REVIEW: Supernatural 8.11 – “LARP and the Real Girl”

There’s really not a lot to say about this episode. I love stand alone Supernaturals, I love Felicia Day, and I love LARPing have never role played Vampire:The Masquerade on the campus of The Ohio State University but I imagine it would totally be a good time.

Sam and Dean travel under the aliases Taggart  and Rosewood (totally in my top five aliases, by the way) to investigate LARPers perishing under extreme and mysterious circumstances. Once there, they run into their old pal Charlie Bradbury, who is now going by the name Carrie Heinlein (which is also super cute). Antics ensue, and the day gets saved.

The episode was darn near perfect. The writing felt very Whedon-esque to me, and I like to think that’s a credit to Robbie Thompson and not just the presence of Felicia Day. Lines were quippy and poppy and downright funny. Charlie’s sexuality is portrayed in a way that does not define her as a person or character, which is so very refreshing in network television these days. That’s the beauty of the character, really (aside from the fact that every nerd girl aspires to be just that cool). Charlie is a lesbian but there are never any nods to stereotypes or tropes – she simply just is. She is Han Solo with gorgeous red locks. She almost got the girl. She got a simultaneous Lord of the Rings/Harry Potter move in this episode. She wins at everything.

Also worth noting, the diversion on the Big Bad was creepy and gorgeous, a combination of which I am a big fan. The diversion didn’t really work, as the real bad guy was a bit easy to spot early on, but when I’m having this much fun I really can’t complain about the ease of repressed nerd spotting. And I am a big fan of the resolution of the episode. Not only was there further reconciliation between brothers, but nerds were not singled out as being weird or less-than. Sam and Dean LARPed, and they were (relatively) good at it, and it made me smile.

It’s a short review this week, but I can tell you that if you’ve never watched the show this is a great place to start. There was just enough angst to clue you in to the central theme of the show and a brief nod to the main arc of the season, and if you are a fan of Day or live action gaming, you will not be disappointed. Give it a try!