Supernatural season 6 episode 8 review: All Dogs Go To Heaven

This review contains spoilers.

6.8 All Dogs Go To Heaven

Again, another busy episode. This time, the demon Crowley instructs Sam and Dean to investigate a mysterious animal attack in the hope of catching an Alpha Werewolf. Realising that they have no alternative, the brothers reluctantly do Crowley’s bidding, but as they pursue the case, they find that the attacker isn’t quite what they thought.

Personally, I really enjoyed this episode, especially the reveal of the attacker. When the episode started, obviously it was a set up so that you, the viewer, were expecting a werewolf and that wouldn’t have been a bad thing. After all, it’s a classic monster for a reason. But at the same time, it would be another werewolf story, so you would expect the usual things.

This episode handles these preconceptions greatly, and when the actual attacker shows themselves for what they are, you could almost hear the Supernatural team saying ‘You didn’t expect that, did you?’

And that is what I felt this episode was really about. It was widely acknowledged before this season started that the show was heading back to the monster-of-the-week format, and that is what this episode essentially is. But the rules have changed.

Being on Crowley’s leash certainly adds tension for Sam and Dean. Obviously, Sam being soulless, he doesn’t really care as long as he’s doing something. But his speech at the end of the episode does feel very heartfelt and genuine, and I found myself feeling a lot more sorry for him than I previously had.

Up until that point in, it’s been easy to write him off as not really Sam, so why should you care about him? Which, with regards to Dean, would almost be the easy option. If he could get rid of Soulless Sam, Crowley would have no hold over him, and he could do what he wanted. And once Sam had revealed he wasn’t quite right, it gave Dean the justification for not treating Sam like his brother. With Sam’s cry for help it firmly puts one of Supernatural’s strongest elements back at it’s core: Dean looking after his baby brother.

The bigger plan of the monsters is trying to turn many all at once, and the rules changing about werewolves also add questions. Are the monsters becoming more powerful? Do they know of Crowley’s plans for Purgatory, and is this spurring them into action? With Crowley calling the shots, it does seem too much of a coincidence not to have something to do with him.

I also think having Crowley as the big bad is great. Mark Sheppard seems to take real delight in the role, and the scenes where Crowley plays off against Dean are becoming more and more of a highlight to each show.

The vicious streak Crowley shows this episode also does well to remind the viewer just what he is and how great it will be to see him get what he deserves… Read our review of episode 7, Family Matters, here.

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