Supernatural '#Thinman' Review: The Ghostfacers return, but do we care?

The latest Season 9 episode of Supernatural, entitled "#Thinman," featured the return of the Ghostfacers to the Winchesters' world. The episode attempted to draw a parallel between Ed and Harry and Sam and Dean, but the entire thing fell flat on its face.

The case of the week involved Thinman, a new type of monster who kept popping up in the background of photos and murdering unsuspecting people. Dean was convinced it was a ghost, but the Ghostfacers (who were also in town investigating the case) were convinced it was Thinman, about whom they had written a pretty successful book.

But after some time, Ed revealed to Harry that he made up Thinman in order to keep Harry from leaving the Ghostfacers and staying with his girlfriend. The twist here was that Thinman wasn't a supernatural creature at all; he was the product of two ordinary men who decided to become the urban legend in order to get famous.

The plot was intriguing enough, as it kept viewers guessing as to who or what Thinman really was. After nine seasons, the only was these Monster of the Week episodes work is if the case itself is mysterious and engaging. So "#Thinman" gets a check mark there.

Another standout portion of the episode was the way in which it dealt with the two psychos. Dean stabbed one and Harry shot the other. But as Sam pointed out soon afterwards, these were not demons or angels or any other monsters. They were just two men, and the good guys killed them where they stood. This is an area that Supernatural has touched on in the past but never explored in great detail. Every time Sam and Dean knife a demon or smite an angel, what happens to the poor guy or girl it was possessing? Is killing an ordinary man or woman any different than killing one possessed by a supernatural entity? This is a moral gray area that the show should dive into more often.

Now for the bad stuff. The Ghostfacers' presence dragged down the entire episode. The duo has gone from humorous to downright annoying and obnoxious, and they gave the viewer little reason to care about the drama between them. The episode tried to evoke some emotion with Ed's deceit, but the end result fell far short of the mark.

Supernatural tends to get a little obvious with its symbolism sometimes, and this was one such unfortunate case. The dialogue between Harry and Ed just beat viewers over the head with its connection to Sam and Dean about how secrets destroy relationships, how Ed acted selfishly, etc. Harry's speech in the Impala to Sam and Dean about how you might split from the person whom you always thought would be there for you was just as hokey. This is all information that Sam and Dean already know, so I sincerely hope that this isn't what brings them back together, because that would be a disservice to this entire plot.

The next episode looks promising with the return of Crowley, so we'll see if the show recovers from this stumble.

Notes from Dad's Journal:

-       Sam and Dean forgot the No. 1 rule of Supernatural and all mysteries, really: It's always the guy you don't expect.

-       Dean's a smart guy, but man is he stubborn! He was convinced it was a ghost, okay, but shouldn't a hunter of his caliber explore the options, at least?

-       Was the Ghostfacers' return even necessary for this episode?

What did you think of tonight's episode? Let us know in the comments below.