Supernatural Season 15 Episode 1 Recap: “Back and to the Future”

By
Saim Cheeda
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Supernatural Season 15 Episode 1
Jared Padalecki as Sam in ‘Supernatural’ season 15 episode 1 (Photo: Shane Harvey © 2019 The CW Network)

Impossible as it might be to stomach, we just had our final season premiere for The CW’s Supernatural as season 15 episode one – “Back and to the Future” – delivered just the kind of heart-pumping thriller fans needed to kick off this farewell tour.

We start off exactly where we last saw our heroes, as they’re overwhelmed by the horde of ghost zombies (yeah, that’s what they are) and have to take sanctuary nearby, all the while only protected by a barely holding door.

When it seems like the end might be here for the boys, “Jack” (Alexander Calvert) springs up. You might remember him having his sockets burned out by God in the previous season finale, but this isn’t Jack we see here – it’s a demon called Belphagor.

This guy should remind one of Crowley’s snarky quality to make any bad situation look like a joke, as Belphagor sarcastically explains he’s taken possession of Jack’s body due to it being the nearest vessel he could find now that all of Hell’s doors have been opened. Belphagor comes up with some ancient magical hocus pocus to rid all of the zombies outside of their ghost possession, leaving the main characters free for the time being.

Unfortunately, there’s a whole town of people within the radius that Belphagor plans to trap the ghosts in, which then leads to Sam (Jared Padalecki), Dean (Jensen Ackles), and Castiel (Misha Collins) going old school and posing as the FBI. While alone with Belphagor, Dean comes to find out the former is a fanboy of sorts, as he recalls being on watch while Dean “created art” when he had been torturing souls under Alastair’s tutelage.

Meanwhile, Sam and Castiel are able to get the town to evacuate a little distance away for Belphagor to work his magic, but are met with foes in the form of John Wayne Gacy and the Woman in White – the same ghosts they had sent to Hell years ago. In a scene that defies logic, Castiel for some reason has problems fighting against these ghosts despite being an angel, as Sam and Castiel nearly perish before Belphagor completes the spell.

A few developments also took place during these happenings, as we found out Sam’s bullet wound from shooting God doesn’t seem to be a good thing. When Castiel tries to heal it, he’s met with a vision of a seemingly evil Sam smiling sinister, before remarking that the power in that wound was unlike anything he’s ever felt. Dean filled in Belphagor over Jack’s identity, although he still doesn’t seem as sad about it as you’d expect it, despite calling Jack “our kid” to Belphagor.

There’s another indication of drama to follow between Dean and Castiel, as we see Dean inquire over Castiel’s well-being, only to brush aside Cas’ response like he doesn’t care. Castiel remains the sole person who has any sorrow over Jack’s death, as the writers continue forgetting that Sam and Dean used to love the boy themselves once.

The ending of the episode is a callback to the first season premiere, as Sam assures Dean they will win this fight against the seemingly 2 billion souls released because God has bailed and, once they’re done with this, they’ll be truly free with no God to mess up their lives. Sam slams the Impala’s trunk shut with the immortal words, “We got work to do.”

All in all, this premiere was loaded with action, along with subtle hints of bigger problems to follow. Belphagor is so far a superb addition, one whose snark reminds us of Crowley (could it be him in disguise?) and is a worthy character for Alexander Calvert to portray and show us how awesome he can be playing a casual and easygoing demon compared to the nice boy that Jack was.




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