‘Supernatural’ Season 15 Episode 18 Recap: “Despair”

By
Saim Cheeda
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Supernatural Season 15 Episode 18
Lisa Berry, Alexander Calvert, Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins, and Jared Padalecki in ‘Supernatural’ seaosn 15 episode 18 (Photo: Colin Bentley © 2020 The CW Network, LLC)

Maybe someone from The CW’s Supernatural has been reading my recaps because they delivered big on my hopes to see the stakes raised. And they sure did, in such a way that a main character has bowed out in season 15 episode 18 and in a manner that seemed quite impossible. As far as the tear-jerking quality, the show brought it and then some.

Picking up straight from the previous episode, Jack (Alexander Calvert) is about to explode when Billie (Lisa Berry) shows up. She teleports Jack away to the Empty where our favorite Nephilim does indeed explode, much to the horror of the Shadow (called as the Empty from here on out.)

Billie tells the heroes that the Empty is pissed she lied to it and she wants God’s death book back to see what’s changed since the plan went awry. Although she brings Jack back from the clutches of the Empty — the purpose of exploding him there was to avoid Earth being damaged as it turns out Jack was never in true danger — Billie claims she’s not giving the boy up. In response, Dean (Jensen Ackles) picks up Death’s scythe and slashes Billie with it, causing her to flee.

At night, the brothers share their fear of what’s to come next since Chuck is stronger than ever, Billie’s out to get them, Jack’s lost his powers, and Michael isn’t responding to their prayers. Personally, I don’t see why Michael or Adam would want to help the pair of brothers that abandoned him but I’ll keep the Winchester bashing at a minimum this time, so let’s move on.

Elsewhere, Alternate Charlie’s girlfriend disappears in front of her and she calls the boys for help. She’s not the only one, as it turns out people from the Apocalypse World are vanishing and the heroes figure out Billie is enacting her plan to send everyone back to where they belong, which means the alternate universe people are being sent to their destroyed world and those who were redirected will die again. This makes Sam (Jared Padalecki) realize that Eileen is in danger.

The heroes race over to Eileen’s place but it becomes clear through her texts to Sam that she’s already dead as her messages stop all of a sudden. When they get to her location, Eileen is nowhere to be found and her possessions are lying where she last stood.

Sam decides to get all of their friends who are in danger to one location and place a warding on it to perhaps save them from Billie. Meanwhile, Dean decides to kill Death using the same scythe. Castiel (Misha Collins) goes along with him and honestly this is the moment fans should treasure since it’s the last time the heroes will be seen together. Sadly, they don’t know this yet.

At the Men of Letters HQ, Dean and Castiel take the scythe and head to Death’s library. Here, Billie is already waiting for them but informs the duo that she’s not the one killing off all of their friends. That would be Chuck. Just then, Sam witnesses all of his friends start disappearing before his eyes, reminiscent of the Snap in Avengers: Infinity War. Only Jack and Sam are left, as the likes of Bobby, Charlie, and even Donna disappear — she was earlier said to be safe but looks like all bets are off for Chuck — and Sam is left speechless in horror with nothing he can do.

Billie also reveals to Dean and Castiel that any hit from the scythe is fatal, and shows her wound covered in green ooze which means her own death is moments away. She decides her dying wish is to kill Dean and gives chase to him and Castiel. The two head back to the HQ and barricade themselves in a room where Castiel uses a sigil to keep Billie at Bay, but it won’t last long.

For once, Dean admits he’s to blame as his plan went south and apologizes to Castiel. And this is where all the Destiel fans can finally pat themselves on the back for their endless “shipping” all these years.

Supernatural Season 15 Episode 18
Jensen Ackles as Dean, Alexander Calvert as Jack and Misha Collins as Castiel in ‘Supernatural’ season 15 episode 18 (Photo: Colin Bentley © 2020 The CW Network, LLC)

As it happens, Castiel finally tells Dean about his deal with the Empty to take him when he’s truly happy and realizes this is it. Why? Well, that’s because Castiel realizes his happiness isn’t based on receiving it, it’s on giving it. He tells Dean that everything the latter has done, whether it’s good or bad, had been due to love. He’s been angry, hurt, and vengeful out of love. But Castiel appreciates this, as it was because of Dean that Castiel himself understood what it was like to love. Dean is confused, but a sobbing Castiel continues that this is his goodbye and he can die because he can tell Dean that he loves him. And that makes him truly happy to admit.

Just as he finishes his confession of love, the Empty appears to collect Castiel. Billie, who had just entered, is also taken due to the Empty’s beef with her. So, placing a hand on Dean’s shoulder — leaving the same mark he once had when he’d pulled Dean from Hell — Castiel pushes Dean aside and is taken forever to the Empty. Dean’s life is saved but at the cost of his best friend/potential love interest.

Honestly, I was certain Castiel would be dying before the finale since Misha Collins was never shown filming on set for the final episodes. The show pulled his end off very well since I didn’t feel as shattered as I did satisfied that he went out happy. The whole him being in love with Dean thing was a bit too fan service for me to totally believe it, but I guess this was a way of validating the relentless Destiel fanbase.

Let’s see what the final two episodes have in store. I have a feeling we haven’t seen the last of Castiel and am still nervously waiting to see how Sam and Dean’s story ends.




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