Two scientists at Niveus Pharmaceuticals prepare and test their vaccines on animals when a janitor comes and jabs one. He locks them in together, and watches as the infected scientist goes mad and attacks the other. Satisfied he leaves.

Dean and Sam poses as CDC agents and visit a hospital where they believe a version of the Croatoan virus has popped up, and ask about violent occurrences. The doctor in charge believes its just swine flu, but it started a day and half ago, the same day statues began crying.

The brothers head back out, briefing Bobby via phone, and trying to figure out what Pestilence is up to. They’re onto their fourth town that he’s passed through, but they still don’t know where he’ll strike next, only that he’s headed east. Crowley pops in on the boys for a little chat. Sam accuses him of setting them up, knowing the colt wouldn’t work on Lucifer, but Crowley insists he wants Lucifer dead. Lucifer now knows Crowley is a threat and he burned his house, ate his tailor, and every demon is out to get him. Not only that but he  knows about the Horsemen rings.

Crowley hid a supernatural listening device, by way of magical coin, on the Impala and had heard everything the boys have said, but more importantly he wants in on their plan to imprison Lucifer, and he knows the stable boy of one of the Horsemen. They just have to catch him and Crowley can persuade him to change sides.

The demon they’re after is Brady, CEO of Niveua Pharmaceuticals. He pushes his staff to produce swine flu vaccines as soon as possible. He cuts the throat of an employee to contact Pestilence and give him a status update on the vaccines.

Sam wonders why they’re trusting Crowley, he is a demon, even if he is a smoking hot one, and even Dean thinks it’s a little insane. Crowley comes in, and tells Sam to stay behind because he’s too eager to kill him. Dean agrees. Sam calls Bobby to see how Bobby resisted the urge to kill when he was possessed, thinking there maybe a chance that he could let Lucifer in long enough to get him into the cage. Bobby insists it was a fluke, a one-in-a-million chance, one that Sam can’t take. There is no way Sam will be able to take control from Lucifer, but Sam insists he’s strong enough even if Bobby doesn’t believe it.

Crowley and Dean head to Niveus. Crowley kills the human guards, much to Dean’s anger. Dean heads up while Crowley stays behind. Dean fights through the demons to get to Brady’s office. Once inside he offers him the Horsemen rings but he has to come get them. But Brady doesn’t want the rings. He wants revenge for what’s been done to War and Famine and he takes his anger out on Dean’s pretty face. Dean makes a run for it, and in the lobby Crowley bags Brady with a devil’s trap and beats him unconscious.

As they drive back, Crowley caves a sigil into Brady’s body to trap him, then he admits that Brady and Sam have history. Dean takes Brady in, and Crowley tries to keep Sam away, but Sam being Sam doesn’t listen and goes to help Dean with the demon. It was Demon Brady who introduced Sam to Jess in college, it was all part of the plan. Sam loses it, and Dean forces him to leave. Sam does, but he still doesn’t trust Crowley.

Meanwhile, Crowley tries to reason with Brady. Lucifer will kill humans and demons in his quest, they’re better off banding together. Brady doesn’t care, he’s dead anyways, and Lucifer will torture Crowley for eternity. Crowley leaves, with a new plan to stir demons up.

Dean goes to the bathroom, and Sam locks him in to get some time with Brady. Brady taunts him, he was the one who put mild-manner Sam back on his downward spiral, he killed Jess to do it. Sam threatens to cut his throat, and Brady invites it before Sam gets himself under control. Sam lets Dean out, and Crowley returns. He’s set Brady up, making it look as though Brady has slaughtered a horde of demons for his lover, Crowley.  However he soon discovers a tracking device, he tosses it at Dean and flashes out.

Dean goes to fortify the house, when hellhounds leap through the windows. He manages to get back to Sam and Brady, when Crowley returns with a hellhound of his own, and unleashes it on the one attacking the boys. As the two hounds fight it out, Dean and Sam get Brady out and drive away with Crowley.

Brady gives Crowley Pestilence’s location, and Crowley leaves him in the hands of the Winchesters. Brady taunts Sam, saying the only difference between them is that Sam’s hell is on Earth. Sam kills him, admitting its an interesting theory.

Back at Bobby’s, he coordinates with Rufus, trying to locate Death. As he finishes his call, Crowley appears. Bobby shoots him, but Crowley is there to help get Death’s ring. He has a spell that will help, but he needs Bobby to make a crossroad’s bargain. Bobby shoots Crowley again, but Crowley promises he’ll return Bobby’s soul, that he needs Bobby to do this to save himself as well, and  Bobby actually considers the sexy demon’s offer.

Released: 1997                 387  pages                          

Publisher: Ace Books

Format: Paperback

ISBN: 0-441-00452-0

After the last novel was almost devoid of Richard, this one is full of him, which makes me a happy girl. Again we start with a job for Anita, but this time it’s to save a vampire. The master vampire Sabin, has developed a condition where he is irreversibly rotting away, and he wants Anita’s help to stop it.

The ongoing struggle between Anita, Richard and Jean-Claude continues. Jean-claude slaughtering his way to power, and Richard refraining. And Edward is back, which to me is always a good thing. Edward’s received a contract to kill Anita, and although he refused it, he wanted to warn her someone else won’t.

And as if that wasn’t enough on her plate Raina is acting up again, forcing poor Weres to star in her pornographic movies. As always more is going on than meets the eye, and bad goes to worse pretty quickly as Anita, and Richard are constantly tested. Anita sticks her big foot in her mouth, and inadvertently challenges the Lupa before she can semi-save the day.

Anita comes to some hard realizations where Richard is concerns and it nearly breaks my heart. Anita uses herself as bait to draw the killer, but finds herself in additional trouble until a vampire is staked in an unusual fashion.

Relationships and power positions are greatly changed in this one, and Anita does eventually get to address Sabin’s problem. While the story moved along, this was not one of my favorites. There was action and emotion, but all of Jean-Claude’s manipulations of Anita and her letting him fill her with doubts grate on my nerves. Richard is overly noble, and Anita comes across as selfish very often, but we do finally see Richard as a wolf, though I wish it were under better circumstances.

There are a few steamy almost moments, which are well written, and one very complete one. I need more. Blood, lust and magic are a powerful and seductive combination that are surely to show up in future novels, as well as the bond that Anita formed under duress.

A security guard looks into some strange noises at the Elysian Fields Hotel, when he comes upon a man in a suit who tells him that they are coming that that he will be dinner.

Sam and Dean arrive at the renovated Elysian Fields Hotel. The suited man is working the front desk, and as they check in he notes that Dean nicked himself shaving. The man directs the boys to an all you can eat 24 hour buffet. Instead of eating Sam wants back out onto the road, but Dean doesn’t want him to get burned out.

As they go to their room, they pass a honeymooning couple in the hallway. In their room they find plush furninshings, porn and chocolates on the pillows. Sam wonders why there’s such a nice hotel in the middle of nowhere. They hear the amorous couple next door, but when the wall shakes with a heavy impact the boys go to investigate. The couple is gone, and only a wedding ring remains. The boys turn the ring in, and find out that the Logans have checked out.

The boys hackles are raised, so they split up to search for clues. Sam follows the clerk, but he suddenly disappears, and then he feels a prick on his neck with blood on his neck. Dean passes an elephant, but on second look it’s a man dressing.

A man and woman are talking when the clerk comes in, they call him Mercury. He’s stolen the boys’ blood at super speed. And then he tells them that everyone is now there.

Dean and Sam go over what they found and find that not only are they locked in, there isn’t anyone else left. In the kitchen, Dean finds eyeballs in the soup, and Sam finds some guests in the walk in freezer. The boys are brought to the ballroom, where they meet some guests bearing the nametags: Ganesh, Kali, Odin, Baldur, Baron, Samedi, and a few others. Baldur announces that their guests of honor, the Winchesters have arrived.

Everyone sits, and Baldur urges all the Gods to put aside their squabbles, and look to the future, but as they start to bicker Dean and Sam slip away, only to be stopped by Kali. She tells them that the angels only understand violence, and when Mercury suggests talking instead she causes him to bleed until Baldur stops her.

Gabriel appears, and Baldur calls him Loki. He knows they can’t stop the Apocalypse. He gets Sam and Dean out of there so the gods can talk in private. He’s there to save them, and maybe Kali too, they had a thing, and who wouldn’t with Loki or Gabriel or Trickster, or any other name he’s going by at the time. Sam suggests that the Gods should fight Lucifer, but Gabriel knows they are no match for Satan. Nor can he free them from the hotel without drawing attention to them, so for the time being they’re all stuck.

Gabriel flirts with Kali as Sam and Dean sneak around, unable to save the human guests as the Gods kill them. Gabriel urges Kali to run away with him, but she cannot she must stay and fight.

Sam and Dean go to walk in trying to pick the lock and free the remaining humans, but Zao Jun attacks them. Dean stabs him. Gabriel meanwhile tries to steal the vials of the boys’ blood, but Kali catches him, scratching him and binding him to her.

Once again taken to the ballroom, Dean and Sam are brought before Gabriel and Kali. She knows about Gabriel, has known and he’s forced to come clean. He’s gone rogue because Michael has become too strong, but Kali is in denial. She insists there are billions of gods that came before him, and if the world will be destroyed she will be the one to do it. She takes his archangel blade and stabs him with it, killing him.

Dean agrees to help the other Gods kill Lucifer, but they have to let the people go. The gods agree, but as they’re leaving, Dean sees Gabriel hiding in the Impala. He replaced his blade with a fake one, and now its up to Dean to get the blood and free them all. Dean urges Gabriel to come back and help, but Gabriel says he can’t kill his brother. Can’t or won’t, Dean asks, and Gabriel doesn’t answer.

Inside Sam tells Kali to remove the sigils so that Lucifer can find him, but before she does Dean spills that Gabriel tricked them, but it doesn’t matter Lucifer is already there. Mercury called him, and Lucifer snaps his neck for his efforts.

The lights flicker, and Baldur and Kali know something is wrong. Lucifer comes in smashing his way through the other gods. It’s too late, and Baldur cannot get them out now. Lucifer quickly kills Baldur, and Kali is his next target as the boys duck for cover. Gabriel comes to the boys, porn DVD in hand, and tells them to guard it with their lives. He goes to help Kali, he tells the boys to get her out. Lucifer taunts Gabriel about his slumming, but Gabriel notes that he’s playing the role of victim, even though god loved him more than any other angel, until God had humans. Grow up.

Dean and Sam drive away with Kali in tow, as the storm gets worse. Inside Gabriel admits his loyalty isn’t with Michael either, but with humanity. God’s right, humans are better, it’s the flaws that make them better. Lucifer tries to half-heartedly change his mind, but ultimately kills him. He cries over his loss.

The following day Dean and Sam watch Gabriel’s porno. Gabriel is the star, and before it can get too weird he breaks it down for the boys. He’s dead, and they cannot kill Lucifer. They can, if they can get it back open, put Lucifer back in his cage. There are four keys to it, the rings of the four horsemen. Gabriel is scared for sure, but he’s ready to stand up to his brother. The boys already have two keys, they just need Pestilence and Deaths.

Released 8/7/07

Publisher: NAL Trade
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780451221377

The phantom of the Opera has always been a great love story, but the ending never seemed to satisfy. The story of an Opera house singer, Christine Daae, who becomes mesmerized by her angel of music, until she sees his true face and is repulsed, what a minute, Beauty and the Beast this is not, but it could easily be.

Colette Gale creates a beautiful story where the phantom becomes more than the phantom, but a man, Erik, and there is more than just awe and mystery that surrounds him. The overall story was good, it seemed to work a little better, make more sense this way. The desire to obtain the beautiful Christine was more about a real connection than a frivolous madman's want. And as much as I love erotica, this was sex to fill up pages. Don't get me wrong some of the scenes were very well written, and very creative, but they rarely served a higher purpose than filler.

And the thing I think that bothered me the most was the point of view changes that did nothing too further the story. Sometimes the story would follow with a different narrator, but what was taking place did not matter in the story. The gimmick was merely used to add an additional gratuitous sex scene or slow the story down.

The story telling felt scattered, but it did tell Erik's story from a refreshing new perspective, that was very vibrant, so the read was worth it.

Zachariah sits at a bar, drinking talking about how he failed in his job. All he needed was one yes, and he couldn’t get it. The ground shakes, and there’s a loud whine, all the other patrons fall to their knees in agony. Zachariah finishes drink as everyone around him die, he’s being given another chance.

Dean is drinking in a motel room, packing away his gear to send to Bobby. He turns and Sam is there. Sam thinks that Dean is planning to kill him by accepting Michael. Dean doesn’t deny it, and doesn’t believe Sam when he says that Bobby has been working on something. But Sam brought help, castile knocks Dean unconscious.

Now at Bobby’s, Bobby tries to get to the bottom of Dean’s issues, why he’s given up. Dean tells him that he’s not his father. Bobby shows Dean the gun and bullet he plans to use to kill himself, and tells him that the only reason he hasn’t gone through with his plan is because he promised Dean he wouldn’t give up. Castiel clutches his head in pain, something is happening.

Castiel flashes to a forest. He kneels examining the ground when he’s attacked by a pair of men. He fights them both off, killing them, and goes back to an object he’s found that’s hidden. A hand emerges from the ground, and Castiel pulls the person free.

Castiel returns with the buried person, Sam and Dean’s brother Adam. He tells the boys how the angels attacked him, he then brands Adam’s ribs with an Enochian sigil to protect him. Sam and Dean try to tell Adam who they are, but he already knows, the angels warned him about them. He demands to speak with Zachariah.

The boys get Adam to open up a little. The angels told Adam that he is the vessel for Michael to defeat the devil. Castiel confirms that since he too is of John’s bloodline, it may be true. Sam isn’t buying the hype, but Adam insists that it true, that angels don’t lie. Sam begs for his trust, but being brothers gain nothing for him. John ignored him, and they aren’t really family. If he does as the angels ask, he’ll see his mother.

Later Adam tries to sneak out, but Sam catches him. Sam tells him that he’s lucky he only saw John once a year, John was protecting him. But Adam would have gone through anything to have more than he got from John. Sam insists that if they knew they had a brother, then he would have found him.

Cas and Sam insist on locking away Dean, but Dean doesn’t want Adam or anyone else dying for him. He’s ready to do what he needs to do, and he knows it’s only a matter of time before Sam goes over to the dark side. Sam walks away.

Dean escapes, and Cas goes to investigate. When he finds Dean, Dean’s drawn a sigil and banishes the angel so he can make a clean get away. Sam soon realizes that something is amiss, and that both Dean and Cas are gone. He leaves Bobby to look after Adam, as he looks for Dean.

Adam dreams about a park where he use to go with his mother when Zachariah appears. He knows that Adam’s with Sam and Dean and that they’re hiding him. He feeds Adam’s fear that the boys can’t protect him, that he isn’t family. But Adam is less sure of it now. The angel asks if he wants to see his mother, but he wakes before he does.

Dean goes to a street preacher, and tells him to notify the angels that he’s ready, but Castiel comes instead.  He gives Dean the butt kicking he’s in need of, telling him that he gave up everything for him, but has gotten nothing. Dean tells Cas to kill him, but he knocks him out instead.

Sam returns, Adam is gone, and Castiel comes back with Dean. He knows where the angels took Adam, its where they once took Dean. Adam is enjoying hamburgers when Zachariah tells him that they plan to dispose of him, that he was just bait. Dean will rescue him, and then he’ll have Dean, everything will be back on track, or that’s what he thinks until he starts coughing up blood.

Dean is back in the safe room, when Sam tells him that Castiel went to do recon to find Adam in the angel room. He uncuffs him because there are too many angels, and he needs help. Dean figures its either a trap or he’ll say yes. Sam leaves it up to him to make the right call. Castiel comes for the boys. He tells them there are five angels guarding Adam, he’ll distract them so they can get Adam out. It’s suicide, but at least he won’t have to watch Dean fail. He goes in with only a box cutter.

Inside, Castiel is attacked, he dispels the first quickly. When the other angels all turn to attack, Cas drops his knife and rips off his shirt exposing a banishing sigil. He activates it, and all of them are banished.

Once the angels are gone, Sam and Dean enter. They find a badly injured Adam inside. Sam tries to stab Zachariah, and gets a gestured back hand for his trouble. With another gesture, Adam and Sam start bleeding, as he starts to explain God’s plan. Dean will accept Michael if Zachariah will stop this torture. Zachariah agrees and summons Michael, but Dean isn’t done with his requests. The room shakes, and Dean gives Sam a saucy wink. He also wants safety for some people, and for Michael to incinerate Zachariah. He scoffs, that Michel will never do the last, which is fine by Dean as he pulls out an angel-killing knife and does it himself.

The room glows and Sam and Dean get out, the door seals shut before they can get Adam. Adam turns towards the glow, and when it goes out, the room is gone and so is everything that was inside it.

The boys drive away wondering if Adam is okay. Dean knows they’ll find him and Cas no matter what. And it’s time for the big heart to heart. Sam asks Dean what changed his mind, because he was ready to say yes. Dean tells him that when he looked at him, he couldn’t let him down. He’s always thought of Sam as his helpless little brother, but he knows he isn’t, that if Sam can have faith in him, he can do the same. Dean’s finally ready to take the fight to the angels.

Released: 4/13/10  400 pages
Publisher: Bantam 
Format: Hardcover
ISBN-13: 978-0553807882

First time in print, but not the first time fans have seen the stories, the Tales of the Otherworld is a compilation of short stories previously published on Kelley Armstrong’s website.

Packaged together they work beautifully together. And if the reader was not familiar with the website they were an extra treat. Though none of the stories impact much of the series, they do give a little behind the scenes look at some of the lives of Ms. Armstrong’s beloved characters.  Most of the stories strengthened the love for the characters. The stories were originally written as a Thank you to her fans, and as fans kept requesting them in a book, she finally complied, making sales go towards World Literacy of Canada.

 The anthology includes: Rebirth (the story of how Aaron became a vampire), Bewitched (the story of how Eve and Kristof Nast coming together), Birthright (Logan’s discovery of his werewolf ancestry), Beginnings (how Elena and Clay got together), Expectations (an early investigation by Lucas), Ghosts (events during Bitten, when Jeremy sends Elena and Clay to Toronto and remains at Stonehaven), Wedding Bell Hell (Paige and Lucas's wedding), and The Case of El Chupacabra (a case Lucas and Paige investigate for Sean Nast).

In Rebirth we find Aaron working with Cassandra and not very happy about being a vampire. I have to admit that Cassandra has never really been a favorite character. But between this and The Case of El Chupacabra, she’s grown on me a little. My biggest complaint with this is that the story is a little too short, and needed to be fleshed out more.

Bewitched makes me long for more Kristof. He and Eve were quite the couple, lightning in a bottle, and we finally get a clue as to why he didn’t know about Savannah until after Eve’s death.

Birthright was a sad one, but we see how Logan came to be a part of the pack. He never knew his father, and then on his 18^th birthday he receives a letter with Jeremy Danvers Address. Logan mistakens this to mean that Jeremy is his father, and as he goes through the changes to become a werewolf, which he has no clue about, but Jeremy is there to help.

Beginnings is up next. Readers familiar with the series know that Clay bit Elena turning her into a werewolf, but their relationship prior to the bite has never really been explored, it is here. The point of view flip flops between Clay and Elena, which is characteristic of some of Armstrong’s later novels. Clay is a visiting professor when he meets college student Elena. He’s prickly to others but not to her. They bond and fall in love, but he’s still got a couple of skeletons in his closets, really furry ones. And, when he tries to come lose all hell breaks loose. This one ends where Bitten begins.

Expectations brings us back before we met Lucas in Dime Store Magic, which is one of my least favorites in the series, where he meets Eve, and she teaches him a few things.

Ghosts brings Jeremy back to the forefront, but it’s a little confusing. The story is a mash up of events after Clay and Elena are married, and Jeremy’s memories after Elena is bitten. There is also the conflict of a challenger for Alpha, and regret over choices Jeremy has made in the position.

Wedding Bell Hell gives whole new meaning to disastrous wedding, and being supernaturals only make it worse. With the father of the groom hijacking the wedding trying to make it into what he envisions Paige and Lucas are lucky they end up hitched at all.

The Case of El Chupacabra is the first nonprequel. Sean Nast is trying to come to terms with his homosexuality, when he finds a body drained by vampires. He hires Lucas to investigate. Lucas and his father struggle with what they each want, but eventually find a compromise. Sean eventually does come out to his uncle, though the experience is not as positive as he hoped. It’s a great story that opens up many possibilities as Sean is determined to be his own man.

Overall it’s a great read. Very short, but it is a throw away book, as none of the stories are really impactful to the series. Sure there are holes in some of the plots, and the ending come a little fast, but that’s kind of the nature of shorts.

Dean and an injured Sam are escaping an demon horde in the Impala when they come upon a flaming road block. The demons break into the car, when someone appears and douses them with fire hose filled with holy water. The Sacrament Lutheran Militia are their saviors, telling the boys that they saved them from demons because they are indeed real.

Since the boys already know that, they show the militia their monster fighting paraphernalia and convince the militia they’re there to help, and they are brought to Reverend Gideon. In the basement of the church, the townspeople are preparing for the war against demons. Gideon says that they were told not to call the authorities, but won’t say who. But his daughter comes in and spills the beans, not only does she talk to angels, but they vouched for the Winchesters. Dean believes her to be a prophet.

Sam leaves Castiel a message and he and Dean regroup for a game plan. They figure the angels are trying to get the townspeople to do their dirty work, and Sam wonders what happened to saving people. Before they can really form a plan the church bell rings, and everyone gathers. Gideon calls for volunteers, and Rob, Paul, Dean and Sam all volunteer to take on the demons. Working together they defeat them.

As they leave, Dylan, a local teen , asks for a ride, but it seems not all the demons were destroyed. One grabs him from beneath the car and kills him before anyone can destroy it.

Later at the funeral, Dylan’s parents, Rob and Jane, blame the boys for his death. Gideon doesn’t know what happening next, when Leah suddenly falls over flailing. She tells everyone that Dylan will rise with the rest of the Dead when the angels give them paradise; in return the angels issue to following commandments: no gambling, drinking or pre-marital sex, which makes this place seem a whole lot less fun. Dean goes to see if Leah is really on the up and up.

Leah tells him that it’s going to get bad before it gets better, but they will win, and then the planet will be given to the chosen and it will be peaceful. Dean believes its more a curse, but Leah points out that it is hard to be a vessel of Heaven with no hope.

Sam goes to Paul’s empty bar, since drinking has been banned. Paul’s lost his faith, and Sam admits that he believes that God has stopped caring. When he returns to the hotel later, he tells Dean that the towns people have cut off the rest of the world. The town is turning into a fundamental compound, but Dean doesn’t care and Sam can’t believe what he’s hearing. Dean leaves.

Leah tells daddy at the church that as long as there are those who disobey they cannot enter Heaven, and she reveals the culprits.

Castiel arrives at the motel, and Sam realizes that he’s drunk, but he informs him that Leah is no prophet. Wandering around, Dean hears a scuffle at the bar. Rob and the others  try to force Paul out of town, when he refuses, Jane shoots Paul dead.

The next morning, covered in Paul’s blood , Dean returns. Castiel tells the boys that Leah is the Whore of Babylon, bearing false prophecy. The demons are actually under her control, and the Enochian exorcism she taught the townspeople is fake. She’s going to lead them to slaughter and lure all their souls to hell.

Leah assures Jane and Rob that they did nothing wrong, they only did the angels’ bidding. Her father stares at her in shock, after all they committed bigger sins, but Leah tells him to have faith.

Castiel produces a stake from the cypress tree of Babylon, the only thing that can kill the Whore, but warns that only a Warrior of God can kill her, but none qualify.

Leah tells the people that there are still those who are sinning, and panic sweeps over the crowd. As Gideon tries to calm them, Leah warns that if he does not keep from interfering she’ll name him a sinner. Castiel comes to Gideon, flashing him to the motel. But Gideon does not believe what they tell him, his daughter is the Whore.

The good townspeople round up the “sinners,” but when the Whore demand that they be burned, some start to question what is happening. They leave, and the Whore is ambushed by the boys, Cas, and Gideon. Gideon hesitates and the Whore is able to cast a spell to weaken Cas. She escapes and tells the people to light the fires.

The Whore grabs Dean, taunting him, and he grabs the stake and drives it through her chest. Everyone watches the demon leave Leah’s body, and Jane wonders how they will get to paradise now, but Dean warns she’s going to a much different place. Gideon and Castiel get out, Sam wonders how Dean managed to kill the Whore. Dean can’t explain, and Sam wonders if he’s going to something stupid where Michael is concerned.

Sam and dean tend to Gideon, who knows he won’t be okay. Dean leaves Sam before he can stop him, and he winds up at former girlfriend’s, Lisa Braeden. She wonders why he’s there, and he tells her that when he pictures being happy its with her and her son Ben, which breaks my heart a little. Dean deserves to be happy. She invites him in, but he doesn’t go. Things will get bad, the Whore was right there, but he vows to make arrangements with some “people” to keep her safe in exchange for doing what they want, and we all know what that means. Michael just may have earned his meat suit. He kisses her and walks away.

The first convention of season, Wondercon, was held at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. The center floor was covered in booths, displaying the comics, and memorabilia expected at these shows. As guests passed through the badge area Storm Troopers where there to show the way, and more than happy to take pictures.

The atmosphere was just as fun, without the hectic nature that is comic con, so a child could walk of her own without fear of being trampled. A huge relief for a parent of one such child fascinated by all the superheroes, monsters and villains running around.

The obvious choice of panel to preview was Disney's offering which boasted not only Prince of Persia, and Sorcerer's Apprentice, but also Toy Story 3. First out Prince of Persia: The gorgeous Jake Gyllenhaal and Jerry Bruckheimer along with Mike Newell and game creator Jordan Mechner wowed the crowd with a fight scene from the movies beginning. Jake charmed the crowd, with his easy going attitude, and giving us an awkward moment when asked if he could go back to any moment in time, where would he go. Back to see his birth. But no bombshells revealed.

Up next was Sorcerer's Apprentice, which included Nicholas Cage, Jay Baruchel, Teresa Palmer, Ron Turtletaub and Jerry Bruckheimer. Another fantastic clip, this one featuring the amazing Alfred Molina, Nicholas Cage and Jake Cherry, in which Molina's character is released from a nesting doll. The movie is based off of the 1797 poem by the same name, and even gives homage to the Sorcerer's Apprentice scene in Fantasia. The movie looks fantastic, even though much was left in absurdity.

Last up for this panel was Toy Story 3. John Ratzenberger came out to to introduce us to the final Toy Story movie, sob. Is it bad that every time I see him, I still think of him as the bumbling, useless knowledge spewer Cliff Clavin? But he was wonderful and entertaining. Director Lee Unkrich came out to do an "audience" reading to give us a behind the scenes take with Kristen Schaal and Jeff Garlin. Producer Darla Anderson was also on hand answering questions. This movie looks like it has all the hilarity and heart of the first two, and I'm sure will be a total tearjerker as we say goodbye to characters we've grown to love so much.

Once the Disney panel concluded, with the Resident Evil panel next, all that was left was taking in more of the floor, with its video games, superheroes, R2D2 and zombies.

Dean awakes to masked men. Sam is subdued, and their guns are gone. He quickly recognizes the idiots, I mean hunters, Roy and Walt. They know how Sam started the Apocalypse and they shoot him before he can explain. Roy hesitates when it comes to shooting Dean, who warns him that he will be back and he’ll be pissed. Walt pulls the trigger.

Dean awakes finding himself in the Impala on a country road. A boy comes by with fireworks and Dean recognizes it as Sam and believes himself dreaming. Little Sam urges him to come and light them with him, and Dean remembers when it happened in 1996. Sam runs off to light them, and disappears, and that’s when Dean remembers getting shot. He returns to the Impala and hears Castiel’s voice through the radio. He’s in heaven, and Cas tells him to follow the road before it disappears.

Dean starts driving until he reaches a house in McKinley. Sam is having dinner with an regular American family. Dean arrives and pulls him away, explaining what was happening. Sam figures heaven is a consisted of their best memories, the current being from when he was eleven. Dean turns on the family’s radio to find Cas. Cas appears on TV and explains that Zachariah is looking for them, and plans to put them in their bodies so they can accept their roles as hosts. Cas can’t return to heaven, but the boys need to find Joshua, an angel who talks to God, all they have to do is follow the yellow brick, er, I mean road. And since they have nothing better to do, they decide to find Joshua and deal with God.

The boys leave the house, but the road that brought Dean there is gone. Dean looks through the closets until he finds a race track. He starts it up and they find themselves home. Mary comes in, asks if they’re hungry. In typical mom fashion she makes them lunch. Sam tries to hurry along, but Dean needs a few more minutes with his memory of their lovely mother. The phone rings, and Mary tells John she’s not going to have this conversation. Dean hugs his mother, telling her that both he and his father love her. Sam realizes for the first time that Dean has been cleaning up after their father for a long time, maybe too long. Sam finds a postcard of Route 66.

They find themselves in Sam’s old apartment. Dean thought Sam was dead, and John blamed him when instead he was living it up, in his little run-down apartment, with a dog and a wall of postcards. Dean leaves, and Sam follows, and they find themselves outside an old house at night, which neither recognizes at first. Dean finally realizes it’s from the night Sam abandoned them for college. Sam admits he was happy because he got away from John, but all Dean felt was anguish. A light breaks the tension, adding all new panic, as they run into the woods.

Zachariah turn night into day, calling them out, warning them that they’ll beg to be vessels by the time he’s done with them. The boys run, with Zachariah close behind at each step. They run into a lucha libre who takes them into a old building, drawing a symbol on the door. Inside is the road house, and the lucha libre reveals himself as Ash.

The roadhouse is his personal Heaven, and Heaven is just a combination of personal Heavens linked and crammed together, with the Garden at the center. Most can’t leave their own Heavens, but Ash is one of the few who can, utilizing a police scanner to spy on the angels. He went looking for the boys, and not the first time, though they don’t remember because the angels wiped their memories. And they’re not the only ones he’s been looking for, though he hasn’t been able to find John or Mary Winchester, and he didn’t even know that Ellen and Jo were dead, but he has someone waiting for them. Pamela.

Sam and Ash go to spy on the angels as Dean apologizes for getting her killed. But she’s happy here, and she even suggests that Dean allows Michael to use his body so that more people will end up in Heaven.

Sam and Dean find an access to the Garden and Ash draws more deterrent symbols, but warns that Zachariah will still be watching. The brothers leave through Ash’s portal and find themselves, back at their childhood home, but its different this time.

Mary comes in and Dean tells her she’s not real. She laughs telling him about the night she burned, and starts bleeding. Dean tries to leave, when Mary lashes out at him, blaming him for her death. All the doors and windows suddenly brick over, forcing them to stay. Mary describes graphically how she died, and how everyone eventually leaves him. Zachariah comes in, with his angel mob, overly boastful, enjoying Mary’s memory too much. He’s lost all respect in Heaven and fully intends on taking it out on the boys no matter their answer.

Joshua comes to speak to the boys on God’s orders. Zachariah thinks he’s lying but Joshua warns that God will be back and he won’t be happy if Zachariah disobeys him. Zachariah and his lackeys depart, and Joshua takes the Winchesters to the Garden, which resembles the Cleveland Botanical Gardens.

Joshua tells them that god is on Earth, though he doesn’t know where. God’s message to them is “Back off.” This quarrel isn’t God’s anymore, and he’s intervened enough but putting them on a plane and bringing Castiel back. God will do no more for them. Joshua admits that he’s rooting for them, but he is just a gardener. It’s time to go back, but this time they will remember.

The boys come back to life in their hotel. They call Cas, who wonders if Joshua was lying. Sam doesn’t believe it, and Cas curses God. He gives Dean back the worthless amulet and teleports away. Sam insists that they can find another way, but Dean has lost faith. He tosses away the amulet.