Supernatural Season 6: “The French Mistake”

You might have heard me squee across the internet when I realized I would get to write about Season 6. The French Mistake! Huzzah! This is one of the few episodes I watch over and over again–just to have a laugh and to marvel at the pure joy that is Supernatural. These guys really love to mess with us, don’t they, fandom? The Collective blog is on a meta roll, and I figured I’d round it out with this epic alternate reality in which Sam and Dean are something called a Jensen Ackles and a Jared Padalecki. They also work with some douchy Twitter troll named Misha. Oh, and Sam is married to fake-Ruby. Ya. This is gonna be good.

“The French Mistake” – Jensen Ackles as Dean playing Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki as Sam playing Jared Padalecki and Misha Collins as Castiel playing Misha Collins playing Castiel in SUPERNATURAL on The CW set.

Episode:

S06xE15 AKA The Moment I Figured Out the Supernatural Cast and Crew Were Not to be Fucked With

Dean’s Best Line:

“I wanna go home. I feel like this whole place is bad touching me.”

Sam’s Best Line:

Sam has the funniest, most deadpan lines in this episode, so it’s hard to choose. It’s either the one where he is apparently looking for a key and a lock…

Or when he discovers he is Polish.

Synopsis:

Balthazar shows up at Bobby’s house to tell the boys Raphael is after the weapons of heaven. He gives them a key, concocts a spell and BOOM! The Winchesters are flying out a window and into an alternate universe in which they are actors playing Sam and Dean. They do what they do best, which is lie and pretend they know what’s going on, working together to get back home so they can continue the fight against the big bads. Sam does some research and finds out  about Jensen Ackles’ soap opera days and that they film in, brace yourselves, Canada. When Dean and Sam get to Jared Padalecki’s place, to “work on…acting…for characters…on the show,” the boys realize that Sam is married to “fake Ruby,” Genevieve Cortese, the actress who played Ruby. Who he really is married to. In real life. And, it gets better.

When the boys get back on set, they are forced to act, just as their alternate universe counterparts must do. It is ridiculous how funny Sam and Dean are on screen. Jared and Jensen play up Sam and Dean acting badly as Jared and Jensen playing Sam and Dean. We also get Misha as Cas playing Misha as Cas, which is bloody brilliant. Eventually, the boys encounter Virgil, a hench-angel of Raphael, who senselessly murders Misha for a blood-based telephone call, and when they finally do get back to their universe, ala Castiel, it is only to find out that their angel was in with Balthazar on a plot to keep the weapons the entire time.

What This Episode Reveals About the Winchesters:

They have a sense of humor but they sure as hell can’t act. As often as these boys spend pretending to be FBI agents or reporters, they can’t stand in front of a camera crew and act out a simple scene with someone who happens to look exactly like Dean’s BFF? What’s up with that? Also, Sam and Dean are loyal to the path of the hunter. They aren’t trying to stay and enjoy the unlimited American Express black card access or movie star status–they want to get back to saving people and hunting things, you know, the family business. Of course Dean has an angsty moment when he half-accuses Sam of wanting to ditch him and stay in the alternate universe as Jared Padalecki. Uh, oh Dean, your low self-esteem is showing. Since Cas is an honorary Winchester, we are almost as hurt as Dean when we find out Cas was in on the charade from the beginning. He’s helped orchestrate the entire universe jump with Balthazar to use the boys as a distraction for Virgil and Raphael. This is Castiel and Raphael’s forces at war, and although the boys don’t know what’s going on yet, Cas is slowly distancing himself from the Winchesters as he goes deeper into the rabbit hole. Don’t forget what’s on the way for Castiel at the end of S6…

The Big Picture:

Now, Misha playing Misha has to be the best thing since sliced bread. Misha and Robert Singer have both said publicly that the actor played the part as a complete twat for the sake of the metanarrative. The Cas/not Cas in the alternate universe is a complete Twitter-phile (much like real life) and tweets about “J squared” to his “Mishamigos.” Kinda like real life. What is real life, anyway? Jared and Jensen as the Winchesters learning about the Jared and Jensen of the alternate universe? I’m confused and delighted all at the same time. Every time I watch this episode, I am in awe of the portrayal that the actors, the camera men, the crew and writers have created for themselves in this funny and unique episode. After the meta in the show (with Chuck’s book) and now the meta outside of the show–I’m praying for another peak through the veil in S9. Please, Kripke!??!

My Favorite Scene:

Nothing beats Misha Collins portrayal of himself. Hands down. From his goofy normal not-Cas voice, his constant Twitter updates, his “Namaste” tee-shirt to the gentle shove of a makeup girl who is in his shot, Misha Collins trolls the fandom just by doing his job. Really, really well.

xoxo

The Collectiva Diva

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