Previously: The boys went after a shapeshifter who was obsessed with old movies, and Dean ended up dressed in lederhosen.
—
Yellow Fever
Kirsti: We open on Dean running for his life, totally terrified. Large sounding dogs bark from behind him. He rounds a corner and collides with a homeless man. He gets up and screams at the homeless man to run for his life because “it’ll kill you!“. The man looks down to see a tiny Yorkie with a pink bow sitting there staring at Dean.
Dean’s eyes grow wide in panic, and he starts running again. The Yorkie skitters off after him with a yap.
CREEPY BIRDS.
After the Not Credits, we’re in Rock Ridge, Colorado two days earlier as the Bromobile pulls into town. The boys, claiming to be Agents Tyler and Perry (please, be MORE obvious) head to the morgue to examine a body. The medical examiner informs them that the guy – a healthy marathon runner in his 40s named Frank – dropped dead of a heart attack. Dean says that two guys in a town nearby had the same thing happen to them, and demands that he do an autopsy.
We’re treated to an unfortunate close up of the body being cut open, then Sam and Dean looking disgusted. As the ME pokes around inside the corpse, Dean spots a tan line on Dead Frank’s finger and asks if he was married because it’s not in their file. The ME says it’s not his department, and literally all I can think of is this:
Sam picks up Dead Frank’s hand and studies some deep scrapes. He asks how they happened, and the ME says that when you drop dead, you literally drop. (M: Great, thank you. THEY ARE SCRAPES THOUGH.) Then he says that he can’t find any blockages indicating a heart attack. He yanks Dead Frank’s heart out, and Dean gags a little. He asks Dean to hold it for a second. Dean looks grossed out, and Sam grins. Then Sam gets hit in the face with “spleen juice“. Ew.
Cut to the boys waiting at the sheriff’s office. The sheriff looks incredibly familiar, and IMDB tells me he played Sahjahn in Angel. (M: WHAT? NO WAY! That amused me so much even though lol Angel.) (K: I KNOW, RIGHT?) Although I suspect it’s more that he’s been in one episode of every crime show ever. Anyway, he ushers them into his office – after making them take off their shoes – and shakes hands before using excessive amounts of hand sanitiser. Dean gives him side eye.
Sam asks about Dead Frank, seeing as some deputies found him, and the sheriff says that they were friends. “Hell, we were Gamecocks,” he says. Dean snort laughs, and the sheriff gives him bitchface before saying they played softball together. Sam asks if Dead Frank was acting weird before he died, like he was scared of something. The sheriff says he was, but he doesn’t know what was so scary.
Eventually, he sent some deputies over there to check on Dead Frank, and they found him dead. The sheriff coughs, and reaches for his hand sanitiser again. The boys exchange looks. The sheriff asks why the FBI is interested, and they say they’re just following up on something and it’s probably not a case.
Outside, they agree that it’s definitely a case, but they have no idea what’s responsible. They decide to make a list and start crossing things off, and that their first stop should be Dead Frank’s neighbour who was the last person to see him alive. Just then, Dean stops dead. Sam’s confused. Dean nods at a group of 14 year old boys talking near the Bromobile, and says that he doesn’t like the look of them. He insists that they go a different way so they don’t have to walk past the teens. Sam gets “WTF?” face.
Cut to the neighbour’s house. Dean looks skittish because the dude has tanks full of snakes and lizards all over the place. (M: Okay, now I’m with Dean.) Sam asks about Dead Frank, and Snaky Neighbour says Dead Frank was terrified in the lead up to his death. Dean gives an alligator side eye, and asks what Dead Frank was scared of. Witches, apparently. The boys sit up a little straighter, but apparently it’s just because Wizard of Oz was on TV.
But it wasn’t only witches. He was also terrified of “Al-Qaeda, ferrets, artificial sweetener. Those pez dispensers with their dead little eyes. Lots of stuff.” Dean looks around the room at the lizards and spiders and snakes again. Sam asks what Dead Frank was like, and Snaky Neighbour says he’d gotten better but in high school he was a total dick. He also mentions that something horrible happened to Dead Frank’s wife, and she died like 20 years ago.
The snake wrapped around Snaky Neighbour’s neck moves, and Dean flinches. Snaky Neighbour chuckles and tells him that the snake’s a sweetheart and says “It’s Marie you gotta look out for. She smells fear.” He nods at something behind Dean, and Dean turns to see an albino boa constrictor slithering towards him. She slides down his body and over his leg, and Dean looks like he’s about two seconds away from pissing himself.
Sam, meanwhile, has been searching Dead Frank’s house. There are no signs of hex bags or sulphur or EMF, so it’s not a witch, demon or ghost. Suddenly, Sam checks the speedo and realises that Dean’s doing the speed limit. “What, safety’s a crime now?” Dean says. He drives past their motel, and Sam’s all “The fuck?”. Dean insists that he can’t possibly do a left turn into oncoming traffic because it’s not safe. Sam looks even more confused when an EMF meter goes off in his pocket. Sam grabs it, and when it nears Dean, the signal gets louder. “Am I haunted? Am I haunted??” Dean says in terror. Fade to black.
After the Not Commercial Break, it’s the next morning and Sam’s on the phone to Bobby. He asks him to keep looking as he walks back to the Motel of the Week carrying donuts. As he reaches the door, he hears the strains of Eye of the Tiger coming from the Bromobile. He heads over there in confusion and finds Dean lying on the front seat, air drumming. It’s magical.
Apparently some cultures believe that ghosts could infect people with a sickness that makes them so anxious and terrified that their hearts give out. Dean’s confused because they haven’t seen a ghost in weeks. But Sam says once one person is infected, it can spread like any disease. Dead Frank was the first to die, so he’s their patient zero. He went to a softball tournament at the weekend, which is where the two guys in the neighbouring town caught it, and Dean probably got it from his corpse.
Dean wants to know why he’s the one who got infected when Sam got hit with spleen juice, and Sam awkwards that all the dead guys were dicks. “So you’re saying I’m a dick?!” Dean says, all offended. Sam says it’s more complex than that – all the dead guys used fear as a weapon. Dean insists that he doesn’t do that, and Sam’s all “HAHAHAHA, have you seen our lives?”.
Dean asks how they stop it, and Sam says they have to stop the ghost that caused it all. They suspect it’s Dead Frank’s wife, seeing as how she killed herself and all. Sam asks why Dean was waiting in the car, and Dean says it’s because their room is on the fourth floor. Sam looks confused, and Dean stutters “It’s…it’s high.” Sam sighs and says he’ll try and move them lower.
Later, Dean’s doing research. He stares at the clock for a while, then back at the book he’s reading to see that all the pictures have changed and become ridiculously violent. He reads that ghost sickness causes hallucinations, and starts to cough. Some of the words become bolded: “You’re dying. Again. Loser.”
Mari: Of course Dean’s hallucination is making fun of him(self) for having emotions. Of course.
K: I mean, what else would it be?!
Dean rubs his eyes and stares angrily at the clock. Something smashes.
Sam returns to find the clock broken on the floor. He asks Dean if everything’s okay, and Dean gets sarcastic as he scratches his arm some more. Sam says Dead Frank’s wife was cremated so can’t be their ghost. He asks how Dean’s feeling, and Dean sasses that he’d almost forgotten what it was like to have his head on the chopping block. Again. Then he starts coughing.
He rushes over to the sink, and coughs up a wood chip. He looks disgusted, but Sam’s thrilled, and points out that Dean’s the biggest clue they have and they’ve been ignoring it. “…I don’t wanna be a clue,” Dean says. His grumpy little face just reminds me of this:
Sam says happily that the wood chips are the disease trying to tell them something.
Cut to the boys pulling up outside a lumber mill. It’s all creepy and abandoned, and Dean refuses to go inside. Sam says he needs backup, and Dean looks torn. He walks to the back of the car and takes a long drink from a bottle of whisky before declaring himself ready. Sam hands him a gun, but Dean’s on the nope train because guns are dangerous. “I’ll man the flashlight!” he says. Sam gives a pained smile.
They head inside, and Sam’s EMF meter starts going crazy from being around Dean. Sam spots something on the floor, and picks it up. It’s Dead Frank’s wedding ring, which is thoughtfully engraved. They head deeper into the mill, and hear a thumping noise coming from a locker. Sam creeps up and yanks the door open. A cat jumps out. Dean screams at the top of his lungs for a really long time, and Sam has “WTF IS HAPPENING” face. “That was scary!” Dean says when he gets his breath back. Sam bitchfaces.
K: Agreed. He may be my favourite Dean.
They keep investigating. Sam finds an ID tag for a guy named Luther Garland. Meanwhile, Dean finds a sketch of Dead Frank’s wife. He pulls the drawing free, and a bunch of machinery starts up behind him. Dean jumps, then freezes in fear when he spots someone standing in the corner of the room. Sam creeps over there with his gun raised, then calls out. He looks back to see Dean running for his life. He sighs, then shoots the ghost of Luther. Back at the Bromobile, Dean’s drained his bottle of whisky. Sam comes running up to say that they’ve got the right place. Fade to black.
After the Not Commercial Break, the boys are back at the sheriff’s office. An incredibly young deputy gives them a file on Luther, then asks if Dean is drunk because of his weird behaviour. Sam bitchfaces, and asks what the file means when it says Luther died of “physical trauma“. Deputy 12 Year Old has no idea, and Sam asks to see the sheriff. But he’s out sick. Sam asks if the sheriff can call them, and leaves. Dean drunkenly tells Deputy 12 Year Old that he’s awesome before Sam drags him away.
Once they’ve gone, the sheriff calls on the intercom and asks what they wanted. Deputy 12 Year Old mentions Luther’s file, and we cut to the sheriff’s office. He’s rubbing at his arms with steel wool, and there’s blood everywhere. He loads his gun as a voice mutters “They know” over and over again.
Meanwhile, the boys are at an assisted living facility. Dean freaks when he rounds a corner and comes face to face with an old lady. Once she’s gone, he insists that no one will fall for their shitty fake badges. Sam tells him to take a deep breath, which doesn’t help. They go talk to Luther’s brother, who looks sceptical about their IDs, and Dean starts word vomiting awkwardly. Sam kicks him.
Mari: This just confirms my theory that people accept their fake badges and names because of their confidence and pretty faces. Pretty, pretty faces.
K: It’s all that keeps me watching this show sometimes, so that seems fair.
Sam asks about Luther’s death, and Mr Garland scoffs that it wasn’t physical trauma. He tells them that everyone was scared of his brother, and that throws us to a flashback. He voiceovers that Luther was too big and too scary looking, but really he was a big puppy dog. We see people giving Luther scared looks at work, then Luther cradling a kitten. Back in the present, Mr Garland says a lot of people failed Luther, including him.
Sam shows him the sketch and asks if he recognises the woman. He does, and says that Dead Frank killed Luther. Apparently everyone knows. That throws us into another flashback. Dead Frank’s wife, Jessie, worked as a receptionist at the mill, and she was super nice to Luther. He had a crush on her, and Dead Frank thought he was responsible for her disappearance. The flashback shows us Dead Frank going to the mill to confront Luther, and finding him sketching Jessie over and over. So Dead Frank beat him with a shot gun, then put a chain around his neck and dragged Luther down the road outside the plant behind his truck.
Sam and Dean are horrified, and ask why Dead Frank was never charged. Mr Garland says sadly that Dead Frank was a pillar of the community while Luther was the town weirdo. Sam asks if he hated Dead Frank, and Mr Garlard replies that life’s too short for revenge, and that it’s a shame that fear spreads the way it does. Dean looks thoughtful. Outside, they discuss how the scratches on Dean’s arm are road rash, and that Luther probably swallowed some wood chips while being dragged down the road. Dean’s experiencing his death in slow motion. (M: Freaky.)
Dean says they should go salt and burn Luther’s bones, but Sam says it won’t be that simple. There are bits of Luther all over the road and there’s no way to get them all. Dean snaps, and says that their lives are insane because no one hunts ghosts. Sam says they do, and Dean gives a speech that’s half meant to be funny but which is actually pretty feelsy when you think about it:
“Us? Right. And that Sam, that’s exactly why our lives suck. I mean, come on, we hunt monsters! What the hell?! I mean, normal people, they see a monster, and they run. But not us, no, no, no, we — we search out things that want to kill us. Yeah? Huh? Or eat us! You know who does that? Crazy people! We…are insane! You know, and then there’s the bad diner food and then the skeevy motel rooms and then the truck-stop waitress with the bizarre rash. I mean, who wants this life, Sam? Huh? Seriously? Do you actually like being stuck in a car with me eight hours a day, every single day? I don’t think so! I mean, I drive too fast. And I listen to the same five albums over and over and over again, a-and I sing along. I’m annoying, I know that. And you –you’re gassy! You eat half a burrito, and you get toxic! I mean, you know what? You can forget it.”
He tosses Sam the keys and turns away. Sam asks where he’s going, and Dean says he’s done with hunting. With Hellhounds and monsters and the apocalypse. He quits. He walks away, then hears growling behind him. He turns in terror, and sees the tiny Yorkie from the teaser. The zoomy cameraman zooms in on Dean’s terrified face.
Cut to the Motel of the Week later that night. Dean’s all pale and sweaty and terrified. Sam walks in, and says he’s been looking everywhere for him. Dean asks what they do, because he’s going to die. Sam’s all “Yeah, you’re going back to Hell alright”, and Dean gets WTF face. Sam’s eyes turn yellow as he says that Dean’s been a huge pain in the arse. Dean reaches for Sam, but Sam holds out a hand and Dean slams into the wall.
Dean demands that the demon get out of Sam, but Sam chuckles that he’s not being possessed, it’s just who he is. It’s what he wants. He puts his hand around Dean’s neck and starts choking him. Suddenly, Dean snaps out of his hallucination to find that Sam’s been yelling out to him. He nods to Sam that he’s okay, then gives him suspicious face when he turns away. Fade to black.
After the Not Commercial Break, Bobby turns up because he’s awesome. He asks where Dean is, and Sam says awkwardly that he’s home sick. Cut to Dean watching Gumby while scratching at his arm. But the cartoon replicates Luther’s death, and Dean’s all “WHAT THE FUCK, TELEVISION??”. He switches it off. Back at the mill, Bobby pulls out an old book and reveals that he speaks Japanese. Because of course he does. Sam’s impressed. Apparently they’re dealing with a type of ghost called a Buru Buru, and it’s possible to kill it with fear.
Sam calls Dean and tells him to just ride it out and that he’ll be fine because they have a plan. Back at the mill, Bobby’s all “WORST. PLAN. EVER.” Sam agrees, but they don’t have an alternative. Sam heads inside, and we see Luther watching him. Back at the motel, Dean hears Hellhounds barking some more and freaks out. He sees the door rattling, and hides. But it’s not Hellhounds. It’s the sheriff. He points his gun at Dean and says that Dead Frank was his friend and he couldn’t bust him, and Dean’s not going to bring him down over that.
Mari: I’m trying to think if I have any friend that I’d be like, “oh, I know you horrendously murdered an innocent person but IT’S COOL. WE’RE FRIENDS.” to. I’m thinking no.
K: Nope. Definitely not.
Dean notices the blood on the sheriff’s arm and yells that he’s sick, they’re both sick, and he needs to calm down. He knocks the gun away, and they fight. The sheriff gets the upper hand until Dean sees his eyes turn black and throws him across the room. He rushes over to help the sheriff up. But the sheriff yells at Dean to stay away, and has a heart attack and dies. Dean looks panicky.
Back at the mill, there’s no sign of Luther. Sam reports in to Bobby, and says it’s like Luther’s scared. He puts his gun on the ground and says he’s got to make Luther angry. He heads further inside and starts shredding Luther’s drawings. Machinery starts up around him. He shreds another drawing of Jessie, and Luther appears behind him. Sam turns and Luther grabs him.
Motel. Dean stares at the sheriff’s body and scratches his arms bloody. He hears Sam laughing and saying that he’s going back to Hell. He hears more Hellhounds and stares at his watch, then grabs the Bible and holds it tight, rocking a little. “Hi Dean,” comes a little voice from next to him. It’s Lilith. Or, more accurately, the little blonde girl who was possessed by Lilith in the season 3 finale. (M: See also: CREEPIEST KID EVER. THANKS, SEASON 3 FINALE.) (K: Oh, girl. We have a long, long road of creepy kids left to face…)
Dean freaks, and Lilith hugs him excitedly. Dean pulls away and insists that she’s not real. “Don’t you remember all the fun you had down there?” she asks. Then she informs us that four months on Earth is 40 years in Hell. Dean looks pained. She asks if he remembers every second, and he doubles up in pain. He says again that she’s not real, and Lilith cradles his face in her hands and says that it doesn’t matter because he’s still going to die. She tells him to listen to his heart, and starts yelling “Ba-boom!” with every heart beat, getting faster and faster. Dean crumples to the floor, clutching his chest.
Back at the mill, Luther tosses Sam around the room. Sam goes for his gun, but Luther drags him away and slams him into the floor. Sam reaches into the dirt on the ground and grabs a metal chain. He wraps it around Luther’s neck and yells out to Bobby. Bobby (I’m sorry, but I can’t not) floors the pedal to the metal, (M: -_-) and Luther is dragged down the road, reliving his death. Lilith yells “Ba-boom!” some more.
Luther’s ghost dissolves into nothing, and all the machinery in the factory stops. Dean gasps for breath, Lilith gone. He stares at his arms and the scratch marks are gone. He stares at the ceiling in relief. Fade to black.
After the Not Commercial Break, Bobby and Sam fill Dean in on how they stopped Luther. Sam asks if he’s okay, and Dean says he’s fine. Bobby asks if he’s really truly sure, because hunting is brutal and scary. Dean snaps that he’s fine and he’ll kill anything. “He’s adorable…” Bobby says. Sam chuckles and Dean bitchfaces. Bobby heads out. Sam turns to Dean and asks what he saw near the end. Dean goes to answer, then sees Sam’s eyes flash yellow. He bites his lip and says he saw a room full of howler monkeys before insisting that it was the usual stuff, which he can handle. He drains his beer as we fade to black.
But we’re not done yet! There’s one final treat for us: a full rendition of Eye of the Tiger by Jensen Ackles in character as Dean, courtesy of Jared Padalecki deciding to see what would happen if he didn’t enter on cue. And it is glorious, so I’m going to give you the entire thing:
I really love this episode. Sure, it’s brutal at times, and incredibly silly at others. But we rarely see Dean as a vulnerable character. He’s spent his whole life not being afraid of the things in the darkness, because it’s what he was trained to do. But now? He’s been to Hell. He knows what pain and suffering really are. And he’s terrified. He’s not the person he was before, and he doesn’t know how to tell his brother about the things he did, about his fears for Sam, about the fact that dying means he’ll go back. We also see his growing dependence on alcohol, and basically this episode gives me a lot of Dean feels, okay? Okay.
Mari: I enjoyed it! In fact, I didn’t really have much to say throughout the post. I’m not entirely sure why, because really, I sat back and enjoyed watching this episode. The ghost sickness explanation was pretty bad. I mean, I like that whole aspect of these people dying slowly as Luther did, but the whole, “oh yeah, by the way, ghosts can make you sick. It’s contagious.” thing was just a bit eye-rolly. The show would’ve done better to make this a Luther-specific thing rather than trying to come up with this huge GHOST SICKNESS! thing that just didn’t have the room in this episode to really be a thing. Scaredy cat Dean was funny, but true to form, there was some darkness there as we him terrified of going back to hell and all the stuff Kirsti said.
Next time on Supernatural: It’s Halloween and there’s weirdness afoot in S04 E07 – It’s the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester.
I'm a 30-something librarian and I still live with my parents because I'm super broke. Leader of Team Heartless Cow. I have an inexplicable love for 90s television, eat too much chocolate, and read more than is good for me.
I'm a 30-something south Floridan who loves the beach but cannot swim. Such is my life, full of small contradictions and little trivialities. My main life goals are never to take life too seriously, but to do everything I attempt seriously well. After that, my life goals devolve into things like not wearing pants and eating all of the Zebra Cakes in the world. THE WORLD.
