Supernatural Episode 11 - Appointment in Samarra
Usual stuff, spoilers for the episode, warning that I get all rambly and too meaningful for a tv show.
You know the hundreds of plot lines left dangling thing is getting annoying. I’m pretty sure most, if not all, of them will somehow get all woven together by the end, after all, the writers have the big view of the show that we don’t. But at the moment it feels more like me writing it, starting stories then not knowing where to go next so just dumping them into my stories folder, pretending I’ll get back to them, but knowing all along they are just abandoned. So far we’ve had the Alphas, Purgatory, Heaven Civil War, and now the focus is on souls. I am thinking, somehow, in the end half of the season they will be all wrapped together somehow, but this is one of the most disjointed seasons ever, and as a watcher it’s been hard to get attached.
Of course it’s probably because it’s all been about Sam’s soul. Now, if you’re one of the mere handful of people left in the world that doesn’t know what I feel about Sam and his soul, let me restate myself. I don’t give a damn anymore! So not being invested at all with the main plot line, the show hasn’t really grabbed hold of me this season. So of the other plots did, but then they were abandoned and I was left going ho-hum.
Now with that said, the whole Sam has no soul thing in tonight’s episode I thought was well done. Not the Sam side of it (see above about not giving a damn), but rather Dean and Bobby’s reaction to it. Finally a reaction that made sense. These guys are hunters, good hunters, but until now they were all sad and emo over Sam’s lack of soul. You know, ok, I get it from Dean. Brotherly love, family loyalty and all that. When John told Dean he might have to kill Sam if he couldn’t save him, Dean said fuck no. I can see the same reaction now, Dean would forever fight for the saving part. But soulless!Sam is just as much a monster as the things they kill regular, if not more so. They have killed creatures that just feed off corpses, which ok, is not pleasant, but not exactly a threat to mankind. There wasn’t a second thought about that, but because it’s Sammy, they turned a blind eye. They didn’t care he’d kill anyone, do anything if he thought it necessary. Soulless!Sam is just as evil as all the other things they hunted.
So Dean and Bobby finally get it, after Dean comes back realising/thinking he failed. They get there is no other choices. Sam isn’t going to play nice, he can’t be trusted, he can’t be rehabilitated. They didn’t say it directed, but in the conversation outside of the panic room, it felt, at least to me, they realised there were no options left. They couldn’t just release Sam, and Sam would never stop trying to kill Bobby to keep his soul out. So were they one step off accepting they had to kill Sam? In my mind, yes, but I doubt the show would have ever gone that far. Maybe I’m a cold hearted bitch, but if Death hadn’t come through, I would have killed Sam. Sure it would be horrific for them to do so, but again, that’s not Sam anymore, it never was.
Enough of that, next part.
Death. Oh how I love you. Death is the ultimate. Death is above human concerns, Death isn’t evil or a murderer. I liked that they showed that in here. We fear Death, because we fear death. But he is just part of the natural order, beyond humans, beyond god. And this Death, his humour is so dry. I’ve always had this theory that humour is related to maturity. Slapstick being very juvenile, and dry humour being very adult, so to me it makes sense Death would be so aridly dry.
Dean’s lesson from Death, it was pat, it’s been done before. Maybe Dean needed to learn it, although surely when he got a healthy heart and found out someone else died for him, that was a big hint. But then Dean can be slow at times. It’s just, I’ve seen it before, seen the whole ‘teach there’s a natural order’, seen the saving of some sweet little girl makes the world chaotic. I also hate this whole thing about one life being worth more than another. The robber, the fat man, that’s fine, because they aren’t ‘good and sweet’. You don’t know what those people could have done, what their lives were worth. But a little girl, all pretty and cute, somehow her life is worth saving. Nevermind that she could grow up to being an abusive mother, or become President and nuke China. She’s sweet so she deserves life more.
Death giving Sam back his soul. Really there wasn’t many options left to the writers. They had painted Sam into a corner so the only way to continue was to return it. Now I doubt every things going to be all wonderful for Sam now. And there’s no way Death did it out of the kindness of his heart, he’s not the type. But like giving Dean his ring last season, he’s got his reason, he’s got something he requires from the boys. And yeah, it’s a soul thing. So now I’ve got 6 weeks to find some sympathy for Sam again. Which is going to be hard, because even when I liked Sam, I still wanted to slap him silly half the time.
You know the hundreds of plot lines left dangling thing is getting annoying. I’m pretty sure most, if not all, of them will somehow get all woven together by the end, after all, the writers have the big view of the show that we don’t. But at the moment it feels more like me writing it, starting stories then not knowing where to go next so just dumping them into my stories folder, pretending I’ll get back to them, but knowing all along they are just abandoned. So far we’ve had the Alphas, Purgatory, Heaven Civil War, and now the focus is on souls. I am thinking, somehow, in the end half of the season they will be all wrapped together somehow, but this is one of the most disjointed seasons ever, and as a watcher it’s been hard to get attached.
Of course it’s probably because it’s all been about Sam’s soul. Now, if you’re one of the mere handful of people left in the world that doesn’t know what I feel about Sam and his soul, let me restate myself. I don’t give a damn anymore! So not being invested at all with the main plot line, the show hasn’t really grabbed hold of me this season. So of the other plots did, but then they were abandoned and I was left going ho-hum.
Now with that said, the whole Sam has no soul thing in tonight’s episode I thought was well done. Not the Sam side of it (see above about not giving a damn), but rather Dean and Bobby’s reaction to it. Finally a reaction that made sense. These guys are hunters, good hunters, but until now they were all sad and emo over Sam’s lack of soul. You know, ok, I get it from Dean. Brotherly love, family loyalty and all that. When John told Dean he might have to kill Sam if he couldn’t save him, Dean said fuck no. I can see the same reaction now, Dean would forever fight for the saving part. But soulless!Sam is just as much a monster as the things they kill regular, if not more so. They have killed creatures that just feed off corpses, which ok, is not pleasant, but not exactly a threat to mankind. There wasn’t a second thought about that, but because it’s Sammy, they turned a blind eye. They didn’t care he’d kill anyone, do anything if he thought it necessary. Soulless!Sam is just as evil as all the other things they hunted.
So Dean and Bobby finally get it, after Dean comes back realising/thinking he failed. They get there is no other choices. Sam isn’t going to play nice, he can’t be trusted, he can’t be rehabilitated. They didn’t say it directed, but in the conversation outside of the panic room, it felt, at least to me, they realised there were no options left. They couldn’t just release Sam, and Sam would never stop trying to kill Bobby to keep his soul out. So were they one step off accepting they had to kill Sam? In my mind, yes, but I doubt the show would have ever gone that far. Maybe I’m a cold hearted bitch, but if Death hadn’t come through, I would have killed Sam. Sure it would be horrific for them to do so, but again, that’s not Sam anymore, it never was.
Enough of that, next part.
Death. Oh how I love you. Death is the ultimate. Death is above human concerns, Death isn’t evil or a murderer. I liked that they showed that in here. We fear Death, because we fear death. But he is just part of the natural order, beyond humans, beyond god. And this Death, his humour is so dry. I’ve always had this theory that humour is related to maturity. Slapstick being very juvenile, and dry humour being very adult, so to me it makes sense Death would be so aridly dry.
Dean’s lesson from Death, it was pat, it’s been done before. Maybe Dean needed to learn it, although surely when he got a healthy heart and found out someone else died for him, that was a big hint. But then Dean can be slow at times. It’s just, I’ve seen it before, seen the whole ‘teach there’s a natural order’, seen the saving of some sweet little girl makes the world chaotic. I also hate this whole thing about one life being worth more than another. The robber, the fat man, that’s fine, because they aren’t ‘good and sweet’. You don’t know what those people could have done, what their lives were worth. But a little girl, all pretty and cute, somehow her life is worth saving. Nevermind that she could grow up to being an abusive mother, or become President and nuke China. She’s sweet so she deserves life more.
Death giving Sam back his soul. Really there wasn’t many options left to the writers. They had painted Sam into a corner so the only way to continue was to return it. Now I doubt every things going to be all wonderful for Sam now. And there’s no way Death did it out of the kindness of his heart, he’s not the type. But like giving Dean his ring last season, he’s got his reason, he’s got something he requires from the boys. And yeah, it’s a soul thing. So now I’ve got 6 weeks to find some sympathy for Sam again. Which is going to be hard, because even when I liked Sam, I still wanted to slap him silly half the time.