Can you believe I'd never even hear the song "Carry On, Wayward Son" by Kansas before this episode. I must've been living in a cave. Seriously, the opening of this episode, with clips recapping what's happened over the season, is just incredibly. It cements the song forever in my mind as the show unofficial theme. "Salvation" is the first part of the season finale. This is an important episode for the show. It establishes, once and for all, that the Demon who killed Mary & Jessica is still after the Winchesters. (It also shows us his gleaming yellow eyes for the first time, giving him the name he'll be know by all next season, "The Yellow Eyed Demon" or YED.) "Salvation" also sets up the moral quandary of sacrifice that will follow the Winchesters through out the series. When it it too much to give? How do you protect your family from themselves? It's pretty complicated stuff. Finally, this episode reintroduces Meg, who's always a fun addition to the show. All in all, you need to see this episode.
This episode revolves around the Winchesters' plan to kill the Yellow Eyed Demon. Electrical storms and dead cattle are popping up around a town called Salvation. These are the same sort of omens that happened in Lawrence before Mary was killed. John and the boys begin investigating possible targets for the demon, babies turning 6 months old, since those are the YED's victims of choice. Unfortunately, Meg knows that they have the Colt and is trying to flush them out before they can stop the Demon. She's going after all of their old friends. She calls John and says that she'll arrange a trade. She'll stop murdering all the Winchester's allies, if he hands over the Colt.
John isn't willing to make that deal, but he decides to bluff. He buys a fake Colt to trade and gives the real one to the boys. Sending them after the YED, he goes to confront Meg. In the meantime, Sammy has had another vision. He sees the YED attacking a family. Sam & Dean break into the family's house and save them. But when Sam shoots at the YED, he misses and it gets away, starting a fire. Sam tries to rush back into the house as it burns, but Dean won't let him. Meanwhile, Meg and her brother, another demon, discover that the Colt is a fake. they take John prisoner and call the boys.
There are some good parts to this episode. I like that's it's Dean who carries the baby to safety, since it matches up with Dean carrying Sam out of the Lawrence fire. And I like Sam trying to say good-bye to Dean before the big show down. Dean doesn't want to hear it. Still, Sam's speech about how much Dean means to him and how he knows that even when he has no one else to guard his back, he'll always have Dean, is sweet. And I like John and the boys arguing about him ignoring their calls all year. John is angry that Dean didn't tell him that Sam's been having visions. (Which is also interesting because he automatically thinks that Dean should be the one keeping him informed about Sammy, instead of Sam himself.) Anyway, Dean's response that he had a better chance of "winning the lottery" than getting John on the phone makes me laugh. I also like the special effects in this episode. From the lights flickering in the house, to the YED dissolving into a black cloud thing... It's all really cool.
Like I said, a lot of this episode is about the Winchesters different takes on sacrifice. John sees killing the YED as the most important thing in their lives. Taking it down kamikaze style suits him fine, just so it winds up dead. Sam is wiling to run back into the building to kill the YED, claiming he doesn't care if he dies in the process or not. He's willing to sacrifice himself for their vendetta. Dean is the one who has to hold him back. Of all the Winchesters, Dean is the one who can see beyond to the quest to kill the YED and focus on the survival of the family. John and Sam are "all he has" and he won't sacrifice them for anything, even if they get angry at him for the choice he makes to keep them safe. Yet, each Winchester changes their position next season, at least a little bit. John will still sacrifice himself for the mission, but also for his sons. (see "In My Time of Dying.") Dean will still argue against sacrifice, but he's capable of making incredible sacrifices for his family. (see "All Hell Breaks Loose.") And Sam will come to see that maybe there are more important things than killing the YED, but will still sacrifice pieces of him moral code for vengeance against the Winchesters' enemies. (see "All Hell Breaks Loose.")
On the down side, it probably would have been more emotional for me if we'd actually seen Caleb or Pastor Jim on screen before they died. They'd been mentioned, but if we'd actually gotten to know them, their deaths would be all the more tragic. Also, did Meg's brother shoot her thinking that was the real Colt? Or did he know it was a fake? Because -Wow- That's kinna a cold way to test the Colt, even for a demon.
My favorite part of the episode: John's frustrated speech to the Sam, that goes something like, "You think I don't want you go to college? You think I don't know that Dean needs a home?" It's just an interesting way to show that he is aware of the boys needs and how he's partially responsible for keeping them from normal life. Plus, I like the phrasing of "Dean needs a home," like Dean's a lost puppy or something. It's cute.
This episode revolves around the Winchesters' plan to kill the Yellow Eyed Demon. Electrical storms and dead cattle are popping up around a town called Salvation. These are the same sort of omens that happened in Lawrence before Mary was killed. John and the boys begin investigating possible targets for the demon, babies turning 6 months old, since those are the YED's victims of choice. Unfortunately, Meg knows that they have the Colt and is trying to flush them out before they can stop the Demon. She's going after all of their old friends. She calls John and says that she'll arrange a trade. She'll stop murdering all the Winchester's allies, if he hands over the Colt.
John isn't willing to make that deal, but he decides to bluff. He buys a fake Colt to trade and gives the real one to the boys. Sending them after the YED, he goes to confront Meg. In the meantime, Sammy has had another vision. He sees the YED attacking a family. Sam & Dean break into the family's house and save them. But when Sam shoots at the YED, he misses and it gets away, starting a fire. Sam tries to rush back into the house as it burns, but Dean won't let him. Meanwhile, Meg and her brother, another demon, discover that the Colt is a fake. they take John prisoner and call the boys.
There are some good parts to this episode. I like that's it's Dean who carries the baby to safety, since it matches up with Dean carrying Sam out of the Lawrence fire. And I like Sam trying to say good-bye to Dean before the big show down. Dean doesn't want to hear it. Still, Sam's speech about how much Dean means to him and how he knows that even when he has no one else to guard his back, he'll always have Dean, is sweet. And I like John and the boys arguing about him ignoring their calls all year. John is angry that Dean didn't tell him that Sam's been having visions. (Which is also interesting because he automatically thinks that Dean should be the one keeping him informed about Sammy, instead of Sam himself.) Anyway, Dean's response that he had a better chance of "winning the lottery" than getting John on the phone makes me laugh. I also like the special effects in this episode. From the lights flickering in the house, to the YED dissolving into a black cloud thing... It's all really cool.
Like I said, a lot of this episode is about the Winchesters different takes on sacrifice. John sees killing the YED as the most important thing in their lives. Taking it down kamikaze style suits him fine, just so it winds up dead. Sam is wiling to run back into the building to kill the YED, claiming he doesn't care if he dies in the process or not. He's willing to sacrifice himself for their vendetta. Dean is the one who has to hold him back. Of all the Winchesters, Dean is the one who can see beyond to the quest to kill the YED and focus on the survival of the family. John and Sam are "all he has" and he won't sacrifice them for anything, even if they get angry at him for the choice he makes to keep them safe. Yet, each Winchester changes their position next season, at least a little bit. John will still sacrifice himself for the mission, but also for his sons. (see "In My Time of Dying.") Dean will still argue against sacrifice, but he's capable of making incredible sacrifices for his family. (see "All Hell Breaks Loose.") And Sam will come to see that maybe there are more important things than killing the YED, but will still sacrifice pieces of him moral code for vengeance against the Winchesters' enemies. (see "All Hell Breaks Loose.")
On the down side, it probably would have been more emotional for me if we'd actually seen Caleb or Pastor Jim on screen before they died. They'd been mentioned, but if we'd actually gotten to know them, their deaths would be all the more tragic. Also, did Meg's brother shoot her thinking that was the real Colt? Or did he know it was a fake? Because -Wow- That's kinna a cold way to test the Colt, even for a demon.
My favorite part of the episode: John's frustrated speech to the Sam, that goes something like, "You think I don't want you go to college? You think I don't know that Dean needs a home?" It's just an interesting way to show that he is aware of the boys needs and how he's partially responsible for keeping them from normal life. Plus, I like the phrasing of "Dean needs a home," like Dean's a lost puppy or something. It's cute.