TV Spoilers & Speculation Corner: 4/19/11

This week, we have spoilers for Supernatural:

We’re still looking for a few good TV reviewers. If you want to review something for us, check out our announcement from last week and drop us a line. Also, Silvia has started reviewing Game of Thrones. And our Supernatural-meets-Lovecraft contest continues.

Supernatural (Friday nights, 9pm, CW)
By Paula R. Stiles

This was a pretty spoilery week, though it was mixed up with a lot of repetition of old spoilers and some vague stuff that could be speculation or even foilers. Beware the Foilerwock, my son. ‘Tis the season.

The CW seems determined to promote the Western ep (“Frontierland”) this week, including a clip of Sheriff Dean in a shootout with someone, an episode-specific promo at the end of last week’s episode, some preview reviews and an interview with showrunner Bob Singer (though Singer mostly talks about 6.17 and 6.19. Remember that Lenore is supposed to come back in 6.19). That’s the good news. The bad news is that either the CW is determined to present this episode as yet more crackfic, or it really is crackfic.

On the one hand, it’s comforting that Jensen Ackles, by every account including his own, had tons of fun doing this episode, because what Ackles likes on the show, I usually end up enjoying. And I’m not talking about just when Dean is onscreen. On the other hand, an early review informs us that the brothers will split up and Dean will do “fun” stuff like demon-ganking while Sam goes and meets Samuel Colt and has the big uberplot scene with him. For one thing, this show has not been doing uberplot with Sam well for quite some time (Yet, they don’t seem to know what else to do with him). For another, how is this balance? And for a third, Dabb and Loflin don’t seem to grok Sam very well. Fortunately, there are supposed to be three major parts to the story, not two, with Bobby helping Castiel back in the present (No, don’t try to think about why the brothers wouldn’t come back at the same time they left. These writers probably didn’t even think of that). So, maybe it will all balance out in the end. I just hope they keep the Back to the Future 3 refs to a minimum. I loved that trilogy, but 80s sci-fi and post-millennial Supernatural never mix well in tone.

On a happier note, EW assures us in yet another nonspoiler that EvilSam won’t be back, at least this season. On a less happy note, that could be a foiler and he could always come back next season (because these writers don’t seem to know what else to do with Sam). And on a really unhappy note, Singer, in another interview with TVLine, tells us the writers are seriously considering doing a musical episode next season. No. Please, show, for the love of God and your own ratings, DON’T DO IT. The only time it ever worked for me was on Xena (one seriously messed up episode that was, too) and that goofy Strictly Ballroom spoof on Hercules. I didn’t like it on Buffy and I can’t see how it could possibly be anything but a disaster for Supernatural.

Oh, also according to Singer, apparently, Eve’s storyline will be wrapped up this season (I have a sneaking suspicion they’ll do it early, which relieves and underwhelms me at the same time. Man, that plot sure hasn’t gone anywhere, huh?) and there is another reference to noir. Hmm, I’d nearly forgotten about that theme because it’s been a long time since we got any, show. Sin City this season ain’t. Maybe you need to hire James Ellroy to do a script, show. He could bring in that godawful animated police dog from City of Demons (just got a mindbendingly hilarious image from that) and Dean could gank the beast after mistaking it for a hellhound.

In yet another interview, Singer hints that the Alpha Vampire is still alive and might be back (though it doesn’t sound as though he’ll be back before season seven). He also says that the last three episodes will have a lot of “cool stuff”. Ask Kristin this week sort of bolsters this with a nonspoilery spoiler claiming that there will be at least two “twists” in 6.19, one when the brothers find Eve and one at the very end. I really do wonder if they will kill her off in 6.19. There don’t seem to be any spoilers about her after that.

Sera Gamble did a fresh video interview that went up on TV Overmind, but it’s since been taken down. In it, she talked about the decision to make “My Heart Will Go On” a light episode to relieve the impact of Rufus’ death. She also discussed some of the humour in the episode (the whole “I.P. Freeley” thing). I’m guessing the interview may have been removed due to some negative fan backlash involving disgruntlement over Rufus dying in the first place and the direction season six has taken. Gamble was especially pasted on ONTD. In the interview, Gamble seemed nervous and giggly. I got the impression she’s feeling the hostility toward the season.

On the one hand, I feel very sorry for her because I don’t think all of it is her fault and I think she’s been used as a bit of a scapegoat for the way season five ended (which, let’s face it, is probably the real reason why so many fans aren’t thrilled by this season). On the other hand, I can’t help thinking that this show’s writers could do themselves a big favour by gaining some basic interviewing skills. Seriously, people. It’s not that hard to learn. They tend to come off poorly (Except for Edlund, who usually does well), appearing to be cocky and flippant when they are more likely nervous. And yet, the bad impression remains, like an aftertaste you can’t lose. I want to root for them and it makes me sad, because I used to be really impressed by the writing of Supernatural (yes, really). It was a major thing that drew me in, the risks this show took and the directions it was willing to go, especially with Dean. But ever since season five, the writers have seemed tired, lazy, indifferent, stoned, or all four. I sure hope they can get their mojo back. It’s not impossible, but they need to do it before they lose the audience for real and the ratings tank.

There’s a new group interview (done at Paley) out. Not a lot of new spoilers, aside from Collins speculating that Castiel won’t be able to handle power and Jim Beaver vaguely saying, “Bobby has a lot of work to do for the rest of the season.” But it’s still fun.

We also got an official synopsis for 6.20, and official photos for 6.19 and 6.20. How shall we put this? Expect tears over Mary in 6.19 and between Dean and Castiel in 6.20? Yeah, like that:

“EXECUTIVE PRODUCER BEN EDLUND WROTE AND DIRECTED THE EPISODE – Castiel (Misha Collins) tells Sam (Jared Padalecki), Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Bobby (Jim Beaver) about the war in Heaven and how he and Raphael became enemies. Bobby believes Castiel is hiding something, but Dean refuses to believe it. Ben Edlund wrote and directed the episode (#620).”

There’s also an extended interview with Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins, as well as a spread in this past week’s TV Guide. Not really spoilery (They mostly talk about fan encounters – weird fan encounters), though I do like Collins’ take on season six: “Supernatural is Dukes of Hazzard-meets-The Twilight Zone“. Ackles also talks in a separate interview about the influence fans have on the show. And in yet another group interview, Supernatural came in fourth behind Kim Kardashian (?!) in an MTV TV poll, which kind of tells you something about MTV’s priorities (and what the hell is that announcer at the beginning wearing? It’s not flattering at all), but there you go. Padalecki’s “Misha head” comment is funny, though.

Ratings came back surprisingly well for the show’s return off hellatus with “My Heart Will Go On” in audience, though a tiny bit worrisome in demos (albeit not so much in comparison to other CW shows). Final audience numbers were 2.257, with 1.4 in households and 0.9s for A18-49, A18-34, and W18-34. While advertisers only care about demos these days, I can’t see the network being too concerned about the demo dipping below a 1.0 when Supernatural is one of its few shows staying above two million and a 0.8. Also, while demos can fluctuate a bit, you can only drop so much audience before your demos tank, too, as shows like Gossip Girl, 90210 and Hellcats are discovering. Supernatural is also doing better than Nikita, even in W18-34, and is also doing better than America’s Next Top Model and One Tree Hill in audience (though not in the W18-34 demo). So, it’s good to see the audience numbers staying up this late in the season (TV ratings traditionally drop in spring). A season seven looks nearly certain, though nobody will be sure, of course, until the network makes it official.

We’ll be back next week with more spoilers. Stay tuned and check out our reviews of V and Supernatural.