Reception
In its original broadcast, "Part One" was viewed by an estimated 2.9 million viewers, with "Part Two" bringing in approximately 2.72 million viewers. Compared to the rest of the second season, "Part Two" became the lowest-rated episode behind "Born Under a Bad Sign", which received only 2.84 million viewers. Despite this, the episodes garnered positive reviews from critics. Tina Charles of TV Guide found "so much goodness" in the first episode, and called Dean's speech to Sam "rip-your-heart-out sad". She deemed the second episode just plain "wow", praising both the brotherly relationship depicted and the scenes between Jensen Ackles and Jim Beaver, but was disappointed that the brothers did not converse with the spirit of John Winchester after he escapes from Hell. Of particular interest to critics was the wrapping up the Azazel story arc, described by Charles as a "great way to cap off the season". Kathie Huddleston of Sci-fi.com noted that the "terrific" finale closed Sam and Dean's "dad issues and their Yellow-Eyed Demon issues" while opening up new problems for them to face, while TV Squad said it had a "weight and importance that a good finale should have". TV Squad further stated that in "Part Two", the show handled Sam's coming back well, though it was apparent he would from "Part One". The actors' performances were also applauded, with Ona Grauer being deemed "delightful" as the Crossroads Demon, coming across as something of a "supernatural used-car salesman". Frederic Lehne received praise for his portrayal of the demon Azazel, described as "riveting", "great", and "appropriately creepy".
However, Tom Burns of Underground Online had previously criticized Supernatural for ruining a surprise ending by giving it away in the show's recap. For "Part One", he noted that its ending was given away in the CW's preview for the episode which showed Sam stabbed in the back and collapsing into Dean's arms. Burns liked the episode, but did find some fault with it. He felt that "Part One" focusing on Sam and "Part Two" on Dean was a mistake since "Supernatural's strongest asset has always been the chemistry between the leads". In addition, Burns felt the season had set up the question of whether Sam was going to "go evil", and the finale did not follow through, which Burns described as a "tease".
Jessica Harmon gained a Leo Award nomination for "Best Guest Performance by a Female in a Dramatic Series" for her role as Lily in "Part One".
Read more about this topic: All Hell Breaks Loose (Supernatural)
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