SPN 6x21-22, or oops, this got tl;dr

[dotfic]

I almost ducked out completely on metaing on this ep but my brain had other ideas.

Comments

[dotfic]

I can see how this could seem like out of left field shock value. It didn't ping me that way, but I get it. It is shocking, but I'm not feeling as if it was a feeble attempt to be shocking, and in S6 the show about lost me and made me feel that they couldn't shock me any more.

My, this was BRACING! :D

As far as Dean's pov is concerned, it's a betrayal, and I'm inclined to stick with Castiel intended to put Sam out of commission and distract Dean. But that's an intriguing take on Cas bringing down Sam's wall. It means maybe Castiel has changed his mind about Sam -- maybe decided that Sam's battered soul was strong enough that he didn't need the wall. That he was WRONG about warning Dean not to put the soul back in. At the very least, that he wasn't deliberately trying to destroy or hurt Sam, Castiel says he would fix it, so to Castiel's pov this was a controlled situation.

I'll have to see how S7 goes, but the show has yet again shown me I underestimated things, because I had a recent post about the differences in the Dean-Sam and Dean-Cas dynamics, and how long it took to fix Dean and Sam. It now seems like perhaps the Dean-Cas breakage will have longer and harsher consequences than I thought, which is sad but also ship-affirming. Since 6x21 was pretty clear about the impact Lisa and Ben had on Dean, I feel like the show is doing a little bit of commentary that while Dean-Sam is the unequaled relationship on the show, there are other relationships that cut very deep. Which has me chin-in-hands watching, because this is something I love seeing explored. I think Sam&Dean are soulmates and are the yin and the yang and are unbreakable, and how do you have that kind of bond and yet other kinds of bonds that are powerful but in different ways.

5x22 crushed my D/C. 6.20 bled back and showed me the ship was never crushed. Silly me! <3 6x22 gave my D/C shipper goggles caffeine and sugar.

[abrakadabrah]

It means maybe Castiel has changed his mind about Sam -- maybe decided that Sam's battered soul was strong enough that he didn't need the wall. That he was WRONG about warning Dean not to put the soul back in.

Sorry to break in here - but I've been assuming that Sam's ability to piece himself back together so successfully is not going to last - and that will be one of the new themes next year, along with rehabilitating Cas. The way PTSD symptoms are often delayed past a battle during which the person pulls himself together, and then hit later on. Otherwise, several episodes worth of warning about Sam not going to last will if he gets his hell memories back will sure look silly in retrospect.

[dotfic]

It does look like it'll take time. Sam was able to regain consciousness, and walk (and drive) and keep going through those flashes, IDK. The sequences inside his head imply that he's overcome this past the critical point, while he'll keep having flashes, maybe he won't pass out?

And look who said it would destroy Sam -- Castiel is an extremely unreliable narrator on this. He intended to save Sam and made a mistake, Sam's soul got left behind, and Castiel's carrying the guilt of that. Overcompensating by overprotecting? Which makes Castiel knocking down Sam's wall all the more a sign of how far Castiel has gone over the line now.

But I think the point is Sam's sense of self>>>>>>>>hell memories.