Adjusting Expectations
Smallville wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, and Supernatural was even better than I thought it would be. Win-win.
It was however, without being sentimental or exploitative, an extremely sad episode. So many undercurrents (and overcurrents, for that matter) of loss and regret and guilt and resentment, reminders of their mother's and father's deaths and their own blighted childhood, a widening of the schism between Sam and Dean. Dean is seeing Sam in a new light; is he regretting the sacrifices he made on his brother's behalf? As Adam transformed from monster to family and back to monster, Dean correspondingly transformed from hunter to protector and back, but Sam was chillingly less emotional in his responses, more guarded and judgemental, willing to exploit Adam whether he was evil or innocent.
I kept expecting Sam to use his telekinesis to free himself, or at least hurl his tormentors around a little. Maybe he needs his hands to gesture, or maybe the bloodloss weakened him. Is he going to go looking for some Ruby-red replacement blood to restore his mojo? Were the ropes, the tormenting, the gouging of the side intended for a crucifixion metaphor? Is Sam being misunderstood and mistrusted like Jesus was? Will he have to submit to execution to win his war, and will he have a subsequent resurrection? Have I been eating too many Lindt dark chocolate Easter bunnies, and it's affecting my thinking? (Honestly, though, it's impossible to eat too many Lindt dark chocolate Easter bunnies.)
Dean was darkly, heartbreakingly funny in his initial insistence and testing of Adam's evil nature, and then just heartbreaking once he'd accepted Adam as his brother and went into full on protective big brother mode. Every year that Jensen Ackles doesn't get nominated for an Emmy, I get more and more irritated. He's created one of the most original and multi-faceted characters to ever grace a television screen, and goddammit, I want him to get some recognition for it. Jared has done an incredible job of developing his character as well. I need to go rewatch the episode now to focus more on Sam, as the first time around I was too busy laughing at and aching for Dean. Oh boys!
It was however, without being sentimental or exploitative, an extremely sad episode. So many undercurrents (and overcurrents, for that matter) of loss and regret and guilt and resentment, reminders of their mother's and father's deaths and their own blighted childhood, a widening of the schism between Sam and Dean. Dean is seeing Sam in a new light; is he regretting the sacrifices he made on his brother's behalf? As Adam transformed from monster to family and back to monster, Dean correspondingly transformed from hunter to protector and back, but Sam was chillingly less emotional in his responses, more guarded and judgemental, willing to exploit Adam whether he was evil or innocent.
I kept expecting Sam to use his telekinesis to free himself, or at least hurl his tormentors around a little. Maybe he needs his hands to gesture, or maybe the bloodloss weakened him. Is he going to go looking for some Ruby-red replacement blood to restore his mojo? Were the ropes, the tormenting, the gouging of the side intended for a crucifixion metaphor? Is Sam being misunderstood and mistrusted like Jesus was? Will he have to submit to execution to win his war, and will he have a subsequent resurrection? Have I been eating too many Lindt dark chocolate Easter bunnies, and it's affecting my thinking? (Honestly, though, it's impossible to eat too many Lindt dark chocolate Easter bunnies.)
Dean was darkly, heartbreakingly funny in his initial insistence and testing of Adam's evil nature, and then just heartbreaking once he'd accepted Adam as his brother and went into full on protective big brother mode. Every year that Jensen Ackles doesn't get nominated for an Emmy, I get more and more irritated. He's created one of the most original and multi-faceted characters to ever grace a television screen, and goddammit, I want him to get some recognition for it. Jared has done an incredible job of developing his character as well. I need to go rewatch the episode now to focus more on Sam, as the first time around I was too busy laughing at and aching for Dean. Oh boys!