Thoughts on SPN 7.17

[emmram]

Hmm. I feel as though I should really, really like this episode, but at the end, I'm just... confused, and maybe a little upset.

SPOILERS under the cut.

Comments

[monicawoe]

Hubby and I both yelled out when that "transfer" happened. "Goddammit!" and "That's Lame!" respectively.

Hallucifer is an actual, tangible part of the devil that's hitched a ride with Sam (this theory has its possibilities--but, look. It's a big deal! It's not something to be just randomly inferred--Sam's carrying a goddamn part of the devil with him, in his head! You can't introduce this frightening thing without making something of it, Show, you can't.)
I'm going with this absolutely. Etoile444 purplehrdwonder and I came up eith some pretty good material supporting this too http://monicawoe.livejournal.com/78064.html

I think by specifically showing us that Lucifer was now in Castiel's head, show was telling us that Castiel did not take Sam's memory, just his hallucinations.

(I also facepalmed when Dean handed Cas the trenchcoat - then I said "Here, put this on." and hubby added, "It's your superhero costume.")

[emmram]

I read through that! You guys make a very compelling argument. :D I'm just -- it's a big deal, you know? It seems to me like Show HAS to make something of it now that they have implied that Sam is/was actually carrying a piece of the devil with him. It just seems to me like yet another MAJOR thing in a season chock-full of important stuff waiting to be resolved.

It's your superhero costume

ROFL. :DDD

[vail_kagami]

I'm mostly with you. What was that ending? That was worse than a magical fix-if, that was taking all the pretty, shiny hurt and giving it to someone else.
The fuck.

Also, that shift would only make sense if Cas took all of Sam's memories of Hell, so for Sam it would be like that never happened. Fortunately, I don't think that's what they are after. Unfortunately, otherwise it doesn't work.

I migth need a coda about Cas feeling bad because now be really gets what he did to Sam, though. (Grasping for straws here.)

[emmram]

that was taking all the pretty, shiny hurt and giving it to someone else.

Oh exactly exactly. It's killing me. This was Sam's thing. This was how we got those rare, rare glimpses into his head. And now there's no excuse for the writers to give us any more insights into Sam's head, and I find that prospect both infuriating and depressing. Like - THIS episode was the ultimate payoff to Sam's wall collapsing, and that's it. It's over. Sam's totally okay to worry about Dean and Cas now!

I don't think that's what they are after.

Me too. I don't think they implied that Cas took away all of Sam's memories. But, it doesn't make any sense--I've been trying to figure out the reasoning behind Hallucifer, and how it's possible to transfer a hallucination without transferring the trauma causing it.

[anu24]

Mr. Padalecki. Yep, he deserves a mention. He rocked, and totally sold Sam's suffering--both physical and mental. I've rewatched Sam's bits alone about four times now, and each time I'm in tears.

Amen. I was in tears when I watched the episode and I can't wait to watch those scenes again. (The download is taking AGES. *wrings out hair*) He stole the show. <3

With that knowledge in mind, I didn't enjoy the episode as much as I could've; not when I knew it was building up to such a bullshit ending.

Told you it was abrupt. I was hoping we'd get something more after the transfer thing but it felt really rushed.

"Butbutbut... Hallucifer is SAM's!"

Haha. Well I think I actually feel the same. Plus the Sam-Lucifer interaction scenes were really entertaining. I don't wanna see Hallucifer-Cas scenes....no! That doesn't interest me one bit.

The whole thing was... tired. I'm not terribly invested in the Dean-Cas dynamic, so I was pretty bored all through their in-car heart-to-hearts.You already know what I think of the whole Dean/Cas

[emmram]

The thing is, I honestly don't mind Castiel. I don't miss him when he's off-screen, but he's cool in my book. In this episode, it just felt like they were trying to force the Dean-Cas thing at the expense of some genuine Dean-worrying-over-Sam, and it felt so much like they were playing to the fans that it pissed me off. The trenchcoat thing was weird and so damn forced.

Haha, yeah. I was genuinely surprised to realise that the one and ONLY SamnDean scene was the sneak-preview. Really, Show? I mean, really?

As for whether the whole Sam-Hallucifer thing is done....I dunno. I feel the whole thing was a wee bit too simple. :/ We'll have to wait and watch.

I'm just hoping it's not completely done away with.

[quickreaver]

I'm with monicawoe; check out her (and Etoile444's and purp's) ruminations on Sam and Luci. I'm predicting that tenuous psychic re-funnelling won't hold, and in an episode or two, Sam is gonna start re-experiencing Halluciferations...probably because the Leviathan have located Cas and are messing with him. Dunno WHAT'S going on with the demons, though. There hasn't been much leakage about Crowley's return. Maybe it'll become hunters and demons vs. the Leviathan? Sure, why not? Especially since all the other angelic hosts are MIA.

Loved Sam (and Jared!), hated the quick-fix, did like the special effects of The Transfer, though...and yeah. Little bit of a mixed bag but a keeper, in my book.

[emmram]

I'm predicting that tenuous psychic re-funnelling won't hold, and in an episode or two, Sam is gonna start re-experiencing Halluciferations.

I honestly hope this is the case. Maybe this transference opened a link between Sam and Castiel? The very word "funnelling"... like, Sam's still remembering Hell, but Castiel reroutes the worst of the damage so that Sam won't be incapacitated. Sharing the burden, maybe? That would excite Sassy shippers :p

Jared was magnificent. I felt tired and hollowed-out just watching him. ♥

[kettle_o_fish]

*rolls around in your review

[emmram]

I yawned through most of the Dean/Cas interactions and the trenchcoat was pure pandering and lame. So lame.

I'm glad I wasn't alone in that. I mean, here we are in Sam's big breakdown episode, and Show spends half of it trying to force the Dean/Cas through. Like you said, it would've worked so much better as a two-parter. It would've given Show the chance to actually give Dean more than just a few minutes with his brother, and build up to Castiel regaining his memories (because, seriously - this is the much-hyped comeback episode, but barely five minutes after he's Castiel again, he's locked away for good in a psych ward?).

Was it really necessary for Dean to shack up alone in some abandoned house? HIS BROTHER IS DYING. You'd think he'd spend every moment he could with him...while still looking for a solution, of courseYep. God, I wanted that so much. At least, you know, something that was more than just one scene - a scene they'd already released a week ago as a "sneak peek". Sam's had his share of bedside vigils. It could've been

[kettle_o_fish]

You were so not alone! Ngl, I was pleasantly surprised that we at least got what we did, and I loved Marin, but honestly, the Dean action needed to be elevated. I don't even care if Dean AND Cas hung out while Sam deteriorated. I hated how the "solution" was seemingly pulled out of thin air with Cas. He was all, "I can't fix it. I can't fix it OH WAIT I CAN SHIFT IT."

Really?

I mean, where was Dean when Castiel was trying to heal Sam the first time after the electroshocks (that I firmly believe should have probably killed the Sammeh what with his organs already failing and whatnot). I wanted it so baaaadly. I wanted hair-smoothing, and Dean making sad!face when a bunch of Sam's hair came out in his hand. I wanted an oxygen mask, dammit.

And if I had known that the sneak peak scene was ALL the Sam and Dean interaction we got for the entire episode, I wouldn't have watched it.

*clings*

[emmram]

I've been breaking my head over the mechanics/logic behind the Transfer. I mean, I don't expect Show to make sense, but like you said, this was way out of the blue.

that I firmly believe should have probably killed the Sammeh what with his organs already failing and whatnot

That's true, but I believe Castiel managed to fix that. He probably managed to bring back Sam from the dead, which is why we see him in decent physical condition later. This leads me to consider a possibility -- if Cas hadn't thought of the Transfer, what would they have done? There's no way Dean would let Sam just die, so maybe Castiel keeps repairing the organic damage, while Sam keeps deteriorating mentally and Dean keeps trying to find ways to heal him, getting more and more desperate in the process. This allows for issues--and anger and resentment--between Dean and Castiel to play out more naturally (No more "By the power of the Trenchcoat, I forgive you!" nonsense), and ultimately, they will have to consider if it's just kinder to... let Sam go.

I wanted