Crossroad Blues, Croatoan, Hunted
I wrote a little bit about "Crossroad Blues" last year, and I really don't have too much else to say.
Let's just say that I find it to be an outstanding ep, continuing apace with Dean's pain over what happened to John, and Sam's concern that Dean is on the edge and thinking about making deals.
I love smart!Dean, who knows his plants, and who immediately recognizes the situation for what it is--crossroads, summoning plants, etc.
Also? I love tricksy!Dean and how he traps the demon. How even through his pain and through the temptation, he sticks to the plan.
Also also? I love that Sam is in tune enough with Dean to know that Dean's not in a good head space right now, and he calls him on it. And that even though things turned out the way they planned, and Dean didn't give in to temptation, Sam recognizes that the temptation was there, and he knows enough to recognize that Dean considered it.
Totally OT aside: Fresh summer peaches are FANTASTIC! A treat for all the sense: the sweet fragrance, the orangey-red freshness, the feel of the fuzzy skin, the succulent slurping as you bite, the sweet tartness, the juice dripping off your chin . . . I'm pretty convinced that the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden was a variation of a peach.
(Which is totally different from fresh pineapple, which is downright orgasmic. But that's a totally different issue.)
Oh, sorry. I'm snacking on a peach while I write this. Now. Where was I?
Oh, yeah. The angst.
Also x3 . . . This is a Sera Gamble ep, is it not? She might be a Sam!girl, but she writes herself some pretty fine Dean, too.
And I like the way this gal plays the CRD. I'm not sure which CRD I like best, but I assume this one, the next one, and the Sandra one are all the same character, yeah?
Anyway, once I got past the freak-out this ep originally caused me, there's some good, solid stuff.
Croatoan
Another good mystery, a good, mysterious mytharc ep, and more angst for the brothers. I liked the guest characters (very disappointed that the Sarge got got). Sam, ready to die and not wanting to take Dean with him. Our first instance of Dean vocalizing how tired he is of the job, how he's ready to give it up.
Love the last scene, too.
Hunted
So much good stuff in this ep, and so much pain.
I'm not sure if I've written in my own journal how painful I find this opening conversation, or how ticked I used to get regarding Sam's selfishness. I know I've talked about it with others elsewhere, so I won't belabor the point. I just used to get so ticked at Sam (I say used to, because in S5, he started to realize, finally, what his leaving did to Dean). Here's Dean, begging--begging--Sam for something only Sam can provide, specifically, time to step back and regroup and figure out what to do next. And Sam? Takes off in the middle of the night without so much as a "kiss my foot" or "have an apple." Dean's goin' nuts with worry, so thankfully Ellen sees things from Dean's POV.
Oh, did I mention Ellen? She's awesome. As is Ash. And Ava. Love Ava.
Um . . . Sam? Have you ever noticed how when you strike out on your own, Dean ends up in ropes? Now, I'm not saying that Dean can't take care of himself, because both times, it took a butt of a gun to his face to take him down. And I'm sure there's a Dean!girl or twenty who don't complain about Dean in ropes. I'm just sayin', you know, that doin' things on your own? Not necessarily conducive to the safety and well being of both parties of the Brothers Winchester.
And Gordon. Oh, Gordon. Will there be any more of your ilk in S6? Because you made things interesting.
You know, looking at the issue of "destiny" here, and the different attitudes of the two brothers, I'm not sure how the end of S5 could have been played any way other than the way it did. Sam is willing to accept his "destiny," while Dean doesn't believe in the concept. Had Dean said yes to Michael--the way everyone was telling him he would--it would have defeated the whole self-determination, free will issue. (OTOH, Jensen as Michael. I WANT TO SEE IT!) So I'm thinkin' as far back as this episode, Dean has a purpose (per "Faith"), but not a pre-destined destiny. Whereas Sam doesn't really consider that he might, in the end, have a choice. (Which we find out he does, thanks to Dean. But we're not there yet.)
Anyway. "Hunted." Good stuff. *thumbs up*
Let's just say that I find it to be an outstanding ep, continuing apace with Dean's pain over what happened to John, and Sam's concern that Dean is on the edge and thinking about making deals.
I love smart!Dean, who knows his plants, and who immediately recognizes the situation for what it is--crossroads, summoning plants, etc.
Also? I love tricksy!Dean and how he traps the demon. How even through his pain and through the temptation, he sticks to the plan.
Also also? I love that Sam is in tune enough with Dean to know that Dean's not in a good head space right now, and he calls him on it. And that even though things turned out the way they planned, and Dean didn't give in to temptation, Sam recognizes that the temptation was there, and he knows enough to recognize that Dean considered it.
Totally OT aside: Fresh summer peaches are FANTASTIC! A treat for all the sense: the sweet fragrance, the orangey-red freshness, the feel of the fuzzy skin, the succulent slurping as you bite, the sweet tartness, the juice dripping off your chin . . . I'm pretty convinced that the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden was a variation of a peach.
(Which is totally different from fresh pineapple, which is downright orgasmic. But that's a totally different issue.)
Oh, sorry. I'm snacking on a peach while I write this. Now. Where was I?
Oh, yeah. The angst.
Also x3 . . . This is a Sera Gamble ep, is it not? She might be a Sam!girl, but she writes herself some pretty fine Dean, too.
And I like the way this gal plays the CRD. I'm not sure which CRD I like best, but I assume this one, the next one, and the Sandra one are all the same character, yeah?
Anyway, once I got past the freak-out this ep originally caused me, there's some good, solid stuff.
Croatoan
Another good mystery, a good, mysterious mytharc ep, and more angst for the brothers. I liked the guest characters (very disappointed that the Sarge got got). Sam, ready to die and not wanting to take Dean with him. Our first instance of Dean vocalizing how tired he is of the job, how he's ready to give it up.
Love the last scene, too.
Hunted
So much good stuff in this ep, and so much pain.
I'm not sure if I've written in my own journal how painful I find this opening conversation, or how ticked I used to get regarding Sam's selfishness. I know I've talked about it with others elsewhere, so I won't belabor the point. I just used to get so ticked at Sam (I say used to, because in S5, he started to realize, finally, what his leaving did to Dean). Here's Dean, begging--begging--Sam for something only Sam can provide, specifically, time to step back and regroup and figure out what to do next. And Sam? Takes off in the middle of the night without so much as a "kiss my foot" or "have an apple." Dean's goin' nuts with worry, so thankfully Ellen sees things from Dean's POV.
Oh, did I mention Ellen? She's awesome. As is Ash. And Ava. Love Ava.
Um . . . Sam? Have you ever noticed how when you strike out on your own, Dean ends up in ropes? Now, I'm not saying that Dean can't take care of himself, because both times, it took a butt of a gun to his face to take him down. And I'm sure there's a Dean!girl or twenty who don't complain about Dean in ropes. I'm just sayin', you know, that doin' things on your own? Not necessarily conducive to the safety and well being of both parties of the Brothers Winchester.
And Gordon. Oh, Gordon. Will there be any more of your ilk in S6? Because you made things interesting.
You know, looking at the issue of "destiny" here, and the different attitudes of the two brothers, I'm not sure how the end of S5 could have been played any way other than the way it did. Sam is willing to accept his "destiny," while Dean doesn't believe in the concept. Had Dean said yes to Michael--the way everyone was telling him he would--it would have defeated the whole self-determination, free will issue. (OTOH, Jensen as Michael. I WANT TO SEE IT!) So I'm thinkin' as far back as this episode, Dean has a purpose (per "Faith"), but not a pre-destined destiny. Whereas Sam doesn't really consider that he might, in the end, have a choice. (Which we find out he does, thanks to Dean. But we're not there yet.)
Anyway. "Hunted." Good stuff. *thumbs up*