Unsurprisingly, Sam does not take kindly to Dean’s double standards in the matter. From Sam’s perspective, Dean’s argument has to smack of his old 'I am the big brother and I am always right' attitude and Sam has always resented being treated as anything less than an equal.
To be honest, I found that bit a little jarring, since Dean's argument about Benny was identical to his argument about Amy - that it may be that Benny will one day need killing, but when it's a friend you can't so someone else will have to do it. That was so consistent I could hardly fault him, although of course I agree that he handled the Amy situation very badly. In the end I figured it was a counterpoint to Dean's blisteringly unfair tirade against Sam - the arguments are not logical, but make it quite clear that the heart of this conflict is the fear that they are each easily replaced in each other's affections.
Of course, leaving Sam was not a choice on Dean’s part – he did not volunteer for purgatory, after all – but living his life as a hunter was, and ultimately hunting was what lead to his disappearance (from Sam’s life).
I think this works better if you pretend that the tail end of season seven was better written than it was. The possibility of Dean's suicide, and Sam's fear that Dean would make that choice, was a strong theme throughout much of the season, including purgatory foreshadowing in stories like Time After Time. That plot thread was abruptly dropped in favour of ... stuff, but it could be that they are attempting to resurrect it. If Dean's disappearance is framed as him finally succeeding in obliterating himself, it matches neatly against Don: the sudden determination to do something deeply destructive; the fact that Dean/Don loved Sam/Amelia, but apparently not enough to stay.
Now, on first glance Garth may be an unlikely candidate for the position as Bobby’s successor – actually it has always been my hope that Sam and Dean will follow in Bobby’s footsteps one day – but I think his outgoing nature and emotional stability may actually work in his favour. Obviously, he is not the most experienced or knowledgeable hunter, and his rather unconventional demeanour may not sit well with his older, more hardened colleagues, but I do not find it all too difficult to imagine that, with a little perseverance and time, he will grow into the role and garner respect in the community.
I think one nice thing to remember is that Bobby wasn't always 'Bobby'. He was a 'mild-mannered scrap dealer' who had no idea how to handle a demon. The time and effort it must have taken to learn all those languages, acquire all those books and transform himself into a gruff authority figure who could masquerade as any hunter's boss must have been incredible. Of course, Garth's mannerisms are different to Bobby's - but I like the sense of seeing someone at the beginning of Bobby's journey.
In any case, I mostly like Garth. I don't really enjoy some of the humour they build around him - but that's more my taste and not a criticism. I did like the use of the character to illustrate the pain of seeing something you love replaced, and the recognition that sometimes moving on is a practical necessity.
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Unsurprisingly, Sam does not take kindly to Dean’s double standards in the matter. From Sam’s perspective, Dean’s argument has to smack of his old 'I am the big brother and I am always right' attitude and Sam has always resented being treated as anything less than an equal.
To be honest, I found that bit a little jarring, since Dean's argument about Benny was identical to his argument about Amy - that it may be that Benny will one day need killing, but when it's a friend you can't so someone else will have to do it. That was so consistent I could hardly fault him, although of course I agree that he handled the Amy situation very badly. In the end I figured it was a counterpoint to Dean's blisteringly unfair tirade against Sam - the arguments are not logical, but make it quite clear that the heart of this conflict is the fear that they are each easily replaced in each other's affections.
Of course, leaving Sam was not a choice on Dean’s part – he did not volunteer for purgatory, after all – but living his life as a hunter was, and ultimately hunting was what lead to his disappearance (from Sam’s life).
I think this works better if you pretend that the tail end of season seven was better written than it was. The possibility of Dean's suicide, and Sam's fear that Dean would make that choice, was a strong theme throughout much of the season, including purgatory foreshadowing in stories like Time After Time. That plot thread was abruptly dropped in favour of ... stuff, but it could be that they are attempting to resurrect it. If Dean's disappearance is framed as him finally succeeding in obliterating himself, it matches neatly against Don: the sudden determination to do something deeply destructive; the fact that Dean/Don loved Sam/Amelia, but apparently not enough to stay.
Now, on first glance Garth may be an unlikely candidate for the position as Bobby’s successor – actually it has always been my hope that Sam and Dean will follow in Bobby’s footsteps one day – but I think his outgoing nature and emotional stability may actually work in his favour. Obviously, he is not the most experienced or knowledgeable hunter, and his rather unconventional demeanour may not sit well with his older, more hardened colleagues, but I do not find it all too difficult to imagine that, with a little perseverance and time, he will grow into the role and garner respect in the community.
I think one nice thing to remember is that Bobby wasn't always 'Bobby'. He was a 'mild-mannered scrap dealer' who had no idea how to handle a demon. The time and effort it must have taken to learn all those languages, acquire all those books and transform himself into a gruff authority figure who could masquerade as any hunter's boss must have been incredible. Of course, Garth's mannerisms are different to Bobby's - but I like the sense of seeing someone at the beginning of Bobby's journey.
In any case, I mostly like Garth. I don't really enjoy some of the humour they build around him - but that's more my taste and not a criticism. I did like the use of the character to illustrate the pain of seeing something you love replaced, and the recognition that sometimes moving on is a practical necessity.