Clip Show

Clip Show
Season	8
Episode	22
Overall	171
Series	Supernatural
Airdate	May 8, 2013
Written by	Andrew Dabb
Directed by	Thomas J. Wright
Episode list	Season 8
← Previous	The Great Escapist
Next →	Sacrifice

Clip Show is the 22nd episode of Season 8. It aired on May 8th, 2013.

Summary

There was something about being there... It felt pure. This episode summary is an official CW press release. It may contain errors. DO NOT CHANGE!

Sam and Dean reunite with Castiel (guest star Misha Collins). Digging through the Men of Letters' files, they stumble upon an undiscovered film which could be the key to the third trial. Metatron (guest star Curtis Armstrong) enlists Cas to mull over problems at home. Meanwhile, Crowley (guest star Mark Sheppard) digs into Sam and Dean's past. Taylor Cole, Graham Wardle, and Cindy Busby also guest star.

Plot

In Lost Creek, Colorado, Tommy Collins nervously gazes out a cabin window with his girlfriend Shelly, remembering the Wendigo attack from years before. Tommy hears a noise that his girlfriend dismisses, and when Tommy assumes the worst and prepares to fight another Wendigo, his head begins gushing blood until it finally explodes.

Back at the Men of Letters bunker, Sam and Dean Winchester pore over old possession files, while Dean remains bitter toward Castiel for not trusting him and Sam with the Angel Tablet. Following a note from the files, Sam and Dean look through an old storage room, finding a mysterious demon dungeon behind a movable set of shelves, before Sam finds the old film they're looking for.

After setting up the projector, the three watch film of two priests performing a unique exorcism, filmed by Josie Sands. The older priest performs a usual exorcism variant that ultimately kills the chained-up demon, though unintentionally. Sam finds that the older priest, Father Thompson, died some years later, but that the younger priest, Father Simon, continues to practice. Castiel offers his help, but Dean angrily benches him and tells him to get better.

Sam and Dean meet with the priest, who explains that the late Father Thompson had unorthodox ideas about exorcism, and kept materials on saving demons in storage. Sam starts coughing up blood mid-sentence, but Dean assures the concerned priest their plan will succeed. Meanwhile, Castiel awkwardly purchases food, beer, porn, and pie to get in Dean's good books, before Metatron appears and asks for a word. Metatron brings Castiel up to speed telling him that Naomi represents one of many warring factions in Heaven, that they might put Heaven back together by confining the angels upstairs to hash things out.

Sam and Dean return to the base to find Castiel gone, before listening to a recording of Father Thompson's final exorcism. Thompson repeatedly injected a trapped demon with his own "purified" blood, each time asking the demon to feel guilt for its actions in killing its vessel's family. When it finally did, begging Thompson to stop the injections, Thompson performed the ritual successfully, apparently cleansing the demon soul of its evil ways. Sam and Dean marvel at the revelation, and opt to test the procedure themselves by reassembling Abaddon in captivity.

Dean and Sam retrieved Abaddon's body parts and sewed them back together

Castiel follows Metatron to a brunch restaurant in California, where Metatron suggests they complete the angel tablet trials to close the gates of heaven, lest the fighting spill on to Earth. Pointing out their waitress is an angel/human offspring "abomination," Metatron tasks Castiel with killing the young girl as the first trial. After sewing Abaddon back together, minus hands for safety, the demon explains it was she herself who killed Father Thompson years ago. Before the boys can begin the trial, Crowley calls to clue them in to the brothers former save Tommy Collins' death, and provides an address for his next target.

By the time Sam and Dean return to Abaddon, the demon has managed to will her disembodied hands to set her free and escape.

With no other options, Sam and Dean visit the next address to find another former save Jenny Klein, having burnt to death in her own oven. Crowley calls to explain that his sources have given enough intel to kill one of Sam and Dean's past saves every 12 hours until the Winchesters give up the tablet and Kevin Tran.

Sam and Dean race to the next location in Noblesville, Indianapolis, finding Sam's old love interest Sarah Blake. Meanwhile, Castiel and Metatron follow the young waitress, who quickly reveals she knows their true nature, and attacks to save her own life. After a brief struggle, Castiel manages to stab the angel/human hybrid, narrowly saving Metatron.

Sam and Dean do their best to demon-proof Sarah's hotel room before Crowley's deadline, as Sam catches up on Sarah's recent marriage and daughter. Crowley calls a few seconds before midnight, as the brothers prepare for the attack, when Sarah begins choking to death. Sam and Dean frantically search for the hex bag responsible, as Crowley explains that he plans to rip apart their life's work until they give up, keeping all demons away as a precaution. Sarah finally chokes to death, as Dean hurls the phone across the room, revealing the hex bag inside.

Back at the base, Sam considers giving into Crowley's demands, but Dean insists that they soldier on and defeat this challenge as all the rest.

Characters

Main Cast

• Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester
• Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester

Recurring Cast

Guest Stars

• Misha Collins as Castiel
• Mark Sheppard as Crowley
• Taylor Cole as Sarah Blake
• Graham Wardle as Tommy Collins
• Cindy Busby as Jenny Klein

Co-Stars

• Alaina Huffman as Abaddon and Josie Sands (documentary)
• Curtis Armstrong as Metatron
• Warren Kimmel as Max Thompson (documentary)
• Donnelly Rhodes as Simon
• Linda Tomassone as Jane
• Omari Newton as Peter Kent and Peter's Demon
• Stephanie Bennett as Shelly
• Al Miro as young Simon

Featured Supernatural Beings

• Archangels (mentioned only)
• Angel (Metatron)
• Crossroad Demon (Crowley)
• Demons (Peter's Demon, Old Woman demon)
• Knight of Hell (Abaddon)
• Nephilim (Jane)
• Primordial Entity (God, mentioned only)
• Seraph (Castiel)
• Wendigo (flashbacks)
• Witch (Crowley's mother, mentioned only)
• Leviathans (mentioned only)

Continuity

• Tommy Collins was last seen in Season 1's Wendigo.
• Jenny Klein was last seen in Season 7's Shut Up, Dr. Phil.
• Sarah Blake was last seen in Season 1's Provenance.

Trivia

• Antagonists: Crowley, Abaddon and Jane.
• The CW's official summary for this episode once again spells Castiel's nickname as 'Cas' instead of 'Cass'.
• "Clip Show" is a phrase which refers to an episode which uses clips from the previous episodes. The title is a reference to the re-appearance of three previous characters.
• This is the first episode to feature a Nephilim.
• Crowley quotes the line "saving people, hunting things, the family business" while taunting the Winchesters. Ironically this line first appeared in Wendigo while the Winchesters were rescuing Tommy Collins, the first person Crowley targeted.
• It is mentioned in the episode that files on possessions that occurred many years in the past have records on both Lizzie Borden, famous for the accused murders of both of her parents, and Ichabod Crane, who was the inspiration for the "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" story.
• The case file the Winchesters are looking for is number 1138. This is a reoccurring number in Star Wars, an example of it being used is the room Princess Leia is help captive in the Death Star.
• The running gag of Dean never getting his pie continues in this episode too. Castiel goes to a store to shop for Dean. The store has everything that Dean likes, except pie.
• Carver Edlund's Supernatural books make an appearance. Crowley uses the information from these books to track down every single person saved by the brothers.
• The fact that Crowley received information on Jenny Klein, a Season 7 character, from Carver Edlund's books would mean Chuck was still writing the books during Sam and Dean's run-ins with the Leviathans. This is later contradicted by the fact that its stated in Fan Fiction that the books ended with Swan Song. This is likely a minor continuity error or Crowley learned about Jenny through other means.

Quotes

• Sam: My whole body hurts. I feel nauseous and like I'm starving at the same time. And everything smells like rotting meat.
• Dean: I've had that hangover. Jaeger, man.

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• Sam: So, we have a dungeon.
• Dean: Finally.

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• Waitress: Cool coat.
• Castiel: No, it's actually quite warm.

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• Crowley: Either the cutest little prophet in the world is with you two lugs or you'd better find him tout-bloody-suite because time, she is a-wasting.

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• Crowley: What's the line? Saving people, hunting things, the family business. Well, I think the people you save, they're how you justify your pathetic little lives. The alcoholism, the collateral damage, the pain you've caused. The one thing that allows you to sleep at night, the one thing, is knowing that these folks are out there, still out there, happy and healthy because of you, you great, big, bloody heroes. They're your life's work and I'm gonna rip it apart piece by piece. Because I can. Because you can't stop me. Because when they're all gone, what will you have left?

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• Sarah: You're not the same. Look, it's been years and I can't even imagine the things you've been through. But I don't know, you just seem more focused, confident, like you know what you want. You grew up, Sam. I do miss the old haircut, though.

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• Abaddon: I'll stump you to death. It'll be swell.

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• Crowley: What the hell. I'm sexting you an address. Check it out. Then we'll talk. Cheerio.

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• Sam: Hey, those chains look exactly like the ones in our dungeon.
• Castiel: In your what?

International Titles

• German: Das Lebenswerk (Life's Work)
• Hungarian: A harmadik próba (The Third Trial)
• Finnish: Viimeinen koitos (Last trial)

Videos

Supernatural 8x22 Promo "Clip Show" (HD)

Supernatural 8x22 Sneak Peek "Clip Show" (HD)

External Links

• Supernatural: "Clip Show" Review IGN.com