Normally I don't really keep track of who writes particular episodes

[giandujakiss]

But as soon as Dean microwaved the fairy, I knew this had to be Ben Edlund.

The boys look very pretty all beat up together.

The XF beginning was sort of pointless, since it turned out that the episode wasn't about aliens anyway. And since the show didn't use the XF theme song, the joke really wasn't complete.

So, after skipping it last week, we're back to the whole Dean-as-Sam's-conscience story - which I liked when they introduced it, but if they're going to be this uneven about it, it doesn't seem like it's going to live up to what I'd hoped it would be.

I suppose it was inevitable that robo!Sam would have second thoughts about wanting his soul back, but I was really hoping they wouldn't go there, because it just means more delays before this thing is resolved. It's probably the show's last season, Sam's not even going to be here for the majority of it.

Dean's explanation about the purpose and effect of a soul was at least as contrivedly weak as his explanation in Wishful Thinking as to why Joxer needed to remove the spell. He couldn't think of anything to say except "a soul causes sorrow"? Because as annoyed and/or depressed as he was, I think he still could have managed to eke out "but you can't really be happy without one, either."

The plotting was poorly thought-out, even for SPN. The bit with the sugar/salt at the end - it was obvious that Sam should have spilled it immediately, and they really couldn't think of any reason why he wouldn't have, so they just hung a lampshade on it.

I don't even know why the guy didn't try to reverse the spell before Sam and Dean came to town - I mean, since Sam couldn't see the fairies, he couldn't have done much to protect the guy; no reason why the guy couldn't have gotten the fairies drunk and tried the spell on his own. And spilled a circle of salt around himself and tried the spell to make sure he wouldn't be interrupted.

I did enjoy robo!Sam trying not to laugh at the idea of Dean servicing Oberon. (Should we expect fic now? ... probably not, since that's already been written extensively.)

I'm sorry we didn't get a glittery Dean with wings. I'm also sorry that if they were going to do that XF parody at the beginning, they couldn't figure out a way to get Mitch Pileggi in there. Those were missed opportunities.