3.15 Time Is On My Side

[Ehlwyen]

Wow! I haven't been thrilled from beginning to end non stop like this in a while. From the previews I was almost too terrified to watch. Plus knowing that Billy Drago was going to be the main baddie, I was knew I'd be creeped out. So excellent delivery of the show on the preview's promise.

Dean was awesome with everything. I love the little stuff, like his chicken sandwich, "I can't stay mad at you baby." I loved him spinning around the sandwich trying to figure out the most tasty point of entry. Or his desire to hunt, "No I wanna hunt some zombies!" Me too Dean, me too. More zombie action next year, please!

I thought it was great that they were interrupted on the hunt for Doc Benton with the news of Bela. That was something new as they have never just left in the middle of the hunt. But instead, they split up, which was rare in its own right, and perhaps foreboding for next season.

I was so glad to see dad's journal. Where have you been?! *huggles* And it was nice to actually tie into the SN comic story.

I must say, Sam's idea to save Dean through whatever the Doc was doing to cheat death was beyond crazy and twisted. I'm glad that Dean never once hesitated and considered it an option.

Truly, the demon is coming for his soul. Just keeping Dean alive might not be enough to keep the demon from collecting. And last thing anyone should want is a soulless Dean Winchester walking the earth.

HOORAY FOR HELLHOUNDS! I'm glad Bela got what she deserved. And I'm glad that Dean wasn't the one to do it. I also was quite impressed that Dean never showed any real joy when it came down to his final threat to execution her. I loved his look up as if towards heaven in search of another option. It was in that moment he saw the herb to hold off the hellhounds.

I would have loved to have seen a second of Bela being ripped apart like in Crossroad Blues but I blame budget constraints. And the final scene of her looking out the window and the lighting was poetic enough justice.

Just some squees! More in-depth feelings later.

Please keep any speculation from next week's preview in spoilers. I know I didn't watch it, since last year's gave everything away and don't want to risk that again. I know I'm not the only one trying to stay completely spoiler free.

[rachiefish]

I never have anything in-depth or interesting to say, but I don't really have many people to squee with, so I'm sorry to say that you guys are my victims of choice This episode, I think, is my favourite of S3 so far, and maybe even way up there on my list of favourites across the series. Nice MOTW, nice storylines, everything was amazing... But I mainly just wanted to talk about Bela.

I'm one of the rare ones who liked Bela from the beginning, just because I love characters that come in and destroy things for the other characters. I never really felt like she invaded the storyline or anything, I just liked her.
I read something the other week that said Dean was going to kill her and I felt disappointed, and I was wondering if we were ever going to find out who in her family she had killed (because if there's one thing I can't stand, it's not knowing a full story).

So I mainly just wanted to ramble that I'm SO glad that they gave Bela a good storyline and a good end. I mean, in the long run, I want both Ruby & Bela to go, but I was nervous they were going to throw away Bela's character. But, no; this felt perfect to me, it was very 'Bela' and it revealed all I wanted to know and MORE. I loved the flashbacks, and felt so sorry for her with the flashback of her father and I just really loved that she made a deal. It's so fitting. I also think Lauren Cohan did an awesome job playing her in this episode.

I couldn't have asked for a better death & a better storyline for this character. And people might disagree, but I just really wanted to squee about how much I enjoyed this episode. Sera Gamble = SO my favourite writer on the show

[BlasterBoy]

Um, Rachiefish, I agree with everything you said, from how I can't give a good review to liking Bela, loving how she died, loving Gamble, and loving this episode!

This was easily one of my favorites of the season. My favorites were "Jus In Bello", "Fresh Blood", and "Sin City", and I think this just knocked out "Fresh Blood" and "Sin City". "Jus In Bello" stays ahead

Like Rachiefish, I admit that I liked Bela. She was interesting enough. I loved how she was a hunter, but a really....well, bad one And I just loved her attitude and her character. It was so much fun to watch. I, of course, enjoyed Ruby more, but I really liked Bela. However, I'm not upset of how she died. It was amazing. Like Lyn said, that last scene of Bela wanting Dean "to kill the bitch" and how she was crying and just looking out the window....woah. That was so fantastic!

I was also totally scared to watch this episode, and it turns out the episode was just as creepy as the promo! The makeup for the doctor makes me cringe! Not because it's bad, but because it's so frickin' creepy! I loved how Sam was so determined to give Dean this "immortality cure", and Dean immediately dismissed it. And I also loved how Dean came to Sam's rescue without a moment's notice And that heart!? :eek: That was really creepy One of the scariest Supernatural's, IMO.

Was I the only one who thought that Lilith holding Dean's contract was....disappointing? I mean, it makes sense that the writers would do that. They set her up as a huge villain in "Jus In Bello" and all, true, but it seems a bit....convenient. Like, the one demon they know just happens to be holding the contract. But, on the other hand, it makes sense cause she's the new leader. So, I guess I can't complain, I was just expecting a bigger shock or something.

Lyn, next week's preview actually *gasp* gave nothing away. Thank god. They just told us what we already knew, Dean's deal is coming up soon.

Basically, this was the perfect mix of creepy, awesome monster of the week with amazing, heartbreaking storylines with the characters. In my opinion, that equals perfection, especially when Gamble's in the equation

[KingofCretins]

My first thought on the episode was "that was the sh*t!" Because it was. I actually missed like the first 10 or 15 minutes, but it was really great.

I didn't know Billy Drago was going to be in it, but what a treat. I'm no fan of "Charmed" at all, but I always thought the episodes that he was in were real treats -- he's just such a great villain. And I thought it was cool to see that Sam's desperation about Dean has reached such a pitch that he was actually willing to contemplate *both of them* becoming like that dude rather than face the deal.

I loved Bela's storyline here. There was a point where I almost thought (and c'mon, ya'll did too) that she and Dean were going to have the angry sex she referred to back in "Red Sky at Morning". Those two actors have great chemistry. But I loved the solution. It was just so awful, and no matter how gruesome Bela clearly is, it makes you feel sorry for her. Especially to see her tell what she knew just because, just in the hope of spiting Lilith. And, yeah, she got what she deserved in a sense... but I think the way it was written and played was also a reminder that nobody "deserves" that in the strictest sense.

[Rosely]

Ha!! I knew that Lilith would be the contract holder!
Said that in the hopes and fears thread, but I thought it would be too obvious. which it is...

Jeezzz what an episode! Billy Drago always scared the sh*t out of me in Charmed, and now again. This guy is so good at being evil! wow!
I had to stop and take little break when Sam was entering the house, and when he found the girl. WHY was he having larves eating her? I didn't understand that. To eat the infection away?

Bweg, this was exactly the kind of episode why I always used to find Supernatural too terrifying! The tension was great. Good to have Bobby back, for a sec. And a nice Bella-wrap up for sure!

Really well written and convincing episode!

[Obsessed]

I am curious why Bela felt she had to kill her mother. It was the father that was molesting her. Unless the mother knew about it and didn't do anything? I was actually sorry to see her go and didn't think she deserved to go out like that. But I do think it was a nice way to tie in the hellhounds as they're coming for Dean soon.

I was so thrilled to see John's journal as well. We haven't seem much of it this season. Well that's it. Overall- I enjoyed the episode. Can't wait for next week. I am spoiler-free too Lynn.

[galathea]

This week brought us lot of gore, maggots and entrails, courtesy of Sera Gamble! I’m not easily grossed out, but Time Is On My Side had me really squirm on my seat a couple of times. But of course there were also the patented brother angst and some mytharc reveals. Rambly and probably not entirely coherent thoughts ahead …

I find myself increasingly frustrated with the fact that we are missing 6 episodes out of this season’s arc since the last 2 episodes, while very enjoyable and perfect mid-season episodes, don’t feel at all like a lead-up to the finale for me. Long Distance Call and Time Is On My Side are exactly what I expected for the early second half of the season, more focus on possible deal breakers, both boys becoming increasingly desperate and reckless in the attempt to work their way out of the contract until the tension builds up to a breaking point in the finale. Even with the fact that they dropped all other storylines for the last three episodes, the shortened season makes a considerable cut in exploring the character arcs tied to Dean’s deal and hence it feels rushed to me and doesn’t seem to be developed with quite the same care I came to expect from the show.

I hate how several external factors (strike, budget restraints, network interference) screwed over the whole season and I find myself wishing that they had just ended the season with Jus In Bello and continued all the storylines in S4. I guess I should be thankful for what we got, but it just kills me that it was the season with my favourite plotline so far that had to take the hit. Maybe it’s too early for a general judgment on S3, but I doubt that the final episode will be able to erase the feeling of loss, disruption and incompleteness accompanying this season.

Anyway onto the episode: First off, there were a couple of inconsistencies in this episode, the most important one of course the huge timeline problem we suddenly have between Ghostfacers and TIOMS. With Dean’s deal coming due on the 2nd of May and Long Distance Call playing at the end of April the show was quite on track and now TIOMS suddenly jumps ahead to the beginning of June and we have still three weeks left until Dean’s time runs out. That makes no sense whatsoever and completely screws over the timeline that was very accurate up and until Ghostfacers. I am not sure if it’s the pressure under which these last episodes were produced that’s responsible for these kind of mistakes, but it is irritating to say the least. I guess there’s no other way than to just ignore the last two onscreen dates we got and go with the 2 months timeframe given in Ghostfacers.

Another inconsistency is the revelation that Lilith is Dean’s contract holder. Until now I was under the assumption that Lilith couldn’t be the contract holder because the Crossroads Demon referred to her boss as a ‘him’. While this wouldn’t necessarily be a huge deal for me, because I never thought of demons as fixed in gender, it’s still either a mislead, a sloppy mistake in writing or a last minute change in the plot and I am not fond of that. On the one hand Meg showed clearly that demons are not bound to a certain gender when they take possession and with the fact that demons forget about their humanity it makes sense that they don’t remember their gender either. On the other hand all demons so far did use pronouns referring to the gender of their host and whatever biblical lore the show uses on Lilith, she is traditionally a female so if they knew beforehand that Lilith was the contract holder why refer to her as a male in the first place? So, in my opinion it’s probable that Lilith was never intended to be the contract holder and that due to the season shortage they needed to change plans.

Lastly, while I appreciate the fact that they wanted to tie in with the comic again here with the Doc Benton storyline, they could’ve at least tried and get the facts straight between both media. In the comic the Doc Benton legend includes Benton using a dark ritual in order to secure his own immortality and John doesn’t only cut his heart out but also dismembers him gruesomely with a chainsaw. Anybody who saw the illustration knows that there’s really no way how Benton could have put himself together again after that. While we can concede that the legend was simply based on false lore and Sam discovered the true source of Benton’s immortality, the discrepancy between John’s journal entry in TIOMS and the comic is hard to discuss away. Ah well, I never really considered the Origins comic canon anyway. *lol*

Okay, moving on! I really loved how we jumped directly into the exorcism scene with the boys, finally seeing them actually taking action to acquire some information, instead of just being told so. The methods they have at their disposal to force a demon into talking though prove to be ineffective, the terror Lilith strikes within the demon world obviously exceeds the YED’s influence by far, which again makes me wonder why she didn’t oppose him earlier. With no other option than sending the demon back to hell, Sam and Dean are back to square one though. And man, Dean looks terrified at the thought of going to hell and being at the receiving end of the torture he just applied to the demon. The situation is bleak.

Sam: “Look man, we’re trying to do the same thing here!”

Where in last week’s episode Dean was the one who shoved all rationality aside because he thought he found something he could place his faith in, it’s Sam this week who clings to the hope that he finally found something to get them out of Dean’s deal after they ran into walls for months now. In his misdirected eagerness he even goes as far as to deliberately deceiving Dean into taking a supposed zombie case, knowing his brother would fall for that temptation. Deep down he knows that Dean would never agree to the suggestion of prolonging his life with supernatural means, so he decides to leave Dean on a need-to-know basis and lure him into the case, counting on his brothers curiosity. Hiding ulterior motives in order for Dean to play along, man, Sam is John’s son after all.

While it is clear that Sam sees immortality as a temporary solution (which in itself is a flaw in thinking right there) to buy them more time to find a more permanent way to break the deal, the single-mindedness with which he pursues his goal in typical Sam Winchester fashion is still unsettling, especially in the light of Long Distance Call where he preserved such a calm and rational approach. Running after immortality is in no way less twisted than to believe in calls from their dead father, both boys are obviously willing to grasp at straws in their desperation.

The confrontation between Sam and Dean, when Dean wants to pursue the lead on Bela while Sam wants to stay on the Benton case, was intense and very reminiscent of Scarecrow. Back then Dean also tried to lay down the law and Sam decided to leave him to follow his own goals; here it is Dean who walks out on Sam, to follow the lead he considers their best shot. I think it is actually the first time that we see Dean leaving Sam behind, in the sense that he initiates the separation, in Scarecrow and Hunted it was Sam who initiated it. Sure, Dean sometimes storms out for a couple of hours to clear his head when they have a disagreement, but usually he gives in when Sam refuses to yield, his instinct to protect Sam overpowering his own needs. But here and now, he has to realise that soon Sam will very likely be on his own anyway, with Dean no longer there to protect him. He could never stop Sam when he had his mind set on something anyway, so he leaves. And man, the long look they share when they both tell the other to be careful is just shattering me.

As Sam points out, both of them are fighting for the same thing here, but their methods and the lines they are willing to cross are still very different. Dean chooses to go for what he knows from experience will work, while Sam is willing to enter unchartered territory even if it goes against everything he stands for as a hunter. This whole season Dean’s deal created a chasm between the boys emotionally as well as ideologically. In the Crocotta’s words: they are deeply connected, but they were never as alone as in this season, keeping secrets, going separate ways, pushing the other away. At the beginning of the season the boys were divided by their different goals and while they had a short period of reconciliation they soon started to drift into a division of means and methods after they defined a common goal. That’s just heartbreaking to watch for me and I hope that’s not a foreshadowing of what’s to come in S4.

Sam’s willingness to cross lines and veer into dark territory in order to save Dean is just as worrying as his increasing trend of ruthlessness, still the unhesitating way he saves the girl from Doc Benton’s basement or his care for Lanie last week shows that when it comes down to it he has his priorities straight and the compassionate young man is still in there and that gives me hope.

Rufus: ”Folks like us, there ain’t no happy ending!”

I had a short squee-moment when we had the introduction of the grumpy hunter Rufus Turner played by X-Files alumni Steven Williams! God, I so hope he will be coming back for more next season, he was one of those instant character attachments for me, his snarky and at the same time melancholy conversation with Dean a highlight of this episode! While he was mainly used as a means to move the plot, it was his interesting characterisation that prevented the character from falling flat. Finally a hunter who’s is not depicted as a revenge driven sociopath, but as a world-weary and cynical hermit, knowledgeable and resourceful like Bobby, but anti-social with a hint of paranoia! I loved it!

The outlook Rufus gives Dean on his future is bleak and Dean doesn’t even bother disagreeing with him. A life alone, an outsider, the life he leads bringing him down eventually, even if the deal doesn’t and the look on Dean’s face is so weary. How many times has he been told now that there is no way to save him? Last week he was even teetering on complete despair and still he got up again only to see his only tangible lead fizzle out, the Colt irretrievable, leaving him again with nothing. It’s indeed like there is no happy ending in sight for our boys.

Bela: “I can’t be bothered to give a damn! Just like I don’t care what happens to you!”

I dreaded the Bela backstory ever since Red Sky At Morning as a redeeming tool for her character, so I was actually relieved that they didn’t go that route here, although it was just as clichéd as I feared it to be, but at least they only hinted at the child abuse shortly without going into a lengthy flashback sequence. I liked that until the last minutes Bela held onto her cold and self-reliant attitude, willing to go to any length to secure her own survival, again trying to dupe Dean and shooting the brothers in cold blood without flinching. There was no redeeming quality in her character and I couldn’t really feel sympathy at the situation she manoeuvred herself in.

I completely enjoyed Dean confronting Bela in her motel room, disarming her and firing a warning shot when she didn’t follow his instructions! But I was very glad that although his wrath against Bela was righteous, Dean couldn’t shoot her in the end. Even if he hadn’t realised Bela’s predicament by recognizing the herbs above her door, I am convinced he wouldn’t have shot her. She was right, he isn’t a killer and given her cold execution of (what she thinks are) Sam and Dean later she knows exactly what she is talking about. It doesn’t make any sense to me though that she would actually sell the Colt when it proved to be useless as a barter object for her soul, she still could have used it against the hellhounds or try to kill Lilith herself with it. But logical or not, I am happy that the weapon is out of the picture, it was always way too convenient.

While the twist in Bela’s story won’t make her appearances in earlier episodes any less contrived it at least puts her actions into a new context and with hindsight that might make her character a little more layered at rewatching the season. I loved about the reveal of Bela’s deal though that it retroactively set-up her character as a dark and twisted mirror to Dean, highlighting the humanity of the one character through the inhumanity of the other. Dean’s final ‘see you in hell’ isn’t even angry anymore, they are both condemned and he knows it.

Dean: “What he is, isn’t living. Look, this is simple. Black or White. Human, not human!”

Talking of humanity: Over the last 2 seasons Dean’s horror at becoming one of the very things he hunts has become a recurring theme. It’s his humanity that defines him above everything else and it’s the only thing he was never willing to sacrifice and he’s not starting with it now, no matter how terrified he is of going to hell, so his instant rejection of the solution Doc Benton seems to offer isn’t surprising. To be stripped of his humanity unwillingly while being tormented in hell is one thing but to become a monster by choice is something that’s unimaginable for Dean. This brings me back to the question of how far Sam is willing to go for Dean? Is he willing to give up his humanity in the process of saving Dean, after he fought so hard last season to keep his character integrity and ultimately died for his conviction? Does he even still believe in his own humanity after he learned of the demon blood in him?

While Sam’s devastation over Dean’s refusal to take the chance is clearly the result of getting his first and only hope he had in a long while ripped away from him, I also couldn’t help but wonder if Dean’s clear separation between black and white, human and not human is the very reason why Sam didn’t tell him yet about the blood ritual over his crib yet.

He hesitated a long while before he confided in Dean about his visions, not sure how his brother would react, but since then Dean never gave him any real reason to believe that anything could change his feelings for Sam. On the contrary, while Dean loathes the thought of himself being touched by the supernatural, when it comes to Sam he was never able to see anything other than his little brother, despite the fact that Sam’s visions and his connection to the YED worried him. When it comes to Sam the question of black and white isn’t quite as simple for him as he makes it seem here and Sam should know that. But could Dean ever forgive Sam for choosing to become evil or himself for being the catalyst for it? I really hope it never comes to that situation.

What else is squee-worthy?

Aww man, the typical siblings banter, with Sam trying to gross his brother out while he was eating a burger and Dean not letting him win this round was just too adorable for words! I dare everyone who has a sibling to tell me they haven’t tried that as well! It might be up there on my list with favourite brother moments, alongside the rock, scissors & paper game in Heart. I just love that amidst all the doom and gloom they can still share this unadulterated moments of fun, just being brothers!

I also love how very annoyed the doctor they asked for details on the missing liver case reacted to their obviously lousy cover story, as well as the grumpiness of the patient they pestered for answers about his missing kidneys. Heh! It’s so rare that civilians don’t buy right into their stories and authoritative demeanour, so it was fun to have it twice in one episode. It can also be seen as a sign how their focus isn’t really on the case itself and they become more sloppy in the process.

Smart!Dean will never ever become boring. Disabling Doc Benton with the knife dipped in chloroform, noticing when he is pick pocketed or recognising rare herbs with one look, I love it when they play on Dean’s hunter skills.

Last but not least one word on Lilith: It’s interesting to note that she avoided to confront Sam herself twice now, first sending her demon army and now Bela after him. He is only human and at the moment no real match to the powers she exhibited so far, so what is she so afraid of? With her holding Dean’s contract she also has the perfect leverage to force Sam into capitulation or even put him completely out of the picture by offering to set Dean free in exchange for Sam’s life.

At least it seems very unlikely now that Sam will claim his position as army leader in exchange for Dean’s contract, which was always my guess from the beginning of this season. Trusting that they don’t conjure up a cheap deus ex machina in the last minute, that leaves only two probable speculations in my opinion for the season finale: Either Sam is going to sacrifice himself in exchange for Dean’s contract or Dean actually goes to hell, fulfilling the contract in order to secure Sam’s life.

One episode to go and while I still feel like the season has only just begun, I can’t wait to know how the resolve the storyline around Dean’s deal. Given my predictions I am sure it will be devastating.

[Lady Manson]

My favorite part of this whole episode was that Steven Williams was the guy who was able to track down Bela. "I know everything." Yes, you do, Mr. X. All my fellow X-Files buddies will recall him as Mulder's ill fated informant. That was just awesome.

I loved the exit of Bela (as in how it was done, not the exit itself). It's nice and refreshing to see some people here who enjoyed her character like I did. For those who question her mom's death, a good majority of kids who are abused have one parent who knows something, but does nothing to stop it. That could have been the case here, but there just wasn't time to address it. That's what I figured was going on. I LOVED her acting at the end when she started crying.

Oh, sleepy now. I wanted to throw in my little two cents...

[Cori]

Wow! Sera Gamble does it again! Every episode she writes I fall in love with and "Time Is On My Side" proved no different. This was a tightly paced episode which had me gripped throughout. It was also IMO one of the creepiest SN episodes ever (what with the whole Dr. Benton wanting to cut out Sammy's eyes scene, I could hardly look at the screen during that scene, I was so creeped out; the general appearance of the doctor, the maggots, the entrails etc.). And once again Gamble's portrayal of Dean made me squee! We got to see so many different sides of Dean in this week's episode: funny Dean (Dean talking to his burger: "Ah baby, I can't stay mad at you"), smart Dean (outsmarting both Dr. Benton and Bela), angsty Dean (during his conversation with Rufus) and just all around kickass Dean throughout the ep, it was a joy to watch!

Bela getting what she deserved also made me squee (and I'm sure many fangirls around the globe felt the same). I love how Kripke & co. wrapped up her storyline with the demon deal and the hellhounds although I was not overly fond of the whole Bela being abused by her father thing (more on that below).

I also thought it was interesting to see the boys work two different cases (with Dean going after Bela and Sam going after Dr. Benton), which still were tied to the same goal: finding a way to save Dean from hell. However, the brothes went about this in a very different fashion, with Dean having certain principles that he is not willing to break and Sam being at a point where he is ready to try anything in order to save Dean.

Sam: "Dean, this here now, this is gonna save you."
Dean: "What? Chasing some Frankenstein?"
Sam: "Chasing immortality. Look Benton can't die, we find out how he did it, we can do it to you."
Dean: "What are you talking about?"
Sam: "You have to die before you go to hell right? So if you can never die ..."

Awww poor, misguided Sammy, you break my heart! How can you think that turning Dean into a monster is a viable way out? I get that Sam is desperate and at the end of his tether with only 3 weeks left but I was shocked and saddened to find out how far Sam is willing to go. I was also glad and proud of Dean that he would have none of Sam's plan. One of Dean's biggest fears is turning into a monster and he has shown several times now (IMTOD comes to mind) that he'd rather die than lose his humanity. As Dean says later on in the ep:

Dean: "See, what the doc is is a frigging monster. I can't do it. I'd rather go to hell."

The brothers then go off on their separate ways, not without sharing one last look that nearly killed me.

So Dean goes and looks up Rufus. I loved how confrontational and anti-social Rufus was towards Dean at first until Dean brought out the fine scotch. The conversation between Dean and Rufus was very intense, very well acted by both actors. Rufus confirming Dean's worst fear (that he really can't get out of the deal) made me feel so bad for Dean, seeing the fear plainly in his face was heartbreaking. And was I the only one who thought that Dean looked especially pretty in that scene?

So thanks to Rufus' help, Dean finds Bela and the following confrontation between the two was great, with their mutual loathing so out in the open and Dean shooting at Bela when she moved. I'm so glad though that Dean did not end up killing Bela because Dean shouldn't be killing humans if it can be at all avoided (even if they deserve it like Bela). Even if Dean hadn't seen the herb that tipped him off about the hellhounds and thus Bela's demon deal, I still don't think that he would have killed her because, as Bela said, he is not a cold-blooded killer.

As awesome as this week's episode was in my opinion, there were a couple of things that rubbed me the wrong way. One of them is Bela's back story, her being abused by her father and her mother supposedly looking the other way. It seems as if Kripke & co. put this in to make us feel sorry for Bela. It did not have that effect on me though. I thought it was clichéd and over the top and it did not make me like the character much better. I did like how they showed us Bela's past though, with a few subtle flashbacks that explained everything in a few short scenes.

In the end Bela did one good thing: she told Dean that Lilith holds his contract, mainly because she hoped that Dean can actually kill Lilith. I have to say I was kinda disappointed to find out that Lilith holds Dean's contract. Previously the crossroads demon had referred to her boss as a "he" and even though gender is not always definite with demons, it still bugs me that the contract holder now turns out to be female. Part of me "hopes" that this is due to the writers strike and the fact that Kripke & co. were forced to make do with fewer episodes this season because Lilith being the contract holder feels wrong and anti-climatic to me and I would like to think that the writers would have come up with someone more surprising and shocking than Lilith if they had had more episodes.

The last scene of the episode with Bela crying and looking out the window to await her fate with the hellhounds howling in the background was fantastic. I don't think it was necessary to show Bela actually being ripped to shreds, the way the scene was set up painted a pretty good picture.

So on the whole, I truly enjoyed and loved this episode, definitely one of my favourite s3 eps. I can't believe though that we have only one more episode left. I'm hoping that Kripke & co. have created a season finale that will truly blow our minds, I can't wait to see what they have come up with.

[Willow's Tara]

Hey, Australia just aired this episode two nights ago. Now first thing, when I saw Billy Drago name on the list I was like Billy Drago! (I remebered the name/actor because I just watched Mrs.Hellfire earlier that day..on Charmed of course, watched Fear from Eternity the day before). And I agree with the poster way above that said his character in Charmed was creepy, and he was still creepy in this episode (He seemed to have that tilt in his neck as well, you know the one Barbras has, like when he's looking at the sisters he has that tilt, is that the actor or the character?).

And one more episode before the season finale, yay! Although I missed aleast one or two episodes this week, not my fault I swear! If my damn VCR had been working I would have taped it.