Rewatch S1: Ep 21 & 22
Unfortunately, because of the CD-ROM content on the disc, my computer screws up whenever I try to watch the 6th disc on my laptop (which was where I've mostly been watching these, given that I don't always have access to the good TV). So, I had to drag out my small crappy TV and hook it up to an old DVD player so that I could watch these episodes (again, because I didn't have access to the good TV). My old crappy TV makes the shows even DARKER, if you can imagine...and the picture quality poorer.
I'm going to try again with the laptop after I post this, because I want to see what the special features are. I'll do a separate post about the special features if I get it working (or possibly high-jack a better computer). Man, I wish I had a better job, then I'd own the good stuff.
On to the final two episodes of Season 1...
Salvation
Pastor Jim Murphy lives in, or near, Wisconsin. I don't think I mentioned that before, but you find that out in Something Wicked.
Oh, they are still in Manning, Colorado at the beginning of this, this is good stuff for the timeline, things are moving fast.
Sam: "Mom's death, Jessica...it's because of me?"
Dean tells him it's not his fault (didn't get the exact lines written down)
Sam: "No, it's not my fault, but it's my problem!"
Dean: "It's not your problem, it's our problem!"
Dean: "Call you? you kidding me?...Dad, I called you from Lawrence, Sam called you when I was dying. Getting you on the phone... I've got a better chance of winning the lottery."
John: "You're right. Though, I'm not crazy about this new tone of yours, but you're right. I'm sorry."
Ah Dean, once he discovered that he can talk back too, there's no stopping him! Actually, it's more like their Dad has finally crossed some lines for Dean - who can only put up with so much, before pointing out when someone is being ridiculous.
John: "I want you to go to school, I want Dean to have a home, I want Mary to be alive..."
Right when John says "I want Dean to have a home", Dean looks down. I love that...like he's embarrassed to have it pointed out that he might want something that he doesn't already have.
John: "It's up to you boys now. It's your fight. You finish this. You finish what I started, you understand?"
-The handing over of the Colt and so much more...
mizzykitty pointed out a couple of weeks ago how the following dialog does an awesome job of showing the core fundamental difference between the two brothers:
Sam: "I wonder how Dad's doing..."
Dean: "I'd feel a lot better if we were there backing him up."
Sam: "I'd feel a lot better if he were here backing us up."
Ah, the Thank You speech. Sam's always the cheeseball when it comes to "Just in case..." speeches, and Dean always gives him crap for it. Though, Dean gave Sam a "Just in case..." speech in Scarecrow. It's nice though, that Sam recognizes that Dean has always been there for him.
Sam: "We've been searching for this demon our whole lives. It's the only thing we've ever cared about."
...
Dean: "Sam look, the three of us. that's all we have. It's all I have. Sometimes I feel like I'm barely holding it together..."
I think Dean only ever cared about the demon because John cared about the demon. I mean, I know part of him would like to kill the thing that destroyed his family, but I think "the only thing" that Dean has ever cared about is his family, and if his family cares about killing some demon, than he cares about killing the demon...and he'll only care about killing that demon as long as it doesn't conflict with what he really cares about.
Devil's Trap
We pick up where we left off, and as far as I can tell, this episode takes place over a 24 hour period in which the boys don't sleep.
How'd they get Meg tied to the chair? A bit unnecessary.
Sam wants to use the demon for information, Bobby is worried about an innocent girl dying because they are taking away the thing that is keeping her alive. I'm with Dean on this one, Bobby doesn't make any sense. I'd rather die than be possessed by something that is going around using my body to kill people.
Dean: "I don't care what Dad wants, and since when do you care what Dad wants?"
Sam: "We want to kill this demon. You used to want that too. Hell, you're the one who came and got me from school. You're the one who dragged me back into this, Dean. I'm just trying to finish it."
But Dean didn't get Sam because of the demon, or even the job...For all Sam recognizes that Dean's always been there for him, he certainly is crappy at recognizing why.
I think this is the only episode where we see demon possession transferred without the black smoke. Odd that YED's family is black-eyed...lower on the demon hierarchy, than he is...if we assume the black-red-white-yellow pattern as being lowest to highest ranking.
Dean: "Killing that guy, killing Meg. I didn't hesitate. I didn't even flinch. I mean, for you or Dad, the things I am willing to do or kill...it scares me sometimes."
It's so heartbreaking that Dean knows immediately that his Dad's possessed as soon as his Dad says that he is proud of him, instead of being angry that he wasted a bullet.
I'd forgotten that YED (Azazel) doesn't react to holy water...
Dean: "You let him go, or I swear to God..."
Azazel: "What are you and God going to do?"
Azazel: "You fight and you fight for this family, but they don't need you, not like you need them..."
I love how he twists the knife into Dean's insecurities...saying that Sam is their Dad's favorite - "even when they fight, it's more concern than he's ever shown you" - and I think this really speaks volumes, not just about Dean's insecurities, but where they came from. Dean made himself dependable to please his father. Dean made himself so dependable, that it's amazingly easy for John and Sam to take him for granted. I think somewhere along the way, they both forgot that Dean needed as much attention and love as anyone does...so, it's not that they didn't love him, far from it, they just loved him so much that they assumed he knew. Meanwhile, Dean is just there trying to keep being useful, because if someone doesn't love you, why would they keep you around unless you were useful to them?
Of course, I also think the insecurity that Sam is their Dad's favorite is ironic, because I'm pretty sure Sam has a similar hang-up about Dean being their Dad's favorite...the perfect son, the dependable foot-soldier. It's classic sibling rivalry for their parent's attention, and at this point they both think that they've lost.
I love the twist on the three person standoff at the end. That scene rips me apart every time. I love Sam glancing back at Dean in the rearview mirror, when he tells his Dad that killing the demon doesn't come before everything. Even though Dean is almost unconscious with pain, I think he's proud of Sam...and I think it's one of the first times that Sam is actually seeing his brother for who he is, and not just the image he has of his brother.
Sadly, no DVD features for either of these episodes.
Now, here's hoping that I can watch the special features on something a little less crappy...