Heh, it's no surprise that you feel 'talked out' about the episode, I think you had quite the lively discussion on your journal. The move to Tuesday is a bit unfortunate for me, since I can only watch the episode 24 hours later than everybody else, and since I only really have time to write on the weekends, my reviews inevitably come very late, when everyone else has already moved on. LOL
Dean decisions have never really been put under the spotlight That is true and I am really not happy about that, because the writers miss out on some great character exploration by never questioning Dean's choices. Not to mention that it creates an imbalance between Sam and Dean, because Sam's choices are constantly under-fire, not least from Dean himself. He should be held to the same standards.
If Sam has a fundamental understanding of that then maybe it's something Dean needs to learn. The sad thing is, that there have already been plenty character moments that seemed to indicate that Dean had learned. Like in When The Levee Breaks where Dean realised that there are lines he cannot cross, not even for Sam's life, one of those lines being Sam turning himself into a monster by drinking blood. Or in Good God, Y'all, where Dean put the lives of defenceless civilians ahead of his impulse to save his little brother. Or in Swan Song, where Dean acknowledged that there are bigger things than just he and Sam, when he agreed to Sam's plan to become Lucifer's vessel. Or in Appointment In Samarra where he admitted that there are worse things than Sam's death, namely a living, breathing Sam, who isn't Sam at all. All the writers had to do was to further build on that development, but I feel that the current creative team rather takes a couple of steps back with the character. By the way, except for Swan Song all those episode were written by Sera Gamble; she had the right ideas for Dean's character, IMO.
Also...is it just me, or does this (finally!) put Sam in a good light? Well, I am not sure. I mean, for me Sam was never really in a bad light. The writing for the character often does him injustice, but that is not Sam's fault. LOL But I am sure that there are enough fans who will never even make an attempt to approach the story from Sam's perspective, so unless the writers spell Sam's motivations out for them in really BIG LETTERS, I think they will never see Sam in a good light. :(
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Dean decisions have never really been put under the spotlight
That is true and I am really not happy about that, because the writers miss out on some great character exploration by never questioning Dean's choices. Not to mention that it creates an imbalance between Sam and Dean, because Sam's choices are constantly under-fire, not least from Dean himself. He should be held to the same standards.
If Sam has a fundamental understanding of that then maybe it's something Dean needs to learn.
The sad thing is, that there have already been plenty character moments that seemed to indicate that Dean had learned. Like in When The Levee Breaks where Dean realised that there are lines he cannot cross, not even for Sam's life, one of those lines being Sam turning himself into a monster by drinking blood. Or in Good God, Y'all, where Dean put the lives of defenceless civilians ahead of his impulse to save his little brother. Or in Swan Song, where Dean acknowledged that there are bigger things than just he and Sam, when he agreed to Sam's plan to become Lucifer's vessel. Or in Appointment In Samarra where he admitted that there are worse things than Sam's death, namely a living, breathing Sam, who isn't Sam at all. All the writers had to do was to further build on that development, but I feel that the current creative team rather takes a couple of steps back with the character. By the way, except for Swan Song all those episode were written by Sera Gamble; she had the right ideas for Dean's character, IMO.
Also...is it just me, or does this (finally!) put Sam in a good light?
Well, I am not sure. I mean, for me Sam was never really in a bad light. The writing for the character often does him injustice, but that is not Sam's fault. LOL But I am sure that there are enough fans who will never even make an attempt to approach the story from Sam's perspective, so unless the writers spell Sam's motivations out for them in really BIG LETTERS, I think they will never see Sam in a good light. :(