Well, as someone who has no appreciation for classic monster flicks, I found the episode just okay, and slightly predictable. But I respect the effort. And enjoyed the scooter and pizza.

So did shapeshifter die? Or are we getting another Dracula ambiguity? ( See Buffy S6 E1.)

Jamie shot him with silver bullets. Bye-bye shifter.

I never understood why Dracula kept coming back.

But then I never understood why the Master had bones, either.

Ah, so the silver bullets do it for good. I was confused because of Shape!Drac's death scene which was apparently monster movie-esque but not Supernatural-esque.

Outside the story, I was okay with all the shooting elements being homage-ic. But inside the story, I assumed all the monster movie qualities were a creation of the shapeshifter. It seemed a stretch that he'd be able to die in his character as well. I guess that's my one big nitpick, the shapeshifter should have died as one would die in the Supernatural world, without theatrics, just cold and dead. (It would have been cool if the color washed in at the same moment...)

I never understood why Dracula kept coming back.

He had those "Gypsy Parlor Trick" powers, so I always took it that he was making himself dematerialize as Buffy staked him, so she never quite got him. It just looked like she did.

But then I never understood why the Master had bones, either.

Why wouldn't he have bones? Vampires have bones.

Outside the story, I was okay with all the shooting elements being homage-ic. But inside the story, I assumed all the monster movie qualities were a creation of the shapeshifter. It seemed a stretch that he'd be able to die in his character as well. I guess that's my one big nitpick, the shapeshifter should have died as one would die in the Supernatural world, without theatrics, just cold and dead. (It would have been cool if the color washed in at the same moment...)

Oh, I'm glad they didn't do that. The whole episode was predicated on even Sam and Dean thinking this case was weird. It's been a long time since I've watched either "Skin" or "Night Shifter" so I can't remember whether shifters changed forms as they died.

I think this shifter was a little different too, because he wasn't copying himself based on people he saw in person -- so he could keep duplicating the same forms, whenever he needed to change skins.

Thing is, we don't actually know that it was a shapeshifter. San 'n' Dean thought it was, yes, but it could have been something else, a relation to shifters or something.

Why wouldn't he have bones? Vampires have bones.

But not after they've been dusted!

It's been a long time since I've watched either "Skin" or "Night Shifter" so I can't remember whether shifters changed forms as they died.

Nope. This is how Dean was determined to be Deady McDeadperson in S1. He killed the shifter while it was disguised as him.

Thing is, we don't actually know that it was a shapeshifter. San 'n' Dean thought it was, yes, but it could have been something else, a relation to shifters or something.

Where are you getting that? I'm not seeing that from my viewing, to be honest. It looked like a shifter, shed like a shifter, acted like a shifter--well, okay, as all three shifters have had different motivations, that last one's a little strong! It's a duck!

Where are you getting that? I'm not seeing that from my viewing, to be honest.

his eyes also did that whole retinal flash at some point in the episode too, i think.

it could have been something else, a relation to shifters or something.

The crazy cousins shifters keep in the attic?

Why wouldn't he have bones? Vampires have bones.

But not after they've been dusted!

Oh. Duh. I plead staying up the entire night to get the recap in on time. And dumbness. I think it's still fanwankable, though. The Master was so old, he was starting to change physically. Remember he sort of looked like a bat? I remember Joss saying something about vampires almost sort of devolving. There was that Kissing Toast vamp from "Faith, Hope, and Trick," who had the cloven thing going on and I can't remember what my point was about him, except that they do seem to change physically. Yeah. That was it. What thread am I in?

Thing is, we don't actually know that it was a shapeshifter. San 'n' Dean thought it was, yes, but it could have been something else, a relation to shifters or something.

So he could have been a mutant mutant?

Where are you getting that? I'm not seeing that from my viewing, to be honest. It looked like a shifter, shed like a shifter, acted like a shifter--well, okay, as all three shifters have had different motivations, that last one's a little strong! It's a duck!

Well, the motivations might have been somewhat different, but not the catalyst. I was impressed that Drac's manipulative speech called back to the idea of shifters being outcasts.