Supernatural 11x03 Recap

Bad Seed.
Jensen Ackles makes his debut as a director as Rowena makes her return in tonight's episode. Baby Darkness (Amara) is being looked for by Dean and Sam, while Castiel is still trying to figure out how to heal himself. And Crowley, well he's always up to something. Let's get into the episode. Warning: Spoilers ahead. 

Rowena's looking for a way to protect herself from the Winchesters and while she tries to recruit some other witches, she finds out that Crowley, who she thought was dead, really isn't dead after all. Let's just say that didn't end well for the women that told her that. She's leaving a trail for the Winchesters to follow, though, so maybe killing out of rage isn't her best idea.

Cas is still struggling, so he's chains up in the library of the Bunker. Sam suggests, without saying a name, that they may need the help of God's scribe. The first name that came to my head? Chuck. But then I remembered that Metatron still exists and he's now God's scribe. At one point, Cas goes into a seizure-like convulsion suffering visions from the curse. He blacks out for a second, but wakes up again. Sam and Dean make sure he's alright, and after a bit more research, finally gain a lead on Rowena.

In the middle of all this, a Demon and an Angel walk into a bar... No, this doesn't go the way you think it does. They sit for some drinks and discuss the Darkness. Seems like things are off for both Heaven and Hell.

Uncle Crowley's got Amara doing some learning. In fact, she's listening to Hitler's speeches. What an education that is. Really setting her up with a great example, right? Besides that, natural catastrophes are also being studied and she's even reading Dante's Inferno. There is a very interesting scene between Young Amara and Older Amara that takes place while she is looking in the mirror. Amara is fascinated by God and the world and everything it encompasses, but Older Amara reminds her to keep focus on their job. She's still sucking souls from Crowley's henchmen, though. A growing girl has to eat, right? Things get a bit out of hand, though, and Crowley wants to slow down her diet. Doesn't work well.

Dean and Sam are on Rowena's trail and while she's disguised as a blonde, Dean's got a disguise of his own. A Hawaiian shit and some sunglasses. The Hawaiian shirt was a nice touch, though it didn't do much good. It provided enough of a distraction for Sam to cuff her, though.

Cas is trying to do some research, and he accidentally finds himself on a website called Fortune Nookie. "What could Fortune Nookie be?" Oh Cas, so innocent.

Dean wants the spell taken away and the Book of the Damned. Rowena does her usually little taunting, saying that calling Crowley will do nothing besides putting a dead witch on his hands with nothing accomplished. Their little chit-chat is done when Sam bursts in frantic because Cas has escaped. Rowena's in the car with them, though, and she reveals that Sam was supposed to kill Crowley and didn't. That's why Cas is cursed. The issue Dean has? Secrets. The usual between the brothers.

Cas is rabid and he finds a girl in an alley to chase after, nearly choking her, but Dean stops her. She's able to run away, but then Cas attacks Dean. He beats him up pretty well. Sam's just in time with a gun to Rowena's head and she undos the spell, returning Cas back to normal. And finally, Cas is himself, again, but Rowena gets away. Little line of self-loathing from Dean saying that he "had it coming" was thrown in there, and that makes everyone sad to hear.

By the end of the episode, Amara's had enough souls to become a teenager and she's still hungry. Sam, Dean, and Cas, all back to normal, though Dean is pretty beat up, are back in the Bunker. Another strong episode for this season. Great job by Jensen Ackles directing it. He's certainly found a calling for when he stops acting, which hopefully isn't anytime soon. Next week it seems as though we're dealing with a "Werepire" according to Dean's naming? So, we'll see how that goes. Until then.