Supernatural Season 1, Episode 5
“Bloody Mary”
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I’m sure that most of us have heard of the legend and superstition of Bloody Mary. A ghost story that includes the chanting of the name Bloody Mary three times in the mirror of a darkly lit room. This is supposed to summon the spirit of a woman who will appear in the mirror and in some way harm you, or at least scare you half to death.
This episode of Supernatural starts by introducing us to some young girls having a sleepover at the home of Lily Shoemaker. Two of the girls convince Lily to go into the dark bathroom and say the forbidden name three times. When she does, nothing happens. Well; not right away. Later that night, Lily’s father is found in a pool of blood in the bathroom. The cause of death was listed as a stroke, but when the Winchesters get involved there is sure to be something even more sinister.
Sam and Dean listen to Lily’s story and decide to delve more into the legend of Bloody Mary. Since there are numerous tellings of the scary tale, they find it hard to know which one to believe. Later, one of Lily’s sisters friends; Jill, doesn’t believe in the superstition and jokingly says the name in the mirror three times. Her reflection says to her “you killed that boy” and she subsequently dies.
The Investigation
After investigating both scenes the brothers uncover what looks like a bloody handprint and a name at both locations. At the Shoemakers home the name was that of Lily’s mother who died under mysterious circumstances; and at Jill’s it was the name of a boy who was killed in a hit and run accident in which the description of the car was the same as Jill’s. This brings Sam and Dean to believe that Bloody Mary is killing people that have a secret involving someone who has died. They don’t have to be involved in the death, they just feel responsible.
Their search leads them to a story about a woman named Mary who died in front of a mirror and whose spirit was possibly transferred into the mirror. In order to stop the spirit from killing anyone else, they need to destroy the mirror. They manage to find the mirror at an antique store where Sam invokes the spirit of Mary. His big secret is that he feels responsible for Jess’ death because he had a dream about it before it happened. Dean gets distracted by the police showing up outside the store and when he gets back to Sam, smashes the mirror before Mary is able to kill Sam.
The Twist
Bloody Mary is somehow able to pull herself out of the mirror and begins to kill both brothers. Dean’s quick thinking saves them both when he pulls out a mirror and shows Bloody Mary her own reflection. By doing this, it turns the magic onto herself and she dies.
Dean doesn’t know what Sam’s secret is, but they pack up and head off to find themselves another town and another spirit to fight.
To catch up on previous episodes find my recaps on episodes 1, 2 and 3 or you can stream the entire series on Amazon Prime Video.