#dean being a hero

[angelsdean]

cas asks dean (and sam) about john in 10x09 to get a better understanding of what a father should do re: claire's situation (bc he says he never knew his father). dean, imo, embellishes and says john was always "there when [they] needed him." sam then prompts dean to tell a seemingly "funny" story abt a time john swooped in to save dean. cas then parallels this moment when he barges in to save claire from the men that were attempting to assault her and traffic her. dean, with his own past experience fresh on his mind--and perhaps letting himself acknowledge what almost happened to him (and my own belief that john didn't actually magically show up to play hero but in fact let dean sneak out to teach him a "lesson")--decides to take things a step further. it's not enough to just save claire from these men, they need to be eliminated, so they can't do this to anyone else again.

[high-voltage-rat]

man okay so I used to play mechquest and dragonfable back in like, 2008 when I was a kid with very little patience to follow a storyline. coming back as an adult and finishing mechquest has absolutely slapped me silly with how deep and serious the story is in between all the absurdist humour. I have. so many emotions over the whole storyline, and especially so many thoughts about the unique form of tragedy that is The Reset.

You save the world but it's not the world anymore. You and your friends survive but you don't know each other anymore- have nothing left of the lives you fought to keep. You 'save' everything but it's still all gone. Everything you knew and loved, gone, and you don't even know what you've lost. You can't even keep the memory of what you had- and that's almost kinder compared to being one of the 3ish people who DO remember... and have to live around everyone else who doesn't, knowing their closest friends look at them and see a stranger, and that they may as well be because they aren't that person they remember being.

And to top it all off, that terrible sacrifice doesn't even end it. you're still left fighting impossible and devastating wars over and over. It's the tragedy of doomed time loops with extra layers of devastating all over the place. The GEARS University students being forced to become soldiers because they're all that's left to protect their homeworld. The horrors of the Shadowscythe virus taking over friends and loved ones you may be forced to put down to save yourself. The town of Falconreach burning over and over because no matter how hard they fight, it's never enough. The people like Sha'rae who sacrifice themselves to try and prevent tyrrany from seizing power, only for it to be utterly useless.

Anyway the brainrot is severe and especially dangerous since I'm coming into exam season and all my hyperfixated brain wants to do is chew on glass about these games.

[carebeardean]

religious trauma sold separately! 💅✨

[aulupus]

I love the dynamics between the Union executives and their No.2's. Like, you put Jimmy, Wolf, and Jake in a room together and they're like hissing cats. Meanwhile, Jack and Hwangmo are in the hallway, silently bonding over how they're constantly herding said hissing cats. Dean never participates because he thinks of himself as above the other sidekicks.

[panicroomsammy]

Sam and Dean who were (metaphorical?) csa victims together and now as adults they are forced to work with someone who is abusing kids and they feel so powerless. Yeah.

[shallowseeker]

Re: the latest string of anons, I want to capture this thought before it flees, but it's not wholly formed yet. I'll try to tread carefully, and with gentleness.

Firstly, I want to invite you to grab onto this line from The Rupture:

CAS: "You used to give me the benefit of the doubt. Now, you can barely look at me."

You can take this lovely line and apply it as a challenge to the entirety of season 15, I think.

The thing with season 15 is that it challenges Dean in a way he hasn't quite been before: it's a full-on, nihilistic, Michael-coded existential crisis.

Cas has had psychological breakdowns like this on multiple occasions. So has Sam.

Throughout the series, Dean is wrong a lot, but this time, he's wrong about more things than usual, even when he's (like Cas with Raphael, and like Sam with many villains) still "a little bit right."

Everyone's a little bit wrong, a little bit right, and that's the beauty of it.

But the consequences are unfairly heavier than usual, and that chafes for Dean.

It chafes for his fans, too.

///

In season 15, at first Dean can't even say Jack's name. He sidesteps it, using coded communication, like his reference to "Bel" in 15x09 The Trap. (That's about Jack, y'all. If you tuly think he's talking about Bel in that scene, then you haven't been paying attention to Dean's character's values OR his communication style.)

I think at a lot of its core, Season 15 is asking you what happens when you're not spoon-fed a character's reactions. Do you look at their history and take the least charitable assumption, or do you work from what you know of that character's loves/morals/values and root for them to try and work through it?

Throughout the series, we see Dean cry and apologize more than most characters. For example, we are explicitly shown Dean's regret (on-screen!) for beating Cas in season 10, and so we know he feels guilty. On the flipside, we are NOT explicitly shown Cas's regrets for his beating on Dean in either seasons 5 or season 8.

But we give Cas the benefit of the doubt.

Why?

Well, truthfully, it's because Cas is a character that commands our respect, and this authority/respect extends to giving him dignity in a way some other characters aren't afforded. But mostly, it's because we trust in what we know of Cas. Again, it's those loves/morals/values that inform how we parse Cas's mistakes.

///

So, back to season 15. What are we going to do here?

Sam chooses grace. Will the audience choose it, too?

Crucially, Sam is a character who has had nervous breakdown after nervous breakdown. He sees what is happening with Dean, he understands Chuck's pressures, and he approaches Dean with (imperfect) grace.

So does Cas, for that matter, which makes a great deal of sense here. Cas is the character who has undergone the most severe existential crises regarding Chuck and Heaven. "Getting out of the game doesn't change the game," Cas says. He's grown tremendous, somewhat terrifying resilience as far as this is concerned.

But anyway. Dean's family sees that he's struggling and tries to help him through this because they too have gone through so many complicated meltdowns.

///

I think season 15 is tough, too, because it challenges you not to be spoon-fed all of Dean's grief and reactions.

Think back to Dean breaking down in the forest clearing after Mary died. Do you REALLY think there was none of that for Jack--for Rowena--for Jack's body being eradicated and ruining the hope of getting him back--for Cas leaving--for Amara--for the Jack rib-bomb?

I think to say yes would be dishonest. Personally, I think there's a well-argued case that Dean grieves almost everyone.

///

Season 15 is also tough because it invites to look upon some of Sam's worst moments (*cough* season 8) with renewed grace.

It even challenges you to frame the villains' struggles (John, Lucifer, and whoever the Hell else) in a stronger shade of gray.

///

Anon, I hope you find this soothing somewhat. :-)

Basically, the TLDR; is that we give our loved ones the benefit of the doubt because we've grown to know and trust their hearts over time, even when they're in the wrong.

-love from shal

[ardentpoop]

you know spn fandom is categorically unserious bc screenwriter and exec producer ben edlund posted his old brainstorming notes and everyone in the tags is fixated on “dean pretty” as opposed to this quote scrawled in the margin (apparently commonly misattributed to both george orwell and winston churchill):

“people sleep peacefully in their beds only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.”

hello. hello. big heaping spoonful of critique fodder open up

[vaicomcas]

Introduction of the Other

s12e3 ""fake agents" scene. "This is my partner"

S13e6 "fake agents" scene. "Here is my associate"

[anassemblageofpassions]

See like. I do appreciate what carver was going for in a sense in season 8-11, like hypothetically, it’s a cool idea to reverse sam and dean’s traditional roles on their heads, sam touched by the demonic, dean touched by the angelic into sam being “purified” (trials of god, Angel possession, saying no to lucifer), while dean is corrupted (mark of Cain, demon, connection to the darkness), but the problem is inherently in the execution. Hell, on some level, it even keeps with their themes of sam usually having things forced on him while dean makes choices (with the exception of s8, sam chooses the trials and dean is forced into purgatory).

But unfortunately, the writing just didn’t end up delivering. They stopped bothering to write sam outside of dean in the second half of s9 all the way into s10, and then again in the latter half of s11, and so the arcs weren’t so clear, and then there’s also the fact the mark of Cain went on far too long and the demon arc was far too short. And amara was just a bit…silly.

I don’t know what “purifying” arc I would actually give sam later on, and I don’t know how I would handle dean’s arcs either, at least not rn. Might think on it later. But at the end of the day, carver had some really fascinating, subversive ideas and it really is a shame the execution was so poor for the most part.

[gh-0-stcup]

My thing is that I just do not trust a single person who was involved in the show. It just seems like a lot of PR to fix their image and foster sympathy/goodwill/interest.

[be-my-homodachi]

Weak Hero Chapter 253

Before i read it i feel excited and anticipating. Like ‘holy crap how will their fight end’-anticipating.

But then those images from Baekjin Na’s past appeared and now i feel empty.

Like

He suffered so much i just want good things happened to him

I don’t justify his actions, tho, but yeah, his character gives me a complicated feelings

Ugh why Weak Hero is so well-made i dont understand seopass and razen are a match made in heaven istg!!!

BONUS:

these are my favorite reactions lol

[keen-eye]

Penny

D: Mistakes? Well, let's go through some of Sammy's greatest hits. Drinking demon blood, check. Being in cahoots with Ruby. Not telling me that you lost your soul. Or how about running around with Samuel for a whole year, letting me think that you were dead while you're doing all kinds of crazy. Those aren't mistakes, Sam. Those are choices!

D: Look, man, I don't even remember what I said, but, uh –

S: But what? But you didn't mean it? Oh, please. You and I both know you didn't need that penny to say those things.

D: Come on, Sam.

S: Own up to your crap, Dean. I told you from the jump where I was coming from, why I didn't look for you. But you? You had secrets. You had Benny. And you got on your high and mighty, and you've been kicking me ever since you got back. But that's over. So move on, or I will.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

D: Your blood's supposed to be purified, isn't it? You ever, uh -- you ever done the "forgive me, father" before?

Well, I mean, I could give you suggestions if you want.

All right. Well, I'm just spit-balling here, but if I were you, uh... Ruby, killing Lilith, letting Lucifer out, losing your soul, not looking for me when I went to Purgatory, for starters. Or, hey, h-how about what you did to, uh, Penny Markle in the sixth grade? Why don't you lead with that?

S: Well, that was you.

D: Carry on.

S: You can barely do it with me. I mean, you think I screw up everything I try. You think I need a chaperone, remember?

D: Come on, man. That's not what I meant.

S: No, it's exactly what you meant. You want to know what I confessed in there? What my greatest sin was? It was how many times I let you down. I can't do that again.

D: You seriously think that? Because none of it -- none of it -- is true. Listen, man, I know we've had our disagreements, okay? Hell, I know I've said some junk that set you back on your heels. But, Sammy...come on. I killed Benny to save you. I'm willing to let this bastard and all the sons of bitches that killed mom walk because of you. Don't you dare think that there is anything, past or present, that I would put in front of you! It has never been like that, ever! I need you to see that. I'm begging you.

sam’s faults

purgatory

[meandmypagancrew]

If Comet really does go to the West End next year, I need Mia Kobayashi and Rachel Clare Chan to play Natasha and Sonya more than I need to breathe tbh

[antigonewinchester]

the refusal to see Jack's agency and his making choices is also why people misread "Moriah," imo. which I've never talked about specifically so here's my read of the end of S14:

Jack burns off his soul to save Sam/Dean/Cas & kill Michael, thereby losing his moral compass; he kills Mary because he can't handle her disapproval of his killing Nick and the future disapproval of Sam & Dean; he realizes he's made a big mistake, tries to fix it, and can't (because ultimately death is final and everyone dies); he goes to visit his grandparents because he wants their approval/love and they reject him too, but instead of lashing out like he did with Mary, he runs away. talking with Cas in the graveyard, Jack laments that he keeps hurt people & making mistakes, and faces up to that reality. then, when Dean arrives, Jack doesn't lash out or run away. Jack still has his powers; he could've teleported somewhere else, or taken the gun from Dean, or even attacked him, but he doesn't. instead, Jack is willing to face Dean and his judgement, face up to his own mistakes, even if it means his death...

meanwhile Dean is grieving Mary's death, upset that maybe if they'd known something was up with Jack they could've helped him before it got to this point. Dean's also grappling with the fact that he was the one who originally unleashed Michael, using his power to save Sam and Jack; that he & Sam were the ones who brought Jack back by using the power of Jack's own soul, which he then burned off saving them all from Michael; and that if Dean had gotten into the Mal'ak box like he'd wanted to, Jack wouldn't have lost his soul and Mary would still be alive. the last thing Dean saw Jack do was attack him, Sam, and Cas -- after Jack got out of the Ma'lak box, he could've just teleported away, but instead he attacks them angrily first -- and for all that Dean knows, that's still how Jack is reacting: lashing out and hurting people with his powers. and if Jack is capable of preventing the whole world from lying, how many people could he kill if he lashed out against the world itself? someone has to stop Jack before he hurts or kills millions or even billions of people...

but at the graveyard, Dean doesn't see a Jack who's angry or violent or lashing out. he sees Jack choose not to attack him even when he learns Dean is there to kill him! Jack says he understands, acknowledges what he's done, says he knows he's a monster... except would a monster choose to die so he wouldn't hurt anyone else? if Dean kills Jack, he also kills himself; if he condemns Jack as a monster, he condemns himself as one too; and if Jack has chosen mercy, if Jack has put down his metaphorical gun, can't Dean put down his literal one?

and Dean does.

[dean-winchester-pussy]

spn au where they're in a spiderverse and sam and dean are the spinchesters

[tyrion]

They both reached for the gun. or did they?

- Supernatural, seasons 1 - 5

Source (me): x