Supernatural Season 13 Episode 7 Review: War of the Worlds

This Supernatural review contains spoilers.

Supernatural Season 13 Episode 7

This season’s episodes like to start going in one direction and then take a left turn. This is a compliment, being that I felt I had the Supernatural formula down pat. A little surprise goes a long way when you’re this deep into a show’s mythology.

Asmodeus’ character is finally more developed in this episode, where he got a few scenes to sink his teeth into. The fourth and final Knight of Hell is one personified by a suave, charming and gentile Southerner, complete with drawl and all. His plantation owners’ suit is out of touch with the times, but he’s cool and confident in his power. We needed a unique “big bad” after seeing our boys go toe-to-toe with the likes of the Devil, the Apocalypse and the anti-God herself. After a bit of a lull with the British Men of Letters who didn’t always seem menacing enough, I think we found our unique bad guy. 

It’s so wonderful to have Mark Pelligrino back in this fan-favorite role, and boy did he steal every scene he was in. I think it’s his casual sense of humor in everything he does. Even when Lucifer’s at his lowest point, held captive and tortured by the alternate universe Michael, he’s making quips about getting a latte.

Lucifer also has, dare I say, a touch of sensitivity. The episode opens up with beautiful landscapes and imagery with Lucifer narrating a bit about God’s creation. He voices his usual complaint, about how his Dad up and left, but also with a bit of respect in what he created. He’s not nearly as bitter as he used to be. And when he meets the twitchy alternate Kevin (KEVIN!) he seems almost genuinely interested in keeping the boy out of the wrong hands.

This episode took some unexpected detours from the usual formula. I expected Sam and Dean investigating the witch murders and finding Mr. Ketch maybe at the end of the episode, and the B-story would have been Lucifer stuck in the alternate world. The speed at which events took place here ramped everything up. So much happened that it could have fit in two episodes, yet it didn’t feel rushed.

I could have watched Castiel and Lucifer interact all episode. I love their dynamic. Most of this takes place in a dimly lit bar which later became the scene of violence from Asmodeus’ crew. It was a great set; moody, yet colorful with splashes of blood red on the chairs and other furnishings. The color scheme was a cue that things wouldn’t stay calm for long.

The Mr. Ketch storyline also did not go the way I was suspecting. I didn’t buy the twin thing (neither did Dean) but I was assuming this might be the alternate universe Ketch. Instead, he actually was the guy that Dean killed – except Ketch had used Rowena’s get-out-of-death-card. Cheater! But then again, who really dies on Supernatural? Extras, unnamed demons and angels mostly.

Which brings us to another fascinating mythology fact: the angels are going extinct. I have been wondering for seasons how many angels there could be when they just kill each other left and right. Demons I get, more are dragged to Hell all the time through deals and the odd unfortunate soul who wore white after Labor Day. But angels were only created by God, so when do we run out? It makes sense the remaining angels would be interested in boosting their numbers, but spells bad news for whatever levels of desperation they’ll get to in order to control Jack.