Supernatural 13×09 introduced a great new character for Wayward Sisters while also advancing the main story and leaving the Winchesters trapped in “the Bad Place”

Supernatural returned to a more story-arc centric episode with its midseason finale this week. Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) were reunited with Jack (Alexander Calvert) after investigating the death of a dreamwalker. Despite initially believing that Jack was the one who caused the man’s death, it was soon revealed that Jack had accidentally led a group of angels to the dreamwalker and that they were the ones that killed him. With the number of angels dwindling, the forces of Heaven have become more and more desperate to get their hands on Jack, the one being in existence other than God that they believe can help replenish their numbers.

Jack wanted to prove to the Winchesters that he could use his powers for good and discovered that dreamwalker abilities allow him to look into other worlds. He had discovered that Mary (Samantha Smith) was indeed alive. This attempt to prove himself led both Jack and the Winchesters to run into an even more powerful dreamwalker. Kaia (Yadira Guevara-Prip), who is set to be another series regular on the proposed spin-off series Wayward Sisters, was soon caught up in the desperate search for Mary. With Jack and Kaia’s help, Sam and Dean thought they had a real chance of finding their mother, opening a rift to the world she’s trapped on, and rescuing her. Unfortunately for the brothers, Jack and Kaia’s combined powers weren’t completely stable. Sam and Dean ended up trapped in a world that Kaia calls “the Bad Place” and Jack ended up on the apocalypse Earth with Mary.

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“The Bad Place” also reintroduced Patience (Clark Backo) and had her connect up with Jody (Kim Rhodes) to stop some unknown event in her future. The return of both of those characters, along with the introduction of Kaia, continued to set the stage for the upcoming backdoor pilot to Wayward Sisters. Like with Patience’s introduction, Kaia’s introduction was one of the main focuses of “The Bad Place.” Kaia’s powers and physical connection to the worlds she visits make her both an outcast and a tragic character. Thematically, she should fit in quite well with her fellow wayward sisters.

Sadly, we’ve already made it to the midseason finale of Supernatural, which means the show won’t be back for over a month. But it doesn’t mean we didn’t have plenty to talk about this week. So let’s get right into talking about “The Bad Place!”

Cat Bow (@Pathryn34) – Mother, wife, kind, and loving

Tricia (@tricia_16_) – Wayward wife and mother of two who found my people, my passion, and myself through Supernatural and its fandom

Sarah (@mishdestiel) – Writer, reader, student. Cornered by Supernatural eight years ago

Destiny (@cuddlydean24) – A business student that loves watching TV and listening to music

Lindsay (@lindieface) – Beleaguered grad student, unrepentant fangirl, whiskey aficionado

Lena (@lenastiel) – Hopeful optimist and lover of peanut butter who is passionate about Supernatural and its amazing cast members

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1. This episode introduced another character from the upcoming potential spin-off series, Wayward Sisters. What did you think of Kaia’s introduction and her as a character?

Cat Bow (@Pathryn34): This was so incredibly, brilliantly done. Watching her tear apart that cup as she herself felt broken and torn. Her incredible sass. The way her painful life was evident from every movement, every word. She feels that she doesn’t matter. That she is cursed. She already fits in so well it hurts.

Tricia (@tricia_16_): I love that they introduced another strong, bad-ass woman into the mix! I think it’s interesting how they talked about how she’s been having problems with drugs because we haven’t really seen a lot of that in the show, but it makes sense that not everybody would take their “gifts” with a grain of salt and that some of them might really struggle with it. I like how despite Kaia having these issues, she’s still strong and has a solid sense of right and wrong which she showcased by standing up to Jack, Sam and Dean. I can’t wait to see more of her!

Sarah (@mishdestiel): Well, I have one more favorite character now! Kaia is so amazing… outstanding. I’m so glad she, her powers and thoughts were created, they seem so unique and interesting. I’m very anxious to know more about her and to see her more often.

Destiny (@cuddlydean24): I love Kaia. Right away, I felt bad for her character. She was relatable and tough. I’m looking forward to learning more about her.

Lindsay (@lindieface): Kaia was interesting – I’m intrigued by her and the dreamwalking, and I liked her dynamic with Jack. She’s a little abrasive, but I’m quite sure that’s because of some deep-seated pain, a dark past, and issues just like the rest of our characters.

Lena (@lenastiel): Kaia is an amazing character! I really love the way they established her character – her background, her motivation and her powers. She started off as someone with mysterious powers, being a dreamwalker….and she hadn’t yet learned to control and understand this gift given to her. Added with her harsh childhood and family situation, Kaia learned to survive on her own. This character is fascinating. She is a great mix of independence, willfulness, and temperance melded into one. Certainly an interesting addition to the Wayward Sisters cast.

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2. The Winchesters have finally reunited with Jack, and he appears to be continuing to act as a force for good. If he ends up meeting his father or gets taken by the angels, do you think he’ll be able to maintain that or is there still a danger that he’ll be corrupted?

Cat Bow: I feel that Jack is intrinsically good. He has shown this repeatedly. He hates when he hurts people. His intense guilt over the guard’s death that he caused. He apologized for taking Derek too far. He doesn’t trust the angels because they hurt and kill people. I think he’s already become a good person. That is unlikely to change.

Tricia: I think Jack is meant to be very similar to Castiel, and in that case… yeah. I think he could easily be corrupted. Not because he’d want to turn bad, but because he would be willing to sacrifice himself or his morals for “the greater good” if it meant helping or saving his family. Just like Castiel, it would be a terrible thing done for the right reasons.

Sarah: At this point Jack can maintain his goal to do good without someone having to whisper encouragements to influence and convince him. The speech he gave Kaia and the way he worked with her proves that he cares a lot and is willing to be good for real. Jack saying that he is at home when the angel tried to get him to switch sides also proves that. He can be good by himself.

Destiny: I don’t think Jack will end up corrupted if he ends up meeting his father. He already said in the episode that his dad is no one to him. He also told the angels that his home is not with them. I think he will avoid doing what his father and the angels want him to do.

Lindsay: I think he’ll probably maintain his goodness, but I actually think it would be really interesting if he went dark-side for a little bit. The original Team Free Will all have, after all, and it’s so interesting to see our heroes go bad.

Lena: Jack seems to be motivated by a desire to “do just one good thing” for Sam, Dean and Cas. As long as this motivation drives his actions, I believe he will continue to be a force of good. Sadly, we know the angels, demons and Lucifer all have various means of forcing cooperation out of any supernatural being. If Jack ends up being captured, either by angels, demons or Lucifer, there’ll always be a great danger that he’ll be corrupted. There are many speculations circulating among the fans regarding Jack’s action of showing Kaia’s an encouraging vision that made her cooperate. Many fans recall similar action performed on Castiel in the previous season. What it actually means remain an unanswered question.

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3. Sam and Dean got confirmation that their mother is alive. While Dean’s stance about doing what’s necessary to save their mother is understandable, his reaction to Kaia’s hesitance was to threaten and yell at her. Do you think that was a justifiable reaction or was he out of line?

Cat Bow: Though I understand what he was feeling, he was completely out of line. That was so incredibly wrong. I know that he’s driven by the guilt of not looking for his mom, especially since she is suffering because of it. However, threatening and kidnapping a scared little girl. Forcing her to face her biggest fear, after she told you that it physically hurts her? That was wrong. As it turns out, necessary, but still wrong.

Tricia: I think he was way, way out of line. When have we ever seen Dean react so violently with not only a woman, but a minor? I know he is in the mindset of “do anything necessary to get mom back” but I think him screaming and pointing a gun at Kaia went so far past the Dean we all know and love that it actually had me feeling uncomfortable. I hope we don’t see Dean completely lose himself in his desperation to get his mom back.

Sarah: Dean’s reaction was not only out of line but also out of character. Even when he screamed at Jack or at Sam earlier this season he wasn’t that harsh and scary. It’s been a while since Dean behaved like that, and to be honest, I disliked it a lot. Kaia didn’t deserve that; she was scared and didn’t know any of them enough to trust them like Dean wanted her to. I think it was a slip from the writers.

Destiny: At that point, Dean was so desperate to save his mom. He felt guilty because he believed Mary was dead. He saw Kaia as the only way to get his mom back but I also think he went a little overboard with that reaction.

Lindsay: I think the writer confirmed on Twitter that Dean was bluffing, but even if he wasn’t, I think it’s justifiable. He’s angry and worried, and that’s when he lashes out. We saw it when he was spiraling with grief over Cas (who needs to be sprung from hell-prison ASAP), we’ve seen it in other cases…that’s how he copes.

Lena: To be honest, I was really shocked to see Dean acting like he did. However, people do drastic things in the name of desperation. It seems after Dean was shown the vision of his mother being tortured in the other universe, Dean has a motivation to act like he did. Out of the brothers, Dean is the one being more emotionally-driven, although he is not as expressive with his emotions as Sam. Still though, there is something about the scene that comes off as incredibly jarring.

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4. Jack and Kaia made an incredibly powerful team and appeared to kill several angels together. Do you think that was Jack that did that or is Kaia actually that powerful? Or was it the result of the combination of their powers?

Cat Bow: I believe it was a combination of their powers and it wasn’t intentional. We know that Jack’s powers are activated and intensified when he is afraid. The hooded figure Kaia saw terrified her to point of activating Jack powers that were connected to her at the time. I think this is why everyone ended up different places. The power surge was sudden and erratic, like fear creates. And powerful enough to cause a tear.

Tricia: Because the power that seemed to take them out looked like it was yellow, I assumed that it was Jack. Perhaps it’s the two of them together – Jack accessing some of Kaia’s powers – unknowingly, I’m not sure. I don’t think it’s just Kaia, though. From everything we’ve seen or heard about dreamwalkers so far, the only power they do have is in the dream world. It would certainly be an interesting twist if she did have more powers!

Sarah: I believe Jack’s powers boosted Kaia’s. She is “that” powerful in my opinion, being a dreamwalker and everything, she just doesn’t know how potent she really is or how to deal with it yet. However, once she figures it out she’ll be able to do so much! Jack and Kaia made an incredible team and I hope we can see them working together again.

Destiny: They are both strong on their own so it is possible that the combination of their powers would kill all those angels.

Lindsay: I think it was predominantly Jack’s powers, but harnessed through someone who may have more of an edge than the average hunter. But we’ve known all along Jack is incredibly powerful, so I think this was a display of that force. (Also, sidebar: my official name for their team-up is Kaiack – pronounced kayak. You heard it here first!)

Lena: I think it was the result of a combination of their powers. Kaia was said to be the most powerful dreamwalker Derek Swan had ever met. And we have not yet known the true boundary of Jack’s powers. Combined with the stress of the situation, the backlash of energy was inevitable but expected. However, it is noteworthy that the effort to escape is not entirely successful – they all got separated due to Kaia unstoppably flashing between Mary and the Bad Place. The effect on the angels could be an unexpected consequence, and considering the angels are going into extinction, the fall-out should be interesting.

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5. Patience returned in this episode. She warned Jody that something is coming. Do you think that’s connected to Michael and his possible invasion or do you think she was referring to something else?

Cat Bow: Though it might be Michael, it seemed more like the vision was of Jody dying in what looked like the Bad Place. Maybe it is something, like the loss of the Winchesters into an alternate dimension, one filled with danger, instead of a someone, like Michael. But, it could be more than what we saw. I’m looking forward to finding out.

Tricia: I sure hope she’s talking about Michael! Can we handle another Big Bad at this point? I don’t know if I can! I do love that she stood up to her father and went to Jody, though. I can’t wait to see more of her and her powers flourish as she begins to accept them instead of denying them the way her father wants her to.

Sarah: Possibly it’s connected to Michael but also with the results of the world travels everyone’s been tangled in. I think everything will merge and create a big mess.

Destiny: I thought Patience was talking about the alternate universe. Jody could go there and end up in danger.

Lindsay: I hadn’t considered that it was Michael-related, but that actually might be really interesting. We’ve got a lot of different plots going on right now, so I’d like to see them all meet up in the middle – maybe have ALL of Team Free Will team up with the Wayward Sisters to battle Michael and perhaps Lucifer? Who knows, but I really want to see that now.

Lena: Difficult question. My guess is something else, probably connected to the fact that Sam and Dean are in a different world right now. Michael and his possible invasion are still a big threat looming in the background – a threat that not even Sam and Dean have known because Castiel’s attempt to tell them was cut off – but I think it has something to do with the fate of Kaia who is stranded on the side of the road in the aftermath of the worlds-crossing.

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6. Jack ended up on the apocalypse stricken Earth and Sam and Dean ended up on what appeared to be some sort of pre-historic world. Where do you think those storylines are headed?

Cat Bow: I think the Jack storyline will lead to him bonding with Mary, and becoming all too interesting to Michael. I think his time in Apocalypse word will interweave with the larger story arc of the season. As for Sam and Dean, the prehistoric world is where the Wayward Sisters will rescue them from, even as they try to save themselves. I really hope they come back to our world quickly though. It just isn’t the same without them. And they have work to do.

Tricia: As much as I love the idea of a dinosaur world, I don’t think we’ll see much of that. Kaia is going to be the key to getting Sam and Dean back since she knows where the rift is in the boat. I am really eager to see Jack and Mary scenes, and I particularly love the idea of Jack and Mary teaming up to try to outsmart Michael. In my perfect dream world, I’d like to see that involve Bobby as well. It’s like the apocalypse world version of Team Free Will!

Sarah: I think that Jack and Mary will be able to escape the apocalypse world but probably will bring Michael and his crew with them back to Earth. Kaia possibly will rescue Sam and Dean, since she knows “The Bad Place” better than anyone else. There are many alternatives but I have no idea how this will play off.

Destiny: Jack will be probably getting Mary out of that cage. They might team up to get out of the apocalypse world. I think Sam and Dean will need to be saved from the prehistoric world. Kaia knows what happened to them so she can help them get out of there.

Lindsay: I have no idea, but I’m excited! Though I really wish Cas was with the rest of his family – seeing Jack and Cas battle their way out of Apocalypse world together would be really interesting, not to mention seeing them make their way back to Dean and Sam. Like Dean said to Cas last season, “you, me, and Sam – we’re just better together.” And now with the addition of Jack, those four are going to be unstoppable. You know, as long as the Winchesters don’t get eaten by a dinosaur.

Lena: On the apocalypse stricken Earth, Mary is definitely needing rescue and Jack is the most likely person/being to do so. However, they are also inside Michael’s lair so Jack is likely to meet Michael and make the defining of choice of who he is. As for the prehistoric world Sam and Dean ended up in…fans have jokingly referred to it as a Jurassic World adventure for the brothers. It’s certainly an unexpected twist. I think they need to find a way to get back to their world as soon as possible.

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7. We’re now approximately halfway through the season. What are your thoughts on season 13 so far? Do you have a favorite moment? A least favorite moment?

Cat Bow: This season has been so incredibly amazing. The brother’s relationship has progressed to one of mutual respect. The pain they felt was palpable. It was wonderful to watch. There are so many amazing moments, Sam bonding with Jack, Dean’s reluctance to put his hand in the lock. But what wins for me is his conversation with the new Death. That was phenomenal. Least favorite is all the times we see Jody get stabbed, even if it is a vision. Overall, I have loved it and can’t wait for it to return.

Tricia: My favorite moment was definitely the episode “Tombstone,” which falls in line with my favorite part of Supernatural: seeing Sam, Dean, and Castiel all working together. I know it’s necessary for the story line to separate them, but I hate that! I think we have seen some major character development and growth from Sam and Dean and I’m thrilled about it! Sam and Dean are working together more as equals rather than Dean only looking at Sam as somebody he has to take care of, and I think that’s been a long time coming! I’m incredibly anxious for the second part of the season!

Sarah: I’m enjoying it very much especially because the character’s emotions are being touched. My favorite part so far was Castiel confronting the Entity in the Empty. That was an incredible scene that had much meaning to me because I chose to see it as Cas facing his personal issues and overcoming them. My least favorite scene was definitely Dean threatening Kaia… it just held too much heat and it was very disrespectful and contradictory to who Dean became.

Destiny: I’m really enjoying this season so far. My favorite moment was Dean being excited about cowboys in “Tombstone.” After seeing him upset for five episodes, it was nice to see him happy. I also liked the scene with Billie and Dean in “Advanced Thanatology.” It was heartbreaking but the acting and writing were so excellent. My least favorite moment was Cas getting locked up in Hell.

Lindsay: I really like thirteen so far. There’s a wonderful balance of examining our central characters’ emotional cores, the interplay between them, old-school monsters, and new threats. No contest, my favorite moment of thirteen so far is the reunion between Dean, Sam, and Cas at the end of Advanced Thanatology that piggybacked into the beginning of Tombstone. Those three guys are the emotional heart of Supernatural for me, and it meant a lot seeing the guys – especially Dean – get that “win” with Cas’s resurrection. Least favorite moments? I don’t like that Ketch is back. The actor is great, but the character was one of my least favorite last season (and the BMOL in general).

Lena: Season 13 is #SPNLucky13. I have great hopes for this season ever since the beginning and the show has made great choices in its execution. The first five episodes are equally amazing and heart-wrenching as we deal with Dean’s grief of losing Cas and Sam’s developing bond with Jack. The sixth episode is truly the crowning moment of happiness, before we ploughed down to the darker roads in episode seven. Overall, this is such a promising start to the season hailed as the luckiest among them all. My favorite moment? Cowboys. Especially Dean the charming cowboy with his partner Castiel the dorky huckleberry. My least favorite is the moment when Castiel got imprisoned in hell. 

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Final Verdict: Supernatural‘s midseason finale didn’t deliver a ton of action but the introduction of Kaia, the return of Jack, and leaving characters trapped on parallel worlds gave us plenty to look forward to when it returns early next year

Many midseason finales try to up the stakes in their stories by delivering larger action sequences or twists. Supernatural decided to focus more on its characters by making “The Bad Place” about the search for Mary. It was only a matter of time before the brothers began to actively search for their mother again and the use of Jack and Kaia was an effective way to do that. Jack has been wanting to prove to the brothers that he is inherently good and can and will use his powers accordingly. This led to a very tense and well-executed scene with a group of angels destroying wards as Jack and Kaia frantically searched for the world Mary was trapped on.

The introduction of Kaia was by far the highlight of the episode. Like with the introduction of Patience earlier in the season, Kaia was introduced as a fully developed and unique character. Dreamwalking has been explored at various points throughout Supernatural‘s long run but it’s never been a huge focus. Including a dreamwalker as a main character on Wayward Sisters should give the writers plenty of interesting material to delve into. Kaia is lost and doesn’t feel like she matters in the world. That concept is more relevant than ever given the current state of the world and thematically it fits in perfectly with the premise of Wayward Sisters. Yadira Guevara-Prip immediately sold her character with a nuanced and heartfelt performance. If that’s what she was able to achieve in her introductory episode, we can’t wait to see what she’s capable of going forward.

Choosing to go with a quieter midseason finale may not sit well with everyone. “The Bad Place” had a small amount of action but it was mostly focused on setting up the cliffhanger and the spin-off series. The knowledge that Mary is still alive led to Dean yelling at and forcing Kaia to help them at gunpoint. While it’s understandable that the brothers would be desperate to save their mother, it wasn’t a good look for Dean and felt very out of place and jarring. Thankfully, both Jack and Sam were uncomfortable with his outburst but Kaia definitely deserves an apology.

The midseason finale of Supernatural was a bit on the slow side but it introduced enough new plot threads and a great new character to keep things moving. The action it did have was well-done and resulted in an outstanding escape scene that led to the cliffhanger. It’s going to be a long month waiting to find out how Sam, Dean, Jack, and Mary get out of their situations!

SUPERNATURAL returns THURSDAY, JANUARY 18, 2018 at 8/7c on THE CW.