dean patching themselves and each other up stoically was great h/c-oriented fanservice.

One thing I wondered though was about their demon-stabbing knife. Is there some method to when it doesn't work that I missed or don't recall? The Crossroads Demon got stabbed in his hand and stayed in the body, and the other, more powerful one was even stabbed in the chest, but I guess that one was special somehow? Does the host need to be killed with it for the demon to go?

Comments

[jimandblair.livejournal.com]

i just watched it. Did you hear me scream when I saw the words: to be continued? Season IV is impressive. Part of me marvels that the US TV execs/religious fundamentalists haven't canned it citing it as blasphemous or inappropriate or something. The other part of me, gleefully demands MORE.

The Necrophilia side of having sex with Ruby didn't occur to me -- she's not dead per se. The empty apartment analogy works.

I wondered about the knife -- your inference that the host has to die seems logical since S&D normally go for the throat. The Demon chasing them (Alastair?) seems to be arch-level. Sam had to struggle the other week to exorcise Samhain.

[ratcreature]

Yeah, I was all flaily at the end too, because I was unspoiled and didn't even know it was a two parter.

Honestly, watching the ep I didn't think of necrophilia either, but I've seen a couple of ep reactions that were all "ew!" and mentioned that besides that Sam has sex with a demon.

[marinarusalka.livejournal.com]

I don't mind the Ruby actress either. She's not great, but the negative reactions to her seem out of proportion to me. Also, I thought she had pretty hot chemistry with Sam in the seduction scene.

I wonder if the effect of the knife has to do with the origin of the demon. It had no effect on Castiel, so maybe demons that started out as fallen angels are unaffected, while demons that started out as humans get killed.

Or, it might be as you said, that it needs a killing wound to the host. That's how it worked with the Colt -- shooting possessed!John in the leg in DT didn't kill Azazel, but shooting possessed!janitor guy in the head in AHBL2 worked.

[ratcreature]

I wonder if the effect of the knife has to do with the origin of the demon. It had no effect on Castiel, so maybe demons that started out as fallen angels are unaffected, while demons that started out as humans get killed.


That is an interesting idea!

[tassosss.livejournal.com]

I agree with you. I loved this ep. I actually like the new actress playing Ruby. I liked the old one too, but this one doesn't bother me at all. The whole "It's necrophelia!" thing going around kind of baffles me but maybe that's because I come from Buffy fandom where it's a way of life - worse, the demon murdered the body they're in.

I liked the backstory we got and Sam and Ruby's relationship (not just the sexual one) speaks so much about where Sam was at that time after Dean dies. Oh Sam!

[ratcreature]

It's good to hear I'm not the only one who's okay with the new Ruby. I really liked to get some more on Sam. I enjoyed the season so far, but it was very much focused on Dean.

And yeah, the necrophilia squick here is kind of odd, I agree. I don't think I'd have even thought about it hadn't others commented.