Supernatural 7x17 Spoilers
Mar. 24th, 2012 11:24 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rabid1stNow, that's what I am talking about. There will be all kinds of spoilers under this cut...and some stuff about sleep deprivation...and a bit of ranting about what is, without a doubt, the most annoying fandom ever...
With all the bellyaching on both sides of the Castiel fence---Destiel forever vs Wincest All The Time---it sometimes seems to me that not one fan gets how really fine the writing still is on this show. Yes, I do miss Kripke. I miss that sense of ever-present omniscience that he embodied. With Kripke at the helm there was never any doubt that writers had a direction and we were all along for the ride. I could feel him in every script. I can't feel Sera's hand on things like that. Sometimes she seems tentative even. But I am coming to believe that she's no slouch with the plotting. She isn't as up-front with her storytelling and that leads people to fear that she's making it all up as she goes along, but some things you can't fake. Ask Moff. :grin: SPN plots click together at the final hour in a much smoother way than DW plots, for example.
There is not one doubt in my mind that Cas was always going to come back in this way. I had very little patience with the "YAY! He's gone!" crowd, because anyone with half a brain could see that Cas was always there with Dean. And now I hear the surge of the Destiel fans and their sighing over it all. Dean loves Cas best. Destiel forever! Okay, it isn't that I can't see the slash possibilities in it! I see them. But Destiel fans are as obnoxious as...we Rose fans, I suppose. Doctor Who isn't and should never be all about Rose and the Doctor, but that doesn't mean that Rose/Doctor isn't a viable romantic relationship, because it certainly is. It is just that character balance is required for a story to succeed long term. And you need to remember your premise. Supernatural is about two brothers and their adventures.
However, it is not wrong for those adventures to include other, very important, people. Characters can't develop in a vacuum. Bobby was just as important to the long term success of the show as Sam and Dean were. And Cas is an important part of the show, too, because he is obviously very important to Dean and, crucially, because...he has a different relationship with Dean than Sam does. Not better, but different. Who is more important to you, your mom or your child? Your husband or your child? Your brother or your wife?
Rose or Donna? Or, Gawd Help Us...Martha? The differences in the Doctor's relationships with these women is what is important! Making them all his love interests is just idiotic. Realistic characters need multifaceted relationships.
One of the signs of an abusive relationship is that the abuser asks you to give up your family and friends. What does it say about fandom that we are so abusive to our favorite characters? Probably that we are under the influence of an obsessive love.
Anyway, I digress! The thing I enjoyed about this episode and the previous one is that the story arc is clicking into place. And if you ask me, I feel the Leviathans should get a good strong grip on our world...via charity hospitals and political office...and another season. You want your cattle to be healthy and well-adjusted and compliant. And that's three things that the Winchesters are not! :grin: I know the idea has been done before...Hello V: the Series, for example. But, it hasn't been done SPN style, so it works for me. Also, I do think the time has come for the Judeo-Christian types, demons, angels and humans to join forces and kick the real monsters out of our space-time continuum. So, Cas spending some time with his brother in a pseudo-hotbox, and Meg watching over the reunion while Sam and Dean scramble for a wall to put their backs against, all works well for what I can see as juicy plot lines to come. Do I wish Kripke was manning the juicer? You betcha! Because I can see Sera rushing her fences. That's her main issue, she keeps too low a profile for too long a time, and then she rushes her story to a conclusion. She's a tentative presence, as I've said.
She's doing okay though with Ghost!Bobby in my opinion. Though some people are finding that laughably obvious! I don't know though, because I don't think Sam and Dean would notice the small things the way those of us who were there for Bobby's fight with the Reaper would. I am busy applying my mind to precedent for Bobby survival and the closest I've come is the one episode with the kid whose Reaper was kidnapped. He got a foothold in reality after his Reaper was taken and Tessa said if he didn't come with her he would be stuck there. Of course, I don't think he was cremated, I don't remember. But still, I think that counts as a way to stay connected to the ones you love...getting rid of your Reaper. As opposed to coming back to a part of your body that still exists, in other words being unable to let go of your physical existence, which is the path most ghosts take in the show.
Misha and Jared and Jensen all knocked this episode out of the park, in my opinion. I especially loved the choices that Jensen made to hold it together when he finds Emmanuel. Heck! Even Mark and that guest doctor and the female patient were good. I didn't like Meg, but then I never liked that actress. And then there were the beautifully intimate talking scenes in the car. I tend to think of Cas as Dean's guardian angel, so I was not surprised that Dean opened up to him in a way that would otherwise be OOC. Misha did take a step back into Cas innocence. But what I enjoy about Misha is how he can give layers to what is essentially a one note character. I imagine that takes some real work from an actor, to delineate between...God Cas, Mad Cas, Helpless Cas, Human Cas, Jimmy and Emmanuel.
I was also impressed with the way Jared and/or the writers handled Insane!Sam. They could have gone over the top so easily there. But the relationships seemed very real, largely because they were understated. It helps that I am very familiar with the torture of sleep deprivation. It looks like Jared is as well (long hours on set, perhaps). The loud popping noises that Lucifer created with the firecrackers are a part of it, btw. After a long time not sleeping your brain starts producing these loud bangs that wake you up again just as you nod off. Exploding Head Syndrome. Look that sucker up! EEK! And you have a screaming white noise inside your head. And your body aches like you have been beaten or kicked repeatedly. And you can't do anything, like open a candy bar or use a fork, because you lose all of your strength and coordination. And trying to listen to people hurts physically, because you can't make sense of what they are saying. And you know you are having mad thoughts, but you don't care, because you just want to die...or sleep. So, great job there Jared. And how I loved Sam. Still trying to help people even as he slips away from sanity and life.
Was the Cas sacrifice enough? That's what people are asking on the annoying threads. That and why does Dean say all of their friends are dead? Probably because he figures Cas is as good as dead. I think it was an appropriate sacrifice. And personal, because it returned some of the trust Dean had lost and gave Dean back what he loved most. It was payment for the personal betrayal and played by the rules of punishment for this world...as Cas goes to Hell in the only way that he can go, a way that he wouldn't experience it as an angel.
But I wonder if leaving an angel in a state of madness is a good idea, myself. I think Sera is present in the story when Cas says, "I'll be okay" and also at the "Hello, Brother!" line. I think she is saying that Cas is going to suffer more than Sam, simply because Lucifer is his brother. I think the relationship is going to make some difference in the pain that Cas feels. And there could be more at stake than Cas' sanity as well. If Lucifer wins then he's manifested on Earth again...this time as a true angel. I doubt he'd need more of a vessel than Cas. Something to think about for S8. On the other hand, this could be nothing more than SAM's madness creating Cas's brother from memory. And so, in that case, Cas will eventually win out against the crazy. I do hope we go with Leviathan World for S8, because I would love to see Sam & Dean create a whole new show from new characters that we bring into the mix. A spin-off or future show could be born out of S8 and Jared and Jensen could retire. I'm just saying.
With all the bellyaching on both sides of the Castiel fence---Destiel forever vs Wincest All The Time---it sometimes seems to me that not one fan gets how really fine the writing still is on this show. Yes, I do miss Kripke. I miss that sense of ever-present omniscience that he embodied. With Kripke at the helm there was never any doubt that writers had a direction and we were all along for the ride. I could feel him in every script. I can't feel Sera's hand on things like that. Sometimes she seems tentative even. But I am coming to believe that she's no slouch with the plotting. She isn't as up-front with her storytelling and that leads people to fear that she's making it all up as she goes along, but some things you can't fake. Ask Moff. :grin: SPN plots click together at the final hour in a much smoother way than DW plots, for example.
There is not one doubt in my mind that Cas was always going to come back in this way. I had very little patience with the "YAY! He's gone!" crowd, because anyone with half a brain could see that Cas was always there with Dean. And now I hear the surge of the Destiel fans and their sighing over it all. Dean loves Cas best. Destiel forever! Okay, it isn't that I can't see the slash possibilities in it! I see them. But Destiel fans are as obnoxious as...we Rose fans, I suppose. Doctor Who isn't and should never be all about Rose and the Doctor, but that doesn't mean that Rose/Doctor isn't a viable romantic relationship, because it certainly is. It is just that character balance is required for a story to succeed long term. And you need to remember your premise. Supernatural is about two brothers and their adventures.
However, it is not wrong for those adventures to include other, very important, people. Characters can't develop in a vacuum. Bobby was just as important to the long term success of the show as Sam and Dean were. And Cas is an important part of the show, too, because he is obviously very important to Dean and, crucially, because...he has a different relationship with Dean than Sam does. Not better, but different. Who is more important to you, your mom or your child? Your husband or your child? Your brother or your wife?
Rose or Donna? Or, Gawd Help Us...Martha? The differences in the Doctor's relationships with these women is what is important! Making them all his love interests is just idiotic. Realistic characters need multifaceted relationships.
One of the signs of an abusive relationship is that the abuser asks you to give up your family and friends. What does it say about fandom that we are so abusive to our favorite characters? Probably that we are under the influence of an obsessive love.
Anyway, I digress! The thing I enjoyed about this episode and the previous one is that the story arc is clicking into place. And if you ask me, I feel the Leviathans should get a good strong grip on our world...via charity hospitals and political office...and another season. You want your cattle to be healthy and well-adjusted and compliant. And that's three things that the Winchesters are not! :grin: I know the idea has been done before...Hello V: the Series, for example. But, it hasn't been done SPN style, so it works for me. Also, I do think the time has come for the Judeo-Christian types, demons, angels and humans to join forces and kick the real monsters out of our space-time continuum. So, Cas spending some time with his brother in a pseudo-hotbox, and Meg watching over the reunion while Sam and Dean scramble for a wall to put their backs against, all works well for what I can see as juicy plot lines to come. Do I wish Kripke was manning the juicer? You betcha! Because I can see Sera rushing her fences. That's her main issue, she keeps too low a profile for too long a time, and then she rushes her story to a conclusion. She's a tentative presence, as I've said.
She's doing okay though with Ghost!Bobby in my opinion. Though some people are finding that laughably obvious! I don't know though, because I don't think Sam and Dean would notice the small things the way those of us who were there for Bobby's fight with the Reaper would. I am busy applying my mind to precedent for Bobby survival and the closest I've come is the one episode with the kid whose Reaper was kidnapped. He got a foothold in reality after his Reaper was taken and Tessa said if he didn't come with her he would be stuck there. Of course, I don't think he was cremated, I don't remember. But still, I think that counts as a way to stay connected to the ones you love...getting rid of your Reaper. As opposed to coming back to a part of your body that still exists, in other words being unable to let go of your physical existence, which is the path most ghosts take in the show.
Misha and Jared and Jensen all knocked this episode out of the park, in my opinion. I especially loved the choices that Jensen made to hold it together when he finds Emmanuel. Heck! Even Mark and that guest doctor and the female patient were good. I didn't like Meg, but then I never liked that actress. And then there were the beautifully intimate talking scenes in the car. I tend to think of Cas as Dean's guardian angel, so I was not surprised that Dean opened up to him in a way that would otherwise be OOC. Misha did take a step back into Cas innocence. But what I enjoy about Misha is how he can give layers to what is essentially a one note character. I imagine that takes some real work from an actor, to delineate between...God Cas, Mad Cas, Helpless Cas, Human Cas, Jimmy and Emmanuel.
I was also impressed with the way Jared and/or the writers handled Insane!Sam. They could have gone over the top so easily there. But the relationships seemed very real, largely because they were understated. It helps that I am very familiar with the torture of sleep deprivation. It looks like Jared is as well (long hours on set, perhaps). The loud popping noises that Lucifer created with the firecrackers are a part of it, btw. After a long time not sleeping your brain starts producing these loud bangs that wake you up again just as you nod off. Exploding Head Syndrome. Look that sucker up! EEK! And you have a screaming white noise inside your head. And your body aches like you have been beaten or kicked repeatedly. And you can't do anything, like open a candy bar or use a fork, because you lose all of your strength and coordination. And trying to listen to people hurts physically, because you can't make sense of what they are saying. And you know you are having mad thoughts, but you don't care, because you just want to die...or sleep. So, great job there Jared. And how I loved Sam. Still trying to help people even as he slips away from sanity and life.
Was the Cas sacrifice enough? That's what people are asking on the annoying threads. That and why does Dean say all of their friends are dead? Probably because he figures Cas is as good as dead. I think it was an appropriate sacrifice. And personal, because it returned some of the trust Dean had lost and gave Dean back what he loved most. It was payment for the personal betrayal and played by the rules of punishment for this world...as Cas goes to Hell in the only way that he can go, a way that he wouldn't experience it as an angel.
But I wonder if leaving an angel in a state of madness is a good idea, myself. I think Sera is present in the story when Cas says, "I'll be okay" and also at the "Hello, Brother!" line. I think she is saying that Cas is going to suffer more than Sam, simply because Lucifer is his brother. I think the relationship is going to make some difference in the pain that Cas feels. And there could be more at stake than Cas' sanity as well. If Lucifer wins then he's manifested on Earth again...this time as a true angel. I doubt he'd need more of a vessel than Cas. Something to think about for S8. On the other hand, this could be nothing more than SAM's madness creating Cas's brother from memory. And so, in that case, Cas will eventually win out against the crazy. I do hope we go with Leviathan World for S8, because I would love to see Sam & Dean create a whole new show from new characters that we bring into the mix. A spin-off or future show could be born out of S8 and Jared and Jensen could retire. I'm just saying.