Review

Something is stirring in the former Winchester abode back in Lawrence, Kansas. In fact, some malevolent force is attempting to come out of the closet, and it isn’t Sam – though that would have really turned the series on its head.

We learn that Sam has precognitive nightmares that sometimes come to pass, and he’s dreaming of a white Christmas chick trapped in the upstairs bedroom of the house where it all started 22 years ago. Dean is sceptical, but naturally the Bros head on back home to kick the tires and light the fires.

The bros enlist the aid of psychic Missouri Mosley as they not only attempt to clean house, but to get more details on what happened to John Winchester. Mosley can inform them that the house has attracted a pretty evil poltergeist, and if that isn’t enough, they get blindsided by another entity. Some creepy stuff ensues. Ready to go home and check the children?

Pretty good episode, which should have been a lot creepier than it turned out to be. Normally I would blast a feature length movie for falling below expectations in that department, but heck, what can you do? With 50 odd minutes and three separate story elements to get through, the episode had a lot of ground to cover. A rating point was added for the pretty cool effect going down with one of the entities; dial me into this bad boy in a big way, amigos.

Home presents us with a decent enough central plot line – poltergeists are always fun times in horror, would be my call right there. In this episode, the Supernatural team show exactly what can be done with that horror element, and in the process show just how short-changed we were with Michael Bay’s surgical bollock trap that was the remake of The Amityville Horror. Director Girotti gets the shock tactics happening, and doesn’t need mucho CGI involvement to present the audience with some pretty freaky scenes.

Get ready for ghost central as the Bros go up against not one but two spiritual elements

The episode starts proper with Mom having to calm her young daughter’s fears of something in the closet. At the time I thought the episode might be filmed on location in Dogtown, South Australia, but since it didn’t involve inbreds playing banjos I got that wrong. Later, scratching noises entice Mom to check the basement. My horror radar was immediately beeping madly, and I had amped into defcon 3 on the strength of it. Scratching noises, down in the basement, where the lights don’t work. Time to get out of Dodge, was my call. Sure enough, with Mom sidetracked, we get closet action upstairs in the daughter’s bedroom. In one of the most effective scenes yet in the season, the closet door creaks open, and we get what seems like five minutes of staring into a pretty dark closet. Girotti is simply on fire with his handling of the tension here. We know something’s coming, but he takes time to build on our anticipation. Naturally, when it does happen, it’s one hell of a cool money shot. I had a smile from ear to ear with the effect, and the sheer construction of the whole thing. Outstanding achievement that was right on the money.

Giotti backs this up with the kid in the fridge sequence, which equally had me applauding from the soiled end of the sofa. The dude can direct – someone get him a budget for a feature length movie!

In case you are wondering, yes I got the whole nod to Boogeyman with the closet thing going down. You could probably throw in Cujo and a whole host of other movies that also use this plot device to get the scare tactics out of the hanger. While on the subject, look also for a nod to either Carrie or House in a pretty cool scene involving various sharp kitchen instruments. Probably Betty Crooker approved as well.

Adding to the plot line, and fleshing out, are further developments on the John Winchester story arc from previous episodes. Home really gets that moving in a big way, and I’m now addicted to finding out the answers later in the season. Good hook has dragged my sorry arse into the whole background deal.

And if that’s not enough, writer and producer Eric Kripke also presents a new plot arc, which is going to have some impact somewhere down the line. Sam is precognitive, and goes all Shining on us. Considering the number of story arcs currently in play, the Supernatural guys really need to start some closure else we are going to end in one hell of a mess by season finish.

There’s a possibility of a future plot hole thrown into this episode. I simply can’t mention it else I’ll be giving the game away and adding a way big spoiler, but let’s just say a certain character has cancelled herself out due to actions in this episode toward the end, and Supernatural will be doing a disservice to itself if it re-introduces the character in a later episode. Sorry for the overly long sentence; treading water very carefully here.

Full marks to the episode for also introducing a background character in the form of the wonderful Missouri Mosley. I was digging this character like you wouldn’t believe, book her in for future episodes is my call. Clearly, Supernatural is aware of the limitations of the brother concept, and is from time to time going to insert other demon-fighting characters to bring some new aspects to the series.

We have reached nadir on the music front, folks. I didn’t catch one tune during the entire episode, which kind of bummed me out as the end credits rolled. How about throwing some AC/DC or Black Sabbath in our direction, yo! Led Zeppelin or Pink Floyd would be too much to ask for, I’m guessing.

This episode serves to highlight the outstanding writing going down in this series, which I don’t think I have made mention of before. Home is tightly plotted, moves at a decent pace, and doesn’t short change us with shock post-credit shenanigans. We also get some comic goodness in Dean spouting his normal one-liners and cultural references, but also Missouri getting in some good licks of her own when the opportunity presented itself.

Guess I got the alien abduction thing wrong, mentioned in the last episode review. Damn, there goes any thought of precognition on my part!

I was all over this episode, and had a good time from start to finish. An engrossing plot line, some story arc going down, and mucho special effects magic combined to have me higher than a chick getting ready for her Prom date. Hello, Mary Lou! This time round we had another of those classic phobias being bundled up in new clothes, the thing in the closet after lights out. Hey, Stephen King warned us not to discount it as kids’ imaginations running riot after food additive binges, and Supernatural says you better watch out.

Seems I’m starting to stretch the length of these episode guides again, and am betting I’ll get a wrap over the knuckles for the length of this one. But it’s pretty hard to be concise at this stage, as we have all sorts of things thrown our way in terms of plot arcs and possibly pointers to future directions. Will keep it in mind for future episode write-ups, however.

Another episode that receives my vote of approval. Home is one of the best of season 1, and you cannot go past it for showcasing exactly how good Supernatural is. Unfortunately for those attempting to dial into the season midway through, this is one episode that requires you to be aware of what’s gone down previously. I’m good with that, and if you haven’t been regularly catching each episode then shame on you. Are we having fun yet?