Supernatural Season 6 Episode 20 "The Man Who Would Be King" Review

After Season 5 of Supernatural ended I honestly had no idea where the show was going to go next. They'd already done the Apocalypse, how could they possibly find a storyline that matched or exceeded something like that. For the vast majority of the season my worries seemed to be confirmed, while I still loved the show and the vast majority of episodes were great as always, there seemed to be no purpose or gravitas to the events that were happening. All the talk of purgatory, souls and a battle for heaven was interesting but there didn't seem to be an overall purpose to anything. I didn't particularly like the idea of a big battle with Eve at the end of this season either, there just seemed to be something lacking about the whole storyline with her. However this episode and the last episode have changed everything and tied every plot thread together in a way I had not expected leaving me very excited for the season finale in two weeks time.

I really enjoyed the opening of the show and Castiel's flashbacks on various moments in history, all the things he had lived through and seen. It showed us truly how momentous stopping the Apocalypse was and how it had changed everything.

The exploration of Castiel's motivations and character in this episode is fantastic. It was strange seeing him so conflicted and unsure of himself as the majority of the time he is calm personified. It's sad to see how far he's actually fallen over the course of the season, his pride and arrogance have corrupted his good intentions and although there is obviously still good in him, the darkness inside him is growing. As he said himself, its too late to turn back now, although he knows deep down what he is doing is wrong he cannot leave the dark path he has set himself on, he is too blinded at this stage by his mission and the power he could attain.

What is saddest about Cas becoming a falling angel is that he still cares about people and he wants to be good. Time and time again he tries to protect Dean and Sam, he clearly hates lying to them and his scenes with them show how much he does care about them. Like Dean says to Cas, he's like family, and you can see Cas feels the same about the boys. It's heartbreaking to see the Winchesters lose faith in him, especially Dean who believed in Cas when no-one else did. The scene between Dean and Cas was electrifying, I have always loved the relationship between the two characters and Deans speech to Cas, how he was like a brother to him was brilliant. When Cast rejected Dean and turned against against him, it is obvious that nothing will ever be the same between them again.

Castiels interactions with Crowley in the episode were priceless and by the way its great to have Crowley back, he's a wonderful villain who brings a lot of personality and fun to the role, his presence has definitely been missed! I especially loved him in this episode, the music in the background of the torture scenes was just genius and the never-ending line to hell was terrifying, give me fire and brimstone any day! He is just as great in the serious scenes though, we can see his intelligence as he appeals to Castiels pride and arrogance, knowing just what buttons to push to get what he wants. His hatred for the Winchesters also shines through when he loses his cool, Mark Sheppard is brilliant at showing us both the fun and dark side of Crowley and I have the feeling he has more planned than just getting half the souls of purgatory and I personally can't wait to see what it is! 

The relationship between Crowley and Castiel was definitely refreshing, Castiel is unmistakably disgusted with himself for working with someone like Crowley and there is an underlying tension in all their scenes, especially when Castiel threatens to kill Crowley, it's the first time I have seen Crowley look frightened about anything. It really underscores how much a threat Cas could be to the Winchesters, as Bobby so aptly puts it "It'd be like dealing with Superman turning to the dark side". Nevertheless, despite the tension between them, both characters work well together, their thirst for power is what unites them and both will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.

Raphael also looks to be a forbidding villain. He is a character that emanates power and control. I was surprised at the idea that he wanted to bring about the apocalypse again rather than rule heaven yet it just reinforces the fact that angels cannot deal with the idea of freedom. As Raphael says they are soldiers and they seem to need a purpose to exist, no angel could understand Castiels explanation that they were free now.  The prospect of a final confrontation between Castiel and Raphael is exciting for a number of reasons, the main one being we can see how low Castiel is willing to go to defeat Raphael.

I couldn't end this review without mentioning my favourite moment in the episode. The idea of a demon version of Bobby was hilarious and I loved how he bossed everyone around and insulted everyone just like our Bobby does. Even better was Cas walking in and wiping them all out, that scene really hit home how ruthless Castiel can be when he wants to be and that deep down he is still a soldier, like Raphael who will achieve his goals at any cost.

This really was an excellent episode of Supernatural, the action, the drama and the humor was all classic Supernatural. What really made this episode for me though was how it brought the entire season together and made all the previous episodes look better as a result as we now know Castiel was behind it all. The ending really set the tone for the finale, with Castiel begging for a sign from God and getting none, a sad moment which leaves him with no choice but to follow through with his plans.The only small problem I had with this episode was that it was basically set-up for the finale, but when the set-up is this good thats only a minor point! Having Dean and Sam oppose one of their closest allies was a masterstroke and I have a feeling that the finale of this season of Supernatural could be the best one yet!

Review Score: 9/10

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