Episode 7 – Hookman                                     Written by John Shibhan

Scariness factor: this episode is genuinely scary.  A typical slasher episode.

Opening: Starts at Theta Sorority, Eastern Iowa University. Girl (Laura Sorensen) dresses for a date with a fraternity brother. The guy,  Richard, parks in sinister woods under a bridge trestle on nine mile road. A figure with a hook lurks in the woods.  Then an invisible hook gouges street sign, car, strings up  guy, cut up.

Summary: Cut to Sam and Dean drinking coffee. Dean reads about the killing “by an invisible attacker”, and suggests to Sam that “Dad would check it out”, so they go there, as part of looking for their father and because it may be their kind of case.

Sam figures out that in 1862 a preacher, Jacob Carnes was arrested for killing 13 prostitutes – some in their beds, some hung upside down from limbs of trees as a warning against the sins of the flesh. Happened at nine mile road – same place the fraternity boy was killed.  Dean “Nice job, Dr. Venckman. Let’s check it out.”

Story development: 

1.       First use of rock salt shotgun cartridges.  Dean tell Sam that since salt disperses ghosts, filling the cartridges with rock salt make them into a weapon against vengeful spirits.

2.       Dean salts and burns the bones of the 1862 preacher, but the hookman attacks Laura’s father AFTER this ---they reason that they have to find the hook.

3.       Library research – shows the hook was donated to the parish and melted down. The boys break into the parish to find anything silver and burn it in the furnace in the basement.

4.       Laura comes to the church feeling guilty about wishing her father would be punished and them him being attacked. Sam once again plays the sympathetic ear.  And then the Hookman shows up.

5.       Sam is the quick thinker, spotting Laura’s necklace, out of silver.

 Dean is the amazing man of action - saving them with the shotgun. Then, he hears the hookman coming...........

 He tosses the shotgun and 2 cartridges to Sam, and runs to the furnace with the necklace.

Brothers relationship:

At the end, Dean goes to the car but watches behind it where Laura is thanking Sam for saving her life and her father.  It looks as though he is expecting them to kiss, and shakes his head when Sam just comes to the car.  He tells Sam “you know we could stay” but Sam just shakes his head. Clearly not over Jessica.

Drive by totals: hook-fu, shotgun –fu

Killed: 2

Saved: 2 (if you don’t count the boys) – Laura and her father. 

 Dean saves Sam ( twice )