Supernatural Episode 812
“As Time Goes By”
Written By: Adam Glass
Directed By: Serge Ladouceur
Original Airdate: 30 January 2013
In This Episode...
We start in 1958 in Normal, Illinois. A man named Henry says goodnight to his son before he heads to “work.” Work is actually a secret magical society into which he is about to be inducted. His friend, Josie, is called in for her induction first. Screams, and the sounds of a struggle draw Henry into the ceremony room. Several elders are dead, and Josie is clearly possessed by a demon. With his dying breath, one of the elders presses a box into Henry’s hand and begs him to protect it. Henry races into another room and casts a blood sigil. It is supposed to connect blood to blood and bring him back to his son. Instead, it shoots him into 2013, right into Sam and Dean’s motel room.
So if you haven’t guessed already, Henry is Sam and Dean’s grandfather. John Winchester grew up believing his father ran out on him, when in actuality he was shot into the future. Henry demands to see his son, John Winchester, which instantly puts Dean on edge. Before they can sort anything out, the possessed Josie comes through the same sigil doorway and attacks. Dean daggers her, which doesn’t kill her but does slow her down enough for the three Winchesters to escape.
Once in relative safety, the three of them finally clear the air. Henry is angry and confused until he finally believes Sam and Dean when they say they are his grandsons. He is not happy to hear that they, like their father, are hunters. Hunters “apes,” uncouth, and the lower class of demon wranglers. The Winchesters were a long line of “men of letters,” and the boys were legacies, meant to be chroniclers of “all that men don’t understand.” Or, as Dean quips, “You’re Yoda to our Jedi.” Henry is intolerant of his grandsons’ hunting ways until he reads John’s journal, which was written in the journal Henry ordered just before he disappeared.
Josie has been possessed by Abbadon, a “Knight of Hell.” She is a first born demon - the first fallen. Archangels were supposed to have killed all the Knights of Hell - obviously they missed one. That is why she can’t be killed by traditional methods. Sam researches some of the other elders that trained Henry, and find one still living in Kansas. The trek begins the next day, but when Sam wakes up, he finds Henry has gone - but thoughtfully left them a note. So the boys split up: Dean looks for Henry while Sam travels to Kansas.
Dean finds Henry in a local magic shop, hoping that another blood sigil will send him back in time to John. Dean tries to talk him out of it (you don’t know if it will work, if you will survive the trip, it may mean that Sam and I never existed, etc) but Henry is stubborn. A phone call causes Dean to knock Henry unconscious to keep him from completing the spell.
Meanwhile, in Kansas, Sam is sitting with Larry, the assumed name of the last remaining elder. Larry tells him that what Abbadon is after is the ornate ceremonial box slipped to Henry that night in 1958. Henry didn’t know what it was, but Larry tells Sam: it holds a key that, if used, would reveal every spell and magic ever collected throughout history - basically, the supernatural motherlode. Larry gives Sam some coordinates and tells him that if he ever gets his hands on the box, bring it to those coordinates and “shut the door.” It is the only place in the universe that the box can be safe. It is impervious to everything and anything - except for the key. It would mean sealing the door on the world’s collected knowledge of magic, but at least it would keep it out of demon hands. Suddenly Larry is killed and Sam is knocked out. Abbadon has taken up residency in Larry’s wife. She calls Dean and tells him that she wants to trade: Sam for Henry and the box. This is why Dean knocked Henry out. Anything to save Sammy.
Dean and Henry go to meet Abbadon and Sam. While we don’t know it at the time, in the car, Henry and Dean have devised a plan to stop Abbadon. At the warehouse, the exchange is made. Sam is safe with his brother, and Henry is not-so-safe with Abbadon, who immediately reaches into his stomach for funsies. The box he is supposed to be carrying is nothing more than a deck of cards. Henry shoots her in the head. This slows Abbadon down, but does not stop her. Unfortunately, she quickly learns that all her powers have been blocked. Henry had carved a devil’s trap into the tip of the bullet, which neutralized her power. Dean steps up and beheads her easily. Since she can’t be destroyed, they are going to chop her up into little pieces, scatter her remains, and bury them beneath cement. Henry dies from his injuries, and the boys give their “deadbeat” grandfather a proper burial.
Dig It or Bury It?
I really enjoyed this episode. We got some great Winchester mythology. It wasn’t an action-y episode, but it was story-heavy, in a good way. It propelled the characters forward and wasn’t just marking time until a more “important” episode.
Spooky Humor
Dean to Sam, when Henry first falls out of their closet: “Dudes time traveling through motel closets? That’s what we’ve come to?”
Prophecies?
Two things you need to know about next week’s episode: it is full of Nazis (the world’s most perfect supervillain) and it is called “Everybody Hates Hitler.” I’m already laughing.