CW’s "Supernatural:" Coming out of “Death’s Door?" (A Television Review)

Director: Robert Singer.

Writer: Sera Gamble.

After a very mixed start, "Supernatural" returns to fine form with plenty of character revelation in “Death’s Door.” This episode may very well be Bobby Singer’s (Jim Beaver) swan song. He is revealed to have a bullet that is deeply burrowed in his grey matter, a result of being shot by the Leviathan, Dick Roman (James Patrick Stuart), from the previous episode.

A good part of this latest chapter is spent in exploring Bobby’s life. This episode is a trip through his last moments and what is seen reveals his regrets, his successes and his boys. He thinks the world of Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles).

Writer Sera Gamble created an excellent mid-season episode that brings more life to Bobby even though he is technically dying. To dig the bullet out means digging through more than just the dead matter. A certain fate is inevitable, and that is something that Dean does not want to hear. His seething aggressions is just the icing, and Sam is also equally tormented. As Bobby goes through memory lane, most of what he wants to remember is fading to black. The darkness indicates what his brain is going through; it's slowly shutting itself down.

As parts of his life are explored, audiences learn about the pivotal events that have shaped Bobby's life. He’s cared for Dean ever since this man was a child of ten. He did the smart thing of teaching young Dean (and Sam) to live than to be a hunter—that’s a lesson that one adult Winchester seems to have forgotten.

He also cares dearly for his wife, Karen, to which he had to kill because a demon would eventually possess her. But prior to the events, they had a fight. All Bobby remembers is how she said how he broke her heart. Apparently he refuses to sire kids of his own because of his own past. He is afraid of being just like his own old man. His alcoholic father was abusive when Bobby was a boy. That caused some deep scars in what defines Singer. But there is an ever darker memory that Bobby does not want to face up to.

Sometimes he is like his father because he feels like he has no control of his life. This theme is at least consistent with the series. But with the help of Rufus, who represents the last vestiges of logic in his mind, the old Coot has to come to terms with that darkness, the fact that he killed his father, before he can find a way into the light. He has to find the door that will let him become conscious so he can pass on some vital information to the Winchesters. In “How to Win Friends and Influence Monsters,” when he was in Roman's office, he saw some numbers which is of some importance that he knew he had to pass on. But nobody knows what they mean, and viewers will not know until next year.

In the meantime, Bobby has to make one final choice. A Reaper has appeared in Bobby’s subconscious to tell him that it’s time to move on. If he does not, he will become a ghost trapped in limbo. But without an easy method of communication, should he remain, just how good will he will be to the Winchesters? What this series does not need is an Obi-Wan Kenobi. With future episode titles like “Not Fade Away” and “Adventures in Babysitting,” even a vegetable Bobby does not sound all that enticing. Miracles can happen, and the angels are not likely to do a thing. Should they appear, that will be a cop-out for the series if that occurs. The answers will reveal itself January 6th.

Overall: 7 out of 10.

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