9.16 ep reaction/review
To anybody who says that the brotherhood is dead or that Sam severed all feelings of brotherhood when he said that they could only work as business partners your argument is invalid. At the heart of everything they do is their love and concern for each other. That was made evident in that episode. <3
In fact, if you didn't know there was a rather major issue between them you wouldn't even know that there was a major issue between them. Seriously. I'm not sure if that's good (even though there's hurt between them they can still work extremely well together) or bad (the issue has been set aside for this ep or ignored all together in favour of a new direction). I'm not complaining - it's nice to watch an episode that doesn't even mention it. It's even nicer to watch an episode that had the brothers connected and worried about each other (and, oh yeah, TIED UP TOGETHER! <333).
It's particularly awesome to watch Dean being consumed by something outside of himself. This episode was about addiction and to watch Dean start to succumb to that need was great to watch. I'd like to think they might draw a parallel between Sam's previous addiction. Or even Sam's lack of body control. I'm not sure if that's deliberate, but it sure is tantalising that they are flirting with it. There is also Crowley's connection to Sam through his human blood addiction. What a fabulous comparison. I loved how demon Lola even acted a little like Ruby - a seductress with a means to an ends.
Crowley's addiction was fabulous to watch (nice to see Mark stretching his acting chops). Also, the use of music in that scene was FANTASTIC!. Man, I miss the use of music in this show - that reminded me just how much.
And then we had Magnus who was addicted (obsessed) with collecting Supernatural things. I'm sure we are supposed to see the connecting thread between them all. Need, desire, power, addiction. It's all rather delicious (and Dean being stripped of his will and later clinging onto that sense of power...YUM!)
The idea that Dean could be part of a collection? KILL ME NOW!!! *thud* Such a collectable item *iz totally shallow* The Mark is going to be such an interesting storyline for Dean. I hope something actually comes of it though (other than sheer hotness!) - like drawing those parallels with Sam. Or maybe we'll get to see more of what makes Dean tick, what scares him, what thrills him - what it feels like to lose control of his body. Is killing going to be an uncontrollable addiction? And what it will take to stop him...*rubs hands*
I found the scene between Crowley and Sam curious. I felt that Sam was going to actually (finally!) say something about...something...ANYTHING. But it was left alone - it felt as if we were somehow meant to imagine what Sam would say. I'm not sure if that's Jared giving it more than is written or the fact that Sam just did not want to say anything to Crowley. It was almost like he wanted to say something but there's just too much to say to sum it up. And Crowley really isn't the person he'll open up to. I actually loved the way he kept shutting Crowley down. He's getting really good at shutting things down - including himself (and I'd love to think that's deliberate - if Dean is changing into a killing machine then maybe Sam is going to change into someone who can totally shut off his feelings).
My take on Sam (other than them really not knowing what the hell to give him to do when he's not "other") is that it's all just too much. Sam is like Dory from Finding Nemo - Just keep swimming. That's Sam. He can't wallow, he can't fight against it, he can't regret, he can't be angry, he can't share what's inside him. He just has to keep going. I think this also explains why Sam is so calm about Dean having the Mark. There's only so many times can you be surprised, shocked, hurt and dismayed about something. Just get on with solving the problem.
I thought it was a weirdly paced episode. And, as I find with most Buckner, Ross-Lemming episodes, it introduced lots of new canon (spells and history etc) and I had trouble making sense of it all. I'll have to re-watch to work some of it out (namely the ties to the MoLs).
But it was those little broment nuggets that I liked best - Sam doing everything he could to find Dean and Dean stressing big time when Sam was being hurt (seriously...did that moment just hit ever fanfic kink I own? YOU BET!). Sam talking Dean into letting go of the blade was seriously awesome and heartwarming (sorry? What was that about Sam not loving or caring about Dean?).
I also LOVED the lighting - not surprising considering Serge Ladouceur (director of photography) directed it. I wanted to post some caps but I'm running out of time. I will have to do that another time because I was drooling over some of those shots.
Overall, not a bad episode. There were some delightful moments ("not moose" being an all time favourite) and some interesting developments. It was the beginning of Dean's myth arc storyline and I'm looking forward to seeing where they take that. The jury is out on my feelings about what they plan to do with Sam - because I honestly couldn't tell by watching that. There were some hints but I have no idea if that was character development or just giving Sam screen time because, you know, he's in the show. Dean's story is about lack of control (and that delicious feeling of power) and Crowley's is about change due to addiction - themes we are familiar with.
And Crowley really does have a thing for Sam doesn't he? I wonder if that's because he was meant to be the Boy King. Or maybe it's the hair...
(oh and I have no idea who that "Snookie" person was but I hope she's not known for her acting /o\...)