Recap of Supernatural
Season 4, Episode 4:
Metamorphosis
Written by Cathryn Humphris.
Directed by Kim Manners.
Air Date: October 9, 2008.
Dean catches Sam in the act of using his powers, exorcising a demon with his mind. He's not overly thrilled about this, but before they can have a big fallout, Sam's phone rings. It's Travis, another hunter, who wants help tracking down a rugaru in Carthage, Missouri
. Rugarus look like normal people until they get really hungry and eventually turn to cannibalism. It's genetic. Travis killed this rugaru's dad, but lost the kid, Jack Montgomery.
The Winchesters have different ideas on how to deal with it. Sam reckons they can't kill him until he gives them reason to— innocent until proven guilty and all that. Dean reckons they should deal with the problem before the body count piles up. Meanwhile, Travis discovers that Jack's wife is pregnant, which means the cycle is gonna start all over again. He attempts to burn them both and get it over with. Doesn't work out too well for him. Jack eats him and goes full-on monster mode.
Sam and Dean arrive, and he manages to lock Sam in a closet and stares at unconscious Dean, trying not to eat him. Just as he is giving in, Sam bursts out and burns him alive. Kill It with Fire indeed. Dean is duly grateful, and later manages to say that though he doesn't have demon blood, he'll be there for Sam.
Body count
For this episode = 1 human and 1 rugaru.For the series so far = At least 268 humans (of which 3 were witches), 14 demons, 24 ghosts, 10 vampires, 6 changelings, 3 gods, 2 shapeshifters, 2 werewolves, 1 crocotta, 1 djinn, 1 rakshasa, 1 rawhead, 1 shtriga, 1 wendigo, 1 zombie, 1 rugaru, and 1 dog.
Tropes
- Big Eater: Jack, the rugaru.
- Body Horror: One of the signs of Jack turning is his bones painfully shifting and moving of their own accord under his skin.
- Heroic Willpower: Jack tries hard to resist the urge to kill and eat Dean. His hunger eventually begins to overcome his control, but it lasts long enough for Sam to break out of the closet and kill him just before he succumbs to the hunger.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Jack succumbs to his Rugaru nature willingly to protect his wife and unborn child from Travis.
- History Repeats: Jack grew up without a father because Travis killed his father after he turned but didn't realize that his mother was pregnant. Travis seeks to finish the job with Jack, but decides to kill Michelle as well when he learns she's pregnant too. Unfortunately, Jack ends up dying and Michelle ends up escaping, suggesting a repeat of the events down the line with another hunter.
- Horror Hunger: Jack tries very, very hard not to eat humans. He actually does a remarkable job of it, until Travis threatens to burn his pregnant wife. Alive.
- I Can Explain: Sam says this when Dean finds out Sam's using his psychic powers.
- I'm a Humanitarian
- I Never Said It Was Poison:Sam: It's just, our parents. And now we find out our grandparents too? Our whole family murdered, and for what? So Yellow Eyes could get in my nursery and bleed in my mouth?Dean: Sam, I never said anything about demon blood.
- Internal Reveal: Dean finds out about Sam using his psychic powers to exorcise demons and that Sam has known for a while about Azazel bleeding into his mouth as a baby. He's not pleased to find out that Sam kept both things from him.
- In the Blood: Being a rugaru is a genetically hereditary condition. Jack came about because Travis didn't know his mother was pregnant, and his wife Michelle is pregnant with his kid which is why Travis decides to take her hostage to kill them both.
- Kill It with Fire: The only way to stop a rugaru.
- Karmic Death: Travis spends a lot of time goading Jack to turn and attack him, which Jack actually keeps under wraps very well despite some near slip-ups. However, when Travis eventually escalates to kidnapping him, his wife and unborn child with the intent of burning them all alive. Jack then proceeds to give in willingly to his monstrous nature, breaks his bonds and kills him in short order.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Jack's doing well at not eating human flesh until Travis chains Jack up with his wife and threatens to burn them both alive. Even then he barely manages to keep it together... then Travis informs Jack that his wife is pregnant.
- The Nicknamer: Dean refers to Castiel as Cas for the first time, indicating their growing closeness.
- Papa Wolf: The event that leads Jack to fully turn is when Travis ties them up with plans on killing both of them. He begs him to kill him but let his wife go, but after Travis reveals that she is pregnant possibly with another potential Rugaru, he goes berserk, breaks free and takes a chunk out of his throat.
- Plot Parallel: It's easy to see why Sam is defending Jack and desperately wants to believe that someone born as a "monster" can have the willpower to resist their dark urges. While Jack struggles with craving human flesh, Sam is still afraid of turning into whatever Azazel had intended and wants to believe that using his demon blood powers does not make him a bad person. By the end of the episode, Jack has succumbed to his rugaru nature and needs to be killed. So both Sam and the viewer are left wondering what that says about the demon blood issue... By the end of the season, we will see that Sam doesn't have the willpower to refrain from using his powers, either. Which causes a lot of damage.
- The Power of Love
- The Secret of Long Pork Pies: Referenced in the episode when Travis explains what Rugarus eat and why they need to be killed.
- Then Let Me Be Evil: Jack tries very hard to suppress the proclivities of his monstrous side and to live as a normal human. However, Travis refuses to believe this can be done and continually goads Jack. When Travis kidnaps and threatens Jack's wife and unborn child, Jack decides to show Travis how truly monstrous he can be.
- Tragic Monster: Jack. Even though he's a monster, it's hard NOT to feel sorry for the guy.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: Travis who wants to kill Jack even though he hasn't done anything yet since he's seen how much of a monster Travis' father was and believes that he made a mistake in letting Jack live as a baby. He eventually decides to kill Jack and his wife who his carrying his unborn baby by noting that he likely wont be around in another twenty years to stop Jack's child.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: The fate of the pregnant widow is left unknown.
