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#that whole thing with Anna?? and the angel vs demon thing for like an episode??
chaos-mybeloved · 9 months
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I think we as a society moved on from season 4 of supernatural too quickly
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bing-bang-bingo · 3 years
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- 4x3: c. 40:00 Cas comforts Dean after Mary makes a deal w/ Azazel
- 4x7: 15:50 Dean stops Sam from shooting Cas, then Sam mentions that he’s “heard a lot about him”
- 4x7: 39:00 Cas tells Dean he prayed he’d save the town, then he tells him about his doubts and Deans future troubles
- 4x10 & ???: Dean calls “last night on Earth” his best line. He uses this line on Cas
- 4x10: 27:15 “Castiel has this weakness. He likes you.”
- 4x10: 32:50 Cas looking jealous and sad when Dean kisses Anna
- 4x16: 7:30 Cas tells Dean he got in trouble for showing emotion and getting to close to Dean. 8:20 “I would give anything not to have you do this”
- 4x16: 39:00 Cas warns Dean to be careful while Dean is in the hospital, they discuss the first seal and saving Dean from hell
- 4x18: 31:30 Cas tells Dean how to save Sam from Lilith even though he’s not allowed to interfere
- 4x20: 38:00 Deans face when Cas tells him he “learned his lesson when he was in heaven”
- 4x22: 30:40 Cas considers rebelling for Dean. 33:00 He does. 35:20 He fights multiple Archangels for Dean
- 5x1: 5:45 Dean denies Cas’ death 8:25 “I learned that from my friend Cas you son of a bitch”
- 5x1: 31:00 Cas saves Sam and Dean from Zach
- 5x3: 6:10 Cas-“I need your help because your the only one who will help me”
- 5x3: 10:20 Dean fixes Cas’ tie and jacket
- 5x4: 38:50 “Don’t Ever Change”
- 5x8: 38:20 Dean makes Gabriel bring Cas back, then makes sure he’s okay
- 5x13: ?:?? Cas won’t let Dean meet with Anna because it’s not safe
- 5x17: 30:30 Cas and Dean discuss what it’s like to have a deadbeat dad
- 5x18: 25:15 Cas kicks Deans ass for trying to sacrifice himself
- 5x21: 3:50 Cas and Dean bickering like and old married couple then Cas gives Dean a heartfelt apology.
- 6x17: 18:55 “No you’re confusing me with the other angel, the one in the dirty trench coat who is in love with you.”
- 6x17: 38:00 Sam: “So you killed 50,000 people for us?” Cas: *looks at Dean*
- 6x19: 25:20 Bobby reassures Cas that they’ll be back soon, Cas acts like a worried and disappointed wife.
- 6x19: 36:25 Cas yelling “Dean!” when Eve bites him
- 6x19: 40:00 Dean is the only one who doesn’t think Cas is working with Crowley (he’s wrong but it’s sweet)
- 6x20: 4:50 Dean v v worried, “But Cas you’ll call right? If you get into real trouble?”
- 6:30 Crowley implies that Cas is distracted by Dean and tells him he reeks of the Impala.
- 7:20 Cas says that Dean taught him how to care and what to care about. Then Cas saves Sam (for Dean)
- 13:15 Cas says that the worst part of working with Crowley (basically his sworn natural enemy) is that it hurt Dean and that he hated lying to him.
- 25:20 Cas refuses to ask Dean for help because he has “sacrificed too much” even though it means Cas could die.
- 26:00 Crowley tells Cas he has a way for everyone to get a happy ending “with all possible entendres intended” while Cas stares longingly at Dean.
- 33:00 Dean is close to tears when he learns that Cas is working with Crowley, Cas says he did it to protect Dean.
- 35:25 “Dammit Cas we can fix this!” “Dean it’s not broken!” He then tells the boys to run from the demon cloud and Dean gives him the saddest look in the world before being forced to leave him behind.
- 38:00 Cas watches Dean sleep. “I’m doing this for you Dean. I’m doing this because of you!”
- 6x21: 22:40 “I do everything you ask. I always come when you call and I am your friend. Still despite your lack of faith in me and now your threats I’ve just saved you yet again. Has anyone but your closest kin ever done more for you?”
- 6x22: Dean to Cas- “Don’t make me lose you, too.”
- 7x2: 5:35 Dean nearly cries on screen when he thinks Cas is dead
- 7x17: Cas says “I remember ~you~” as soon as he regains his memories.
- 7x17: Cas ask why Dean didn’t tell him all the horrible things Cas did. Parallels the conversation Karen and Dean had about telling Bobby she remembered him killing her and her telling Dean that he had never been on love before.
- 7x21: The face Dean makes when he sees Cas again plus the prolonged eye contact when Cas says Deans name.
- 7x21: Hester telling Dean that when Cas first saved him from Hell he was lost- parallels- Lucifer/Jess saying she was dead the moment she met Sam.
- 7x23: 8:50 “Go ask him. He was your boyfriend first.” Meg to Dean about Cas
- 7x23: 32:45 “I’m sorry but I’d rather have you, cursed or not.”
- 7x23: 36:50 Cas steps in to protect Dean despite spending the whole season avoiding fighting and saying he won’t fight.
- 8x2: 25:00 Cas ran away to keep the Leviathans away from Dean. Dean refuses to leave purgatory without Cas.
- 8x7: 20:30 Deans reaction to seeing Cas all cleaned up.
- 8x7: Dean convinced himself that it was his fault Cas was still in purgatory because he’s a sweet idiot boy who hates himself
- 8x7: 35:00 The whole Dean and Cas conversation about purgatory and Cas doing stuff that puts him in danger.
- 8x8: 12:30 Cas just casually going through Deans stuff and Dean not saying anything.
- 8x8: 13:00 Cas offering to watch over Dean while he slept
- 8x8: 15:15 Dean talks to Cas about feelings and heaven even though Dean hates talking about feelings.
- 8x17: Cas fights Naomi’s mind control for Dean
- 8x23: 22:50 Dean and Cas sadly discuss Cas closing the doors of heaven and say goodbye
- 9x1: Dean prays to Cas and tells him he isn’t mad about the angels falling.
- 9x1: Cas’ first instinct is to explain himself to Dean then to come help him.
- 9x1: Dean begs Cas to “for once, look out for yourself.”
- 9x3: 36:45 Dean to Cas after Cas came back from the dead “Don’t you ever do that again!”
- 9x6: Literally just Dean trying desperately the whole episode to hang out with Cas
- 9x10: 26:00 Dean and Cas talk about how Cas is doing and Dean offers him a rare sincere apology. Plus the “I prefer the term ‘trusting’. Less dumb, less ass.” dialogue
- 9x18: Cas’ little smile when Dean makes a joke about Honor Bars and Cas is just so happy to hear his voice.
- 9x18: Metatron’s illusion of Gabriel calls Cas Dean’s boy-toy
- 9x18: Cas can tell something is wrong with Dean, then Cas yells at Dean about getting the Mark of Cain
- 9x22: Cas chooses Dean over all of Heaven once again
- 9x22: The Cas and Dean conversation about the three of them being enough when an army wasn’t and Cas giving up an army all for Dean
- 9x23: “I’m blaming you for taking Cas’ grace.”
- 10x1: 5:00 Cas about Dean- “I miss him.”
- 10x2: 9:00 Cas’ reaction to learning that Dean is a demon
- 10x3: The conversation between Dean and Cas at the end of the episode. “You look terrible” “You on the other hand, your looking good.”
- 10x5: Deans reaction to Cas and Dean actors hugging and holding hands
- 10x5: “Put as much sub into that text as you possibly can.” *looks directly at fake Cas*
- 10x9: 15:00 Cas tells Dean he’s a good role model. Then asks him if he’s okay and when Dean lies and says he is he pushes it further. Dean makes Cas promise to kill him if he goes Dark
- 10x22: Dean and Cas fight and parallel Cain and his Wife.
- 10x23: Dean sees Cas’ bloody face in the mirror
- 11x1: Cas being more worried about Dean than himself even though Cas is under a spell that will kill him.
- 11x2: Dean calling Cas and stressing out when he doesn’t answer
- 11x3: Dean trying to coax Cas out of the attack dog spell, refusing to fight back when Cas was attacking, freaking out when Cas took a minute to wake up, refusing to let Cas heal him (because he “had it coming”), and refusing to let Cas apologize (because “there’s nothing to apologize for”).
- 11x10: “Dean, I came as soon as you called.” Also: “Stick your tongue out.” Dean-*does*
- 11x11: Dean realizing that something is wrong with Cas (while he is possessed by Lucifer)
- 11x11: Mildred says that Dean is pining for someone else(probably meant to be a reference to Amara, but she told him this after he had seen Cas for the first time in a few days.)
- 11x14: The sadness on Deans face when he realizes Cas is Lucifer and then his determination to save Cas
- 11x15: Dean getting kinda dark when he talks about what he’s willing to do to save Cas and he prioritizes saving Cas over bearing Amara.
- 11x17: Dean once again prioritizing saving Cas over saving the world. Sam reassuring Dean that they’ll save Cas (even though Dean didn’t say anything about what was upsetting him)
- 11x17: The camera zooming in on Dean after Michelle says that there is no normal after losing the man you love.
- 11x18: Dean refuses to put Lucifer in the cage or let him fight Amara while using Cas as his vessel.
- 11x18: The difference in the way Dean looks at Lucifer vs at Cas
- 11x18: Dean about Cas: “Lets go find that idiot and bring him home.”
- 11x19: Dean has been looking for leads non stop for a week since Amara took Cas
- 11x21: Amara uses Cas’s heart to find Dean, then shows Dean images of Cas beaten and bloodied to convince him to turn against Chuck
- 11x23: Dean’s face when he realizes Cas is back and Lucifer is gone.
- 11x23: Dean tells Cas he isn’t stupid and that he always helps
- 11x23: Cas: “Dean are you okay? How do you feel?”
- 11x23: Cas hugging Dean super tight before he goes off to die. Dean entrusting his life’s purpose (look after Sam) then thanking him for everything.
- 12x1: Cas seeing that Dean is alive and hugging him while his voice breaks.
- 12x1: Cas taking the job Dean have him very seriously
- 12x2: Dean adorably venting to Cas about his mommy-issues
- 12x3: Dean- “Morning sunshine want some coffee.” Cas- “No thank you.”
- 12x7: “Well at least I don’t look like a lumberjack.” They are such husbands
- 12x7: “Engaged in what Cas? killing you?”
- 12x8: Cas being so worried about what happened to Sam and DEAN that Kelly escaped.
- 12x9: Mary-“You left them!” Cas- *voice breaking* “Dean told me to go!” Also, just Cas looking so hard for them.
- 12x9: Cas blaming himself for Sam and Dean being taken
- 12x9 Cas knowing how long the boys have been gone down to the hour.
- 12x9: Cas’s voice and eyes when he hears Dean’s voice on the phone.
- 12x9: Cas killing Billie because “You mean too much to me” and “The world needs as many Winchesters as it can get.”
- 12x10: Poor Sam having to deal with Cas and Dean while they fight like an old married couple.
- 12x10: Dean immediately telling Ishim to go to hell when he insults Cas
- 12x10: Sam telling Dean to go to Cas when Dean thought Cas was in trouble
- 12x10: Cas immediately believing Dean about Ishim even though they’re mad at each other. Dean about to let Ishim kill him to save Cas.
- 12x10: Ishim comparing Dean and Cas’s relationship to Ishims relationship with his human lover, then saying he was going to cut Cas’s human weakness
- 12x11: “And Cas is my best friend.”
- 12x12: Dean about Cas- “My shy but devastatingly handsome friend here...”
- 12x12: Dean stressing out and voice breaking as he tries to comfort poisoned Cas
- 12x12: LITERALLY TOLD DEAN THAT HE LOVED HIM WHILE CAS WAS DYING
- 12x12: *looking at Dean* “I love you.” Then adds “I love all of you”
- 12x12: Cas- “Run.” Dean- “Cas, no.”
- 12x12: The look Dean gives Cas when he won’t stop staring at him after he’s healed.
- 12x14: Dean says some very harsh stuff to Mary after finding out the reason they Cas almost died at the lake house was because Mary was working for the British Men of Letters
- 12x15: Dean could tell something was up with Cas after talking to him for less than a minute, over the phone.
- 12x18: Sam trying to make Dean feel better about not hearing from Cas.
- 12x19: Dean literally always acting like a scorned wife when Cas comes back after long periods of time
- 12x19: Dean made Cas a mixtape
- 12x19: Cas- “I ~needed~ to came back here with a win for you.”
- 12x19: Cas- *gesturing between Dean and himself* “You mean... we?” Dean- “Yes, dumbass, we.”
- 12x23: Dean screaming for Cas when he attacks Lucifer and trying to chase after him forcing Sam to drag Dean back through the rift. A direct parallel to Dean pulling Sam away from Jess and the fire in Pilot
- 12x23: Dean kneeling next to Cas’s dead body looking up at the sky completely devastated.
- 13x1: Dean couldn’t bring himself to say dead when referring to Cas
- 13x1: Dean PRAYED to GOD to bring Cas back
- 13x1: “We just lost ~everything~. And now you’re gonna bring ~him~ back.”
- 13x1: Dean personally wrapping Cas’s body and giving him a hunters funeral.
- 13x1: The look of complete devastation on Dean’s face when he burns Cas’s body.
- 13x3: Dean refusing to help save Jack because he blames him for manipulating Cas and getting him killed.
- 13x4: The Empty to Cas: “I know what you love, what you fear. There is nothing for you back there.” He loves Dean and Cas fears that Dean doesn’t love him back.
- 13x5: Sam being worried about Dean who has given up all hope since Cas died.
- 13x5: Dean being so distressed thinking Cas is gone forever that he tries to kill himself
- 13x5: Dean seeing Cas alive again and they both have tears in their eyes.
- 13x6: Dean hugging Cas and saying he’s been gone for “too damn long”
- 13x6: Dean being immediately happier and nicer to everyone once Cas is back
- 13x6: Cas saying “Yes. Yes, he does” (in response to Jack saying Dean really likes cowboys) with the tone of an exhausted spouse.
- 13x6: “I told you, he’s an angry sleeper. Like a bear.”
- 13x6: Dean made Cas watch Tombstone with him.
- 13x6: Dean and Cas dresses like cowboy husbands.
- 13x6: Cas saying “I’m your huckleberry” to Dean in a deep accent and Dean looking away.
- 13x6: Their undercover names are Russel and Kilmer
- 13x14: The whole scene where Cas and Dean fight Gog/Magog and act like an old married couple.
- 13x14: The angry, dark look Cas gives Donatello when he tries to kill Dean
- 13x16: “Dean has him by the thigh!” Cas, jealously: “He ~what~?”
- 13x16: “and that includes the Cartwright twins.” Cas, again jealously: “what did you do with the Cartwright twins?”
- 13x19: Cas angrily confronting Naomi about forcing him to kill a bunch of Dean clones.
- 13x21: Cas secretly sliding Dean more pizza when Mary and Sam left the room.
- 13x21: Cas having to hold Dean back from going after Sam. Dean would have beat the shit out of anyone else who tried to stop him.
- 13x23: Cas trying to stop Dean from giving himself to Michael even if it meant losing Sam AND Jack
- 13x23: Cas sitting alone in the bum jet with tears in his eyes after Dean left
- 14x1: Demon: “How is it you lost Dean. I thought you two were joined at the... everything.”
- 14x1: Dean trying to save Cas from Lucifer then vs Cas trying to save Dean from Michael now
- 14x3: The look that Dean and Cas give each other when Dean comes home.
- 14x9: Cas almost being happy seeing Dean happy. And then having to force himself to not be happy so he doesn’t die.
- 14x12: Cas being phased at Dean for wanting to put himself in the box with Michael forever
- 14x14: Cas is the only Dean will let talk to him about Michael and be honest about how Dean feels
- 14x14: “No, it’s on us.”
- 14x14: Cas’s voice breaking when he talks about the possibility of Dean dying one day.
- 14x18: The pure self loathing in Cas’s eyes when he feels like he failed Dean by not telling him about Jack’s soul.
- 15x2: “You asked ‘what about all of this is real?’ We are.” THE MOST ROMANTIC LINE EVER. (Plus later Eileen and Sam have the same conversation but they get to kiss because homophobia)
- 15x9- 20:00 Dean said that they lost everyone they cared about, then added Cas specifically. Then he says “I had to bury him” not “we”
- 15x9- 23:00 Dean cries when he can’t find Cas. Then he prays to him and apologizes for letting him go. He falls to his knees praying to him and fully crying
- 15x12: “I created the world.” *shows Destiel*
- 15x15: This time when Dean sees Cas leaving the bunker, he stops him. (In reference to Cas saying “you didn’t stop me” when Dean got mad at him for leaving)
- 15x16: This is the the only version of Cas that rebelled for Dean. This universe is literally being saved repeatedly because of Cas’s love for Dean
- 15x18: CAS CONFESSES HIS LOVE TO DEAN then goes to mega hell for being gay
Anyway, Cas loves Dean and Dean LOVES HIM BACK, OKAY?!?!? Feel free to add more
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spn-romantica · 3 years
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So I watched SPN for years, right up until the end of S11, when they brought back Mary. I heard that S15 would be the last season, and I was like ‘oh ok I’ll rewatch (for like the 8th time) and finish SPN then’ BUT THEN 15x18 happened and I was violently pulled back into the SPN fandom. I still haven’t caught up fully watching yet, but I’ve read so much discourse now...and I have thoughts. Hypotheses currently. I’ll wait to finish the whole show for real to call any of this theories but, I wanted to record my thoughts.
They’re about Chuck. As a villain. Which weirds me out. As an antagonist? Sure. As evil? No. Can’t envision it. I just finished my rewatch of S5 and, damn, but if Chuck is the ultimate villain, S5 reads very differently. :0
But I recently saw a post comparing Dean’s reaction in 1x18 (I believe) to his in 10x05 (for sure) about when someone mentions his mother’s death. In 1x18, it’s Sam when they were children and Dean gets angry. In 10x05, it’s a group of high school girls and Dean just bops his head along to the song. The post was framing it as 10x05 not understanding Dean’s thoughts about his mother, but I think that both episodes understand Dean. When Dean is a child, the trauma over his mother’s murder is still fresh. By 10x05, the event is 70 years in the past. Of course it still affects Dean. Of course. You never really get over something like that. But I’d argue that after 70 years, Dean has moved through the stages of grief to acceptance. It still hurts, but like an old ache, not a fresh, still-bleeding wound.
Interestingly, 10x05 is when we see Chuck, after a long absence. He’s watching the play, probably happy that someone loves his work enough to even make a musical, but he is also watching the Winchesters. The actual episodes of the show, aka the books Chuck writes, are what Chuck knows/cares about regarding the Winchesters. Despite being God, I’d argue he doesn’t pay attention to every second and all the little minutia of the boys’ lives. So, here in 10x05, we have confirmation that Chuck is around to see that Dean has healed from his mother’s death.
Later, in S11, Dean acts as therapist/life counsellor to Chuck/God, regarding Amara and Lucifer. And it works! Dean teaches God about family and about healing. Why does God listen to Dean Winchester, a random human? Perhaps it is because of S1-5. Perhaps it is because Dean and Sam were part of God’s test, as God himself describes it in 5x22.
What was the test? Was it God’s experiment about choice and free will? About freedom vs peace? Or, perhaps, was God trying to understand sibling relationships? He and Amara are two faces of the same coin. They are siblings, but with very different outlooks and it caused a rift between them, caused Chuck to seal Amara away before she could destroy his creations. Chuck regretted this, but saw it as a necessary betrayal. But then, some time later, Chuck’s angelic children experience their own betrayal and sibling rift. Lucifer tries to turn the angels against God, rebel and reject God. He makes demons, for sure, and maybe even Hell. But why? God figures that Lucifer was maybe jealous of the new baby (humans) like others in the show postulates. Or maybe Lucifer had beef specifically with Michael, because humans are little more than amoebas from an angelic perspective. Aside from Castiel, Anna and a handful of other angels, angels consistently view humans as humans might view dust mites. Maybe humans were the cause of the rift between Michael and Lucifer, but it was Michael and Lucifer’s relationship that needed fixing in the end, regardless.
So God is left with the sad conclusion that maybe close siblings will inevitably betray each other and be unable to forgive and heal. He wants to heal with Amara. But he also wants Michael and Lucifer to be able to heal. (It doesn’t occur to God that maybe Lucifer’s problem was never with humanity or Michael; it was with God.)
So God has research to do, to see if it’s possible for siblings to experience such deep betrayal and still heal. He turns to his little hairless apes, the only sentient species on Earth with potential to parallel the angels. He starts testing siblings. Cain and Abel are first up. Needless to say, but the betrayal was too strong and left no room for healing. But on down the line of Cain, God continues testing. Eventually, we come to Sam and Dean.
God has scheduled Michael and Lucifer’s family counselling session for 2010. All the data up to this point says it can only end badly. Maybe it’ll half-kill the Earth, but it’s finally time for Michael and Lucifer to meet and for one of them to die. God isn’t happy about this conclusion, but it’s what the data says. So, finally, the last test subjects, the last in the line who will be the vessels for Michael and Lucifer’s showdown, arrive. Sam and Dean Winchester are to be the last sibling test. The conclusion seems foregone at this point, but there is no point in cancelling the last bit of the test after so long, so it continues. God watches. And Sam and Dean surprise God. Siblings after siblings had failed for millennia to heal. Betrayals too strong, healing too little, too late. But Sam and Dean. no matter how badly they hurt each other, find a way to come back together and heal. They don’t give up on each other, despite millennia of data to the contrary. Still, the angels and demons push and push at Sam and Dean until their rift is as wide and as deep as Michael and Lucifer’s, as God’s and Amara’s (in late S4). It seems, despite the brothers’ best efforts earlier on, it’s all for naught.
But there is a further element of randomness, something God couldn’t foresee. Castiel. God hasn’t had occasion for romantic love in his own experience, so he is entirely blind to what choices Castiel is likely to make. He provides an element of randomness to the experiment, an essential part that gives Dean the ultimate chance to go back to Sam and begin to heal (4x22).
Throughout S5, Sam and Dean heal. There is hurt, still, of course, but they love each other and forgive each other. By 5x22, they’ve surprised everyone. Even the angels have given up on turning them against each other, and have shrugged and settled for using Nick and Adam as the vessels for the showdown. Sam and Dean passed their test. They were siblings who betrayed each other and healed from it. God reconsiders how family counselling will go with Michael and Lucifer. He figured it would be the Apocalypse, the end of the problems between Michael and Lucifer, as one of them dies, as had always happened before. But, Sam and Dean showed God, that though it is rare, it is possible to heal. So God gives Sam and Dean an out. He gives Sam the strength to seize back control from Lucifer, should things go south.
Finally, the showdown arrives. Michael and Lucifer meet. They talk things out. To God’s surprise, Lucifer reveals that he never had a problem with Michael. He had forgiven Michael long ago. But Michael couldn’t forgive Lucifer. He had to be a ‘good son’ and do what he thought God wanted him to do. But Michael didn’t realise, that God doesn’t give orders. Free will all the way, baby! But the whole thing comes as a surprise. Apparently, all this time, the problem relationship wasn’t siblings, it was parents.
Oops.
Good thing God had a back-up plan.
Sam throws himself and Lucifer (and Michael and Adam) into the Cage. Michael and Lucifer have an eternity to figure things out between each other now. But that’s beside the point. The point is, now, that God has to start testing all over again. Not how to fix sibling relationships, but how to fix parent-child relationships.
God restores Castiel, perhaps for a few reasons because God exists outside of time, but originally it may have been just for one. He likes Castiel. He is impressed that Castiel invented free will for himself, broke free of angelic programming (multiple times over), and did it all for love. It’s novel. It’s interesting. God might even think it’s sweet. But God has had time later, and thought about it, and he has a plan. And Castiel is essential.
But Dean Winchester is the key.
Sam and Dean’s relationship with their own father has been strained, but both boys find a way to forgive John his flaws and failings, and love him. Whenever they do get a chance to see him again, post his death, they don’t hate him. They’ve healed. John’s relationship with Sam and Dean is one point of data, Abraham and Isaac another. There are many data points that God can reflect back on and consider.
But as S6 through S10 roll on, God watches Sam and Dean and Castiel. He even watches Crowley and Rowena for another data point. Dean is his main focus, however. (This is a little meta, but as the story focuses more on Dean than Sam post S5, it ties in. Prior to S6, both Sam and Dean were essential - the sibling test. Now, post S5, the parent test, Dean is the most essential. Of course, Sam and Castiel are important too. But Dean is key.)
Dean is a good father. He was a good father to Sam, even when he was only 6 years old himself. He was a good father to Ben. He was willing to die for Bobby John. He’s always good with kids. Not only that, but Dean is blunt enough, brave enough, and crazy enough to tell God to God’s face what he thinks. God needs Dean’s advice, his perspective and opinion on family relationships, but he also needs to see what Dean would do if he were in God’s shoes.
[Edit (1/04/21): After seeing Michael and Lucifer (mostly) heal, and after seeing Sam and Dean heal their relationship, God finally has hope for him and Amara. So God logically wants to retrieve Amara from her prison. But how? Well, he could just wander on up to Cain and do it himself, but what would Amara say? “So I see you’ve come crawling back, eh, Chucky?” She wouldn’t be impressed with God. She wouldn’t understand, because she’s hopeless too. SO how to give her hope? How to make her see that she and God can be okay again? Why, stick her near Dean Winchester, of course! So God sets things up for Dean to get and lose the Mark of Cain, thereby ensuring that Amara will feel a connection to Dean and stick around him/keep him alive long enough for Dean to work his life-coach magic.]
In S11, God and Amara heal their relationship because of the hope Sam and Dean gave God, and also the direct advice Dean gives God. God and Lucifer, not so much.
God needs more data. He needs to see what Dean would do. In comes Castiel’s relevance. God sets things up so that Lucifer can have a son. A nephil. Jack. And God points Castiel in Jack’s direction, trusting Castiel’s ability for unconditional love to keep Jack alive long enough for the experiment. Castiel becomes Jack’s father. But Castiel will never betray Jack, the way God betrayed Lucifer. And, besides, Castiel isn’t the target of this experiment. But it is Castiel’s relationship with Dean Winchester that provides the link needed to get the experiment rolling.
Because Jack is Castiel’s son, he is therefore Sam and Dean’s nephew. Except, God has been watching Castiel and Dean. And, frankly, their romantic love for each other is so obvious even God cannot miss it. Through Castiel, Dean sees Jack as his son too. He loves Jack, exactly like a son. In this way, Dean parallels God, and Jack parallels Lucifer.
But God knows Dean would not easily turn on any child, let alone his own child. So God had a plan for that too. One that Amara helped him with.
They brought back Mary Winchester.
Mary is the one person in existence whose loss would hurt Dean enough to spur him to action. So, she was brought back to die. It was a matter of only a few years of gentle prodding to get everything in position. Jack causes Mary’s death. Dean is faced with a horrible decision. If Jack can kill Mary, what’s to say that Sam and Castiel wouldn’t be next? Mary’s death is like everything beginning all over again for Dean as well. Her first death set off a chain reaction, a series of unfortunate events that spanned decades and nearly caused the ruination of not only Dean’s life, but Sam’s and John’s and even the world. That scar, which had healed as well as it could after 70 years, that God saw was healed in 10x05, has been violently opened up again. It’s the only thing that could force Dean’s hand, that could get him to betray Jack and try to kill him. If Jack had killed Sam or Castiel, it wouldn’t have had the same effect. Both Sam and Castiel had died and come back so many times, and while it would hurt Dean and make him doubt Jack, their deaths would be a sacrifice that Dean would feel obligated to respect, to give Jack a second chance like they would both want. (And God has been laying the groundwork for Dean, convincing him that Jack is evil, will be evil like Lucifer, can’t be allowed to live. All things God has thought about Lucifer over time. Was Lucifer inherently evil? Was their rift inevitable?)
So, here it is. The big test. Will Dean kill Jack? Will he betray Jack and cause an unhealable rift? Or will he find a way to heal, like he did with Sam against all the odds?
And, once again, Dean impresses God. He refuses to kill Jack.
But now we’re in the endgame. Sam, Dean and Castiel are aware that Jack’s life was only on the line because of God. It’s not something they can forgive, or understand. They’re all God’s guinea pigs, and while he loves his guinea pigs, he knows he’s hurt them in the name of science, of knowledge. or healing, and God can’t undo what he’s done. Free will is linear, after all. So it is time for the Winchesters, Castiel and Jack included, to be done with God. God is done with them, too. It’s time for them to be free and at peace. The experiments are done. God has decided not to kill Lucifer. He has decided to try to heal. He can get Lucifer out of the Empty and talk and try to fix things. He has forever to fix things, now that he knows he can. (The last element of this, Jack forgiving Dean for trying to kill him, is something I have limited knowledge of, but I am under the impression happens so... To be added in the edit once I finish the series.)
But the only way the Winchesters will be able to rest, is if they think God, the last and greatest villain, is out of the way. They know they’ve been manipulated their whole lives, first towards the sibling experiment and now the parent experiment, so they need to think God is gone so they can feel secure in their free will once more. Truthfully, God never took their free will. He set them up in situations, maybe even gave a bio-chemical nudge of anger (Dean) or attraction (Sam and Eileen) every now and then. But the choices were always theirs. Still, God knows they won’t see it that way. So he sets things up so that they can defeat him.
He lets them win. He wants them to win. They cannot defeat God, after all. It’s not God’s time, and Death is the only one who can claim God in the end, as the two embrace as friends and walk to the next existence. But the Winchesters need this, and so God allows it. A last gift, to the beings who have been such help, hope and inspiration to him.
With an eye for an eventual S16, 15x20 is written to be ‘an ending’ but also one that could easily be reframed as a bad dream.
For example...
Unfortunately, after Jack, suped up on a extra Grace God lent him, restores the Earth and expends all the Grace (”giving up the mantle of God so that their is no God, no plans, only Free Will”), and Dean, Sam and Jack head back to the Bunker to regroup and gather the ingredients to do the spell to rescue Castiel from the Empty, they’re jumped by monsters who are angry with how much God has fucked with them on behalf of the Winchesters. 15x20 is all a djinn dream Dean is trapped in.
16x01 is Dean waking himself up from the djinn dream, Sam and Jack escaping their own monsters, and then the end of 16x01 is Dean saying something about waking Castiel up from his own dreams in the Empty. The rest of S16 sees the boys save Castiel, reunite with Eileen, start a monster-hunting Bobby Singer/Men of Letters-esque organisation, Dean and Castiel getting together and getting married on Valentine’s Day, Jack getting to live a normal life, going to school, making friends, etc.
If their is no S16 ever (which would be criminal), then 15x20 makes no sense, unless it is plainly a recount of an old, hopeless ending written by God. However you spin it, 15x20 is not the way it seems (like owls).
All things being said, God is an antagonist, but he’s not evil. He’s an asshole, sure, but he never once worked against the Winchesters, never bet against them, never tried to erase or end them. He wanted them to win. He wanted to see the fruits of free will be love, second chances, hope, forgiveness, healing, and happiness, not just betrayal, pain, selfishness, jealousy, disappointment, and hopelessness.
Why is the ending he shows Becky ‘hopeless’? Because God is. He has spent his long existence losing his most loved family members. Amara, Lucifer. How can things end well for God, when they can’t even end well for humans? But Sam and Dean defy the script, again and again. They surprise God, defying the statistics, defying the hypotheses, throwing the experiment into disarray. Giving God hope. Sam and Dean were okay. Dean and Jack were okay. If God had a romantic love, he would find hope from Dean and Castiel being okay. But when God wrote the book he showed Becky, he was writing what he thought would happen. In the end, surely, not even Dean can be enough to hold Sam and Cas and Jack together. But in the end, as we see, as God sees, he is proven wrong and he’s happy to be wrong. He’s hopeful. And he can leave Dean, Sam, Castiel and Jack, and all the angels and all the humans, to rule the Earth and the Heavens. He doesn’t need to learn anything more from them, so he heads to the Empty, with Amara, with Lucifer, with Death (Billie or not, Death is there for God in the end), and they can all depart for a better existence of their own.
If you read all of this, thanks! I eagerly anticipate watching the remaining 10 seasons so I can come back and edit the heck outta this, but until then, if y’all have any thoughts, I’d be interested to hear them~
TLDR: God is a morally bankrupt scientist and the Winchesters are his guinea pigs, but he’s not evil and he does love his guinea pigs, even if he could really treat them nicer.
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mittensmorgul · 5 years
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4.09, I Know What You Did Last Summer... unfortunately... :P
and since they serve as two halves of the same episode:
4.10, Heaven and Hell (in a Spot The Differences puzzle kind of way. spoiler alert: they’re really not that different beyond the exterior aesthetic... attic vs basement, angels vs demons, order vs chaos and darkness vs light. oh hi there s11 meta tag for this exact point on a higher rung of the narrative spiral... God Was Never On Your Side etc etc etc)
We finally get some backstory on Sam, and how he began to work with and trust Ruby, all while we learn about how and why Anna chose to fall from heaven to become human. We also see Sam endure yet another failed test of choice, but this time the ones who suffer for his failure to do what Ruby's pushing him to do, to strengthen his powers, are Anna (who is forced to do the one thing she doesn't want to do) and Ruby herself (who suffers Alastair's torture).
ANNA: I mean it. Every emotion, Dean, even the bad ones... It's why I fell. It's why... why I'd give anything not to have to go back. Anything. DEAN: Feelings are overrated, if you ask me. ANNA: Beats being an angel. DEAN: How's that possible? You guys are powerful and perfect. You don't doubt yourselves or God or anything. ANNA: Perfect... Like a marble statue. Cold... no choice... only obedience.
We see Heaven and Hell presented as basically two sides of the same coin, both wanting to torture and kill Anna-- Heaven for her disobedience, Hell for what she was. The manipulation is coming from both sides, with Ruby standing in the center, giving them the illusion that they're actually making choices here instead of being manipulated from every direction. It's insidious...
DEAN: Or what? What, you're gonna toss me back in the hole? You're bluffing. URIEL: Try me. This is a whole lot bigger than the plans we got for you, Dean. You can be replaced. DEAN: What the hell? Go ahead and do it. URIEL: You're just crazy enough to go, aren't you? DEAN: What can I say? I don't break easy. URIEL: Oh, yes... you do. You just got to know where to apply the right pressure.
The original threat from Heaven was to hand over Anna, or they'd throw Dean back into the pit. But Uriel knew... he knew how Dean broke in Hell, and he knew that Dean would go back to Hell before handing over an innocent for Heaven to torture. Uriel knew where to apply pressure...
SAM: How? How did you find us? [ pause ] Dean? DEAN: [to ANNA] I'm sorry. SAM: Why? ANNA: Because they gave him a choice. They either kill me... or kill you. I know how their minds work.
Dean's already gone to hell once in exchange for Sam's life, and as horrific as we will learn that experience truly was for him, he wouldn't hesitate to go a second time if he thought Sam would be safe because of it.
And contrary to the belief that this is A Good Thing, because awww, these brothers lurve each other that much! It's LITERALLY the gasoline in Chuck's Spiral Narrative Engine. The eternal sacrifice machine that powered Chuck's favorite show, and here it is being used to manipulate the entire plot, shaking the ant farm and seeing what happens next.
And then we learn the true horror of the entire situation, the first time Dean actually talks to Sam about his experiences in hell... it wasn’t 4 months, but felt like 40 years. 40 years of torture-- both as the tortured and as the torturer. 
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mycasandstarrs · 6 years
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SPN 4x10: “Heaven and Hell”
Eugh, Uriel.
“You’re some heartless sons of bitches, you know that?”
“As a matter of fact we are. And?”
OOOOHHHH FUCK YES. S4!CAS WAS SO GREAT.
Hmm, Cas has a rather interesting reaction to Uriel saying “She’s worse than this abomination you’ve been screwing.”
Cas kinda looking like he doesn’t want to be there.
Uriel goes after Ruby, Dean goes after Uriel, and Cas calmly approaches Sam.
Sam’s first time calling him Cas!
lmao, Cas just put him to sleep. He thought “You really thought you could call me Cas? Sorry, our friendship has to be at a Level 10 to unlock that upgrade.”
Our first angel banishment.
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Dean helps Ruby up, in one of 5 moments of solidarity between them.
This is the first time Dean sees the angel banishment sigil...but he goes on to credit Cas for it.
To Bobby’s!
Hmmm, Dean thanked Ruby a lot quicker there for the hex bags.
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And Ruby looks...happy about that. B u t knowing her, she might be happy that she can further infiltrate and manipulate them more now.
Oh Dean, don’t lie. Even if it’s just to keep her happy.
Lmao, Dean asked about the car first. Sam reassures him she’s fine.
Bobby’s in the Dominican! Unlike Sam and Dean, I hope he’s on vacation because he most certainly deserves one.
Huh, so at 2 years old Anna sensed her dad wasn’t her real dad and that her real father was “wanted to kill her mad.” Yikes.
“You’re confusing porn with reality again.” ...what were the other times?
lmao Ruby.
Pamela!
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“Any chance I can dick over an angel, I’m taking it.” hoo boy, who’s gonna tell her?
I loved Pamela’s sense of humor.
Sam hangs out by the door, close to Ruby. Dean is closer to Anna.
Oh boy, this ain’t going well.
Wow, Dean.
The change in demeanor from Anna Milton to Anna the angel is incredible.
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Anna was the boss of them.
“I disobeyed...which, for us, is about the worst thing you can do. I fell.”
The first mention of an angel’s grace.
Ruby silently freaking out, lol.
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“You’re pretty buff for a nerd.” She ain’t wrong.
Ruby’s tapping out. Well, she’s suggesting it.
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Alastair AKA “Picasso with a razor.”
Oohh crap, the demon blood mention.
Conversations between Sam and Ruby always tend to go downhill somehow.
And now the other side of the coin: Dean and Anna.
Dean wants to know why he was saved. Hoo goodness.
“Why would you fall?”
“There’s loyalty...forgiveness...love.”
(I could have sworn there was a gifset of Cas displaying those traits.)
Anna doesn’t want to be an angel.
“Feeling are overrated.” lowkey same, lol
“Beats being an angel.”
I just keep thinking about S9, human Cas, and the conversation he and Dean have after Cas takes another angel’s grace as his own. I keep thinking about Dean asking Cas if he’s sure that he wants to be an angel again; did Dean remember this conversation with Anna? 
Dean’s idea of angels: “You guys are powerful and perfect. You don’t doubt yourselves or God or anything.” This could only come from what he’s seen from Cas...and Uriel.
At this point, only 4 angels have seen God.
Anna is practically complaining about her people watching job vs Cas who tells Sam in S8 “it never gets old”. AKA Cas always seemed to enjoy it.
Sam the interrupter.
An interesting take on Team Free Will.
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He’s actually got a point. “It’s just an angel and a demon riding in the backseat. It’s like the setup to a bad joke...or a Penthouse Forum letter.”
Again with the porn.
The grace is gone. Everyone collectively has a “well, shit” moment.
“Dean Winchester gives us Anna by midnight or we hurl him back to damnation.” Damn, ok.
Dean wanted to get Bobby back, hahaha. 
Oh lord, it’s about to happen.
“Maybe I don’t deserve to be saved.”
“Don’t talk like that.”
“We’ve all done things we gotta pay for.”
Something inside of me cried out in pain when Dean looked so surprised that someone went to caress his face gently. Oh, honey.
Yeah yeah yeah, kiss him and get on with the sex.
“Ready for Love” by Bad Company. You know what, I still can’t listen to this song without getting hot and bothered. This show ruined me.
Oh my god, the back muscles. i need all the holy water and the forgiveness of our lord and savior.
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Oh look CAS’ HANDPRINT In fine print you can see: “Don’t touch. Property of Castiel.”
And the Titanic thing, ha ha.
Ruby sneaking out...
Alastair.
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“We must revoke your membership.”
Ruby tried to bargain for her and the Winchester’s safety.
But it was a trap, of course it was.
Uriel...you’re a pain in my ass.
Oh, it’s a dream.
“See he has this weakness. He likes you.”
oooohhhhhh!!!!!! Dean’s facceee!!!!!!
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(x)
Dean tries to lie about Anna having her grace and it backfires spectacularly. 
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Oohhh, the taunting about having sex with Anna...which gives us the”Ken doll” taunt, which we’ll be hearing again.
“This is a whole lot bigger than the plans we got for you, Dean.You can be replaced.” 
Being Michael’s vessel would definitely qualify as “bigger plans”.
Adam is currently around soo....
(And hell, in Apocalypse AU, John died before he could father Sam, Dean OR Adam. When the time came for the Apocalypse to start, they *did* get someone else, a non Winchester...Uriel wasn’t kidding or bluffing.)
Poor choice of words, Dean. 
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I hate Ruby...but I can’t stand to see her being tortured like this.
And I have to admire her smarts here.
Dean’s drinking.
Dean brought the angels...
The most subtle indication that Dean is the reason the angels are here: Cas’ gaze.
Dean and Anna kiss...AND IF YOU TRY TO TELL ME THAT THE LOOK IN CAS’ FACE ISN’T JEALOUSY, I WILL CLOG MY EARS SO I CAN’T HEAR YOU.
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Ruby brings the demons.
“You sanctimonious, fanatical prick.”
Hot damn, I love me some S4 commanding Cas. “Leave now...or we lay you to waste.”
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Cas went straight for Alastair!
And nearly died for it too!
RIP random demon.
Dean saves Cas! (Probably because of the whole “he likes you” thing. Besides Anna, Cas is the only other “good angel” Dean can have on their side, the only angel they can possibly get through to. But still, as a Destiel shipper, I’m overjoyed that Dean chose to save him.)
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(x)
RIP random demon #2.
Anna takes her grace.
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Good lord, Cas is beautiful.
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Anna and Alastair are gone.
Awww, I half expected Cas to join the brothers.
Oh, it was Sam’s plan! I somehow never noticed this before???
Shit, he’s quoting Ruby.
It’s kinda neat how both Dean and Ruby know Anna’s truly miserable about being an angel again.
OH NOOOO NOT THIS SCENE.
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I want to hug Dean so badly.
The fact that Dean even tried to keep count of how many souls he tortured and then he just lost count...
“for 30 years” is the single worst line of the monologue. It’s at least top 3 for me, because as soon as he says it, complete dread takes over. When you thought it couldn’t get worse, you’re neck deep in it.
Sam offers a feeble assurance with “At least you held out 30 years”. That’s the best thing can Sam could say, and I’m not saying there’s something better...except for maybe nothing at all.
With what Dean has gone through, now wonder he shuts out the pain and squashes down feelings. Confronting them hurts too damn much. i get it.
Jensen’s acting is absolutely phenomenal, he deserves every acting award for this.
No wonder I avoid this episode like the plague.
And finally, I want to hug Dean so very badly.
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