Supernatural brought back Hitler this week. There’s a metaphor here somewhere.
This episode is… weird. There are some moments that really worked, and some moments that felt like a missed opportunity. Back in season eight, in an episode titled “Everybody Hates Hitler,” we were introduced to a group of Nazi necromancers called the Thule. These guys are no Nazis wannabes, but the real deal from the time of Hitler. Through some sort of magic, the Thule could become almost immortal. Almost, because while they can’t age, they can be shot in the head and burned and never come back. Along with the introduction to the Thule, we also got a cool new character named Aaron Bass (Adam Rose), and his giant golem friend (John DeSantis). “Everybody Hates Hitler” ended with Aaron taking up the challenge to defeat the Thule once and for all, while also carrying on his family legacy.
And we never saw him again.
Do you see where I’m going with this?
When Mary left a couple of weeks ago, I mentioned how Supernatural sometimes drops characters and stories to keep the focus on Sam and Dean. But the world of Supernatural is so dense with potential that when things like Aaron’s story gets dropped for four seasons, it feels like a major missed opportunity. And maybe I would feel better about it if Aaron’s return in last night’s episode lasted longer than two minutes. I’m confused as to why it didn’t.
Sam and Dean follow up on the spontaneous combustion of two people in an antique shop because of a pocket watch. It’s there Dean finds the back room full of Nazi memorabilia. Putting two and two together (spontaneous combustion and Nazis), Sam and Dean realize they have a Thule problem on their hands. That’s when they call Aaron. One thing about this scene I do like is that it’s implied the Winchesters have kept in touch with Aaron over the years, considering there’s no “hey, remember us?” moment between Aaron and the brothers. Aaron’s in Berlin, Germany tracking down the Thule still, mentioning the group has seemed excited about something lately, an operation called The Blood. He seems to be standing outside a nightclub, for reasons we never find out, because after he’s done relaying that information to the Winchesters, he walks back inside, and that’s it.
The operation Aaron was referring to was a plan to resurrect Hitler into the body of a still living relative, which could be done because Hitler’s soul was locked inside that pocket watch. Doctor Who callbacks aside, this seems like a pretty serious situation that maybe someone who’s been tracking the Thule for four years should be a part of? Just a thought. Instead, a lot of screen time gets handed to Ellie Grant (Allison Paige), one of Hitler’s descendants whose blood will be used to resurrect Hitler. I’m not saying she was terrible, but when she doesn’t even become Hitler (through a blood transfusion, another Thule member gets to be Hitler), she becomes irrelevant. So, again, why wasn’t Aaron in this episode more?
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I will give credit to Supernatural for actually bringing Hitler back. If they hadn’t, well that’s like introducing a gun and then never pulling the trigger. Which, admittedly, also happens, quite literally. There’s also a pretty decent fight between Sam and Dean and some Thule agents. You know, I always forget Sam and Dean can actually fight, and those fighting skills returned in this episode. (We’ll just ignore how those same skills seem to disappear during other fight scenes in other episodes).
But I digress. “The One You’ve Been Waiting For” had neat ideas, just a weird execution. I still love Sam and Dean’s interactions when there’s no fighting and angst and drama. Dean knocking over antiques and repeating “I killed Hitler” over and over is a highlight. I like how these monster-of-the-week episodes can happen without it feeling like we’re missing out on apocalyptic drama. True, the British Men of Letters are still out there, but the threat is on a smaller scale, so it makes sense for Sam and Dean to be on random hunts in the mean time. However, it’s also been two episodes with no sign of Mary, so my anxiety there is just going to keep on growing.
Next week, Kim Rhodes is back as Sheriff Jody Mills, one great example of how Supernatural can bring back characters! Also, the reaper Billie (Lisa Berry) makes another appearance next week, so that’s cool.
Rating: 7.8/10
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