Devil's Trap



Devil's Trap is the 22nd episode and the season finale of Season 1. It aired on May 4th, 2006.

Summary
Sam and Dean, in order to save their father from Meg, enlist the help of a family friend, Bobby. When Meg shows up at Bobby's, the brothers are able to exorcise the demon from Meg Masters' body and get her to tell them where their father is being held. Sam and Dean race off to rescue their father, resulting in a final showdown between the Winchesters and the Yellow-Eyed Demon they have spent their lives looking for.

Recap
Dean is desperate to contact his father, but as he makes another call, Meg answers John's phone. Meg taunts Dean that John is beyond help. Sam responds by saying that they should find the Demon and kill it with The Colt, but Dean counters that they need a plan because John isn't dead.

The boys arrive at the home of another hunter who is an old close family friend, Bobby Singer, and their shared history is quickly sketched out - Dean seems to know him quite well, and Bobby once ran John off with a shotgun. Sam goes through some of Bobby's books on demon lore, including the Key of Solomon, while Bobby and Dean talk. Suddenly Meg kicks in the door, attacks the boys, and demands the Colt. However, she soon gets caught under a Devil's trap that is painted on the ceiling. Bobby explains that Meg is actually a girl possessed by a demon, and that the injuries she previously sustained in Chicago (in the episode Shadow) will kill her if the demon leaves her body. Dean insists on exorcising the demon to save the girl, no matter how broken she is. Sam reluctantly reads the ritual while Dean questions Meg about John; she repeatedly claims that John is dead. Finally, the demon is banished, and human Meg, dying painfully, thanks them and offers the clue "sunrise." The boys leave Bobby to head to Jefferson City, Missouri.

On their way to rescue John, Sam reiterates the need to kill the Yellow-Eyed Demon, while Dean argues the importance of family. Dean says Sam is like John: eager to die if it means killing the Demon. They arrive at the building where John is being kept (Sunrise Apartments), form a plan to evacuate it that involves dressing up as firemen, and execute it. They manage to overpower the possessed humans guarding John and get him out of the apartment - after Sam insists on testing John with holy water. John is barely coherent, but he manages to ask about the Colt. Once all three are out of the building, they're set upon by Tom, who beats Sam severely. Dean whips out the concealed Colt and shoots him through the head.

In a secluded cabin, as the boys salt the doors and windows, Dean confesses that he's scared of the lengths he'll go to in order to protect his family. John enters, claiming that Dean should be proud of what he does for the family. Dean grows suspicious of the kind words and points the Colt at John. Sam allies himself with Dean, and John is revealed to be possessed by the Demon as his eyes glow yellow. The Demon injures both boys and mocks Sam's unreliable special powers, and he also mentions that Sam was about to propose to Jessica. Dean draws the Demon's attention away from Sam, and it reveals that the demons in Meg and Tom were his children. He uses a psychic power to attack Dean, causing him to bleed internally. Dean begs for his life, and John manages to surface long enough for Sam to free himself and grab the Colt. John begs Sam to kill him in order to kill the Demon while Dean pleads for Sam not to shoot. Sam uses the penultimate bullet in the Colt to shoot John in the leg, restoring control to John who demands Sam kill him and the Demon. However, Sam hesitates to kill his father and the Demon flees John's body.

Sam drives the Impala with John in the passenger seat and Dean, gravely hurt, in the backseat. John expresses disappointment that Sam didn't shoot and end the family's quest, but Sam says that killing the Demon is not the most important thing. Sam promises to get them to the hospital, but a huge truck slams into the Impala, smashing it and rendering all three Winchesters unconscious. The truck driver has the black eyes of a demon.

Characters

 * Dean Winchester
 * Sam Winchester
 * Bobby Singer
 * John Winchester/Azazel
 * Meg/Meg Masters
 * Tom
 * Trucker demon

Featured Music

 * "Bad Moon Rising" by Creedence Clearwater Revival
 * "Fight The Good Fight" by Triumph
 * "Turn To Stone" by Joe Walsh

Trivia & References
Bobby: Hell, yeah. You get a demon in - they're trapped. Powerless. It's like a Satanic roach motel.
 * The name of Bobby's dog, Rumsfeld, is a reference to the U.S. Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld.
 * The book flipping pages seemingly of its own accord during Meg's exorcism is a visual reference to a similar occurrence in the Evil Dead flims.
 * Meg's exorcism/interrogation scene could be considered a visual reference to the interrogation scene of Sharon Stone's character in Basic Instinct, considering the similiarites in styling (the short blonde hair), posing and cinematography in certain shots.
 * Roach Motel is a brand of roach bait, that uses scents to lure cockroaches into a compartment, where they become trapped, and unable to exit. 
 * The actor who played Yellow-Eyed Demon's son Tom, Sebastian Spence, and who Dean killed with the Colt as he was thrashing Sam, co-starred with Jensen Ackles in two episodes The CW series Dawson's Creek, which were ironically titled "Ego Tripping At The Gates of Hell" and "Instant Karma".

Continuity

 * John was captured in the previous episode.
 * This is the first appearance of Bobby Singer in the series. He is shown to be a close family friend who later is shown to have a fatherly relationship with Sam and Dean. He becomes a recurring character through the rest of the series even beyond his death.
 * John takes control of his body despite being possessed. This is the first (known) instance of hosts overthrowing their possessors.
 * The Devil's Trap is introduced, and will become a major staple of the series.
 * This is the only season finale that doesn't feature the song Carry On My Wayward Son.
 * This episode marks the first time a demon is killed and shows that it is possible to do so. Dean kills Tom with The Colt to save Sam.
 * The demon Meg is exorcised from Meg Masters who dies of her injuries, however, both later return. The demon Meg returns in Born Under a Bad Sign having escaped from Hell and possessing Sam. She later returns in Sympathy for the Devil in a new body that she uses until she is killed in Goodbye Stranger. Meg Masters returns in Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean Winchester as a Vengeful Spirit summoned by the Rising of the Witnesses.

Quotes
Dean: "Hey, what's happening, is there a fire?"

Fireman: "We're figuring that out right now. Just stay back."

Dean: "Well, I've got a yorkie upstairs and he pees when he's nervous."

Dean: "Where's our father, Meg?"

Meg: "You didn't ask very nice."

Dean: "Where's our father, bitch?"

Meg: "Jeez. Do you kiss your mother with that mouth? Oh, I forgot... You don't."

Dean: "This sucks out loud."

Sam: "Yeah, tell me about it."

Meg: "An exorcism. Are you serious?"

Dean: "Oh, we're going for it, baby. Head spinning, projectile vomiting, the whole nine yards."

International Titles

 * Finnish: Paholaisen ansa (Devil's Trap)
 * French: Délivrance (2e partie) (Salvation, Part Two)
 * German: Teufelsfalle (Devil's Trap)
 * Italian: La Trappola del Diavolo (The Devil's Trap)
 * Polish: Diabelska Pułapka (Devil's Trap)
 * Romanian: Capcana Diavolului (Devil's Trap)