It began with one of the best "The Road So Far" montages of the entire series to Aerosmith's "Back in the Saddle Again", and completely appropriate. I had forgotten until after watching it that it's the first Road So Far of the season, seeing as we didn't get one at the beginning of the season premiere. Season Six being so different from the rest of the series so far, it was a great way to start off "Like a Virgin". Or rather, "The Brothers are Back", which is what every fan on Twitter has secretly dubbed it.
With Castiel informing Dean that Sam's soul is intact, however "flayed", was both comforting, and greatly disturbing at the same time. Castiel was angry, claiming that Dean should have just killed him and gotten it over with. It's only a matter of time before the state of his soul becomes an issue. And as if I wasn't already nervous enough.
I know I certainly wasn't expecting Sam to wake up so soon. Engrossed in Dean and Bobby's conversation, when Sam waltzed in unannounced, I was as surprised as them, and instantly found tears in my eyes. That hug?! Forget about it. I was dying of happiness inside! Now, I know we all love the Winchester hug from "Lazarus Rising", but this one blows them all out of the water for me.
We knew Sam's memories were going to be hazy, and right after waking up, he seems to remember nothing. However, it's clear that within days, his memory is already coming back. Dean was insistent on keeping Sam in the dark as long as possible, fearing that if he does find out the truth, it would only cause the wall in his mind to start breaking down and the memories of Hell to come flooding back. Although the flayed part of his soul is still safe, memories of his soulless self are already returning. And just as we expected, Sam is already wallowing in guilt over the things he did while without a soul.
But back to the candy and rainbows, it was good just to see the Winchesters be the Winchesters again. Chatting in the Impala. Teasing each other constantly. Sam being the geek, and Dean his 'give 'em hell' attitude. Honestly, I was loving Soulless Sammy. He was a little creepy at times, but the story was interesting and Jared Padalecki has been excellent this season. However, until this episode, I didn't realize how much I missed just plain ol' Sammy. His puppy dog pout. That restless frown when he just can't figure something out. That happy little grin when for a just moment, all they are is Dean and Sam Winchester.
In fact, I don't think we have seen this side of the boys since at least Season 3. Before all the Hell and angels came raining down on them. Even Dean hasn't been this Dean for years. But for once, he was back to his goofy self. When Dean was trying to pull that sword from the stone, in my opinion, one of the funniest scenes of the series. When Sam gave that girl the 'Sammy puppy dog pout', Dean's little grin as he followed his brother inside was priceless. I don't remember the last time we got to see Dean smile and goof off like he did last week.
It may not be a revelation, but it's nice to know that Dean Winchester can't be Dean Winchester without his little brother. It made the whole episode a bit more mushy for the more obsessed fan. Not to mention the loads of fantastic dialogue with endless geeky references.
Dean: "Can't you just make a few calls?"
Bobby: "To who? Hogwarts?"
Dragon: "Where'd you get that?"
Dean: "Comic Con."
(It's safe to say that I nearly fell my chair when I heard Dean say that.)
Sam: "All I keep getting is World of Warcraft."
Dean: "I don't know what that means."
But besides all the candy and rainbows, there are a few serious things to talk about. First, Castiel seems to have told Sam about when he was strutting around without a soul. Tortured and teary-eyed, Sam listened, and apologized to Dean for everything he did at the end of the episode. The guilt has already started piling onto his shoulders. With Sam's track record, these are the moments when he decides to be a bit more self-sacrificing then he needs to be.
When we get our first look next weeks into some of Soulless Sam's doing before we met up with Dean, I'm sure guilt is going to be riding Sam harder then it ever has. This is going to be an easy rest of the season for him.
Or either of our boys, considering the new big bad that was introduced. The whole fandom is wild with speculation on who or what exactly this Mother of All is. For those of you that don't remember the episode "Family Matters", the vampire Alpha did mention to Sam and Dean that "Everyone has a mother" when they asked him who created him. Is this Mother of All who he was talking about?
I may have not been watching the show as long as many others, for the first time since I have, I am just at a loss of what to think. I honestly have no good theories of where the writers are going with this. However, my mind keeps flashing back to the conversation Dean has with Death in "Two Minutes to Midnight" about how old he is and that he will reap God eventually. I keep wondering how old Mother is and have a feeling that she is going to have a place in the stories of the origins of all evil. The only question is whether they are going to take the Judeo-Christian views on evil, or the pagan views.
All in all, I definitely think "Like a Virgin" is one of the best episodes of the season so far, that also include some of my favorite moments from this season. In fact, I think the only thing that irked me was the fact that Sam and Castiel didn't hug. I pouted like a disappointed fan girl.
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