Supernatural season 11, episode 14, “The Vessel,” sees Dean travel back to 1944 in search of a weapon to defeat Amara.
Executive producer Jeremy Carver previously described “The Vessel” as Supernatural‘s “version of Das Boot, in which much of the episode will take place in a World War II submarine.” He adds that the episode “looks awesome, to pat the entire production on their back. These guys did an amazing job.”
Das Boot is a 1981 epic German war film and is widely considered one of the greatest war films of all time. The title translates to “The Boat” and the film, which is based on a novel of the same name, takes place during World War II and follows the crew of a fictional U-Boat. It explores the dynamics of the crew, their missions and how they feel about the government they’re serving.
The synopsis for Supernatural season 11, episode 14, “The Vessel,” reads:
“Hoping to find a weapon powerful enough to defeat Amara (guest star Emily Swallow), Dean (Jensen Ackles) convinces ‘Castiel,’ (Misha Collins) who is still Lucifer, to send him back in time to the last reported sighting of the Hand of God. Lucifer sees the potential in getting his hands on this weapon so goes along as Castiel and sends Dean to 1944 to the fated submarine mission that sunk the Hand of God. Meanwhile, continuing his charade with Sam (Jared Padalecki) while they wait for Dean’s return, Lucifer plans his next move.”
As exciting as it should be to see Dean travel back to the 1940s (again) and deal with wartime on a submarine, there’s something incredibly eerie about Sam being in the bunker with Lucifer, who he thinks is Castiel. The title “The Vessel” takes on a double — even triple — meaning with that in mind, as Dean will be aboard a military vessel, Sam is Lucifer’s true vessel and Castiel is currently serving as Lucifer’s vessel.
Watch a promo for the episode below:
