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galatheaOn a superficial level I enjoyed The Curious Case Of Dean Winchester by Sera Gamble – the humour was more entertaining than in the last episode and the characters weren’t quite as silly – but unfortunately superficial was also (almost) all this episode was. If I was a casual viewer of Supernatural I’d probably be amused and move on, but as it is, I take this show and its characters very serious, and I can’t help but feel disappointed about the waste of potential in this episode, plot-wise as well as character-wise, which seems to be exemplary for the general direction of the show lately.
So, here’s the thing: Last season the writers took a great deal of time and care to systematically disassemble the brother’s relationship and bring both Sam and Dean to their individual breaking points. S5 started out with the bond between the brothers in ruins and with both characters at a turning point in their lives, which allowed them to realise that they need to heal and grow as individuals, before they can heal as brothers. Over the first five episodes the show made a great effort to move Sam and Dean into a place that would believably allow them to come together again and rebuild their relationship. Dean moved on from his initial inability to forgive Sam and arrived in a headspace that allowed him to welcome his brother back and work on a new foundation in their relationship, and Sam overcame the first struggle with his addiction and returned to his brother with the will to make amends and fight for his redemption – and then it all stopped.
Instead of using the development of the first episodes to finally start the rebuilding process, which, after all, was the final goal of all that character work in the beginning, the characters started to stagnate and even partially regressed in these last two episodes. While I Believe The Children Are Our Future didn’t offer any development for the characters, it at least allowed for a solid character exploration in the second half of the episode, in The Curious Case Of Dean Winchester we have neither significant character development nor exploration for Sam and Dean and that’s despite the potentially rich theme of the episode. In retrospect these last two episodes even throw a bad light on Fallen Idols, because while the theme of that episode was valid, it certainly can’t stand on its own in terms of reconciliation process between the brothers. It wasn’t rebuilding their relationship, it only offered a starting point for it. I am not sure what’s happening in the writer’s room at the moment. It used to be that the writers excelled in using the monster-of-the-week type of stories to move the characters forward, it’s a trademark of the standalones of the series, and I am confused as to why these episodes suddenly fall short.
It seems to me that the writers are so intent on making the show more light-hearted after the heavy angst of last season, that they don’t realise how much they compromise their own achievement over the first couple of episodes, not to mention the last couple of years. Additionally, in their (misdirected) effort to recapture Sam and Dean’s easy relationship of the earlier years, they also often miss the mark on normal Sam and Dean characterisation/interaction for some inexplicable reason. In S1 their interaction was not only more light-hearted, but also affectionate and good-natured, their characterisation was consistent and, most of all, layered. At the moment though, Sam and Dean’s characterisation feels shallow and extremely uneven, their interaction is good-natured in a few instances, forced and strained in a lot of scenes and exaggerated in others. It’s as if the writers have no feel for who exactly their characters are at the moment, hence the characterisation is all over the place. They not only fail to move the brothers forward to a new level, but they also fail to at least move them backwards to their old selves, and as a result the characters are trapped in some kind of weird limbo that feels very awkward to me.
I am kind of baffled though that not many fans seem to notice the difference between the brothers current characterisation and their S1 characterisation. Sam’s default modus towards Dean seems to be 'annoyed' at the moment and Dean’s default modus towards Sam seems to be 'immature' and there are only few scenes where their characterisation in general, and their interaction in particular, feels genuinely like Sam'n'Dean, the dynamic duo, to me. I would never have guessed that when I finally have the boys back together again, I would still miss them, because while I wasn’t quite sure if the writers were able to follow through with the character growth, I never had a doubt that they would at least return the Sam and Dean of past times to the screen.
Sorry for that rant, but I had to get that off my chest. I can only hope the writers make a turn sooner rather than later.
Bobby: "Nobody asked you to play."
Dean: "Right, I should have just let you die."
While at first glance it seems unlikely that Bobby of all people, who tore Dean a new one for his crossroads deal, would be willing to gamble his life away in a supernatural game, I was able to buy that depression and desperation drove him to the point of foregoing his usual principles. It’s not much different from Dean, who had nothing but fierce rejection for making deals in Crossroad Blues, but went and made one himself when he hit rock bottom after Sam’s death. So, Bobby’s decision to gamble for his recovery made sense to me, but Dean’s decision to sacrifice his own lifespan for Bobby is a different matter. While yes, Dean is known to sacrifice himself for his family without a second thought in the past, he frequently started to acknowledge that the self-sacrificing tendencies of the Winchesters lead to nothing but more suffering. I mean, what happened to the Dean from No Rest for The Wicked, who implored Sam to stop playing martyrs for each other, because it always hurts them in the long run, to the Dean from Sympathy For The Devil, who didn’t allow Zachariah to use his family as a means of pressuring him into compliance, to the Dean from Good God, Y’all, who had learned to listen to his head instead of his heart and wouldn’t allow his worry over his family to deter him from his mission? Here though, Dean simply throws every bitter lesson he learned over the last couple of years away in a spur of the moment decision. It's not necessarily that I think he should have just let Bobby die, but some sort of acknowledgement from either Sam, Dean or Bobby that this kind of sacrificial merry-go-round was wrong to begin with, would have at least connected the characters' decisions in this episode with their previous characterisations.
I would probably have forgiven that character regression as an irritating, but understandable, lapse in judgment on Dean’s side, if it had served a purpose other than indulging in superficial comedy. If the writers had used the opportunity to explore how Dean would mentally cope with age, to reflect on mortality, maturity and growing old gracefully, instead of simply milking his age-related physical deterioration for jokes. Sure, I enjoyed Bobby and Dean’s grumpy old men act and banter, it was funny to watch, but it was by far not enough to justify the damage to Dean’s ongoing character development. The brothers discussed growing old once before, namely in Criss Angel Is A Douchebag, and the writers used the topic back then to explore the characters in terms of fatalism and hope and utilised it as a motivational factor for Sam’s decision to return to Ruby. The short scene last season clearly demonstrated how powerful that theme can be in terms of character exploration, and it’s sad that the writers wasted the opportunity to expand on it here. In the end all Dean learned from his experience was that he had difficulties to adjust to the physical limitations that come with age and that he needs to lay off the cheeseburgers in order to preserve his health. I somehow doubt though, that he will remember that particular lesson for long.
Patrick: "So, when it’s about your brother, you get so emotional, you’re brain flies right out of the window. Good to know!"
Sam: "Go to hell. I’m all in. I can’t leave until it’s over? Fine. It’s over. Now, where is my brother?"
Just like I found it regrettable that Dean’s reaction to his predicament was simply played for a laugh, instead of triggering a meaningful exploration of his state of mind, I thought Sam’s reaction to his brother’s sudden transformation was irritatingly nonchalant and way too amused, even if we assume that he deluded himself into thinking that they have plenty of time to resolve the issue and that Dean is in no immediate danger. Additionally, Sam acts annoyed and is impatient with Dean’s limited ability to do his job, and that is a misplaced reaction as well. I think the problem is that amusement and annoyance are inappropriate as the main emotional response to the situation, especially since they know first hand that the other victims died of heart-attacks not long after their game. It makes the 'humour' in some of the presumably 'funny' scenes seem forced - like Sam rolling his eyes when Dean is winded after climbing a couple of stairs or his irritation when Dean fumbles his way through opening the safe - and it also adds a probably unintended, but certainly unwarranted feeling of tension to the relationship between the brothers. I guess I would feel better about that, if I would suspect the writers intended to demonstrate that Sam and Dean still have lingering tension from their unresolved trust issues, but unfortunately it feels more like a side-effect of lazy writing than anything else. However, some of Sam’s reactions felt more genuine to me, for example his anger at Dean’s 'when you’re our age' joke and, most notably, his worry about Dean in his confrontation with Patrick.
Sam's poker game with Patrick was clearly one of the few highlights of the episode for me. Admittedly, I completely fell for the misdirection in the beginning, where we were lead to believe that Sam, too, regressed and fell back into his old bad habit to go behind Dean’s back in order to follow his own path, rather than working on a strategy together with Bobby and Dean. So, I was extremely relieved at the reveal that Sam didn’t pursue a questionable solo-plan to win Dean’s years back, but instead offered himself as bait for Patrick in a simple diversion tactic to give Bobby and Dean the time to work on the reversal spell. Anyway, in that encounter between Sam and Patrick, I particularly enjoyed that Sam refuses to allow Patrick to goad him into losing his composure, twice even. Over the course of their first series of games Patrick uses the same kind of taunting that would usually have instantly raised Sam’s hackles in the past, especially the insinuation that Sam allows Dean and Bobby to still treat him like a child. In Fallen Idols Sam and Dean grew past that issue though, and I loved that the resolution to that issue echoed in Sam’s equanimity at Patrick’s teasing here.
The really brilliant turn in that encounter though came after Patrick blows Sam’s cover and traps him in the game, forcing him to gamble for his brother’s life in earnest. I think there is no doubt that Sam’s fear for Dean’s life is genuine, rather than an act he puts on solely for Patrick’s benefit, and that ultimately he would have been willing to sacrifice his own lifespan in order to save Dean, but instead of allowing that fear to overwhelm him and lose his head, like it did in many instances in the past, he channels it into a bluff and uses it to his advantage, manipulating the witch into calling the game and showing his hand. 'It’s not about playing the cards, it’s about playing the other guy'. Sam was obviously not exaggerating when he stated that he learned a lot from watching Dean hustle poker. ♥ While it was of course pretty predictable that Sam would have the better hand in the end, I thought it was a clever way to demonstrate that it’s not inevitable that the bad guys always use Sam and Dean’s bond against them, but that they can turn it around and let it work for them, even in dire circumstances.
Dean: "You don’t stop being a soldier, ‘cause you got wounded in battle. Okay, no matter what shape you’re in, bottom line is, you’re family. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but me and Sam, we don’t have much left. I can’t do this without you. I can’t. So don’t you dare think about checking out. I don’t want to hear that again."
While The Curious Case Of Dean Winchester unfortunately didn’t offer any deeper insights or development for Sam and Dean, I was really happy that the show at least finally explored how Bobby deals with his new handicap. In Good God, Y’all it was already obvious that Bobby’s self-confidence and usually optimistic nature took a lasting hit at the prospect of being permanently bound to a wheelchair. Throughout the show Bobby was always depicted as a very active hunter, a walking encyclopaedia of everything supernatural, a capable partner in the field and a point of intersection for the hunter’s network. We got to know him as a man of optimism and great personal strength, as one of the few hunters who didn’t allow his personal tragedy to turn him into an isolated, revenge driven sociopath and instead used it as a motivation to devote his life to helping others. It’s not entirely surprising that the feeling that everything he built his life upon crumbled under his feet threw Bobby into a serious crisis. He is used to being able to fix things, but for once there is nothing he can do to change his circumstances.
While Bobby obviously made some effort to get a grip on his new situation, i.e. still working for the hunter’s network, getting a car fitted for his handicap, in the end he wasn’t able to accept his limitations and find a new perspective in his life on his own and worked himself into a debilitating depression with suicidal tendencies. It was devastating to see the strong man have such a complete melt-down, and it’s obvious that Sam and Dean never suspected the depth of the desperation that ran underneath Bobby’s gruff exterior, not only because Bobby obviously didn’t want to burden them with his problems, but also because they are not used to being the caretakers in this particular relationship. It was always Bobby who was the steady emotional support for Sam and Dean, a surrogate father and sounding board for their problems, the one person outside each other, they could always count on. Dean’s heart-felt effort to convey just how much Bobby means to him and Sam was beautiful, and I loved that he comprises it in the one word that means the world to him: family. ♥ That Dean's love allowed Bobby to overcome his depression and find a renewed will to live was one of the few developments that made this episode worthwhile in the end. Kudos to Jensen and Jim for knocking that scene out of the park!
As a side note: I thought it was very appropriate that it was Dean who addressed Bobby’s problems here. While Sam and Bobby clearly love each other, Sam also keeps himself a bit distanced, but Bobby and Dean always had a level of comfort and closeness with each other, that Dean usually only shares with Sam, and Bobby probably with no other person in his life. In any case, it gave Dean the necessary basis to feel comfortable enough to approach the sensitive issue and have Bobby listen to him.
What else was noteworthy:
(1) Despite the annoying inconsistencies in the characterisation of Sam and Dean, there were a couple of very touching, emotional brother moments in the episode: Dean calling out Sam's name when he is struck down by his heart-attack - even though he is at the phone with Bobby in that moment - was heart-wrenching. The phone call between Sam and Dean about meeting up at the motel and discussing 'food duty' was wonderfully domestic and Dean’s worried 'Sammy, don’t lose' when he sends his brother back to the game with Patrick was genuinely heart-warming. I also liked that Dean’s protest against Sam’s suggestion to play for Dean’s lost years himself didn’t come off as an effort to protect Sam or as an expression of distrust, but was simply based on Sam’s presumed lack in poker skills.
(2) In terms of monster-of-the-week the episode had some nice twists, and I liked that it drew a significant parallel between Bobby and the female witch Lia in particular. Just like Bobby, Lia fought with a depression, a depression caused by the death of her only child, who died of old age, while Lia kept herself young by supernatural means. The fact that Lia rather wanted to die than outlive her family, resonated with Bobby’s death wish in the face of helplessly standing by and watch his friends and family die in the upcoming war, unable to protect them and stand by their side as he used to. I loved the juxtaposition of Lia slowly fading away, after deliberately losing the years of her life in a game with Patrick, and Bobby’s renewed will to live after finding comfort and purpose in Dean’s words.
(3) As for Patrick, I liked that he was morally ambiguous, but not all out evil. He reminded me bit of the Trickster in the way he exploited the weaknesses of the humans he tempted into gambling, not particularly concerned with the fact that in the end the game meant a certain death for most of his opponents, but he was also capable of compassion and played a fair game. I liked that he refused to take Dean’s challenge for another game, when Dean was disadvantaged by his old age, hesitated to take Sam’s 'suicidal' bet in the endgame and granted the old man who just wanted to live to see his granddaughter's bar mitzvah his wish, although he had the better hand. Still, I would have preferred if Sam, Dean and Bobby had made a renewed attempt at putting him out of business by using the reversal spell, instead of just hightailing out of the city after they dodged the bullet. If Dean would have had the presence of mind to snag the glass from Patrick’s apartment after he was de-aged, they could have easily put the spell to use.
(4) Last but not least, I also want to mention here that I thought seasoned TV actor Chad Everett made an excellent old Dean. He had Jensen’s mannerisms and speech inflections as Dean down pat and was very enjoyable to watch, especially in his back and forth banter with Jim Beaver as Bobby. The grumpy old men act was really funny. Although Everett looks nothing like I would picture an 80 year old Dean, I think the 73 year old actor did a commendable job.
In conclusion: While I did enjoy The Curious Case Of Dean Winchester on a certain level, my disappointment with the ongoing inability of the writers to follow through with the promises of character growth and genuine change they made at the beginning of S5, negatively impacts my viewing experience at the moment. I have no doubt that I will be able to look with more fondness on these last two episodes, if the writers manage to alter their course later on in the season, but the longer this lack of development continues, the harder it will be to regain momentum in the story. It’s not like I hated the last episodes, I just know that the show can do so, so much better.
Did you know? Jared is actually quite the poker player himself. In December 2006 he won the celebrity poker tournament in Canada against WSOP champion Jamie Gold.
