Extracts from "Leaping to Infinity Unofficial and Unauthorized Articles and Essays on Quantum Leap" Book

                                         
Below are some extracts from my Leaping to Infinity Unofficial and Unauthorized Articles and Essays on Quantum Leap book which some of you may find interesting, or not.  Thought it was about time someone recalled the show especially since it has been 20 years since it ended and was given some more coverage!  I loved the show and I'm sure many of you out there did too and still do.

Sam As Hero

Sam gave up his own life and in the process ended up having to save others.  Emphasis on ‘having to’ since this wasn’t his dream.  Unlike HG Wells’ character of the Time Traveller in The Time Machine who was able to return to his own time, he saw the best and worst of humanity but not change it.  Sam could not return.  As Sam tells Al in Catch A Falling Star he has a life; so what about his life?  He can’t live it but has to live for others; through others, vicariously.  This could be deemed his sacrifice.  He’s doomed to travel throughout time and never have his own existence.

Would this confer him as a hero figure much unlike Sidney Carton in A Tale of Two Cities, which begins: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...” and ends on a completely different note.  As if the “worst of times” was a foreboding of the bad that was to come.  The book ends with “It’s a far, far better thing I do than I have ever done…”
To carry on helping people takes a certain strength of character when Sam could have given up so many times and he displayed this in many of his leaps Including Watts Riots ep, Black On White On Fire.
Though in Revenge of the Evil Leaper and Killin’ Time, Sam attempts to tell people who he really is which is a mammoth task initself, except for the psychic who already knows in Leaping in Without A Net episode.  He tries to change his family’s life in The Leap Home Part 1 but fails miserably as Al tells him, he’s making their lives miserable.  He’s forced to say he made everything up, i.e. the future and being able to see it.  Leap Home Part 2 Vietnam.

Sam as hero is compassionate and supportive.  Independent as far as he could be within the tasks he was given.  But was independent in terms of free will and free spirit.  That independence could to an extent signify this drive, to do right, obsessed to a certain degree with the need to make the world better.  Emphasis on world and not just one person at a time.  Sam is perfect and had what is known as character flaws.  Anger at the cards fate has dealt him, where his own life and family were concerned.  Yet also for those he had to save and some he couldn’t.
Reluctant hero?  No.  Rebellious nature? Yes and maybe sometimes stubborn in that he will cling to what he feels is right and the best thing to do, even though that’s not in the ‘future’ or history.  Nothing is set in stone, least of all character traits, which are always changing and evolving...


Sam As Our Mirror Image

Scott: “Sam’s still out there doing good deeds…we all have a chance to live in everybody else’s shoes everyday and experience and offer everybody a hand everyday – that’s why the show still resonates with people.”

Thus the idea that Sam is in all of us.

His purpose was to prove Time Travel theory and in doing so created an experiment which remains top secret.  Not intended to save the world – Sam ended up doing exactly that.  Well not really the world as Al tells him in the Dr Ruth episode, only to make a difference; an impact in peoples’ lives.  (So maybe they can go on to save the world.)

Sam is the cute guy from all our dreams with gorgeous green eyes and great hair.  Like a character from a comic book, a superhero.  A loner as he’s often described.  Sam is noble, heroic, the do-gooder we all want to have on our side – rooting for us in our corner.

He’s the perfect son who was there for his family but not when his father lost the farm, but that wasn’t his fault.  He wasn’t a brat, but a great brother who wanted to save his brother, Tom. Which he did? And he carries the guilt around for not being able to save his sister, Katie from the abusive husband she marries.  In that sense, Sam is the prodigal son.  Brought up to care.  He’s the genius, the doctor with so many degrees and expert on foreign languages.

You could call him the poster boy of science as he reminds Al several times he’s a scientist.  Sam is a geek, has a photographic memory.  For all his nerd-y-ness and that’s a plus, he’s also a rebel with a cause.  It’s the leap that’s of concern.

His memory ironically turns to Swiss cheese when he leaps.  Sam is a sinner, a scoundrel, a saint.  Each one of his leaps is when he encounters some aspect of these traits on every new journey.

Sam is careful, way smarter than average and the vain jock and jerks at college.  He’s lonely and alone; afraid yet brave.  Some of the time he needs saving, guidance in the right direction from Al.  Sam is the son who left home early, went to college, made an impact.  Fell in love with Donna at college, but couldn’t have her even after he met up with her in a leap.  He sometimes finds life...

Alice in Wonderland In QL

In Starlight Starbright, Meadows says, “Alice in wonderland’s coherent too, but that doesn’t mean I believe in grinning cats who disappear.”  Reference was made to this in the show.  Alice’s journey in Wonderland is akin, almost parallel to Sam and his leaping.

Alice follows the White Rabbit and this is seen as a guide who appears several times to explain the story when things seem to slow down or when not much is happening.  Alluded to Al - he's a "guide" - an observer.  Someone who is there to offer Sam not only guidance, but tell him what he has to do to save the leapee; as well as what the story or the plot for that particularly episode involves.  The flaw is that the white Rabbit keeps looking at his clock and can't provide much help or guidance.  He's only concerned with himself, about himself.  Al has his handlink and communicates with Ziggy but his entire purpose is there to help Sam, never mind getting bogged down in his own life or personal machinations.  Though he does offer his viewpoint irrespective of whether or not Sam wants it.  Especially if it involves a lustful comment about a beautiful woman with a pair of...lovely eyes!  Also Al does mention his own personal woes and dilemmas sometimes.  Such as MIA where the leap was not about him, contrary to him wanting it to be and ensuring he might be able to make it all about himself...

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde In QL

Again in Starlight Starbright, Al once again refers to Hardy and Meadows as “Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.”
Though this may not exactly appeal to many, after recently reading The Curious Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, I found there were many allusions to Quantum Leap.  Manifesting themselves most apparently in the character of Dr Henry Jekyll.  He is by nature a good man, a scientist and a doctor.  Remind you of Sam?  Thus far, yes. He has friends who he invites to dinner where they converse about science, religion and literature.  However, Jekyll harbours a dark secret of wanting to be 'evil’ and dark in his character and nature.  This is where the similarity ends, but Sam wanted to use his scientific knowledge for time travel and he wanted to do good.

When Sam leaps, he does so into many different, varied and obscure people: some good, some bad.  Yet he comes across both good and evil in most all of his leaps.  God is good.  Sam believes in God, but not in the devil, even though evil exists.  Even after Al tells him the devil is real: look what happened to Al and Beth, for starters.  Also Sam's own encounter with the devil.  Men are both good and evil...

SO if any of this has whetted your appetite then you can get the book here:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Leaping-infinity-Unofficial-unauthorized-articles/dp/1291438289/ref=pd_rhf_gw_p_t_1_C6DD

CSI 11.7 "Bump and Grind" Review

                                                
The team investigate the shredded remains of a human body and broach the subject of ID theft, when they come across a company which specializes in ID protection.

A gruesome, gut-wrenching opening (no pun) as a tortured man is fed some soup which contains shredded credit card.   Ray (Laurence Fishburne), Nick (George Eads) and Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) are called to a CS where the truck driver reported something oozing from his truck.   Ray tests the ooze which turns out to be blood.   Ray comments on 666 being the call sign for suspicious ooze, the 'primordial variety' after Nick asks what the call sign is for this.   Ray was also thinking of buying a cappuccino machine, which he says after the truck is opened to reveal shredded rubbish and DB parts, identified by Nick.   Ray comes across a bit of a shredded credit card and Brass finds a human eye.  "Here's lookin' at you kid."

The driver works for a disposal company, where the manager, Tom is questioned.   The plant shreds all kinds of material, but maintains a body couldn't have been disposed or fallen in due to surveillance cameras.   Greg (Eric Szmanda) corrects him by adding anyone could have disposed of the body by putting it in the shredding bins, used to dump material into the shredder itself, beforehand.   Greg: "A good way to go if disposing of a dead body."  Nick finds human parts inside the shredder.

Sara (Jorga Fox), Hodges (Wallace Langham) and Greg sort through the rubbish collected in the shredder truck, after an 'intense' (ha) face-off involving Rock, Paper, Scissors, which Sara loses with scissors and so has to collect the "yuck."  Sara tells Hodges she knows how he feels not being able to get over Wendy (Liz Vassey) yet, "two ships passing, takes a while for the fog to clear." Greg suggests Hodges should get out more and Hodges thinks he means with him, so begins his calling Greg, 'G'.

Doc Robbins (Robert David Hall) notices Catherine's (Marg Helgenberger) in a good mood and Catherine knows Hodges blabbed about her and Vartann (Alex Carter.)  Doc tells her he's a good man.   Doc describes the DB as a "puzzle" (groan) he'll have to put together.   But he deduced from the bacterial decomposition of the DB that it was dead 36-48 hours DBS, i.e.  Dead Before Shredded.   The skull has a bullet fragment lodged inside, so COD was a gunshot wound to the head.   Greg also found bullet fragments in the shredder waste.

Ray receives a note from Nate Haskell (Bill Irwin) saying, "Thinking of you  XO Nate" and a kidney bean, which angers Ray and he throws the note away, dropping the bean to the floor.   Sara tells him about the credit card Greg found and asks if he's okay, picking up the bean.   Sara smells but he won't tell her that.   Ray's okay.   He doesn't find it easy to open up and when he eventually does, in the past, it's usually been to Nick; who seems to understand Ray, in that respects they are similar as he can tell when something's wrong with Ray and vice versa.

Greg discovers the DNA belongs to an unidentified white male.   Hodges finds pieces of a credit card inside the Vic's stomach contents which consisted of a last meal of clam chowder.   Greg immediately thinks of an old Bond movie, "can't pay up, eat up." He puts together pieces of the card to find the magnetic strip is still there and puts it through the card reader.   Since Nick says the strip has the holder's name printed on it, several times over.   It comes up with a Larry Lamotte, whom Greg recognizes as being from the  ID Preserve ads.   A company selling ID protection.   Greg was a new subscriber, which coincidentally he had to be, otherwise no one would have known who he was, thus requiring more work from them.   Nick doesn't believe Greg would go for something like that, but he tells him ID theft's a common occurrence.

Ray and Brass talk with Elaine (Ginifer King) the executive assistant to Larry and also to Julius Kaplan (Brian Markinson) head of security.   Larry (Norbert Leo Butz) turns up.   Brass comments on him looking younger in the ads.  Since he's played by an actor, which immediately gives us a clue (for those who need it) that if he doesn't appear on his own TV ad then what's he hiding.   Also in an ironic, roundabout way, that Larry's ID has been assumed on the TV by an actor and so it's the same in real life too.   When Ray questions on whether his own credit cards have been stolen, thus providing him for a motive for killing whoever stole his ID, he remarks it's not conducive to waste resources on small fry.   Again this was about much more than money.   Larry asks Elaine for two subscription packages for Ray and Brass, discount for cops, yeah they're really gonna fall for it.   Ooh, sorry Greg did.

Nick informs Catherine of numerous  people accusing ID Preserve of having their IDs stolen after they subscribed and ended up in Nigeria.   One such Vic was Lee Devries (Karl Herlinger) who drove his truck through the company's window and brandished a gun.   He works for a Temp agency which provides workers for the shredding company.   Catherine is more interested in confronting Nick as to why he's not attending anymore therapy sessions.   He attended the mandatory two, but he's not comfortable talking about his feelings.   He's exercising and eating healthily, had to get in a food comment from Nick, following on from Greg saying he's always eating in the Blood Moon episode.   Does this mean he's given up his red meat and burgers!  It's not his 'thing' talking about himself.   Catherine would prefer he still went.   Seems strange for Nick, since he's not one to bottle up his feelings - as we've seen from past experience.   He always confronts them and does talk to his colleagues.   Perhaps he's just not happy sharing with a complete stranger.   Maybe we won't be getting anymore displays of feelings on Nick's part, which is a shame, cos George portrays Nick so excellently.

Brass questions Devries, did I  say questions, I meant interrogates, and he claims he doesn't know what Brass is asking him.  He has debts he can't pay off because his ID was stolen and he has an alibi, all six "people who are claiming to be me."  Greg goes over his own credit card record and rues signing up with ID Preserve.   Hodges tells him about science camp and his friend not being the person he thought he was, when he gave him a haircut.   Greg interjects this isn't the same thing.   Greg finds another fragment in the mix, a tarnished old bullet.   As Hodges puts it, 'an older fragment from a different gun  but found in the same Vic'.   Greg explains the "body's defensive mechanism encapsulates the fragment tissue to protect from infection."  But there's nothing to identify the Vic, aka Shredder guy.

All of the waste has been traced back to ID Preserve by Sara, who use a sub-contractor to supply the bins used for shredding and that company is run by Kaplan.   Blood traces are found in one of the shredder bins, placing Kaplan as a suspect.   Greg informs Catherine of the credit card being mailed to New Mexico, records showing a ticket was bought to Reno and finds a man on the surveillance camera, running him through facial recognition.   Sara and Nick arrive at Kaplan's and have to gain entry.   Nick finds cans of clam chowder as well as a gun.   Sara finds Kaplan shot out the back.   David (David Berman) says he was shot  back to front, the round exited out the front and Sara finds part of it on the ground.   Mentioning some baseball terminology which she attributes to Grissom (William Petersen) again he has to be mentioned for his upcoming episode.   There's also an odd void which turns out to be his beer bottle which fell into the pool when he was shot.   His neighbour had a surveillance camera across the street.

Brass ran prints from the bottle and they hit on a Julian Kirsch, Kaplan's real name.   He was a mob killer who made dinner for his Vics with ground up casino chips.   Elaine was there, cool as a cucumber!  Larry comments that "assuming someone's name is easy, assuming control of your life - that's hard."  Again another clue shouting out that Larry isn't Larry.   Nick says the gun he found, the Glock, killed Shredder guy and it has a history of being used in a shooting in Reno, six years ago.   The shot man walked out of the hospital and Nick has the cold case file.   The good thing about a cold case, as he says, 'technology catches up'.  Greg examines the fragments.

Catherine surmises Shredder guy is the same man who was shot and survived six years ago, returned here and met Kaplan who killed him.   Then Kaplan is killed.   Sara says Shredder guy was recognized by facial recognition as Larry Lamotte.   Recall his comment about taking over someone's life.   The prints on the cartridge Nick examined ID him as Arlo.   He wanted five million and so he paid Larry off.   Nick confirms Arlo's story about making a withdrawal.   Archie (Archie Kao) hits on the partial licence number spotted on the neighbour's footage, belonging to a car rented by Devries.   That would've been too easy, though he could've done with the money.   The car is found and stopped and is being driven by Elaine.   Not a big shock, she was the only one with access to info on everyone and privy to everything happening.   She doesn't care what she did, it was all about the money for her, for working and getting nothing in return, same old story then.

Hodges tells Catherine his 'mandate' was postponed and she asks if he got a haircut, Greg telling her everything he said, after he finds his card's been used in Nigeria.   Ray looks at his scar and opens up to Sara cos Nick went off for a drink without asking Ray!  She tells him not to let Nate get into his head, but too late, he's already there.   It took her a while to realize they should "not define who we are, we get to decide." Words of wisdom from Sara, but she should know after what she's been through.

A bit of a mish-mash of an episode in terms of the storyline, though ID theft is a common  problem in this day and age, the lengths that people went to cover it up was extreme, even for a CSI episode.

Scandal 2.12 "Truth or Consequences" Review

Two Years Ago it's election time and a man shows people how to use the touch screen voting machines in Ohio.  These being manufactured by Cytron.  He then replaces a machine with another.  This is Quinn's (Katie Lowes) dead boyfriend, Jesse (Adam Shapiro) aka Katie's real husband.  David (Joshua Malina) speaks with Hollis (Gregg Henry) and tells him he knows Hollis is part of the election rigging.  David will make a deal with him if he wants to save his neck but he leaves.
Two years ago Jesse asks Hollis for more money after finding out how much he will make billions in an oil pipeline deal.

Everything seems to come toppling down for Olivia (Kerry Washington) as the past catches up with her and the others involved in the vote rigging scandal.  Mellie )Bellamy Young) tries to get Cyrus (Jeff Perry) to make Fitz (Tony Goldwyn) change his mind about the divorce cos she made him who he is.  She rescued him from what his father did to Fitz and restored his spirit and she won't have Olivia taking that away from her.  Cyrus tells her he will handle it like he tells Olivia he will handle Hollis.  Olivia doesn't want to see Edison (Norm Lewis) cos she's despondent. Edison appeals to her "gladiators" to help her cos they know her better than him.  Olivia feels too overcome by the guilt of the past now, yeah only now when things seem to be out of her control and after Fitz recovers from being shot.

Fitz wants Cyrus into looking into the divorce and Fitz calls Olivia telling her to wait in accepting Edison as he's getting a divorce.  Cyrus warns him about how destructive that will be for him and the Presidency, since the Republicans will not accept someone with Olivia's "hue."   That's putting it subtly.

Quinn Says they've found their next client and decides they should come clean about everything they know without judging and she tells them how Huck (Guillermo Diaz) brought her to DC after drugging her since Olivia wanted him to help her.  Abby (Darby Stanchfield) tells them she was seeing David and two years ago Kate (Susan Pourfar) plants a bomb in a package and sends it to Jesse at Cytron.  She also makes sure Quinn knows he cheated on her with another woman and Quinn tells him he's dead.
Abby knows about the vote rigging and Harrison (Columbus Short) says this wasn't about Hollis and the pipeline and figures out it was about rigging the election.  Huck knew everything as he coughs and then sees Olivia.  Olivia tells him "it's being handled" in her usual way and Huck tells her Cyrus will handle it by getting Charlie (George Newbern) to kill Hollis.

Olivia tells Cyrus about coming clean and if they get caught out they will cos it's about justice.  Wherein Cyrus gives her some speech about them being magical and how as Santa they make people believe in them but if they find out the truth and the Republic is brought down they'll be crushing the people by telling them there's no Santa, or Easter bunny or tooth fairy.  Olivia needs to do this.

Olivia turns Hollis in and his office is raided but the only thing they find is the phone he used to call Kate. Olivia thinks if they can find the money trail where he used to pay off Kate for the shooting then they will have concrete proof.  Quinn thinks they can get Hollis's financial records from the computer that Jesse used, the one she spilled coffee on and had to get fixed.  Two years later it's still there.  Huck manages to find an offshore account and trace the payment he made to Jesse a day after the election.  To find if he paid off Kate they'll need her bank details.  So Huck and Harrison pretend to be her attorneys and Huck convinces her to reveal her bank account after he gives her his real name.  He says with the money he will hire a good lawyer so he'll be able to see her.

Huck traces the account but finds it wasn't Hollis who paid her to have Fitz shot.  Olivia tells David it wasn't him but he's already been released as he gets into a lift with Charlie.  Charlie just loves his lifts!  As he did in the season 1 finale when Billy Chambers was killed.  Cyrus shows Fitz his popularity will be down to 10 percent if he divorces Mellie especially now that she's having the baby. He tells Mellie to hatch a plan to keep him from divorcing her and she goes into premature labour with Fitz being called to her side to help deliver the baby.  Well that's one ploy that'll work.

Harrison tells Olivia he's there for her when she talks about her white hat being gone, but she's always had her white hat.  Knew the Hollis story had to have been too easy and someone else must have been behind the shooting.  Darn that's our suspect out the window then and he had a good motive too.  Guess they had to get to the bottom of this vote rigging scandal by now since we're over halfway through, just about and couldn't leave it hanging for much longer.  So starts the shooting storyline again just when we thought the killer was in the bag.

CSI 11.6 "Cold Blooded" Review

                                               
Nick and Greg look into the murder of a father, whose daughter went missing 5 years ago and Ray investigates a dead body found in the desert, with a little help from Hodges.
Ray (Laurence Fishburne) and David (David Berman) are called in after a DB is found in the desert.  Along with a nylon bag, containing styrofoam.   David finds a key chain on the Vic; who appears to have puncture marks on his back, which Ray points out are uniform in pattern, resembling bite marks.   Ray supposes the bitemarks are from "Godzilla."  Doc Robbins (Robert David Hall) comments on the monster on the loose.   COD is brain injury caused by sudden deceleration, such as a car accident.   There is perforated skin, muscle.  Hodges (Wallace Langham) can't resist getting involved in the investigation, after his analysis on the bag reveals what was found inside is used to construct simulated muscle.   Thus there are dinosaurs in town! Hodges wants to "go now, go now" in the words of the song.

For the first time, this season, CSI delves into two separate cases.  Nick (George Eads) and Greg (Eric Szmanda) investigate the death of the father, Phil Kohler (William R Moses) whose daughter was abducted and killed 5 years ago.   Det Reed (Katee Sackoff) surmises that the TOD was last night.   Nick tells her about his daughter being murdered 5 years ago.   Along with her friend Rachel.   Their bodies were never found.   Nick met Phil and his wife, Sharon (Marta Martin) who were divorcing now.   Greg finds no tearing around the wound, there are random powder burns around his face and the gun must have been held away from his head, which is strange for a suicide.   Also there's the presence of brunette hair.   His gold watch is missing.  (No, this isn't a case covered in  earlier seasons, as I remember them all, no really I do, all the episodes that is.)

Catherine (Marg Helgenberger) questions Sharon, who was the one who gave him the watch.   Coincidentally, she bought the watch as he was going to become a father, so the significance is obvious and poignant at the same time, especially in the flashback to come where he gives it to Carly.   Showing not only he's given up on finding Witney and therefore on closure, but that it might help Carly come to some closure in her life.   Also signifying his end was nigh.  That's a bit of a morbid thought.

Phil had an affair with Carly Beck (Jessica Hect) Rachel's mother, calling it "shared grief."  Greg conducts a 'distance determination' pattern, showing the gun was 36-48 inches from Phil's head when it was fired.   Phil's arm is 30 inches long.   Nick: "that's murder."  The hair is a match to Carly.   Reed apologizes for the remark she made at the house earlier on, as she's been working on her 'sensitivity ' before proceeding to break down the front door to Carly's house.   Yeah, that's sensitive.    Nick sees there are items missing from Rachel's room, as well as a computer and printer.   He finds a photo on the floor of a decomposed body.   Rachel had a grey sweatshirt on and Witney Kohler was wearing purple.   The photo is of Witney's remains.
Kyle (Brett Tucker) hot on the heels of his appearance in the opening episode of season 7 CSI:NY was rather over-doing his Aussie accent here!  Also he didn't turn out to be the killer again.   Hodges comments that one of the dinosaurs ate a man.   He also says they need to see some dinosaurs fight each other, to which Ray replies, no they don't.   Ray finds one dinosaur with blood on its teeth.   Henry (Jon Wellner) identified the logo on the Vic's keychain as being from the university's Paleontology programme.   The Vic's name was Brian ( Nate Hartley).  His fiance was also a student too.   Henry asks Ray to call if he needs help since Hodges called in sick, as we know to take photos with a dinosaur, on the sly!

In contrast to last week's episode, Nick here bats for Carly telling Catherine they don't know that she killed Phil and she couldn't have done it; when Catherine says she could have tried to extort money from Phil, or confronted him about the DB in the photo.  Nick believes Holt  killed the girls.   Nick tells Carly in a flashback to 5 years ago, that he goes out "110% on every case and only work with the evidence, and the evidence tells him only Witney was in the van."  He promises to do everything to help.

Doc's studied the photo and finds that she was probably killed 5 years ago but there's no way to tell how long the DB has been there.   Brass (Paul Guilfoyle) informs Nick that Holt's been in a coma after a suicide attempt.  Carly wrote him letters begging for him to tell her where Rachel is.   Greg enhanced the photo of Witney and saw billboards in the background.   Identifying these he was able to ascertain where that particular billboard is located.   Nick and Greg find Witney nearby.   COD was strangulation, 2 fingers were severed and an attempt was made to sever the third finger also.   The likely tool is a bandsaw.

Reed interviewed Holt's cousins to find his uncle had a place where Holt used to spend time.   Greg recalls how this case was his first week in the field and feels he should've done more to help.   Nick agrees that sometimes with certain cases you don't feel you are doing enough.   Nick spots a new shovel with a fibreglass handle amongst the old tools.   Greg finds a bag with the initial 'R' on the front.

Jane, (Nora Kirkpatrick) Brian's fiance tells Ray she went back to her dorm, Ray shows her footage of her pashing (to use the Aussie term for making out!) another boy, Travis (James Immekus).   The dinosaurs made her hot under the collar to put it mildly.  Ray conducts a test on Jelloman, by placing him in the mouth of a dinosaur's head, on loan from a colleague at university.   The bite from the T-Rex didn't cause Brian's wounds.   His injuries are more indicative of a fall, so he fell onto the lower teeth from a height.  Ray goes up on the lift and finds blue and yellow fibres in the dinosaur's mouth, similar to those from Brian's clothing.

Reed shows Catherine items Carly pawned for money and the watch.   She is chased and arrested when it's found Carly sold her car.   Nick finds a note in her bag from Holt.   He demanded $5,00 for a map for each girl, showing where he buried their bodies.  She was given the wrong map.   Brass rebukes her for leaving Witney in the desert without telling anyone.   She told Phil, but he wasn't interested and was about to call the police.   He gave her the watch to sell.   She got a call from a friend of Holt's asking for more money for the other map.   The map was sent to her 3 days ago.   Brass tells her Holt has been in a coma for 10 days.

Ray tells Travis he used his credit card to pay for tickets which wasn't very clever.   He knew Jane from before.   There was dirt on his tyres, prints on the control of the lift and blood in his car.   Travis admits it was an accident, Brian wanted a photo with the dinosaur, Jane knocked him off the lift and he fell into the mouth of the dinosaur before falling onto the floor.   All very convenient for Jane.   Ray asks what I was thinking, if it really was an accident, or she just didn't want Brian anymore.   (Remember the fiance is almost always guilty, like the one in the Blood Moon episode.)  She craved red meat and so got a burger on the way home.  She pretty much confirmed she killed him, when she lawyer-ed up.   The red meat being an analogy for Travis, since Brian was a herbivore and she didn't want him anymore.

Nick and Brass find the letter was sent from outside of prison.   Holt got a notepad and wrote to Carly and drew 2 maps.  Richter (Michael Bowman) found Holt and said there was no suicide note.   Nick, Greg and Reed go to Richter's house and Nick recovers part of the map before it's completely burned.   Richter wanted money, he watched Holt hang himself and killed Phil since he'd call the police.   Brass says he should have burned his shirt instead, since they found Phil's blood on it.   Hodges analyzed the shovel, so he got back in time to actually do some lab work!  To find evidence of seeds, soil,  which Greg followed up to a company who specifically used those in a specific area and finds the map led to an intersection.   Here they recover Rachel's remains and Nick has the unenviable task of informing Carly.

Such a different episode to last weeks as far as the Nick/Greg storyline went.   Nick had no compassion for the hoarder in last week's episode, even though she had also lost her daughter.   Infact, she lost 2 daughters, as one was a serial killer.  Yet he showed so much feeling and sympathy towards Carly now and 5 years ago.   Similar to Greg, who last week told Ray he couldn't stand the DBs, but this week he was okay.   Even though he did feel he should have done more back then.   Nick was right when he said he gave more than a 100% on each case, since it's in his nature to go the whole 9 yards, as shown by his meticulous dedication working on the map to finally give Carly closure.

Sara's (Jorga Fox) turn to be absent this week.   Catherine had very little to do for someone who is meant to be leaving soon.

Also why the addition of Katee Sackhoff (that's Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica to most people) when they've got Brass in the show, as it relegates the permanent cast members to bit parts when this happens.   It's okay when there are more cops needed, but Ray didn't have anyone helping him, other than Officer Mitchell (Larry Mitchell) and that was only in the beginning, so Brass wasn't being utilized anywhere else.

Supernatural 6.22 "The Man Who Knew Too Much" Review

                                             
Sam wakes having lost his memory and tries to avoid the police. Apparently his wall breaks and he comes across other versions of himself. Cas is on track with his plans to take the souls.

 Sam (Jared Padalecki) is being chased by the police and runs into an alley and a bar where he meets a bartender - Robin.  (Erica Cerra)  He can't recall his name.  "I don't remember anything."  He woke on the park bench and doesn't have time for a doctor as he needs to be somewhere to stop something important.   Sam's wall breaks as was expected since he got his soul back and now that finally happens.   Maybe that shouldn't be wall but levee.   Sam finds an HP Lovecraft book on the shelf.   Then has flashes where he he finds a hotel on a computer - where he's staying.

Robin goes with him.   Sam: "I could be anybody."  Ooh eerie echo of Meg's words from season 1 ep Scarecrow when she met Sam hitchhiking and said she could be some dangerous "freak." He had the room with the fire escape cos it's the quickest route for a getaway.   Room number 07, heading for season 7 of the show perhaps?  His room is filled with clippings, just like Dad used to do.  Jimmy Page is his fake ID, Angus Young, Neil Pert.  Ellie (Kim Johnston Ulrich) is found in an alley after she went missing, where she's dying.

Ellie could have handled the demon (Crowley) not the angel, Cas (Misha Collins).   She told the two about purgatory and they needed the blood of a purgatory native.   The moon and eclipse are tomorrow when purgatory can be opened.   Bobby (Jim Beaver) loses someone close again.  Cas apologizes.   Dean (Jensen Ackles) tells him he's lost the plot but he needs to stop Raphael.  Cas can save Sam when it's all over and only if they stand down.

Cas made Sam forget.   He remembers his name is Sam.   He was with two men and one was "a male model type" obviously another reference to Dean, his looks and Jensen's days as a model.   Sam has an address for Bobby in his diary - why would he have an address for him written down; when he knows the place and location.   He also has Dean's Impala.   Someone fires shots at them outside, it's Sam.

Dean meanwhile sits by Sam's side again as in 2.21/22, All Hell Breaks Loose, when Sam died and he was conflicted over what to do.   Here we now see that Sam's wall has definitely broken and he's in agony.   Dean's desperate to help him Bobby says they don't know what's happening in Sam's head and they can't afford to lose another man if Dean falls apart.   Sam smells whiskey.   Sam's locked inside his head.   Dean shines a light into Sam's eyes and it's day in his mind.   Great effect.

Sam finds weapons in the car and Sam wouldn't really be driving the Impala.   He goes in search of the Sam who fired at them.   That's soulless Sam.   "Am I really that gawky?"  He's dreaming.  Cas brought his wall down and Sam the "pathetic infant" shattered.   Hey he got that line from Dean when he called Cas a child.   He was strong without a soul.   "Souls are weak," says soulless Sam, who is shot by Sam.   There's another Sam.   The real one has a fit and recalls everything he did over the lat year.   Sam recalls Robin being held by a demon and he shot her to get the demon.   He's sorry, he was meant to care.

Balthazar (Sebastian Roche) turns up and calls them "mudfish."  Giving them Cas's location and he's decided to help them.   In the process he's betraying "a very powerful friend."  Who has lost his scruples and his marbles.   Anyway Cas has betrayed them too and he made the first move.   He needs half monster and half virgin blood and Crowley (Mark Sheppard) comments Cas looks "more constipated than usual."  Going back to what Dean said to him when he attempted to vanish in the episode when they were after Eve, Mommie Dearest, and he couldn't do it.    Cas is going back on the agreement - by demanding all the souls.   Crowley can leave or die.

Sam finds another one of himself in Bobby's kitchen.  the one from the cage.  "The one that remembers hell."  Dean leaves the address behind for Sam if he wakes up.   Sam knows he's at Bobby's and smells whiskey again and old spice.   Sam needs to know everything he did.   He can't leave Dean alone since it all comes down to family as always.   Sam is given a knife to end it all and his memories return.

Cas knows Dean's here, there's a Judas among them and he kills Balthazar.   So much for friendship in his blind quest, he didn't even blink.   As Dean said he's off the rails.   (Similar to what Dean said to Sam in season 4.19 Jump the Shark; "he's so far off the reservation" with his demon blood fest.)   Demon smoke attacks and Dean likens them to a T-Rex.   Courtesy of Crowley.   Cas's power doesn't work on him and he has a new partner, Raphael, (Lanette Ware) in a woman's body.   His new meat suit from season 6.15 The French Mistake.   Crowley says he's got "sweaty hands."

Cas will destroy him, obviously.   It's not real blood they have.   Raphael wants to be the new 'god.' Crowley repeats Cas's line of "flee or die."  Didn't they think of that.   The car's overturned outside and and nothing happens when Crowley chants.   Raphael catches Dean's knife.   Sam got here quickly and he has flashes of being tortured.

Cas returns with the proper blood and goes nuclear.   All that power - all in him.   Crowley "sounds sexy." Crowley makes a hasty exit since Cas has plans for him and Raphael is killed by Cas.  So just how many angels were left after this killing spree.

Cas is arrogant and he saved them.   They doubted him, fought him but he was right.   Dean wants him to return the souls where they belong before the eclipse ends.   They were family once.  "Before I'd have died for you - I did a few times."  Dean doesn't want to lose Cas and Cas thinks he's only saying that cos he won.  Sam stabs Cas but nothing happens - he's not an angel.   Cas: "I'm your new god."  He demands they bow before him or he'll destroy them.   - Er don't think so!

Parts of this episode was an anti-climax to the season which had its share of ups and downs as far as episodes were concerned.   It wasn't consistent as past seasons of the show.   We know Cas was going to succeed with opening purgatory one way or another  and that Crowley and Raphael were going to be powerless against him.   Cas has become even more arrogant of late so with that purgatory power trip, there was nothing else left left for him but to proclaim himself god.   He thinks no one can fight, challenge or destroy him now.   There's a danger in becoming too familiar and caught up in one's own greatness.   There'll always be someone out there who's better and more powerful

Sam's wall breaking was to be expected but  Cas's part in helping it along the way wasn't.   What's more  is Cas believes this would be a distraction for Dean, leaving  him free to charge ahead full speed with his plans.  His arrogance and paranoia (delusions of grandeur) is further shown by demanding all three kneel before him.   Had a flashback moment to Zod in Smallville  and his line of "kneel before Zod."  Sorry

As an avid fan  (who wrote a book on the show, not plugging here) but Supernatural did far better season finales than this and was a big letdown in terms of plot and cliffhanger, what cliffhanger? To think that the brothers and Bobby fought off every kind of monster and demon conceivable and possible, Azazel, Eve even, without any outside help and now they were stymied when it came to Cas.   A friend/ frenemy now and they knew all Cas's moves.   Especially since Dean taught  him how to be who he is, so he took this freedom way too far.

This episode's saving grace had to be the scenes with Sam, in my opinion.   Working out who he is with his memory loss; finding out he killed Robin in order to kill a demon when he was soulless and repenting for his past actions was the highlight.   Giving Jared a chance to play soulless, vindictive, guilty, sorrowful Sam and redeemed Sam all in one.   Finally meeting his dejected self from hell and the cruelty inflicted upon him by Lucifer and Michael was truly breathtaking and sad.   With Dean being helpless and unable to help once more.

Dean had his hellish moments as well in season 4 as he was made to torture in hell, which don't compare to Sam's ordeal (not to belittle Dean's experiences of hell) Sam's were of a different making and what made it worse was he had no soul when he returned and couldn't remember all of it, whereas Dean did.   At least Sam came to join in the fight at the end, not that there was much of a fight.

CSI 11.5 "House of Hoarders" Review

                                              
Nick, Sara and Greg discover bodies in a house where the owner hoards every item she ever came across, as a piece of her life. They believe her to be responsible for the murders of several boys, all buried in the garden.

Officer Mitchell (Larry Mitchell) and his partner are on a call out.   When they try to get into the house, they need to break the door down.   After several attempts, the door gives way to reveal the house if brim full of clutter and junk.   The owner, Marta Santiago (Bertila Damas) suffers from a hoarding obsession/disorder.   She was ordered by the court to clean out her house.   Nick (George Eads) asks Sara (Jorga Fox) how people can live like this.   Sara replies it's more like "somebody died like that."  Nick manages to find a DB when he puts his foot into the remains.   Greg (Eric Szmanda) jokes about Nick "stepping in it."   The body can't be moved until they clear a way for David (David Berman) to get in.   Marta is helped out of the room by Sara.   Marta's whole life is in this house as she tells Sara.   Also that she's living with 'ghosts'.   Marta notices Nick going through her things and loses her temper at him.

Greg is tasked with helping David remove the body from the house.   Doc Robbins (Robert David Hall) describes the Vic as being in her '20's.   COD was an epidural haematoma (blow to the head.)  Ray (Laurence Fishburne) comments her wound is akin to a barcode and if she was killed with something from the house, then it's still there.

Nick, Sara and Greg sift through the contents of the house.   Brass (Paul guilfoyle) attempts to track down other family members.   Sara notices blood drops and follows the trail.   Luminol won't show up so Sara suggests they use hydrogen peroxide, which will foam wherever there is any blood.   Nick thinks Marta killed Diana because she tried to clear the house and her mother hit her.   In much the same way as she got angry with Nick.   The blood trail leads to a grandfather clock.

 Sara talks to Julian (Ramon Ocampo) her son, telling him they're investigating a homicide.   Tears well in his eyes when she tells him it's his sister, Diana.   He's not aware of the whereabouts of his other sister, Alisa (Georgie Flores) but tells Sara how hard it was for them growing up in this house.

Dr Prescott (Annie Wersching) informs Ray that Marta doesn't have it in her to be violent.   She's a hoarder and hoards everything family orientated.   She didn't know about Diana and kept her body there for so long because she suffers from "clutter blindness." Marta's  level 5 on the scale of hoarding and so it's likely she would never have found her body.   Marta claims to have a bad memory, but when Dr Prescott tries to throw away her pen, Marta wants it since Diana used it.   Ray comments her memory is good for her to recall this.   He shows Marta the photos of the grandfather clock, which is an heirloom.   The blood belongs to Diana.   The blood trail goes on and leads to a pile of magazines and Greg identifies the barcode pattern on Diana's wound.

Marta tells them Diana found something when she was clearing up and things fell down.   She doesn't tell Ray what Diana found.  Presumably that was a DB then.   Greg accidentally knocks a gun which goes off, causing Nick and Sara to burst into laughter.  Nick commenting he's the one who stepped in it now.   The skeleton is that of a male - his hands were tied in front of him with a red coloured ribbon.   Nick and Sara have an altercation as to what Marta thought was more important - her home and not her family.   Sara believes she suffered a trauma.   Nick: "You can be traumatized, but still take out the damn trash." Very judgemental on Nick's part in not even attempting to understand Marta's compulsive hoarding and what could have caused it.   He's prejudicial to an extent, if her house had been spotless, he'd be more inclined to agree with Sara.   Since Marta's a hoarder, it automatically means she's a killer and it's much easier to hide the body.   As Sara tells him, he's getting too far ahead of the evidence.   Sara offers to process Marta, as they had an understanding, probably in an attempt to get away from Nick and his blind attitude too.

The male DB is described as being between 15-17 so it can't be Marta's husband, unless she married young.   Doc allows Ray to take a bone marrow sample for analysis.   Sara finds it difficult in having to fingerprint Marta.   Henry (Jon Wellner) finds the Vic died of acute arsenic poisoning.

Sara tells Greg that Nick's not in touch with the case.   Ray takes Dr Prescott to the house and she also tells Nick Marta isn't a killer.   She organizes her house visually.   Nick wonders if they're "trash whispering" and Ray replies if they listen very carefully, they may find something and they did.

Marta's organized some storage boxes on a different side of the house and Dr Prescott thinks they're time capsules, containing Alisa's items, such as her prom dress.   They come across Alisa's room which is completely empty.   Sara calls them to the garden, where three DBs have been discovered, bound in the same way as the second DB.   All the Vics died from acute arsenic poisoning.   Three are identified as runaways from a halfway house where Julian worked.   He also got Alisa a job there.   One Vic, Matthew, had been seeing Alisa.   Brass believes they were all potential boyfriends of Alisa's and Julian killed them.   He lawyers up.

From the storage boxes, Ray believes Marta was regressing and attempting to put Alisa back into her womb.   They find another door and inside they find Alisa, handcuffed to her bed.   Nick talks with her in hospital, removing his cap, so she'll recognize him.  Yeah Nick, she'll remember your hair or lack of, ha.   He asks who did this to her and that he can protect her; she replies it was her mother.   Well that's all he wanted to hear.

Greg tells Ray he could handle the trash but not the bodies.  This is unusual for such a comment coming from Greggie too, since he has been surrounded by plenty of DBs in his time in the field.   Also in last weeks episode where he was confronted by more blood and gore, such as the Vic killed in the carwash, he wasn't affected by it in the same way as here.   Some strange thinking and writing going on from the writers in this episode where Greggie and Nicky are concerned.

Sara believes something isn't quite right.   Greg analyzes the handcuffs and the scratches where someone tried to remove the serial number.   They were purchased from a local gun store by Julian.   Nick wants to know why Sara can't see past Marta's guilt.  Sara thinks Julian killed the boys and hid them there; having some sort of a hold over his mother.   Ray tells them they have to look at the evidence, being the voice of reason and attempting to tell Sara she needs to walk away, which is what she does before he's finished his sentence.   Nick wants to speak to Marta, but before he can do so, Julian has a lawyer for his mother.

Ray and Nick find the ribbon ends can provide them with a time-line for when the Vics were killed.   The ribbon was torn using teeth and this will give them DNA.   Dr Prescott tels Sara and Greg where to look for the ribbon, in its original packet.   Sara finds a box of rat poison, in it's original box, and the ribbon too.   The poison contains arsenic.   Ray tells Alisa they have her DNA as she killed the boys.   Her mother handcuffed her attempting to stop her from killing.   She blames her mother and that she made everyone leave.   Julian also blames their mother for Alisa's condition, but Sara tells him Alisa is more disturbed than anything her mother did to her.

Sara relays the story of her schizophrenic mother stabbing her father in the heart one night.   Sara survived her traumatic childhood, as did Julian.   Marta won't be prosecuted if she helps with the case and the rest is up to her and Julian.   Ray and Nick in yet another discussion (in Blood Moon they talked of the monsters they come across in their work) and here Ray tells him about consumption and hoarding - that in the '60's people had less in their houses, whereas today, it's all about having.

Nick cleans out his desk and he and Sara have another chat about Gil (William Petersen) since we know he makes an appearance soon.   He finds the blue marble Gil gave him and Sara has one too.   They got back to being on speaking terms very quickly and without any apologies either, suppose they don't need to apologize having known each other for ages.   Nick realizing he was wrong about Marta, but he didn't admit as much.   It was good to see some tension between the two, they haven't had an argument like that before.   Nick not understanding how Sara could bond with Marta in the way that she did.   Or that Sara was blinkered when it came to Marta being guilty.   But Sara was right, she didn't kill anyone and wasn't responsible for Alisa's affliction either.   She was just a cold-blooded serial killer, who thought she could use her mother as justification for killing those boys.   No one drove her to murder except Alisa herself.

Nick and Sara have a brother/sister relationship in a way,  but after knowing her for so long, he still doesn't really know her.   She also told Julian about her mother and not anyone that she works with, having more of an affinity with what they both went through as children.   She also believes telling Julian about her own mother will help him deal with his, since in the beginning he wasn't moved or emotional when he asked if his mother was dead when Sara told him about the homicide.   His reaction upon hearing it was Diana was more emotional.

Nick was rather out of character this episode, as he's the last one to make such insensitive comments and strange the writers having Nick being the one to talk and act like he did.   Ray, as usual is the voice of reason, this time between Nick and Sara, but she's not listening when she walks out the lab.

Catherine (Marg Helgenberger) was missing this time round.

This episode of the show embarked upon a topical issue as hoarding is in the news at the moment, but not so in the UK, though lately the UK is getting its own epidemic of hoarders.   The US seems to be affected by it in a big way.   CSI choosing to shed light on such a major disorder.

NCIS - Meet The New Ziva?

                                                
Reports out on TVLine: Emily Wickersham may replace Cote de Pablo on NCIS.  Cote whose departure came as a shock to many fans and still is a sore topic will leave in the early episodes of season 11.  Emily will play a character called Bishop who is described as "attractive, talented, intelligent, athletic, and academically brilliant."  As well as being "socially awkward".  Again?  ha.  Seems NCIS can only find these sorts of female characters in the show.  No really, I mean remember Nikki Jardine (Susan Kelechi Watson) she had OCD but that was fun.  I liked her and she spoke Arabic, Kurdish and didn't overstep the boundaries into Ziva territory with being proficient in those languages either.  Would have been good to see her again not that any one can replace Ziva David, but someone who has appeared on the show before should have been a more likely choice.  Someone whom fans could ease into since they have seen her before.

Emily has been contracted for three eps but could become  a series regular in the future as her contract has this option.  She is set to appear at November sweeps time, which many think may be a suitable transition period between Ziva's swansong and Bishop's appearance. Will anyone even notice since we'll still be lamenting Cote's departure, which will be felt on and off screen for some time to come.  I mean I have come to terms with Cote leaving, many haven't.  Of course NCIS will go through the motions again of introducing characters for Ziva's job who won't stick around, as they did before, when Tony (Michael Weatherly) had to interview the prospective candidates in Truth or Consequences.  Ohh wonder how many thought this would become a reality at that time, almost foreshadowing.

Perhaps Tony won't warm to her too easily.  At least we won't be getting a long and drawn out, "will they/won't they" scenario as we got over 8 years!  Emily can be seen as guesting on The Bridge and appeared in The Sopranos.  I actually hope we get to see more of McGee (Sean Murray) and Abby (Pauley Perrette) who haven't really been a focal point for quite a while now and it's only fair they get their share of the limelight!

Cote's non presence will be felt for quite some time to come for many fans.

CSI:NY 9.8 "Late Admissions" Review

Students take drugs and sit their SATS on a high.  There is one Sat paper which hasn't been opened and this probably belongs to the same student found dead in the library.  Mac (Gary Sinise) finds signs of blunt force trauma and also Flack (Eddie Cahill) finds a piece of a  broken mug on the floor.  Mac wonders why his parents didn't notice him missing and Flack comments on wondering what sort of a home life he has.  Hawkes (Hill Harper) processes the CS and collects the evidence, hey Mac didn't even bag the broken mug either.  He finds lots of books and also dextroamphetamines used for ADHT.  The Vic is identified as Luke Stevenson (John Bain) a name that Mac knows.  He has to break the new to Luke's father, Frank (Gareth Williams). He tells him about Luke's friend, Nate who died of a drug overdose.  He didn't notice Luke was missing cos his door was shut so he assumed he was studying or asleep.

Sid (Robert Joy) finds the Tox screen was negative so Luke wasn't taking the drugs but he may have been dealing.  But Nate's blood screen was through the roof.  Hawkes process the plastic bag containing the drug and finds a fingerprint which matches Billy (Michael Welch).  He attends the same school as Luke.  Billy tells them the drugs were his but he didn't want to carry around a prescription bottle as he doesn't want people to know.  He fought with Luke cos he accused him of copying his answers.  Wouldn't be that easy.  The fight was stopped by Principal Connors (Mark Moses) (a most obvious suspect, well when has Mark Moses not been involved in playing a criminal! ha).

The strand of hair Sid found on the DB belonged to Melanie (Abby Pivaronas) a swimmer since the hair was dry and tinged green cos of the chlorine.  She was dating Nate and the wrist watch on Luke belonged to Nate and had her prints on it.  She tells Jo (Sela Ward) she gave the watch to Luke cos it belonged to Nate. Adam (AJ Buckley) goes through Billy's phone records and finds he has simple algebra problems.  Hawkes puts together the pieces from the mug but hasn't found any algebra texts or books in Luke's belongings other than a notebook.  Danny (Carmine Giovinazzo) finds a page has been torn out and notices the imprints of the pencil can be seen on the next page.

SO we get the old working out what the writing says and Danny finds Luke was writing a letter to the NY Times exposing the incidence of drug taking at the school.  SO with this much rampant drug taking, it's obvious the principal would be involved in covering it up.  Flack and Mac watch Billy who meets up with some friends and is about to deal to them.  Mac notices Frank arrive and he stops him from entering, thinking he may have a concealed weapon.  He shows him a subpoena from a judge who owes him a favour which shows Billy was a patient with four different doctors and Mac tells him they don't have any proof of who killed Luke.

Adam tells Jo he cracked the code as the texts of algebra problems are really telling Luke where to bring the drugs and how much each person wants.  One was sent by Melanie who admits she needed to take them just to keep up and Billy said he'd take care of it.  Which he did by going straight to the Principal who covered it up cos he didn't want his academic achievements lost.  Flack arrests Billy after a brief chase - yes saved this ep from being utter boredom, such as was Lindsay's (Anna Belknap) storyline, was it necessary??

Billy wants to deal, not surprising cos that's all he knows how to do and gives them Connors, but they have no proof.  Mac tells Hawkes to work on the prints and they can use it to call his bluff.  Connors admits to killing Luke cos he refused to stop the 'vendetta' and wanted go public.  His job was in jeopardy and he mentions his family and daughter.  Should have thought of that before and Luke was right, but Luke should have done the right thing and gone to the authorities or his father, not the papers.  He certainly shouldn't have blabbed to everyone.

To the tedious storyline, Lindsay awakes to cows mooing as she's back in Montana, subtle hint, like we didn't know.  She's back and sees her father, Robert (James Read) who takes her fishing on his boat but she doesn't do much of it.  They have a father daughter heart to heart (yawn) and she has flashbacks to her friends and how they spent their time doing usual girl stuff.  She wants to see the killer executed for the murders and visits him in prison.  Asking how much he took form the till and she feels sorry for him.  He insists he's innocent and that sole testimony was based on one eye witness.  She watches him executed after he apologizes for what he did.

She goes home and Danny's waiting for her on the steps, wait it's that same mug on the ground next to him. (Quick use it, ha!!)  They hug.  Oi Lindsay, take your fingers off Danny's butt!!  The flashback to Lindsay in the bathroom when her friends were being killed came from Sleight out of Hand and quite frankly I have no idea why this had to be revisited.  Is watching someone die actually giving her closure, revenge, retribution.  Everyone has their own thoughts on the death penalty but it's not something I advocate.

Anyway, she doesn't answer Danny's call but listens to his voice message in the beginning, which kind of harks back to that previous episode in season 3, since they weren't really communicating well and he want to Montana to support her through Daniel Katum's (Jason Dibler) trial.  Also to show you why she wanted to name their daughter Lucy, after one of her friends who was killed.  But it was actually Danny who wanted that name and Lindsay was against it, as we now know why.  (Did anyone really care?!)  See Greater Good ep.

Frank tried Mac's first case in 1995 which is about all the info we get on him, other than they seem to have been friends ever since.  He was brought out of nowhere too for the purposes of the story.  More Flack funny lines, when he opens Billy's locker; "Do a wash my man, cab drivers smell better than this."  Hawkes having to piece together the mug cos he's got "surgeon's hands" as Danny reminds him.

James Read was wasted in this as her father and wouldn't he have liked to ave seen his grand daughter too, considering this is the first time he's been mentioned.  Granted it may not have been a good time to bring her down but she could have stayed with him and spent time with her Gramps.  She could have shown Lucy where she grew up.

Supernatural 6.21: "Let It Bleed" Review

                                   
Crowley kidnaps Lisa and Ben in the hopes of keeping the Winchester's from interfering in his plans for purgatory along with Cas, who still helps Dean.

March 15th 1937  Providence, Rhode Island

As a writer types, the door opens.   HP Lovecraft (Peter Ciuffer) is killed.   Sam (Jared Padalecki) comments at least Dean (Jensen Ackles) tried with Cas.   There's nothing in the journals on how to stop Cas (Misha Collins) from opening Purgatory.   Moishe Campbell of the New York Campbell's made a copy of the journal and Cas took the original.   Sam knows the name HP Lovecraft.   Dean was "too busy getting it on with women."

Cthulu Talisi by Lovecraft is read by Ben (Nicholas Elia).   Lisa (Cindy Sampson) watches TV with her boyfriend who is killed and she and Ben are abducted.   Ben calls Dean but doesn't get out of the widow quickly enough.   It could only be Crowley's (Mark Sheppard) plan of course, using them as insurance.   Calls Sam, 'Jolly Green' as in giant.   Dean must assume Cas knows.   Sam and Dean summon Balthazar (Sebastian Roche).   Cas told him about Crowley.   Dean thinks maybe he's decent and he's asking him for help.   Sam wants to call Cas instead.

Bobby (Jim Beaver) meets a man as a journalist who has a collection of Lovecraft's letters.   He's too late as Cas has already been here as he describes a man with a "Columbo trenchcoat."  There was a party on the 10th March of a black magic cult and they opened a door to another dimension.  Bobby talks to one man who tells him about the maid and her son.

Dean tortures a demon for info.   It was obvious he would break the circle.   It's Dean's fault.   Sam doesn't listen to him and goes ahead and calls Cas.   Who shows up but doesn't reveal himself to Sam and confronts Dean instead.   Crowley's "top- coiffed heroes" a reference to Sam and Dean.   Cas only stop Crowley if he finds purgatory.   Balthazar calls for Cas who lies about Crowley.   Balthazar calls him a rotten liar since he wants to take all the souls into himself and if he explodes he'll take the planet with him.    Bobby tells the son he believes in monsters and he admits the spell worked and something came through and took his mother .   Bobby is the first person to say sorry about her and shows her photo.   Bobby looks surprised but he knows the woman.

Dean is being careless when he breaks the circle himself and Cas arrives to save him again.   Dean can't believe him.   Cas thinks of him like family and he did everything he asked, he answered Dean's calls and wanted one thing.   Cas feels he's earned purgatory.   Cas: "Stand behind me the one time I ask."  Dean will find Lisa and Ben himself.

The boy's mother was Ellie (Kim Johnston Ulrich) who is hiding out but Bobby found her easily enough.   This house isn't safe and he knows what she is.   She's from purgatory and is a friend.   Ellie came though the door but didn't open it and likes it here.   Dean took the sword to stop Eve.   Bobby needs to know how to open the door.   Think she should have listened to Bobby about protecting her cos she couldn't protect herself.

Dean drinks some more.   Balthazar didn't like Cas's answers and wants to help him.   He's changed his tune pretty quickly after calling them "howler monkeys."  He's found Lisa and Ben and he takes them there.   Sam's caught out again.   Lisa's possessed courtesy of Crowley.   She calls Dean Ben's real father but she's joking and lying like demons do.   Lisa would have been better off if she didn't meet him.   Dean's about to exorcise her using his Latin and he doesn't need a book to read from now.   She stabs herself and Dean exorcises her.   Sam's still out cold.   Ben has to use a gun now, something Dean never wanted him to do.

Cas arrives at the hospital and heals Lisa and Dean wants him to make her forget about him and their lives together.   Cas is sorry and Dean must thank him but nothing's changed.   Cas knows he wanted to fix what he could.   They were both in a car crash and Dean pretends to be the other driver.  "Their lives can get back to normal now."  One thing I have to add quickly is what about the things Lisa may still have at her house about him, photos or other stuff, won't she wonder who that is, presumably she still recalls where she lives.   Also Ben might still have something of his too.   Saying goodbye was hard for him.

Dean doesn't tell Sam he knows.   Dean threatens to break Sam's nose if he talks about Lisa or Ben.   That's not nice!  Ellie is caught by Cas.   At least the Lisa and Ben storyline was finally concluded this season, they were kind of out of place the way they kept creeping back into Dean's life when he'd left them.   Cas would always be one step ahead of the Winchester's as they always have been struggling to find his plans.   Bobby should have been more insistent and more instrumental in protecting Ellie knowing she was up against Cas and Crowley and what they're capable of.

Dean not knowing of HP Lovercraft especially when he's into movies, but he's also heard of books too, even if he hasn't read them, such as The Da Vinci Code.   Also what hasn't he head of Metallica's "The Call of Ktulu."  Great scene between Cas and Dean, as always, in that Cas still wants to help Dean after what they've done to each other and in terms of Cas's betrayal of them.   Still after everything Cas had done for them, Dean can't see his way of approving Cas's plan for purgatory and his dire need for those souls.   It's another question of free will.   Dean has that freedom  to choose and he knows opening purgatory isn't in the best interests of humans and earth.   Yet Cas also now fully grasps this same concept of free will, needs those souls and will do whatever it takes.

A particularly heart wrenching episode for Dean having to deal with saying goodbye to Ben and Lisa for good and still battling Cas and his pans.   No wonder he threatened to break Sam's nose if he talks about them.

Bobby wouldn't really be shocked for sleeping with Ellie -a creature from purgatory, that was summoned from purgatory by Lovecraft and his black magic circle.  All of the Winchester's have faced such demons.   Sam and werewolf, Madison.   Dean kissed the crossroads demons several times and a vampire in season 1. Ben reading Lovecraft when this episode mentioned him and was about Lovecraft opening the door to purgatory.   Ben's graphic novel, entitled, Cthulhu Tales Volume 2: Whispers of Madness, published in 2008.