careful what you wish for

[llywela]

Hmm.

I'm really enjoying this season. Taken as a whole, it has been remarkably strong, and although some episodes have been stronger than others, even the weaker episodes have tended to be better than the fizzlers of previous seasons.

Having said that, though, I'm kinda dissatisfied with this one, and I've been trying to put my finger on why. I think it's maybe a pacing issue – that and the fact that the a- and b-plots really aren't balanced at all well. It's all rather disjointed, really.

Also, I was rather thrown by Dean's admission at the end that he remembers everything about hell, since I haven't read his behaviour this season that way at all. It has seemed to me to be played very much as if brief flashbacks of the kind we've seen have been it, with full conscious memory firmly repressed. And, you know, I really would have expected him to be a hell of a lot more messed up than he is if he had full recall. So the question is, I suppose: did he remember everything from the start, and lie to Sam about it in Lazarus Rising? Or are we supposed to have understood from previous episodes that his memory has been slowly returning, with Yellow Fever maybe intended rather more clearly than came across as the moment he stopped denying it to himself and realised consciously that yes, he does have full recall, buried beneath those layers of denial? I'm not sure, because even last week it came across more as fleeting flashback, there one second and gone the next, than part of any larger, more permanent, conscious memory.

Here, as in those previous episodes, Dean just doesn't seem messed up enough for someone who truly remembers every detail of his time in hell. So when he says he remembers it all, does he really mean that he remembers every detail, or does he maybe just mean that he is very aware that the memories exist, but is still very actively repressing them – more actively than ever, in fact – because facing up to them means exploring them means re-living them?

Going to have to ponder that one a little more, because the way it came out in this episode really wasn't the smoothest of transitions from previous development.

Also, there has been no sign at all in previous episodes that Sam has noticed Dean's sleep being disturbed in any way, or that Dean has been drinking to excess, and yet here Sam was banging on about how he is with his brother 24/7 and therefore knows all about his nightmares and drinking. I know Sam was just trying to prove a point, hammering on Dean's defence mechanisms every bit as heavy-handedly as he so often has in the past, but it just doesn't tie in all that smoothly with the continuity of previous episodes. I mean, Dean drinking heavily in this one I can understand as a knee-jerk reaction to Sam pressuring him about his memories of hell, goading him to remember something he wants very much to forget. But there has been no sign of heavy drinking in previous episodes, other than when he was in the throes of that ghost sickness. Sam hadn't noticed anything wrong at all before Uriel put the idea in his head. Still. Maybe he has just looked back, with that clue, and noticed a pattern he had previously been blissfully ignorant of – all the more determined to find evidence because Dean is being so evasive.

It just isn't entirely clear, and the mytharc/character development tie-in being so clumsy makes it hard to enjoy the rest of the episode as much as I'd like to, which is a shame because it is entertaining, and very funny in places, the reactions throughout hilarious. I found a fair bit of the humour a little awkward for my tastes, but I often have that trouble with episodes that are designed to be funny – I like my humour natural rather than forced. Overall, the MOTW part of the story was just light-hearted fun, and I did enjoy it. I just wish that the episode as a whole balanced better, and tied in more smoothly with previous episodes.

I did love how very season two both brothers were here, Sam hammering on Dean's emotional defences while totally unprepared for what he might find on the other side, and succeeding only in stressing his brother out, because Dean is trying so very hard to repress those memories Sam is goading him about.

I love that Dean wished for a sandwich. That was just perfect, because…well: a) Dean + food = OTP, and b) it probably seemed like a safe, sensible thing to wish for, in terms of empirical testing of the wishing well! Eating it maybe wasn't so sensible…but Dean would probably argue that that was part of the experiment...*G*

Ted Raimi! Man, timing is everything. I've lately been indulging in a bit of a seaQuest DSV nostalgia-fest, I'm a little embarrassed to admit. That show suffered from everything that was wrong with TV in the early 90s (and earlier) from lousy plotting to virtually non-existent continuity. But I loved it as a mid-teen who knew no better, and have had a soft spot for the characters ever since. So it was kind of a geek thrill to see Ted Raimi popping up here.

Loads more details, of course, that I don't have time to get into right now. The process of recapping this episode will probably clear up a lot of details I'm fuzzy on or less than satisfied with right now, but I'm not sure at the moment just when I can expect to have it finished. My overall reaction as of right now can be summed up as: hmmm. Fun episode, but not a fave.

Comments

[galathea-snb.livejournal.com]

Heh, as you very well know I've been struggling with the same questions and rationalise some away and with some I think maybe things will become clearer later on when we know more. *shrugs* I agree, it was fun but not really a favourite episode. On the first viewing I got by on all the brotherly goodness in the episode. Will see how a 2nd and 3rd watch will affect me and reviewing should nail my final feelings.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Yes, why do we even bother trying to react independently of one another? *G* I think once I get recapping I'll be able to rationalise away a lot of the things that bugged me, although it does irritate me that I have to! Maybe it was my own expectations in terms of Dean's memory that put me off as much as anything.

Mostly, although there were many good moments in this episode, as a complete piece it just didn't flow, and that was off-putting. The a- and b-plots had nothing in common with one another - the wishing well just happened to be a case they were working on while Sam nagged Dean about his memories, rather than working with that character development sub-plot in the way we have come to expect. And the character sub-plot felt very crammed in around the edges of the main storyline, when really it deserved more time. A lot of the development in this episode in fact felt like it should have been spread over a couple more episodes. We needed to see more evidence of Dean's returning memory impacting on his behaviour, aside from intermittent flashbacks that he quickly brushed off, before getting this big reveal.

Also, his speech at the end threw me a little because it was so similar to Sam's 'you can't understand and I can't make you understand' speech in Metamorphosis. But then I thought maybe Dean did that on purpose, parroting Sam's own words back at him in hopes it would make him back off.

When I find time to recap, I'll see how the process affects my take on a lot of this stuff.

[galathea-snb.livejournal.com]

The a- and b-plots had nothing in common with one another I know, nothing of the rather nice interweaving of MotW plot and arc like last week. I also would have preferred Sam nagging about that topic in a more serious context, since their earnest conversations about hell seemed to be so disconnected from their amusement about the case. The emotional flow was rather chopped.

Also, his speech at the end threw me a little because it was so similar to Sam's 'you can't understand and I can't make you understand' speech in Metamorphosis. Oh I thought that was rather deliberate and well done, because it shows that both boys went through a unique experience that they think the other one is unable to relate to, so I thought Dean pushing his brother back with the same words Sam said to him was rather nice. I think a lot about that speech was actually about getting Sam to back off. Dean might even express a deeper conviction about his memories than he actually feels just to get Sam to stop harassing him.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

The emotional flow was rather chopped.
It was indeed, which made it difficult to feel invested in the emotional story, especially given the bumpy continuity.

I thought Dean pushing his brother back with the same words Sam said to him was rather nice.
I appreciated that detail rather more having stopped and thought about it. My immediate reaction was that it was lazy writing to just rehash the same speech - but I'll admit that I was already feeling a little thrown by that whole scene at the time. I was also distracted, wondering if maybe Sam had used the wishing coin to get Dean to talk and maybe that would be the link between the two stories, but apparently not.

Overall, I think although the episode is a lot of fun, it is just too uneven to work properly.

I did really enjoy the brothers' scene at the wishing well, though. Dean wanting Sam to wish for a normal life because he so badly wants Sam to be his old self again, but Sam so far past all that that the idea is nonsensical to him. It drives home just how many massive issues they really are not dealing with this season, instead skating over the surface and pretending that everything is okay, totally not facing up to the true impact of everything that has happened.

That was well done. But the rest of the character continuity not so much.

[solosundance.livejournal.com]

Verrry interesting ... I agree with you about the clunky transition. Maybe one more episode showing a bit of Dean heading down the old PTSD road might have helped, but despite that I must say I got quite a few belly laughs from this ep. Show is being very self-referential this season isn't it ... haha Sam's book being called Supernatural *g* ... but I guess they need to have their fun at this stage of things, especially when the heavy stuff is getting so very heavy. I really liked the look of the ep actually, the structure (I know you found it disjointed and I guess it was), and yes ... the season 2 feel. It also reminded me somehow of Mystery Spot but I can't put my finger on exactly why.

It will be interesting to see where they go with the PTSD Dean story, if Sam will push him anymore, if he'll carry on drinking and so forth. That final scene reminded me of Dean's "now tell me what you could possibly say to make that alright?" in S2 somewhere. I liked how wrecked he looked at the end. I like me a wrecked Dean *g*

Thanks for your first thoughts, I look forward to your full recap!

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Very self-referential! Hee. I should probably have mentioned more moments that I enjoyed, but I ran out of time and had to leave the house so just posted what I had.

There were lots of really great belly laugh moments in the episode, for sure. But just as many jokes that left me cold. And overall, like I said, it felt a little too disjointed - the a-plot overshadowing the b-plot until it felt crammed in around the edges. And the continuity just didn't seem to flow properly. I think I needed to see a little more evidence of lingering distress post-flashbacks to establish more and more returning memory, before we got this admission of full recall.

I daresay I will be able to rationalise away all the little bugbears once I start recapping (when? Such a busy weekend and week ahead!). I doubt this will ever be a fave, though. Still, it could be worse. I've disliked numerous episodes a lot more than this one in the past. *G*

[bogwitch.livejournal.com]

I was left wanting more of the bear.

I agree with everything else. :)

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

The bear was maybe their most bizarre thing yet! I loved their reactions to it, Sam pulling Dean aside and trying to figure out how to ask if they should kill it and Dean being all 'how?!' and all the rest. Lots of moments that were very funny. Just as a whole it felt disjointed and not the smoothest in terms of continuity.

[(Anonymous)]

Yeah, I agree with this. There has been a lot of comedy so far this season, most (though not all) of it worked for me, but I'm assuming that it's because the next few episodes (particularly the next two) are going to be so very dark, and they're lulling us into a false sense of security and getting some laughs in before they disappear completely.

I didn't think this one gelled as well as it could have done, though. They've done comedic episodes far better than this before - even Ben Edlund's own ones, like Bad Day At Black Rock.

About the final scene about Dean in hell, again, I agree that I would have liked to see some more inclination that he remembered more than just flashes of his time in the pit before now. I understand that budget cuts mean they can't show huge amounts, but surely they could have worked a greater hint into his conversations with Castiel or something? I was expecting him to remember everything at some point, but there've not been enough hints that it had happened already.

To be honest, my main squee about this episode (apart from the last scene) came about because it was filmed in Squamish, British Columbia, which I visited this summer. So I spent most of the time bouncing up and down going "I've been there!" / "I've walked on that jetty too!" etc ::/geek:: And probably only a week or two before they filmed this episode there. (The possibilities...)

Otherwise, I think my attention would have wandered.

Still, it had some good moments, and judging by what little I've heard about next week, all will be forgiven very quickly. *eg*

[rhianne.livejournal.com]

Crap - I thought I was logged in. Sorry mate, 'twas me *g*

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Gah, I just typed out a long reply and then this stupid computer (my mother's) kicked me out and I lost it.

Ahem. I was saying...ROFL - I was squinting at the anonymous comment wondering who it could be. *G*

surely they could have worked a greater hint into his conversations with Castiel or something?
Quite. I needed more hints of full recall - what we got said to me only that he was having intermittent flashbacks that were easily shrugged off, as if the conscious memories were not there at all. I was expecting to see more lingering distress after flashback episodes to indicate that more and more memory was consciously returning before getting any admission of full recall.

There was a lot of fun to be had in this episode - some belly laugh moments and some strong brother moments. But the whole seems somehow less than the sum of its parts for me right now. The balance just wasn't quite right, and it wasn't as seamless a transition from previous continuity as it needed to be.

Still - let us hope for great things from the next couple of eps, before the endless hiatus!

[bowtrunckle.livejournal.com]

I agree. This episode was emotionally uneven and went from one extreme to another without any mediating in between. Not only were the A/B plots unrelated storywise and forced to live on the same page with each other thanks to the writers' smashy hammers, they were entirely disparate emotional arcs. Also, there was no follow-through with the emotional consequences. At the end I found myself (surprisingly) thinking, "So Dean remembers Hell, and ... so what?"

They could've arrived at the same plot reveal (Dean remembers Hell) by navigating through a "wish" plot, which would've tied the mytharc into the MotW story better.

There were good things about this episode and it was, at times, amusing. But, for me, this belly flopped and emptied the pool.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Yup, on all counts. It felt very unbalanced, to the point where I felt unconnected with Dean's admission at the end because it felt like there just hadn't been enough build up. In fact, I was kinda distracted by wondering if maybe Sam had used ths wishing coin to get him to talk after all and maybe that would be what connected the two plots!

[lilbabiangel888.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I thought that he was just getting flashbacks and didn't actually remember the whole thing. I guess it could be said that Dean remembering everything was given the vaguest of foreshadowing: i.e. when Dean has his little flashbacks, he doesn't express surprise or at least he isn't startled by whatever he sees, suggesting that he remembers whatever he's seeing and is working through it. but still, very abrupt there.

The A/B plot issue also stands out cuz it seemed like the motw would have belonged better in another episode. I saw someone on my flist talking about how Ted Raimi's character parallels Sam. Wesley said that his grandfather and him were really close and that when his grandfather showed him the coin that supposedly grants wishes, he told him not to use it. Then when his grandfather dies, Wes loses the only person he has so he uses the coin, a dark power he's not supposed to use. Like that seriously struck me as a great addition to a Sam and his demonic powers story.

Overall, I found the ep just really hilarious and trippy. Oh that Ben Edlund

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Interesting parallel. Shame the episode didn't draw it out a bit more clearly!

Overall, I do think it is a fun episode - but seriously unbalanced and very problematic, alas.

[delphinapterus.livejournal.com]

I agree with you completely in regard to Dean's state of trauma of his memories. I feel like show should have put in references to it throughout the previous 7 episodes so it was build up to this reveal. Now it feels like a big thing got missed and put Dean into OOC land. Also remember how upset Dean was that Sam was drinking on a job in Playthings? I can't see that Dean being okay with drinking on job himself.

[llywela13.livejournal.com]

Quite. The flashback moments we've had have been excellent - but very vague. And Dean has been so strong and confident in between times it didn't seem he was even consciously aware of the flashbacks, never mind had regained full recall.

I have decided to rationalise it as being like toothache. It nags away at the back of the mind all the time, but you can live with it - the pain only becomes unbearable when you start probing. Maybe Dean's memories are like that: he is aware of them sitting at the back of his mind, but is repressing like mad because it's the only way he can stay functional.

Or maybe the process of being resurrected has given him enormous mental strength? Who knows - this episode does not make it clear at all.

I can live with Dean drinking on the job, but not drinking to excess - I mean, we've seen him drinking heavily before, but until Yellow Fever had never seen him drunk, and it seemed clear from that episode that it was the ghost sickness that sent him spinning into the bottle. Not his returning memories. So...this episode is fun, but problematic.