Warning: This post contains spoilers for the Supernatural episode “Celebrating the Life of Asa Fox.” If you haven’t watched it yet, jump into the Impala and drive away.
Hunter culture was a big part of the early years of Supernatural. As the boys learned to stand on their own apart from their dad, they interacted with more and more different hunters. Remember the roadhouse? “Celebrating the Life of Asa Fox” brought that communal vibe back to the table, and reminded me it has been too damn long since we’ve seen this sort of gathering. And hey, not all the other hunters at the wake died.
As you might have guessed from the title, the hunters came together for a wake for one Asa Fox. The hunting community seems small, so it wasn’t a surprise to learn there were connections between Asa and many Winchester-adjacent individuals. Mary saved a young Asa from a werewolf and her actions inspired the boy to become a hunter. They put her hair in braids in an attempt to convey that it was a flashback, but I just thought present day Mary decided to try extensions. Once we watched Asa grow up in a roaring montage (I like montages, okay), I began to understand that the werewolf event happened over 30 years ago.
Asa knew Jody, too. They were a thing. I’m happy for Jody, and I’m pretty much okay with any reason to get her into the show because she keeps it real. However, it was awfully convenient for her to know Asa. I’m willing to look past it.
Since Sam and Dean were with Jody when she found out about Asa, they accompanied her to the wake. It’s apparently been a while since they’ve been around so many other hunters; they had no idea that stories were told about them. Other hunters turned into fanboys and poured questions onto the brothers about their impressive feats and things like whether Sam was truly possessed by Lucifer. Apparently it’s a bit of an urban legend among both hunters and demons.
The wake brought home a point Mary made to Sam and Dean about hunters: they usually end up meeting untimely, violent ends. With that many hunters gathered in one place, Asa’s family home was practically a bulls-eye. A demon showed up to kill, taunt, and generally make a mess. With the scale of monsters constantly creeping upward, seeing a single crossroads demon come in and cause such a stir was refreshing. You’d think a herd of hunters could quash a demon with no problem, but instead, they almost had their butts handed to them. As it was, there were a few deaths.
PS: Supernatural writers, never threaten Jody’s life like that again. Please and thank you.
When they handled the demon problem, they learned that one of their own was responsible for accidentally causing Asa’s death and then framing a demon. To be a hunter is to live by a certain code, and this guy violated it. The other hunters were angered and disgusted. This hasn’t been the first time in the season when we were reminded humans can act worse than the monsters Sam and Dean hunt.
Once the situation was resolved, Jody got to do what she does best and talked to Mary. I know she came back from the dead and all, so she’s out of sorts. She was clearly tempted by the Reaper’s offer. She’s getting closer to coming back to Sam and Dean, but man, it’s an exasperating storyline.
What did you think about seeing a group of hunters together? Drive on down to the comments and tell me your opinions.
Images: The CW
