Court TV’s revisiting the O.J. Simpson murder trial on its 25th anniversary with OJ25, the network’s first original true crime series. The 37-week series is set to premiere on January 23, 2020, with new episodes airing Thursdays at 9pm ET.
O.J. Simpson went on trial for the brutal murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman, on January 24, 1995. The shocking not guilty verdict was rendered 37 weeks later on October 2, 1995. Simpson was ultimately found guilty of the murders in a civil trial and ordered to pay $25 million in punitive damages to the families of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman.
Exactly 13 years after the first jury let him off, Simpson was convicted of robbery and kidnapping for his part in a crime involving the retrieval of sports memorabilia in Las Vegas. He was sentenced to 33 years in prison and was granted parole on October 1, 2017 at the age of 70.
Court TV’s OJ25 will include new interviews with the victims’ families, legal experts, Simpson’s defense lawyers, Prosecutor Bill Hodgman, and police detectives.
OJ25 Series Details, Courtesy of Court TV:
OJ25 will give viewers a front-row seat in the Simpson jury box, to relive the trial or discover it for the first time. Utilizing Court TV’s extensive library featuring every minute of the double murder trial, OJ25 will encapsulate the week’s courtroom action in the chronological order in which it took place 25 years ago in Los Angeles ̶ from the trial’s start on January 24, 1995 until the verdict in early October.
OJ25 is hosted by renowned long-time former Los Angeles prosecutor and acclaimed legal analyst Roger Cossack. Cossack provided insights into the Simpson trial at the time for CNN as the network’s legal analyst and went on to the same role for ESPN. Cossack was a college classmate of Robert Shapiro, one of Simpson’s lawyers, and was made privy to defense strategies that he’s never made public but will share throughout the series.
The double murder trial of Simpson – the college football phenom (Heisman Trophy recipient in 1968) who went to become an NFL Hall of Famer and popular movie and television personality – riveted the nation during its nearly ten full months in 1995. In addition to numerous dramatic courtroom moments, the trial was most notable for its strong racial overtones, its impact on the judiciary system and how it spurred Americans across the nation to openly discuss the issues surrounding domestic violence for the first time.
The CW’s Batwoman season one episode 10 was boundary-breaking. Batwoman became the first openly gay superhero on television, revealed via an interview with Kara Danvers in CatCo Magazine. (How cool was that twist?!) The first season of the recently renewed series continues with episode 11, “An Un-Birthday Present.” Directed by Mairzee Almas from a script by Chad Fiveash and James Stoteraux, episode 11 is set to air on January 26, 2020.
Ruby Rose leads the cast as Kate Kane/Batwoman. The season one cast also includes Dougray Scott as Jacob Kane, Meagan Tandy as Sophie Moore, Elizabeth Anweis as Catherine Hamilton-Kane, and Rachel Skarsten as Alice. Camrus Johnson is Luke Fox and Nicole Kang plays Mary.
“An Un-Birthday Present” Plot – MAKE A WISH – On the Kane sisters’ birthday, Kate (Rose) and Alice (Skarsten) contend with demons from the past, and an unexpected guest makes a surprise appearance in Gotham.
The Season 1 Plot, Courtesy of The CW:
Kate Kane (Rose) never planned to be Gotham’s new vigilante. Three years after Batman mysteriously disappeared, Gotham is a city in despair. Without the Caped Crusader, the Gotham City Police Department was overrun and outgunned by criminal gangs. Enter Jacob Kane (Scott) and his military-grade Crows Private Security, which now protects the city with omnipresent firepower and militia.
Years before, Jacob’s first wife and daughter were killed in the crossfire of Gotham crime. He sent his only surviving daughter, Kate Kane, away from Gotham for her safety. After a dishonorable discharge from military school and years of brutal survival training, Kate returns home when the Alice in Wonderland gang targets her father and his security firm, by kidnapping his best Crow officer Sophie Moore (Tandy). Although remarried to wealthy socialite Catherine Hamilton-Kane (Anweis), who bankrolls the Crows, Jacob is still struggling with the family he lost, while keeping Kate –– the daughter he still has –– at a distance. But Kate is a woman who’s done asking for permission. In order to help her family and her city, she’ll have to become the one thing her father loathes –– a dark knight vigilante.
With the help of her compassionate stepsister, Mary (Kang), and the crafty Luke Fox (Johnson), the son of Wayne Enterprises’ tech guru Lucius Fox, Kate Kane continues the legacy of her missing cousin, Bruce Wayne, as Batwoman. Still holding a flame for her ex-girlfriend, Sophie, Kate uses everything in her power to combat the dark machinations of the psychotic Alice (Skarsten), who’s always somewhere slipping between sane and insane. Armed with a passion for social justice and a flair for speaking her mind, Kate soars through the shadowed streets of Gotham as Batwoman. But don’t call her a hero yet. In a city desperate for a savior, she must first overcome her own demons before embracing the call to be Gotham’s symbol of hope.
Season five episode one of Syfy’s The Magicians confirmed Quentin didn’t die in vain. Magic has returned…but now there’s simply too much of it. Other developments from the first episode: Penny’s reluctantly transitioning into becoming a Brakebills professor, Julia and Penny are dating, Julia squared off with a – literal – sexist pig, Margo and Eliot (who’s in complete denial and refusing to discuss Quentin’s death) are trapped in Fillory 300 years in the future, and a depressed Alice is ready to attempt to bring Quentin back to life with magical clay.
Up next, season five episode two titled “The Wrath of the Time Bees.” Episode two will air on Wednesday, January 22, 2020 at 10pm ET/PT.
The Magicians season five cast includes Stella Maeve as Julia Wicker, Olivia Taylor Dudley as Alice Quinn, Hale Appleman as Eliot Waugh, Arjun Gupta as William “Penny” Adiyodi, Summer Bishil as Margo Hanson, Rick Worthy as Dean Henry Fogg, Jade Tailor as Kady Orloff-Diaz, Brittany Curran as Fen, and Trevor Einhorn as Josh.
The Season 5 Plot, Courtesy of Syfy:
“Last season, magic was saved, but at a terrible cost: the life of Quentin Coldwater, who died heroically to save his friends— and the world. Julia, Alice, Eliot, Margo, Penny and their friends (and frenemies) must learn to navigate a world without him. Now, a new threat has arisen: in freeing magic, the balance tipped the other way and there’s too damn much of it, and as the excess builds, an apocalypse looms. Can the magicians get their shit together to save the world without Q?”
Jade Tailor as Kady Orloff-Diaz and Jake Choi as Shinjiro in ‘The Magicians’ season 5 episode 2 (Photo by: Eric Milner/SYFY)Trevor Einhorn as Josh Hoberman in season 5 episode 2 (Photo by: Eric Milner/SYFY)Rizwan Manji as Tick Pickwick in season 5 episode 2 (Photo by: Eric Milner/SYFY)Jade Tailor as Kady Orloff-Diaz in season 5 episode 2 (Photo by: Eric Milner/SYFY)Rizwan Manji as Tick Pickwick in season 5 episode 2 (Photo by: Eric Milner/SYFY)
CBS’s Magnum P.I. season two episode 14 features returning guest star Bobby Lee, reprising his role as Con Man Jin, and Chef Roy Yamaguchi guest-starring as himself. Directed by Roderick Davis from a script by Gene Hong, episode 14 is set to air on Friday, January 31, 2020 at 9pm ET/PT.
Episode 14 guest stars include Kamekona, Christopher Thornton, Joy Osmanski, Leon Sheen, Francois Chau, and Johnny Rey Diaz. Kaipo Dupoit, Linda Good, David D. Underwood, Jr, Faith Rogers, Kaina Cayabyab, Charlie Prescott, Mathew Crouse, and Ben Lloyd also guest star in “A Game of Cat and Mouse.”
Jay Hernandez stars as Thomas Magnum, Perdita Weeks plays Juliet Higgins, and Zachary Knighton is Orville “Rick” Wright. Stephen Hill is Theodore “TC” Calvin, Tim Kang is Det. Gordon Katsumoto, and Amy Hill plays Kumu.
“A Game of Cat and Mouse” Plot: – When Jin (Lee) learns that an innocent woman is the target of a deadly hit, he asks Magnum and Higgins to help save her.
The Series Description, Courtesy of CBS:
“Magnum P.I. is a modern take on the classic series centering on Thomas Magnum, a decorated former Navy SEAL who, upon returning home from Afghanistan, repurposes his military skills to become a private investigator. A charming rogue, an American hero and a die-hard Detroit Tigers fan, Magnum lives in a guest cottage on Robin’s Nest, the luxurious estate where he works as a security consultant to supplement his P.I. business.
The “majordomo” of the property is Juliet Higgins, a beautiful and commanding disavowed MI:6 agent whose second job is to keep Magnum in line, with the help of her two Dobermans. When Magnum needs back-up on a job, he turns to his trusted buddies and fellow POW survivors, Theodore “TC” Calvin, a former Marine chopper pilot who runs Island Hoppers, a helicopter tour business, and Orville “Rick” Wright, a former Marine door-gunner-turned-impresario of Oahu’s coolest nightclub and the most connected man on the island.
Suspicious of Magnum’s casual attitude and presence at his crime scenes, Detective Gordon Katsumoto finds that he and Magnum are more alike than either of them care to admit. One of Magnum’s biggest supporters is Teuila “Kumu” Tuileta, the unofficial “House Mom” and cultural curator of Robin’s Nest. With keys to a vintage Ferrari in one hand, aviator sunglasses in the other, and an Old Düsseldorf longneck chilling in the fridge, Thomas Magnum is back on the case!”
Season one of Fox’s new police drama Deputy continues with episode four, “10-8 Firestone.” Episode four will air on Thursday, January 23, 2019 at 9pm ET/PT.
Stephen Dorff (“Sheriff Bill Hollister”) leads a cast that includes Brian Van Holt as Cade Ward, Bex Taylor-Klaus as Brianna Bishop, and Shane Paul McGhie as Joseph Harris. Yara Martinez stars as Dr. Paula Reyes.
“10-8 Firestone” Plot – While enforcing an unsanctioned raid on a human trafficking ring in Los Angeles, Bill finds an old informant of his who is in trouble. After returning from her leave and eager to get back into the field, Charlie is assigned to patrol with Joseph, the one person she would like to avoid. Meanwhile, as Bill continues to disagree with the board on how to best run the department, Jerry does Bill a favor in order to get on his good side.
The Deputy Plot, Courtesy of Fox:
“Deputy blends the spirit of a classic Western with a modern-day attitude and emotionally driven, visceral storytelling. Featuring an ensemble of ambitious and complicated people who won’t rest until justice is served, DEPUTY brings a gritty authenticity to the modern cop drama.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is one of the largest police forces in the world, but when the elected Sheriff dies, an arcane rule in the county charter, forged back in the Wild West, suddenly thrusts the most unlikely man into the job. That man is Bill Hollister. A fifth-generation lawman, Bill is only interested in justice; his soul wears a white hat. The bad guys don’t stand a chance, but neither do the politicos in the Hall of Justice.
Under Bill’s command is a county-wide crew of LA’s finest, including Deputy Cade Ward, a former Marine stationed in Afghanistan, eight years sober and one of Bill’s few confidantes; Deputy Brianna Bishop, the whip-smart, sarcastic driver in charge of Bill’s security detail; and Deputy Joseph Harris, the son of Bill’s fallen partner.
The dangers associated with the job often lead the police to LA County General Hospital, where Bill buts heads with Dr. Paula Reyes, the hospital’s chief trauma surgeon – and his wife.
Given a job he never wanted, in an unfamiliar sea of politics, Bill quickly learns that doing what is expected and doing what is right are two different things, and that his innate, dogged pursuit of justice is the only skill the job truly requires.”
As we inch closer to the series finale on January 28th, The CW’s Arrow season eight episode nine turns its spotlight on The Canaries. Directed by Tara Miele from a script by Beth Schwartz, Marc Guggenheim, Jill Blankenship, and Oscar Balderrama, episode nine is set to air on January 21, 2020 at 8pm ET/PT.
Arrow season eight’s cast is led by Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen/Green Arrow. David Ramsey is John Diggle/Spartan, Katie Cassidy is Laurel/Black Siren, Rick Gonzalez is Rene Ramirez/Wild Dog, Juliana Harkavy is Dinah Drake/Black Canary, Katherine McNamara is Mia Smoak Queen, Joseph David-Jones is Connor Hawke, and Ben Lewis plays William Clayton.
“Green Arrow & The Canaries” Plot – STAR CITY 2040 – It’s the year 2040 in Star City and Mia Queen (McNamara) has everything she could have ever wanted. However, when Laurel (Cassidy) and Dinah (Harkavy) suddenly show up in her life again, things take a shocking turn and her perfect world is upended. Laurel and Dinah are tracking a kidnapping victim with direct ties to Mia and they need her help. Knowing it will change everything, Mia can’t help but be a hero and she, Laurel and Dinah suit up once again to save the city.
So-dam Park and Woo-sik Choi in ‘Parasite’ (Courtesy of NEON CJ Entertainment)
Brad Pitt delivered one of the night’s most memorable thank you speeches while accepting the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role at the Screen Actors Guild Awards for his work in Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood. Noting he’s going to have to add this honor to his Tinder profile, Pitt went on to joke that it wasn’t hard to play “a guy who gets high, takes his shirt off, and doesn’t get on with his wife.”
Twitter quickly lit up with praise for Pitt’s speech as well as surprise at the fact the camera panned to Jennifer Aniston. Aniston went on to win the Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series for Apple+’s The Morning Show shortly after Pitt’s appearance on stage.
Other highlights from the night included Robert De Niro’s powerful 2020 SAG Life Achievement Award acceptance speech and Alex Borstein dropping an f-bomb while admitting she was stunned The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel won when she was certain Fleabag deserved the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series award.
Accepting the Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role award, Joaquin Phoenix (Joker) complimented each of his fellow category nominees. He recalled going up for auditions as a young actor opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and said Leo’s inspired him over the past 25 years. Phoenix said Christian Bale always commits to his roles in ways he could only dream of and never turns in a bad performance. He praised Adam Driver for turning in beautiful, profound performances and said he was devastating in Marriage Story. Phoenix described Taron Egerton as beautiful in Rocketman and said he can’t wait to see what Taron does in the future.
Phoenix finished his speech by saying he was standing there on the shoulders of his favorite actor, Heath Ledger.
Winners were announced during the host-less 2020 SAG Awards held on Sunday, January 19th.
Film Nominees and Winners:
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role
CHRISTIAN BALE / Ken Miles –“FORD v FERRARI”
LEONARDO DiCAPRIO/ Rick Dalton –“ONCE UPON A TIME…IN HOLLYWOOD”
ADAM DRIVER / Charlie Barber –“MARRIAGE STORY”
TARON EGERTON / Elton John –“ROCKETMAN” WINNER: JOAQUIN PHOENIX / Arthur Fleck –“JOKER”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role
CYNTHIA ERIVO / Harriet/Minty –“HARRIET”
SCARLETT JOHANSSON / Nicole Barber –“MARRIAGE STORY”
LUPITA NYONG’O / Adelaide Wilson/Red –“US”
CHARLIZE THERON / Megyn Kelly –“BOMBSHELL” WINNER: RENÉE ZELLWEGER / Judy Garland –“JUDY”
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role
JAMIE FOXX / Walter McMillian –“JUST MERCY”
TOM HANKS / Fred Rogers –“A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD”
AL PACINO / Jimmy Hoffa –“THE IRISHMAN”
JOE PESCI / Russell Bufalino –“THE IRISHMAN” WINNER: BRAD PITT / Cliff Booth –“ONCE UPON A TIME…IN HOLLYWOOD”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role WINNER: LAURA DERN / Nora Fanshaw –“MARRIAGE STORY”
SCARLETT JOHANSSON / Rosie –“JOJO RABBIT”
NICOLE KIDMAN / Gretchen Carlson –“BOMBSHELL”
JENNIFER LOPEZ / Ramona –“HUSTLERS”
MARGOT ROBBIE / Kayla Pospisil –“BOMBSHELL”
Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture
BOMBSHELL
THE IRISHMAN
JOJO RABBIT
ONCE UPON A TIME…IN HOLLYWOOD WINNER: PARASITE
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture WINNER: “AVENGERS: ENDGAME”
“FORD v FERRARI”
“THE IRISHMAN”
“JOKER”
“ONCE UPON A TIME…IN HOLLYWOOD”
Television Nominees and Winners:
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
MAHERSHALA ALI / Wayne Hays –“TRUE DETECTIVE”
RUSSELL CROWE / Roger Ailes –“THE LOUDEST VOICE”
JARED HARRIS / Valery Legasov –“CHERNOBYL”
JHARREL JEROME / Korey Wise –“WHEN THEY SEE US” WINNER: SAM ROCKWELL / Bob Fosse –“FOSSE/VERDON”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Television Movie or Limited Series
PATRICIA ARQUETTE / Dee Dee Blanchard –“THE ACT”
TONI COLLETTE / Det. Grace Rasmussen –“UNBELIEVABLE”
JOEY KING / Gypsy Rose Blanchard –“THE ACT”
EMILY WATSON / Ulana Khomyuk –“CHERNOBYL” WINNER: MICHELLE WILLIAMS / Gwen Verdon –“FOSSE/VERDON”
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Drama Series
STERLING K. BROWN / Randall Pearson –“THIS IS US”
STEVE CARELL / Mitch Kessler –“THE MORNING SHOW”
BILLY CRUDUP / Corey Ellison –“THE MORNING SHOW” WINNER: PETER DINKLAGE / Tyrion Lannister –“GAME OF THRONES”
DAVID HARBOUR / Jim Hopper –“STRANGER THINGS”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Drama Series WINNER: JENNIFER ANISTON / Alex Levy –“THE MORNING SHOW”
HELENA BONHAM CARTER / Princess Margaret –“THE CROWN”
OLIVIA COLMAN / Queen Elizabeth II –“THE CROWN”
JODIE COMER /Villanelle –“KILLING EVE”
ELISABETH MOSS / Offred/June –“THE HANDMAID’S TALE”
Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Comedy Series
ALAN ARKIN / Norman Newlander –“THE KOMINSKY METHOD”
MICHAEL DOUGLAS / Sandy Kominsky –“THE KOMINSKY METHOD”
BILL HADER / Barry –“BARRY”
ANDREW SCOTT / The Priest –“FLEABAG” WINNER: TONY SHALHOUB / Abe Weissman –“THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL”
Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series
CHRISTINA APPLEGATE / Jen Harding –“DEAD TO ME”
ALEX BORSTEIN / Susie Myerson –“THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL”
RACHEL BROSNAHAN / Midge Maisel –“THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL”
CATHERINE O’HARA / MoiraRose –“SCHITT’S CREEK” WINNER: PHOEBE WALLER-BRIDGE / Fleabag –“FLEABAG”
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series
BIG LITTLE LIES WINNER: THE CROWN
GAME OF THRONES
THE HANDMAID’S TALE
STRANGER THINGS
Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series
BARRY
FLEABAG
THE KOMINSKY METHOD WINNER: THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL
SCHITT’S CREEK
Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Comedy or Drama Series WINNER: GAME OF THRONES
GLOW
STRANGER THINGS
THE WALKING DEAD
WATCHMEN
The CW’s Legacies season two episode nine provided a hilarious peek at an ice cream-scooping Necromancer going by the name of Ted and also introduced us to his sidekick/flunkie, Chad. In addition, episode nine found Landon evaluating whether or not Sebastian was a threat to Salvatore High School’s students. Landon decided he wasn’t, but Alaric’s spidey sense was still tingling. He followed Sebastian off-campus and caught him taking a sip from an innocent young woman. The last we saw of the two, Alaric had shot Sebastian with an arrow.
Up next, season two episode 10 directed by America Young from a script by Adam Higgs and Josh Eiserike. Episode 10 will air on January 23, 2020.
Legacies stars Danielle Rose Russell as Hope Mikaelson, Jenny Boyd as Lizzie Saltzman, Kaylee Bryant as Josie Saltzman, and Quincy Fouse as MG. Aria Shahghasemi is Landon Kirby, Peyton Alex Smith is Rafael Waithe, and Matt Davis is Alaric Saltzman.
“This Is Why We Don’t Entrust Plans to Muppet Babies” Plot – HAPPY COVEN DAY — As the witches of the Salvatore School come together to celebrate Coven Day, the latest monster to infiltrate the school targets Alyssa Chang (guest star Olivia Liang) and the other students by spreading discord and creating chaos among the covens. Elsewhere, Alaric (Davis), Lizzie (Boyd) and Josie (Bryant) search for a solution that keeps Josie protected from the dark magic brewing inside the mora miserium. Fed up with feeling powerless alongside Hope, Landon (Aria Shahghasemi) asks her to give him self-defense training.
Finally, Alaric’s past comes back to haunt him.
The Season 2 Plot:
Last season, viewers were thrilled to tap into a whole new passion for The Vampire Diaries / The Originals universe, when the third installment in the franchise launched with Legacies. Set in the Salvatore Boarding School for the Young and Gifted, Legacies told the story of the next generation of supernatural beings as they learn what it means to be special in a world that may never understand. Typically a school for vampires like MG (Fouse), werewolves like Rafael (Smith) and witches like twins Lizzie (Boyd) and Josie Saltzman (Bryant), the kids and their beloved headmaster Dr. Alaric Saltzman (Davis) were stunned to come face to face with a series of monster and creatures they had only ever heard of in myth and lore. A dragon. A gargoyle. The Headless Horseman.
The evil behind the real-life resurrection of these formerly fictional beings proved to have a horrifying connection to the school’s newest student, Landon Kirby (Shahghasemi). This led his first and only love, Hope Mikaelson (Russell), the school’s shining star, to sacrifice her place at the school — and in the world — to protect Landon from a terrible fate.
Season two will show us a world without Hope Mikaelson and all the chaos that goes along with it. All the while, Hope will be trying to find her way back to the school she has learned to call home and the friends she has learned to love like family. It will be filled with new monsters and more romantic and emotional surprises than ever.
The first episode of the new decade for The CW’s Supernatural was also the final midseason premiere we’ll ever get, and the show brought about significant clarity about the position of the heroes going forward. Season 15 episode nine, “The Trap,” went a long way in uniting the main trio once more.
We start off with Chuck (Rob Benedict) having Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Eileen (Shoshannah Stern) in his captivity in a casino, where he reveals that it was him who placed the spell that Sam found to resurrect Eileen. No, he didn’t do it out of the goodness of his heart; his intention was to have someone to use in order to keep his eye on the Winchesters.
Chuck then proceeds to control Eileen and make her cut into Sam’s bullet wound inflicted by the Equalizer in order to end the connection between himself and Sam. When it doesn’t work, Chuck realizes that Sam’s hope that Castiel (Misha Collins) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) would save him – and his overall hope that they would beat Chuck – is what’s stopping him from breaking the connection.
So, Chuck starts showing Sam multiple futures that he says are guaranteed to come about if the heroes manage to trap him in another mark. One of these involves the brothers becoming vampires after most of their friends are killed and Castiel goes insane after taking on the mark himself and has to be buried in a Ma’lak box.
According to Chuck, his existence out in the open is the reason why the monsters have never taken over the world. If he’s locked away, then nature will take over and the monsters will eventually be the apex beings on Earth.
When Sam remains defiant that he won’t be giving in to Chuck’s plans, the latter reveals to him that none of the previous visions Sam had seen had been his plans. Rather, they were the alternate Sams and Deans in other realities who had killed each other.
In the story running simultaneously with this one, we see Dean and Castiel enter Purgatory after the latter tells him it’s foolish to confront Chuck without completing the spell. I loved how through this whole episode Castiel refused to let Dean boss him around and doled out some good roasts his way. Dean definitely deserved being taken down a peg.
Almost as soon as they arrive in Purgatory, a Leviathan confronts them but is easily defeated by Castiel. With no choice other than be blown apart by a borax-shelled shotgun, the Leviathan agrees to lead them to the Leviathan blossom the heroes are seeking. He tells them the blossom grows out of the body of a deceased Leviathan, and takes them somewhere there are several of those, only for Castiel to be trapped in an Angel trap.
Apparently the Leviathans were prepared for something like this as Eve (remember her from season six?) has been waiting for Dean and Castiel to return to seek revenge for killing all those alphas and Leviathans. Dean is knocked out and sees that Castiel has disappeared.
As he realizes the time to leave is almost up as the rift is about to close, a distraught Dean breaks down. With tears streaming down his face, a broken Dean prays to Castiel that he’s sorry for treating him the way he did. He admits he lets his anger out on Castiel and that it isn’t fair to his best friend to be treated that way.
Basically, Dean finally grows a spine to admit that he was wrong to be such a jerk and wants Castiel back, whom he does find battered near the rift. Castiel explains that he bargained for Dean’s life and took his chance when he nabbed the blossom and ran off. It’s a little bit suspect how none of this was shown, but I’m hoping there’s no twist in the future connected to this.
The two return to Earth where Castiel refuses to let Dean take the mark since he couldn’t handle it the last time, so he’s the one who will carry it now. Sam’s vision seems to be coming true by this point. When they arrive at the casino to free him, Sam stuns them by refusing to complete the spell. An ecstatic Chuck celebrates having his wound heal and the connection with Sam broken.
Back at HQ, Eileen decides to leave Sam because she doesn’t know if anything is real or not around him since Chuck will always be there to manipulate events. In response, Sam pulls her in for a kiss, arguing that this feels very much real to him.
When Dean and Castiel ask Sam if he regrets choosing to let Chuck go, the latter admits he doesn’t as he still believes the futures he saw would come true. Dean’s still optimistic, though, and says they’ll think of another way.
Over in the Empty, Billie (Lisa Berry) tells Jack (Alexander Calvert) it’s time…for something.
I’m surprised that we’re probably getting a filler episode in the next one, but for now, this final midseason premiere checked all the boxes. I’m glad we got Dean to shed his worst qualities and finally give Castiel the respect he deserved. Chuck’s role as the villain has also been used softly rather than go all in, which is the best way since he’s supposed to be God. Let’s see when Supernatural fully pushes its foot on the gas pedal from here.
CBS’s Evil is set to wrap up the first season on Thursday, January 30, 2020 at 10pm ET/PT with an episode the cast describes as mind-boggling. Season one episode 13, “Book 27,” was directed by Michael Zinberg from a script by Patrick Ione Lloyd.
The first season’s finale guest stars include Euan Morton, Michael Cerveris, Darren Pettie, Samaria Nixon-Fleming, Kristen Connolly, Laura Heisler, and Patrick Page. Steve Routman, Ann Sanders, Mandi Masden, and Jane Dashow also guest star in episode 13.
Evil season one stars Katja Herbers (Westworld, The Leftovers) as Kristen Bouchard, Mike Colter (Luke Cage, The Good Wife) as David Acosta, Christine Lahti as Sheryl Luria, Aasif Mandvi (Blue Bloods, A Series of Unfortunate Events) as Ben Shakir, Michael Emerson (Person of Interest, Lost) as Leland Townsend, and Kurt Fuller is Dr. Boggs. Brooklyn Shuck (Rise, I Shudder) plays Lynn Bouchard, Skylar Gray (Me, Myself and I) is Lila Bouchard, Maddy Crocco is Lexis Bouchard, and Dalya Knapp plays Laura Bouchard.
“Book 27” Plot – David, Kristen and Ben assess whether a pregnant woman is possessed when she claims one of the twins she’s carrying is evil. Their investigation leads to a fertility clinic where they discover a connection to all of their encounters throughout the season. Also, Kristen questions one of her daughters’ capacity for evil upon realizing that she also used that fertility clinic.
The Season 1 Plot, Courtesy of CBS:
“Evil is a psychological mystery that examines the origins of evil along the dividing line between science and religion. The series focuses on a skeptical female psychologist who joins a priest-in-training and a carpenter as they investigate the Church’s backlog of unexplained mysteries, including supposed miracles, demonic possessions and hauntings. Their job is to assess if there’s a logical explanation or if something truly supernatural is at work.”
