#but cause he gets to orchestrate a run in with his weird little demon guy he met a few years ago

[tennessoui]

au where anakin's never discovered by the jedi and makes his way through the galaxy doing whatever he can or wants to do after he and his mom are freed when he's a teenager. he ends up in coruscant, hot-wiring and selling speeders for a local gang which is going pretty well until he accidentally steals a jedi's speeder as it's floating outside a high-rise building

obviously, jedi knight obi-wan kenobi is not going to stand for that (it's sort of embarrassing to walk back to the temple and submit the paperwork to admit that he has been robbed of an entire speeder)

so he tracks anakin down with gratuitous use of the Force (the Force, which is very eager to see obi-wan find her son his speeder) but when he does find anakin, he realizes he doesn't want to press charges on some barely legal teenager who looks like he's had it rough. instead he lets him go with a warning of sorts and even tells him to keep the speeder

anakin's never met a courteous kindness he doesn't want to sink his teeth into and tear to shreds, of course, so he tells the pompous jedi where he can stick his charity. and his speeder.

which leads to anakin deciding to try and steal from obi-wan kenobi anytime he thinks they're both on coruscant because how dare he try to give him something he can just take?? how dare he be kind and good and nice to anakin. anakin will show him. via thievery and crime. this will in no way lead to sex. or love.

definitely not love. it may lead to sex though.

(or, a more feral sort of anakin finds himself being domesticated via kindness. and sex)

[superman86to99]

Super Titles Round-Up (June 1994)

This month: Superboy fights Silver Sword (and the Clone Plague)! Steel fights his nephew! Brimstone fights alcoholism!

Superboy #5 (June 1994)

Introducing Silver "Don't Call Me Surfer" Sword. Superboy #4 ended with the Kid collapsing in his kitchen from the deadly virus that's running through the Superman books. In this issue, his friends take him to a Navy base so he can be transported to Project Cadmus in Metropolis, where they'll hopefully cure him. It's there that Dubbilex informs them there is no cure. Which sucks, but hey, at least the Kid gets his first consensual kiss out of it (courtesy of Tana Moon).

Rex Leech's tactful reaction is "There goes the best meal ticket we ever had, Roxy," but Roxy herself seems genuinely heartbroken about Superboy's likely death (and/or that kiss).

Anyway, the Navy can't send Superboy to Cadmus right away because they're bombing an island as part of some tests, but the tests are interrupted by a flying guy covered in silver metal. This is actually Dr. Kaua, the guy who got mad at Superboy for misplacing a magical spear in Superboy #3 because he wanted to use it to become Hawaii's first native superhero. Kaua later got his wish when he stumbled upon a mysterious receptacle that blew up on his face and bonded him with some sort of alien metal that gave him powers. He's now using those powers to get back at the Navy for bombing his beloved islands and the goats who live there.

Dubbilex thinks Superboy should sit this one out, given the whole "You're currently dying" thing, but of course he doesn't listen.

After a fierce fight, Superboy manages to knock Kaua out right before collapsing (again). Kaua, or Silver Sword as the Navy nicknames him, is locked up in a secret government base full of scientists who can't wait to cut him open, but Superboy's example inspires him to keep resisting them. The issue ends with Superboy and Dubbilex finally reaching Metropolis, only to find the city turned into a war zone, which leads right into Man of Steel #34.

Steel #5 (June 1994)

Steel's nephew Jemahl finds out that his gang members "friends" were the ones who shot a little kid, ran over his sister Natasha (she's okay, other than her leg), mugged his mom in an alley, and now plan to take out his grandma. Jem takes some of that Tar drug the gangsters have been using to become superhumanly jacked and intends to kill the leader of the gang, but he ends up fighting his disappointed uncle instead.

(Side note: This issue's cover should have been a remake of the Green Lantern/Green Arrow #85 one, but with a muscular Jemahl instead of Speedy the smackhead.)

Steel has to contain Mega-Jemahl until the drug wears off and the kid collapses. During the fight, John Henry learns that all the hits on his family aren't just an unfortunate coincidence: they were actually orchestrated by his old boss/mentor, the Colonel. As he holds Jemahl's body in a Pieta-like pose (lots of that going around these days), John swears that he's taking the Colonel down. Permanently.

This issue also features a seemingly non-sequitur appearance by Fred Bentson, that weird mailman guy we met in Man of Steel #34. Fred is dutifully driving his mail truck across war-torn Metropolis when a bomb goes off and causes him to hit head on the wheel. Suddenly, he finds himself in a completely different city called Dakota, where he's immediately hit by a truck and grabbed by some sort of shadow demon. Just as suddenly, Fred is back on Metropolis, getting saved from that explosion by Superman... who looks weirdly cheerful for someone who is currently watching the city he loves get blown to pieces (see Superman #90).

Incidentally, someone who looks just like Bentson also shows up in Milestone Comics' Hardware #16, which came out this same month and is set in a city called Dakota. What a curious coincidence.

The Ray #2 (June 1994)

Part 2 of the Superboy team-up, this time featuring some actual teaming up. Last issue, we left Superboy unconscious and Ray about to be smashed by that burning mountain man called Brimstone. Luckily, Brimstone suddenly decides to ditch the fight and go for a beer; apparently, a "defect" in his programming has turned him into a gigantic frat bro. Once he's alone, Ray feels bad about apparently killing Superboy and buries him under some rocks, but as we've established by now, nothing can keep that kid down.

At this point, DC's most prominent jacket-wearing, earring-sporting superheroes actually bond for a bit...

...before going off to prevent Brimstone from emptying every brewery in Hawaii. They come up with a plan to turn Brimstone off by dumping liquid nitrogen on him, but Superboy gets confused and accidentally douses the villain with a truck-load of orange juice, leading to the moment depicted in the cover in which Brimstone eats Ray. Superboy gets it right on his second attempt and Brimstone is neutralized before his fiery insides can digest Ray, but by now the teen heroes are back to arguing like a couple of, well, teens.

Gotta admit Superboy and Ray are a pretty fun pair in this issue. Can't wait for them to meet again in like 8 years, when Ray joins Young Justice!

Showcase '94 #6 (June 1994)

One of the stories in this issue is written by Karl Kesel and stars Sparx, the girl with lightning powers from Superboy's "Bloodlines" annual. Sparx's family disapproves of her decision to become a superhero, so she left them and went looking for an aunt who is also estranged from the clan. The most interesting parts of the issue are: 1) Sparx continuing to display powers that Superman will eventually gain when Kesel turns him electric (like intangibility), and 2) Captain Boomerang referring to the Flash as a "red wanker".

At one point, Boomerang manages to knock Sparx out, causing her to revert to her girl form. Upon noticing that she's "a young one," Boomerang creepily says: "Could be ol' Boomer'll get some pleasure out of the evenin' yet--!" The aunt then turns into a spider-like creature and almost kills Boomerang, but Sparx zaps her with energy to stop her. Sparx is like "Wait, you tried to kill that pervert who attacked me? This must mean you really are evil like the family says and also killed your husbands!", so they part ways. Sparx and her family will appear again in the future, but I don't think the aunt ever will. Good for her, they don't deserve her.

[ifeveristoday]

you are the vessel and she’s the life

Okay. When I first read issue #3, I did not like it. The art continues to be amazing, the colors glorious and they add to the atmosphere of the Hellmouth world - but I felt at first read, this was a weaker installment for the non-movement of the plot. If Hellmouth was a longer arc, I would have less issues because Jordie & Jeremy are developing Buffy and Angel, and giving the space for the audience to learn more about them, just as other characters are being brought into the spotlight for the namesake comics. I want to learn more about Kendra, Jenny, Fred, Gunn, et al. But it’s also a valid criticism that Buffy was missing from her story, long before Hellmouth began.

To compare Buffy (the intellectual property) to another cultural juggernaut for a minute - Star Wars. The reboots, the prequels, the ever-expanding universe - it’s all Star Wars, no matter what fans may feel about certain portions of it. But I see a lot of the same argument leveled at the Boom!verse that I do about Star Wars - ‘it doesn’t feel like ________________’, or  ‘that’s not my Buffy.’ I’ve certainly done my fair share of completely ignoring/complaining about the Dark Horse ‘canonically approved’ verse, so I get it. And I think just by the nature of a reboot, there are so many expectations, especially when you use the same characters. And IMO, Jordie and co. have been doing an admirable job of balancing their version of Sunnydale vs. memories/nostalgia of the TV canon. 

The point is to remake something for a new audience while respecting the source for the ‘original’ (whatever that means) fans. And it’s such a rich world with many characters to play with, and lots of different ways to explore themes that the show didn’t, or botched/dismissed. It’s a daunting experience to adapt, I’m sure - and I’ve been enjoying reading what Jordie has been doing with character development and the emotional beats of a story. The characters do feel like they exist in 2019.

However, with this issue, I felt like there was retread/not enough of a building on the momentum that Issues 1 and 2 had, along with a last-minute feel of a brand new original character, and some in-jokes that didn’t really add anything. This was my first reaction. Then I read it again, and with the other Hellmouth issues.

Major spoilers underneath the cut.

Back to my earlier point about Buffy being missing from her story - we still don’t know very much about Buffy’s backstory but that was never the point of her character, she was always very much in the now. The earlier issues had her in full Slayer mode with little intervals of an awkward, uncertain teenager! Buffy, and the last time she gets to hang out and do teenager things, Xander gets turned. And we didn’t really see the fallout in terms of Buffy’s feelings about it - but we did get very much appreciated insight into Willow and Xander’s characters. 

Then Buffy flings herself into the Hellmouth, after feeling estranged from Willow and dealing with a lot of unspoken guilt/shame. Oh no, not like TV Canon Buffy at all. 

However, the break from the Scoobies and entering the Hellmouth brought out Buffy Summers in all her confused, messy, intense bravery. Here was the girl who quipped malapropisms, made up sassy nicknames and leaped into the fray, fists first. And here was the girl who’s self-aware that her impetuousness and desire to save people also hurts the people she loves because she pushes them away - both out of necessity and because it’s her job. It’s a common refrain throughout the run of the series, emphasized by Giles and repeated by Buffy - she has to do this, and often alone - she’s the first responder in the apocalypse.

Heroine complex, man.

And then she meets LA’s finest, the dark knight, Mr. Hunchy Shoulders Guy - Angel. I’ve said it before, Bryan Edward Hill’s decision to have Angel meet Buffy cold, with an already established backstory of his own and then Jordie carrying that over into the Hellmouth event really changes the Buffy and Angel dynamic in the Boom!verse. A welcome change, and then when the portents/prophecies kick in, Angel dismisses them completely. His no-nonsense, I’m just here to do a job and then I’m out mode is amusing to me, because obviously, this is going to end up in romantic comedy land, just with a higher body count and lots of blood.

Buffy and Angel in TV canon never really got that light-hearted, getting-to-know-you phase because there was always the pall of forbidden love/gothic angst/and willful misunderstandings on both parties, never mind the interference/concerns and complaints from the people who loved them.

In Hellmouth, not only do Buffy and Angel get developed as characters, so does their budding ‘work’ friends relationship. Their banter is just delightful to read, and they get to be vulnerable/honest (to a point) with each other, that they haven’t been able to do so with their respective friends. And as they’re fighting demons and tracking down Drusilla, it creates an understandably sudden bond that most likely wouldn’t have happened above ground. They’re the only ones who can stop the forces of evil and cover each other’s backs.

Except for the undead elephant in the room, that has been in the room since Angel first appeared in Sunnydale -

Angel is a vampire. Angel witnessed Drusilla attacking Xander -- and did nothing to stop it.

And he knew it was Drusilla and Spike.

That lie comes back to majorly haunt his ass in Issue #3. Drusilla gleefully tells Buffy that he saw the whole thing, and also he has this whole other name, Angelus, which Buffy completely mishears and then rounds on Angel, asking him pointedly if they need a moment, or can she do the job she’s here for.

The revelation that Angel didn’t stop Xander’s turning naturally pings Buffy’s anger defenses and she tells him actually, no, we’re not friends, you don’t know me (even though I vented my guts out to you and you know I’m a slayer and you give weird pep talks to try to make me feel better -- Issues 1 & 2) - and I think besides the fact that Angel stood by and did nothing, it’s also that he didn’t tell her. Angel not telling Buffy important things, lying by omission basically, breaks their fragile alliance. 

But it’s not until the second lie.

Something that has been driving me nuts since the first issue is that Angel hasn’t revealed his Vampire self to Buffy. There’s different levels to the relationships Angel has cultivated so far in the Boom!verse - with Fred and Gunn, he’s an ally (reluctant on Gunn’s part) and a friend (Fred) and he’s upfront with them that he’s a vampire. But with Buffy, who is going to be a major part of his life (if any of the previous portents and prophecies are to go by), he holds off/and hides his vampire self. And the question is why? Buffy already has a friend who has a Vampire side, but Xander’s a special case because he can still pass as human. 

And it’s humanity that pops up in this issue - I knew it was coming, due to Boom’s wildly spoilery summaries/previews, but the way it was delivered?

Auggie - I know he has a full demon name but I’m not typing it out - and I think his name is also derived from Augury which means an omen/sign of what will happen in the future, seemed out of place to me. I mean, okay having a hell hut in the middle of the Hellmouth is whimsical and not completely out of the realm of the Buffyverse tone, and demons just trying to demon with no ambition to destroy the world is always nice to see - I just felt the introduction of him was too McGuffiny. There already was a figure who could see into the future (two of them, if you count Fee Fee from Angel’s first issue, except she disappeared into the plot hole where women characters go in that issue) and the initial one who set Angel on this path: Lilith. 

Having Angel strike up a random conversation with an essentially magic demon eight ball when he could have been searching for Buffy or Drusilla felt like an unwelcome departure from the main story. Yes, the revelation that Angel could achieve humanity through some terrible ritual is important, but also - do you believe a demon who’s making a stew out of unidentifiable parts in the middle of the Hellmouth and just casually drops that information? 

Read the room, Angel. It’s probably a trap.

Back to the A-story, Buffy thinks the Cthulu shape-shifter demon is back when she sees the vision of the guys in her life attacking the women - Giles and Jenny, Eric and Joyce, and Xander and Willow.Just as the Demon Joyce taunted her about her absence causing more havoc than help, the Demon men call her out Greek Chorus style - Giles says, “Sunnydale burns, Sacrifice.” Xander tells her, “But we can stop all this. The mother awaits you.”Eric says, “Come. End this suffering.”

Buffy accuses Dru of orchestrating this, and she laughs and tells her, “This is the hellmouth. Adapt, won’t you? It’s adapted to you....these are your people. This your nightmare.”

Buffy denies it coming true, and Dru tells her that it may yet come true - and she’s left Sunnydale defenseless. A slayer without her friends. There are fouler things than beasts, above. There are men.

Who have become the puppets of the unseen Hellmother.

So Drusilla was a red herring, a pawn in the game of Evil Chess. And this bums me out because Dru as a tangible villain/opponent is more interesting to me than another shadowy doom voice from the ether. Hellmother? Really?

This is where the reboot kind of loses me - Buffy’s greatest villains have been the ones who were personal to her, not as in just wanting to kill her, but an active part of her life. Dru (and by extension, Spike) in the Boom!verse would qualify because of what she did to Xander and threatening her mother. Dru being the front of a disembodied voice (that probably will take form in the next two issues) is a letdown. It’s the First Evil again.

The side effect of the men being turned into malevolent goons - okay, that is scary, but are we talking the Pack/Billy scary? (aka not very good episodes of either show because they either pulled punches or handwaved consequences)

Buffy teams up with Drusilla, which was unexpected, but at this point in the game, Buffy doesn’t have that many options. Her friend is missing (and it’s telling that even though she was hurt by the knowledge Angel did nothing to prevent Xander’s turning, she still refers to him as a friend to Drusilla. It might not be true forgiveness, but she was willing to move on, just for the sake of finding him and working to stop this mess.) And she keeps on reminding herself, these demons are not her friends, and are not real.

Which brings us to the final act - in more ways than one. Angel gets ambushed by a bunch of orc looking vampires, and finally goes Not Today, Satan on them.

And of course Buffy spots him on a mound of corpses, in full vamp face.

As much as I’m disappointed with the way Angel’s vampirism is revealed, it had to happen, and I have to admit, those last pages and panels are incredibly vivid and affecting.

Angel’s outstretched human hands covered in blood?

Buffy’s disbelief and then hardened look of disgust and her, “Don’t touch me.”

Goddammit.

Jordie and Jeremy have specific repetitions that I find interesting in terms of character development and where I think the plot is going -

Friends - the potential loss of them, the making of them, who to trust and how personal actions always have a consequence in relation to friends - Buffy is down on herself because she pushes people away and tried to lone wolf and it always, always blows up in her face, so this new thing with Angel is Buffy trying something new - trusting the other person so she can trust herself (because even though Willow and Xander are helpful and her besties, Buffy still can’t fully trust them with the fighting of evil because of her Slayer nature and belief that it���s her sole responsibility. She’s never had friends like that before. Angel has an equivalent strength to hers and already knows the evil game.)

So this issue blowing up all those tentative friend bridges? 

Fucking painful. Because now it feels like Buffy was right - she can’t trust Angel, he’s not a friend, because why would he lie? Why didn’t he stop Drusilla? They clearly have a history. Has he been in on this from the beginning?

Buffy is alone, again.

And Angel? Who the fuck knows. Buffy has become important to him in a short amount of time, and it still needs to be addressed why he did nothing to save Xander. He was already on the saving gig, and was it because he knew Spike and Dru that he let it pass out of...familial bonds?  That still doesn’t jibe with what he’s atoning for now. 

As always, thanks to @jenny-calendar for being there for me to figure out all these fiddly parts. I still think this is the weakest issue of Hellmouth, and I’m not as confident as I was before in thinking it’ll be wrapped up neatly in the last two issues - but I hope this doesn’t signal the end of crossovers, and that the relationship wherever it goes, continues to develop over both of their lines. But I dislike it less on reread.

And Buffy better make an appearance in Ring of Fire, damn it.

AND WHERE IS CAMAZOTZ?

[elizabethrobertajones]

wondering where all the blah about rewatch stuff is??? Well I’m super duper tired, but here’s my semi-hallucinated conversation with Mittens last night when I was unpacking literally and figuratively by looking through my badly-spelled notes from the train...

elizabethrobertajones I have a long list of meta things from 4x04-9 :P although one of the notes is "gif the dracula running chased by dean and then the yorkie running after Dean"

mittensmorgul excellent Those would be good gifs Meanwhile I'm mired in s6 lies and deception and soullessness

elizabethrobertajones the other is a list of 3 things that make excellent Destiel meta out of this chunk of episdoes I wanted to line up Dean opening up to Jamie vs Dean opening up in the confessional in 10x16 because I realised how much Dean is talking about Cas in the first one

elizabethrobertajones and it felt the same sort of thing but in the totally opposite direction

4x05:

JAMIE Wow. DEAN What? JAMIE That must suck. I mean, you're giving up your life for this terrible... I don't know, responsibility. DEAN Last few years, I started thinking that way, and, uh, it started sort of weighing on me. Of course, that was before... A little while ago, I had this – let’s call it a near-death experience. Very near. And, uh, when I came to... things were different. My life's been different. I realize that I help people. Not just help them, though. I save them. I guess it's -- it's awesome. It's kind of like a gift... like a mission. Kind of like a... a mission from God.

10x16:

DEAN What if I said I…I didn’t want to die…yet, you know, that I wasn’t ready? FATHER DELANEY Are you expecting to? DEAN Always. [Chuckles] You know, the life I live, the work I do…I pretty much just figured that that was all there was to me, you know? Tear around and jam the key in the ignition and haul ass until I ran out of gas. I guess I just thought sooner or later, I’d go out the same way that I live – pedal to the metal, and that would be it. FATHER DELANEY But now? DEAN Now, um… recent events, uh… make me think I might be closer to that than I really thought. And…I don’t know. I mean, you know, there’s – there’s things, there’s…people, feelings that I-I-I want to experience differently than I have before, or maybe even for the first time. FATHER DELANEY Go a little deeper, perhaps, than with Gina. DEAN Yeah. Yeah, I’m just starting to think that… maybe there’s more to it all than I thought. FATHER DELANEY Learning there’s more to the universe than your tiny world can be a frightening discovery. Do you truly believe in God, Agent? Because that can be a comfort DEAN I believe there is a God. But I’m not sure he still believes in us.

mittensmorgul GAH

elizabethrobertajones one talking  himself back into being a hunter because he suddenly felt like he had a mission from god in that narrow little window where it seemed like a good thing (and the hunter in 4x04 says he'd do anything not to have to do this when he's hunting the guy and his wife and dies horribly for it because he's being insincere but Cas MEANS it)

mittensmorgul and then down the other end of the line, where he had a very different little window that felt like it was closing rapidly for him

elizabethrobertajones yeah

mittensmorgul ACK

elizabethrobertajones in season 10 he's talking himself back out into wanting MORE after he's telling Jamie that he DOESN'T think his life sucks

elizabethrobertajones after she says it must be lonely and horrible then he goes and admits 6 years later that it IS lonely and horrible and he want more

mittensmorgul but he's just come back from hell, he KNOWS lonely and horrible

elizabethrobertajones and in 4x05 his reasoning for not wanting more is because of the new faith Cas gave him the feeling maybe he came back for good reasons

mittensmorgul oh dear

elizabethrobertajones and that maybe he can trust that he has a mission

mittensmorgul D:

elizabethrobertajones (Cas really got to him with 4x03 because of how he uses "Cas sed" on Sam in 4x04's argument) aaargh

mittensmorgul he does, but it takes like 7 more years to come out the other side of it of his "mission from god"

elizabethrobertajones I don't think we really talk much about Dean's little bubble of faith and optimism specifically caused by Cas I find it fascinating but it's over so quickly :P

mittensmorgul Like Dean was his cosmic post-it note Chuck left for himself and came to collect in 11.23

elizabethrobertajones yeah everything Dean says in 4x02 is repeated in 11x21 to Chuck's face I started giffing but my arms hurt so much I'm just not going to do that >.>

mittensmorgul yeah, you deserve at least one full day of arm rest

elizabethrobertajones Also i feel really weird like no one *I've* ever seen has compared 4x07 and the witches to the Lucifer endgame literally a spell killing people (breaking seals) then they think it's the witch and killing  her will stop "Sam Hain"

mittensmorgul OH MY GOSH

elizabethrobertajones but then it all gets turned around and they kill the guy and WHOOPS

mittensmorgul (yes I also cringe at all the Sam Hain)

elizabethrobertajones "Sam Hain" rises and posesses the guy like... oh

elizabethrobertajones he even comes out of a crack in the floor in a crypt

mittensmorgul heck that's right out of 4.22

elizabethrobertajones and "Sam Hain" (the pronunciation makes him a parallel) is wearing a white shirt and then Sam is wearing his awful white shirt at the end of the episode :P

mittensmorgul killing her didn't stop him from breaking out, it freed  him.

elizabethrobertajones YEP And my last note is that my heart shattered when Dean commented at the wishing well that he thought Sam would make the 2x20 wish

mittensmorgul It was one big misdirect, orchestrated by Uriel essentially, who we soon discover had been pulling for Lucifer all along, killing the angels who refused to join him

elizabethrobertajones and Sam wants Lilith's head on a plate, bloody

mittensmorgul ack

elizabethrobertajones Sam says he's not that guy any more

elizabethrobertajones but it's a loss of hope and the subtle theme of embracing being the monster 4x04 he embraces being the monster 4x05 the monster theme is... subtle but there if you squint :P

mittensmorgul yeah

elizabethrobertajones 4x06 Dean sees Sam as potentially and terrifyingly the monster

mittensmorgul yep, right down to the yellow eyes

elizabethrobertajones 4x07 the "Sam Hain" parallel and Sam embraces his powers to exorcise him 4x08 Sam sees himself only as revenge and  blood

mittensmorgul and is warned by Uriel not to

elizabethrobertajones even though in 2x20 Dean wasn't exactly someone who just *was* the AU Dean at heart

elizabethrobertajones the whole point was he was in a different life Sam can't even conceptualise being a different person or wishing for peace and happiness it's worse than season 10 Dean, honestly at least he wanted to go to the beach and WISHED he could have more although he didn't see a way out and was sad he wasn't gonna get "Gina"

mittensmorgul yeah, and he was still eating croissookies and clinging to happiness with both hands while the MoC was trying to pry his fingers off

elizabethrobertajones even in early season 4 Sam's kinda lost and I mean lost as in needs Chuck's squeegee clean up to even start to have a chance to redeem himself it seems he can't see a way past being what he is and has subtly already embraced being the "whole new level of freak" and that the demon blood is there, might as well use it and be who he's supposed to be like, Ruby did all that between season 3 and 4 so there was no way Dean was ever going to talk him back :<

mittensmorgul Yeah, giving in to the powers and believing he can use them for good, to save people, is better than being a useless freak

elizabethrobertajones yeah

mittensmorgul it was so tempting for him to believe that he could control it in some way

elizabethrobertajones it's horrifying to rewatch and realise how annoyingly right Dean is about literally everything

mittensmorgul that it wasn't being done TO him yeah

elizabethrobertajones like as soon as you know he was right about Ruby everything he says is so painfully tre *tru ....

mittensmorgul yeah

elizabethrobertajones anyway Sam says he's saved more people in the last few months than they have in years and dean's like, is that what ruby wants you to think?

elizabethrobertajones and...  yeah, it is Sam's already like 90% brainwashed when you got back from Hell