Tension, Conflict, Motivation, and Plot: Why the Story is About Dean and We Do Know Sam
I wrote a meta thingy! :)
There’s been avid discussion about Sam and Dean and which of them, if either, seems to be favored by Kripke as well as debate about “who is the story really about”. I’ve noticed there’s been a propensity for some self-proclaimed “Dean girls” and “Sam girls” to run circles around each other, trying to prove their points. ( Read more... )
There’s been avid discussion about Sam and Dean and which of them, if either, seems to be favored by Kripke as well as debate about “who is the story really about”. I’ve noticed there’s been a propensity for some self-proclaimed “Dean girls” and “Sam girls” to run circles around each other, trying to prove their points. ( Read more... )
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we haven't seen Sam focused so closely on Dean's deal, Dean being so weirdly offbeatI think I know what you mean (but maybe I misunderstood your points?). Yes, I thought we'd get more actual scenes of Sam actively persuing a solution to Dean's problem rather than just hearing about off-screen happenings (i.e. Sam saying, "I've tried everything, Dean, and I can't save you.") and getting close-ups of maudlin Sam's desperate puppy eyes. But in the sense that Dean's deal is the focus of S3 Sam's actions (the catalyst) I think we've have plenty of that (only "MM" and "JiB" have forwarded Sam's "solo" S3 plot). I hope the last episodes of the season give us some tangible Sam-trying-to-save/saving-Dean scenes because I really want to know exactly what Sam's doing/going to do. Considering he hauled Dean to a faith healer in S1, whatever Sam's supposedly been doing/will resort to should be a magnitude more desperate and spectacular. *bounces* However, I had a moment of weakness months ago ( ... )
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Oh yes. I whole-heartedly believe that Twizzle-ing should become a Thing in the SPN fandom. Or at least a cool way to give feedback?
I think I know what you mean (but maybe I misunderstood your points?). No, I think you've gotten them. It is a complaint I've seen recently, that Sam hasn't really 'done' anything regarding the deal since Bedtime Stories, and I can understand where it's coming from. Then again, had Sam done something every episode, it would get repetitive and depressing. It's interesting from a story-writing point of view, how they'd have tried to balance that so it wasn't too much or too little ( ... )
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*grins* I totally agree! Hehe. Let's do it. Can I copy your Twizzler image so I can Twizzler people myself? I so want to do drive-by Twizzlerings! *dies laughing*
Then again, had Sam done something every episode, it would get repetitive and depressing. It's interesting from a story-writing point of view, how they'd have tried to balance that so it wasn't too much or too little.I think what you say demonstrates it's impossible to please everyone no matter what transpires, esp. with such an active and passionate fandom. But I think the writers have done an amazing job jockeying the story between Sam and Dean and weaving the MotW episodes with the mytharc. It's especially mind boggling when you consides this is all "in progress", and unlike written fiction--which the entire body of work is recrafted before anyone sees a single word--the are no "do-overs" once an episode has been aired. Any boo-boos are our ( ... )
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I like the idea of the boys as tigers - although I laughed out loud at the idea of Dean as a glittery tiara.
The stories were what attracted me to the show, actually, what attracted me in the first place was the plot's siliarity to a Japanese anime plot.
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LOL! That is just so perfect for this fandom!
I laughed out loud at the idea of Dean as a glittery tiaraAww, Dean. He is very glittery, though. ;) I had a silly analogy of Sam as a worn T-shirt and Dean as a sequined-halter top that I took out because it was too long ( ... )
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That's very interesting. I'd originally thought those clips were in there to distract attention from the spoiler of the Trickster clips and I'd never paid attention to the connection.
I like the way you laid out the interrelationships of the mytharc and the internal motivations. I hadn't seen those arguments expressed before, but I would agree that they seem like misperceptions to me. I'd also argue that Dean did have something of a plot arc in S1 but it was buried in his motivational one. He had the role of reintroducing Sam to hunting and also to have his commitment to the family tested. But I think viewers more often catch on to action plots and less to emotional ones.
I kind of came to something a bit similar in a roundabout way.
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No problem, I don't mind anonymous comments (and anyway if you signed it, it wouldn't be :>). I did actually, about a year ago, but when I was going to post it to my IJ account I realized that I should update it since S3 had brought about some changes.
I had no idea there was even a "younger brother". My response when I first saw Sam was "WHO IS THAT?!".
Heh, I guess I did know about the brothers even before watching the show because there was so much talk about how slashy it was, and that seemed to be the real draw for people. And the relationship was definitely what drew me in, so I'm firmly in the bibro camp ;>
the motivation tiger --whose central drive is usually another character--is stuck being reactionary without the illusion of choiceYes, I suspect this is what is probably behind a lot of the complaints about Dean's role. I remember hearing a lot of ( ... )
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Yes, very true. I wasn't sure if I'd be able to get notified of your reply, though. And I'm lazy and don't want to recheck a post to make sure I'm not being accidentally rude by appearing to have abandoned a conversation. ;P
And the relationship was definitely what drew me in, so I'm firmly in the bibro camp
Funny enough, I wasn't aware of the slash vibe, but I did think they were gay. When I discovered they were brothers twenty minutes or so later, I had a serious "Oh!" moment.
Someone here in the comments coined the term "bibrolar" to describe those in the "bibro" camp. *dies laughing* I can't help it, any derivative of "bibro" reduces me to giggles; I'm not sure why. This fandom kills me XD.
However on those ensemble shows everyone reacted to the main character. Perhaps with SPN there's more friction because the set-up of the show makes them seem like equal characters whereas Dean often has spent a lot of time reacting. To see him only that way though seems to me to sell the ( ... )
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Again, wonderful work! I do hope the rest of the season will provide a rich field to meta some more in. :)
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Thanks for reading. I'm glad you like the table. For me, it was toeing the alarmingly too-detailed line, but then I figured "Who cares, just do it ... somebody in fandom has probably already made a it anyway." Fandom exists for the details.
I hope we get some juicy episodes as well to cap off our beheaded S3. I keep telling myself that it's quality not quantity that matters.
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