9.15 thinman

Title	#THINMAN
Episode #	Season 9, Episode 15
First aired	March 4, 2014
Directed by	Jeannot Szwarc
Written by	Jenny Klein
On IMDB	#THINMAN
Outline
Monster	Thinman
Timeline	Six months since 8.23 Sacrifice
Location(s)	Springdale, Washington Lebanon, Kansas
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Synopsis

A teenage girl, Casey, is taking selfies in her bedroom when she notices a mysterious figure in the background. As the lights go out, she hides in her closet and calls 911. While she is talking, a hand holding a knife appears behind her. Blood begins to pour through the closet doors.

Sam is doing research in the library when Dean comes in and tells Sam that he will be back. When Sam questions him about his leaving, Dean says he found a case, but he wasn't going to take Sam because he doesn't know what Sam wants. Sam wants to come along, so the Boys head to Washington.

Sam and Dean, as FBI agents, visit Casey's house and speak with her mother. As the Boys ask the usual questions, the mother knows all about “fritzing” and cold spots because she spoke with Supernaturalists. Sam and Dean are curious about who she spoke with.

The Ghostfacers, Harry and Ed, are sitting in a diner, and Harry is obsessing about his ex-girlfriend's Facebook page when Sam and Dean sit down with them. The Boys exchange some witty banter with the Ghostfacers, and Sam and Dean warn them to leave town. In the meantime, the busboy gets in trouble with his manager for not doing his job properly.

The Boys return to the motel to research, and Sam checks the Ghostfacers website where they discover the Ghostfacers latest obsession: Thinman. The Boys argue about whether they are hunting a ghost or Thinman. Meanwhile, Ed and Harry return to Casey's bedroom to record some footage for their fans. They continue to discuss Harry's ex-girlfriend. A frustrated Ed says they should bail on the case, but Harry insists they need to find Thinman to make all the haters eat their words.

As the Boys continue to research at the motel, Dean is still skeptical of the Thinman legend. They wonder how the photo ended up online, so they head to the police station to gather more information. They get assistance from Deputy Norwood who has also been talking to the Ghostfacers about the possibility of a supernatural killer.

That night, at the diner, the manager is going through receipts when a mysterious figure comes up behind him and slits his throat.

The next day, Sam and Dean arrive at the diner to find the Ghostfacers are also there to investigate. Dean confronts Ed and Harry, and they exchange more witty banter. Deputy Norwood shows them the security footage where a mysterious “Thinman” figure kills the restaurant manager.

Harry wants to search the woods for Thinman, but Ed isn't so sure. He suggests that Sam and Dean should take over because two people are dead. Harry insists on continuing the hunt.

At the motel, Sam and Dean are tossing around ideas and discussing the case. Dean brings up how when, as kids, they pretended to be Superman and Batman. The Boys reminisce and laugh about how they jumped off the shed and Sam broke his arm. Dean and Sam share a moment before the tension returns and Harry interrupts.

While Harry is in the woods looking for Thinman, Ed tells Sam and Dean his story. Harry was becoming wrapped up with his new girlfriend so Ed made up Thinman to keep Harry in the game. Sam insists that Ed tell Harry the truth because secrets ruin relationships. Meanwhile, Harry is attacked by Thinman who slashes Harry across the stomach. Sam, Dean, and Ed come to his rescue, and then they discover tire tracks which the Boys think may belong to whoever is pretending to be “Thinman”.

Ed tells Harry the truth about Thinman, and Harry is really, really mad. Harry says he can't trust Ed, and Ed leaves. Sam arrives and talks to Harry about secrets and whether they are forgivable. Sam believes this is something that Harry needs to decide for himself. Dean comes in and says they have a lead on the tire tracks so Sam and Dean leave. Then, Harry and Ed decide they will work together to fix the mess that Ed has created so they follow Sam and Dean.

At a warehouse, the Boys meet Deputy Norwood who then tasers them from behind and ties them up. He then reveals that he and his friend, Roger, the busboy, are behind Thinman. They plan to kill Dean and Sam in order to continue the legend. Roger, disguised as Thinman, steps up to cut Dean's throat while Norwood records the act. A frantic Sam works to pick the lock of his handcuffs so that he can save Dean.

However, before any slicing occurs, a noise distracts Norwood and Roger who go to investigate. Ed and Harry trap “Thinman” but then Norwood captures Ed and Harry. When they return to where Sam and Dean were cuffed, they see that Sam and Dean have escaped. The Boys attack Norwood and Roger. Dean captures Roger and coldly kills him. When Norwood pulls a gun on Sam and Harry, Ed shoots him to save Harry.

Harry and Ed discuss their relationship, and Sam and Dean watch as the Ghostfacers break up over a situation that mirrors their own. Harry leaves with the Boys as Ed sadly watches them. In the Impala, Harry laments that he thought Ed would always be there and they would grow old together. It's obvious that Sam and Dean can relate, but they say nothing.

Characters

• Sam Winchester
• Dean Winchester
• Harry Spangler
• Ed Zeddmore
• Roger
• Deputy Tom Norwood
• Casey Miles
• Maggie Zeddmore
• Spruce

Definitions

• The Bunker
• Crossroads Demon
• Devil's Trap
• EMF
• Ghost
• Ghostfacers
• Thinman
• Tulpa
• The Veil

Music

• "This House Is a Hotel" by The Wind + The Wave

(playing in Casey Miles' bedroom before she is killed)

• "Ghostfacers Theme" by Christopher Lennertz & Ben Edlund

(plays as Sam and Dean discover the Ghostfacers van; also played in 3.13 Ghostfacers)

• "Camp Town Races"

(hummed by Deputy Norwood as he prepares the camera)

Quotes

Harry: Oh the Winchesters – yay!

Ed: Says nobody...

Harry: Ever!

Harry: Say hola to my little pistola.

Sam: Trust me here, secrets ruin relationships.

Sam: When did viral go from that baby chimp falling out of a tree to killer candid camera?

Harry: Quit raining on my rainbow.

Ed: Rainbows can't happen without rain.

Harry: Don't try to use science with me!

Harry: The lore said Thinman hangs out by trees, and the wood is where trees hang out.

Dean: You know what video would have gone viral, if we still had it? When you were five and you got dressed up as Batman and you jumped off the shed because you thought you could fly.

Sam: After you jumped first.
Dean: Hey, I was nine and I was dressed up like Superman, okay. Everybody knows that Batman can't fly.
Sam: Well I didn't know that. I broke my arm.
Dean: I know you did. Then I drove you to the ER on my handlebars.... good times.

Sam: ...yeah they were.

Dean: So you’re Thinman? That would make sense if it didn’t look like you just ate a fat camp.

Ed: It’s Scooby-Doo time, douchebag. Take off the mask. I know you’re not Thinman. You’re just a me-me.

Harry: Ed, it’s pronounced meme.
Ed: It’s spelled M-E-M-E though.
Harry: The second E is silent.

Ed: You’re a me-me. A man meme. And I invented you.

Trivia & References

The title of the episode "#THINMAN" refers to the meme generally known as the "Slenderman," often called the internet's first urban legend. The meme was spawned by a "paranormal pictures" photoshop contest on the Something Awful (SA) Forums. The idea may have in turn been inspired by the German legend of the Tall Man. The hashtag in the title is used on twitter to help other users search for terms.

Live tweets from the cast and crew during the episode broadcast.

Dean: You two clowns are going to get into that Mystery Machine outside and you are going to leave town.

The Mystery Machine was the van which Scooby-Doo and his fellow supernatural investigators - Daphne, Velma, Fred and Shaggy - traveled around in.

Harry: Amazon me bitches!

A reference to the online retailer Amazon.com, where Sam and Dean can purchase a copy of the book The Skinny on Thinman which Ed and Harry authored.

Harry: Fifty Shades of whey too much protein!

A reference to the erotic romance novel Fifty Shades of Grey.

Harry: Oh my god Menudo!

Menudo was a successful Latino boy-band from the 1980s.

Dean: What about the rest of the Bad News Bears?

The Bad News Bears was a 1976 movie about a terrible Little League baseball team.

Sheriff: I figured it wouldn't hurt to go a little Medium?

Medium was a TV series about a medium who works to solve crime with the District Attorney's office.

Dean: Well, you know, people still see Elvis all over the damn place.

A reference to the purported sightings of Elvis all over the U.S. after his death.

Dean: This all sounds like Sad Times at Bitchmont High.

Fast Times at Ridgemont High is a 1982 high school coming-of-age comedy. It is pretty much guaranteed to be one of Dean's favorite movies.

Harry: You crashed the Jenga tower of our life.

Jenga is a game that involves balancing wooden blocks to make a tower, and then removing blocks strategically to add to the top of the tower, without collapsing the structure.

Dean: So there was no teleporting, just a couple of douchebags doing a "Scream" thing.

In the Scream movie franchise, a masked person kills people in the manner of horror movies, with the usual twist being that there are two killers wearing the mask.

Minutiae

The manager Trey's name is a reference to writer Trey Callaway who invented the characters of Ed and Harry in 1.17 Hell House.

Jenny Klein, who wrote the episode, can be seen in the background of the motel hallway near the end of the episode.

This is the third time Dean has reiterated his views on dealing with people.

Dean: Well like I said, people are sick.

The first instance was in 1.15 The Benders:

Dean: Well, that’s the point. You know, with our usual playmates, there’s rules, there’s patterns. But with people, they’re just crazy.

The second was in 4.11 Family Remains:

Dean: Wow, a story ripped from an Austrian headline. Humans, man. So she's been locked up her whole life?

Sides, Scripts & Transcripts

• 9.15 THINMAN (transcript)

Promotion

• Episode synopsis by ksitetv
• Promo pics by seat42f
• Episode promo
• Sneak peek
• Interview with guest stars by the Calgary Herald