Okay, after all the DOOM and GLOOM and EPIC DESTINY of the first four episodes, it’s nice to have a break with a relatively light-hearted and fun episode like "Monster Movie." Not that I don’t like the serious episodes but one thing I’ve discovered from watching Supernatural over the past three seasons is that they do funny really well. And Ben Edlund, who also wrote "Bad Day at Black Rock" and "Ghostfacers," two of last season’s funniest episodes, is behind the wheel for this one too, so I have high hopes going in. 

As homage to the old monster films of yore, this episode is filmed completely in black and white, and even the title credits are themed with classic old time placards. Awesome. The Winchesters are driving in the Impala, on their way to case in Pennsylvania that Dean likens to the good old days, when all they had to worry about was chopping off some vampire’s head. Taking a break from world-ending cases and as Dean says, ‘it’s about time the Winchesters got back to tackling a straightforward, black and white case' (aha, I see what you did there).

It’s Oktoberfest in the small town where the victim was found, and Dean and Sam take the time (well, Dean does in any case) to enjoy the sights and menu of the festival. The boys are back in their FBI suit, where Sam is still convincing as a Fed, and Dean just looks awkward in his suit. They track down the local sheriff, and he lets them into the morgue to see the body.  There’s fang marks on the victim’s neck, and the sheriff tells the Winchesters that there was one witness to the murder.

His name is Ed Brewer and thanks to a friendly bartender named Jamie, the boys find him in the local bar where he’s drowning his sorrows in a ginormous beer stein. He tells them that the murderer was a vampire, and he’s absolutely certain of this, because the man was dressed like the classic Dracula, slick back hair, black cape, fangs and even the accent. Hah, I love the incredulous looks on Sam and Dean’s face here. They know real vampires don’t have anything to do with the traditional myths, so the case is pretty much over for them at this point.

Dean takes the opportunity to hit on the bartender Jamie some more, and then there’s a hilariously awkward conversation where Dean tries to convince Sam that since he came back with no scars, bullet wounds, knife cuts… he’s pretty sure he’s a virgin again.

Dean: “Which leads me to conclude, sadly, that my virginity is intact.”
Sam: (not sure what he’s hearing)  “What?”
Dean:  I have been rehymenated.
Sam: “Re-? (laughs) Please. Dean, maybe angels can pull you out of hell but no one can do that.”

Heh. Sam decides to leave Dean to his pursuing of Jamie, and while Dean’s shot down again, Jamie promises there might be some hope the next day.

But it might not be a dud case after all for the Winchesters, as we see a hapless couple stalked by a wolfman, and even though it’s not a typical werewolf, there’s something weird enough going on in the town for them to stick around. Shortly after, there’s a mummy attack at the local museum… but this time the culprit was careless enough to leave behind clues -- the sarcophagus came from a prop shop, and there’s dry ice inside.

Sam and Dean still can’t quite figure it out, and Dean leaves the scene to dash off for a date with Jamie… who just happens to have caught the attention of Dracula, who thinks she’s his bride, Mina. Jamie puts up a good fight and she’s running away from him when Dean catches up. During the fight with Dracula, he manages to tear off the entire ear of the creature before it escapes.  And the ear turns out to be the clue needed to solve the mystery, as the Winchesters have encountered this type of creature before. It’s a shapeshifter, like in "Skin" and "Nightshifter".

After chatting with Jamie, it seems like the most likely candidate for the shapeshifter is Ed Brewer. So Sam goes to check him out while Dean stays behind to keep an eye on Jamie, in case the ‘shifter comes back to find her. While waiting in the bar, Jamie and Dean share a quiet and tender moment, and end up kissing. Unfortunately, they’re interrupted, not by Ed, but rather Lucy, one of the other bartenders from the bar. Turns out Lucy is the actual shapeshifter and she spikes both Jamie and Dean’s drinks, and kidnaps them.

Sam quickly figures out that it’s not Ed they’re after, and he puts two and two together when he comes back sees the disturbed bar scene, and Lucy’s trademark lipstick stain. Back at the shapeshifter’s mansion, Dean (dressed in lederhosen, heh) is saved from electrocution by the doorbell ring of a pizza delivery boy. The shapeshifter uses the pizza to attempt a connection with Jamie, who he thinks is going to be his bride. In these scenes you can really see the loneliness that drives the shapeshifter to make the decisions to adopt the persona of monsters, and how he clings to the classic films as a way to fit in and find his place in life. The actor who plays the shapeshifter, Todd Stashwick, does an excellent good job with the material he’s given.

But given that this episode is called “Monster Movie”, inevitably the monster (in this case, the ‘shifter) is going to die. Surprisingly though, it’s the damsel in distress, Jamie, who ends up saving the day, which was pretty cool.

In the end, the monster dies, the hero gets the girl, and the Winchesters drive off into the sunset like they do at the end of every episode. A classic formula.
 
Episode 4x05,"Monster Movie"
Writer: Ben Edlund 
Director: Robert Singer
Guest stars: Todd Stashwick, Melinda Sward, Holly E. Dignard, Michael Ecklund.