Oh, SHOW...!
I had to see it in a still before I really went back to look, but when Sam is leaving, he gets his stuff out of the Impala and as he walks toward the truck, he runs his hand along the fender, and then turns to look at the car one last time.
Oh, SAM. It's clear Dean isn't going to let you hug him, so you do the next best thing. *wibble*
And I've seen some people saying that in that scene the boys know they'll be seeing each other again, but really? I don't think so. Sam is saying goodbye, there, and it doesn't look temporary. I, er, have had some experience of watching a permanent goodbye (DC/LD), and this definitely looked like one to me. Sam doesn't expect to ever see his brother again, given that the Apocalypse doesn't come with coffee breaks, and neither does Dean.
I think the second most heartbreaking scene for me was when Sam pushes Dean, and Dean goes all stone-faced. He looks at Sam the way he looked at Alastair just before he stuck that knife in and twisted, and I think maybe in that moment he really hated Sam. It didn't last, of course, but just for a moment, it was there. Sam's hurting him as much as Alastair did, and maybe more.
There was so much I loved about this episode, wow. The scene with Castiel, holy SHIT. And also, GUH. And I love the way Bobby steps in to keep Castiel from shoving Dean against a wall and swabbing his tonsils defuse the situation. (Really, I kinda had to squint hard and look sideways to see Dean/Castiel last season, but, uh. That scene was just, um. I'll be in my bunk.) I'm still not sure if I think Cas whammied Dean into giving him the amulet or Dean just felt like he owed Cas after that speech.
I'm glad Kripke answered some of the questions raised in last week's episode, like, if Cas hid the boys from all the angels, how was he going to find them again? And, who really pulled their fat out of the fire? Cell phone. Hee!
Ellen was AWESOME. AWE. SUM. I'm with all the folks who are wishing for a spate of Dean/Ellen fic, because,"Yes, ma'am"???? Teh hot. And poor Dean, is he going to have holy water dashed in his face every time he runs across someone he knows? I so love Jensen's long-suffering sigh every time it happens.
One day I'm going to have to go back and have a hard look at the recurring motifs that aren't red. There's mirrors, fires in fireplaces, Madonnas, Sam and flowers, and there's an entire thesis in hotel wallpaper, man.
I know Show isn't going to hit this mark every week, but I'm expecting to see it hit close most of the time.
Show, you're breaking my heart, but ILU anyway.