This week’s random death is the brutal murder of a graffiti
artist.
Cut to Jody – Yes sheriff Jody Mills! She’s going to a “sheriff retreat” whatever that is. She doesn’t seem to be looking forward to it. Or enjoying the perky sheriff Donna (who we’ve also seen before). Do police even come in perky? Perky and handing out lollipops? Jody would rather be back home working and looking after the kid she adopted/took in/saved from vampires (Alex, who she assures is totally capable of not throwing a kegger while she’s gone). Arsehole Sheriff Doug also appears and if Jody had the power to flay people with her eyes he would be totally screaming and dying right now. Apparently Doug is Donna’s ex. Let’s hope something murders him.
The risk of random Jody-eye-flaying goes up as the cheesiness increases and the host decides that the sheriffs are all going to “partner” with someone from 50 miles away from them to make friends. Since she was on the phone when that was announced, Jody gets stuck with Donna. I hope this episode ends with a big pile of bodies, a ruin and Jody stood over it all, an axe in one hand and a flamethrower in the other yelling “I REGRET NOTHING!”
As the puns pile up and Donna glows with perkiness I can
see the flames rise in Jody’s eyes – but everyone is saved from Jody wrath by
the gossip of a body found – eaten. Without claw marks or hairs from the
creature that ate him
Over to the Winchester cave where the brothers are
studying the Mark of Cain (and snarking transgender research which is dubious
on a show with no trans people, don’t use trans people as a one off joke). They
get a call from Jody who sees if they have any idea of the monster – they don’t
off the top of their heads and offer to help but she tells them she’ll handle
it unless it gets too much. It’ll be a nice distraction from perky Donna.
Of course they’re going anyway – if nothing else but to
get them away from the research.
Jody tries to see the body but, of course, has no
official capacity. Thankfully Donna does – and has the power of PERKY as well.
It’s possible that EVERYONE in this town of Hibbings is perky. We may have to
nuke it from orbit. Looking at the body they find unrecognisable bite marks –
and the guy was apparently wearing jeans that were way too big for him but no
belt to be seen.
Time for the next death – a guy gets dragged into a large
wheelie bin to be, presumably, eaten.
Back at the retreat (which has a bar so isn’t all bad), Donna
and Jody check in with Sheriff Len who is also clearly equally clueless about
the chewed up body. Jody does manage to get the sheriff to admit that there’s
been another “animal” attack. And Jody and Donna actually have a nice
conversation about out-of-control Alex, arsehole ex’s et al. Awww, this means
Jody may not ritually murder Donna.
The Winchesters finally arrive – and their suited-fake-FBI
look doesn’t quite fit in. They confirm the second victim was also eaten – and missing
a wallet. They also recognise Donna and delegate Jody to distracting her while
they investigate; Jody agrees to it but at least she expresses her
not-very-high opinion of that. Of course, since everyone’s pushing the idea it’s
an “animal attack” not everyone is exactly thrilled to see the FBI about and
are stonewalling.
Meanwhile, a guy behind a gun display tries to be sexist and
condescending to Jody and Donna and gets duly mocked. Arsehole ex Doug arrives
to attack Donna about her weight some more so Jody steps in and rips him a new
one. I could get used to Jody and Donna. But Donna is, at least a little understandably,
not especially happy with Jody stepping in and intervening in her conflict with
her ex-husband. She does say something about Jody losing a husband which causes
Jody to have a flashback to her husband’s terrible terrible death.
Donna goes out to get some air – and finds a blood trail. She follows it and sees a dead cop (sheriff Goodhill) and another cop (Sheriff Hughes) crouched over her – with long, sharp teeth; looks like a vampire. Donna hides.
Meanwhile Dean learns that there is footage of the attack
that the sheriff is keeping quiet for some reason. The files have also been deleted
(also a nice little aside while Jody checks on Dean since she was aware of the
whole Mark of Cain demon thing). Donna hurries in, a little shaken, to
privately tell Jody what she saw. Jody assures her she believes her – and that
the “FBI” agents will as well.
To Hughes’ room where they find a huge amount of sunblock
(yup, vampire) and Donna finds a note before the Winchesters arrive (Donna is
somewhat perturbed by Jody pulling out a huge decapitating knife, not a gun).
Donna now needs filling in on the truth since Jody isn’t even trying to hide
the fact of vampires from her.
Dean and Sam try to get Donna to stay behind while they
go to take care of vampires. Donna is not having that and Jody speaks up for
her (and Jody doesn’t allow argument because she’s Jody).
But when they get to the farmhouse, Vampire Sherriff
Hughes tells them to run – and something else attacks them. Two men knock the
Winchesters down and take Donna and Jody hostage. They’re lead by a young woman
– the vampires take all four of them hostage and tie them up, because no-one ever
just kills the Winchesters (they also rob their victims, hence the missing
belt).
Hughes is there trying to get the vampires to back off –
he’s not a killer and lives on bagged blood. The vampires are attacking and
killing people to try and get Hughes to come back to them. Hughes used to run
the vampire nest before having a completely change of philosophy – Hughes says
he grew a conscience.
They try to force Hughes to kill them and he refuses – so
they behead him (nice dodge of the conscience dilemma over whether the Winchesters
kill Hughes for being a vampire/his past crimes). At which point the inevitable
happens and Dean breaks free because you can never ever ever hold the
Winchester’s hostage. He fights and kills a vampire – but while he does Donna
also breaks free and beheads a vampire trying to eat Jody. All vampires are
nicely dead, job’s done
Time for some heart-to-hearts: Jody congratulating Donna
and having a “you were awesome” moment. While with the Winchesters, Dean and
Sam discuss the Mark – and Dean saying he manages to kill and didn’t feel the
Mark pushing him along (which means he kind of admits that it HAS been pushing
him before).
I’m always torn when Jody appears. On the one hand I love
her and want to see a lot more of her. On the other hand, one of these days she
will be put in the Fridge of Doom so Sam and Dean can have their single
man-tear moment in the name of the Manpain; I always wonder if this is the
time. Also, I think she kind of serves a similar role to Charlie (only less
zany and esoteric and almost outside of the show) in that the show creators throw
her in once a season so they can point and say “LOOK! WE DO WOMEN!” Then they
return to episode after episode of sex objects, victims and villains (albeit
this season has tried to do better in some respects – albeit it’s more “less
bad” than “better”.)
But I do like Jody, she’s awesome – and, despite my wish
for the axe murder – she and Donna worked well together and had a lot of good
moments (I liked the call out of Donna’s ex – not just because he was an
arsehole but also Donna’s pushback – because she’s a grown woman who knows her
circumstances better than Jody who she’s just met; Jody was right AND out of
line).
Spin off with Donna and Jody? Yes, I’d watch it
