Supernatural season 6 episode 20 review: The Man Who Would Be King

This review contains spoilers.

6.20 The Man Who Would Be King

This time in Supernatural, Sam, Dean and Bobby are trying to track down Crowley. Sam and Bobby are unsure if Castiel is to be trusted, but Dean still feels that Castiel is on their side.

In Heaven, Castiel seeks guidance from God and reveals the events that led to the civil war with Raphael and to making a deal with Crowley.

Still, I’m very much undecided about this episode. There are things I like, things I feel could be explained better and one thing that irks me, as it does every time it happens in Supernatural.

What I find irksome is the deal between Crowley and Castiel. Castiel is an angel who is supposed to have powers and understanding beyond man. Crowley is a demon. A manipulative, evil entity who is only out for himself. As soon as Crowley starts speaking to him, Castiel should be thinking, “Hang on. This is a demon. It’s bound to end badly.”

I do appreciate the position Castiel is in and do recognize this isn’t the usual demon deal, as Castiel doesn’t have a soul, but I find it annoying that, after all the various deals and demons we’ve seen in Supernatural over the years, once again a character is trusting a demon and seemingly taking him at his word.

And it’s the currency of the deal that I felt could be explained better. The souls equal power and it seems that a good soul is just as powerful as a bad soul. Crowley gives Castiel some souls as a down payment, as it were. Does this mean that these souls were let out of Hell and let into Heaven? And when Castiel has access to Purgatory, will the souls of all the various creatures be allowed into Heaven as well? And again, the number of souls Crowley gives Castiel seems a very small number compared to the whole of existence.

However, I do think this episode explains Heaven brilliantly. Portraying Heaven on a television series or a film is always difficult to do if you want to do the concept of Heaven justice. And I feel that Supernatural has done it justice with a very clever and simple solution. I also love the idea of Castiel having a favourite Heaven and feel the way the episode deals with Castiel’s plight and seeking advice from it works incredibly well.

The crux of this episode is what has led Castiel down this path, and when I heard Castiel’s side of the story, I still felt sympathy for the character, but at the same time sharing in Sam and Dean’s disappointment and sense of betrayal. Misha Collins, as ever, portrays the role superbly and clearly makes this episode very much Castiel’s episode.

It was very interesting seeing Castiel and Raphael together. With Castiel, a character usually so powerful almost at the mercy of another, you can see why he was willing to take such desperate measures against Raphael.

Now that the civil war has been explained in greater detail, and knowing what’s at stake, it’s clear that Castiel is not the villain of the piece, but has simply become misguided, possibly manipulated by Crowley?

And speaking of Crowley, it does seem odd that a demon of his calibre has told the Winchesters and Castiel what he wants Purgatory for. Surely, he would have kept the real details of his schemes to himself?

Now the sixth season is heading into the finale and I really don’t know who will be left standing at the end. Can’t wait.

Read our review of episode 19, Mommy Dearest, here.