92 replies to this topic

[TWoP Lockley]

TV Guide Description:

Bitten
Sam and Dean investigate a bizarre murder in a college town. Their probe leads them to an apartment where they find two dead bodies and a computer with some disturbing footage that indicates the deaths may be the result of an unusual animal attack.

[Cowshark]

Christ, how much "nice" guys are loathsome.

[ParadoxLost]

Sam and Dean investigate a bizarre murder in a college town. Their probe leads them to an apartment where they find two dead bodies and a computer with some disturbing footage that indicates the deaths may be the result of an unusual animal attack.

And this is highly misleading as an episode description. The opening credits rolled at 9:54 and closing credits at 9:55 and that's nearly all there was of Sam and Dean.

The first fifteen was torture, filmed Blair Witch style, as I recalled all the other guest start experiments that at least Sam and Dean present for.

I actually got mildly interested at the half hour mark and wondered if that meant I was done with Supernatural because it was a nice break from Sam and Dean angst. Given that it was fairly unwatchable that is a bad sign.

I'm happy Jared and Jensen got a paycheck for no work this week, I guess.

Edited by ParadoxLost, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:04 PM.

[RandomNation]

Oh. Mygod! WHY would they do an episode like this again!? Wasn't Ghostfacers pretty much panned by everyone? I tried liking it, paying attention to what they were doing but about half an hour in, I gave up, left the tv on and just started browsing the internet.

And I totally thought the one guy was in love with the other guy but even that was disappointing too. Eeesh. Onto next week!

[WynterWolf]

I am flatter than the flattest of all flat pancakes. I have been buried under a deluge of anvils (I seriously feel like Wile E. Coyote on a really bad day) and it will be a while until I can claw my way out from under them. But they were entertaining anvils. I know the lack of Dean and Sam will be an issue, but I didn’t mind it, and what there was of them was fun and a different perspective (D'oh, another anvil! Seriously, they were everywhere!!). Anyway, I really did enjoyed that. And I think it’s pretty much a given that we’ll see her again, but I liked her so I’m totally okay with that.

[hat]

I missed the first 20 min, but I did feel for the girl at the end. Dean doesn't kill what doesn't kill humans, so I can see him wanting to give the girl a break. Sam? I guess it all depends on how much he relates himself to the MOTW.

It was ok, but I guess if I had watched it from the beginning it would have been better.

I don't mind Jensen and Jared taking a break, though I wish it hadn't been so soon, but, whatever, I hope the girl comes back, she was rather cool.

Sam just doesn't understand his brother, never has, and I don't think he ever will.

[omelas]

I kind of liked it.

[kara714]

But they were entertaining anvils. I know the lack of Dean and Sam will be an issue, but I didn’t mind it, and what there was of them was fun and a different perspective (D'oh, another anvil! Seriously, they were everywhere!!). Anyway, I really did enjoyed that. And I think it’s pretty much a given that we’ll see her again, but I liked her so I’m totally okay with that.

Heh! I feel the same way. I thought all the actors were actually pretty good and managed to make me care about their characters.

But clearly this is setting up for Benny backstory so I felt like it moved things along, even with less Dean and Sam/

I hope the girl comes back too. I liked her.

Edited by kara714, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:13 PM.

[jediknight]

"Eating a heart is self defense?"

The show read my mind.

Not a bad episode, but I was disappointed that the episode didn't end with "The Lonely Man" playing. It would have fit perfectly.

[Kojuro]

Well, I wasn't all that interested in the trio, though the guy playing Michael was cute and not a bad actor. :) My favorite bits were the bits Dean and Sam appeared in, as it was kind of interesting seeing them doing their job from the outside. There weren't nearly enough of them though. So overall I just sort of kept waiting for the episode to end, though I don't think it was a terrible episode but just okay and anvilicious. The dark haired one was annoying.

Did they rip off The Avengers? Really? (Totally Loki's speech to Thor about being in his shadow lol, come to think of it maybe The Avengers took it from Supernatural, I remember Sam once saying something like that to Dean, Bugs or Asylum maybe, so I don't know, was the geeky, jealous one supposed to be Sam? What were they trying to tell us, I was so busy dodging all the anvils I wasn't even always sure what exactly they were trying to hit me with? Or did they just think they were being clever working in the billion dollar making movie reference?) I was sorry Michael was killed as he seemed like a decent guy aside from the werewolf thing, sort of smarter than he looked if you know what I mean, while I was glad the other guy got killed in the end - perfect example of how awful so-called "nice guys" can be. LOL

I did like seeing the reactions to um...the chick's message at the end(if not the message itself, wow heavy handed much, par for the course in this ep, not to mention I mean sure she's cute, but...I don't really give a damn about what happens to her personally so her "Incredible Hulk" walking away moment at the end was just like okay enough already, it felt very CW-esque and no that's not a compliment:), especially Dean's. You could really get the sense in his eyes that he was probably thinking about Benny's situation.

And to be fair, in her case, it fits with Dean's own general way of doing things - if a monster has hurt people that's usually why they are hunting them, she hadn't hurt anyone human and she'd never eaten a human heart, if someone deserves a shot, she did and it's perfectly in character for Dean to give her one. Dean's position has always been written overall as nuanced with a certain amount of flexibility. Some monsters have more ability to control than others. So it would be bogus to act like this is something new for him, it's entirely in character for Dean. Sam it's tended to be about whether or not he personally identifies with said individual.

And the "awesome" thing was cute - "I don't say awesome that much do I" LOL Yes honey and you can just keep saying awesome, 'cause you are! :D I also liked the little mention by Dean of not eating anything for a year and thus, the two hamburgers(Sam could really lay off, he must know this by now, just let Dean enjoy his damn burgers for god's sake :)))

I also appreciated Dean doing research, it's nice when the show remembers he can read and shit and also, especially that he has great instincts, so two things that the ep managed to hit on in the very brief Dean and Sam appearances.

If nothing else the "brotherly interaction", which at this point I don't even care about much anymore the show in the past few seasons has tainted it so much for me, was actually decent, why they can't write it like that in regular episodes anymore I have no idea.

Another little scene I liked was when Dean was talking to someone outside the coroner(I think it was the coroner, I believe I saw a van that said coroner's office), it was a little thing, the whole "watching them do their job from the outside" thing, but it was still a nice little scene.

Edited by Kojuro, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:57 PM.

[Kaijin]

I am horribly, horribly disappointed that they didn't use the first person cam to do a Slender Man episode. Or even an episode with something other than werewolves. At least Slender Man is one of the few things on the internet these days that scares me!

I did like the the girl and her boyfriend. Not so much the scrawny kid, which was purposeful I am assuming.

I don't really mind an episode where Dean and Sam are not in it the entire time. If anything, it is nice to see what is happening from the perspective of the victims/monsters.

[MichaelaBelle]

But clearly this is setting up for Benny backstory so I felt like it moved things along, even with less Dean and Sam/

That's all I got out of it. Monsters weren't always monsters so do they deserve a chance? Of course then there was the professor who avoided killing for years, until something made him fall off the wagon, and now a bunch of college kids are dead. So what is the moral? Monsters deserve a chance until they kill somebody's kid? That doesn't make me feel very warm and fuzzy towards monsters.

[hat]

Monsters deserve a chance until they kill somebody's kid? That doesn't make me feel very warm and fuzzy towards monsters.

I thought it was monsters deserve a chance until they start killing humans. Kind of like the police who don't go after everybody but just those who break the law.

[kara714]

I thought it was monsters deserve a chance until they start killing humans. Kind of like the police who don't go after everybody but just those who break the law.

Yep, seems pretty straight-forward to me and consistent with Dean's stance on monsters in the past.

[JDavitt]

I've watched this show from episode one and this is the first time I was bored to the point of leaving the room to splash cold water on my face to stay awake.

Do not know those people.

Do not care about those people.

Do not like handheld wobbliness and fly on the wall style filming.

Rolled my eyes at the Wincest nudge/wink.

I guess this far in they feel they can do the odd experimental episode to give the main actors a break, but it's kind of like going to a restaurant to find the chef's on holiday, and some random people wandered in off the street to cook your meal and you're getting a PB and J sandwich instead of duck a l'orange.

Bottom line, it was boring. Did it try to get a message across that Dean's guilty about bringing a monster into the world so he'll forgo his duty and let her go? Sure. Did we get to see that the monsters sometimes started out as victims? Sure.

Still boring. Because we already know that.

Edited by JDavitt, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:26 PM.

[orionlion]

Wow. It’s like everything hateful about Blair Witch and those Ghostfacers episodes all rolled in a neat little package of puke! It takes a certain skill and finesse to cram that much suck into 42 minutes. How proud the show runners must be! I had my fill of crap and bailed after 25 minutes. Hope Sam and Dean stopped the baddie… you know... assuming they were even in the episode anymore after I split.

[Blackmantra53]

What did I like about this?
Dean told Sam he was rusty.
The reference to Lord of the Flies.
The leaded glass door light in the students's residence. And the coffered ceilings.

What did I NOT like?
Everything else. This episode seemed to last forever and not in a good way, because the anvils that were engaged in this parallel diving event were neverending and painful to endure. Why does the writing seem to be taking such a nosedive so early in the season?

This "found footage" technique has been used with varying success by every filmaker since Blair Witch, including this show, something that even Jensen Ackles seemed to have forgotten in a very recent interview. I didn't think I would ever be able to say that Ghostfacers was better than any other epside in this franchise, but tonight I can say it. Putting the credits at the end has been used before so I cannot help wondering if this writing crew is completely out of fresh ideas. Even Dean and Sam debating the merits of letting the girl/monster/whomever go occurs every second or third episode these days.

I didn't care about these kids, and the nerdy kid wanting to become a werewolf so the cute girl would love him was an all too predictable ending.The alpha werewolf, if that is indeed what he was (I won't go into too much depth about the retcon of that particular legend) was dispatched far too easily. Show, I still remember the shapeshifter and vampire alphas and how hard they were to defend against, as should you.
I do not apppreciate Dean and Same barely having guest roles in their own show- a least with Ghostfacers they were an integral part of the story, not an un-necessary peripheral.

Dean my love, you do say "awesome" a lot, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Edited by Blackmantra53, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:39 PM.

[Parcae3]

Oh, Robbie Thompson! I understand the concept, but you kind of disappointed me on the execution there. I think the story had potential, but the kids were pretty lame and trite. I mean, the dialogue? Really? "You've never been in love." Ugh. I think it would have been better if these kids had been together for a while, instead of setting up this "true love" with a one night stand. And the shaky cam was way too shaky for me. The kids tried, but I don't think they were up to overcoming their material.

I will say that I think the girl did a good job with her final scene of begging the guys for a chance. That was the only time I thought she did good. Otherwise, the characters didn't really effect me. I get the concept, but they didn't touch me. A little too one dimensional and lame.

I did have fun seeing the guys from an outsider perspective! Enough with the jokes that they are a couple though. I loved the final scene! LOL, "Do I really say awesome a lot?" I don't get why Sam is always surprised when his brother exhibits compassion. Or intelligence. Dean has been clear: they go after monsters who kill people. If monsters leave humans alone, like Amy's son or this girl or like he was hoping Emma would do, he leaves them alone. You start killing humans, and he will put you down. It's not like this is any character breakthrough for him. He's been this way since "Bloodlust." I hope Carver doesn't start acting like this is some new development for Dean, just because of Benny. Because it's not.

I think the best things I can say about this ep is that Dean was cute, Jensen was hot. At the end, I was fine with the girl character (I can't even remember their names!) getting away, but I'd be even more fine with us never seeing her again.

[WynterWolf]

Did it try to get a message across that Dean's guilty about bringing a monster into the world so he'll forgo his duty and let her go? Sure.

Dean didn't come across as feeling guilty to me, I thought it was more that he's had his perspective shifted, and so he took that into consideration when making his judgement.

[awab]

The concept was cool but the episode was boring and those kids were mostly stupid.
But all i want to say is Dean! Don't listen to them! You can use *awesome* all the time! It's sweet.

[ParadoxLost]

I don't get it. When Sam was sleeping with and then put a bullet in werewolf Madison, she had no memory of what she did and couldn't control her actions so Sam put her down at her request.

Now werewolves remember eating hearts and how good they taste but its ok to let the woman they never met go until she actually kills someone because she swears she can control the craving for hearts with animal substitute.

Edited by ParadoxLost, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:42 PM.

[WynterWolf]

The alpha werewolf, if that is indeed what he was (I won't go into too much depth about the retcon of that particular legend) was dispatched far too easily.

I don't think he was an alpha. They said within 4 generations, I think. So he could have been a second or third generation, and since he hasn't hunted in a really long time, he was probably rusty... like Sam.

Now werewolves remember eating hearts and how good they taste but its ok to let the woman they never met go until she actually kills someone because she swears she can control the craving for hearts with animal substitute.

Retcon or furthering the mythology... Madison was much farther down the generation line so she didn't have control and was basically a wild animal, but since these guys were within that 4 generation thing that they expo'ed, they could control themselves, if they choose.

Edited by WynterWolf, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:40 PM.

[Blackmantra53]

I don't think he was an alpha. They said within 4 generations, I think. So he could have been a second or third generation, and since he hasn't hunted in a really long time, he was probably rusty... like Sam

Indeed, I believe you are correct. My eyes were rolling so hard at this werewolf thanking the Winchesters for killing him that the information must have been knocked clear of my brain.

Retcon or furthering the mythology...

My vote goes to retcon.

Edited by Blackmantra53, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:51 PM.

[Kojuro]

I'm confused. When Sam was sleeping with and then put a bullet in werewolf Madison, she had no memory of what she did and couldn't control her actions so Sam put her down at her request.

Now werewolves remember eating hearts and how good they taste but its ok to let the woman they never met go until she actually kills someone because she swears she can control the craving for hearts with animal substitute.

Not really. They explained(can't blame you for missing it, it was hard to pay attention to the episode with all the shaky cameras,etc LOL) that it had to do with the type of werewolf you were bitten by. There are sort of different levels of werewolves, some of them have the ability to change at will and it seems that the ability to choose what they do and remember what they do is related to that.

But yeah, basically a retcon but not a major one compared to some of the ones they tried, when they try to retcon characterization now THAT is a problem, IMO. Retconning a bit of mythology is fairly minor in comparison.

Edited by Kojuro, Oct 24, 2012 @ 9:58 PM.

[Meso]

That was ... not fun. The second part was somewhat better; I could start to see the concept of looking at a monster when they were still innocent humans and then due to bad luck, got turned into monsters, all from their own POV. The ending was extremely anvilicious with respect to Dean and Benny and makes me wonder how Benny himself was turned, whether he tried to control himself, whether he can control himself in the future. The not-Michael guy (forgot his name) was terrible though - he deliberately turned himself almost as an experiment to see how much stronger he could be - that reminded me unpleasantly of soulless Sam watching Dean get turned into a vampire, as an "experiment".

The shaky cam was terribly distracting and really not needed, IMO.

Did it try to get a message across that Dean's guilty about bringing a monster into the world so he'll forgo his duty and let her go? Sure.

Not the message I received, since I didn't see Dean feeling guilty, but pensive. Also, was it just DEAN who let her go? I thought SAM also let her go.

[Tarasme]

I am flabbergasted.

1. If you're going to use this type of first person inside the 4th wall narration (aw hell, I don't even know if I'm saying that right), DON'T CHEAT and use camera angle switches that couldn't possibly exist with the single or dual hand cams.
2. Clearly we really needed not 1 but 2 slash references for this to be fresh and new
3. Brian's going to hack the surveillance/ security system at the diner... Criminy
4. Oren Peli et al used the found, home movie, footage to build suspense/ scares without much in the way of actual effects. I think the PA franchise (can't speak to 4) does this pretty well. Why! Oh Why! Couldn't *that* aspect of the style be the take away for the SPN production staff? If there was ONE thing "Bitten" wasn't, it was scary.

[Tarasme]

Dbl post. I hate my ipad

Edited by Tarasme, Oct 24, 2012 @ 11:07 PM.

[supposebly]

Well, that was a waste of my precious time. Thank Chuck, it's over. Any other show, I would have switched channels 5 minutes in if a show bored me like this one did.

Edited by supposebly, Oct 24, 2012 @ 11:36 PM.

[Waltuckian]

I felt as if I were watching a backdoor pilot for the Adventures of Kate the Werewolf. It sure wasn't an episode of Supernatural tonight.

[fourteenwords]

I liked it quite a bit. I know the "found footage" trope has been done before. But I thought the three actors were likeable, especially the girl who played Katie. The perspective of human beings who have been, against their will, turned into monsters that need to be killed by hunters is one this show has largely skirted. If this episode is any indication, Jeremy Carver plans to spend some time exploring that this season (probably through the story of Dean and Benny), and I think that will be to the show's good.