SPN Ep: Ghostfacers

[the_other_sandy]

Grr. Supernatural was preempted in my area by a baseball game. The show was supposed to start at the "special" time of 11:30 p.m., but by 12:10 a.m. it still hadn't started, so I was forced to let the VCR run and go to bed like the responsible adult I occasionally impersonate. I didn't get to watch the show until tonight.

I liked the episode more than I thought I would. I wasn't a big fan of Ed and Harry from "Hell House," so I wasn't really looking forward to seeing them again, but after an annoying start, I was okay with the Ghostfacers team.

I liked how the episode was structured around the "investigation," from research to site visit. The way the Ghostfacers approach their cases is surprisingly similar to the way Sam and Dean do, only, you know, less competent.

This episode also resolved an age-old debate in fandom: would Sam and Dean swear more if they were on cable? In a heightened situation at least, I'm going to go with yes. 8-) I was willing to believe it of Dean, but I was surprised that Sam had such a potty mouth on him. Who knew? This ep was also a good example of how to give Jared and Jensen some down time without splitting up Sam and Dean or cluttering up the show with extra regulars.

One thing I didn't like was all the hand-held camera work. I know why the show was shot like that and I actually agree with it as a directing choice, but I was one of those people who got horribly motion sick watching The Blair Witch Project and spent the entire second half of the movie staring fixedly at the seat in front of me so I wouldn't throw up. I was also unable to watch Homicide: Life on the Street when it aired, even though I really liked it, because the hand-held camera work on that show gave me a headache. So while I totally agree that hand-held camera work was the way to go with this episode, I could've used a Dramamine and a Tylenol to get through it.

The way the episode swung from almost cartoonishness to genuine horror was a startling contrast that mostly worked, but I had issues with the way Corbett's horrifying death was treated almost like a sight gag. I felt sorry for Corbett, and I thought the show could've laid off the gay jokes after he was murdered. Dean was right about the Ghostfacers walking a fine line between tribute and exploitation with Corbett's death.

And now I have to pick a few nits:

Nitpick #1: Based on the list of missing people that Sam showed Ed, there were a lot more missing people than were in that party room/bunker. What happened to everyone else?

Nitpick #2: Electromagnets do a wonderful job of wiping magnetically encoded information from hard drives and floppy disks (I love my boys when they're smart), but they don't do a darn thing to information laser-inscribed on DVDs or CD-ROMs. The Ghostfacers should still have viable footage.

Still, I'm trying not to nitpick too hard. I really did like the episode overall. I've missed you, Show.

Comments

[oddlyspoken.livejournal.com]

One thing I didn't like was all the hand-held camera work.

Me too only for different reasons. I found I couldn't always keep track of the shifting povs. I found it very confusing at times, what with all the darkness and the lack of distinctiveness in their surroundings. It wasn't always clear which character was in the shot either. All those guys look a lot alike from behind in the gloom.

Then again, perhaps that was part of what they were trying to achieve? *shrug*

Fingers crossed for next week.

[the-other-sandy.livejournal.com]

I found I couldn't always keep track of the shifting povs.

I had the same problem. When Maggie and Harry started kissing, then a new camera was showing Ed finding them, I had a Monty Python moment: "Wait a minute! If this is the crew who were filming us, who's filming us now?" It took me a minute to figure out who was running the camera because I forgot about Spruce.

It was also hard to see what was going on during the panicky moments because the camera was flying around too much to fix on an image.

[oddlyspoken.livejournal.com]

because I forgot about Spruce

I was very suspicious of Spruce. He always seemed to be turning up at really convenient moments. For example, when Dean heads down to the basement in search of the bunker. One minute Dean's headed off completely alone into the bowels of the building. The next Spruce is right there filming him. Hmmm? I was completely convinced he was some sort of supernatural thing.

[libra-traveller.livejournal.com]

I actually watch the show now, because my sister got season one and two of dvds. I enjoyed this episode, though at first I was sure I wasn't going to.

[the-other-sandy.livejournal.com]

I didn't think I was going to like it at first either. The faux Masterpiece Theatre opening with Ed and Harry was kind of cringe-inducing for me, but by the time they arrived at Morton House I was enjoying it.