Theta Sorority, East Iowa University. A friend, Taylor ( Christine Laing) gives Lori (Jane McGregor) a top to wear on her date and she's driven to a spot to make out. Lori's father calls her but she doesn't pick up. A sinister man with a hook lurks outside the car. Rich (Brian Skala) goes out of the car and the man slashes the car. Then disappears. Lori runs to find Rich, hanging. Dean (Jensen Ackles) comments Sam's (Jared Padalecki) half-caff double vanilla latte is getting cold. Sam's on the phone, but Dad (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) doesn't want to be found.
An article reports a mutilated body found in Iowa and the 'attacker was invisible'. Dean is certain this is something Dad would check out. They visit the Vic's fraternity house under the guise of being fraternity brothers from Ohio and need a place to stay. The guy wants his back painted and Dean gives Sam the privilege of doing so, "he's the artist, things he can do with a brush." Rich was with Lori who is also the Reverand's daughter. The church door bangs when Sam and Dean enter, alerting their presence to everyone. And causing Lori to look at Sam, with her lustful eyes, oh me getting carried away! Sam nudges Dean to bow his head in order to pray, Sam being the religious one. Sam knows what Lori's going through: "I saw someone get hurt once, you never get over it." Referring to Jessica (Adrienne Palicki) of course. The police appear to blame Lori for Rich's death. Dean can't help adding that she's hot and so they have to look into it.
Rich was suspended upside down over the car, immediately prompting Sam to recall the Hookman (Sean Millington) legend. That's the most famous urban legend around. Sam noticed "something in her eyes." Sam knows every legend has a source and so maybe the Hookman is a spirit. Searching arrest records dating back to 1851 and in 1862, a preacher named Jacob Karns was arrested for murder. He was angry over the red light district in town and killed 13 prostitutes. Some were found suspended upside down from tree limbs, serving as a warning against 'sins of the flesh'. The preacher lost his hand in an accident and replaced it with a silver hook.
They investigate Nine Mile Lane, where Rich was killed. Dean: "Nice job Dr Venkman" From Ghostbusters (1984) he was the geeky, brainy one. Reverand Sorenson (Dan Butler) worries about Lori in her dorm, but she says she needs to live her own life. She returns to her room, where blood is dripping, but she doesn't notice Taylor is dead. Dean says you don't have to go to college to be a genius. No Dean doesn't need that he's got life experience, that's is why he spent 4 years doing manual research, which he could have just done on a computer! The Sheriff (Alf Humphreys) finds them in the woods and some quick thinking and talking on Dean's part saves Sam from arrest, to receiving a fine. Sam was a pledge and being hazed. Dean: "Dude I'm Matlock." Not the first time this show will be mentioned. Dean: "Well, you look like a dumbass pledge." Yes he does, ha, sorry, wonder what sort of hazing Sam had to undergo at Stanford.
Sam and Dean climb into Lori's dorm room, causing no end of excitement on Dean's part, "sorority girls, think we'll see a naked pillow fight." They find the message, "aren't you glad you didn't turn on the light" written on the mirror. Which they both know is straight from the classic Hookman legend. The same symbol is on the message as they found for Karns in their research, cluing them in he was buried in an unmarked grave after his execution.
Dean is miffed and surprised at this whole college thing, saying it's "awesome" and Sam was holding out on him. But this isn't Sam; he's not into the partying, he was there to work. Sam and Dean check out the Lane and Dean hands Sam rock salt, it "won't kill him but it will slow him down." They think the Reverend is lying to Lori and could be summoning the Hookman, Dean thinking the spirit could be latching onto the Reverand's repressed emotions, feeding off them. Sam keeps an eye on her whilst Dean has the dubious task of salting and burning bones. As usual, it's left to Dean to dig up buried bones. He locates a headstone with the same cross symbol from the message. "Next time I'll get to watch the cute girl's house." Sam watches Lori and the Reverend arguing through the window.
Sam was worried about her and she thinks he's sweet. She tells him to stay away as she's cursed, "people around me keep dying." Boy does Sam know that feeling. Dean manages to salt and burn the bones but he doesn't notice that the hook isn't there. She admits her father is seeing a married woman and her family comes to church. She kisses him, ahh Sam's first kiss after Jessica. He can't do this and the Reverend is attacked by the Hookman. Sam realizes the spirit latches itself onto Lori as she's upset about immortality. Dean thinks she's conflicted and the spirit of the Hookman is punishing for her. Dean: "remind me not to piss this girl off." Sam tells Dean he didn't burn the hook, the source of his power. Checking records they find the hook wasn't buried with him and was made into something else. Sam checks her house and Dean checks the church. Dean: "stay out of her underwear drawer."
Lori cries and prays in church, it's her fault and she's angry at her father. Sam tries to convince her she's not to blame. The Hookman chases them and attacks Sam. When Sam was aware the Hookman latches onto repressed emotions, why didn't he realize he would come after Lori, as she was all moralizing again. Dean missed something: Lori's necklace, an heirloom given to her by her father. Dean burns it and the Hookman burns.
Dean tells Sam they could stay and watches Sam say his goodbyes in the car mirror. Yes but how long could they stay before they had to be on the move again, to investigate another supernatural phenomena. Lots of angst in this episode, as well as Sam trying to come to terms with losing Jessica and his attraction to Lori. Perhaps another reason why he wanted to leave is that he's still not over his guilt, not being able to save Jessica, but at least he got to save Lori, with Dean's help of course. Sam still searches for Dad with more determination than Dean and it's never a dull moment with big brother around. It's not that Dean doesn't care about Dad, it's just all that hunting without him most of the time probably has Dean weary that he's been known to go off on his own.
A classic legend and this epsiode was criticized for being a carbon copy of I Know What you Did Last Summer (1997), but this episode of Supernatural was based on the legend and Supernatural always does its own storylines. It was different enough to original. Besides if, as critics said, this was meant to be a rip-off of the movie, then the movie was a copy of the legend!
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