Supernatural S04E21 - When the Levee Breaks (2009)

Review

Dean and Bobby have Sam locked up in the safe room in Bobby's basement hoping a bit of detox will cure Sam of his demon blood cravings. Sam demands to be let out as he feels the need to go hunt down Lilith, Dean disagrees telling Sam he's going to have to sit out the apocalypse on the bitch seat. As the cravings for demon blood rise Sam starts to hallucinate various entities are with him in what amounts to a cell. With a rising number of seals being broken in rapid succession Dean calls on the Angels for help and naturally Castiel shows up making Dean swear to the Angel's course. Meanwhile Bobby is wondering if they aren't killing Sam by trying for a cure.

Surprisingly an unlikely supernatural presence releases Sam from his prison and he makes good his escape, going dark in an attempt to hide from Dean and Bobby. Ruby arrives and supplies demon blood to get Sam over his hallucinations and cravings, we learn Sam's capacity for blood has grown and he's a bit of a piggy when it comes to his current favourite beverage. Dean manages to track him down and the Bros end up in a fight over Ruby. Sam gains the upper hand leaving Dean warning him if he walks out not to come back, Sam ain't looking back. Anna confronts Castiel and is taken into custody by the God squad.

We get a deep background on Sam's current state of mind as he undergoes withdrawal symptoms from the demonic blood he has been sucking down like cold beer on a hot arvo. Weighing heavily on his mind are Alastair, the demonic torturer, his mom who has some kind words, his younger self disappointed he didn't escape hunting, and Dean with some normal Dean like home advice that does nothing for the situation. We have clear indication that the blood intake is not only changing Sam's mental process but also has a physiological effect as Sam goes all paranormal activity on us. The younger Winchester Bro seems obsessed with Lilith, while I would have thought stopping Lucifer might have been the better end game. Surprisingly, considering Bobby has warded the safe room against all manner of supernatural intruders, it's the last entity they would have suspected who releases Sam back into the wild and the waiting arms of Ruby complete with fresh blood for the fires.

While Sam is obsessed with getting his X-Men powers back Dean shows once again he is prepared to risk everything for his younger brother, which underlines Dean's selflessness and Sam's self-absorption. Dean commits to the Heavenly host, which is a decision that is going to come back and haunt him as clearly there is a different agenda up above than we might reasonably expect to be the case. Anna is aware that Angelic manipulations are not what they seem while Castiel is still to have the scales removed from his eyes on his particular road to Damascus. When the Levee Breaks does make you wonder who is making the decisions and why Sam has been freed to fulfil whatever end game Ruby has in mind.

For once Sam takes center stage as the Bros sit idly by while further seals are broken

Speaking of Sam's demonic squeeze, nice touch by Genevieve Cortese (Ruby) in dropping a sly smile while Sam is gulping down the red stuff like a wild night up the Cross. In one look Cortese underlined a sort of triumph that had me nodding my head in approval; deals with the Devil never go anything like what you expect in the horror genre.

In the final act of the episode, and this one is pretty intense, Dean seemingly abandons Sam to whatever fate Ruby has for him which is a major change for the Dean character. As mentioned previously Dean has gone to Hell, has committed to Heaven, and has done all manner of things in between for his brother but is now done with Sam! We have had ruptures in the relationship in the past going right back to season one but with one episode left this season I hope they don't drag this plot element out to season five, it's starting to get a bit shop soiled to be honest. Next week's episode is bound to be a ripper for mine considering Ruby's plans are about to see fruition and Dean is a soldier in the Heavenly vanguard. Could we possibly face an epic struggle of Biblical proportions with the Brothers Winchester on opposing sides? I got a feeling all hell is about to break loose and things are going to be taken up another notch.

Bobby Singer continues to fill in the John Winchester role. The character with arcane knowledge and all the right moves to defeat the forces of evil, the savant who the leads turn to when things are getting out of hand. Cool updated of the Van Helsing style character to a modern redneck with all the right moves. I have a feeling the character, like Castiel, will become more regular through the course of season five as the Winchester face perhaps their greatest challenge, the resurrected Prince of Darkness.

Finally we are truly back on track with the major plot arc of the season, which is just as well since we have just viewed the penultimate episode! While I would love a season that returns to the Winchesters battling their monster of the week I still think the imminent release of the Master of Darkness has been pretty sidelined this season. Rather than the Winchesters battling to keep various seals intact they have been occupied with other supernatural forces and I'm going to state their own self obsessions. No more chick moments Bros, time for the pedal to hit the metal and a return to Winchesters battling the forces of evil.

Just to ensure I'm not going to give this episode full marks the Producers wilfully left out any sort of mullet rock, no doubt crackling over their cider as they showed no regard for the loyal viewership.

A good dramatic episode that doesn't waste a lot of time in covering Sam's mental state, Dean's floundering when dealing with his wayward brother, and the ever present Ruby who appears to delight in drawing Sam back into his blood sucking ways. While the episode primarily explores Sam's current mental state it equally shows Dean once again prepared to lay down his life for his brother. Clearly with the Bros relationship being torn asunder we are ready to see what the final episode of the season will deliver. When the Levee Breaks will be appreciated by those with a firm grasp of past events covered in previous episodes.