TV REVIEW: Supernatural “Alex Annie Alexis Ann”

It’s no secret that Supernatural lacks presence in the female department.  Every now and again we get some awesome, butt-kicking females who know how to deliver an episode.  One of those ladies is Sheriff Jody Mills. And man did she deliver.

Tuesday night’s episode entitled “Alex Annie Alexis Ann” saw our favorite Sheriff-turned-Hunter calling on the Winchesters brothers to investigate a supposed vampire nest.  At the forefront was a scared, young, human girl named Alex.  Alex had escaped her vampire captors in hopes to flee town, but things were not as they seemed. Alex was really Annie and had been kidnapped many years before as a young girl.

Unfortunately, Alex/Annie was suffering from a severe case of Stockholm syndrome.  Even though she was terrified of the vampire nest who had raised her, she felt beholden to them, not wanting to rat out their location.  Jody couldn’t sit by and let the terrified Alex run back into the arms of her vampire “Mama.”  She felt a connection with the girl; especially after learning she had no biological family left.

With the help of Sam and Dean, Sheriff Mills helped exterminate the entire nest of bumpkin vampires, saving Alex from turning into a full-fledged bloodsucker and helping her to regain her humanity.

This week’s episode played homage to the similarly titled 2011 movie “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” in which a young woman escapes a very manipulative and abusive cult, only to learn that acclimating into the mainstream world is not as easy as it seems. Where the movie ends on a somber and ambiguous note, this week’s Supernatural left a twinge of happiness in our hearts as it seemed Jody was going to go above and beyond to secure a safe future for Alex.

It’s not often that I will sing the praises of a filler episode, especially with the disjointed events this season has taken, but Tuesday’s episode finally used a strong and much needed female character to take front seat.  We didn’t get much Winchester drama, save for Dean’s cold Mark of Cain driven “look at me, bitch!” line as he wielded his machete to decapitate one of the vamps.  It was a nice breather to the bumpy ride our favorite brothers have taken and Jody was the breath of fresh air.

Hey, Supernatural, I’m talking to you.  We need more of these amazing women who don’t die after one episode and know how to fend for themselves.  Enough with the male driven plot lines and angst filled episodes with nothing but testosterone.  Abaddon is okay, but ultimately a villain, destined for certain death.  Can season ten be about Jody and Charlie forming their own demon-hunting duo, please?