Supernatural Review: Rock Never Dies (Season 12 Episode 7)
What has hair rock, vegetable water, cell phone games that are SO five years ago, and the worst nemesis ever?
That would be Supernatural Season 12 Episode 7, “Rock Never Dies.”
Though, to be quite honest, this episode makes me wish it would.
Supernatural gets a lot of passes from me – even when episodes aren’t masterpieces, there’s still something enjoyable about them that redeems the hour. I’m scratching my brain, trying to think of something enjoyable to say about this one, but I’m coming up empty.
Sorry, Winchesters. Can we still be friends?
Let’s just get into it.
For weeks, all I’ve wanted was to have the gang back together.
I get my wish – Lucifer is back in his Vince Vincente meat suit, because Rowena didn’t do quite a great job of destroying him after all, and the Winchesters, finally reunited with Crowley and Castiel, are going in search of him to finish the job of destroying the fallen angel.
Because it’s that easy? It’s not like we haven’t devoted seasons to understanding how complex of a task it is to take down the Devil himself.
Here’s the big problem with this entire scenario, and what it means to the future of Supernatural: Lucifer isn’t scary anymore. Not even a little.
When the writers took on the task of integrating Lucifer full time into the Winchesters’ story, they failed to remember Lucifer 101: he’s the freaking devil.
He’s not supposed to be a comical watered-down (or should I say, washed up?) rock star. He’s not meant to play a game of cat and mouse with the Winchesters that makes me think more of Tom and Jerry than anything meanacing.
Lucifer TORTURED Sam and Dean. He’s supposed to be the one constant frightening and unsettling figure in the Winchesters’ world – the ultimate Big Bad to end all Big Bads.
Instead, we see Lucifer acting more like a Buffy the Vampire Slayer one-off villain, asking his victims to give him blood sacrifices, as the Winchesters do their best to get everyone out of the club before he plays on stage at the Bronze. (Oh, wait – it wasn’t actually the Bronze? You could have fooled me.)
Listen, I love seeing Sam and Dean in fun clothes, joking around about cucumber water, and historical podcasts – but the underlying problem nags at me so much that I can’t enjoy the fun parts of the hour.
Because if we see Lucifer like this, all the time, he’s just not Lucifer anymore.
Even the big fight is a letdown – it turns into a Lucifer therapy session, as Sam and Dean listen to Lucifer confess what I’ve feared would be the case all along.
Lucifer doesn’t have a master plan.
In fact, he’s still just angry with God for abandoning him, yet again.
At this point, Supernatural may as well go the Lucifer route – reform the Devil and have him solve mysteries with the Winchesters. Anything has to be more interesting than this very flawed interpretation of a character that was once brilliant.
Sam and Dean are confident that they can stop Lucifer – I am too.
Because let’s just admit it: it’s TOO easy now.
What did you think of this episode of Supernatural? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Supernatural airs Thursdays at 9/8c on The CW.
Christine Laskodi
Christine is guilty of watching Hart of Dixie more times than the average human will in their lifetime. She's the host of Long Live the Hart: A Hart of Dixie Podcast (available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify!) as well as co-host on The Shipping Room, a podcast devoted to television's greatest relationships. You can find some of her older television reviews at TV Fanatic and IGN. Christine eagerly anticipates every cheesy holiday movie that networks can throw at her, and current favorite shows include The Good Place, The Resident, Shark Tank, and All Rise.