I'm actually tremendous proponent of Jo, though I do think that her character needs to develop if a romance will eventually develop between she and Dean. In this episode her character often came across as immature. She shares Dean's sarcastic sense of humor, and we do see her maturity at times, but the majority of "No Exit" Jo displayed an extreme over confidence of herself as a hunter that was not at all becoming. If she is ever going to work as a romantic interest with Dean she needs to accept that though she may have read all the books and be trained in shooting and street fighting, she is still an amateur and needs experience.

The writers can either track this journey well, while keeping it in the background, or they can bomb it. Ellen needs to learn to let Jo go. Jo is 21, an adult, and Ellen must remember that she can't order her daughter what to do with her life anymore, no matter how worried she is. Likewise, Jo must find a balance between respecting her mother and pursuing her dreams of being a hunter, while remembering that she IS an amateur and needs to listen to the professional hunters. Kripke and co. can subtly show that character journey without taking the focus off of the boys and the story at hand. If they do, they'll have created some very believable characters with a lot of depth, and Jo will develop into someone I can definitely see Dean with.

Considering her appearance, while yes, the pretty thin blonde has been used several times before, I am actually all for it for Dean. This is because I am struck by how much Jo resembles Mary. I can see it in her hair, her skin tone, even the expression in her eyes. Science has shown that men tend to be attracted to women who remind them of their mothers, whether the resemblance be physical or in their characteristics. We all know that Dean values family very highly, and that though he barely remembers his mother, what few memories he does have he maintains with great love and respect. I think it only fitting, therefore, that the woman who would become Dean's love interest resembles his mother.

See I'll have to completely disagree with Irish. Because the death of a parent connection is one of the things that I felt was forced between them. As though they were desperate to show the audience that Dean and Jo could bond so they not only gave them both daddy issues but also made their personalities way too similar. Sorry but I'm not interested in watching a female Dean when the male Dean we have is perfectly fine. Plus I get more of a little sister/big brother vibe from them and can't see the romantic possiblity at all so I'm hoping Kripke does end up dropping it. You might have been joking but I have no interest in watching "double dating hunting" either. I don't see the need to add romance or love interest arcs anyway. If I wanted to watch that kind of thing I'd tune into The OC or Grey's Anatomy. Why can't we have a show that doesn't add in the predictable romance?

I agree about the lack of chemistry between Dean and Jo. The bickering kind of reminds me of a brother and sister thing, not so much a relationship thing. I think in fact, she looks a little too young for Dean. Is it only me, or does she not remind you of Lecy Goranson from "Roseanne" (the original Becky)?
Why can't they put a strong brunette to face off against him (and I am not saying this because I myself am a brunette and a huge fan of Jensen Ackles (as is my brunette sister))?
The storyline overall was a good one although they needed more of Sam in it.
Looking forward to next week..Jason Gedrick and Linda Blair? Can it get any better than that?

This was the first episode of the season I felt was very subpar. Expecting an episode about HH Holmes and his history, I was extremely disappointed. I understand that Jared was in a great deal of pain because a real cast was finally put on, but this episode really demonstrated that removing the brotherly dynamic is damaging. Sam was almost an afterthought and Jensen had to work too hard to try and manufacture nonexistent chemistry with Alona Tal. She's very generic. Pretty blond who banters with main character but oh gosh does he really like her? Very predictable and very beneath Supernatural. I didn't dislike Jo, rather I found her deathly dull and a bit on the annoying side. Who takes the time to wash and style their luxurious Prell hair when they're chasing a dead serial killer? Tie it back, would you? If we don't see the character again it's no great loss. Ackles' performance really suffered trying to pick up the slack this episode. I don't object to romance, but I was far too spoiled by Ackles' magnificent chemistry with Julie Benz last season. He even comes alive in scenes with Samantha Ferris, who plays Jo's mother. With Alona, no spark at all.

As for the monster of the week, a few moments of creep but HH just wasn't that scary. America's first serial killer cowed by a little rock salt? Defeated that easily? What a complete let down. Shame on you, Supernatural. I had three friends over to sample the show for the first time and all three of them left before the hour was over, saying that--
1.)Ackles is overrated
2.)The show isn't scary
3) The blonde chickie is annoying.

Definitely this season's "Bugs."

Personally I see the chemistry both while Dean and Jo are arguing and while they're not. They both have a connection to each other that the death of a parent can cause. That realism. The slowness of the pairing is very realistic as well. I just hope Eric Kripke goes with it like was originally planned.

The absence of Sam for whatever reason shouldn't have happened, given, because the show itself is about the brothers' dynamics with each other, not with everyone else around them as much, though I wouldn't be against bringing Sarah Blake back as a regular, that way it'd be like double date hunting. lol. Can you imagine the hilarity of that situation?!

I was actually surprised that I was surprised at the outcome of the John/Ellen thing. Though I knew that he wasn't Jo's father (spoiler whore that I am), I should have known to expect something like that because John is the anti-hero. It all makes sense.

Actually, Eric Kripke's said that the Dean/Jo thing might not get written, after all, given the fans' reaction to Jo. Also, the reason Jared Padalecki was absent for so much of this episode was that he spent "Simon Said" in a wrist brace, but he got the actual cast on while they were filming this one. He had to take time off for everything associated with that.

I have to agree with Brian; I thought the wasn't much chemistry between Dean and Jo. I don't know if I don't care for the character of Jo or if the actress just doesn't fit character. I wasn't bored with the episode though. If they continue to place a third person over the two main characters I'm inclined to get upset. ;) Dean is my favorite character - he's more complex than Sam on an emotional level but that doesn't mean I want Sam's role in the whole scheme of things to be usurped.

I didn't really like Jo (or the actress) so this episode kind of bored me since she was pretty much the main lead this time around. I also felt like the connection between her and Dean was forced and I really hope they decide not to go there with a romance between them. I am looking forward to this next episode though.

Creepy episode...those fingers coming through the grate were a nice touch.

What was the deal with Sam's cast? Did he break his arm in the brothers episode, or did I miss something??

I know the whole Jo-Dean thing is heading towards a relationship ect. (wasnt that the main reason of her being written into the show?) But honestly i just don't see it. I think that those two have a much better chemistry when their arguing with each other rather than the whole love connection. I think it would be runing a good oppertunity to have them hook up since obviously the quips between each other - which worked well tonight - seem to happen naturaly. I also agree about the whole exclusion of Sam. After all they are still the two main characters!

Otherwise a good episode.