thoughts on SPN 7x03

[mickeym]

So, The Girl Next Door. There were a lot of things I liked about it. I'd forgotten that Jensen directed this one; so there was that. (I honestly don't often pay much attention to who directs what and who writes what; the nitty-gritty of that just doesn't appeal to me.) I really liked the glimpses we saw of young!Sam -- and I love Colin Ford as young!Sam. He does a great job, and it provides a good sense of continuity. I really liked young!Amy, and the instant connection between Sam and Amy -- and the building on that, the continuing, even after it's revealed that Amy is a "monster", as well.

Interesting, too, the way Show gives us monsters who only kill as a last resort (and then, criminals)... monsters who are more human than not, versus humans-who-are-monsters (the Benders, in S1). Those were humans who killed for the sport/fun of it. I saw someone, in some other post I read about this, mention that Dean didn't kill the Benders. I suspect it wasn't that he didn't want to, or didn't think they didn't deserve to die...but there was law enforcement present then, the female deputy or whatever she was. I suspect that's the only reason Dean didn't waste whoever was left.

Anyway, back to last night's episode. After all the "let's have the truth", "let's trust each other" etc., etc., I was really disappointed when Dean killed Amy -- after telling Sam okay, he'd let it go, he would trust Sam. I was not surprised that Dean didn't kill Amy's son, though he really should have. I suspect more than anything the network execs wouldn't allow/approve something like that: outright killing of a child. But as I told...destina, I think, it could have been done off-screen or in such a way as to be alluded to. Or maybe the writers were trying to show us that Dean only kills bona fide monsters, i.e., someone who has killed, which the boy hasn't done yet. I don't know. I'm just really disappointed with the way the writers are twisting Dean's character. Maybe they have something in mind, something that will be revealed down the road, and we just have to wait it out. I don't know.

The other thing that really threw me, is how Dean is (as vickita phrased it so well), "waiting, metaphorically, for Sam to blow up in his face".

Honestly, I think he's been doing that, to varying degrees, since John whispered in his ear at the beginning of S2. "He told me I might have to kill you, Sammy." It made sense then, as far as furthering the plot, because we were getting the early reveal of Sam's destiny and so on. But, I've been thinking about this, about the wall in Sam's head, and how Cas took it down, and Dean's reaction now to Sam's hallucinations and whatnot. Sam...is NO DIFFERENT from any other person who is experiencing extreme PTSD. It's not like when he was consuming demon blood. This is not the 'dark side of Sam' coming forward. This has nothing to do with his destiny.

Given how many people deal every single day with mental illness of some sort, you would think based on that alone, that Dean would cut Sam a little slack and give him props for not only being upright, but fairly high-level functioning (taking on a hunt himself? Dude.). But it's being treated (by the writers, and thus, by Dean) as just another instance of Sam-consorting-with-monsters-and-being-untrustworthy. It makes me mad, toward the writers, because that's exactly why people with mental illnesses were locked up, way back when -- because people thought they'd been taken over by demons, etc, when in fact, they're just ill.

Oof. I hope that made sense on some level. Trying to order my thoughts with Matthew blasting SG-1 and a headache =/= good flow.

In conclusion: Show, I still love you. Not breaking up with you yet. But please, can we have some good Sam-and-Dean-in-sync-trusting? Please?

ETA: Okay, I've been given food for thought, a different perspective, that we're seeing Dean crashing and burning and his default coping mechanisms (denial) being tested. killabeez said it a lot better and much more eloquently here.

Comments

[withdiamonds.livejournal.com]

Last night was very disturbing, I agree. But I like what Killa says. And here's another good meta (http://de-nugis.livejournal.com/41962.html#cutid1) that helps, I think.

[mickeym.livejournal.com]

Very disturbing, yes. Ugh. (It's hard to watch -- has been for several years now, to be honest -- the heavy-duty drinking that also constitutes some of their coping abilities.)

Strap in, it's going to be a very bumpy ride. :-/

[nrrrdy-grrrl.livejournal.com]

I liked it and am amazed at how much it upset people.

COLIN FORD! YAY!!

[locknkey.livejournal.com]

I pretty much said what Killa did in another place I commented. Sam and Dean are both recovering, both PTSD and they are falling back on old behaviors, but it just isn't enough anymore. Recovery/health is never a straight line, it's little steps and I kind of like that show is being true to that.

I'm scared for both of them and hope they realize that they are better off being open and honest.

Here's another great perspective. :)
http://smilla02.livejournal.com/238976.html

[ravelqueen.livejournal.com]

I think Deans reaction to Sam comes more from his own problems than Sam himself. His standard coping mechanism (aside from alcohol and lets not get into that beehive before we have to) was telling himself his own issues weren't that important because he had to Take Care Of Sam.

So now that everyting has gone so horribly wrong and he still has the same issues he had before, made worse by Castiel and the whole debacle that was Lisa and Ben (which he royally screwed up btw) he turns to Sam....and Sam is fine. Despite everything he is fine, he manages, he has done what Dean has tried to do so hard, be at peace with his place in life with who he is.

And Dean who has never really tried to find this, has always defined himself in his relation to other people, is really floundering. He has lost all direction. So he flees (as he always frigging does) into thinking Sam is not ok, into a weird hunter persona, into Gordon Hunter in a way, to avoid to think.

I tend to err on the side of optimism and think the writers want to show exactly that, this total loss of direction and thats also why they filmed the last scenes that way: Sam finally really finding himself despite all his problems and Dean really losing his way by not acknowegding tha he has any problems