‘Supernatural’ season 12 episode 16 spoilers and recap: Claire reunites with Sam and Dean, Mick grows a conscience in ‘Ladies Drink Free’

“Supernatural” season 12 episode 16 had Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) bringing British Men of Letters’ Mick Davies (Adam Fergus) along. “Ladies Drink Free” also brought back Claire Novak (Kathryn Newton) for a werewolf hunt.

‘Supernatural season 12 episode 16 spoilers alert: The following recaps and reviews the most recent episode of the US The CW show.

Against Dean’s wishes, Mick tagged along with him and Sam for a case, which had a teenage girl and her brother attacked by what appeared to be a werewolf. The girl survived but her brother did not. While the Winchesters were posing as FBI agents and questioning the girl’s mother in the hospital, Mick posed as a doctor and examined the victim. He saw that the girl was bitten, knew that it was a werewolf that had done it, but he lied to Sam and Dean, claiming the girl did not have any visible injuries.

Sam and Dean learnt from the mother that they were also contacted by other inquiring people, including one that fit the description of Jimmy Novak’s daughter. As it turned out, Claire was also investigating the case. She claimed to Jody (Kim Rhodes, who wasn’t in the episode) that she was scouting for a university, though she was actually just hunting on her own for months.

The British Men of Letters way

Earlier this season, the brothers encountered a psychic girl named Magda who unintentionally killed people in a bid to call for help from her ultra religious family. Sam and Dean rescued her and gave her a chance at life, but unbeknownst to them, Mr Ketch (David Haydn-Jones) followed and killed her, as per the BMoL’s order. The fancy librarians’ way apparently is to tie up any loose ends, even if this may include killing supernatural children.

So Mick went back to the hospital to see the girl in this episode, it wasn’t to help her get better; it was to kill her with a silver nitrate injection before she turned. He initially denied doing anything to the girl, though he later admitted killing her, as well as Magda. The admission infuriated both Dean and Sam, who denounced the group for killing children.

Claire’s sacrifice

An unfortunate lycan attack on Claire had Sam and Dean scrambling for a cure before she turned into a werewolf herself. The BMoL had tested a cure on mice and had one successful result. But when it was tested on a human, the test subject died in agony. Claire was willing to take the risk because she’d rather die than to hurt anyone if she turned. Dean was reluctant, not keen on the idea that they were gambling the teenager’s life. However, Claire was adamant.

While Sam and Dean were hunting for the person they suspected was the werewolf (he wasn’t), Claire and Mick were left in a hotel room. Claire was starting to turn, and she tried to reach for a gun to kill herself. Mick, who appeared to be growing a conscience, prevented her from doing so. He admitted that while that’s the wise thing to do, he couldn’t just kill her anymore.

The werewolf, who was revealed to be the local bartender Justin, then barged in and kidnapped Claire. It turned out he just wanted a companion since his pack disbanded to other places to avoid the BMoL’s detection. With a tracker in Claire’s pocket, Sam, Dean and Mick were able to follow her. Mick killed the werewolf with a silver bullet, taking some of Justin’s blood to cure Claire.

The next day, Sam and Dean told Mick that they were giving BMoL a last chance. Mick’s view of the supernatural world has also changed following their hunt. It used to be a clear-cut black and white, but he was now able to see the real lives behind it.

Claire, on the other hand, left a voicemail for Jody, finally admitting that she was hunting on her own. She also acknowledged Jody as her mother. While sorry that Jody would be disappointed, Claire told her she would still continue hunting alone.

‘Ladies Drink Free’ review

Claire has matured from an angsty, rebellious teen to a selfless and self-sacrificing young woman since she was reintroduced in the series. It’s too bad Castiel (Misha Collins) wasn’t in the episode because it would be interesting to see how much she has truly forgiven the angel for practically taking away her father. Nevertheless, her relationship with both Sam and Dean was a delight to watch. Sam looked like an understanding older brother or even a young uncle who lets her do her thing but cautions her. Dean, meanwhile, looked like a very protective father.

Mick finding out the emotional toil and moral dilemma hunters face frequently is a good thing. Instead of influencing the brothers to join BMoL, Sam and Dean are rubbing off on him, and that’s perhaps a good sign that the rest of the Men of Letters would also see it their way.

Perhaps the whole theme of season 12 is honesty. The season is a big throwback to previous seasons, with monsters, characters and even issues coming back full circle. There’s a big difference from then and now, though. This time the brothers are more open to each other. They admit secrets as soon as they have built courage to do so. They are also more understanding and respecting of others’ choices, even though they don’t agree with it. That’s a far cry from how they were even just last season.

“Supernatural” airs Thursdays on The CW in the US. In Australia, it is behind two episodes every Monday on Eleven.