#sams follower/leader false dichotomy

[scoobydoodean]

4.15 "Death Takes A Holiday":

SAM Police say Mr. Jenkins was shot in the heart at point-blank range by a nine-millimeter. DEAN keeps eating, speaking with his mouth full. DEAN And he's not a doughnut? SAM Locals are saying it's a miracle. DEAN Okay. SAM It's got to be something nasty, right? I mean, people making deals or something. DEAN You think? SAM What else would it be? DEAN I don't know.

Dean isn't acting like a partner—isn't bouncing ideas off Sam like he usually does automatically when Sam's found a case and begins engaging with him about it. He isn't offering Sam a single thought in his head. He's just chewing his food—playing the role of the dumb brother Sam so clearly wants him to fall into.

Sam made it very clear the previous episode (under the siren's influence) that he's stronger, he's smarter, and Dean is holding him back. Therefore, the role Dean ought to play is "dumb sidekick" who simply concedes to Sam's views and doesn't get in the way—who's not as brave as Sam (an epic lie) or as smart as Sam is (another lie of epic proportions) and shouldn't act like it by daring to contribute thoughts.

Dean isn't playing into this thinking because Dean believes Sam's nonsense about him, or because he doesn't want Sam to leave. He's playing into it to make it very clear to Sam that the follower/leader relationship he seems to want so desperately—where Dean hangs on his every word and never questions him—isn't what Sam actually wants at all. The partner he's benefitted from all this time is much better than a dumb brute who just eats his burger.

SAM puts his laptop in his bag. SAM Get that to go. DEAN looks down and doesn't move. SAM Come on. SAM stands up, picking up his bag. DEAN doesn't move except to chew. SAM looks at him, swinging his bag over his shoulder. SAM What? DEAN looks up and keeps chewing, then glances away and back. DEAN Sure you want me going with you? SAM Why wouldn't I? DEAN I don't want to be holding you back or nothing. SAM Dude, I've told you a hundred times, that was the siren talking, not me. Can we get past this?

This is exactly what Sam did at the end of 1.10 "Asylum"—after spewing a very similar list of Dean's "deficiencies" compared to him. He simply stated that he didn't mean it, and felt that was enough—and because he so blatantly lied, Dean saw there was zero point in pressing the issue. Dean treats Sam's hurtful words (that he knows Sam meant) the same way in 4.14. There is no point in talking about it if Sam is just going to lie.

This time, in 4.15, it's actually worse—because Sam was the one who pushed and begged for Dean to open up about Hell—saying he just wanted to help... and then in 4.14 "Sex and Violence", he took all the trauma Dean trusted him with and spit it back in Dean's face:

You're too busy sitting around feeling sorry for yourself. Whining about all the souls you tortured in hell. Boo hoo. (x)

This is the second time Sam has taken a closely guarded secret of Dean's and deeply harmed him with it after begging and pleading and saying he just wanted to know so he could help. If I was Sam, and I actually didn't mean what I said in 4.14, when my full faculties returned, the very first thing I would do is reassure my brother that he is NOT weak and pathetic for being traumatized. What we get from Sam in 4.14? Not that at all.

SAM Dean, look, you know I didn't mean the things I said back there, right? That it was just the siren's spell talking?

It's said flippantly—the same tone he'd use after accidentally bumping into someone on the street. Sam's concern isn't sincerely reassuring his brother that his experiences in Hell don't make him weak. He just wants the matter not to be discussed. In 4.15, he worsens it, by making it clear all he cares about is how his own character is perceived—not whether Dean is actually okay or might have absorbed with words (even if they HAD been false). Sam’s sole concern is defending his character from "false" allegations. It's all about him being treated unfairly by Dean (who dares to not believe him... because Sam's been lying about everything) and how Dean is so terribly unfair because he hasn't gotten over it yet... which in of itself, only reinforces that Sam is lying about not meaning it. What he says here reinforces that he thinks Dean is overly emotional and fussy and his feelings are irrational.

I also sincerely doubt Dean asked him "a hundred times". I also doubt any of the times Sam "told" Dean he didn't mean it were any less flippant and self-centered than the first time. I wouldn't doubt Dean's been giving Sam a hard time, because he knows for a fact that Sam has been lying to him (he heard him talking to Ruby, Dean called her unlisted number in Sam's recent calls and she picked up) and Sam still refuses to admit it. Why wouldn't Dean assume Sam is also lying about not meaning anything he said? The very fact that Sam's hiding his contact with Ruby (after Dean worked with her and even attempted to thank her in 4.10 and also saved her life) reinforces that Sam's explanation under the siren's influence was real. He is leaving Dean out, because he thinks Dean is stupid and weak and is holding him back. They both know Dean meant every word he said, and so did Sam. And we'll have it confirmed for us that Sam meant it in 4.21. Saying Dean's asked him "a hundred times" is nothing than further invalidation of Dean's feelings—more assertions that Dean's irrational and his feelings are invalid and unfair and he's just being crazy.

#4.15 #4.14 #4.21 #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #youre such a control freak #bad liar sam winchester #the flannel business #sams moral compass #deans moral compass #pk rewatches spn number ?

[scoobydoodean]

Zachariah is so focused on Dean in the end of "It's A Terrible Life" that it's easy to think that Sam doesn't mean anything to him and he isn't trying to influence Sam in any way. Sam wanted to drink demon blood and work with Ruby and hunt before this episode and he still wants to do the same things during and after, so it's easy to think that there is nothing here Sam is supposed to "learn" from Zachariah and he's kind of just along for the ride as nothing more than a tool in Zachariah's arsenal to get through to Dean after Dean's breakdown at the end of "On The Head Of A Pin"—to prove to Dean that he wants to be a hunter and it's where he's happiest.

As a result, when we ask ourselves questions like, "Why do they throw in that Dean Smith went to Stanford?" Our answers tend to focus on why Dean would want to have gone to Stanford.

Think about what Zachariah actually wants to happen though. He wants Lucifer to be freed, he wants the brothers relationship to break down (4.22), he wants the apocalypse to happen and for Sam and Dean to become the vessels for Lucifer and Michael.

There is a lesson for Sam in the "It's A Terrible Life"... but the lesson is intentionally very subtle, because what Zachariah wants Sam to take away from this episode is that Sam means nothing to him.

Zachariah wants Sam to feel that to the angels, Sam is nothing more than a loser in a dead-end customer support job in a tiny cubicle with all the other insignificant little worker bees. Meanwhile, Dean is the angels prize. Dean is sitting pretty in an executive-level marketing role on the upper floors. Dean is important to the angels. Dean matters. Dean is special. Sam is loser—he doesn't get an important role. He doesn't get respect. He doesn't get recognition. He doesn't get to meet Zachariah—Castiel's superior—at the end of the episode because he isn't important enough to meet Zachariah personally like Dean is. He only gets to hear it from Dean afterward. He gets to hear that Zachariah gave Dean a (deeply condescending) pep talk about how important Dean is and how special Dean is and how he'll succeed and do everything he's destined to do. Dean gets to hear the things that Sam wants so desperately for someone to tell HIM.

These details are added to make Sam feel more disrespected and minimized by the angels, to make him more jealous of Dean's lofty "righteous man" title. They are added to make Sam angry and to increase his resentment toward Dean.

The Stanford comment is an extra cruel jab. Getting into Stanford was something Sam would have worked very hard for. It was a tangible reward—recognition of his intelligence and talent and effort. It was probably something Sam took a lot of pride in and found extremely validating during a period where Sam always felt like a disappointment to John (1.08). Zachariah simply takes his accomplishment away and gives it to Dean. Sam already thinks people should be paying more attention to him—appreciating the power the demon blood has given to him. He's already said he's stronger and smarter and braver than Dean (4.14, 4.16) and nobody is listening... no one is recognizing that he's the better brother—he's going to be the hero who stops the apocalypse! Giving Sam's schooling to Dean is a way of reinforcing Sam's ego—his belief that Dean is being assigned traits and roles that belong to HIM. It is a tangible reinforcement of his belief that he is better than Dean and Dean is stealing his valor.

#pk rewatches spn number ? #4.17 #season 4 #angels lie #angels and demons lie #zachariah #the flannel business #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #sams envy #4.16 #4.14 #1.08 #sams motivations

[scoobydoodean]

Okay now it's time for an extensive breakdown of Sam's incredibly manipulative pleading at the end of 4.21 that I was making fun of yesterday.

My whole life, you take the wheel, you call the shots, and I trust you because you are my brother. Now I'm asking you, for once, trust me.

There are many lies packed into these two sentences and I want to go through them one by one.

Lie 1: Sam always does what Dean wants to do.

Sam presents his whole life as a life where he has always done what Dean wanted. Sam suggests he has never deviated from Dean's wishes.

However, on many occasions when Sam and Dean have arrived at an impasse, Sam simply went his own way, which directly contradicts his claim that he always takes Dean's lead.

1.11: Dean wants to go on a case John directed them toward, and Sam wants to go to Sacremento to search for John (who doesn't want to be found) with nothing but an area code. He has Dean pull the car over, then gets out and leaves. Sam and Dean later talk on the phone and apologize to each other, but with the understanding they'll both go their own way. Sam gets worried when Dean doesn't respond to his calls (because he's been kidnapped) and abandons his plan to take a bus to California of his own accord.

1.12: Sam tricks Dean into seeing a faith healer by saying they're going to see "A specialist".

1.20: Sam starts a screaming match with John over him telling them to take the next exit on the highway, while Dean complains about them both being insufferable and always getting into petty fights.

2.10: Dean begs that they just lay low for a while and take a break and think (after he reveals John's last words). Sam runs off.

3.05: Dean shoots down Sam's plan to threaten a crossroad's demon (with The Colt) into breaking Dean's contract. Sam sneaks out at night to summon a crossroad's demon anyway and threaten her, and then kills her when she doesn't do what he wants.

3.09: Sam stops Dean from killing Ruby.

3.10: Sam steals a hair off Dean's head so he can go into Dean's dreams with him and insists he is going when Dean objects that he doesn't want Sam in his mind.

3.11: Sam kills Dean at one point on accident when Dean tries to end his reign of terror with the owner of The Mystery Spot.

3.15: Sam wants to stay in town and find Doc Benton so he can use his alchemy to make Dean and himself immortal. Dean wants to go and find Bela, who has The Colt. They part ways, with Sam staying and Dean going to search for Bela alone.

3.16: Right after Dean explicitly states that he does not want Ruby to be summoned in a last ditch play to save his life, Sam summons her behind Dean's back.

4.01: Sam wants to kill the demons that threatened Dean in the diner, and Dean doesn't. Sam sneaks off at night to go back to the diner to kill them on his own, but the angels have beaten him to it.

4.07: After implying that Sam using his powers against Samhain is a joint decision and he wants Dean's feedback, when Dean objects, Sam runs off to face Samhain alone anyway, leaving Dean with several still-trapped teenagers he can't abandon to keep him from following to help.

4.09 (4.01-4.04; 4.12-4.22): We learn that while Dean was dead, Sam directly went against what Sam in 4.04 describes as "Practically [Dean's] dying wish" (4.04) by working with Ruby to hone his powers to take revenge on Lilith. He continues to work with her after Dean is brought back to life until 4.04, then picks the habit back up at the end of 4.12. In 4.14, he says that he is intentionally going behind Dean's back because Dean is too weak to be of use and is holding him back.

4.15: Dean says he can't stop Sam from having secrets, but asks Sam to please not treat him like an idiot (i.e., keep telling lies), when it's obvious that Sam is lying to him about what happened with Alastair in the graveyard. Sam very much continues to lie instead of just insisting upon his privacy.

4.18: Sam and Dean fight about Sam's lies and then because Sam wants to stay in town and face Lilith, while Dean wants to leave to escape Chuck's writing. Sam refuses to budge and the brothers separate until the end of the episode.

4.19: Sam wants to turn Adam into a hunter and Dean hates the idea. Sam first starts teaching Adam about hunting behind Dean's back, then in front of him while Dean watches on, sickened.

In the third hading, I note incidents where Sam and Dean had a dispute and Dean conceded to Sam's views.

Lie 2: Sam follows Dean's lead because Dean is his brother and for no other reason. It's blind faith.

Sam wants wants Dean to set aside his moral principles and his skepticism and place blind faith in Sam for no other reason than that Sam is his brother, and he frames this request as a show of mutual solidarity. He's placed blind faith in Dean, so why can't Dean do the same for him?

First, there's manipulation here in that this alleged blind faith entitles Sam to also receive blind faith in return from someone unwilling to offer it, which is nonsense. Just because you choose to (allegedly) abandon your principles and beliefs for blind faith in another person does not mean the other person is obligated to follow your lead, treating their own moral principles in the same blasé manner you do.

Second, while absolutely—there have been points up to 4.21 where Sam did not do things because Dean didn't want to do them, or where Sam did things he didn't really want to do because Dean wanted to do them... it's very shady to suggest he only ever concedes purely because Dean is his brother and he has blind faith in him.

Thinking up incidents where Sam concedes to Dean's wishes on something:

1.02: Sam objects to Dean wanting to protect Haley and her brother because they'll be dead weight in the woods, while Dean wants to protect them.

1.03: Dean insists on going on the case instead of sitting around angst-ing about John and how the leads on him have dried up, and Sam concedes.

1.10: Sam wants to call the FBI on John to find him while Dean wants to follow the coordinates John just sent them to see if he's there. Sam ends up going along with Dean then spends the whole episode taking his anger about John's absence out on Dean who had no control over it.

1.21: Sam does not rush into a burning building and die trying to reach Azazel because Dean holds him back.

1.22: 1) Sam wants to sit in a motel waiting for an unknown number of demons to arrive with three bullets left in The Colt and Dean insists they go to Bobby's to learn about demons instead. 2) Dean insists on rescuing John over revenge 3) Dean brings The Colt to save John behind Sam's back, and then ends up using a bullet to save Sam's life.

2.04: Dean thinks he's found a case (he has) and Sam thinks he's just making things up. Sam agrees to go along with it even though he's skeptical until the fact that it is a genuine case is proved to him.

2.12: Sam doesn't like Dean trying to work with Ronald to stop the shifter but they don't really have a choice.

2.19: Sam doesn't want to help people in prison and Dean does, and Sam concedes and goes with the crazy plan to get arrested and go to prison to stop the haunting.

3.01: Sam wants to take Dean to another faith healer to try and get him out of his deal and Dean refuses to go.

3.12: Sam wants to sacrifice Nancy and Dean argues against this and offers an alternative plan where no one gets sacrificed, which Sam ends up going with.

3.13: Sam agrees to go on "Their Grand Canyon" hunt as one of Dean's dying wishes and gets mad when it goes sour because of The Ghostfacers.

3.15: Sam wants to turn them into Frankenstein's monsters to save Dean from his deal and Dean says he'd rather die.

3.16: This one is tricky, because Sam initially goes behind Dean's back by summoning Ruby to save Dean specifically against Dean's dying wishes, but then after he gets caught and Dean gets Ruby's knife, Sam concedes to using Dean's plan where they try to sneak up on Lilith and kill her with Ruby's knife. Dean's reasoning is that he wants to end the cycle of them saving each other with demon deals that only turn sour.

I think the pattern shows that contrary to fanon, Sam is not some poor helpless victorian maiden being swept along by the tides of the immutable sea. In most cases, it's that he realizes he thinks Dean is right about something at the end of the day, even if he doesn't like it. Not because Dean is his brother, but because Dean won him over with a well-reasoned argument, Sam realized he was putting his desires over right and wrong, or Sam didn't (at that time) want to disrespect Dean's wishes concerning Dean's own body and life.

NOTE: You might notice season 4 is "missing". This is because when I look at all of the season 4 episodes, the closest thing I can remember related to Sam just agreeing to do whatever Dean wants is him deciding to stop using his powers in 4.04, except that Sam makes it very clear at the end of the episode that he's quitting by his own choice and Dean's wishes have absolutely nothing to do with it.

Lie 3: Dean never does what Sam wants to do, and he never trusts him.

Not only does the supposition that Dean has always taken the lead Sam's "whole life" imply that Dean never concedes to Sam's view, but also when Sam requests Dean's trust "for once"—as if, not one single time in his entire life, has Dean ever taken Sam's lead or put trust in him. My mama used to say "exaggerators are just lie makers in disguise", and this is some wild lie-making in disguise.

1.06: They go back hundreds of miles to check in on Sam's friend who Sam believes has been framed for murder, even though Dean thinks it's kind of wild for Sam to believe his friend didn't do something the police have clear evidence he did.

1.09: Dean goes with Sam to Lawrence after Sam has a vision about someone dying in their whole house. The idea of going back to Lawrence is extremely upsetting to Dean, but he realizes Sam is right and they have to investigate.

1.12: 1) Sam tricks Dean into seeing a faith healer which upsets Dean, but even so, Dean does what Sam wants, goes into the tent, sits where Sam wants him to sit, and goes up on stage to be healed at Sam's request. 2) Sam says they cannot kill whoever is controlling the reaper because they're human. Dean respects Sam's moral principles by doing what he wants to do.

1.14: 1) They go on this case because Sam has a vision and Dean puts his trust in Sam's vision. 2) Sam insists they can't kill Max because he's human, and Dean respects Sam's moral principles by doing what he wants to do.

2.04: Dean goes with Sam to Mary's grave even though he doesn't want to be in Lawrence or to be anywhere near Mary's grave.

2.05: Sam orders Dean to stay away from Ansem because he's vulnerable and Dean easily agrees, going a long distance away to observe from afar with a rifle.

2.09: 1) Sam has a vision that Dean is going to kill someone. Dean is skeptical, but agrees to go along with Sam anyway. 2) Dean doesn't kill the dude infected with croatoan virus partly because of Sam's pleading that it would be wrong, and Dean finding he agrees. Sam is right.

2.04, 2.09, and 2.10: Dean trusts Sam with insights into his emotional state/why he wants to die after Sam asks him to open up about how he's feeling.

2.12: Dean thinks they should have told Ronald about the shapeshifters, but concedes to Sam's perspective.

2.22: Dean begs Sam to rest for a while instead of immediately getting back on the trail after Azazel, not wanting to lose him again, but Sam insists they go, and Dean concedes.

3.07: Dean wants to go face Gordon alone. Sam breaks down in tears and begs Dean to just be his brother again and stop doing reckless things. Dean instantly softens and agrees to lay low.

3.10: Dean doesn't really want Sam in his head invading his privacy but doesn't stop Sam from joining him in his dreams.

3.11: Dean lives over 100 Tuesdays of Sam bossing him around in various ways, including repeatedly insisting they can't leave the motel and he is not allowed to eat breakfast or go anywhere by himself. Dean puts his trust in Sam even though each time he has no clue what's going on and often has little to no context.

4.04: Sam insists they tell Jack Montgomery that he's going through a metamorphosis so that he can try and stop himself from eating people, and Dean agrees.

4.06: Sam spends the whole episode telling Dean what to do and telling him he needs to go places he's scared to go.

4.09: When Alastair breaks into the church, Ruby tells Sam he needs to use his powers to crush Alastair. Dean starts to protest, but concedes after Ruby says they'll all die otherwise.

4.10 #1: Sam enacts a plan that puts Dean and Ruby at extreme risk (Dean with the angels who have threatened to throw him back in hell, Ruby with Alastair). Both put their trust in Sam and his plan.

4.10 and 4.11: Dean opens up to Sam about his trauma from Hell.

4.19: Though he argues with Sam vehemently multiple times about what he's doing, Dean never actually stops Sam from teaching Adam to be a hunter.

Dean trusts Sam multiple times, and follows his lead on several occasions (even a few times with extreme moral reservations, such as 4.09 and 4.19).

I've also pointed out before that Sam picks most of their season 1 and season 2 cases, contrary to the popular fanon claim that Dean is always dragging Sam everywhere to hunt when he doesn't want to. In season 3, Sam leads them to hunts in 4 different episodes (3.04, 3.05, 3.11, 3.15). Dean finds two (3.02, 3.13). Who picked the rest of their season 3 hunts is either not stated, starts with them being contacted by a friend which leads them to investigate (3.01, 3.03, 3.10, 3.14), or is just them getting into a situation against their will (3.12). 5 cases are Sam's idea in season 4, and two are Dean's. The remainder are unknown, mytharc episodes, or kidnappings.

Lie 4: Sam is just asking to be seen as an equal, and Lie 5: Sam trusts Dean.

Sam's most overarching manipulation here is this idea that he just wants equality. He's showed consistent trust and blind faith in Dean and he deserves the same. He's been Dean's loyal follower going wherever Dean wants him to go, and he wants to be treated as an equal now who receives trust equal to the trust he alleges he places in Dean. However, he plainly shows the entire season that he does not want equality. He wants Dean to be beneath him. We see this just a little before this bit of the conversation, when Sam says Dean can't do anything—that he isn't strong enough and only Sam can do this. Sam shows almost the entire season that he doesn't respect Dean as an equal by lying to him over and over about what he's up to, going behind his back, refusing to believe that Dean can stop the apocalypse as the angels have said. He makes it clear in 4.14 that he is keeping his actions a secret because Dean is too weak and pathetic to be of use and is holding him back. We confirm this following episodes (4.16, 4.17, 4.18, 4.21) where Sam explicitly says Dean cannot do what needs to be done and Sam has to take over. Dean is not capable. Sam has no faith or trust in Dean at all.

#bad liar sam winchester #4.21 #season 4 #youre such a control freak #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #In which Sam is not a helpless little waif with his hands cast over his eyes being carried along by the tides of the immutable sea #pk rewatches spn number ?

[scoobydoodean]

DEAN You hate me that much? You think you could kill your own brother? Then go ahead. Pull the trigger. Do it! SAM pulls the trigger. The chamber is empty. He tries again, and once more.

Bad Liar Sam Winchester 2/? | 1.10 Asylum + Transcript

#parallels #pk rewatches spn number ? #good gifs with free tools challenge #1.10 #projecting displaced aggression and scapegoating in spn #bad liar sam winchester #season 1 #the flannel business #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #taurus sam in the flesh #badliarsamwinchesterseries

[scoobydoodean]

What an insufferable pompous asshole.

#pk rewatches spn number ? #4.16 #season 4 #the flannel business #youre such a control freak #sams follower/leader false dichotomy

[scoobydoodean]

There is something so so interesting about Sam shouting, "You're not standing in my way anymore!" in 4.14 "Sex and Violence" under the influence of the siren, while, visually, they're both trapped in an enclosed room, and Sam is the one standing between Dean and the the only exit.

There is also something very very satisfying about Dean blowing through that door using Sam as a fucking battering ram, then standing over him with an axe and saying,

#4.14 #pk rewatches spn number ? #season 4 #the flannel business #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #youre such a control freak

[scoobydoodean]

Working on two big compilation sets—wasn't looking to make this specific comparison. But wanted to point this out because of all the Demons Lie posting I have done on rewatch—especially over the course of season 3.

When demons, in season 3, start telling Sam that Dean is a burden and that Sam is better than him and that he needs to take control over Dean because Dean isn't strong enough to take care of himself or do what needs to be done—Dean is too soft—Dean is too emotional—Dean is weak... they are building from a genuine, dark tangle of feelings Sam is harboring, that we see as early as 1.10—something Sam can't see or discuss.

The well-meaning part of Sam, in season 3, thinks, "Dean is hurting and suicidal and he needs me to save him" (then still thinks the same in season 4). Demons present a narrative where Sam saves Dean by taking charge—by being strong—by leading. Asylum and Sex & Violence split off Sam's good intentions in that and leave behind only the worst thoughts also driving Sam—the ones Sam himself can't see or acknowledge as his own because they are shameful to him.

In early seasons Sam, when he looks at Dean, there is compassion, but then there's pity. There's love, but there's also resentment. There's admiration, but then there's the belief that Dean is less-than (not as smart, not as strong, not as resilient). There's a sense that Dean is righteous and brave and noble, and there's a sense that Dean's heart is too big and all it does is shatter Dean into a thousand pieces over and over and over... and the fact that Dean can't or won't guard that fragile heart better makes Dean weak.

The compassion, love, and admiration lead to a desperation to save Dean, and the pity, resentment, and belief that Dean less than lead to the desperation to control him—because what else can you do with someone so pitiful in order to save them. It is two-fold, one does not exist without the other, but the thoughts also don't make sense because they are opposites. Yet they coexist in a jumble and the negative is tempered and beaten back by the positive... but not when influences like Supernatural lobotomies and sirens are in play. Then we get to see the ugly side only—exactly what those bad parts look like underneath—the parts Sam would never ever show us directly. And those are the negative thoughts demons find so delicious—so useful... right alongside that desperate love.

Demons apply pressure on already-existing doors to thoughts Sam has but compartmentalizes—hides behind a lock and key. They don't create newly invented thoughts Sam's never had before—they dig into his darkest desires and his darkest insecurities and fears with his love and the agony and desperation of it as a pry-tool. The path to destruction paved with good intentions—at least as far as Sam will let himself see.

#pk rewatches spn number ? #1.10 #4.14 #dean the narrative heart #the one who cares #the very touch of you corrupts #good gifs with free tools challenge #season 1 #season 4 #multiseason #the flannel business #demons lie #angels and demons lie #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #youre such a control freak #projecting displaced aggression and scapegoating in spn #dean minimizations

[scoobydoodean]

One thing that bugs me about after school special is that the dude they casted for "teen" Dean is literally a decade older than young Sam. He was closer in age to Jensen than to Colin. Normally I wouldn’t gaf (none of the younger Dean actors ever hit the mark for me so it is what it is), but combined with the episode’s complete lack of empathy for his situation as a parentified child, it feels more insidious. It frames him as way older than he really is, and in a way normalizes his parentification. If they had casted an actual 16 year old, their dynamic would look a lot more honest to what it truly was.

You know I'm don't think I've even fully worked out my frustrations about After School Special yet. I had to stop thinking about it last night because it was 3AM and I had to go to bed (also for more context, see posts I reblogged from Leyla last night jshdbfjhsbdfh).

This episode is just so... messy. It tries to say too many things, it says some absolutely stupid things and some okay things, and in other places, the narrative isn't clear (or maybe Dabb and Loflin are at war with one another on the subject of Dean—who knows). I find some of my frustrations and why I have those frustrations... difficult to explain in words.

That is a good point about the casting of Brock. Mind you—I have nothing against the actor here. I actually have always thought Brock did a great job copying Dean's mannerisms and way of speaking (I assume Jensen worked with him during the episode) and I think he does his best with what he's given and the role he's expected to play. The writing itself isn't his fault, of course.

From a height perspective, they wanted to intentionally contrast Dean with Sam all episode, who's being mocked by Dirk (who's paralleled with Dean and is literally our only window into sympathy toward parentified children which... isn't much at all) for being shorter than him, and I think that's part of why they chose someone much older and taller than Collin Ford.

I also don't think we're necessarily meant to dismiss the knowledge that Sam is much taller than Dean as an adult, but the thing is, if they wanted me to buy into the idea that everyone in After School Special is a bully (except maybe Barry), they did a terrible job. Sam hardly comes off as a bully—all he does is defend himself from someone who used their pain as an excuse to make his and other people's lives miserable (we get better evidence of bully!sam in their previous episode—"Yellow Fever"—actually). Is that what Dabb and/or Loflin think of Dean? That he's made Sam miserable? How? By *looks at notes* not obeying his every whim and following him around like an obedient dog, or perhaps by being dead? Hm. Except Dean doesn't even make Sam miserable in this episode (unless making jokes Sam doesn't find funny counts). Sam even picked the case they're on—Dean doesn't actually really want to go to their old school. Young Dean is reiterating that he'll look out for young Sam the entire episode.

I do think people are right when they say Dean's height (and much older appearance) are meant to reflect how Sam perceived him (After School Special is nearly fully from Sam's POV—Dean is more of a plot device than anything). Young Dean is immediately popular in school. He's handsome and makes the other kids his age laugh from the moment he enters the classroom. He immediately catches the eye of popular girls, and Barry and Sam have an exchange about it.

BARRY That's your brother with Amanda Heckerling? He's cool. YOUNG SAM Yeah. He thinks so.

Sam's paper about their werewolf hunt is, by the teacher's recounting, one where Dean shines the brightest—not Sam. He's the first thing that catches Wyatt's attention. What catches his attention second is John dragging them everywhere. Sam doesn't really factor in at all.

MR. WYATT I'm not flunking you. I'm giving you an "A." Now, aside from the werewolf, is that really how you'd describe your family? YOUNG SAM Yeah. MR. WYATT Well, your brother is quite a character. And your father -- he seems, uh, driven.

This also isn't a bad nugget about Sam, in an episode that comes right after 4.12 which is also to an extent about the desire for fame and attention and the old school versus the new school (where Sam represents the hot, new, popular magic that embraces demonic forces and is pushing out the old ways of doing things). I said 4.13 is also about envy—many of the murders are driven by projections on others. Dirk perceived Sam and Dean as "Jocks... you popular kids... you always thought you were better than everybody else." When that wasn't them at all. I've said that Sam is jealous of Dean (his bravery in combat despite zero powers, in previous seasons—his intelligence and way with people, his title as "the righteous man" while Sam is "the boy with the demon blood"). Dirk was projecting his resentments onto people they didn't apply to as a function of resentment and jealousy from the superiority he himself ultimately perceived them to possess, and that's much more reminiscent of Sam this season (we're about to see him project his insecurities on Dean and become the Big Bad Bully in the next episode—4.14):

OK, fine. You know why I didn't tell you about Ruby, and how we're hunting down Lilith? Because you're too weak to go after her, Dean. You're holding me back. I'm a better hunter than you are. Stronger, smarter. I can take out demons you're too scared to go near. [...] You're too busy sitting around feeling sorry for yourself. Whining about all the souls you tortured in hell. Boo hoo.

For Sam, After School Special isn't a terrible episode. It's just that it almost fully treats Dean as a cartoonish plot device and the neckbeard-type loathing for him almost seeps off the page even with all the nods to performing Dean you could ever want. In After School Special, Dean seems more unlike himself than any episode ever in the history of Supernatural up to this point. I do actually kind of think Dabb took one look at Dean when he came in in season 4 and decided he's a bully because he's popular based on nothing—however much he pretends he's only saying something else... and honestly I don't think he ever really got over it.

#mail #4.13 #dabb #loflin #4.12 #season 4 #pk rewatches spn number ? #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #sams motivations #projecting displaced aggression and scapegoating in spn #sams envy #dabb disk horse #writer disk horse #i wanted so badly to believe i could be saved

[scoobydoodean]

Who is that man? He's my brother. He is so brave.

4.09 | I Know What You Did Last Summer + 2.12 transcript

#4.09 #2.12 #pk rewatches spn number ? #season 4 #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #good gifs with free tools challenge #sams envy

[scoobydoodean]

Taurus Sam in the flesh 1/? You're such a control freak 6/?

Supernatural | 1.02 Lawbitch: Forest Edition

#1.02 #pk rewatches spn number ? #good gifs with free tools challenge #taurus sam in the flesh #youre such a control freak #season 1 #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #taurussaminthefleshseries

[scoobydoodean]

@pinkdean's tags on this gifset got me thinking about Sam in 1.02 when he fights with Roy in the woods, and the PLEASURE he seems to get out of telling him this and how heated the interaction becomes so quickly:

And I remembered from Rach's tags that this interaction reminded me of Sam and John too while I was making the set, specifically in 1.20 when Sam and John fight standing very closely together, and Dean ends up pushing them apart when they're about to start physically fighting—which he also does here with Sam and Roy too.

And THEN I started thinking about how Sam probably at this point looks at where they are and what they're doing and already perceives John's invisible hand directing them—already realizes he is on a case which is his father's world and his father's directive and not his (he thinks—because it isn't yet—hunting isn't something Sam has yet made his own and determined his own reasons for pursuing outside of John).

John isn't out there in the woods (Sam says, with desperate grief a few hours after this interaction) but John was in those woods all the same. Sam fought with John right here—John's desire for control, his pompous belief that he knows everything, his positioning of Sam as a child who knows nothing—all through Roy.

#john #1.02 #parallels #pk rewatches spn number ? #high sodium freak #taurus sam in the flesh #season 1 #1.20 #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #we probably have a lot more in common than just about anyone

[scoobydoodean]

You know sometimes SPN has this problem where they try to tell you something using examples that just don't work that well? Or... well. This one is probably on purpose but...

I'll preface this by saying Sam has every right to make John's life miserable in as many ways as possible in 1.20 "Dead Man's Blood" and the fact that he's completely fed up and done with John being cryptic and refusing to include them is extremely understandable and this is building from YEARS of rage. However, making THIS the straw that breaks the camel's back in the episode is just kind of...

Like. This was extremely dramatic and unnecessary to me over... taking an exit? And yeah—John is irritatingly begrudging about sharing information, but they are on a timetable and he actually does explain about the vampires and why he knows they were the ones responsible for the carjacking when Sam asks. This reaction from Sam just comes off as... Sam getting so fed up with John not offering every single detail to him automatically that he makes a dangerous maneuver in the car to block John on the road and force him to get out of the car for a completely unproductive fight about... not being told specifically why they should get off at a certain exit over the phone before taking it? (And if John had not called and had just taken the exit since he was in front, which is what I would do if someone was following me in their car, was Sam also going to see that as a personal affront and refuse to exit???) Sam comes off as more of a control freak than John does in this scene tbh.

Like there is absolute legitimacy to Sam's rage over how John treats him and Dean, and I imagine John's behavior is extremely triggering for Sam and I didn't live with the guy so what do I know but just saying the specific examples and the specific things Sam sits down on his ass in the dirt over in this episode to demand answers for right this instant (not on the way—not in route—and then put your foot down if you need to?) come off more like he just desperately needs to usurp John's position and be the one in control of their direction rather than him demanding to be treated like an equal.

Like there's John being cryptic and only begrudgingly explaining things and mostly just expecting Sam and Dean to follow him which is of course annoying and frames them as his little soldiers, and then on the complete opposite end of the spectrum is Sam who wants an immediate explantation of every single thing before he will budge an inch so he can evaluate for himself whether or not John is stupid—like every single thing must pass his desk for an approval stamp—he's casting himself as the micromanaging supervisor to John's cryptic manager who never explains anything. He would probably immediately and angrily demand to know "Why" with his arms folded across his chest in this episode if John asked him to pass him a cup sitting on the table.

...And then there's Dean in the middle, getting shit on by both of them for not fully supporting either of these extremes.

#pk rewatches spn number ? #1.20 #john #season 1 #youre such a control freak #sams follower/leader false dichotomy #we probably have a lot more in common than just about anyone #i dont deserve what he put on me

[scoobydoodean]

The Man Without a Plan: Season 1 Squabbles Dean "Wins" because Sam is being dumb

I just want to point out that the "Dean is dragging Sam everywhere" or the "Dean is bossing Sam around" narrative in season 1 also doesn't work for me because in a lot of the moments where I agree Sam and Dean are squabbling and Dean "wins" the squabble (which he does not always—he concedes when he thinks Sam is right), he "wins" the squabbles because Sam is being... objectively stupid—and Sam usually knows that and it's why he concedes—he is able to recognize, even if he can't voice it, that rage is poisoning his ability to think rationally in a given moment.

1.02 #1: Dean wants to talk to Haley and otherwise investigate the situation surrounding the forest before going straight to the coordinates in the woods so they have a better understanding of what kind of hunt they're walking into. Sam just wants to run into the woods with no plan and no clue of what they're facing. He tries to frame Dean as acting irrationally "Are you cruising for a hookup?" which, makes no sense given Dean doesn't know anything about Haley at this point—not even what she looks like, or her age, or anything about her at all.

1.02 #2: Sam doesn't want Haley and her brother to go in the woods, which is reasonable, but he also has no good plan on how to prevent them from going into the woods other than telling them the truth, which they absolutely aren't going to take seriously—especially not when their brother is missing. We directly see how this doesn't work when, later in the episode, Sam tries to convince everyone to leave the woods by telling them the truth, and only succeeds in escalating a situation with hot-headed Roy and making everyone think he's crazy.

1.03 "Dead In The Water": Sam makes a thinly veiled suggestion that Dean doesn't care enough about finding John, because Dean flirts with a waitress and, in the absence of leads on John, starts looking for a case. Sam's suggestion that he doesn't care enough upsets Dean who argues back fiercely and "wins". Does Sam have any leads on John? No. Does he have any ideas at all on where they should go or even what exactly they should be doing instead of going on the case Dean found? Nah. He is just complaining, at Dean, about them not having any leads, and about Dean specifically, not having found another lead on John yet. It is also worth noting at this point that their only two leads so far (the cases from 1.01 and 1.02) both came from Dean.

1.10 "Asylum": They are so dead on leads that Sam is fed up and suggests they sic the FBI on John's ass (which is an objectively terrible suggestion) but then the moment a potential lead materializes in the form of more coordinates from John, Sam is against going to see if he's there, even though he literally has no better ideas of what they could be doing right then besides sitting around the motel hand-wringing or calling the FBI.

1.21 "Salvation": Sam and Dean squabble over Dean keeping Sam from running into a building that was so on fire that I am very sure Sam would have been dead within seconds had he rushed back in.

1.22 "Devil's Trap": Per the name of the episode, Dean directs them to Bobby's so they can learn how to fight demons. Sam's plan, on the other hand, was for them to stay back at the motel waiting for an unknown number of demons to show up with 3 bullets left in The Colt.

There are a few other squabbles they have where I could see two sides or it's more of a difference in morals, and there's one squabble where I think Sam is right (in 1.16 when Dean says they will be a liability to John and should separate). But I just wanted to point out a lot of these are... not Sam being mad because he has good ideas no one is listening to.

#pk rewatches spn number ? #1.02 #1.03 #1.10 #1.16 #1.21 #parallels #spn revisionisms #season 1 #the flannel business #sams follower/leader false dichotomy

[scoobydoodean]

The irony of Sam listening to who he thinks is just some chick talk about not letting your family control your life and choosing your own direction... but he is literally talking to a demon who is trying to control his life and is part of a group of demons who have been in his life trying to control the direction of his life for years, who have a vested interest in driving a wedge between him and his brother because they know Sam loves his brother and that fact could royally screw all of their plans.

#1.11 #pk rewatches spn number ? #meg #demons lie #angels and demons lie #season 1 #the flannel business #sams follower/leader false dichotomy

[scoobydoodean]

Thinking about adding a few more tracked themes to my rewatch. Something something Sam’s follower/leader false dichotomy or: A critical analysis of Sam’s “Who’s the Boss”.