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TV Review: SUPERNATURAL - SEASON FIVE - 'Abandon All Hope' - iFMagazine.com Send to a friend
© 2009 CW Mark Pellegrino as Lucifer in SUPERNATURAL in "Abandon All Hope"

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TV Review: SUPERNATURAL - SEASON FIVE - 'Abandon All Hope'

An extremely brutal and dark episode ending the fall finale in superb fashion

Grade: A-
Stars: Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins
Release Date: Nov. 19, 2009

By PETER BROWN, Managing Editor
Published 11/20/2009



 

 

Wow, what a brutal episode of SUPERNATURAL.

 

 
I don’t think we’ve seen an episode like “Abandon All Hope” in quite a long time: Just completely devastating and dark from start to finish.
 
And what a perfect title, as hope certainly seems as if it is dwindling as friends are lost, the Angel of Death returns to Earth, an entire town is wiped off the face of the planet and Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino) promising that Sam (Jared Padalecki) will accept his offer to be his vessel in six months.
 
It is a lot to digest given what we just saw but let’s try to break it down.
 
1) The deaths of Jo (Alona Tal) and Ellen Harvelle (Samantha Ferris). Didn’t see this one coming. Long fan favorites and oft-regulars on the show, Jo and Ellen have been one of the staples of SUPERNATURAL. Not anymore. After the Winchester Brothers acquire what they believe will be a weapon to kill Lucifer by the demon Crowley (played by the great character actor Mark Sheppard), they travel to a town where they believe him to be. Upon arriving, Meg (Rachel Miner) unleashes hellhounds on them and Jo is eviscerated by one, bleeding out everywhere. In order to give time to the Winchester Brothers in order to kill Lucifer, Jo and Ellen will lure the beasts in and ignite a series of propane tanks killing them, and unfortunately, themselves. It was a sad moment and one that it turned out was completely unnecessary as the gun that Dean (Jensen Ackles) acquired while it hurt Lucifer, didn’t take him out.

 
2) The death of the town. Completely brutal. As the Harvelles and Winchesters entered the town they wondered where the townsfolk were as it appeared they had abandoned the place. But the sad truth we learn later as we see Lucifer shoveling dirt that had actually used them in order to bring about the rise of the Angel of Death. He had to first kill as he put it “the women and children first” and then use the men to recite some chant that was some ritual sacrifice.
 
3) Lucifer. Well if you didn’t think he was as bad as they had been portraying him up until this point, your mind as probably been changed after this episode. Sure, in some ways, Lucifer’s ideas and opinions about human kind and God and angels made a semblance of sense – on paper (and TV). But in reality, as we saw in “Abandon All Hope” he is as evil as we thought and doesn’t even blink an eye. The even scarier thing for Sam is that Lucifer tells him that he thinks Sam will accept his offer to become his true vessel and he’ll do it in six months in Detroit. He knows already and he knows the location? That’s crazy. How do you escape a fate that this super-powerful creature already believes is going to happen?
 
4) Angel of Death. We’ve already seen what War can do (turning the Harvelles’ town against each other and killing numerous townsfolk along the way), but what can Death, who appears to be much more powerful and deadly going to do? They barely escaped and saved the town from War, how can they even hope to defeat someone that in order to just be brought to Earth an entire town had to be wiped out? And what awaits the brothers when Famine and Pestilence arrive? “Abandon All Hope” indeed.
 
5) Angels and demons. They are certainly acquiring a number of both angels and demons on the show that will probably end up playing a role in how they might go about defeating Lucifer and his minions. We were introduced to Crowley tonight. We have already met the Angel Gabriel/Trickster and the kid with the super powers. Methinks that eventually we will see them all come together as a Justice League of supernatural beings in order to take the big, bad man down.
 
6) No SUPERNATURAL until 2010. While this was a great episode even for as dark as it was, I can’t believe we have to wait a month and a half for the show to return. It is almost not fair after this episode as we are left wanting so much more.

Reader Comments

Chlollie from Paris sez....
I hate "Abandon all hope" because Jo and Ellen are dead. Jo was my favorite characters with Dean in supernatural. But I like too, because Dean kiss Jo. And I will like to see Dean in love for Jo. She is in love for him. He seems really very sad for her more than for a simple friend, according to me.I hope that they will come back later, maybe in flashback or like an angel, an spirit. I find that it would be very interessant especially that it would be not normal that Dean or the same Sam do not remember a her, finally especially coming from Dean. It would disappoint me enormously. I am doubtless the only one in that case, finally I do not hope to be the only one.
11/30/2009 4:59:56 PM

came81 from Stephenson sez....
i cant belive we have to wait that long but this episond left us woundering i want to know what is going to happen to the brothers and see them kill the devil and everthing go back to normal
11/23/2009 10:41:11 AM

redragon from can sez....
Fantastic episode in true Supernatural fashion. Actually the Four Horsemen are: Famine, War, Pestilence and Death.
11/23/2009 8:53:28 AM

WOW from Here sez....
The only thing i can say about this episodes is... DAM GOOD ONE. THE WRITTING/ACTORS/PRODUCERS HERES TO U(WOW)
11/20/2009 3:51:15 PM

Angel lover from sez....
I LOVE CASTIEL! I hope the angels stay longer!
11/20/2009 1:37:27 PM

Sandra from sez....
Hell yeah! Finally something is happening! Bring it on doom and gloom, brutal and dark! It's the APOCALYPSE! Loving the Angels! Cas is made of awsome! Crowley is great! Need Michael? Where is He? He is the most important Angel besides Cas and Lu! And we need more of Raphael, Gabriel and Zacariah!
11/20/2009 1:32:42 PM

CandyMaize from Stuck in HELLATUS sez....
No new eps until January 21st (will be a rough two months). Dark episode - but the apocalypse isn't going to be full of joy and frivolity. Sad about Ellen and Jo - but Kripke's warned us there's going to be tough losses. (Frankly, I'm still relieved it wasn't Bobby.)
11/20/2009 1:21:03 PM

Peter Brown from iF Magazine sez....
Thanks for the War/Pestience thing. I fixed it.
11/20/2009 1:00:45 PM

Josh from UK sez....
It was WAR that was first shown not Pesilence
11/20/2009 6:37:29 AM

anoniimouse from Toronto sez....
I don't get your last comment.."this was a great episode even for as dark as it was". You're implying that SPN can't be dark or shouldn't be dark to be great. I totally disagree. Last season had the highest rating because it did go over to the dark side. This was a fantastic episode. I hope Kripke keeps more of these shows coming.
11/20/2009 5:58:39 AM

lady from can sez....
OMG , I can't believe they killed off Jo and Ellen they were my all time fav characters, I honestly cried for hours. It seems that they should end th show soon because of the lack of friends the brothers have now, and it seems their fate is obviously sealed
11/20/2009 5:01:12 AM

yumi from sez....
the hellatus is hell. ALSO I may be knitpicky but who you call Pestilence is actually War.
11/20/2009 2:52:02 AM

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