TV Review: SUPERNATURAL - SEASON FOUR - 'It's a Terrible Life'

I love the alternate universe episodes. Seeing the characters we know so out of character always makes you smile. For Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Sam (Jared Padalecki) seeing them in the roles in “It’s a Terrible Life” was even more to the extreme given the history they have and that whole, you know, demon hunting thing.




Dean is the douche of a manager inside any corporate office and Sam’s the nice guy of the office but a lowly pee-on in the corporate world. Sam begins to see dreams of his reality and Dean is beginning to see things as well affecting the office.

But something is happening inside the illusion beyond just Dean and Sam not knowing who they are or their past, but something where employees after a meeting with HR are oddly affected and begin to kill themselves. And there appears to be a ghost or some sort of other-worldly force at work here (of course, duh, it’s SUPERNATURAL).


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While the “let’s show our characters in an alternate reality” is a staple of good TV for decades, I loved that they made something happening inside the alternate reality that’s also kooky as well so not only was it just the fact they are unable to remember their pasts but they have a purpose and along the way learn who they really are.

Plus, how can you not love the GHOST HUNTERS INTERNATIONAL/MYTH BUSTERS rip-off on the Internet including the bit about the Winchester Bros sucking major assage.

Turns out the ghost inside the alternate reality was the owner of the building from years past who shows up when the economy turns south – the first time during the Great Depression and now in modern times. However, this still doesn’t explain why the brothers can’t remember their past even as Sam tries to explain to Dean that the life they are leading is not the reality they live in – both started working at the office three weeks ago both with reasons as to why they joined.

Ah ha but instead of a demon, it was a new angel, Zacharia, Castiel’s boss. It was a test by the angels in order to see if Dean still had it in him to be the hunter he is in order to fight the upcoming battle against Lilith and the demons of hell as they continue to unlock the gates of hell to bring on the apocalypse.

The hook of the angels rather than the demons creating the fantasy world wasn’t as much of a shock as it was a pleasant surprise as it fit in perfectly with the breakdown Dean had at the end of last episode. And the angels attempts to rebuild his self-confidence in their own unique way. I also enjoyed that Zacharia for the first time of any of the angels showered Dean with positive reinforcement something he desperately needed.

Where we go from here it looks as if Sam and Lilith have a date with destiny and that, for sure, should be extremely interesting.


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