Fresh Blood (Supernatural)
"Fresh Blood" | |
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Supernatural episode | |
Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 7 |
Directed by | Kim Manners |
Written by | Sera Gamble |
Production code | 3T6907 |
Original air date | November 15, 2007 |
Guest appearances | |
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"Fresh Blood" is the seventh episode of the
It also features the demise of recurring antagonist Gordon Walker. Brown, who was forced to leave the show due to commitments to the
The episode received ratings near the season average, and garnered generally positive reviews from critics. Brown's performance was praised, as well as the twist in his character's storyline. Also applauded were both Sam's confrontation with Dean over his recent reckless behavior and the resulting reconciliation at the episode's end. Many critics found the presence of character Bela Talbot (Lauren Cohan) in the episode to be pointless, while the critic for TV Guide enjoyed McNab's cameo and wished it had been longer.
Plot
The brothers locate and confront Dixon, but are interrupted by Gordon and fellow hunter Kubrick. Sam and Dean escape, but in the mayhem, Dixon kidnaps Gordon. The vampire later explains to Gordon that hunters killed his nest, and now he wants to rebuild his family. Though Dixon had planned on using Gordon as food, the hunter's continuous taunting prompts him to feed him his blood. When the brothers—having been informed by Bela of Gordon's location, which she discovered via
As night approaches, the brothers have not been able to find Gordon. Dean decides to go after Gordon while Sam stays hidden, but Sam refuses. He then confronts Dean about his reckless behavior since his deal with a
Gordon later calls Sam and Dean, threatening to kill a young woman if they do not meet him. They head to the location and find the woman, but Gordon uses a
Production
Guest stars
"Fresh Blood" featured the final guest appearance by
Michael Massee returned as the hunter Kubrick, who believes himself to be on a mission from God to kill Sam Winchester.[7] Massee discussed his character with Brown beforehand, and envisioned him as a long-time friend of Gordon who could be depended upon. Brown described Kubrick as a "well-meaning ...sweet guy", and noted that his wife had a "visceral response" to the character's death when later viewing the episode.[4] Matthew Humphreys portrayed the vampire Dixon, and considers him a "deeply misunderstood" character. The actor found it "easy to rationalize what he did" because Dixon was at odds with how to start his own family as a vampire, and he maintains that the character had no evil intentions behind his actions. Humphreys hopes to one day return to the role.[5]
Filming
Principal photography took place in Vancouver, British Columbia.[8] The opening sequence was filmed outside at night, though the subsequent scene—Lucy's interrogation and execution—occurred in a motel set constructed on a sound stage.[1] Atypical to the series, the motel room did not have a noticeable theme. Production designer John Marcynuk commented, "That motel room was essentially a killing floor for the boys ... and it was kind of a cold interrogation scene, so we tried to keep it not so friendly. When you walked through it, it definitely felt like a place [where] a murder had been committed. It wouldn't have been the first time a murder had been committed in that room, either. It was the type of place where bad things happen."[9] Marcynuk took a different approach for Gordon's death scene, utilizing green tones and a cool color palette to create a greater visual contrast with the blood.[10]
Effects
To lend a strong air of realism to Gordon's death, the scene was created by combining various special effects during filming with post-production visual effects. Plastic razor wire with blood tubing aided in the initial phases of the decapitation; it would slightly sink into Brown's neck as pressure was applied, forcing out the fake blood. For the aftermath, Brown laid down on the floor, and the visual effects department removed his head from the shot and recreated it as a three-dimensional model. The department decided to "push it a little bit farther" by having the head rocking into place and the mouth twitching,
Music
The synthesized orchestral score of the episode was written by Christopher Lennertz.[10][12] He feels that "people associate the sound of violins with vampires" due to the "connection with Eastern Europe and counts", and thus used a "very violin-heavy" score for the episode, avoiding woodwinds, brass, and piano.[10]
Reception
Critical response
In its original broadcast, "Fresh Blood" was viewed by an estimated 2.88 million viewers.[13] The episode received generally positive reviews from critics. Tina Charles of TV Guide praised the episode, commenting that "it was really nice to get an enjoyable episode high on intensity, brotherly interaction, blood and gore". Although she had grown a "tad bit weary" of the character's continuous attempts to kill Sam, she was still "really sorry to see Sterling and Gordy go". Charles felt that his transformation was a "good twist", and liked that his "black-and-white beliefs" remained the same even after becoming a vampire. She also enjoyed the character of Lucy and her "really sad" ending, and wished that McNab's role had been larger. It was noted that the "brotherly interaction was front and center", and Charles was "beyond happy" that Sam confronted Dean about his behavior. The "moment that [she had] been waiting for all season long" finally came to be when Dean took Sam seriously and actually listened to him instead of replying with sarcasm. Charles also deemed the final scene with the brothers to be "just heartbreaking".[14] Likewise, Karla Peterson of The San Diego Union-Tribune not only gave the episode an A+,[15] but ranked it as the sixth-best episode of the 2007-2008 television season.[16] She praised writer Sera Gamble and director Kim Manners for "creating the best bonding scene we've had all season", and lauded Padalecki and Ackles for "making us care so much and believe so fully that a scene like this can leave us gasping".[15]
Brett Love of
Analysis
Recalling the demon Azazel's comments about the recently resurrected Sam in the episode "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part Two"—that what came back may not be "one hundred percent pure Sam"—Don Williams of BuddyTV questioned if something really is wrong with Sam. Williams added Gordon's death to his list of Sam's recent out-of-character actions, which already included Sam's brutal execution of Jake Talley in "All Hell Breaks Loose, Part Two" and his killing of the Crossroads Demon in "Bedtime Stories". However, he did point out that both characters "kind of deserved to bite the dust".[20] Peterson, too, noted the "cold, dead look in Sam's eyes" after the killing.[15] On the other hand, Padalecki posited that the "darker side of Sam" was depicted when he killed Gordon "with pure hatred", but reasoned that Sam was thinking, "He's a vampire! He's killing people; it's time for him to go."[5]
References
General
- Knight, Nicholas (2009). Supernatural: The Official Companion Season 3. Titan Books. ISBN 978-1-84856-103-8.
Specific
- ^ Titan Magazines: 44–46.
- ^ "Supernatural Creator Eric Kripke Answers Fan's Questions – Part II". Eclipse Magazine. Archived from the original on August 18, 2010. Retrieved May 25, 2008.
- ^ Titan Magazines: 45.
- ^ a b c Knight, p.49
- ^ a b c Knight, p. 50
- ^ Knight, pp. 48–49
- ^ "Bad Day at Black Rock". Writer: Ben Edlund, Director: Bob Singer. Supernatural. CW. October 18, 2007. No. 3, season 3.
- ISBN 978-1-84576-535-4.
- Titan Magazines: 50–52.
- ^ a b c d Knight, p. 51
- ^ a b c Supernatural season 3 DVD featurette "From Legends to Reality" (DVD). Warner Home Video. 2008.
- ^ Larson, Randall D. (July 27, 2006). "The Supernatural Music of Christopher Lennertz". Mania. Archived from the original on July 2, 2009. Retrieved September 27, 2009.
- ^ "Supernatural Ratings 2007–2008". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on January 29, 2010. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ Charles, Tina (November 16, 2007). "Fresh Blood". TV Guide. Archived from the original on May 24, 2009. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
- ^ a b c Peterson, Karla (November 16, 2007). "Supernatural: Fresh Blood". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on February 25, 2012. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
- ^ Peterson, Karla (June 2, 2008). "Ten best episodes". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on September 2, 2014. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
- ^ Love, Brett (November 16, 2007). "Supernatural: Fresh Blood". TV Squad. Archived from the original on March 15, 2009. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
- ^ Pyle, Julie (November 16, 2007). "Review: 'Supernatural' – Fresh Blood". Airlock Alpha. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
- ^ Ryan, Maureen (August 19, 2009). "Thoughts on 'Supernatural' and what you need to know before Season 5 begins". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 23, 2010.
- ^ Williams, Don (January 25, 2008). "Supernatural: What's Wrong with Sam?". BuddyTV. Retrieved May 25, 2010.
External links
- Official website
- "Fresh Blood" at IMDb