9.13, or, THANK YOU, WRITERS!!!
I want to kiss them all on the mouth for this one! (No tongue, though--first, we'll have to see how the season goes after this.)
Seeing fiercelynormal's wonderful gifs from the episode reminded me anew of all the great moments--Dean's "You're weird around girls" announcement; the adorable Minnesoota cop; Dean's "extra cushion for the ..." followed by Sam's sharp look; Dean's hysterical donut-sugar wipe, no self-consciousness at all (God, I love the way Jensen played that); Sam and Dean's reaction when the guy starts doing his "kung fu" moves. Sooo, so many good lines. (And Sam and Dean were actually in character! Anyone else been missing that lately ...?) Also, there might have been something about yoga and shorts and a tank top. Nobody else has mentioned it, but I'm just gonna put it out there that, though it may be controversial to say so since it angers fandom so much when someone objectifies our boys, for myself, I quite enjoyed that bit.
All of it, though. ALL OF IT. It was a good old-fashioned SPN episode at its best: a monster, and humor, and real family drama between characters who act like real people. (I don't think fandom would be so upset if it didn't resonate so much emotionally for us and feel like a real argument between real people.) Basically, all my wishes came true for where I hoped they were going with the storyline, directly addressing the question of whether they (or, specifically, Dean) do more good than harm, whether it's right to kill a monster even if it doesn't hurt anyone--and directly pointing out that they've both been monsters, at one time or another (and it can be and has been convincingly argued that Dean is a very human monster right now). As for the relationship between the boys, I thought that was beautifully handled, too.
Honestly (yes, I've seen the wank--how could I miss it??), I think a great deal of argument within fandom right now could have been quelled with a couple of extra words in the script, specifically when Sam says he wouldn't do the same for Dean if the situation were reversed. I think this was either an oversight on the part of the writers, or possibly deliberate to draw out the tension between them, to delicately side-step defining what, exactly, it is that Sam wouldn't have done if the situation were reversed. After all, he did not say--in that conversation, at least--that what he wouldn't do is directly go against Dean's wishes, do something [oh my god, at that very moment I saw where this all might be headed, so cut for potential spoilers]... OHH. Oh, no, I just got a glimpse of where they could be going with this that's both horrifying and thrilling. I see now, as I write this, that Sam has made more and more clear every time he's talked to Dean about all this that the reason he was ready to die was that he doesn't want more people to get hurt because of him. Simultaneously, Dean and Show and Crowley continually point out to us that the brothers Winchester--specifically, Dean, or both of them when they're doing things Dean's way--leave a trail of destruction and dead bodies in their wake. So ... what happens when Dean finally accepts this is the case? Everyone knows the show might very well end after S10. Is this leading up to Dean and Sam sacrificing themselves in a blaze of glory? Closing up heaven and hell or something equally huge, their lives being the cost, going into it knowing full well they won't survive, the noblest of kamikaze endings? Ending the series with a bang ... then, if it does go on beyond S10, they can miraculously survive it, just as they always do. Either that or go curtain!fic-y: "You're right, Sam, fuck this. Let's get a house with Cas and Charlie and have cookouts with the neighbors." (Personally, I'm holding out for Destiel being quite literally canon by S20--it would be a gay, angsty hour-long romantic/family drama with action. Gah, despite beginning that as a joke, the more I write about it, the more I want that show!) ANYWAY ... with his body he knew for a fact he would never agree to unless he'd been tricked into it, and all that, although I feel it's clear enough that that's what he meant, from their conversation at the end of the previous episode, and Sam DID say specifically this time, "Same circumstances." Also, he pointed out Dean did it for himself, not for Sam.
Though it came off colder than I believe Sam actually feels in his heart (probably for the sake of adding to the drama), I loved Sam and Dean's interactions for a thousand reasons, boiling down to the fact that from the very first minute of this series, we were presented with this setup: these brothers are as different as they could be, and they've always wanted different things. For this show to go on past S7, that had to be addressed, and they're doing it, they're doing it! I love you, writers!!
Seeing fiercelynormal's wonderful gifs from the episode reminded me anew of all the great moments--Dean's "You're weird around girls" announcement; the adorable Minnesoota cop; Dean's "extra cushion for the ..." followed by Sam's sharp look; Dean's hysterical donut-sugar wipe, no self-consciousness at all (God, I love the way Jensen played that); Sam and Dean's reaction when the guy starts doing his "kung fu" moves. Sooo, so many good lines. (And Sam and Dean were actually in character! Anyone else been missing that lately ...?) Also, there might have been something about yoga and shorts and a tank top. Nobody else has mentioned it, but I'm just gonna put it out there that, though it may be controversial to say so since it angers fandom so much when someone objectifies our boys, for myself, I quite enjoyed that bit.
All of it, though. ALL OF IT. It was a good old-fashioned SPN episode at its best: a monster, and humor, and real family drama between characters who act like real people. (I don't think fandom would be so upset if it didn't resonate so much emotionally for us and feel like a real argument between real people.) Basically, all my wishes came true for where I hoped they were going with the storyline, directly addressing the question of whether they (or, specifically, Dean) do more good than harm, whether it's right to kill a monster even if it doesn't hurt anyone--and directly pointing out that they've both been monsters, at one time or another (and it can be and has been convincingly argued that Dean is a very human monster right now). As for the relationship between the boys, I thought that was beautifully handled, too.
Honestly (yes, I've seen the wank--how could I miss it??), I think a great deal of argument within fandom right now could have been quelled with a couple of extra words in the script, specifically when Sam says he wouldn't do the same for Dean if the situation were reversed. I think this was either an oversight on the part of the writers, or possibly deliberate to draw out the tension between them, to delicately side-step defining what, exactly, it is that Sam wouldn't have done if the situation were reversed. After all, he did not say--in that conversation, at least--that what he wouldn't do is directly go against Dean's wishes, do something [oh my god, at that very moment I saw where this all might be headed, so cut for potential spoilers]... OHH. Oh, no, I just got a glimpse of where they could be going with this that's both horrifying and thrilling. I see now, as I write this, that Sam has made more and more clear every time he's talked to Dean about all this that the reason he was ready to die was that he doesn't want more people to get hurt because of him. Simultaneously, Dean and Show and Crowley continually point out to us that the brothers Winchester--specifically, Dean, or both of them when they're doing things Dean's way--leave a trail of destruction and dead bodies in their wake. So ... what happens when Dean finally accepts this is the case? Everyone knows the show might very well end after S10. Is this leading up to Dean and Sam sacrificing themselves in a blaze of glory? Closing up heaven and hell or something equally huge, their lives being the cost, going into it knowing full well they won't survive, the noblest of kamikaze endings? Ending the series with a bang ... then, if it does go on beyond S10, they can miraculously survive it, just as they always do. Either that or go curtain!fic-y: "You're right, Sam, fuck this. Let's get a house with Cas and Charlie and have cookouts with the neighbors." (Personally, I'm holding out for Destiel being quite literally canon by S20--it would be a gay, angsty hour-long romantic/family drama with action. Gah, despite beginning that as a joke, the more I write about it, the more I want that show!) ANYWAY ... with his body he knew for a fact he would never agree to unless he'd been tricked into it, and all that, although I feel it's clear enough that that's what he meant, from their conversation at the end of the previous episode, and Sam DID say specifically this time, "Same circumstances." Also, he pointed out Dean did it for himself, not for Sam.
Though it came off colder than I believe Sam actually feels in his heart (probably for the sake of adding to the drama), I loved Sam and Dean's interactions for a thousand reasons, boiling down to the fact that from the very first minute of this series, we were presented with this setup: these brothers are as different as they could be, and they've always wanted different things. For this show to go on past S7, that had to be addressed, and they're doing it, they're doing it! I love you, writers!!