Citizen Fang 8x09
Sam gave Martin a chance. Sent him to keep an eye on Benny. Sam never looked too closely at his motivations for keeping a close check on the vamp. Sam’s supposedly actively seeking a way to get out of the hunting life. Keeping tabs on a potential hunt seems a little contradictory. Sam knows why. Dean is using Benny to keep that blade sharp. That knife he keeps slicing Sam open with - how Benny’s the only person in his life who has never let him down, how Benny’s the only guy he could ever count on. Sam had that conversation with Dean. Told him to get over it, move on or he will. Dean said fine, he’ll move on. It was total bullshit obviously. Dean’s as pissed about Sam not looking for him, if not more, as he was when Sam chose Ruby over him. Which is almost ironic when all Sam can see is the same dark road for Dean and Benny as he went down for Ruby. At least Lucifer rising is probably not on the cards for the Dean and Benny relationship.
But this was fine. Dean has no issues with it. He knows he would be doing the same were he in Sam’s shoes. He’s willing to check out if Benny has gone bad.
Sam gave Dean two hours to sort this out. Prior to this I’d like to note Sam paid no attention whatsoever to Martin’s protestations that it was definitely Benny and he needs to be taken out. Sam’s eyes were on Dean the whole time before he announced the two hours grace. He says ‘Sometimes it’s not easy to see things for what they are” He’s been there with Ruby, he’s giving Dean this.
Dean found out the vamp doing the killing is Desmond. Instead of coming back and telling Sam and Martin about this Vamp Desmond and asking the guys to come and help him take this vamp out - to come and SEE for themselves what was going on, see Benny with his great grand daughter - he insists that it’s not Benny and yeah you’re gonna have to go on trust. No! No you don’t Dean! You say “No we’re not going on trust we’re going on evidence! Sam come with me and see this Desmond guy at work” And then to add to that idiot move of not selling it like that he adds salt to the wound and says that Benny is the only one who has never let him down. That cuts Sam - you can see it “Well good on you Dean - it must feel great knowing you’ve finally found someone you can trust after all these years” - and when it cuts Sam it also sets his resolve against Benny. Sam says no. But the conversation continues - they’re conversing there’s still an agreement that can be reached.
Then Martin cold cocks Dean from behind. Sam does nothing. Apart from some harsh words about who is making the calls on this job. At this point I may have said something like well that’s just bullshit, what does that mean? Is Sam that pissed with Dean’s constant digs re his untrustworthiness, re his unreliability, that pissed with the bond Dean has formed with Benny he’s willing to let an unhinged hunter just knock his brother out? Carver really wants to make this nasty doesn’t he? Blow #1: Dean’s choice of communicating the problem Blow #2: Sam failing to stop Martin or immediately take action to take Martin out of the equation.
So long story short - Dean and Benny take out Desmond. Martin and Sam go looking for Benny but of course there’s the SOS text from “Amelia” so Sam rushes off. Martin all of a sudden becomes cold calculating white version of Gordon and the suddenly slightly kooky, a little unhinged but supposedly good guy becomes this arguably homicidal dipshit willing to put a human at risk to catch a Vamp. We no likey Martin anymore. So that whole scene turns out the only way it could.
Even though doing so now makes the Dean and Benny situation even more of a sticky pickle for Dean to get Sam to see things the way they are. But you know I’ve been harping on at these boys for years BE HONEST TO YOUR BROTHER…and this is the one time Dean, shouldn’t have lied so much, as said “I need to talk to you face to face for this” right after Sam asked if there were any casualties. You’ve just pulled the rug out from under your brother, ripped open a very loosely applied scab over his heart - left raw after Don turning up and taking the person who basically was his life raft after the meltdown of his world imploding once again. We know Amelia is not and was not ever going to be a permanent Sam fixture. But she did give our bereft Winchester a safe port for a while. Sam is still hurting from that relationship ending, he’s pissed at himself for falling for his brother’s rather sneaky, devious but “nice move”, he’s pissed at his brother for not even realizing how hurtful that ‘nice move’ was and now he’s angry cos brother just told him that Martin, the human hunter, had it coming and that Benny the Vampire brother is BFF’s with, is responsible. That’s like piling napalm on top of the atomic explosion really. An extra helping of sewage waste on top the steaming pile of shit he’s already dealing with. But it’s okay. Thanks to Dean pulling that nice move Amelia has now turned up in Sam’s current timeline at the bar. My mind has gone with - as much as Amelia has done her dash I believe I’m glad she’s turned up because now Sam will be able to cool off for a little while and maybe that glimpse we saw of angry, not listening, not communicating Sam (reminiscent of the anger Sam’s feeling in 4.21 When The Levee Breaks when he and Dean have that horrible, no good, heart breaking fight) will fade and we’ll have a couple of boys doing their best to avoid taking those paths they’ve taken in the past that have worked out so horribly badly for them.
Dean resents Amelia hugely. But he’s Dean so he’s all I don’t give a shit at all about this girl Sam hooked up with. Dean likes to think Amelia doesn’t even rate on his person of interest radar. Likes to think that Sam just had a fling, clearly brought on by physical needs, he’s been known to seek therapy burying himself in female (or multiples of when he was soulless) company and this was just one of his ways of dealing with Dean being gone. Dean doesn’t actually have an inkling of what Amelia means to Sam because all Dean sees right now is that she’s the one who stopped his little brother from looking for him. Not intentionally maybe but still it is what it is. Hence his lack of hesitation in pulling the cell phone move on Sam.
There are some irrefutable facts this far into the season:
#1: Dean is definitely NOT moving on when it comes to Sam not looking for him.
#2: Sam has no real understanding of what Benny means to Dean.
#3: Dean has no real understanding of what Amelia means to Sam.
#4: Carver likes the brothers in very serious, dramatic angsty conflict with each other.
#5: Supernatural has a record of going into mid season hiatus upping the brother angst levels.
#6: Final and most happy fact for me: The heavier the conflict the greater the reunion/reconciliation.
I loved the story, kept me guessing, had me calling bullshit, had me feeling reluctantly proud of Dean’s sneakiness because that clearly also indicates exactly how lethal and efficient a hunter he believes his brother to be, which you know, brother pride. I hated seeing the boys not communicating, at loggerheads, being stubborn ass idjits but that was exactly what I expected for a mid season finale. Had me hurting massively for Sammy - but I've reconciled this now, show only gives us enough glimpses of happy, bromance moments, zen peaceful Sam, contented Dean to keep us coming back for more. It's a very carefully cultivated addiction on the writers' parts. Also - Don turned out to be an uncomplicated nice guy. And finally those flashbacks - less glowy and even MORE Sam pretty. Never gonna hate flashbacks with such a pretty Sam in them. I can be shallow like that.
Not my favourite out of the nine episodes so far - I don’t think I will ever call an episode with the brothers at such odds my favourite - but definitely in my PLUS column.
I think in terms of my favourite to least favourite this is my order:
What’s Up Tiger Mommy?
Hunteri Heroici
Citizen Fang
Southern Comfort
Blood Brother
A Little Slice of Kevin
We Need to Talk About Kevin
Heartache
Bitten
I love you boys. Please come back on January 16th and make everything rainbow slinkies and favourite pie and gold class seating tickets to the Hobbit bought by Dean for Sam. And give us our goddamn angst free brother love filled hug. Aspirations for 2013 - you gotta have them.