Berly and LA tackle Supernatural Season 8, Episode 17: "Goodbye Stranger" - where Naomi's been running the most disturbing training program in Heaven and the hosts have some THOUGHTS about cloning requests.

The episode opens with a shocking scene: Cas repeatedly killing Dean in what turns out to be Heaven's warehouse training simulation. After hundreds of dead Dean bodies pile up (which the hosts note is a waste of perfectly good clones), Naomi declares Cas ready for his real mission. Meanwhile on Earth, Dean discovers a gentleman's magazine called "Voluptuous Asian Beauties" among the Men of Letters artifacts, which the hosts praised for its stunning vintage photography.

Sam and Dean investigate deaths involving liquified bones and discover demons are searching for something, digging massive holes around town. They meet a PhD student with velcro rollers who's adorably excited about her town history research - until demons crash the party. Cas arrives just in time to smite the demons and save Sam, leading to an awkward reunion where everyone's acting suspicious.

The real star of the episode? Meg's return! The hosts were thrilled to see her again, though heartbroken by her fate. Found beaten and held hostage by Crowley (with makeup so realistic LA kept asking if they'd let her shower), Meg reveals the demons are searching for an angel tablet in Lucifer's crypts. Her chemistry with Cas was adorable, with references to "the pizza man" and plans that would never come to fruition.

Throughout the episode, Cas struggles with Naomi's control, having simultaneous conversations with her and the Winchesters. Dean finally confronts Sam about coughing up blood, with Cas delivering the brutal assessment that Sam is "damaged beyond repair" - way to keep Sammy confident about those trials, guys!

The climax brings everyone to an abandoned warehouse hiding Lucifer's crypt. Dean and Cas retrieve the angel tablet, but Naomi orders Cas to kill Dean and take it. In a heartbreaking scene that had the hosts uncomfortable, Cas beats Dean nearly to death before Dean's pleas about family finally break through Naomi's control. Cas heals Dean and disappears with the tablet, vowing to protect it from everyone - including Heaven.

Outside, Meg sacrifices herself fighting Crowley's demons, telling Sam to "save my unicorn" (Cas). Her final moment laughing at Crowley before he kills her showed she was at peace, though the hosts wished she'd gotten her moment with Cas first. The episode ends with Cas on a bus hiding from Heaven, the tablet in a duffel bag that really should have been a hard case.

Berly and LA loved Meg's return and her scenes with Cas, praised the makeup work on the beaten characters, but expressed frustration with Naomi's unclear motivations. After multiple episodes of her manipulating Cas, they're ready for answers about who she is and what she really wants.

"I miss the apocalypse's simplicity. I was bad, you were good, life was easier. Now it's all so messy. I'm kind of good, which sucks, and you're kind of bad, which is actually all manner of hot."

Sources:

• https://supernatural.fandom.com/wiki/Goodbye_Stranger
• https://lifehacker.com/entertainment/the-pope-opening-the-tomb-of-lucifer

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