5.11 Episode Review, part 3
Sam is sober again. Never a Good Thing.
*pets*
Again, I really like this Doctor. Not only does he come to see Sam just because Sam asked, but he engages him directly, moving towards him instead of acting afraid, and again goes straight to the central issue, Sam's anger.
Sam is so sorry he practically flounders around trying to apologize for something, anything that the Doctor will believe. He's sorry he attacked him. He's sorry he thought he was a monster. It's almost like he's surprised when the Doctor gives him the root problem he's been struggling with right there on a silver platter. But he knows it's true.
"People can learn to live with delusions, but ... the anger I saw in you - you hurt those two men, and you were going to kill me. The look in your eyes when you came after me - it was like you were barely even human. Like a man possessed."
It's like he's reading Sam's mind.
Anyone else wondering if the Doctor is actually there?
So by now, Sam's hallucinations have started for sure, and both boys are in full grip of the wraith toxin.
Sam's inner thoughts aren't anything he hasn't said out loud to anyone who will listen.
It's not the blood, it's him, it's his fault, now everyone is going to die because of him.
Sounds familiar, huh.
I tend to think Sam's anger manifests in the form of self-defense MOST of the time. He only lashes out if he or someone else is in danger, or if, like in 5.02, he's been pushed so deeply personally that he can't hold it back anymore.
Once he goes off, though - I wouldn't want to be standing in his way.
Or in his same zip code, really.
O_o
Still, it hurts to see him fighting his inner demons like this.
Especially since I still have extreme emotional trauma from When The Levee Breaks.
As an aside, I think this is how it would really go if they both did snap - with Sam fighting for both their lives and Dean crumpling in on himself in a corner. It just makes sense to me somehow.
! RELEVANT BUNNY TRAIL!
Everyone has read ' The Summer Shores, where all is Green", by tigriswolf, right?
NO!? I'll wait. G'on.
(Warning - DARK. And DEATH.)
As an aside, that is the fic that made me want to write more fanfic back in the day. I still go back and re-read it whenever I need to remember how to show and not tell or say more with less words. It's awesome.
Take tissues.
~*~
Dean here is very reminiscent of Yellow Fever Dean, only Yellow Fever Dean was deprived the rational part of his mind telling him there was a reason for his crazy, and this time he isn't, so Hunter instincts have kicked in and even in all the mental fog - he managed to figure it out!
*round of applause*
Although I do think it's adorable how distractable he is.
*watches dust motes with him*
He's asking the crazy guy if his theory makes sense, lol. I do that.
Although is it me, or does Martin seem pretty freakin' well-adjusted for a 'crazy' person?
I wouldn't call Martin crazy. I'd say he is a PTSD victim. He's not crazy, actually - he knows that what HE saw was REAL.
*gratuitous Oh,Dean cap*
~*~
Dear Dean,
YER FACE!!
~*~
Caught in the act! I sooooo, SO did not call this chick being the wraith. Fail, me.
TOTALLY gross. And also vaguely Wolverine-ish. From those 3 or 4 issues where he had the bone claws instead of the Adamantium. You know, the ones they totally blew all up and made a movie out of. That.
Instinct kicking in all over the place! \o/
I love that Dean and Martin both react like hunters; swinging into action despite being terrified.
Ew.
I love seeing a little personal redemption here for Martin, saving the girl and all.
*happy sigh*
Also, he tackles those two guards like a pro.
Although a tiny part of me really hurts for Dean right now, because not only does he clearly have vertigo, but Martin gets him to take off after the wraith by telling him that he has to.
Which is what he tells himself in the morning every day to get himself out of bed.
*wibbles*
But he's DEAN, and so ... he can whether he thinks he can or not.
Er, hi Tom Hanniger,
*gulp*
~*~
I'm a little in awe of the brazenness of the wraith. I know the crazy people are crazy and all, but she's killing people at an INSANE rate! How often do they need to FEED? And also - she doesn't even stop to make sure the threat is neutralized, she just goes for Sam?
Oh well. There is no arguing that Sam is quite yummy.
But not like that.
Anyway, I love that she calls the guys on not being so subtle. Duh, guys.
This whole scene really makes my skin crawl. Mainly because I still have PTSD from Jump The Shark - but this chick is acting SO MUCH like the ghoul, and if she'd had her way, Sam probably would have ended up with slit wrists AGAIN and I just D.N.W. EVER. AGAIN. OKAY.
Jared is so good at this game that he can break out into a cold sweat at the sight of some CGI Wolverine claws.
I'm impressed.
SHOW.
I understand that Sam is like this awesome beast man that can pretty much kick anything's arse, but do you really feel the need to neutralize him by tying him down ALL THE TIME?
You are damaging my calm. Make it go away.
Yeah yeah, a lot of you people like it. It makes me squirmy.
You people don't get extra caps from me to drool over. That's right, I said you people.
\o/ DEAN TO THE RESCUE! \o/
This reminds me of his "Well, I'm 90% sure" face from What Is And What Should Never Be.
Also she kind of reminds me of Ellen Pompeo.
Which reminds me, today at the Vet this dude named Jared shadowed us all day, and he looked EXACTLY like Dr. Sexy.
LOL. @ my life. Dot com.
SHOW.
I understand that now that Sam's not doin' it, SOMEONE needs to get choked, but COMEON.
ALL THE TIME?
*Hands Dean a cough drop*
THIS is a bitchface. Recognize.
If anyone saw the 5.09 review you will know how I dive under my pillow at times like these.
*hides*
EWGROSS.
OMGWHAT!Face!!
For all that Sam is supposed to be the knife guy, can anyone think of a time he's killed something other than a demon with a knife? Those two dudes from 5.02 in the grocery store don't count; they totally looked like demons at the time.
Just sayin', if this was Buffy ... well ... Dean would be Buffy.
Actually, he WOULD be Buffy, right? Older sibling, been to Hell, all that jazz? Huh.
Meta for another time, perhaps, and I'm sure it's been done already. Moving on.
"You still crazy?"
"No more than usual."
For some reason this scene gave me back some of the closure I missed in the mirroring scene in Jump the Shark. They were so disconnected then, it was awful watching that kind of a scene between them with so little emotional investment, like Dean saving Sam's life is just another one of the things he has to do every day that drains him.
Here I finally feel like (and I have for the last several episodes) they are really starting to be them again. There is still a caution flag out on the track, but overall progress has been made in the brother dept.
~*~
Not so much progress, however, in the realizing The Point department.
*headdesk*
Dean is telling Sam to deal with Sam's anger the way that Dean deals with his. Which has worked for a long, long time ... for Dean. But the fact that he tells Sam that? Highlights just now focused he is on himself.
He's never told Sam that before. In fact, in the past he has recognized how Sam deals, and yes, he does often blow off a conversation about it, but to tell Sam to bury it? He knows better than that, he really does.
Sam doesn't know why he's angry?
It's the same reason DEAN is angry. Unresolved guilt turns to anger over time.
Sam, honey. You couldn't have saved her, you know. You tell yourself that but you've never believed it, not really. You HAVE to let it go, before it kills you both.
"Dean, no. I gotta find dad. I gotta find Jessica’s killer. It’s the only thing I can think about."
"Okay, alright. Sam, we’ll find them, I promise. Listen to me - you’ve gotta prepare yourself. I mean, this search could take a while. And all that anger, you can’t keep it burning over the long haul - it’s gonna kill you."
Sam is angry, but he's ALWAYS been angry. It never stopped him from being SAM. Even Luke Skywalker had much anger in him, but he redeemed himself from his father's line by making the right choices. Dean, on the other hand, is bottling up all that anger - going against the very advice he gave Sam in s1.
It really killed me watching him take all that turmoil and hope for release and shove it back in the box.
*sob*
Is it tonight yet? OH LOOK! IT IS!!
*goes to watch 5.12*
ETA: Oh yeah, also there is this, which makes me say Oh Hai Dean.
Vicarious Stress
*pets*
Again, I really like this Doctor. Not only does he come to see Sam just because Sam asked, but he engages him directly, moving towards him instead of acting afraid, and again goes straight to the central issue, Sam's anger.
Sam is so sorry he practically flounders around trying to apologize for something, anything that the Doctor will believe. He's sorry he attacked him. He's sorry he thought he was a monster. It's almost like he's surprised when the Doctor gives him the root problem he's been struggling with right there on a silver platter. But he knows it's true.
"People can learn to live with delusions, but ... the anger I saw in you - you hurt those two men, and you were going to kill me. The look in your eyes when you came after me - it was like you were barely even human. Like a man possessed."
It's like he's reading Sam's mind.
Anyone else wondering if the Doctor is actually there?
So by now, Sam's hallucinations have started for sure, and both boys are in full grip of the wraith toxin.
Sam's inner thoughts aren't anything he hasn't said out loud to anyone who will listen.
It's not the blood, it's him, it's his fault, now everyone is going to die because of him.
Sounds familiar, huh.
I tend to think Sam's anger manifests in the form of self-defense MOST of the time. He only lashes out if he or someone else is in danger, or if, like in 5.02, he's been pushed so deeply personally that he can't hold it back anymore.
Once he goes off, though - I wouldn't want to be standing in his way.
Or in his same zip code, really.
O_o
Still, it hurts to see him fighting his inner demons like this.
Especially since I still have extreme emotional trauma from When The Levee Breaks.
As an aside, I think this is how it would really go if they both did snap - with Sam fighting for both their lives and Dean crumpling in on himself in a corner. It just makes sense to me somehow.
! RELEVANT BUNNY TRAIL!
Everyone has read ' The Summer Shores, where all is Green", by tigriswolf, right?
NO!? I'll wait. G'on.
(Warning - DARK. And DEATH.)
As an aside, that is the fic that made me want to write more fanfic back in the day. I still go back and re-read it whenever I need to remember how to show and not tell or say more with less words. It's awesome.
Take tissues.
~*~
Dean here is very reminiscent of Yellow Fever Dean, only Yellow Fever Dean was deprived the rational part of his mind telling him there was a reason for his crazy, and this time he isn't, so Hunter instincts have kicked in and even in all the mental fog - he managed to figure it out!
*round of applause*
Although I do think it's adorable how distractable he is.
*watches dust motes with him*
He's asking the crazy guy if his theory makes sense, lol. I do that.
Although is it me, or does Martin seem pretty freakin' well-adjusted for a 'crazy' person?
I wouldn't call Martin crazy. I'd say he is a PTSD victim. He's not crazy, actually - he knows that what HE saw was REAL.
*gratuitous Oh,Dean cap*
~*~
Dear Dean,
YER FACE!!
~*~
Caught in the act! I sooooo, SO did not call this chick being the wraith. Fail, me.
TOTALLY gross. And also vaguely Wolverine-ish. From those 3 or 4 issues where he had the bone claws instead of the Adamantium. You know, the ones they totally blew all up and made a movie out of. That.
Instinct kicking in all over the place! \o/
I love that Dean and Martin both react like hunters; swinging into action despite being terrified.
Ew.
I love seeing a little personal redemption here for Martin, saving the girl and all.
*happy sigh*
Also, he tackles those two guards like a pro.
Although a tiny part of me really hurts for Dean right now, because not only does he clearly have vertigo, but Martin gets him to take off after the wraith by telling him that he has to.
Which is what he tells himself in the morning every day to get himself out of bed.
*wibbles*
But he's DEAN, and so ... he can whether he thinks he can or not.
Er, hi Tom Hanniger,
*gulp*
~*~
I'm a little in awe of the brazenness of the wraith. I know the crazy people are crazy and all, but she's killing people at an INSANE rate! How often do they need to FEED? And also - she doesn't even stop to make sure the threat is neutralized, she just goes for Sam?
Oh well. There is no arguing that Sam is quite yummy.
But not like that.
Anyway, I love that she calls the guys on not being so subtle. Duh, guys.
This whole scene really makes my skin crawl. Mainly because I still have PTSD from Jump The Shark - but this chick is acting SO MUCH like the ghoul, and if she'd had her way, Sam probably would have ended up with slit wrists AGAIN and I just D.N.W. EVER. AGAIN. OKAY.
Jared is so good at this game that he can break out into a cold sweat at the sight of some CGI Wolverine claws.
I'm impressed.
SHOW.
I understand that Sam is like this awesome beast man that can pretty much kick anything's arse, but do you really feel the need to neutralize him by tying him down ALL THE TIME?
You are damaging my calm. Make it go away.
Yeah yeah, a lot of you people like it. It makes me squirmy.
You people don't get extra caps from me to drool over. That's right, I said you people.
\o/ DEAN TO THE RESCUE! \o/
This reminds me of his "Well, I'm 90% sure" face from What Is And What Should Never Be.
Also she kind of reminds me of Ellen Pompeo.
Which reminds me, today at the Vet this dude named Jared shadowed us all day, and he looked EXACTLY like Dr. Sexy.
LOL. @ my life. Dot com.
SHOW.
I understand that now that Sam's not doin' it, SOMEONE needs to get choked, but COMEON.
ALL THE TIME?
*Hands Dean a cough drop*
THIS is a bitchface. Recognize.
If anyone saw the 5.09 review you will know how I dive under my pillow at times like these.
*hides*
EWGROSS.
OMGWHAT!Face!!
For all that Sam is supposed to be the knife guy, can anyone think of a time he's killed something other than a demon with a knife? Those two dudes from 5.02 in the grocery store don't count; they totally looked like demons at the time.
Just sayin', if this was Buffy ... well ... Dean would be Buffy.
Actually, he WOULD be Buffy, right? Older sibling, been to Hell, all that jazz? Huh.
Meta for another time, perhaps, and I'm sure it's been done already. Moving on.
"You still crazy?"
"No more than usual."
For some reason this scene gave me back some of the closure I missed in the mirroring scene in Jump the Shark. They were so disconnected then, it was awful watching that kind of a scene between them with so little emotional investment, like Dean saving Sam's life is just another one of the things he has to do every day that drains him.
Here I finally feel like (and I have for the last several episodes) they are really starting to be them again. There is still a caution flag out on the track, but overall progress has been made in the brother dept.
~*~
Not so much progress, however, in the realizing The Point department.
*headdesk*
Dean is telling Sam to deal with Sam's anger the way that Dean deals with his. Which has worked for a long, long time ... for Dean. But the fact that he tells Sam that? Highlights just now focused he is on himself.
He's never told Sam that before. In fact, in the past he has recognized how Sam deals, and yes, he does often blow off a conversation about it, but to tell Sam to bury it? He knows better than that, he really does.
Sam doesn't know why he's angry?
It's the same reason DEAN is angry. Unresolved guilt turns to anger over time.
Sam, honey. You couldn't have saved her, you know. You tell yourself that but you've never believed it, not really. You HAVE to let it go, before it kills you both.
"Dean, no. I gotta find dad. I gotta find Jessica’s killer. It’s the only thing I can think about."
"Okay, alright. Sam, we’ll find them, I promise. Listen to me - you’ve gotta prepare yourself. I mean, this search could take a while. And all that anger, you can’t keep it burning over the long haul - it’s gonna kill you."
Sam is angry, but he's ALWAYS been angry. It never stopped him from being SAM. Even Luke Skywalker had much anger in him, but he redeemed himself from his father's line by making the right choices. Dean, on the other hand, is bottling up all that anger - going against the very advice he gave Sam in s1.
It really killed me watching him take all that turmoil and hope for release and shove it back in the box.
*sob*
Is it tonight yet? OH LOOK! IT IS!!
*goes to watch 5.12*
ETA: Oh yeah, also there is this, which makes me say Oh Hai Dean.
Vicarious Stress