This show continues to hurt my feels in ways I didn’t know I could be hurt. This last episode had me trying my best not to cry. Though, to John’s credit, he put up with my whiny texts through the whole episode. This was a kind of a flash back episode meets modern day in the weirdest of ways. It was set up as one story, but not. Bobby and Rufus working on a case that mirrors Sam and Dean’s current case. The whole thing takes place in the same exact house, just several years apart.
 
Seeing Bobby and Rufus working together on a case was bittersweet. I will forever love them, but knowing they’re dead….hurts. Let’s just take a moment for that one. Bobby died how many seasons ago? Same with Rufus, but the two seem to appear from time to time in flashbacks. We know Bobby is in Heaven, and we assume Rufus is too. Still, they’re not along to help the boys out, and that just straight up sucks. This episode, while attacking your fond memory feels, also was a mix between the lighter side and darker side of the show. Previous seasons handled the darker themes with the carefree brothers, with a lighter humored tone that masked the serious dark themes we dealt with.
 
This episode kind of did the same thing, it was just a bit more twisted. Sam and Dean figured out the case as quickly as Bobby and Rufus had. Only the brothers have determined that the creature was a Souleater…apparently those are real. They suck your soul into their nest and feed on you until there’s nothing left. Which means their nest exists outside of time and space…so, at the end of it all, seeing Bobby and Dean see each other literally snapped my fragile heart in two.
 
I did find it funny, morbidly so, that Dean’s comfort was seeing Sam lying dead in front of him. How that is remotely comforting is beyond me. At least the boys are actually communicating about, well, everything. The openness between them is new, and that’s weird. I was also genuinely shocked that nobody died this episode. I half expected the mom of the girl to be killed, but she didn’t…which threw me for a loop. Either way, after what felt like forever, our beloved show has returned…and this next episode is looking like I’m really going to need some chocolate and tissues.

When it comes to the horror genre, I've often found that ghost stories are either hit or miss. You're either treated to something fantastic that manages to chill you to your core enough that you make sure all the lights are on before you go to bed. As for the rest, well we know how it goes. Cheap scares, and a sense of disappointment on your way out of the theater. 

Either way, that seems to be where the genre has been for ages, a split between quality and quantity and well, I really had not expected to find anything refreshing and new in the genre...that is until I stumbled upon a recent find, The Halloween Girl from Mad Shelley Films and Writer/Director Richard T. Wilson. 

The story for this short film is simple enough. Young Luke meets a mysterious girl named Charlotte, a name that seems to give his mother chills every time she hears it and with good reason. Long ago Charlotte was part of the family before a tragic accident, but there is another secret Luke's mother is hiding and Charlotte will continue to haunt her until it is revealed. 

Now one might think that from there, the film heads into pretty predictable territory and that's where I was completely and utterly wrong. Turns out that in many ways, The Halloween Girl is a total reinvention of the ghost genre, giving us a spirit filled with different motivations. Without spoiling the awesome and incredible twist, I will say that the genre has never explored what a family means to a ghost, or vice versa. It's always been about the need for peace for a spirit, or the need for revenge and I love the fact that this film took everything in such a different direction.

If anything this short was so well done that you find yourself wanting more. After all, it's filled with vibrant characters and fascinating ideas and if Mad Shelley Films and Richard Wilson decide to make a sequel I would be absolutely estatic. I mean hey, I could easily see the unique concept put forth here being explored in great detail. But, if they don't go the sequel route, that's okay too. This film stands on its own and it's worth several viewings, and I'll speak from experience on that since I watched it three times in a row to make sure I didn't miss anything in this loaded story. 

If you'd like a chance to see a unique and fresh take on the ghost genre, head over to Mad Shelly Films' website and snag yourself a copy of this little gem. I really can't praise this film enough, because it's always wonderful to find a true diamond in the rough in a genre that deserves only the best in storytelling.