"Bitten" by the SUPERNATURAL Bug
Episode 804 “Bitten”
[photos: James Dittiger & Jack Rowand/The CW]
I really, really, really liked this episode a lot. That’s three reallys, and for good reason.
It’s done in a “found footage” style, complete with infrared night vision shots in the woods and scary things grabbing people out in the woods and nomming on them. I’m really not giving much of anything away to say that it involves werewolves, but this is not a typical “monster-of-the-week” Supernatural.
The Winchesters actually get very little screen time. The majority of the story is focused on three college students and how their lives change after one of them is bitten, as told in the form of a student film project. Violence, fear and jealousy begin to overtake everything else. Eventually they spot “FBI agents” Sam and Dean at the various murder scenes and realize what’s happening, as well as the fact that the brothers are hunters who come after things like werewolves.
I’m trying to avoid spoiling the ending if you haven’t seen it, because it’s a really good one. My favorite part? Dean’s reaction to what they eventually discover in the last five minutes. It completely redeems him for me, and shows that he’s not just a heartless bastard, even after everything. He sees himself in part of their story, because the things that have happened to him aren’t his choice either. There’s a recognition there, and it gives him pause — who is the real monster? Sometimes it’s the merciless hunter, not the innocent hunted.
The script by Eric Kripke and Robbie Thompson is superb (and even includes a little bromance fanservice). Brit Sheridan, Leigh Parker and Brandon Jones are all excellent young actors who carried the episode very well. Because the violence is minimal, when it does happen there’s a lot more impact to it, and buckets of blood are simply not necessary to tell the story.
The fact that it wasn’t just another visit to another coroner’s office and another cheap motel room with Sam telling Dean what he found by hacking into police records was a huge and much-needed breath of fresh air. Yes, it’s a one-off , but it’s an extremely creative one. The character development on the part of Dean is the cherry on top.
This is the best episode of the season so far.
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