Review | 7x17 | The Born-Again Identity
Mar. 30th, 2012 12:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
galatheaI admit, I somewhat dreaded The Born-Again Identity. In fact, I did not feel this worked up about an unaired episode in a very long time, and even the fact that Sera Gamble penned it – I tend to love her episodes – did not really reassure me. In the end, I liked the episode more than I thought I would, but I still have my fair share of problems with it. Anyway, the episode brings Sam’s post-hell storyline to a head, and at the same time it returns two old acquaintances of the Winchesters to the screen. The episode covers a lot of ground, plot-wise, but as a result a good part of it feels rushed and underdeveloped. Overall, The Born-Again Identity is not exactly a bad episode, but if I think about the difference between what this episode could have been and what it ended up being, I cannot help but feeling disgruntled.
When the first vague spoilers about The Born-Again Identity hit the internet, I was incredibly excited. After all, the plot description read like a dream come true for every Sam and Dean fan. I mean, Dean trying to find a healer for his psychotic brother, who has been admitted to a locked psych ward? That had all the makings of one of those classic Supernatural episodes, which explore the strength and depth of the brotherly bond. In fact, the episode had the potential to become a second Faith – one of my all-time favourite brother episodes – only with reversed roles for Sam and Dean, so I anticipated The Born-Again Identity like no other episode this season. However, when I learned that the episode would also mark the return of Castiel, my excitement died down pretty quickly, because I feared that, instead of another Faith, I would have to endure another The Rapture, i.e. an episode that sacrifices the culmination of Sam’s season-long arc for a story about Castiel. In the end, the episode landed somewhere in the middle of those two scenarios. On the upside, Sam’s physical and mental deterioration got more screen-time than I thought it would, and his story never felt sidelined for the sake of the other storylines in the episode. On the downside, there was barely any brotherly interaction, and even though I actually enjoyed Castiel’s return more than I expected, I inevitably felt that all the quality Sam-and-Dean time I anticipated had been shifted to Dean and Castiel and, to an extent, Dean and Meg. I don’t usually have a problem if Dean primarily interacts with other characters, but it always depends on the context and, by all rights, this particular episode should have been all about the brothers, and I rarely ever felt like it was.
All in all, I think The Born-Again Identity would have worked a lot better for me if it had been conceived as a two-parter or if the various storylines featured in the episode would have been spread out over several stand-alone episodes. I am really at a loss as to why the writers thought it would be a good idea to pack three major plot developments into one episode. I mean, the brothers facing Sam's pending death, Sam and Dean being confronted with an amnesiac Castiel and the brothers being pulled into the latest power struggle between Meg and Crowley – all of these are interesting, emotionally charged storylines in and of itself, but cram them together into forty minutes and the final outcome is an episode that is less than the sum of its parts, unsurprisingly so. There is simply no time to explore all the complex feelings between the characters involved and as a result the emotional depth of the episode suffers considerably, which, quite frankly, always seems to be the case when the writers decide to focus on storylines about angels and demons, instead of opting for an intimate, character driven narrative. In the end, the script does none of the storylines justice, the emotions often feel flat and the resolutions are rushed. That is not to say that the episode does not have plenty of good aspects – Sam’s rapid deterioration, for example, is heartbreaking and the interaction between Sam and Lucifer is excellent – but overall I feel that the writers missed the opportunity to create something truly extraordinary here. And considering the extremely rich material they had at their disposal for exploration that is rather unfortunate.
Dean: "Quit being Dalai frickin’ Yoda about this, okay. Get pissed."
Sam: "I’m too tired. This is what happens when you throw a soul in Lucifer’s dog bowl. And you think there’s just gonna be some cure out there?"
Of all the storylines in The Born-Again Identity, Sam’s storyline is without a doubt the highpoint of the episode for me. And not because Sam trying to hold on to the last vestiges of his sanity whilst under merciless assault by Lucifer pushes all my hurt!Sam buttons – this is actually the first time that we see Sam in a hospital; Dean, on the other hand, has already been hospitalised three times – but mainly because it is the only storyline in the episode that is given enough room to play out to its full effect. Moreover, this development in Sam’s post-hell arc has been set up for several episodes and now pays off in a satisfactory manner and that, too, adds to the effectiveness of this storyline. Kudos to Jared, by the way, I think he easily delivered one of his best performances in the show here. ♥ Anyway, I guess it comes as no surprise that the opening scene between Sam and Dean is my favourite moment of the episode. Obviously, the brothers’ conversation here mirrors the hospital scene in Faith, only with reversed roles for Sam and Dean. Back then, it was Dean who had resigned himself to his pending death, a resignation that only propelled a stubborn Sam into action. Now it is Sam who has given up on life, which only fuels Dean’s determination to save him anyway. I love especially that Sam softly asks Dean to not do this to himself, concerned that his brother will once again work himself into the ground or make a sacrifice for Sam’s sake. ♥ I also think it is worth noting how very angry Dean gets when Sam mentions Castiel. I mean, seeing Dean so furious of the angel here highlights just how much he forces to restrain himself in his interaction with Castiel later, and it makes his passive-aggressive attitude even more transparent.
Anyway, while Dean races to find a cure for his brother, Sam’s condition rapidly deteriorates, as Lucifer finds new and creative ways to torture him. The only reprieve for Sam comes in form of Marin, a fellow patient, who is diagnosed with depression and suicidal ideation. I think Sam’s interaction with Marin is interesting on several levels. First of all, just like Sam, Marin is hospitalised because of a supernatural 'condition' rather than a medical one, which is why the doctors fail to help her, and obviously it is in Sam’s compassionate nature to do whatever he can to save Marin, especially since there is no one else who even understands the true nature of her problem. However, I think there is more to it than that. We know that redirecting his focus to something/someone other than himself has been one of Sam’s main coping mechanisms these last couple of months, so it makes sense that he would latch onto the opportunity to regain what little control he can by focussing on Marin, if only to hold it together long enough for Dean to find the help he needs. Moreover, Sam identifies with Marin; their stories are very similar, after all. I mean, just like Sam allowed himself in a moment of fear to fall back on Lucifer’s help, Marin allowed herself in a moment of grief to find comfort in the presence of her brother’s ghost. Afterwards, they both found that, once they had acknowledged their 'companions', they could not get rid of them again, which, ultimately, resulted in the destruction of their own sanity. So, Sam can well relate to Marin’s situation and that, too, propels him to help her.
Castiel/Emmanuel: "You’re angry."
Dean: "Well, yeah. Dude broke my brother’s head."
Castiel/Emmanuel: "He betrayed you, this dude. He was your friend?"
Dean: "Yeah, well. He’s gone."
In my review for Out With The Old, I wrote in some length about my impression that Dean seemed to have turned a corner this season. I mean, for a while, his depression seemed to have worn off, he stopped drinking and he appeared less emotionally withdrawn in his interaction with Sam. However, I also pointed out that it is not entirely clear if Dean’s improvement has been a deliberate writing decision or just a fluke, a random upswing in Dean’s condition. Obviously, the latter has been the case, because in The Born-Again Identity Dean is clearly back in a slump. First of all, he is drinking again, even though he at least seems to refrain from the hard liquor for the time being. Now, given Dean’s emotional distress in the face of Sam’s breakdown, I find it not particularly surprising that he falls off the wagon, and if Dean’s beer consumption in the wake of Sam’s hospitalisation would have been the extent of it, I would not be overly concerned. However, at the beginning of the episode, in Sam’s conversation with the dealer, it is at least insinuated that Sam and Dean drank themselves into a stupor that night. Of course, it is possible that their binge was a simple attempt to knock Sam out via alcohol, but still, the thought that Dean did not stop until he passed out, is rather worrisome.
Dean also appears to be somewhat emotionally detached, considering his situation in the episode. I mean, he is clearly worried and determined to save his brother, but compared to other situations in which Sam has been in mortal peril, Dean comes off as relatively subdued. Come to think about it, Dean actually reminds me of Sam in Yellow Fever here. At the time, Sam was intent on saving Dean from the ghost sickness, clearly concerned and protective of his brother, but he also had an air of emotional detachment about him, especially compared to episodes like Faith or Mystery Spot. Back then, I speculated that the part of Sam that shut down when Dean died in No Rest For The Wicked never really recovered after his brother’s return from hell and that by keeping himself detached to some degree, he protected himself from further pain in case things went awry again. I think the same applies to Dean in The Born-Again Identity. Ever since Sam’s mental breakdown in Hello, Cruel World, Dean has been waiting for the other shoe to drop, and even though he may have regained at least some sense of security these last couple of months, deep down he never really allowed himself to believe he has his brother back for good. So, to protect himself from the inevitable hurt of losing Sam again, he kept himself emotionally detached to an extent – a fact we witnessed more than once this season. Of course it does not help that, on top of his worry about Sam, Dean also has to deal with his complicated feelings for Castiel and Meg, so it is not really surprising that he shuts down, emotionally, and focuses on the task at hand, i.e. getting Castiel to Sam by all available means.
And while we are on the subject of Dean and Castiel: I have to say that I am very relieved that the writers refrained from giving the damaged friendship between Dean and Castiel an easy fix. Quite frankly, if Dean had been able to just forget and forgive Castiel’s actions, it would have been wildly out of character. Castiel betrayed him, but even worse, he hurt Sam and Dean is not likely to forgive that easily. As it is, Dean’s reaction to Castiel’s 'resurrection' is pretty unambiguous. From Dean framing Castiel as the bad guy who broke his brother’s head, to his judgment of all angels as corrupt and bloody, to the fact that he does not contradict Castiel’s statement that he deserves to die for what he has done, Dean’s entire demeanour radiates suppressed hurt and anger. Not to mention that he does not hesitate to manipulate Castiel for his own ends, i.e. keeping him purposefully in the dark about his true identity and generally doing everything to placate the angel, so he does not panic and run before Dean can get him to Sam. Still, Dean’s statement that he does not know why he cannot get over Castiel’s actions is very telling. I think the fact that Castiel died before Dean could call him out on his actions prevented him from finding closure; all his feelings of anger and hurt and betrayal came to nothing, since there was no one left to direct these feelings at. Even now, Dean is unable to confront the angel, because healing Sam takes precedence over everything, even his own hurt feelings. At some point though, Dean and Castiel will have to face each other, and only then will Dean be able to move on. However, the fact that he is perfectly fine with leaving Castiel behind on a locked psych ward, as well as his final judgment that all their friends are dead, suggests to me that Dean is not ready to reform his relationship with the angel just yet.
By the way, I know that some fans interpret the scene where Dean returns Castiel’s trench coat to him as a sign of Dean’s forgiveness, but I think that interpretation is not in keeping with Dean’s passive-aggressive demeanour throughout the rest of the episode or even with his general reaction whenever Castiel comes up in a conversation. I mean, ever since Castiel broke Sam’s wall, Dean has shown nothing but anger and disappointment towards the angel, and the only time he dropped his hostile attitude was in the final moments of The Man Who Knew Too Much, where he tried to prevent a soul-empowered Castiel from wreaking havoc on the planet. So, obviously, Dean is capable of putting his personal feelings aside, as long as he has his eyes on the bigger picture, and I think his actions in The Born-Again Identity fall into the same pattern. From the opening scene in the hospital, where he rails against Castiel, to his condemnation of angels when Castiel assumes being one is pleasant, Dean’s demeanour towards Castiel is consistently laced with anger, and it is only when Castiel does what Dean fears most, i.e. despair and run, that Dean changes his tune, reassuring the angel that he did the best he could under the circumstances and offering the trench coat back. Dean’s actions in this moment are clearly designed to appease Castiel and prevent him from leaving before he can help Sam. Personally, I don’t think that Dean transferred the bloodied coat from stolen car to stolen car for sentimental reasons, I think it is symbolic for Dean’s lack of closure where his unresolved feelings towards Castiel are concerned. But well, your miles may vary, that is my view on things anyway.
Dean: "So you’re saying there is nothing? He is gonna be like this until his canon blows out?"
Castiel: "I’m sorry. This isn’t a problem I can make disappear. You know that. But I may be able to shift it."
I admit, I am not at all happy about the resolution to Sam’s Lucifer problem as presented in The Born-Again Identity, because, basically, the episode renders any and all speculation about Lucifer being a hallucination that only exists in Sam’s head null and void. See, up to now, the writers suggested that Sam suffers from a severe psychosis, a purely psychological condition rooted in his hell-trauma – i.e. the damage Lucifer inflicted on his soul while Sam was in the cage and the memories Sam retains from that time – and Sam’s hallucination of Lucifer would have been a typical symptom of that psychosis. However, the fact that Castiel physically transfers Lucifer from Sam to himself, makes no sense whatsoever in that particular scenario. I mean, even if it were possible for Castiel to transfer a mere symptom of someone else’s trauma to himself – which, in itself, is a ridiculous idea – it would simply be pointless, since the source of the symptom remains intact. It is also impossible for Castiel to actually absorb Sam’s trauma itself, because Death made it very clear that the damaged parts of Sam’s soul cannot be removed. That leaves Sam’s memories of the cage, but it does not seem like Castiel took those either. At least Sam does not appear disoriented or amnesic after the transfer process. More importantly though, as soon as Lucifer is transferred into Castiel, he merrily greets him with a 'hello, brother' and that irrevocably proves that Lucifer is indeed an autonomous entity with a consciousness of his own and not a hallucination. After all, a hallucination simply cannot adapt to a 'location change' and independently interact with a new host in this manner. No, all in all, the events in the episode leave no other choice than to conclude that Sam’s Lucifer has been real all along and that Castiel took whatever remnants of Lucifer remained in Sam into himself.
Now, in my review to Repo Man, I already listed the various reasons why I think that the scenario of Lucifer being real is implausible – not impossible, but not likely either – in the context of everything we know about Sam’s 'hallucinations', so I am not going to repeat myself here. Actually, I would be perfectly willing to just handwave any consistency issues that may arise from this unexpected turn of events, if it wasn’t for the fact that, under these circumstances, Castiel’s 'solution' does not actually resolve anything. I mean, the dire warnings Dean received from Castiel, Crowley and Death when he set out to resoul Sam all referred to the damaged state of Sam’s soul and not to the unforeseen event of the real Lucifer somehow worming his way back into Sam’s body/mind. So, while extracting Lucifer may successfully stall the immediate decline of Sam’s condition, it does not actually change the problematic state of Sam’s soul or the horrific memories he retains from the cage. Castiel himself easily admits that he cannot make the original problem disappear, and since he only 'shifts' whatever part of Lucifer still had access to Sam, Sam’s initial hell-trauma – the trauma that, according to Death and Castiel, would send him into a permanent coma or drive him insane – remains untouched. So, basically, we are now at the exact same point as we were when Sam’s wall first came down! Honestly, if the writers wanted to end Sam’s post-hell storyline, this was clearly not the way to do it, at least not without making a complete mess of it. If this is the last we ever heard of Sam’s hell-trauma because the writers deem him cured somehow, I will be very annoyed. I want Sam fixed, too, but I want that fix at least be somewhat plausible and canon compliant.
Castiel: "Don’t defend me. Do you have any idea of the death toll in heaven? On earth? I deserved to die."
Okay, let’s talk about Castiel. While I still maintain that, from a narrative point of view, it was a bad idea on the writers’ part to link the angel’s return – or Meg’s return, for that matter – to the culmination of Sam’s post-hell arc, I actually liked his storyline more than I thought I would. That is mainly owed to the fact that, for the first time, Castiel unhesitatingly takes full responsibility for his actions and makes no attempt to blame his choices on someone else or tries to downplay the severity of what he has done. Castiel’s remorse and grief in the face of the damage he has caused – not only to Sam and Dean, but also to innocent civilians and his angelic brothers and sisters – and his horror at what he has become is clearly genuine. I also really like the fact that Castiel is not actually able to just rebuild the wall he destroyed in Sam’s mind, because it clearly shows just how much he miscalculated back in The Man Who Knew Too Much, when he promised that he will fix Sam, once his purgatory plan succeeded. Now, despite the massive problems I have with the overall solution to Sam’s Lucifer problem here, I do appreciate that Castiel does not hesitate to do whatever it takes to at least redeem himself for the horrible things he has done to Sam, even if that includes sacrificing his own sanity. While I would have preferred for Castiel to be forced to live with the consequences of his actions every day, trying to do penance and steadily working for his redemption, instead of just making one big gesture by way of apology, I can see why this kind of poetic justice scenario appealed to the writers.
That being said, however, there is one thing that bothers me. The writers often try to draw distinct parallels between Castiel’s journey and Sam’s journey, and I have no doubt that Castiel taking Lucifer into his body to redeem himself for destroying Sam’s wall is intended to mirror Sam taking Lucifer into himself in order to put him back into the cage and thus redeem himself for breaking the last seal. However, this particular parallel does not really work for me. First of all, after Sam allowed Lucifer into his body, he jumped into the cage, where his soul was systematically tortured for almost two centuries, and whatever part of Lucifer Castiel took into him, we know from Sam’s ordeal these past couple of months that he cannot actually hurt Castiel. In fact, we know that it is entirely possible to just ignore Lucifer for an extended period of time. So, overall, Castiel's terrified reaction to Lucifer seems entirely out of proportion and makes little sense to me. I mean, Lucifer can try to drive Castiel insane and thus bring him to hurt himself, but that's about it. With Sam, Lucifer had the advantage of being able to exploit the trauma of their shared time in the cage to undermine his defences; Castiel, however, is more or less a clean slate for Lucifer, and the only thing he is able to exploit is Castiel’s guilt over his misguided actions. Moreover, Castiel is not human. He does not need to sleep or eat, and he may not be Lucifer’s equal, but, surely, he should be better mentally equipped to deal with an angel in his head than a severely traumatised Sam. All told, I daresay that the suffering Castiel endures as a result of transferring Lucifer's remnants from Sam to himself is not even in the same league as the torment Sam suffered in the cage and the trauma he had to face after the wall came down. And, quite frankly, I resent the writers’ insinuation that their situations are even remotely comparable.
What else is noteworthy:
(1) The Born-Again Identity is the first episode since The Slice Girls that gives us another glimpse of Bobby’s ghost. I have to admit that I find ghost!Bobby’s appearances oddly comforting. I truly miss the grumpy old man and his snarky comments on all things Winchester. Not to mention the emotional support he provided for the brothers, Dean in particular. I love that Bobby’s ghost makes an appearance when the brothers need him most, calling Dean’s attention to a contact in his address book, which ultimately leads him to Castiel. ♥ By the way, I would really like to know how the hunters Dean contacted in an attempt to find a healer for Sam reacted to his request. I mean, given the Winchesters’ questionable reputation in the hunters’ community, I would assume that many disconnected the call as soon as Dean mentioned his name. We witness at least once that Dean does not receive a warm welcome with his inquiry, and I wonder how many hunters did not call back, simply because it was Dean Winchester asking for help.
(2) It just figures that the moment I express how glad I am that there have barely been any demons this season, they are back, front and centre. As I said before, I really wished the writers would have refrained from adding Meg’s storyline to the episode, because, strictly speaking, Meg’s presence serves no actual purpose and only presents a distraction. Not to mention that it further limits the already limited time for the storylines centred around Sam, Dean and Castiel. Personally, I would be way more likely to care about the rekindled power struggle between Meg and Crowley, if it would surface at a time where I am not completely immersed in Sam and Dean’s drama. I just have little patience for the plights of other characters when the brothers are in acute danger, especially when those characters are not even vital to Sam and Dean’s storyline at that point. But well, maybe that’s just me. Anyway, it’s no secret that I am really, really tired of stories about demons and angels, and the fact that Meg, Crowley and Castiel make their return at this point in the season suggests to me that they will feature prominently in the S7 finale. And that’s not a particularly exciting prospect for me.
In conclusion: The Born-Again Identity could have been an extraordinary episode about brotherly love, but instead it is a somewhat lukewarm mishmash of storylines, each of which deserved a more thorough exploration than the limited time allowed for. Additionally, the way the writers deal with Sam’s Lucifer problem here has the potential to riddle the so far perfectly fine post-hell arc for Sam with inconsistencies, and I find that frustrating. Although, maybe the writers will surprise me in that regard and smooth things out in the next couple of episodes. What? Stranger things have happened, surely! I mean, there are still six episodes to go, so I don’t think the writers will turn to the leviathan arc just yet – they will save that for the season finale – and that gives me hope that the next few episodes will be simple standalones with enough room to explore the aftermath of the events in The Born-Again Identity. It would certainly go a long way to reconcile me with the less satisfying parts of this episode.
* * *
Did you know? Both Jensen and Misha thought the scene where Dean gives Castiel back his trenchcoat was a little ridiculous. Jensen said that there was really no reason for that coat to be in one of Dean's stolen cars. Apparently the dialogue between Dean and Castiel had also been slightly out of character, so Jensen and Misha altered it. (JiB 2012)
When the first vague spoilers about The Born-Again Identity hit the internet, I was incredibly excited. After all, the plot description read like a dream come true for every Sam and Dean fan. I mean, Dean trying to find a healer for his psychotic brother, who has been admitted to a locked psych ward? That had all the makings of one of those classic Supernatural episodes, which explore the strength and depth of the brotherly bond. In fact, the episode had the potential to become a second Faith – one of my all-time favourite brother episodes – only with reversed roles for Sam and Dean, so I anticipated The Born-Again Identity like no other episode this season. However, when I learned that the episode would also mark the return of Castiel, my excitement died down pretty quickly, because I feared that, instead of another Faith, I would have to endure another The Rapture, i.e. an episode that sacrifices the culmination of Sam’s season-long arc for a story about Castiel. In the end, the episode landed somewhere in the middle of those two scenarios. On the upside, Sam’s physical and mental deterioration got more screen-time than I thought it would, and his story never felt sidelined for the sake of the other storylines in the episode. On the downside, there was barely any brotherly interaction, and even though I actually enjoyed Castiel’s return more than I expected, I inevitably felt that all the quality Sam-and-Dean time I anticipated had been shifted to Dean and Castiel and, to an extent, Dean and Meg. I don’t usually have a problem if Dean primarily interacts with other characters, but it always depends on the context and, by all rights, this particular episode should have been all about the brothers, and I rarely ever felt like it was.
All in all, I think The Born-Again Identity would have worked a lot better for me if it had been conceived as a two-parter or if the various storylines featured in the episode would have been spread out over several stand-alone episodes. I am really at a loss as to why the writers thought it would be a good idea to pack three major plot developments into one episode. I mean, the brothers facing Sam's pending death, Sam and Dean being confronted with an amnesiac Castiel and the brothers being pulled into the latest power struggle between Meg and Crowley – all of these are interesting, emotionally charged storylines in and of itself, but cram them together into forty minutes and the final outcome is an episode that is less than the sum of its parts, unsurprisingly so. There is simply no time to explore all the complex feelings between the characters involved and as a result the emotional depth of the episode suffers considerably, which, quite frankly, always seems to be the case when the writers decide to focus on storylines about angels and demons, instead of opting for an intimate, character driven narrative. In the end, the script does none of the storylines justice, the emotions often feel flat and the resolutions are rushed. That is not to say that the episode does not have plenty of good aspects – Sam’s rapid deterioration, for example, is heartbreaking and the interaction between Sam and Lucifer is excellent – but overall I feel that the writers missed the opportunity to create something truly extraordinary here. And considering the extremely rich material they had at their disposal for exploration that is rather unfortunate.
Dean: "Quit being Dalai frickin’ Yoda about this, okay. Get pissed."
Sam: "I’m too tired. This is what happens when you throw a soul in Lucifer’s dog bowl. And you think there’s just gonna be some cure out there?"
Of all the storylines in The Born-Again Identity, Sam’s storyline is without a doubt the highpoint of the episode for me. And not because Sam trying to hold on to the last vestiges of his sanity whilst under merciless assault by Lucifer pushes all my hurt!Sam buttons – this is actually the first time that we see Sam in a hospital; Dean, on the other hand, has already been hospitalised three times – but mainly because it is the only storyline in the episode that is given enough room to play out to its full effect. Moreover, this development in Sam’s post-hell arc has been set up for several episodes and now pays off in a satisfactory manner and that, too, adds to the effectiveness of this storyline. Kudos to Jared, by the way, I think he easily delivered one of his best performances in the show here. ♥ Anyway, I guess it comes as no surprise that the opening scene between Sam and Dean is my favourite moment of the episode. Obviously, the brothers’ conversation here mirrors the hospital scene in Faith, only with reversed roles for Sam and Dean. Back then, it was Dean who had resigned himself to his pending death, a resignation that only propelled a stubborn Sam into action. Now it is Sam who has given up on life, which only fuels Dean’s determination to save him anyway. I love especially that Sam softly asks Dean to not do this to himself, concerned that his brother will once again work himself into the ground or make a sacrifice for Sam’s sake. ♥ I also think it is worth noting how very angry Dean gets when Sam mentions Castiel. I mean, seeing Dean so furious of the angel here highlights just how much he forces to restrain himself in his interaction with Castiel later, and it makes his passive-aggressive attitude even more transparent.
Anyway, while Dean races to find a cure for his brother, Sam’s condition rapidly deteriorates, as Lucifer finds new and creative ways to torture him. The only reprieve for Sam comes in form of Marin, a fellow patient, who is diagnosed with depression and suicidal ideation. I think Sam’s interaction with Marin is interesting on several levels. First of all, just like Sam, Marin is hospitalised because of a supernatural 'condition' rather than a medical one, which is why the doctors fail to help her, and obviously it is in Sam’s compassionate nature to do whatever he can to save Marin, especially since there is no one else who even understands the true nature of her problem. However, I think there is more to it than that. We know that redirecting his focus to something/someone other than himself has been one of Sam’s main coping mechanisms these last couple of months, so it makes sense that he would latch onto the opportunity to regain what little control he can by focussing on Marin, if only to hold it together long enough for Dean to find the help he needs. Moreover, Sam identifies with Marin; their stories are very similar, after all. I mean, just like Sam allowed himself in a moment of fear to fall back on Lucifer’s help, Marin allowed herself in a moment of grief to find comfort in the presence of her brother’s ghost. Afterwards, they both found that, once they had acknowledged their 'companions', they could not get rid of them again, which, ultimately, resulted in the destruction of their own sanity. So, Sam can well relate to Marin’s situation and that, too, propels him to help her.
Castiel/Emmanuel: "You’re angry."
Dean: "Well, yeah. Dude broke my brother’s head."
Castiel/Emmanuel: "He betrayed you, this dude. He was your friend?"
Dean: "Yeah, well. He’s gone."
In my review for Out With The Old, I wrote in some length about my impression that Dean seemed to have turned a corner this season. I mean, for a while, his depression seemed to have worn off, he stopped drinking and he appeared less emotionally withdrawn in his interaction with Sam. However, I also pointed out that it is not entirely clear if Dean’s improvement has been a deliberate writing decision or just a fluke, a random upswing in Dean’s condition. Obviously, the latter has been the case, because in The Born-Again Identity Dean is clearly back in a slump. First of all, he is drinking again, even though he at least seems to refrain from the hard liquor for the time being. Now, given Dean’s emotional distress in the face of Sam’s breakdown, I find it not particularly surprising that he falls off the wagon, and if Dean’s beer consumption in the wake of Sam’s hospitalisation would have been the extent of it, I would not be overly concerned. However, at the beginning of the episode, in Sam’s conversation with the dealer, it is at least insinuated that Sam and Dean drank themselves into a stupor that night. Of course, it is possible that their binge was a simple attempt to knock Sam out via alcohol, but still, the thought that Dean did not stop until he passed out, is rather worrisome.
Dean also appears to be somewhat emotionally detached, considering his situation in the episode. I mean, he is clearly worried and determined to save his brother, but compared to other situations in which Sam has been in mortal peril, Dean comes off as relatively subdued. Come to think about it, Dean actually reminds me of Sam in Yellow Fever here. At the time, Sam was intent on saving Dean from the ghost sickness, clearly concerned and protective of his brother, but he also had an air of emotional detachment about him, especially compared to episodes like Faith or Mystery Spot. Back then, I speculated that the part of Sam that shut down when Dean died in No Rest For The Wicked never really recovered after his brother’s return from hell and that by keeping himself detached to some degree, he protected himself from further pain in case things went awry again. I think the same applies to Dean in The Born-Again Identity. Ever since Sam’s mental breakdown in Hello, Cruel World, Dean has been waiting for the other shoe to drop, and even though he may have regained at least some sense of security these last couple of months, deep down he never really allowed himself to believe he has his brother back for good. So, to protect himself from the inevitable hurt of losing Sam again, he kept himself emotionally detached to an extent – a fact we witnessed more than once this season. Of course it does not help that, on top of his worry about Sam, Dean also has to deal with his complicated feelings for Castiel and Meg, so it is not really surprising that he shuts down, emotionally, and focuses on the task at hand, i.e. getting Castiel to Sam by all available means.
And while we are on the subject of Dean and Castiel: I have to say that I am very relieved that the writers refrained from giving the damaged friendship between Dean and Castiel an easy fix. Quite frankly, if Dean had been able to just forget and forgive Castiel’s actions, it would have been wildly out of character. Castiel betrayed him, but even worse, he hurt Sam and Dean is not likely to forgive that easily. As it is, Dean’s reaction to Castiel’s 'resurrection' is pretty unambiguous. From Dean framing Castiel as the bad guy who broke his brother’s head, to his judgment of all angels as corrupt and bloody, to the fact that he does not contradict Castiel’s statement that he deserves to die for what he has done, Dean’s entire demeanour radiates suppressed hurt and anger. Not to mention that he does not hesitate to manipulate Castiel for his own ends, i.e. keeping him purposefully in the dark about his true identity and generally doing everything to placate the angel, so he does not panic and run before Dean can get him to Sam. Still, Dean’s statement that he does not know why he cannot get over Castiel’s actions is very telling. I think the fact that Castiel died before Dean could call him out on his actions prevented him from finding closure; all his feelings of anger and hurt and betrayal came to nothing, since there was no one left to direct these feelings at. Even now, Dean is unable to confront the angel, because healing Sam takes precedence over everything, even his own hurt feelings. At some point though, Dean and Castiel will have to face each other, and only then will Dean be able to move on. However, the fact that he is perfectly fine with leaving Castiel behind on a locked psych ward, as well as his final judgment that all their friends are dead, suggests to me that Dean is not ready to reform his relationship with the angel just yet.
By the way, I know that some fans interpret the scene where Dean returns Castiel’s trench coat to him as a sign of Dean’s forgiveness, but I think that interpretation is not in keeping with Dean’s passive-aggressive demeanour throughout the rest of the episode or even with his general reaction whenever Castiel comes up in a conversation. I mean, ever since Castiel broke Sam’s wall, Dean has shown nothing but anger and disappointment towards the angel, and the only time he dropped his hostile attitude was in the final moments of The Man Who Knew Too Much, where he tried to prevent a soul-empowered Castiel from wreaking havoc on the planet. So, obviously, Dean is capable of putting his personal feelings aside, as long as he has his eyes on the bigger picture, and I think his actions in The Born-Again Identity fall into the same pattern. From the opening scene in the hospital, where he rails against Castiel, to his condemnation of angels when Castiel assumes being one is pleasant, Dean’s demeanour towards Castiel is consistently laced with anger, and it is only when Castiel does what Dean fears most, i.e. despair and run, that Dean changes his tune, reassuring the angel that he did the best he could under the circumstances and offering the trench coat back. Dean’s actions in this moment are clearly designed to appease Castiel and prevent him from leaving before he can help Sam. Personally, I don’t think that Dean transferred the bloodied coat from stolen car to stolen car for sentimental reasons, I think it is symbolic for Dean’s lack of closure where his unresolved feelings towards Castiel are concerned. But well, your miles may vary, that is my view on things anyway.
Dean: "So you’re saying there is nothing? He is gonna be like this until his canon blows out?"
Castiel: "I’m sorry. This isn’t a problem I can make disappear. You know that. But I may be able to shift it."
I admit, I am not at all happy about the resolution to Sam’s Lucifer problem as presented in The Born-Again Identity, because, basically, the episode renders any and all speculation about Lucifer being a hallucination that only exists in Sam’s head null and void. See, up to now, the writers suggested that Sam suffers from a severe psychosis, a purely psychological condition rooted in his hell-trauma – i.e. the damage Lucifer inflicted on his soul while Sam was in the cage and the memories Sam retains from that time – and Sam’s hallucination of Lucifer would have been a typical symptom of that psychosis. However, the fact that Castiel physically transfers Lucifer from Sam to himself, makes no sense whatsoever in that particular scenario. I mean, even if it were possible for Castiel to transfer a mere symptom of someone else’s trauma to himself – which, in itself, is a ridiculous idea – it would simply be pointless, since the source of the symptom remains intact. It is also impossible for Castiel to actually absorb Sam’s trauma itself, because Death made it very clear that the damaged parts of Sam’s soul cannot be removed. That leaves Sam’s memories of the cage, but it does not seem like Castiel took those either. At least Sam does not appear disoriented or amnesic after the transfer process. More importantly though, as soon as Lucifer is transferred into Castiel, he merrily greets him with a 'hello, brother' and that irrevocably proves that Lucifer is indeed an autonomous entity with a consciousness of his own and not a hallucination. After all, a hallucination simply cannot adapt to a 'location change' and independently interact with a new host in this manner. No, all in all, the events in the episode leave no other choice than to conclude that Sam’s Lucifer has been real all along and that Castiel took whatever remnants of Lucifer remained in Sam into himself.
Now, in my review to Repo Man, I already listed the various reasons why I think that the scenario of Lucifer being real is implausible – not impossible, but not likely either – in the context of everything we know about Sam’s 'hallucinations', so I am not going to repeat myself here. Actually, I would be perfectly willing to just handwave any consistency issues that may arise from this unexpected turn of events, if it wasn’t for the fact that, under these circumstances, Castiel’s 'solution' does not actually resolve anything. I mean, the dire warnings Dean received from Castiel, Crowley and Death when he set out to resoul Sam all referred to the damaged state of Sam’s soul and not to the unforeseen event of the real Lucifer somehow worming his way back into Sam’s body/mind. So, while extracting Lucifer may successfully stall the immediate decline of Sam’s condition, it does not actually change the problematic state of Sam’s soul or the horrific memories he retains from the cage. Castiel himself easily admits that he cannot make the original problem disappear, and since he only 'shifts' whatever part of Lucifer still had access to Sam, Sam’s initial hell-trauma – the trauma that, according to Death and Castiel, would send him into a permanent coma or drive him insane – remains untouched. So, basically, we are now at the exact same point as we were when Sam’s wall first came down! Honestly, if the writers wanted to end Sam’s post-hell storyline, this was clearly not the way to do it, at least not without making a complete mess of it. If this is the last we ever heard of Sam’s hell-trauma because the writers deem him cured somehow, I will be very annoyed. I want Sam fixed, too, but I want that fix at least be somewhat plausible and canon compliant.
Castiel: "Don’t defend me. Do you have any idea of the death toll in heaven? On earth? I deserved to die."
Okay, let’s talk about Castiel. While I still maintain that, from a narrative point of view, it was a bad idea on the writers’ part to link the angel’s return – or Meg’s return, for that matter – to the culmination of Sam’s post-hell arc, I actually liked his storyline more than I thought I would. That is mainly owed to the fact that, for the first time, Castiel unhesitatingly takes full responsibility for his actions and makes no attempt to blame his choices on someone else or tries to downplay the severity of what he has done. Castiel’s remorse and grief in the face of the damage he has caused – not only to Sam and Dean, but also to innocent civilians and his angelic brothers and sisters – and his horror at what he has become is clearly genuine. I also really like the fact that Castiel is not actually able to just rebuild the wall he destroyed in Sam’s mind, because it clearly shows just how much he miscalculated back in The Man Who Knew Too Much, when he promised that he will fix Sam, once his purgatory plan succeeded. Now, despite the massive problems I have with the overall solution to Sam’s Lucifer problem here, I do appreciate that Castiel does not hesitate to do whatever it takes to at least redeem himself for the horrible things he has done to Sam, even if that includes sacrificing his own sanity. While I would have preferred for Castiel to be forced to live with the consequences of his actions every day, trying to do penance and steadily working for his redemption, instead of just making one big gesture by way of apology, I can see why this kind of poetic justice scenario appealed to the writers.
That being said, however, there is one thing that bothers me. The writers often try to draw distinct parallels between Castiel’s journey and Sam’s journey, and I have no doubt that Castiel taking Lucifer into his body to redeem himself for destroying Sam’s wall is intended to mirror Sam taking Lucifer into himself in order to put him back into the cage and thus redeem himself for breaking the last seal. However, this particular parallel does not really work for me. First of all, after Sam allowed Lucifer into his body, he jumped into the cage, where his soul was systematically tortured for almost two centuries, and whatever part of Lucifer Castiel took into him, we know from Sam’s ordeal these past couple of months that he cannot actually hurt Castiel. In fact, we know that it is entirely possible to just ignore Lucifer for an extended period of time. So, overall, Castiel's terrified reaction to Lucifer seems entirely out of proportion and makes little sense to me. I mean, Lucifer can try to drive Castiel insane and thus bring him to hurt himself, but that's about it. With Sam, Lucifer had the advantage of being able to exploit the trauma of their shared time in the cage to undermine his defences; Castiel, however, is more or less a clean slate for Lucifer, and the only thing he is able to exploit is Castiel’s guilt over his misguided actions. Moreover, Castiel is not human. He does not need to sleep or eat, and he may not be Lucifer’s equal, but, surely, he should be better mentally equipped to deal with an angel in his head than a severely traumatised Sam. All told, I daresay that the suffering Castiel endures as a result of transferring Lucifer's remnants from Sam to himself is not even in the same league as the torment Sam suffered in the cage and the trauma he had to face after the wall came down. And, quite frankly, I resent the writers’ insinuation that their situations are even remotely comparable.
What else is noteworthy:
(1) The Born-Again Identity is the first episode since The Slice Girls that gives us another glimpse of Bobby’s ghost. I have to admit that I find ghost!Bobby’s appearances oddly comforting. I truly miss the grumpy old man and his snarky comments on all things Winchester. Not to mention the emotional support he provided for the brothers, Dean in particular. I love that Bobby’s ghost makes an appearance when the brothers need him most, calling Dean’s attention to a contact in his address book, which ultimately leads him to Castiel. ♥ By the way, I would really like to know how the hunters Dean contacted in an attempt to find a healer for Sam reacted to his request. I mean, given the Winchesters’ questionable reputation in the hunters’ community, I would assume that many disconnected the call as soon as Dean mentioned his name. We witness at least once that Dean does not receive a warm welcome with his inquiry, and I wonder how many hunters did not call back, simply because it was Dean Winchester asking for help.
(2) It just figures that the moment I express how glad I am that there have barely been any demons this season, they are back, front and centre. As I said before, I really wished the writers would have refrained from adding Meg’s storyline to the episode, because, strictly speaking, Meg’s presence serves no actual purpose and only presents a distraction. Not to mention that it further limits the already limited time for the storylines centred around Sam, Dean and Castiel. Personally, I would be way more likely to care about the rekindled power struggle between Meg and Crowley, if it would surface at a time where I am not completely immersed in Sam and Dean’s drama. I just have little patience for the plights of other characters when the brothers are in acute danger, especially when those characters are not even vital to Sam and Dean’s storyline at that point. But well, maybe that’s just me. Anyway, it’s no secret that I am really, really tired of stories about demons and angels, and the fact that Meg, Crowley and Castiel make their return at this point in the season suggests to me that they will feature prominently in the S7 finale. And that’s not a particularly exciting prospect for me.
In conclusion: The Born-Again Identity could have been an extraordinary episode about brotherly love, but instead it is a somewhat lukewarm mishmash of storylines, each of which deserved a more thorough exploration than the limited time allowed for. Additionally, the way the writers deal with Sam’s Lucifer problem here has the potential to riddle the so far perfectly fine post-hell arc for Sam with inconsistencies, and I find that frustrating. Although, maybe the writers will surprise me in that regard and smooth things out in the next couple of episodes. What? Stranger things have happened, surely! I mean, there are still six episodes to go, so I don’t think the writers will turn to the leviathan arc just yet – they will save that for the season finale – and that gives me hope that the next few episodes will be simple standalones with enough room to explore the aftermath of the events in The Born-Again Identity. It would certainly go a long way to reconcile me with the less satisfying parts of this episode.
Did you know? Both Jensen and Misha thought the scene where Dean gives Castiel back his trenchcoat was a little ridiculous. Jensen said that there was really no reason for that coat to be in one of Dean's stolen cars. Apparently the dialogue between Dean and Castiel had also been slightly out of character, so Jensen and Misha altered it. (JiB 2012)
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Date: 2012-03-30 10:36 am (UTC)Meh, you had to mention it, didn't you :P
Good analysis of the episode, hon.
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Date: 2012-03-30 10:52 am (UTC)Thanks! :)
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Date: 2012-03-30 11:00 am (UTC)Considering you weren't sure you'd find much to say about this one, you've done a good job of drawing out the major themes, emotional arcs and plot strands. :)
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Date: 2012-03-30 11:09 am (UTC)Thanks. I always knew that I would have my fair share to say about the whole Lucifer mess in the episode, but once I started thinking about the rest, I couldn't stop writing. I would actually have written more, if I hadn't run out of time, what with a new episode airing tonight. LOL
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Date: 2012-03-30 11:57 am (UTC)Yeah that was my problem because it's not like it was a bad episode exactly, but it was so frustrating the way they crammed everything in there when they could have had two amazing episodes to deal with Sam's breakdown and then Castiel's return (with both Dean AND Sam allowed to respond to Cas after what he did). And they do have 24 episodes this season, so I'm not sure why they felt the need to rush it all in one episode instead?
I got into this in my review, but my biggest disappointment was that I wanted the episode to be all about the brothers, I had been waiting all season for the consequences of Sam losing his mind and being sectioned to hit Dean hard and possibly be a breaking-point for him. Instead the moment of the episode where Sam was cured gave us no epic brotherly reunion whatsoever because the focus immediately switched to Castiel struggling, and that was the biggest disappointment of the episode to me when I wanted to see Jensen play Deans' response to having Sam back. If there was ever an ideal time for a brotherly hug!
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Date: 2012-03-30 12:15 pm (UTC)I think it's 23 episodes, no? But anyway, yes, why cram it all together? I really have no idea what possessed them. There is still plenty of time in the season left to give each storyline room to unfold. /sigh
I got into this in my review, but my biggest disappointment was that I wanted the episode to be all about the brothers
Yeah, me, too. I mean, when has there ever been an episode where one of the brothers is dying that was NOT a heartwrenching display of brotherly love? To have this amazing story about Sam going insane and Dean needing to save him, and then NOT milk it for all the emotion it is worth makes no sense to me.
If there was ever an ideal time for a brotherly hug!
Exactly! I mean, I loved Dean's panicked 'SAM!' and that Sam's first word was his brother's name, but then - nothing. The cut to Sam and Dean running out of the hospital was very jarring. So what? They just stuffed Castiel into a hospital gown and then left? Besides, Sam would likely have fallen into a deep sleep immediately after Lucifer's removal. It feels like there is a chunk of the episode is missing. I still hold out that we will get some emotional fallout to The Born-Again Identity in the next episode, but I would not bet on it. /sigh