Supernatural: The Complete Fifth Season DVD boxset (DVD review).
If you’re going to Hell, having a musical accompaniment by AC/DC ain’t a bad place to be. Although whether Lucifer would approve doesn’t seem to matter as all he wants is a new body, that of a certain Sam Winchester. Then again, you could be forgiven for taking the Michael with Dean about an angel after his body. Quite why two working class American boys would be selected for such an honour is never disclosed. I blame the breeding as they come from a long line of hunters.
As to the Winchester brothers, I wonder if both actors for the sake of realism had their ribs etched with runes? Whatever, angel teleportation gives Dean constipation. Having a godless universe explains why the Earth has gone to pot but odd that it took two centuries for the angels to notice, unless time moves at a different pace in Heaven, which if it’s anything like Hell, it does.
Unlike previous Region 1 releases, you don’t have an option to turn off the previous events intro. I blame Lucifer for this, although it did feel odd that the chorus of Dean crying out for his brother in the music is missed this time around.
How much to really say about this season without become spoiler? Most of the backbone of the story has the Winchesters hunting for the four rings owned by the four horsemen of the Apocalypse as a means to entrap Lucifer again. ‘Course, with the end of the world drawing neigh, angels and a variety of other gods, in ‘Hammer Of The Gods’, are making their own plans as to what to do next. Are all these super-beings pessimists?
Into this mix are a variety of one-off stories to shake things up from time to time, including disclosures about Bobby’s dead wife in ‘Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid’. In the extras, creator Eric Kripke points out that they needed some balance rather than have apocalyptic angels and demons all the time, although with the end of the world due, you would think their aims could have been targeted at that, even away from the main event. Granted, Kripke says these episodes produce some personality facet towards the overall direction.
‘The Real Ghostbusters’ episode must surely go as close as it can to jumping the shark with the connection to the ‘Supernatural’ books and a small convention celebrating the same. Apart from being laugh out loud, the only things were sacred was no appearance of Castiel, except the books hadn’t got that far, and Bobby Singer. Speaking of whom, for the most part of this season, he practically took a surly Professor X role, sans telepathy. Both Ackles and Padalecki get their acting chops stretched this time from possession to body switching, not to mention have the mickey taken about their rasping voices.
Castiel is an interesting revelation of an angel out of heaven not really understanding the world he’s in and the contrast of his future self in ‘The End’ shows his versatility. Mischa Collins, when he is shown in a future guise in ‘The End’ shows how much he is character acting as Castiel who is clearly bewildered in the modern age. Seeing him gurning in the gag reel shows how restrained his performance was.
I’ve pointed out references to the Extras above. This time, it’s under one solid file, breaking up into some odd tapes that Bobby Singer has about angels, demons and the apocalypse to behind the scenes from the season itself. The doorway isn’t an exit by the way, merely a way into hidden room. What was worrying was there is no exit except by re-inserting the DVD, so if in doubt, watch the gag reel first.
On the penultimate DVD, there is one other extra showing half an hour of the Ghostfacers netcasts. I tend to be rather neutral when it comes to the Ghostfacers, simply because they are so idiotic. They are on a hunt for a ghost in an old cinema ends up with some great lines, mostly from dumb blonde intern Ambyer (played by Kelly Carlson).
There are a lot of surprises in this season and a nice reveal as to who is actually God which is real spoiler. If ‘Supernatural’ was to end now, then this would have been a natural conclusion but there’s more to come and the Winchester brother now have a shared experience and that is Hell. Don’t miss it.
GF Willmetts
November 2012
(region 1 DVD: pub: Warner Bros. minutes DVDs 22 * 42 minute episodes with extras. Price: about £12.00 (UK) if you know where to look)
cast: Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Jim Beaver and Mischa Collins
check out website: www.wbtvondvd.com and www.supernaturaltv.com
