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« Panns' Ponderings
Supernatural Book Club - Roadkill
Seems like a real sweet guy
As you all may have noticed, I really don’t post commentaries on the episodes. I usually just enjoy reading others, and posting comments. So I’m going a little outside of my comfort zone here, but I really think we could use a pleasant distraction. Especially right about now. 
Darn you Kripke and Company! I went into watching this episode with just one theme in mind, trying to keep this simple. I simply wanted to watch and comment on the physical interaction between Molly and the boys. However, because of the brilliance that is Supernatural, we will be discussing the full interaction between Molly and the Winchesters and comparing it to their normal method of operations.
****Warning: if you haven’t seen this episode yet, there are spoilers to follow!***
The physical interaction, or lack thereof, between Molly and the boys is the reason I picked this episode. The last time that I watched this episode, I was struck by how the boys spend pretty much the entire time with Molly, but don’t touch her. Now, she interacts with the physical world. She opens and closes the door of the Impala. She also picks up a book and brings it over to Sam. And, we know that ghosts can touch people and vice versa. For example, Dean touches the spirit of Greely as he tries to hold the knife away from him. However I didn’t remember seeing the boys and Molly physically interact.
So I began watching, and my suspicions were confirmed. The boys do not physically interact with Molly. Even when Dean has to go past her to get into the hunting cabin, he moves around her rather than brushing past her. At one point, Molly and Sam sit next to each other to look at the pictures, but from what I can see, they are still sitting slightly apart. I know that at some point, she needed to get down from the hook after they destroyed Greely, but that is not shown on camera.
The reason that this was so odd to me, is that our boys have a very physical job. And they get pretty physical with their co-stars at times, including the damsels in distress (DID).
Why are everyone’s eyes glazing over? *snaps fingers* Focus, now!
Think about it. They routinely knock people out of the way of cars, pull them out of bathtubs, pools and lakes, etc. Dean even holds Bela when she is “drowning” although he doesn’t really like her and there is nothing he can do for her but to tell Sam to hurry up. And yet, at no point do they physically reach out to Molly. Once I saw this, I realized that the writers, directors, etc had given us a big clue that something was not right about this particular DID.
That was going to be the main part of my commentary, but then I heard this:
Sammy’s always getting a little J Love Hewitt when it comes to things like this. Me? I don’t like them. And I’m sure as hell ain’t making apologies for them.
(I love the way Jensen drawls that first line.) It was in hearing this line in the re-watch that I realized the verbal and emotional interactions between Molly and the boys are as telling at the physical. And this is for both Dean and Sam.
One of my complaints with this season and having Sam channel his “inner Dean” is that I think they’re missing something crucial. I know that Dean can shoot first and ask questions later, but Dean is about saving people and then hunting things. Just watch Houses of the Holy, where Dean rescues the DID from the man Sam was supposed to kill. Dean pulls her out of the car, and the baddie begins to drive off. Dean wants to go after him, but stays long enough to make sure that the girl is unharmed, and has a cell phone to call 911.
We see none of that compassion for Molly, at least at the beginning of the episode.
We weren’t just cruising for chicks when we ran into you sister, we were already out here. Hunting
Hunting for what?
Ghosts.
Look at Dean’s expression when he says this to her, and the look he gives Sam afterward. He’s not going to sugar-coat it for her. He doesn’t like them, and he ain’t going to make apologies.
And later in the hunting lodge:
You’re like Ghostbusters
Yeah, minus the jumpsuits. Look lady this is a fascinating conversation and all, but this highway’s only haunted once a year and we’ve got to sunup to wrap this thing up so what do you say we move it along, OK? OK.
Again, this should have been a big clue to me that something wasn’t right. Dean’s tone and body language both project that Molly is not someone for whom he cares or for whom he has compassion.
Then, when Molly is grabbed by Greely, Sam says:
We’ve got to find Molly.
To which Dean, who is about saving people first and hunting things second, replies:
We’ve got to find Greely’s bones and uh, no pressure or anything, but we’ve got less than two hours before sunrise.
Finally at the end, when they are telling Molly that she didn’t survive the accident, you see compassion in Dean’s face for the first time.
In complete contrast, if you watch Sam, he is instantly compassionate to Molly. The entire episode, he is slowing working toward getting her ready for the “reveal”. He goes above and beyond what he usually tells the DID about his thoughts and beliefs. On the first watch, I thought that they were just trying to expand Sam’s character, but when you watch with the end in mind, it becomes obvious that he’s priming her to accept the truth.
Anyway, the relationship between Molly and our boys was something that really stood out for me in this episode. And it made me reflect back to how the boys usually treat the people with whom they come into contact. What do you think? How else was this DID treated differently by Kripke and Company?
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Jan 7, 2008 2:39 AM
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Another point, panny, is that both of the Boys' differing methods were necessary for Molly to come to terms with the truth. SHe needed both Sam's compassion and Dean's pragmatism.
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Jan 7, 2008 4:15 AM
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Good Morning Panns!
So, last night I came across your ponderings, by the way love the new title of your blog, and I thought it was an awesome idea that I would love to be apart of, if you'll have me.
I haven't had time to sit down and enjoy your Roadkill blog, yet because I'm in a hurry but I'll be back later today when I have more time on my hands.
Also, I wanted to say HI to everyone I feel like I haven't been in the Supernatural loop for awhile, so I've probably missed this and that. Again, I've been a busy bee.
Alrighty, I'll chit chat with you later.
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Jan 7, 2008 7:53 AM
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Hi, RP!
Panns I commented over in LJ, so just stopping by to say hi!
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Jan 7, 2008 10:02 AM
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Hi Panns!
What I noticed right off the bat with this episode wasn't so much about how the guys treated the damsel differently, but that the show itself treated her differently.
If I'm not mistaken, this has been the only show we've had so far where we've gotten to see the guys from the damsel's perspective instead of the guys. We get to see the guys as outsiders see them instead of our customary viewpoint of the episode from the boy's POV.
I love the scene where they pull over and Dean opens the trunk and Molly sees what's inside. Be honest, if these guys were strangers to you and you saw that trunk, wouldn't you back away slowly and try to get away from the psycho ax-murderers you just hitched a ride with? Molly's reaction was perfect!
For me, the delight of this episode was seeing the guys as others see them. If was a fun change in viewpoint.
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Jan 7, 2008 11:13 AM
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Hello everyone, and thanks for stopping by!!
Mos Eisley - Very good point. She needed both Sam's sympathy and Dean's "hard love"-type approach to get her to the point where she could see the truth. And having Dean be gentle with her at the end was a pretty powerful statement.
RP, good to see you and welcome on board! Look forward to hearing from you, it's been awhile!
Whimsy, I'll get over to LJ in a little bit. See you there.
Met, great point. I remember thinking how cool it was to see the boys from another POV. As two seemingly nice men who stop to help, to the scene at the trunk where they become a little ominous, to getting a glimpse of two hunters in a world of Supernatural. And the last bit at the end when they show us the boys POV was, I think, one of the best scenes in SN.
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Jan 7, 2008 1:18 PM
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I'm cross posting from LJ, because I can I'm taking advantage of this site actually letting me on today.
This was the second episode I saw on tv after discovering the series. I was still working Thursday nights and I had to set up the vcr in the spare bedroom. When I got home and started watching it, I only got to see the first 15 minutes before the tape ran out - I accidentally recorded on SP mode. I was pretty mad and had to wait until Saturday morning to watch it on CW's website. When I watched in there it somehow skipped the whole section between them rescuing Molly from Greeley and them sitting on the steps outside her husband's house - so I missed the whole reveal. I was a little confused by the ending that way - "oh, I guess she's dead". Then I started reading the tvguide blog and Tina mentions that Molly killed Greeley and I'm thinking wow, I didn't figure that out, I'm not very observant. And everyone's comments about the episode made me feel dumb for not reading between the lines as well as everyone else. It wasn't until a day or two later that I rewatched it and saw the missing section.
Anyway - I rewatched the episode the other day, and I think that one reason it's important to be from Molly's POV is that she doesn't do that flickering in and out thing that all the other ghosts on the show do. The boys might see it, but we don't, because Molly doesn't.
I wonder if Sam was also being careful with her because she was a ghost, one whose bones they couldn't burn. They needed to find out what was keeping her here and resolve it without her becoming violent.
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Jan 7, 2008 3:19 PM
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I'm cross posting from LJ, because I can
Great! I'll post my reply here too. If anyone wants to see the comments from the LJ entry, they are here.
Oh Sarie, I’m sorry that you missed the reveal the first time. It was so well done, but once you know the twist, it loses effect. I didn’t see it coming until I saw that David had another wife.
I think that one reason it's important to be from Molly's POV is that she doesn't do that flickering in and out thing that all the other ghosts on the show do. The boys might see it, but we don't, because Molly doesn't.
What a fantastic point! I didn’t even think of that. It’s very likely she looked differently to the boys than from her own POV. For example, she may have been more hurt (like Farmer Roadkill), but didn’t see the fatal wounds in herself. Or maybe she looked that way because she thought she was alive.
And good point about Sam. The boys go into the situation not knowing why Molly is still there, or what they can do to move her on. They may be assuming that Greely is holding her there, which is why plan A was to get her off the road. And then in interacting with her, they realize that she’s holding on to her husband.
Good Discussion!
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Jan 7, 2008 3:58 PM
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Hiya, Pannsy-poo!
I have to admit, this wasn't one of my favorite episodes from S2 - I just felt like there was so much hype about Tricia Helfner and then I wasn't that impressed with her that I just never really made a point of rewatching.
But, that aside, I think you did a great job of showing the differences of how both boys treated Molly. I remember being startled by Dean's treatment of her, until the end when I realized she was a ghost and that that was the reason Dean was treating her that way. As for the physical interaction - you made some great points and I'm going to go back and rewatch this epi tonight. If I come up with anything else, I'll be back! (but not in an Arnold way) 
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Jan 7, 2008 4:02 PM
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I'll be back! (but not in an Arnold way)
LOL! I remember that they really hyped Tricia, but I also remember reading something where one of the boys said that she basically had to work their work schedule (which most guest stars do not), and she kept up with them.
Enjoy the re-watch, and listen when Sam is asking Dean to help him get down the wife. I think Brit pointed this out, it sounds like he says “Jen, give me a hand.”
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Jan 7, 2008 6:50 PM
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Hiya Panns!
When I rewatched this one on the dvd, one of the things I noticed was Molly opening the car door and holding the book.
When I watched one of the earlier episodes (IMTOD?) with the commentary on, one of the things the commenters noted was that Kripke and Company kept making them go back and redo scenes because "ghosts can't open doors"! So, when I rewatched, I kind of got a good laugh out of Molly being able to do those kinds of things.
Wonder if that was because she didn't know she was a ghost?
I remember the first time I saw it, I was confused at Dean's treatment of her. It wasn't until I figured out she was a ghost (which was a LOT later than I should have figured it out!) that I realized why. And I think the others are right that it really took a good cop/bad cop approach to convince her to move on and not cling to her former husband. So, in the end it made sense, particularly with Dean's admitted bias against supernatural things thanks to his upbringing.
Nice job on the blog!
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Jan 7, 2008 7:45 PM
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listen when Sam is asking Dean to help him get down the wife. I think Brit pointed this out, it sounds like he says “Jen, give me a hand
Hmmm...you've now piqued my curiosity...I'm going to rewatch it later tonight...
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Jan 7, 2008 8:10 PM
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Nice job on your first time out the commentary gate, panns!
I loved Roadkill. The way the boys interacted with Molly was the clue that made me realize before the reveal that she was a ghost. One of the things that I particularly loved, though, was how Dean - despite his general attitude toward ghosts - nonetheless unhesitatingly risked his own life to save her from further torment at ghost-Greeley's hands. That, to me, demonstrated how far he had already come in reconsidering his attitude toward the supernatural.
And like Tana, I also laughed when listening to the commentary on IMToD, with its "ghosts can't open doors" comment. Hmm - maybe ghosts actually can interact with physical things, but the disembodied spirits of people still alive can't - at least, not without the impetus of really strong emotion, such as enabled Dean to sweep the glass of water off of John's bedside stand to interrupt his argument with Sam. Yep - that must be it!
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Jan 7, 2008 9:26 PM
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Nice blog Panns!
I'll admit this was not one of my favorite episodes but it really grew on me upon rewatching it a few times.
The thing I noticed is that towards the end Sam sent Dean in to help Molly while he stayed outside to dig up the grave and salt and burn the bones. I'm thinking it was Sam's way of getting Dean to care more about Molly...either that or he knew Greeley would beat the crap out of whoever went in!
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Jan 7, 2008 10:46 PM
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Good topic, Panns and even better discussion!
So, I’ll go ahead and admit that Roadkill wasn’t one of my favorite episodes of Supernatural. I mean don’t get me wrong I liked it, but I didn’t love it. There was that something something missing and maybe it was the physical interaction between the brothers and Molly. Speaking of Molly, I totally remember how hyped up the promos were with Tricia Helfer as the guest star of the week. It was such this sort-of-kind-of-big-deal, but I hadn’t the slightest clue of who she was. In fact, I had to goggle her because I was so clueless.
I’m thinking one of the reasons Roadkill didn’t knock my socks off was in-deed because the lack of physical interaction between the brothers and Molly. I guess I’m so used to Sam and Dean saving the DID with some sort of physical interaction that this was a bit of a lack luster eppy for me. Usually, when I re-watch episodes of Supernatural its because of few reasons, good reasons… 1) I’m in a mood and only the Winchesters can get me out of my mood 2) there’s nothing on worth my time 3) Sam and Dean had a brotherly moment that was awesome and I just need to watch it again and again or 4) there was a great-interaction between the brothers and the MOTW or the DID. For me Molly, Tricia Helfer, left me unimpressed, but episodes like Bloodlust didn't. We were introduced to Gordon and he and Dean had a bit of physical rumble, or the fact that Sam grasps Lenore into his arms and gets her to safety. I guess it’s those physical moments such as those that make me want to re-watch eppies over and over because I loved the interaction whether physical or not. So with that being said Molly was OK. The story she told was meaningful, it gave us her POV (coming from a spirit's eyes) and it opened the possibility that Molly's spirit went to a better place.
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Jan 7, 2008 11:01 PM
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