The plan is in place on Supernatural. In “Destiny’s Child”, Chuck/God (Rob Benedict) is busy enacting his own Crisis on Infinite Earths. So Team Winchester is looking for a way to get rid of Chuck once and for all. With help from Castiel (Misha Collins) and Death (Lisa Berry), the plan all depends on the Nephilim, Jack Kline (Alexander Calvert).
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But First! Something strange happens at the bunker. A mint green Fiat appears out of nowhere. Sam and Dean, but more hipster looking. I’m talking popped collars, blazers, scarves, no socks, loafer and a man bun! (See above picture.) And there’s a rift behind the car. Just when Sam and Dean realize they are looking at another version of themselves, the rift explodes and the car disappears.
Billie has a logical explanation. Chuck is destroying the other worlds. The doppelgangers were obviously running from the destruction of their world. When God is finished with the other worlds, he’ll come for Earth Prime and the Winchesters Prime.
Billie has a master plan for Jack. The first part was to get Jack’s strength back. The second part is to find something called an occultum, meaning ‘hidden’ in Latin. No one really knows what it is or where it’s hidden. It’s not a weapon but it’s powerful and spiritual. Billie tells them to be ready and vigilent. And don’t do anything stupid.
While doing research on the occultum, Dean realizes that they may have to deal with Amara (Emily Swallow) too. If Jack kills God, then the world is out of balance. He could kill Amara too and then there would be no God or Darkness. All is well. But then who takes over? Jack? Nah!
Cas called his shaman friend about the occultum and found out that it is a divine item that has fallen into the wrong hands. The family who possessed the occultum used it as payment. Their son got sick and they called on a special healer to help. That healer is the angel Anael, aka Sister Jo (Danneel Ackles).
The brothers visit Jo at her latest healing church and she is thrilled to see them! (not really). They ask about the occultum, saying they need it to defeat God. Jo is amused and uncooperative. She’s totally on God’s side and refuses to tell them anything. That’s when the angel blades come out. Jo easily crumbles and has quite the story.
According to Jo, many years ago, a demon named Ruby (Genevieve Padalecki) and Jo worked together on schemes and hustles. Ruby found out that Jo had the occultum and said she could sell it. She had a buyer and offered Jo a nice cut of the profits. Ruby took the occultum, but shortly after Dean killed her. Jo said Ruby hid the occultum in Hell.
Back at the bunker, Jack is eating a lot. He seems like he’s in a good mood too, but then he tells Cas that he doesn’t feel anything. After dying he understands what feelings are, but it’s not in him. He also understands why Sam and Dean are angry about what happened to Mary (Samantha Smith)…what he did to her. Jack realizes things have changed between him and the brothers and wants to know when they will forgive him, especially Dean. Cas says Dean feels things differently. He could just explode one day. Basically Cas doesn’t know how long it will take.
Sam and Dean return to the bunker and tell Cas what they found out. Dean is ready to take a trip to Hell, but Cas has something to show them first. The doppelgangers are still lingering around, kind of like ghosts. Cas thinks when Chuck destroyed their world, the blast put them between dimensions. But as long as they aren’t in pain, Dean says they need to think about their current issue.
Dean says they need to get to Hell and find the occultum, but Cas wants to know why they are trusting Jo. He needs more information and wants to talk to Ruby, but Ruby is dead. Dean thinks they don’t have a lot of time. So they head to Hell and ask to see Rowena (Ruth Connell). A nice demon greets them, but Rowena is hosting a reception for newly condemned souls. HA! He agrees to take them to her anyway.
But not really. The demon leads the boys into a room where two more demons are waiting for them. It’s a trap! The Winchesters prevail of course and find out Jo set them up. She contacted the demons and asked them to kill the Winchesters. In return she promised to help them escape Hell. But no one knows why. Elsewhere, Jo packs up her stuff, assumes a different name and leaves town.
While the boys are away, Cas decides to go on an adventure of his own. He tells Jack that there are too many holes in Jo’s story. Who was Ruby going to sell the occultum to? And why didn’t Jo try to get it back? Jo could be lying, so Cas is going to the Empty to talk to Ruby. Jack tries to stop him because the Empty basically hates Cas. Cas goes anyway. He tells Jack to keep the door Hell open for Sam and Dean while he’s gone.
Cas wanders around the Empty, calling out for Ruby when Meg (Rachel Miner) appears. Meg was once a demon who kind of had a thing with Cas. It’s actually the Empty disguised as Meg. She tries to tease and taunt the angel, but Cas is on a mission. He says the Empty has to help him because of it’s deal with Death. Cas is no fun, so the Empty brings Ruby forth in a ball of light.
Cas asks Ruby for the occultum, saying Jo told them that she hid it. Ruby rolls her eyes because Jo is obviously lying. He tells her that Sam and Dean are in Hell looking for it and Ruby smiles at the thought of Sam. She says he was cute until he killed her. But they’ve got it all wrong.
Ruby’s story is that Jo called her to talk about occultum. Jo wanted to find it because of the war that was brewing between Lucifer and Michael. War means apocalypse which means death for everyone. They need a plan B so they can take over the new world. Ruby is confused because Jo says they’d all be dead. Jo’s plan is to ride it out in the safest place that exists: the occultum.
Ruby explains that the occultum is whatever you need it to be. A place, a thing, whatever and it’s powerful. She made a deal with Jo and Ruby stashed the occultum. She offers to tell Cas where it is, but he has to help get her out of the Empty. Ruby says the place is full of sorrow and despair. Angels and demons are dreaming about their regrets. Cas knows all too well. Ruby knows Cas is connected, so Cas says he will try to get her out.
Sam and Dean return to the living and see Jack watching over Cas. After he tells them Cas’ plan they demand that Jack bring Cas back to life. At the same time the Empty is having some fun with Cas. It puts him in a lot of pain, but Cas says because of their mission, the Empty can’t hurt him. The Empty points out that Cas was never part of Death’s plan. It continues to hurt him until he disappears and then says it will see him soon.
Dean and Sam are frustrated with Cas for putting himself at risk, but he says it was worth it. He tells them about his conversation with Ruby. They need to go get the occultum, but at the same time need to keep Chuck in the dark about their plan. Dean comes up with a crazy idea on how to do that.
Dean suggests they pull the doppelgangers into their world. If Chuck comes back, he’ll check the bunker first. He will see the doppelgangers and think everything is the same. All they need to do is open a rift with Cas’ grace. Cas is worried that the rift will blast the doppelgangers into another world. Either way, they won’t be trapped anymore.
Sam opens a rift and the doppelgangers return. They sit across from themselves to learn a little about each other. Like, the dopelgangers don’t drink beer because their dad spoils them with fruity bourbon. Best Dad Ever! Meaning John Winchester is alive in their world. They say he was with them, but when they went through the rift, he disappeared. The doppelganger Winchesters are also rich because they get paid to hunt, worldwide! The company is Hunter Corp. started by Daddy Winchester. Smartest Guy Ever!
Dean gets back to business and tells the twins what’s going on. They need them to serve as decoys if Chuck happens to check in on them. But some changes will have to be made. Such as…Hipster Sam to lose the man bun…and that obviously offends him. Ha! Hipster Dean to put his collar down. The nerve!
The doppelgangers sit around drinking beer and watching cat videos. Sam is still wearing the man bun because his hair is sacred. And Dean finds Dean’s pornography files. Dean 2.0 thinks the Winchesters-Prime have a good life. They get to hunt monsters, drink beer and watch porn.
Ruby told Cas the occultum was hidden in a church. That’s way to easy, right? The church is locked and then they hear growling. Not so easy after all because the church is protected by hellhounds. Dean rushes to get the door open just before the hounds attack. Sam holds the door while the other three look for Ruby’s clue. She said the top of the cross will point the way, but they don’t see anything on top of the only cross in the church.
The moon shines into the church and another cross appears on the floor. An arrow on the floor points to a loose board. They find a small bag with a small sphere inside. There’s a passage on it, written in Enochian that says “In order to be in the Occultum, the Occultum must be in you.” Jack takes the Enochian message literally and swallows the sphere. At first he says he’s fine. But then he falls to the floor in pain. A bright light overcomes Jack and he disappears.
Jack wakes up on a bed of green grass under a tree. A little girl finds him and says he must not be human because humans aren’t allowed in that place. Why? Because they are in the Garden of Eden. Jack was told the place would change him and the girl says it will if he’s the one meant to find it. How’s he supposed to know that?
A snake appears in the garden and asks Jack who he really is. Who is Jack meant to become? Jack starts having flashes of his life. He sees everything he’s done wrong, including killing Mary. He lays on the ground, crying.
Back in the church, the hellhounds almost have the door open when an orb of light appears. The doors are open and the light gets brighter, getting rid of the hounds. When the light fades, Jack is laying on the floor.
Dean sends the doppelgangers to Brazil even after they offered to stay and operate like a club. They even asked to keep the flannel shirts! Oh but here’s the real kicker. They found Baby and drove it! Bye bye doppelgangers!
Cas tells the brothers that Jack is okay, but he’s different. They check on him and Jack says he understands now. His own mother died too so he gets it and he apologizes. Cas realizes that Jack has his soul back. Jack cries and asks for the Winchesters’ to forgive him.
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THOUGHTS
Redemption is always a good story but this one made me cry. Jack was so innocent, I mean, he still is. You have to remember, Jack is like two, maybe three years old. There is a lot for him to learn about the world. He got a crash course in the divine side of his family, but he never got a chance to just be human. So thank you to the writers for giving us these little moments where Jack shows true humanity. And for returning his soul.
The DOPPELGANGERS! I love them! I wish they could do a spin-off with them. Come on! We’re not ready to say goodbye to Jensen and Jared.
So many call backs to the history of Supernatural. It’s always good to see familiar faces, but this one was different. These women, Meg, Ruby, and Jo were all trouble makers for Team Winchester. It’s interesting that two of the bad gals are the real life wives of Dean and Sam.
So, the sad truth is this may have been the last we will see of Supernatural for some time. How long? Well, that remains to be seen. Until then, this season has been a lot of fun. I love the call backs to show favorites and wrapping up their stories. There are a few friends I hope they bring back when the show returns. And I hope production starts up real soon. There are 7 episodes left. It would be a shame to not be able to finish the story.
News Editor, Senior Contributor, and Press Editor. Coordinate breaking news, trailers and press releases. I also contribute reviews, recaps and interviews. Creator of the Indigenerd Wire, a column dedicated to the Indigenous creatives in pop culture.
GGA's resident Indigenerd, a little bit rez, a little bit classy...with a love for all things Star Wars, zombies, science fiction, and Indigenous. My ultimate goal is to start my own podcast.
