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4.04 – Metamorphosis

Details

4.04 – Metamorphosis

DETAILS

Writers: Cathryn Humphris
Director: Kim Manners
First aired: Thursday October 9, 2008.

Sam (Jared Padalekci) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) discover that Jack Montgomery (guest star Dameon Clark), a family man, is turning into a Rugaru, a creature that starts as a human but changes into a flesh-eating monster.

The people who are infected don’t understand what is happening until they turn into cannibals and eat another person. Understanding what it is like to be a victim of a twisted destiny, Sam believes he can reason with Jack and convince him to control his urges.

Dean doesn’t think Jack’s animalistic behavior can be subdued and decides the only honorable thing to do is to shoot him.

Kim Manners directed the episode written by Cathryn Humphris.

Recap/Review

RECAP/REVIEW

Recap by Smallvile-29

4.04 – Metamorphosis

Intro “Then”.. Clips from last week’s “In The Beginning”, “Pilot”, “Lazarus Rising”. and “All Hell Breaks Loose pt1” with a final voice over from Castiel “Your brother is heading down a very dangerous road Dean, so stop it.. or we will” Now… Sam asks a demon tied to a chair “where is Lilith?” Sam and Ruby are working together… the demon isn’t helpful so he uses his powers to take the demon out… Dean is watching from behind a window.

“Metamorphosis”
Sam saved the body that the demon was using, Ruby asks how he feels and Sam says that this time threes no headache… Dean walks in and Sam tries to explain, Dean finds out it’s Ruby and pulls out the Knife to try and kill her, But Sam stops him. Ruby grabs Dean and Sam tells her to stop it and she does… She grabs the guy to take him to the E.R. and leaves Sam and Dean there, Dean looks at Sam and walks away. Sam is at the hotel room alone reading and Dean pulls up… He comes in and starts packing, he tells Dean that they don’t need him… that Sam and Ruby can fight demons.. He then punches Sam in the face.. Sam asked “satisfied?” and Dean punches him in the face again. He asks what else Sam can do and he says send demons back to hell… Dean is pissed and Sam says that with what he does they save more people and Dean says it’s gonna get darker and darker.. Sam says he wont let it go to far, But Dean tells him that if he didn’t know him he would want to hunt him and so would other hunters. Dean tells Sam that Castiel said id Dean didn’t stop Sam that he would, Dean is still mad but Sam gets a phone call from a guy named “Travis” and he picks is up he writes down Carthage Missouri. Carthage Missouri, guy is eating food like Dean on steroids, his name is Jack. His wife is getting desert but he still wants some of her food.. Later that night he is brushing his teeth when his spin starts making weird noises and he is in pain.. it goes away though. Sam and Dean are driving, Dean is telling Sam about what happened (“In The Beginning” (the last episode) ) and is filling him in on everything. There talking and Dean finds out that Sam knew about the demon blood being dripped in his mouth way back when, the boys are still at odds. Jack comes and opens the fridge because he wants dinner, his wife tells him it’s coming… Sam and Dean are watching him because Travis said to keep an eye on Jack, nothing seems weird from there view which is watching from the car, he opens the fridge and starts eating chicken really fast and then pulls out some raw meat and starts chowing it down.. Dean looks disguised and they agree that something is weird… Sam and Dean get to there hotel room and Travis is there, apparently it’s been about 10yrs since they last saw each other. He knew there Dad and is a hunter. Travis has a broken arm and that’s why he needed help, he tells them that Jack is a Rugaru… which start wanting more and more and once they eat human meat they turn into a bullflyish thing, and are completely transferred.. Jack sees his wife cut her finger and starts going a little crazy.. but leaves before it the want takes over. Travis says that he killed Jacks Dad, who had the same thing happen to him… but his wife was pregnant and by the time he found out the kid had been adopted. Now he knows Jack was the kid and what he will do… Jack is at a bar and is slowly wanting more and more.. guy sitting down the bar is hitting on a lady and she doesn’t want any of it, Jack steps in and the guy throws a punch which he catches and he breaks the guys hand.

Commercial #1

The only way to kill a Rugaru is fire so Dean and Travis are making little flame throwers, Sam was doing some research and he says that if the Rugaru doesn’t eat human flesh it will never transform and he thinks if they talk to him they can stop him from doing that and that they can save him. Travis doesn’t think it will work, Sam says they aren’t going to kill him unless he does something.. Jack is back home and his wife is made that he left all the sudden and he tells her the blood just made him freak out, he apologies and starts to kiss her.. he gets more and more rough until she finally pushes him away he like snaps out of it and says sorry, and leaves. Dean and Sam are going to talk to him, but Dean makes sure that Sam knows that if he turns they have to stop him, Sam still says only if he turns. Dean tells Sam he might be getting too emotional with the fact that this guy has something evil in him. Sam makes him stop the car and gets out and stars yelling at Dean to stop looking at him the way he does and that he does know right from wrong.. Hes trying to take this curse and make something good out of it.. Dean says lets just go to talk this guy, so they do. Jack is watering the plants when they get there they tell him what he is becoming and why he needs to not eat human flesh.. they tell him about his real Dad and if he doesn’t stop himself they will stop him. Jack tells them to leave, Later that night, Jack is alone at a bus stop outside the house of the lazy he protected at the bar.. he is watching her through her window and she is un-dressing… He goes up the fire exited to see her. Sam and Dean jump out of the Impala and head up to her room.. Jack is watching her in the window and his eyes are changing.. He sees his reflection in the window and then stops himself and leaves. Dean and Sam bust into her room and see that Jack isn’t there, and then they apologize and leave. Jack gets back home… but his wife is tied up in the living room.. Travis knocks him out.

Commercial #2

Jack is tied up, Travis is standing there and tells Jack that he is sorry.. When he came in earlier that night Jacks wife Michelle asked him not to hurt her because she is pregnant. Travis has her tell Jack that.. Travis is sorry that he has to do it but he can’t let it go another generation.. he starts putting fuel on the floor, Jack is getting mad and is changing.. he finally breaks through the restraints and jumps on Travis and bites his neck.. he has tasted human flesh, Michelle watches on and is freaked. Jack has turned and when he un-ties her she runs and leaves Jack there who starts to eat Travis. Sam and Dean show up and they walk in, all that’s left is a spot of blood and some bones on the carpet and they saw Travis’s car outside… Jack jumps out and knocks out Dean.. then turns and stars punching Sam.

Commercial #3

Sam is locked in the closet, He stars talking to Jack through the door… Jack is looking at Dean who is knocked out, Sam starts asking him to stop.. Jack says that it’s there fault, Sam is trying to pick the lock with a cloths hanger.. he thinks they sent Travis her and tried to burn his wife.. Sam asks why and Jack says he doesn’t know, and Sam says that him and Dean never would have hurt her. Jack wants to eat Dean and is about to.. Sam tells him he doesn’t have to be a monster.. “it doesn’t matter what you are.. it matters what you do” he looks at Dean and is about to bite when Sam breaks through the door… Jack gets up and walks towards Sam and Sam lights him up, Dean wakes up and looks over at Sam and sees that he is setting Jack on fire.

Commercial #4

Sam and Dean are driving.. Dean tells Sam that he did the right thing, and that he is sorry for being hard on him. Sam doesn’t want to talk…  Dean starts to talk again about how the psychic stuff scares him but Sam doesn’t want to talk because Dean can’t understand because the demon blood isn’t in him.. Sam says that it doesn’t matter because “these powers is playing with fire.. I’m done with them”… Dean says thanks.. Sam says that he isn’t doing it for anybody and it’s his choice. Dean looks at Sam and then puts his eyes back on the road.

The End

The wicked will go down to the grave. This is the fate of all the nations who ignore God..’ – Psalms 9:17

Review by Gaelic

At last… we have resolution from the three most cruel words in the English language: To Be Continued

Can I just start by saying I love this show?? I look forward to it all week, count down the hours on the day of… when did this change from entertainment into obsession?

Ah, well. That ship has sailed, Gaelic.

Overall Thoughts and Observations

I’m a little overwhelmed at the moment. *catches breath* Do I always say that? I think I do. Well, it happens every week. You should see my poor pillow. Smushed to death.

There is so much real life angst that this show brings forth for me. And this episode slammed me with it from so many angles. For the first time this season, while there was mention of angels and devils, the focus was almost solely on the brothers and I ate it up.

No pun intended. *cough*

I got to watch this “with” my good friend SJ (via IM) and our comments are the closest I’ve ever come to taking notes, so I have no idea how rambley this will be…

As soon as we saw Sam and Ruby exorcising the demon at the beginning, I knew Dean was going to catch them, and my insides were shaking in anticipation. No joke. I thought it interesting that Sam asked where Lilith was. So… he has (had) an agenda—it’s not just about getting rid of demons, it’s about finding their ultimate enemy. Interesting.

Sam’s shaking after he Used The Force had me tightening my gut. Sometimes he does get to me. I was so glad this one was still alive… but when Dean walked in… man, did you all feel the electricity in the room? It practically crackled around me. His purposeful walk, the dangerous look on his face, his “something you want to tell me…”

*gulp*

And then—confronting Ruby. Holy crap. I knew he’d try to kill her, and then she’s stopped from choking him by Sam’s “Ruby enough!” Wow. Just… wow, that whole scene set the stage beautifully. I found it interesting that Ruby took ex-possessed-wounded man to the ER… hmmm…

Oh, but when Dean walked away from Sam—not allowing him to explain… ouch. And… good for him. Man, he strips my emotions bare. There are times when I feel actually raw when I watch the interaction between the brothers—especially when they are forced by choice or circumstance to confront each other. There is so much heat there—love and betrayal and fear…

The scene in the motel room the next morning forced me to remember that there is a rhythm to breathing. There was no line anymore between little brother and big brother—it was just… brother. When Dean starts packing up with his “you don’t need me…” the lump in my throat grew painful.

And then the punches. Sam took them like a trooper. And I was blown away by the freakin’ emotion in Dean’s eyes. His eyes were “who are you”… “where did my brother go”… “how could I have failed you so badly”… “what the hell were you thinking”… “please don’t do this”… “I gotta fix this”… all at once.

The “What else can you do” demand had me nodding my head. No more secrets, boys. Get it all out there. Get bloody. Get angry. Hell, cry if you have to, but get it OUT THERE. And then Sam and his little-boy tears and I’m broken… All of the back and forth there was fantastic. Dean’s “You’re going down a slippery slope” and the “If I didn’t know you, I’d want to hunt you…” Holy CRAP, man.

Sam’s belief that he’s doing good—the fact that he’s saved more people with the Force than they had in years… That Dean was GONE and he had to hunt without him… that he’d had to figure out a way… *wants to hug him* Dean’s argument that if what he was doing was so good, then why did he lie… I think that revealed Dean’s true heartbreak. Not simply that Sam was using his powers; I think he might’ve seen his way around that tricky corner. But that Sam had full-on, to his face, with innocence shining in his eyes, LIED about using his “psychic mojo stuff.”

But the clincher, the thing that scooped out Sam’s breath and spread shock across his face was Dean’s reveal that “Cass” (heh) had said Dean had to stop him. That GOD wants Sam to stop. It felt the like air had been sucked out of the room.

So, we get a new hunter to slice through the angst and I was almost relieved because my heart was hurting. I’ll go to the MoTW in a minute, ’cause GORE! But I can’t get off of the boys quite yet. So to speak…

The car ride to Carthiage(?) was another fantastic moment—Dean actually told Sam about his trip Back to the Future. I was very pleasantly surprised. Their talk about Mom and how she kicked ass, how she and Dad were both full of hope… it would have been such a “sniff… aww” moment had Sam not slipped up with the whole demon blood in the mouth reveal.

Whoops. See? That’s what happens when you lie, folks. You can’t keep them straight and sometimes… the truth slips out. Dean’s reaction was perfect. He’d never said anything about that… Sam had known for a year… Dean transformed into Big Brother Who Is Very Disappointed in that instant.

Man, I’ve been there. I can remember watching my sisters’ faces as they lied to me—knowing they were lying, saying nothing for reasons we don’t need to get into here, and just being so…let down. Like no matter what, no matter how much I wanted to trust, to believe, no matter how many times they proved themselves to me, I would always have that nagging doubt in the back of my mind. That “what if…”

Okay, so Jack. Tragically creepy and sorta… likable. I really liked his wife, too. She was pretty and scrappy and had some excellent lines. Like, “Jack, are you stoned?” And how she called her own husband a bastard when he all but raped her. I just liked her. I was really glad she didn’t get eaten or burned up. But the fact that she’s out there, carrying the fetus of a… what was it? A Rugaroo?? That makes me wonder if we’re going to see her again…

Gotta say, though? When Jack started noshing on the raw meat, I set down my glass of Cabernet right quick. *shudder*

Enter Travis and a bit of the lightheartedness of the episode. He hadn’t seen the boys in 10 years… but he knew about John. However, it didn’t seem like he knew about Dean. Either that, or it had all been explained to his satisfaction… so I’m going with the “didn’t know” theory. Knives dug deeper in fresh wounds with his “your Daddy would have been proud by the way you two stuck together” and Dean’s answering “nothing more important than family.”

OMG… Dean’s humor… I love that boy. “Long pig” is apparently is word of the day. Bwah! So, the hunt is revealed to us in a nice, succinct, believable story about a 30-year-old hunt. Flashing back and forth between Jack’s plight and the boys preparing for a hunt was nicely done.

Dean’s “Well that’s gonna be… horrible” reply to how they have to kill the rugaroo had me wanting to ruffle is hair. Or something. As was his “Sam loves research…keeps it underneath his mattress next to his KY…” *LAUGH* Oh, brothers.

Poor Sammy, though. Wanting to talk Jack into “going vegan and staying human.” He so wanted to believe what he said to Jack later on (when my uterus was doing back flips because Dean was out for the count and *gasp* bleeding)… when he said “it doesn’t matter who you are, it matters what you do.” He so wanted to save Jack from himself. Echoes of his “the more people I save, the more I can change my destiny” decree were all over his plight in this episode.

As I’m writing this, I’m listening to Snow Patrol’s “Make this Go On Forever” and they’re pleading “Please just save me from this darkness…” *shivers at irony*

The third made-of-awesome scene between the brothers was Sam demanding that Dean stop the car “or he will” and the resulting conversation. God! That was so needed. Sam yelling that he didn’t tell Dean any of this because of the way Dean looks at him—like he’s a freak, like he doesn’t know the line between right and wrong. And Dean’s honest “well, do you?”

The way I see it, Dean never really looked at his brother like a freak in the way Sam defines the word—he looked at him with worry and fear. Not because of what he was, but because of who he was. His little brother. His responsibility. And if he didn’t understand what Sam could do and who might want him for it, he couldn’t protect him. And the fact that Sam can do even more than before—and had lied about it just kicks the anxiety up several notches.

But Sam’s confession to Dean that he saw himself as a “whole new level of freak” and that he did what he did to try to make something good come out of this “curse”… Dean crumbled. You saw it on his face. He just… melted inside. Sam was Sammy again, and he was willing to die to save him from himself.

Jack’s talk didn’t do much good—except for the fact that we got to hear Dean say “hungry, hungry hippos.” Heh. And then OMG the funniest thing EVER. The boys watching Jack outside the girls window, running up to the apartment with flame thrower thingies, Jack resisting, boys breaking in, girl screaming, boys realizing quickly that no one was there… “We’re here to save you… I guess.” *LAUGHING SO HARD*

So… not to rush this or anything, but the end was a rush. It really was. When Travis trapped both Jack and Michelle, I realized quickly that she was preggers, and I honestly believed Travis when he said that he’d “give anything not to have to do this.” I also knew that Jack was going to kill Travis. That the hunter would turn Jack into the monster he was trying so hard not to be. It just made sense, story-wise. The boys having to find Travis like that… uck. Sorry, boys.

THEN! Dean slammed so hard he’s bleeding and unconscious with Sam trapped in the closet… in that moment I wondered (aloud, actually on IM to SJ) which one would end up having to kill Jack. Dean? And see Sam in the “monster” he was taking down? Or Sam? And see what he could become one day? I loved Sam’s speech to Jack, Jack licking Dean’s blood, Jack almost killing Dean, Dean waking barely in time to see Sam escape and fry Jack… it was just… perfectly executed.

One of Sam’s best lines was “If you hurt him, I swear to God…” about his brother. *gut punch*

The end (after another very annoying commercial break) was both satisfying and frustrating. I wanted more. It wasn’t long enough. Dean apologizing for being so hard on Sam, but that the “psychic thing” scares him… Sam’s “something I gotta deal with” and Dean’s answering “Not alone.” *Squee*

Finally… they’ve gone to hell and back, in their own ways. They each have the scars to prove it. They have struggled through secrets and fears so overwhelming they almost drown in them. And now, finally, they are reaching toward one another and ready to grab on.

But they’re not doing it as big brother/little brother. They’re doing it as brothers and partners. Sam’s words at the end cemented that for me. His “I’m not [quitting] for you or angels or anyone… this is my choice.” He’s taking control—a pawn no more.

I hope it lasts.

The Players

I’ll keep this short(er).

Dean: I have to put in the obligatory “what that boy can do with a glance” comment. He speaks paragraphs with his eyes. In this episode he brought the Dean Winchester humor that we love as well as the Dangerous Face that curls our toes. The biggest thing about him, though, was his coming to terms with his brother as a man. Not just Sammy. But Sam. And thinking—really thinking—about what Sam has had to deal with all of his life, even before he was aware of it. That dark hole inside of Sam… Dean doesn’t have it. He has walls and scars. He has wounds that may never heal, but he doesn’t have the pit that Sam has had to edge around. I think that realization puts a new weight on Dean’s shoulders, but if anyone can bare it, our hero can.

Sam: Last week I was worried because I wasn’t sure what scared Sam anymore. Now I know. Himself. He’s terrified of himself. And man, he can bring the little boy eyes when he wants to. There is no one in this world as important to him as Dean and having to face Dean’s disappointment coupled with his own confusion about who he was and what he was doing just tore at Sam tonight. He needs his other half to prop him up for awhile. Brace him long enough that he can recover some of that hope. The same home that Dean saw in their parents before the YED took it away.

Travis: SJ commented that we might have another Gordon on our hands with him. But I think most hunters are probably like Gordon and Travis. Bobby and our boys are unique, and they keep each other in check. The doubts and questions, the research and wondering… it helps keep them human. I didn’t wait around for credits after the previews, but I swear I’ve seen that Travis guy before somewhere. I just can’t place him. Oh, and I thought it was pretty interesting that they put a hunter in a cast. You just rarely see injuries, though you know they get them. Nice going, Show!

Randomness

— Two epis in a row with no classic rock in the previously. *sad*

— I wish Sam had been driving at the end: 1) Dean took a pretty hefty knock to the head with unconsciousness and bleeding and 2) It would have been kind of symbolic to back up Sam’s “this is my choice” taking control stance

— Did Sam get the lock in the closet picked and the door open? I think I missed how he actually opened the door.

— Loved Dean’s “I’ve seen big weird and little weird and weird with crazy on top…”

— I just put together that Dean, the character is 29. I know, bad Gaelic, but he was born in ’79, and Travis said he killed Jack’s Dad in ’78 and that Jack was 30… I think they need to celebrate Dean’s 30th this year.

— Can I just say that I LOVE when Sam yells “DEAN!” I know it’s been suggested as a drinking game, but still… love.

Slainte!

Guest Stars

GUEST STARS


Dameon Clarke
as Jack Montgomery
imdb.com | gallery


Genevieve Cortese
as Ruby
imdb.com | gallery


Marcus Hondro
as Captive Demon
imdb.com | gallery


Joanne Kelly
as Michelle Montgomery
imdb.com | gallery


Ron Lea
as Travis
imdb.com | gallery


Craig Stanghetta
as Bartender
imdb.com | gallery
Gallery

IMAGE GALLERY

Official Episode Stills:

Full Episode Stills Gallery

Episode Screen Caps:

Full Episode Screen Caps Gallery

Videos

TRAILER/CLIPS

Trailer | Clip 01

Music

MUSIC

Phillips Theme, by Hound Dog Taylor & The HouseBreakers.

Quotes

QUOTES

Sam: Our whole family murdered and for what? So Yellow Eyes can get in my nursery and bleed in my mouth.
Dean: Sam I never said anything about demon blood. You knew about that?
Sam: Yeah for about a year.
Dean: A whole year.
Sam: I should’ve told you, I’m sorry.
Dean: You’ve been saying that a lot lately, Sam.

Dean: Travis! See, Sam, told you we should have hid the beer.
Travis: Smartass.

(to Ruby)
Dean: Well aren’t you just an obedient little bitch?

Travis: Boys, we got Rugaru on our hands.
Dean: Rugaru? Is that made up? That sounds made up.
Travis: They’re mean, nasty little suckers. Rotted teeth, wormy skin, the works!

Girl: Aahhhh!
Dean: Wait, Whoa! We’re here to save you… I guess.
Girl: I’m calling the police!
Sam: We should go.
Dean: Yeah.

Sam: I’m not going to let it go too far.
Dean: It’s already gone too far, Sam. If I didn’t know you, I would want to hunt you.
Dean: I’ve seen big weird, little weird, weird with crazy on top. But this guy, come on this guy’s boring.

Travis: But most of all, they’re hungry.
Dean: Hungry for what?
Travis: At first for everything. But then, the long pig.
Dean: “Long pig”?
Sam: He means human flesh.
Dean: And that is my word of the day.

Dean: You probably feeling your bones moving under your skin, and your appetite’s reaching Hungry Hungry Hippo levels. How am I doing so far?

Dean: You’re hungry, Jack. You’re only going to get hungrier.
Jack: Hungry for what?
Dean: Long pig. A little Manburger helper, may have crossed your mind already.

Travis: What’s up with your brother?
Dean: Don’t get me started.

Dean: Sam loves research. He does. He keeps it under his mattress right next to his K-Y. It’s a sickness. It is.

Dean: So, tell me. If it’s so terrific, then why’d you lie about it to me? Why did an angel tell me to stop you?
Sam: What?
Dean: Cas said that if I don’t stop you, he will. See what that means, Sam, that means that God doesn’t want you doing this. So you just gonna stand there and tell me that everything is all good?

Trivia

TRIVIA

For the first time in many episodes, Sam introduces themselves as Sam and Dean Winchester, as well the Impala’s license plate is once again reading the original KAZ 2Y5.

ALLUSIONS

Dean: You probably feeling your bones moving under your skin, and your appetite’s reaching Hungry Hungry Hippo levels. How am I doing so far?
Hungry Hungry Hippos is a children’s board game produced by the Hasbro toy company in which two to four players each operate a small hippopotamus into collecting as many balls as possible in order to win.

Episode Schedule

Thu, Oct 10 15.01 - Back and to the Future - Season Premiere
Thu, Oc 17 15.02 - Raising Hell
Thu, Oct 24 15.03 - The Rupture
Thu, Nov 7 15.04 - Atomic Monsters
Thu, Nov 14 15.05 - Proverbs 17:3
Thu, Nov 21 15.06 - Golden Time
Thu, Dec 05 15.07 - Last Call
Thu, Dec 12 15.08 - Our Father, Who Aren’t In Heaven
Thu, Jan 16 2020 15.09 - The Trap
Thu, Jan 23 2020 15.10 - The Heroes' Journey
Thu, Jan 30 2020 15.11 - The Gamblers
Mon, March 16 2020 15.12 - Galaxy Brain
Mon, March 23 2020 15.13 - Destiny's Child
Thu, Oct 08 2020 15.14 - Last Holiday
Thu, Oct 15 2020 15.15 - Gimme Shelter
Thu, Oct 22 2020 15.16 - Drag Me Away (From You)
Thu, Oct 29 2020 15.17 - Unity
Thu, Nov 05 2020 15.18 - Despair
Thu, Nov 12 2020 15.19 - Inherit the Earth
Thu, Nov 19 2020 15.20 - Carry On - Series Finale

* This Schedule might change as new info come.

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