Lucifer Rising

Lucifer Rising is the 22nd episode and the season finale of Season 4. It aired on May 14th, 2009.

The fourth season concludes with Dean preparing to stop Lucifer in the Apocalypse.

Synopsis
THE FOURTH SEASON CONCLUDES WITH DEAN PREPARING TO STOP LUCIFER IN THE APOCALYPSE —Sam and Ruby attempt to kill Lilith and Castiel rebels against Heaven to help Dean stop Sam.

Summary
1972 - St Mary's Convent, Ilchester, Maryland. Azazel possesses a priest at St Mary's Convent. At mass, he gives a speech lamenting about how people keep forgetting that his father was once an angel, as well as the irony of how a "nun factory" was built over the entrance to the Cage. He then proceeds to slaughter the eight nuns in the chapel.

Present Day - Sam broods as he leans against Ruby's car outside an abandoned house. Sam is upset over the fight with Dean. Ruby tells him Dean shouldn't have said what he said, but they can patch things up later, after it's all over. Sam tells, no, Dean was right. Sam says that there won't be an after for him; he can feel inside that he's changed, for good. Dean's better off as far away from him as possible.

At Bobby's place, Dean refuses to call Sam. He’s sick and tired of chasing him, and not even sure if he's still his brother anymore. Bobby angrily calls him out on his behavior, and says he is behaving like his father. John's failure to reach out to Sam was cowardly. Bobby tells Dean he is a better man than his father ever was. Dean finds himself transported to what appears to be a luxurious hotel room - referred to as the Green Room by Zachariah. He and Castiel appear and Zachariah says they are keeping him safe and focused for "the grand finale." He informs Dean that all but one of the 66 seals has been broken, and that Lilith has to break it. He is not forthcoming with the details about exactly what Dean's role is, or even where he's supposed to go to get it done. Dean becomes extremely agitated with his half-responses to his questions and threatens to leave. Zachariah sternly reminds him that he swore obedience to the angels, and so, he must obey.

At a hospital, Lilith's minion is stealing a baby for her to consume. Sam arrives and overpowers her. Back at the abandoned house, he tortures and interrogates her, and she finally tells him Lilith will be at St Mary's Convent in Ilchester, Maryland at midnight the next night, but swears that she doesn't know what the final seal is. Ruby tells Sam they need to keep the demon alive so Sam can feed on her blood, as Ruby doesn't have what he needs to kill Lilith. The demon withdraws to the recesses of the possessed girl's mind, so Sam is confronted with an innocent human.

Green Room- When he is alone, Dean finally calls Sam and leaves a voice-mail apologizing for what he said to him.

1972 - St Mary's Convent: Through a dead nun, Azazel is able to speak to Lucifer, who tells him that he needs Lilith to break The 66 Seals that hold him captive. Lucifer also tells Azazel he needs to find a very special child.

Present Day - Sam reads about the 1972 massacre at St Mary's, and deduces that if Azazel had also visited the Convent, then the demon must be telling the truth about Lilith going there to break the Final Seal. Sam bundles the possessed girl into the trunk of the car, despite her protests, and he and Ruby head to St Mary's Convent in Ilchester, Maryland. Along the way, he considers listening to Dean's voicemail, wondering if Dean was right all along. Ruby assures him that they have to see this through to the end.

At the Green Room, Dean pleads with Castiel to let him see Sam but Castiel soundly refuses, and then vanishes, sealing all exits to the room. Dean tries to break out of the room, to no avail. Zachariah appears and Dean angrily confronts him about what's going on: why can't he see Sam and how is he going to "ice" Lilith. Zachariah calmly replies that he is not going to ice Lilith. She is going to break the final seal. Dean is confused at first but then realizes, and Zachariah finally admits, that the angels never wanted to stop Lilith from freeing Lucifer. The upper echelons of the angels actually wanted the Apocalypse to happen in order to defeat Hell and bring about Paradise on Earth. Zachariah is wholly unconcerned about the vast loss of human life that will occur. Dean is devastated and outraged. He asks what about Sam, pointing out that he won't stop until he's stopped Lilith. Zachariah is again smug and cryptic in his response, only saying that Sam has his part to play. He tells Dean he should worry more about himself and his own role, which he reveals has always been to kill Lucifer once he has risen. Dean demands to know where God is in all of this. Zachariah's response: "God has left the building."

Two miles from the convent Sam and Ruby stop and Sam listens to Dean's message, but it has been changed (most likely by Zachariah) - it is now "Dean" hurling abuse at Sam and rejecting him again. Resigned, Sam orders Ruby to kill the possessed girl so he can drink her blood to prepare to face Lilith.

Back at the Green Room, Castiel returns and apologizes to Dean for deceiving him. Dean is angry and argues with Castiel for just following orders when he knows that what the Angels are doing is wrong. He tries to convince him to help Dean and Sam stop the Apocalypse, as he was once willing to do, before he was " dragged back to Bible camp." Castiel initially refuses, but then returns and, cutting himself, draws an angel banishing sigil on the wall with his blood. When Zachariah arrives to stop him, Castiel places a bloody handprint in the middle of the sigil and Zachariah is sent away. Castiel says he will take Dean to Sam to stop him from killing Lilith - because her death is the final seal. When she dies, the end begins. This is what Castiel was going to tell Dean, right before he left Jimmy's body in "The Rapture."

To find Sam, Castiel and Dean visit the prophet Chuck Shurley, who has foreseen that Sam is at the Convent with Lilith. They find him on the phone attempting to order 20 hookers, as he thinks it's the last night before the Apocalypse. He tells them where the Convent is, but is confused because neither their presence at his house nor at the Convent were in his visions. An archangel begins to make its presence known. Castiel says he will hold it off and sends Dean directly to the Convent with a touch of his hand. He and Chuck then stare out the window of the house as the Archangel approaches.

At the Convent, Lilith and her minions have gathered. Sam and Ruby arrive, and Sam easily dispatches all of the demons and pins Lilith to the altar. Ruby makes eye contact with Dean as he arrives and closes the chapel door with a motion of her hand, efficiently locking him out. Sam, using all of his strength to try to kill Lilith, can barely hear, but hesitates when he hears Dean shouting his name outside the door. Ruby pleads for him to hurry up and finish it. When his hesitation results in taunting by Lilith, his eyes turn black and he ignores Dean's shouting, giving in to killing Lilith. She falls over, dead.

Blood trickles from Lilith's mouth and starts to form a spiral on the chapel floor. An overjoyed Ruby reveals to a confused Sam that Lilith's death was the final seal and that she has been working the top secret plan to free Lucifer all along. Now that the final seal is broken, the Cage is open, and Lucifer is free. Horrified, Sam tries to kill her with his demon powers, but he's used up all his energy on Lilith, and falls to the floor in his effort. Sam accuses her of poisoning the blood. She says no, it wasn't the blood. She merely showed him options and he chose the right path, every time.

Sam asks why it had to be him. Ruby reveals that Sam was the only one who could bring back Lucifer and starts to assure him that Lucifer will reward him. Dean finally breaks in and rushes forward. Ruby gloats that it's too late, but Dean snarls that he doesn't care. Sam jumps up and grabs Ruby from behind, allowing Dean to stab her with her own knife, killing her. The brothers stare at each other in silence. Broken and ashamed, all Sam can say is, "I'm sorry."

At that moment, a beam of light suddenly appears in the middle of the spiral circle of Lilith's blood, and it begins to turn, revealing an opening in the floor. The ground begins to tremble. “Sammy, let’s go,” Dean says. “Dean,” Sam says. “He’s coming.” The boys hold onto each other as the light burns brighter. Lucifer is rising.

Featured Supernatural Beings

 * Archangels
 * Angels
 * Demons
 * God

Featured Music

 * The season finale features "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas.

Continuity

 * Lilith possesses the same woman as in The Monster at the End of This Book, rather than a young girl.
 * Chuck Shurley, Zachariah, and Lilith were all last seen in The Monster at the End of This Book.
 * Azazel's endgame, mentioned in In the Beginning, is finally revealed.
 * This is the first appearance of Lucifer in the series (unseen).
 * The thing Castiel wanted to tell Dean about in The Rapture is revealed (the angels not wanting to stop the Apocalypse).
 * It's later revealed that when Raphael smote Castiel at the end of this episode, Jimmy Novak died too and did not come back when Castiel was resurrected.
 * When communicating with Lucifer in 1972, Azazel mentions that "the others" have lost faith but he hasn't. This is revealed to be referring to the other Princes of Hell in Stuck in the Middle (With You) where Ramiel reveals that the other three Princes of Hell lost interest in Lucifer's plan long ago and he calls Azazel "a fanatic."

Trivia

 * Upon seeing Castiel and Zachariah in the same room, Dean remarks: "Well look at this – The Suite Life of Zach and Cass." This is an allusion to the Disney Channel Show The Suite Life of Zack and Cody about troublesome twin boys who live in a hotel. One of the stars of the show was Kim Rhodes who also plays Sheriff Mills.
 * On the grand table in the Green Room, there's a large silver punch bowl full of Dean's favorite bottled beer and a platter of bacon cheese burgers, which Zachariah encourages Dean to enjoy. The scene suggests the biblical Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Forbidden Fruit from which Eve took the bite that sparked the Fall of Man. After initially refusing the goods, Dean eventually relents and picks up a burger. Castiel suddenly reappears and grabs him a second before he takes a bite. In "Point of No Return", Adam sits at the table, and eats.
 * Zachariah offers to summon the character Ginger from season two of Gilligan's Island for Dean to have sex with while in the Green Room. He also offers up Mary Ann, as a bonus.
 * Zachariah: "Sam, Sam, Sam. Marcia, Marcia, Marcia." This is a reference to the Brady Bunch.
 * Zachariah tells Dean that in Paradise, he'd be given peace, happiness, and two virgins and seventy sluts. This is a play on the Muslim belief that a martyr is promised 72 virgins after his death if he dies as a warrior.
 * Dean tells Castiel that he'd rather take the pain and guilt than live as some "Stepford Bitch in Paradise". This is a reference to the term "Stepford Wife" - which originated from the 1972 book The Stepford Wives the plot of which involved men replacing their wives with subservient robot-lookalikes. Today, the term "Stepford Wife" is used to describe a person who is easily submissive.
 * Eric Kripke has refused to say whether it was Zachariah or Ruby who tampered with Dean's message to Sam. However, given Zachariah's line about Sam needing a "nudge" and the fact that Angels are known to be capable of voice mimicry, it was most likely Zachariah who did it.
 * The writers of this episode have done their research.  There was a St. Mary's College run by the Redemptorists in the small declining, now extinct town of Ilchester, MD.  The college closed in 1972, the date used in this episode for the nuns being slaughtered.  The abandoned building, which eventually went to ruins became a teenage urban myth nicknamed "Hell House."  The ruins were demolished in the 2000s.  Several websites provide more information.
 * In 37:52, Sam's eyes turn demon-black. In 37:57, they turn back to normal again. This might be because of the amount of demon blood in him or how he acted while killing Lillith. Chuck later remarks on this and said his temperature was 150 at the time.
 * Ruby references the Disney movie Dumbo when she tells Sam, "You didn't need the feather to fly. You had it in you the whole time, Dumbo."

Goofs

 * When reading the article on Father Dominic Lehne's possession by Azazel, Sam states that the article says that the priest even remembers the demon's name which is Azazel. However, close examination of the article shows that while it does say that Father Lehne remembered the demon's name, the name is not actually given.

Quotes

 * Zachariah : Hello, Dean. You're looking fit.
 * Dean : Well, how bout this, the suite life of Zach and Cass.
 * (Zachariah looks puzzled)
 * Dean : It's a- never mind.


 * Azazel/Father Lehne: Folks forget my Daddy is an angel, after all. Or was. I mean, I suppose some dumb bastard stood here, felt a jolt of his holy juice and thought, I'm gonna build me a nun factory. You know? It's the right idea. Wrong angel.
 * [Azazel's eyes turn yellow; he picks up a knife]
 * Azazel: So, uh, if any of you gals are the praying type, now would be a good time to start.


 * Bobby Singer : You stupid, stupid son of a bitch! Well, boo hoo, I am so sorry your feelings are hurt, princess! Are you under the impression that family's supposed to make you feel good? Make you an apple pie, maybe? They're supposed to make you miserable! That's why they're family!
 * Dean Winchester : I told him, "you walk out that door, don't come back" and he walked out anyway! That was his choice!
 * Bobby : You sound like a whiny brat. No, you sound like your dad. Well, let me tell you something. Your dad was a coward.
 * Dean : My dad was a lot of things, Bobby, but a coward?
 * Bobby : He'd rather push Sam away than reach out to him. That don't strike me as brave. You are a better man than your daddy ever was. So you do both of us a favor. Don't be him.


 * (Dean leaves Sam a message)
 * Dean : Hey, it's me. Uh... Look, I'll just get right to it. I'm still pissed... and I owe you a serious beatdown. But... I shouldn't have said what I said. You know, I'm not Dad. We're brothers. You know, we're family. And, uh... no matter how bad it gets, that doesn't change. Sammy, I'm sorry.


 * (Sam plays Dean's message)
 * "Dean" (voice): Listen to me, you bloodsucking freak. Dad always said I'd either have to save you or kill you. Well, I'm giving you fair warning. I'm done trying to save you. You're a monster, Sam - a vampire. You're not you anymore. And there's no going back.


 * Dean : What the hell is going on, huh? Why can't I see Sam? And how am I gonna ice Lilith?
 * Zachariah : You're not. ...Going to ice Lilith.
 * Dean : What?
 * Zachariah : Lilith's going to break the Final Seal. Fait accompli at this point. Train's left the station.
 * Dean : But me and Sam, we can stop... [he suddenly realizes] You don't want to stop it, do you?
 * Zachariah : (matter-of-factly) Nope. Never did. The end is nigh. The Apocalypse is coming, kiddo, to a theater near you.
 * Dean : What was all that crap about saving Seals?
 * Zachariah : Grunts on the ground - we couldn't just tell them the whole truth. We'd have a full-scale rebellion on our hands. I mean, think about it. Would we really let 65 Seals get broken unless senior management wanted it that way?
 * Dean: (stunned) But why?
 * Zachariah: Why not? "The Apocalypse." Poor name, bad marketing. Puts people off. When all it is is Ali Foreman. On a slightly larger scale. And we like our chances. When our side wins - and we will - it's Paradise on Earth. What's not to like about that?
 * Dean: (appalled) What happens to all the people during your little pissing contest?
 * [Zachariah stands up]
 * Zachariah: Well... you can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs. In this case... truckloads of eggs, but you get the picture. Look... it happens. This isn't the first planetary enema we've delivered.
 * [Dean's eyes drift towards a nearby statue]
 * Zachariah: Uh, no, Dean. Probably shouldn't try to bash my skull in with that thing. Wouldn't end up too pleasant for you.


 * Dean: Tell me something. Where's God in all this?
 * Zachariah: God? God has left the building.


 * Castiel: Try to understand. This is long foretold. This is your-
 * Dean: Destiny? Don't give me that "holy" crap. Destiny, God's plan... It's all a bunch of lies, you poor, stupid son of a bitch! It's just a way for your bosses to keep me and keep you in line! You know what's real? People, families - that's real. And you're gonna watch them all burn?!
 * Castiel : What is so worth saving? I see nothing but pain here. I see inside you. I see your guilt, your anger, confusion. In paradise, all is forgiven. You'll be at peace. Even with Sam.
 * [Dean gives him a harsh look]
 * Dean: You can take your peace... and shove it up your lily-white ass. 'Cause I'll take the pain and the guilt. I'll even take Sam as is. It's a lot better than being some Stepford bitch in Paradise! This is simple, Cass! No more crap about being a good soldier. There is a right and there is a wrong here, and you know it.
 * [Castiel turns away; Dean grabs his shoulder]
 * Dean: Look at me! You know it! You were gonna help me once, weren't you? You were gonna warn me about all this, before they dragged you back to Bible camp. Help me - now. Please.


 * Castiel: We have to stop [Sam], Dean, from killing Lilith.
 * Dean: But Lilith's gonna break the Final Seal.
 * Castiel: Lilith is the Final Seal! She dies, the end begins.


 * [Sam confronts Lilith]
 * Sam: I've been waiting for this... for a very long time.
 * Lilith : Then give me your best shot.


 * Lilith: You turned yourself into a freak – a monster. And now you’re not gonna bite! I’m sorry, but that is honestly adorable.
 * (Sam's eyes turn black and he uses his powers to kill Lilith)


 * [After Sam has killed Lilith]
 * Ruby: You opened the door. And now he's free at last. He's free at last!
 * Sam: No, no, no. No, - Lilith - I stopped her. I killed her!
 * Ruby: "And it is written that the first demon shall be the last seal." And you bust her open. Now guess who's coming to dinner?
 * Sam: (horrified) Oh, my God.
 * Ruby: Guess again.


 * Ruby: You don't even know how hard this was. All the demons out for my head. No one knew. I was the BEST of those sons of bitches! The most LOYAL! Not even Alastair knew! Only Lilith! Yeah, I'm sure you're a little angry right now, But, I mean, come on, Sam! Even you have to admit - I'm - I'm AWESOME!


 * [Dean finally breaks into the chapel]
 * Ruby: You're too late.
 * Dean: [Advancing on her, drawing her knife] I don't care!
 * [Sam suddenly grabs Ruby from behind. Dean stabs her in the gut with her own knife. She gasps in pain as Dean twists the knife deeper into her. Her face flickers and she dies. Sam drops the empty vessel to the floor. Dean looks at him.]
 * Sam: (brokenly) I'm sorry.
 * [The Cage begins to open. Light shoots out of the floor.]
 * Dean: Sammy, let's go.
 * Sam: Dean... He's coming.


 * Luzifer erhebt sich