"So you're mad because I'm starting to agree with you?"

[llywela]

I am SO BORED of coughing and sneezing now. How long can this stupid cold possibly last?

*grumble grumble*

Okay, so my meta-rific recap for Malleus Maleficarum is now up - 25 pages in which I ramble on about how much teeth and maggots squick me out, the brothers' shared vocabulary, Sam's expressions, Dean's expertise, gender issues versus archetypes, what it means for Sam to have Dean and Ruby in the same place at the same time, Sam's perception of Dean the Hunter and why trying to shape himself according to that perception is dangerous, role reversal, Sam's chilling ruthlessness when he has a goal in sight, demonic power struggles, Ruby's machinations, and what the show's demon mythology means for Dean. Among other things.

To read the recap, click the link below:

"Nice dick work, Magnum."

The banner was made using caps by marishna. I haven't made any of my usual illustrative graphics this week, due to the brain death caused by this stupid cold, but might edit some in at a later date.

Comments

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

I was never ever offended by anything in the show.
Me either. But I guess people who have axes to grind will find excuses anywhere, whether legitimate or not.

It always kills me to see just how much like John Sam often is in his single-mindedness and how much he really needs Dean at his side to remind him what's important in the end. Sam might be Dean's conscience, but Dean is Sam's connection to family and loyalty. It's so devastating to see that stripped away from Sam, leaving a ruthless hunter in its wake. Ruthless!Sam by choice is even more scary than evil!Sam, turned by forces beyond his control. :(
Oooh, yes. It's scary to think how shut-off Sam could become. And it's also kind of ironic that in terms of straightforward hunting he thinks it is something new, to be a bit ruthless and make hard decisions, but when you think back to season one, he's always had that about him, it just manifested in different situations back then. Now, he's making those decisions more consciously and in cold blood, but when things have been heated or emotional he's always been able to completely shut down on feelings and make the hard choice. Faith was the example I used in the recap, but there's a touch of it in Route 666 as well - it always staggers me that he's so focused on figuring out the answer and so convinced he's right that he almost forgets he's playing with his brother's life. Would it kill him to have Dean wait a few feet back, so that the killer truck is destroyed before it hits him, instead of as it hits him? It would be safer. But Sam never allows for error, he just makes his decision and charges.

I still haven't come up with a good reason for her to attack Dean in the first place. Why not go for Sam directly? Since she knows where their motel is, she could've even just went there and confront Sam directly, with her telekinetic power Sam was never any match for her and if she wanted to kill him she could have achieved that goal any time after she met him at Elisabeth's place. That whole set-up just doesn't make sense to me. :(
I'm going to guess that having realised Sam was in town she wanted a direct showdown with him, face to face, to rub his face in his defeat, but didn't want Dean getting in the way of that. Sam is the one all the demons are interested in, and Dean is just unecessary distraction. So she removes Dean from the picture, which has the added benefit of upsetting Sam and throwing him off his game, and then she's got Sam all to herself. It almost worked, as well.

On the other hand, with the reveal that demons were humans it might be that they do have gender preferences, based on their gender when they were alive
*nods* A gender preference is very likely, especially for those with more of a connection to their past selves, whether conscious or not. But I still don't think it's hugely important to them in the grand scheme of things - the 'slashy' vibe between Ruby and Tammi wasn't about sex or gender, it was about the power balance.

After multiple viewings, the teeth and maggots still squick me out.

Let us look forward to a spectacular twist in the story whenever we get it - but sooner would be so much nicer than later!

[galathea-snb.livejournal.com]

It's scary to think how shut-off Sam could become.
Absolutely. I tend to think that with Dean gone, Sam would step by step go down a similar route like Gordon or most of the other hunters that we met so far. People who all started out as decent human beings but their hunter's quest out of hate & vengeance & despair slowly but surely turned them into 'revenge driven sociapaths'. I think Sam has all the characteristics to potentially slip away like that. It's a horrific thought if you think back at the gentle and caring young man we met at the beginning of the show. Dean needs to stay alive. Period! :)

When you think back to season one, he's always had that about him, it just manifested in different situations back then. (...)
True, but then he was under a great deal of time pressure in both R666 and MM and he had to make a quick decision, that usually doesn't leave a lot of margin for internal debates or questioning. It's noticeable though that Dean usually takes the time to look after his brother first, before he undertakes any steps. I am thinking about how he tries to get Sam to breathe first in 'Home' before he takes action or that he chooses to stay with Sam for his last hours instead of trying to find another solution to the virus problem in 'Croatoan'.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

I think Sam has all the characteristics to potentially slip away like that. It's a horrific thought if you think back at the gentle and caring young man we met at the beginning of the show. Dean needs to stay alive. Period! :)
Poor Sam. And poor Dean. The moment the Yellow-Eyed Demon resurfaced, both of their lives started spiralling down and down and there's still no end in sight :(

True, but then he was under a great deal of time pressure in both R666 and MM and he had to make a quick decision, that usually doesn't leave a lot of margin for internal debates or questioning. It's noticeable though that Dean usually takes the time to look after his brother first, before he undertakes any steps. I am thinking about how he tries to get Sam to breathe first in 'Home' before he takes action or that he chooses to stay with Sam for his last hours instead of trying to find another solution to the virus problem in 'Croatoan'.
*nods again* That's kinda what I mean. It's the way in which Sam is so very like John, and Dean isn't really like either of them. John and Sam both focus on the problem, often to the exclusion of all other considerations. Dean focuses on the person, often to the exclusion of all other considerations. Neither approach is necessarily right or wrong, just very different. But the way Sam is exaggerating that ruthless streak of his is potentially very dangerous. It's the reason they need each other so much - together, they balance out.

[galathea-snb.livejournal.com]

That makes me think again that I really want to know why Sam gave up on getting Dean out of the deal all of a sudden. I mean in RSAM he was fiercely telling Dean that he will go on trying to save him and that he won't apologize for that anymore and in AVSC it's like he has given up already, without any further circumstancial triggers. It makes me wonder if they want to imply that their reconciliation in Fresh Blood made Sam accept the deal for Dean's sake and peace of mind (what with him potentially dropping dead and all) and instead moved on to 'saving' himself, for when Dean is gone. Which really makes me so sad again, damn, those Winchesters! *hugs them tight*

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

It is a puzzler, not having the development explained or explored on screen. But maybe having to fight Dean every step of the way actually helped keep Sam going with his research efforts, because having something tangible to fight against helped keep him angry and therefore prevented him sliding into despair. Since they've had their reconciliation and reached an understanding he doesn't have that any more. That confrontation in Fresh Blood was a turning point for Sam as well as for Dean, because it was the moment his own walls of denial came crashing down, the first time he admitted out lout that he might not be able to save his brother. So maybe without that anger and denial to fuel his stubborn determination to keep going, he's just completely lost all hope that there is any miracle out there to find. And thus he's hit absolute despair.

Poor boys :(

[galathea-snb.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that's the only reasoning that I came up with as well. :( It's still bugging me though since Sam just isn't the type to give up, especially with an important task like that. Facing the fact that he might fail in the end is one thing, giving up on it a completely different one.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Sam never gives up on anything. So maybe it's intended to really drive the point home, showing us that if even Sam is admitting defeat, then it really, really is completely futile. After all, it's been months and the only thing he's found is Ruby and her vague promises. The show is definitely emphasising the hopelessness of Dean's situation in the last few episodes. I still tend to believe that this is to emphasise the magnitude of the miracle when it finally comes *G*

Except of course that Dean will already have hellhounds chewing on him by then, so as to amp up the tension even post-salvation, because this is Supernatural, and even miracles don't come for free, and nothing is ever simple or straightforward! That's my prediction, anyway, which will stand until new information becomes available...

[galathea-snb.livejournal.com]

Maybe, I still prefer to be shown that the situation is hopeless than told so. But I guess with all the different plotlines they have going on some things have been cut short or are assumed to be self-evident.

ROFL of course Dean's salvation will come with a high price, after all, we need some brother complications to angst over in S4 *lol*

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

*looks forward to brotherly complications and angst in season four, and is cheered immensely by the prospect*

*G*