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Review for 4x16 'On The Head Of A Pin'
Sorry, this review comes out so very late, but I had my sister over this weekend and I didn’t really have much time to dedicate to writing. Also, On The Head Of A Pin tied my brain up in knots and gave me a headache with all the mytharc implications they tried to cram into this episode, and it took more time than usual to sort this one out for me. The immense complexity of this episode makes it nearly impossible to cover all facets of it equally thorough, so inevitably there will be passages that fall short in my analysis. I hope it’s still remotely insightful. Just be warned, this is the longest review I have ever written. ;) So, without further ado, onto the review.
I think I can honestly say that I have never dreaded a Supernatural episode as much as Ben Edlund’s On The Head Of A Pin, dreaded to a point even, where I considered not watching it at all. A couple of weeks back, I saw a promo trailer that showed one of the torture scenes between Dean and Alistair and that scene made such a disturbing impression on me, that I was convinced this episode would completely ruin Dean’s character for me. Luckily, that was not the case and my immense relief about that fact, clearly played a role in my perception of this episode.
On The Head Of A Pin is a solid exploration of multiple very complex relationships and that’s at the same time the strength and the weakness of this episode for me. A strength, because it deepened the understanding of all involved characters, a weakness because it took away the focus from Sam and Dean. While the pacing and structuring of the episode was excellent, it was the Castiel centric perspective that threw me off. Also, this episode is very dark and disturbing and I think that I have limits as to how far I can go without feeling completely uncomfortable. I love character angst and give me horror gore any day, but graphic torture hits a sensitive spot with me and while it served its purpose here, I really wished they had found a different way to achieve the same development for the characters and the mytharc.
First off, the meaning of the episode titel was a mystery to me, so I looked it up and found that it referred to the scholastic question of ‘How many angels could dance/stand on the head of a pin?’ and is used as an expression when people want to emphasise the total pointlessness of a discussion. I really like the fact that this phrase not only alludes to the question of the materiality of angels, given that in the show angels are incorporeal unless they possess a body, but the image also fits the power struggle between Castiel and Uriel in the episode. Furthermore, the title serves as a metaphor for the pointlessness of Dean’s ordeal in this episode. As Sam stated, in the end it was all for nothing, because the knowledge Castiel sought was located somewhere else entirely. So, all in all one of the better titles in this season.
Dean: "You ask me to open that door and walk through it, you will not like who walks back out."
Right from the start of the episode Dean is worn out and weary, and even Sam’s first tentative attempt to involve Dean in his communication with Ruby, is only met with indifference. Pamela’s death was another burden on Dean’s soul and he basically lost his will to fight. His ”I’m tired of burying friends.” echoed John’s ”I want to stop losing people we love.” in Salvation. Back then the constant personal sacrifices wore John down to a point at which he didn’t care about his own life anymore. He just wanted it to be over and didn’t expect to make it out of the fight against the YED alive, and Dean arrived in a similar headspace over the course of the last few weeks. The fractured bond with his brother, the setbacks on the war-front and the massive personal sacrifices stretched Dean’s resources thin and threw him on the verge of a debilitating depression.
When first confronted with Castiel and Uriel’s demand to torture Alistair for information though, anger and defiance win the upper hand in Dean. Not only do they ask him to relive and re-enact his worst memory of hell, but they also try to take away his free will in the matter by abducting him and presenting Dean with a fait accompli. Dean’s utter horror and desperation at the request of the angels is palpable, when he pleads with Castiel to spare him that ordeal. His statement that Castiel will not like the person he will become, should they force him to go through with it, shows that he doesn’t fear not being strong enough to do it, but to cross a line and not come back from it. In the end Dean gives in though, and I think part of him simply resigned himself to do what needs to be done, regarding the order as just another hit, one he doesn’t have the strength to fight anymore. I also think that he feels that Castiel’s sorrow is genuine, and while he might not completely trust Castiel after the manipulation act he pulled on Dean in Death Takes A Holiday, he still believes that his motives are good.
I have to admit here that I would have wished for an extended struggle or at least insight into Dean’s decision to give in and trust Castiel’s assertion that this particular action is needed. His surrender came too fast for me. His gut instinct should have told Dean that everything about that request was wrong, not only on a personal level, but also on an ethical one, just like his instincts told him that smiting a whole town of innocents was wrong. I really would have preferred if Dean had at least questioned Castiel’s orders on grounds of the morality of a God that seemingly demands such an despicable act. I was also bothered by the fact that there wasn’t even the slightest consideration for the man that Alistair possessed in this incarnation, who, should he still have been alive during that torture session, clearly didn’t survive it.
Anyway, when Dean walks into that torture chamber, his eyes are empty and it’s clear that he tried to shut himself off completely. Dean’s cold expression, his quiet, low voice, the measured and calm movements and the cruel sneer were disconcerting to watch and yet, his cold façade isn’t entirely convincing. It’s not Dean who has the upper hand in his exchange with his former torturer, he has no real power over Alistair. The demon is a master torturer himself and he simply draws a twisted pleasure from seeing Dean, the 'animal' that he created, at work, rather than being intimidated or even break under the pain that is inflicted on him. Dean might be holding the knife, but Alistair carves with words into Dean, using his intimate knowledge about his 'student' to his own advantage. Dean might hate Alistair, but he hates even more what Alistair made of him and that gives the demon the perfect leverage to play a game of his own, striking right at the heart of Dean’s self-esteem issues.
Alistair’s statement that John never broke under the torture in hell delivers a devastating blow to Dean’s self-confidence and it doesn’t really matter that this claim of Alistair’s is highly improbable. Dean always thought of himself as a lesser man than his father, unable to meet John’s expectations in him and fill his shoes after he was gone. Last season Dean took first steps towards a more positive self-image and started to free himself from his father’s larger-than-life image, but Alistair’s well-directed taunt sets him back several steps in that development and multiplies his self-loathing for not being able to withstand the torture. With the additional revelation that it was Dean’s 'weakness', which in the end enabled Lilith to set her plans in motion, that he became the first broken seal when he got off the rack and started torturing, Dean’s world crumbles completely. That’s too much responsibility to heap on one man’s shoulders.
I am sure that a part of Dean hoped that by taking revenge on Alistair he would be able to take back the control over his life and come to terms with his guilt, but in the end the encounter left him utterly destroyed. If anything good came out of Dean’s confrontation with Alistair, it’s that his fear to walk out of that room as the monster he believed himself to be, ever since he gave in and became a torturer in hell, was unfounded. He emerged a shattered man, but that’s in itself a proof that despite everything Dean has seen and done, his soul remains intact, even if his spirit does not.
Dean: "Alistair was right. I’m not all hero. I’m not strong enough. I guess, I’m not the man either of our dads wanted me to be. Find someone else. It’s not me."
Dean has now essentially hit rock bottom, he is on his lowest point ever. Castiel’s affirmation of Alistair’s statement that Dean was the first seal, takes away even the last hope that the demon lied about this. Castiel’s reassurance that Dean is not to blame and that it was Dean’s fate to play this role in the grander scheme of things, falls on deaf ears, Dean is inconsolable. Dean has always believed that he forges his own destiny and consequentially he feels that he is to be held responsible for bringing on the end of the world and given his life-long dedication to making the world a safer place, that’s a truly devastating twist.
Dean not only feels that he disappointed his father’s as well as his own expectations, but now he is also faced with God’s expectations in him, when he finally learns why he was saved from hell: He is the only person to be able to stop the apocalypse, because he is the one who started it. A heavy burden for any man, but even more so for someone as terribly beaten down as Dean. All his decisions in the last couple of years seem to have lead to a never-ending downward spiral and now Dean is finished. He has lost any confidence in his own abilities. My only hope is that from here on a process of healing will begin, a healing that allows Dean to find his worth and strength within himself and not within another person or his mission.
Kudos to Jensen for his superior acting job in this episode. Dean’s progression from weariness to anger to cold, dark determination and finally utter brokenness was an emotional tour de force and it’s a testament to Jensen’s acting skills that he pulled off every step of Dean’s complex journey in this episode equally compelling and nuanced. ♥
Sam: "You think I want to do this? This is the last thing I … but I need to be strong enough."
Ruby: "It’s okay. It’s okay, Sammy. You can have it."
Finally we get an answer to what Sam has been up to with Ruby, namely, drinking her demonically enhanced blood in order to boost his own powers. While it was disturbing and repulsive to see Sam desperately feeding on Ruby’s blood, it was a relief to me, that my own theory about Sam possibly practicing human sacrifice was proven wrong. Sam nurturing his powers on demon blood makes a lot of sense in the overall mythology of the show, because blood has always been shown as a potent catalyst for supernaturally enhanced powers, like the YED’s blood ritual for his psychic kids, the demonic Croatoan virus or the depiction of vampirism as a disease of the blood, just to name a few examples.
Now, when it comes to the psychic kids specifically though, none of those who expanded their powers, like Ava or Jake, needed to feed on demonic blood to do so. What would set Sam apart from them? Maybe we can argue that the powers were initially designed to be used against a much weaker prey, namely humans, and not against demons, least of all powerful ancient demons like Alistair or Lilith. Granted, Ava could control low level demons, but she was surely far away from being able to harm them. Maybe we can assume that in order for the powers to be turned against its own kind, they need to be much stronger than the YED’s plans required and hence need an extra boost.
It’s clear from Sam and Ruby’s conversation in Heaven and Hell that Sam picked up the habit of feeding on blood while Dean was in hell and gave up on it once his brother came back or at least when he decided to stop using his powers in Metamorphosis. As a result, it seems, that Sam’s power decreased again, indicating that the boost of his powers is only temporary and that he needs to continue drinking Ruby's blood, if he wants to stay as powerful as he is at the moment. The drug-metaphor that has been connected to Sam’s powers makes even more sense now, with the added component of a real 'substance' abuse.
It’s noteworthy though that however twisted Sam has become, he is still struggling with the path he chose for himself. He doesn’t want this, but he does what he thinks needs to be done anyway, for Dean and for himself, in order to take control over his own life back, only that in reality he hands that control over to Ruby. Ruby’s triumphant smile when she feeds her blood to Sam leaves no doubt that her motives are sinister. She has Sam exactly where she wants him to be, fully dependent on her. Back in I Know What You Did Last Summer Sam confessed that he allowed Ruby to take a substitute position for Dean and when Ruby calls Sam ‘Sammy’, an endearment reserved for Dean only, it’s another confirmation that that hasn’t really changed after Dean came back. Ruby offers him the support Dean denies him and that binds him even closer to her than before.
Sam: "He can’t do it. He can’t get the job done. Something happened to him downstairs. He’s not what he used to be. He’s not strong enough."
Sam’s feelings towards his brother at the moment are filtered through the warped perception of his own powers. Sam’s assessment that Dean is weak is just as much a result of his feeling of superiority and strength, as it is grounded in an actual change in Dean. It’s his perspective on Dean that has changed as well and not only Dean himself. Despite the fact that Dean allowed his confident façade in front of Sam to slip more often over the last couple of years, Sam always perceived Dean as the stronger one and relied on him to confidently take charge when the situation called for it. Lately though, Dean’s resigned and world-weary mindset forced Sam to assume the leading position in their partnership, many of his own decisions are rooted in Dean’s lack of determination and I think that Sam in equal parts resents and worries about Dean’s vulnerability and inability to cope with his post-hell trauma.
On the one hand these mixed feelings express themselves at times in annoyance and condescendence towards his brother. On the other hand though, Dean’s vulnerable demeanour brings out Sam’s fierce protectiveness over his brother as well. ♥ His vehement demand for Castiel to heal Dean, to make a miracle happen for him, speaks volumes of his love and care, all dismissive thoughts of his brother forgotten in the face of possibly losing him again. No matter how strained and distanced their relationship has become over the last couple of weeks, moments like these demonstrate that the foundation of their bond is still intact enough to eventually rebuild the trust between them.
Anyway, as soon as Dean is abducted, getting his brother back is foremost on Sam’s mind. He’s aware that he might not only have to confront Alistair, but also the angels in order to save his brother, and I am sure that he would have attempted to take Castiel and Uriel on, had they refused to release Dean. I have to admit that part of me is curious to know if he would be capable to affect angels with his powers as well. In any case, the situation pushes Sam into taking yet another step towards darkness by turning to Ruby for another boost of his powers, a boost that will make him strong enough to take out a demon of Alistair’s calibre. Once again his internal motives are fuelled by his need to be strong enough for Dean’s sake, to protect his brother, but the dark undercurrent of his addiction to Ruby’s blood infuses his reasoning as well and I don’t think that Sam is quite aware of that fact.
This intriguing dichotomy in Sam’s personality, on the one hand loving and caring, on the other cold and dismissive, not only informs his relationship with his brother, but all his thoughts and actions. It’s like his genuine personality is slowly but surely overpowered by the darkness within him. So far his motives remain good, but traits like compassion (e.g. for Dean’s suffering) or sorrow (e.g. for Pamela’s death) seem to rapidly fade. While I am extremely worried for Sam, I couldn’t find it in me to condemn him for his need to kill Alistair with cold precision. This was revenge for his brother, for what Dean suffered through at the hands of Alistair. All season long Sam felt guilty for not being able to save Dean from hell or at least ease the pain of Dean’s post-hell trauma, but killing Alistair was something he could do, if only to soothe his own guilt.
Castiel: "I’m considering disobedience.(…) I don’t know what to do. Please tell me what to do."
On The Head Of A Pin was essentially shown from Castiel’s perspective and dealt with the angel’s growing doubts over the righteousness of his orders and the questioning of his faith. Right from the start it is obvious that Castiel feels guilty and uncomfortable with putting Dean in the position of a torturer and he’s perfectly aware of the effect it will have on Dean’s already battered psyche. Still, he allows Uriel to speak for the both of them. He’s already been told off for getting too close to Dean and losing objectivity over his emotional involvement and he tries to distance himself, afraid to go astray.
Castiel has always lived in the security that God is infallible and that his absolute obedience to God’s word served a greater purpose of good, even if he not always understood the reason behind the orders he has been given. By questioning that position the rug is slowly pulled out from under him and he feels lost without his safety net of faith and overwhelmed by the terrifying burden of responsibility that comes with choosing your own course of action. Disobedience would mean to fall from God’s grace forever, an unimaginable prospect for the angel, but the more he tries to ignore the nagging voice of doubt and clings to his faith, the more that faith seems to slip away from him
In the end though it’s not Castiel’s faith in God that was misplaced, but where he directed his doubt. He trusted his fellow comrade Uriel just as much as he trusted God and despite his knowledge that angels have disobeyed and fallen before, he turned a blind eye on Uriel’s not even very well concealed rebelliousness. He allowed his own struggles with faith and his closeness to Uriel to cloud his judgment, and in the end they all paid a huge price for Castiel’s hesitance to act on his doubt. Only when he allowed his doubt to dictate his actions, he found the truth and his way back to God and I really love that aspect of Castiel's journey in this episode. ♥
His faith restored, he is now faced with the problem that he doesn’t know whom to trust anymore. There’s still a scattered faction of traitorous angels and it is likely that they will further try to subvert any efforts to prevent the apocalypse, which might also put Dean’s life in more danger. The revelations Castiel had to face today also leave him with the guilt of having failed Dean, again. The angels let Dean down when they didn’t manage to get to him in time to save him from hell and now Castiel failed him by putting his trust in Uriel, a mistake that nearly cost Dean’s life and with him the possibility to stop the apocalypse.
There are a lot of parallels between Dean and Castiel, from their struggles with a distanced father, to losing trust into those whom they are closest to and their similar situations will likely facilitate a better understanding between them. In the end Castiel doesn’t have anybody to turn to but Anna and Dean for guidance on free will and responsibility, and Dean needs every ally available to him with the task that lies before him.
Castiel: "We’re brothers, Uriel. Pay me that respect. Tell me the truth"
Uriel: "The truth is, the only thing that can kill an angel, is another angel."
The revelation that it was Uriel who orchestrated the systematic wipe-out of angels and set-up the encounter between Dean and Alistair with the intention to get Dean killed, was a stunning plot twist and I have to admit that I didn’t see that one coming, although it makes perfect sense. Uriel has been consistently depicted as a fundamentalist. He nurtured a superiority complex, showed nothing but contempt for humans and more than once he expressed his resentment over the fact that these inferior creatures were God’s favoured creation. His position has always been dangerously close to blasphemy, and it’s clear that at some point he lost his faith in God completely and instead turned to a more tangible and comprehensible idol, his fallen comrade Lucifer.
It’s noteworthy that in the end it is God’s absence which allows the subversion amongst his holy warriors and it begs the question how exactly the system works. Lucifer disobeyed and was punished and cast out of Heaven, Uriel disobeyed and even murdered his fellow angels and still he wasn’t cast out or otherwise punished, Anna fell and returned and yet she doesn’t seem to be punished either, death sentence or not. It would also have been interesting to know when exactly Uriel started to follow his own agenda, especially if Uriel and his followers were part of the siege that Heaven laid on Hell in order to free Dean before he could become the first seal. Did they subvert that rescue mission as well?
In any case, the revelation that Uriel has been the one to pull the strings and fed Castiel with false orders, calls everything Castiel and Uriel told Sam and Dean this season into question. How many of the heavenly orders have been relayed to Castiel by Uriel, and how many of them have been genuine? For example, Castiel’s demand for Dean to stop Sam from using his powers might as well have been one of those false orders. Who is to say that this was a genuine warning and not an attempt of the traitorous angel faction to prevent Sam from interfering with their plans? Uriel told Sam that so far he has been useful, but that statement now appears in a rather doubtful light, as it isn’t clear if he has been useful to the rebellious angels or to God. Basically we are back to square one and need to consider everything from a new perspective.
Alistair: "And it is written that the first seal shall be broken when a righteous man sheds blood in hell. As he breaks, so shall it break."
In this week’s episode we learn that the first seal was broken when Dean surrendered to the torture in hell and started to become a torturer himself. Now, I find the notion that John and Dean have been the first righteous men to ever be tortured (and broken) in hell very implausible. Surely, over the centuries hundreds of righteous souls must have been broken and turned into demons, and every one of them would have been a potential candidate for the apocalypse and yet the opportunities went by without someone/thing seizing the chance. So why now? I am pretty sure that Lilith didn’t just spontaneously decide to raise Lucifer a couple of months ago. A stunt like that needs careful planning and preparation, especially if some seals are time-sensitive, like the raising of Samhain and if she needed to obtain rare occult items, like the sickle of death. I assume that Lilith was in no position to set her plan in motion until a special convergence of circumstances made the breaking of the seals possible.
I guess that Lilith would have needed to prepare for the eventuality of angels showing up as soon as her plan was in place. It would have been incredibly difficult for Lilith and a handful of her followers to attack as many seals as possible in order to keep the angels busy and still have a chance of breaking at least some of the seals she targeted. Castiel mentioned in Are You There God? that there were many fronts and that the angels needed to defend each and every one of them with a limited number of warriors. So, Lilith clearly needed an army of helpers to weaken the angel’s defence lines in various battles, an army of demonic helpers on earth to be precise. It was only when the YED opened the devil’s gate and allowed hundreds of demons to escape, that Lilith had a chance to acquire the forces she needed, especially after the YED’s death left a void of leadership that she could assume.
With the necessary forces at her side she only needed the next righteous soul to be broken in hell to set her plan in action and with Dean already being scheduled for a visit, it stands to reason that she concentrated her efforts on him. We remember that the crossroads demon in I Know What You Did Last Summer refused Sam’s offer to swap places with his brother, stating that they have Dean exactly where they needed him to be and with the knowledge that they wanted Dean to become the first of the broken seals, that statement makes perfect sense. So, in my opinion the opening of the devil’s gate, the YED’s death and Dean’s deal created the very circumstances that allowed Lilith to finally achieve her plans.
Now, where does that leave John and Alistair’s assertion that he has been the primary target and not Dean? I have to go with the assumption that Alistair was lying through his teeth on that one, because he knew exactly what that statement would do to Dean. Alistair’s statement is implausible though: Firstly, if the heavenly legions laid siege on hell in order to save Dean before he could break and become a catalyst for the apocalypse, why didn’t they come for John as well? Surely, if John really had been part of the plan to break the seals, the angels would have taken the same measures. Secondly, if either the YED or Lilith had planned for John to become the first seal, why would the crossroads demon in Crossroad Blues offer Dean to bring back John in exchange for Dean's soul? No, I don't think John was ever part of the apocalypse storyline. As for John’s ability to withstand the torture in hell, we have no way of knowing if Alistair lied or if he told the truth, and personally I find it improbable, because it's my firm belief that everyone breaks under torture, no matter what kind of person they used to be. Anyway, in the end it only matters that Dean believed Alistair's words.
Overall, it seems less and less likely to me that the YED’s endgame was the same as Liliths’, namely the rising of Lucifer. The YED’s plot to create generations of psychic kids holds too many unpredictable variables and is way too complex, to make it a viable plan just to achieve the breaking of the first seal. Also, Castiel stated that the angels had no idea what the YED’s plans were, while they were perfectly clear about what Lilith was up to, before the first seal was even broken. I see no reason why the angels would know about the one but not the other, if both demons were pursuing the same goal. So, I am convinced, that the YED was after something else. It makes more sense to me at the moment, that the failure of the YED’s plan facilitated Lilith’s course of action, and I have to admit that I would be very disappointed if the results of the two plotlines would turn out to be independent from each other, because I always hoped that both mythologies would merge at some point into one big arc.
At the moment I can only see one satisfactory way to unite the two storylines: The YEDs attempt to create a human leader for the demonic forces achieves the very opposite, namely an extremely powerful weapon against demons: Sam! Lilith’s plan to use Dean as the first seal to set her plan in motion, results in creating the very key that would be able to shipwreck said plans: Dean himself! Together Sam and Dean would have the opportunity and the means to avert the apocalypse. The only questions that remain are: What’s the personal price the brothers have to pay to achieve that victory and will they manage to heal the rift between them in time to make it happen?
What else was noteworthy:
(1) Given the fact that back in Are You There God? It's Me Dean Winchester Ruby stated that she didn’t know a thing about angels, she shows a remarkable variety of spells that refer to them. In Heaven and Hell she created hex bags that allowed them to hide from the angels and now she was able to locate their exact whereabouts? Now this could simply mean that she expanded her witchcraft knowledge in that field over the last couple of months, but it could also hint at the fact that she lied to Sam for some reason.
(2) I thought it was disconcerting that the angels leave the bodies of their hosts behind with just the same negligence like demons. I had hoped that Castiel or Anna would restore the body and soul of Uriel’s host and was disappointed when they just left him there.
In conclusion: Despite the fact that the episode revealed important information about Sam and Dean, this episode was neither about Sam or Dean or, least of all, Sam'n'Dean, ultimately it was about the development of Castiel and the angel plotline. While I enjoyed a lot of aspects in this episode and appreciated the complexity of it, I also felt that the angel plot overpowered the story of the Winchesters, just like it did in Heaven and Hell, and that’s probably the biggest drawback for the latest mytharc episodes for me. It seems that the more 'epic' the arc becomes, the less personal it feels to me.
It’s not that the angels are not interesting in their own right, but when their plot becomes detrimental to the time dedicated to Sam and Dean’s journey, I feel cheated. I also admit that I don’t enjoy a shift of focus from the relationship between Sam and Dean to the relationships between Dean & Castiel on the one side and Sam & Ruby on the other. I can only hope that this season’s finale at least puts the focus of the mytharc back on where it needs to be: the brothers Winchester.
Re: that was a incredibly thoughtful meta
Well, I didn't say that Sam's powers are not evil, I just stated that we need to reconsider Uriel's (and by proxy Castiel's) statements more closely. We do see that developing his powers is detrimental to Sam's personality. He's more detached, less caring and colder, but at the moment I think that maybe we have to reevaluate the question if it will inevitably turn him evil to the point of no return. Sam's powers are at the moment the only real weapon in this war, if even the angels have no means to best a demon of Alistair's calibre. Of one thing I am absolutely sure though, Sam needs to reconnect with Dean in order to be able to control the effects of his powers. Dean is his humanity, I am convinced of that!
Yeah, I don't really see any evidence in the show that would point to John being so crucial to the apocalypse plot. I won't even argue the point if he was righteous or not, because I think that's pointless, but if we are to take Alistair's comment at face value, the whole YED plot doesn't seem to make any sense to me and the timing of Lilith's actions even less. Demons lie if it gives them a psychological advantage over their victims and Alistair was a master at psychological manipulation, it makes total sense to me that he would use this argument to hit Dean.
I know! :( I am always very cross if the plot sways away from the Winchesters and I think that especially mytharc episodes should actually revolve around them and the Winchester family history. I mean, okay, I can live with this deviation if it is for 1-2 episodes per season, but if this becomes a habit I will be frustrated.
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Uriel is such a plot twist, but now that I look back on it-- it does seem sense, doesn't it?
Love the meta. <3
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I think that Sam in equal parts resents and worries about Dean’s vulnerability and inability to cope with his post-hell trauma.
Yes, I agree. Although, I felt the one false note in this episode was that Sam's motivating factor seemed to be more about Dean "not being able to do the job" than a genuine concern about how "the job" would affect Dean's already precarious emotional well being. We did get a glimpse of Sam's arrogance and pride in "S&V" which feeds into his attitude in "OtHoaP", but I feel like that secret part of Sam's psyche should take a back seat to his concern and protectiveness for his brother at this point in the story.
For example, Castiel’s demand for Dean to stop Sam from using his powers might as well have been one of those false orders. Who is to say that this was a genuine warning and not an attempt of the traitorous angel faction to prevent Sam from interfering with their plans?
*nods* Uriel's betrayal casts everything in a new light! \o/ While we don't know for certain that the orders reveals in "ItB" are authentic or not, there's some indication that Uriel may not be behind the orders to not touch Sam and Ruby. A deleted scene from 4x10 features Castiel telling Uriel that Sam and Ruby have "a role to play" and they're not to interfere, judging by Uriel's reaction this is a very unpleasant surprise, which (to me) suggests that Uriel and his renegade faction may not want Sam and Ruby part of the equation after all. Unless Uriel is a big fat faker and a terrific liar.
Deleted scene is here if you haven't seen it (no spoilers for unaired episodes): http://bowtrunckle.livejournal.com/57125.html
I always hoped that both mythologies would merge at some point into one big arc.
This is what I've been holding out for since S2. I'm still having trouble believing the convoluted PsyKind arc that was set up in the middle of S1 and ran through S2 is a complete dead end.
The YEDs attempt to create a human leader for the demonic forces achieves the very opposite, namely an extremely powerful weapon against demons: Sam! Lilith’s plan to use Dean as the first seal to set her plan in motion, results in creating the very key that would be able to shipwreck said plans: Dean himself!
:) I'm placing my bets here as well. Nothing like some poetic justice to smite the bad guys in the end. I also love the free will vs. destiny theme and the seemingly destined weapons (Sam and Dean) exacting their own will in the end. Choice is such a wonderful thing, and I firmly believe in the end those boys will choose each other over all else ... that's the implicit promise that was set up in the open chapters of the story after all. :)
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Sam's motivating factor seemed to be more about Dean "not being able to do the job" than a genuine concern about how "the job" would affect Dean's already precarious emotional well being.
Hm, I agree. Although I guess it was implied in Sam's instant course of action that he feared something could happen to his brother, even though he knew Castiel was with him. I also wondered if maybe the fact that Ruby was the one who suggested this very motif for Sam's worry, made him instinctively deny it.
Yeah, I know that deleted scene but decided to not take it into consideration, or better, its content doesn't change the fact that all statements need reconsideration. For the longest while it was Castiel who was Uriel's superior and so I don't think that it was always Uriel to receive orders via 'revelation', at least some of them had to be genuine. The question is which one and does it have any effect on Sam and Dean's decisions. Hard to judge at the moment how relevant this issue will become in the end.
Choice is such a wonderful thing, and I firmly believe in the end those boys will choose each other over all else... that's the implicit promise that was set up in the open chapters of the story after all..
I completely agree! ♥
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I might well be in the minority, but I love this. I think it's brilliant. We can't have Sam in peril of his soul and not show how he's in peril of his soul. His humanity's in danger. I believe we need to see that. We need to see in a visceral way just how far he's travelled away from himself. Which yes, is incredibly painful. But I guess I'm a masochist *g* because it's precisely this kind of journey that I find the most emotionally satisfying.
But yeah. I think the boys will triumph in the end. At least I hope they do. Mind you, I was praying for Lee and Starbuck to get a happy ending, too ...
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I think after Dean was abducted, Sam's mind was on Alistair, on killing him, on getting revenge, rather than on his brother. He was lead by anger and on a high from Ruby's blood, and when he enters the torture chamber, he doesn't have eyes for anyone but the demon. But in the cut between after he killed Alistair and Sam at Dean's hospital bed, there's a change in him. His worried expression is genuine in my opinion. After the kill, he must have gotten his brother to the hospital, it mirrors the situation after the YED nearly killed Dean in 'Devil's Trap'. I picture Sam coming off of the high from killing Alistair and then spotting his unconscious brother on the floor, and that tangible proof of Dean's vulnerability snapped him back into the worry-mode he didn't allow himself earlier.
It's as I said before, Sam is caught in a fascinating dichotomy, on the one hand the genuine 'Sammy', we came to know and love over the past three seasons, and on the other hand the new 'Sam' he slowly but surely turns into, as he embraces his demonic heritage. And I, too, am curious to see where that journey leads him, despite the fact that it hurts badly to watch that downward spiral between the brothers. :)
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But I do accept YMMV.
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Back then I interpreted his 'coldness' as a defence mechanism against getting hurt again. We saw how incredibly wounded Sam was directly after Dean's death and he crawled out of that desperation and moved on, and he is absolutely unwilling to go back into that mindset, because it would kill him, instead he closes himself off emotionally from Dean. And that process of closing himself off continued in the 2nd half of the season.
Yes, I think part of Sam resents Dean being vulnerable and not being able to overcome his trauma, of Dean being inactive when action is required in their situation, I already stated that in my review. But I also still think that closing himself off of Dean is a remnant from that time he spent without his brother, a defence mechanism. So, overall I think Sam's motives are incredibly complex and torn at the moment and cannot be reduced to one single cause. :)
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*tries to remember what I was going to say*
the dark undercurrent of his addiction to Ruby’s blood infuses his reasoning as well and I don’t think that Sam is quite aware of that fact.
I don't think he is, no. Because, really, he didn't need any more blood to go after Alistair - in fact, hanging around drinking Ruby's blood cost him valuable time. He told himself that he needed to be stronger in order to help Dean, but really he could have gone after Alistair with the power he already had, which would have been more than sufficient to defeat and exorcise the demon. Or he could have retrieved the demon-killing knife once he got there, or something. The point is that he had other options. But he wanted the blood, craved that extra power whether he really needed it or not. And therein lies the deep, dark danger. It's why Ruby has cultivated him so very carefully, really taken her time - she couldn't rush this, needed to be sure he would be completely dependent on her if he was going to have this much power. And as of now it looks like that ploy has worked.
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Hm, yes, he could have gone after Alistair with the power he already had, but I think apart from craving Ruby's blood, he really, really wanted to kill Alistair and hence he needed another boost. Just sending Alistair back to hell, would have achieved nothing really, other than freeing him from the angel's hold and give him the opportunity to come back any time and inflict more damage. No, he wanted to kill Alistair right from the start. He needed his revenge for Dean and to pay some of his own feelings of guilt back. In general though I agree that the addiction and his dependency on Ruby are a dangerous and possibly destructive path.
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'I just need a bit more, and then I'll be able to hold the demons down while I exorcise them, no need for fiddly traps.' 'I just need a bit more and then I'll be able to kill the demon completely, and I really want to do that because I want my bloody revenge' and so on. It was about what Sam wanted, not necessarily what was for the best. We don't know how long he spent with Ruby, but the delay cost him time and he could have successfully completed the mission without it. He can justify it - destroyed a particularly loathesome demon, one that had broken his brother completely, negated the possibility of Alistair ever coming back. But it wasn't strictly necessary, it was Sam wanting more than he already had, with the perfect excuse as well, and that's a dangerous spiral to get into. He can't claim that his motives are entirely pure. His judgement is badly clouded.
Does that make sense?
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Anyway, I am not sure if it's even possible to have entirely pure motives, every seemingly altruistic act does have an egoistic facet as well. Ever since he picked up the blood-sucking habit again back in 4.12, we can see how badly it affects Sam's personality. There's no doubt that he doesn't really have any control over this, and that's why he really needs to reconnect with Dean.
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Sam has the power. Dean might possibly provide him with the control he needs. If they can just manage to reconnect. Trouble is, they are both so damaged, in their own separate ways, they are completely incapable of helping one another at the moment.
It's going to get worse before it gets better!
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Having said that, however, I'm pretty sure there won't be any fratricide. I'm pretty sure Sam won't become irrevocably evil, either. :)
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I am pretty sure of that as well! But slowly I am at a limit of how much darkness and angst I can take without the brotherly love carrying me through it. ;)
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I haven't hit my tolerance yet - I'm getting enough satisfaction in other ways. Although I am looking forward to reconciliation when it finally happens. :)
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Don't get me wrong. My inner h/c junkie deeply mourns, for eg, the fact that we didn't get to follow Sam as he rushed his brother to hospital, didn't get to hear the doctor listing off Dean's injuries and prognosis and watch Sam's reaction, didn't see him glued to his brother's side as he slowly recovered and woke up. But my inner critique-writer knows that the story being told here did not require those scenes. We were shown enough to get the gist, and the focus was elsewhere. And the depth and complexity of what we were given was immensely satisfying.
Looking forward to seeing where they take us next!
Also? This recap is never, ever going to be finished. Every single scene is so thickly layered with complexity! It's exhausting to unpick.
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ROFL I bet this recap will set a new record amongst your recaps as the one with the most pages ever. If even I went way beyond my usual length limit, you will be much worse. *g*
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Which is why I'm actually pleased at the thought of mini hiatuses, giving me time to catch up! *G*
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At the moment I can only see one satisfactory way to unite the two storylines: The YEDs attempt to create a human leader for the demonic forces achieves the very opposite, namely an extremely powerful weapon against demons: Sam! Lilith’s plan to use Dean as the first seal to set her plan in motion, results in creating the very key that would be able to shipwreck said plans: Dean himself! Together Sam and Dean would have the opportunity and the means to avert the apocalypse. The only questions that remain are: What’s the personal price the brothers have to pay to achieve that victory and will they manage to heal the rift between them in time to make it happen?
I really loved this bit! I firmly believe that this show is all about love and personal choice and responsibility, and that would be the end I'd like to see - the brothers together, defying the odds because they choose what is right. Amen.
I am seriously brain-fried and can't manage any serious thought, but I thank you for sharing allof this!
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I, too, cannot imagine the show to end any other way than with the brothers reunited by choice, defying angels, demons, fate or destiny. That's the core of this show for so long that anything else would feel wrong.
I know the feeling. This episode ate my brain, really. It's probably the most complex episode to date in the show and writing a review seemed like a daunting task to begin with.
LOVE your icon btw. It's gorgeous!
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This episode makes me shiver every time I think about it. Now that we've gotten the epic scope of what's going on, I'm betting we'll be back to the highly personal - but everything is going to relate back to this, to the essence of the conflict in which our boys are trapped. Yikes!
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Hm, yes I think so too. It's not that I totally resent the epicness of the episode, I just prefer personal episodes. And if it has to be epic, this is how it should be done, complex and compelling. It's just that in my heart of hearts I am a Sam'n'Dean girl and if an episode doesn't give them to me it feels incomplete to me. *g*
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At least Sam still cares for Dean,but drinking Ruby's blood,ugh!
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