"Supernatural" Review/Recap: “#THINMAN”

Emily Dunbar ’17 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer

All we knew going into this week’s episode was that the title was a hashtag and the Ghostfacers were back. That, in itself, sounds like good TV, but Supernatural really delivered its classic thrills in this week’s episode, “#THINMAN”.
In the opening scene, a teenaged girl is innocently taking selfies when she finds a strange man lurking behind her in the photos. She gets scared, as anyone would, and hides in her closet, the number one proven dumbest place to hide in all of the horror genre’s history. The man and his knife show up inside the closet before she gets the chance to finish her call to 911, and blood seeps out from under the door. This kind of edge-of-your-seat gore is most characteristic of the earlier seasons of Supernatural, where the show was more Monster-of-the-Week than series-long-plot-arc, and it’s a much better show when they marry the two together. It’s cringe-worthy moments like these that make you grin and remember why you started watching Supernatural.
Having the Ghostfacers back was an exciting treat, as well! We haven’t seen them since Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, respectively) forgot they were hunters, in season four, and had to train themselves via online videos of the Ghostfacers, Harry Spangler (Travis Weston) and Ed Zeddmore (A.J. Buckley). Before this, the two bumbling quasi-hunters had been the bane of Sam and Dean’s existence, so it was fun to see them back in that role.

An interesting point in this episode was the parallel between Harry and Ed’s relationship and Sam and Dean’s. We find out the Ghostfacers are having some problems of their own. Harry had a serious girlfriend and was thinking of leaving the business, just like their other partners had, but Ed couldn’t let this happen. He faked a huge case so Harry would have to stick around. When Ed admits this to Sam and Dean, Sam very subtly explains that secrets ruin relationships and that Ed has to tell Harry.
Dean’s sidelong glance at Sam doesn’t go amiss, and we realize that Dean, himself, sees how similar their situations are. Then, once Sam and Harry are alone, Sam tells his frenemy that he has to decide if this is the kind of thing for which he can forgive Ed or not, ominously hinting at what sort of feelings Sam is battling when it comes to Dean. Later, Harry tells Ed, “You didn’t do this for us, you did this for you,” which is pretty much word-for-word what Sam told Dean when he explained why he didn’t trust him anymore.
After all this buildup, it was pretty disappointing that Sam and Dean weren’t able to reconcile at the end of this episode. The Ghostfacers’ friendship seemed to be coming to an end almost senselessly, and the Winchesters’ expressions seemed to show remorse over that fact. It would have made sense for this parting of ways between the best of friends to spark a reunion between the brothers.

The way the parallels were set up, the Winchesters should have realized how ridiculous their fight was and made up.  Dean has been regretting their fight, and there was clearly change forming in Sam’s heart, what with his genuine smile while reminiscing with Dean about a funny childhood moment and the truthful heart-to-heart with Harry. It’s the Winchester way to get angry with thy brother, but it’s starting to feel like this fight is dragging out too long. We need a reconciliation, stat.
Despite this roadblock, “#THINMAN” delivered in all other categories. It was scary and hilarious fun that apologized for nothing. We’ll have to watch some reruns because Supernatural doesn’t return until March 18^th with “Blade Runners.” Tune in to the CW at 9pm in two weeks to catch the Impala Brigade’s next big adventure!
Overall Episode Grade: B+