Reviewing “The Magnificent Seven” is weird since I’m going from something unbelievable like the finale last week to this episode, easily one of the worst of the season. Last week I marveled at the awesomeness of the Kripster for his flawless script in “No Rest For The Wicked”, and now I get to ask what the hell he was thinking for this season three premiere. I forgave him for this misstep a while ago though since nobody is perfect but still, it pains me to be so harsh. I suppose there are pitfalls to being a critic. Forgive me, Master Kripke.
Before I go on, I want to send a huge thank you to everyone that sent a “Damn You Kripke!” in honor of last week’s still jaw-dropping finale (Dean!). The response was far greater than I expected, and it just goes to show how great this fandom is. I love you guys!
Now, the review. This was the first time I got to watch this episode in HD. When it originally aired back in October, I was still plowing through the season one DVDs trying to catch up. I ended up buying this episode off iTunes when I was finally ready to watch it in late November. I watched this almost immediately after seeing the phenomenal two-part finale of “All Hell Breaks Loose”, so expectations were high. Bring on the demon war! Sam’s alive, Dean has a year to live, they’re ready to fight!
This episode I’m sure looked really great on paper. So I wonder what actually happened on the screen. I speculate the word “budget” came into it. I start by throwing in huge praise for this season’s opening montage, appropriately set to “Hell's Bells”. Who doesn’t have Back In Black in their collection? I remember when that album came out, the scores of junior high students wearing black t-shirts singing “You Shook Me All Night Along” with the AC/DC logo stenciled on their Trapper Keepers. Kripke is younger than I am, so he likely missed out on that sign of the apocalypse and found the album in a relative’s collection.
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Article comments
1 - Ram
Come on now. Don't be so harsh. I don't think the episode was about The Seven Deadly Sins. Look at it this way. If the episode was meant to introduce new characters (I'm not talking about Isaac and Tamara), to tell the viewers how the other hunters feel about the winchesters after the opening of the hell gate or how sam feels about the dean's deal, then I think the episode served its purpose. The Seven Deadly Sins were more like comic relief. I could'nt stop laughing at the expression on sloth's face at the end. And Bobby's line was awesome. " Fat, Drunk and Stupid..." haa. Besides, you can't have a supernatural episode without some demon ass-kicking. I completely agree with you on Isaac and Tamara. Why do they have to declare their undying love for each other every five minutes. Nobody cares. Were they trying to incite envy in the three single guys in the room? Talking about envy, I think it would have been better portrayed by a hot chick compared to the short, middle aged guy. Sloth, lust and pride were perfectly cast. Who was gluttony by the way. Was it the karate kid behind pride or the unshaven guy? Also the Impala looks awesome. Did you notice the flawless paint job on that thing? Not a scratch. The way the light reflected off its hood as it drove away from that shack near the end of the episode just melted my heart. Too bad Bobby's car looks like crap. I guess he would like to draw as little attention as possible. But what he does'nt probably know is that a badly maintained car draws as much attention as a good one. Where did he find that car? Probably drove it straight out of that salvage yard of his. Is he running it on gas or is he taking advantage of the fact that he is bipedal like the Flintstones? I think I'll stop here or this comment will turn out to be a review by itself. All I want to say is that the episode was probably meant to be a base on which the rest of the season was going to be built. And I'm really glad there is going to be a fourth season.
2 - tim
I LOVE this episode!! I really do! Every episode of this season has been really good.. my least favourite is Bedtime Stories.. but Jensen saved it.