#endofthebookpod

[endofthebookpod]

"I will say, and I will get in trouble for this, and I will deal with the trouble that I will get into: that kiss almost got cut. And I was like, absolutely not. Like, we have to have it. We have to have it on screen. We have to have it. And I had to fight a little for it . . . This is going to be huge, huge for the Destiel fans out there. We need to have it." -Rachel Lynett

[lateral-org]

Hi! We hope the altering of your brain chemistry is going well and you're having a good time!

Having the time of my life

[mittensmorgul]

okay, so there was no new winchesters tonight, but I HAVE been listening to the @endofthebookpod episode from the last new ep last week (go listen!). I haven’t had a chance to hear the whole episode yet, but i wanted to type this before my brain let go of it... huh, memory magic

SO. Anyway, point being, the discussion around Lata learning memory magic, and the comments about how it wasn’t really a big part of spn canon so wondering how it was going to be used... my VERY first thought when Lata offered to remove Roxy’s traumatic memories was of Cas in s6 taking all of Lisa and Ben’s memories of Dean (ostensibly to protect them and to unburden them from the horrific trauma they experienced because of their association with him-- only partly for Dean to protect them from being used against him again, but because he HATED what he’d done to Ben, having to watch his mother killed (or near as), and Ben both wanting to become a hunter like Dean and then having to confront what that actually means as Dean carried his dying mother to safety and Ben had to shoot someone (yes, a demon, but still, a person-shaped thing).

Okay that was a lot of words to say that DEAN HIMSELF had made that choice for someone else in the past, and here’s Roxy confronting all the suppressed traumatic memories and CHOOSING DELIBERATELY TO KEEP THEM. (I already wrote a bit about that here)

But memory magic was also like... a core staple of Heaven’s power structure. Cas spent several seasons dealing with the aftereffects of heaven’s torture, which largely involved brainwashing quite directly. Not only can most angels Obi Wan humans (these are not the droids you are looking for level stuff, or even the level that Zachariah used on Sam and Dean in episodes like 4.17 It’s A Terrible Life), but Naomi had a specially built device to specifically dig into angel main programming and tweak the internal dials-- everything from behavioral correction to what we will learn in later seasons involved deleting specific memories of things (like the fact Cas was a participant in several biblical atrocities like the killing of the firstborns, etc.).

Sure, Naomi needed specially constructed tools to achieve that level of mental manipulation-- which Crowley and his demons were then able to duplicate to use on Samandriel and eventually Sam/Gadreel-- but Cas? Well, he had a Particular Specialty with memory magic himself. It was a major plot point in s13. Not just in 13.14 Good Intentions when he confesses to Donatello that he had a special ability that he swore to never use on anyone without their consent, but that he deems it too urgent not to use it on Donatello, for the sake of the world. He feared the corruption that Donatello suffered because of the Demon Tablet, and he needed the information Donatello refused to give about the alternate universe gateway spell.

This power was supposedly unique to Castiel, like many other angels were “specialists.” Specifically we know Uriel’s specialty was smiting towns, Zachariah’s specialty was... lets call it giving unique experiences to people directly. Whatever. Cas’s special power was not only reading people’s minds (something we saw him do a good number of times before this-- like tapping Rowena’s forehead and knowing the one person she felt love for, Oskar), but also specifically stripping those memories from people’s minds.

Which is kinda what we saw him do to Lisa and Ben. And what he did from Donatello here. Literally removed the memories so he could sort through them all himself.

Is that what Lata is learning to do now, whether from Tony or some other source inside her dreams? To access other people’s memories and then selectively strip those memories away from the person?

Because that’s like a Cas Special.

(even the broken AU Castiel was called in to use that special talent specifically, to strip the information the angels wanted directly from Charlie and Ketch’s minds... if that was a standard angel power, they wouldn’t have needed to call in Cas specifically, and I always felt that was a MAJOR reason that version of Cas was as broken as he was, that being forced to use that power is what damaged him, since Our Cas had REFUSED to use the power until it was the only option they had left...)

(I won’t even mention The Empty and the Entity’s interesting power to just... flip through Cas’s memories in 13.04... okay i mentioned it, but I don’t know what else to do with it yet lol, other than to suggest that whatever is happening in The Winchesters is adjacent to or being affected by the Empty... I wouldn’t be shocked if the Akrida turned out to be agents of the Empty actually so... off point mittens, get back to the point now...)

but then that also made me wonder... did Cas hold on to all those memories he stripped from Lisa and Ben? Did he flip through them when he was feeling sad? did it actually make him feel WORSE about everything that had transpired leading up to 6.22 and the choices he made afterward? his determination to obliviate himself into Emmanuel even? or to stay in purgatory? heck... i just made myself very fucking sad...

Okay. I just needed all this on record. Memory magic is a HUGE part of spn, and whatever it’s leading up to in The Winchesters feels very, very relevant.

And also very, very connected to Cas.

[wigglebox]

okay, final predictions for the finale rant/ramble/whatever you want

Questions answered

i don’t believe literally everything is going to be answered simply bc there has to be a balance when you don’t know if you’re gonna get another season. i personally believe that there has to be a balance of some questions answered with some still remaining simply bc for every percent of a chance you have of NOT continuing, you have a chance OF continuing. 

So here are the questions i think will get answered:

We’ll figure out where they are in terms of space and time

We’ll figure out a LITTLE bit as to why Dean is doing what he’s doing 

We’ll figure out who the Akrida Queen is 

Here are some of my musings going into the finale:

I personally believe everything is taking place in The Empty. If you’re new around here, I am a BIIIIIIIG subscriber of the Chuck Won theory, and in order for this theory to work in my head, I need it so that Dean was never actually in Heaven when it came to 15x20. Neither was Cas. 

It’s my personal opinion, and I’ve chatted about this on @endofthebookpod with @jewishdeanwinchester and @evergreencowboy who also have brought this idea up, so i guess it’s a collective opinion lmao, that this is all taking place in the empty. 

There’s also the First Draft theory that @evergreencowboy has mentioned on the podcast way back in the beginning and that we keep mentioning because it can also coexist and blend with the theory that they’re all in the empty. 

I think theories of this taking place in The Empty were solidified with the last episode and Limbo and the circus and all that. Fake happiness, accepting and processing reality to snap out of it and break free, etc etc. 

So yes, I do believe they’re in The Empty. I’ve been hoping that Dean’s been in The Empty for a long long while, even before the show, given the Chuck Won theory. It will make me SO happy if this is where this is all taking place. 

I don’t believe Cas will be seen. 

This may be an unpopular opinon but I don’t want any Destiel reciprocation on screen until the continuation. I personally want the prequel to exist as its own thing with some character development for Dean in the background. 

Now, I don’t mind parallalels and threads to Destiel — we’ve even gotten those already — and I don’t mind Dean mourning or mentioning Cas. But, I physically don’t want to see him until there’s an Empty rescue primed and ready to happen in the continuation. 

I am aware of the fact that Cas is awake in the Empty, everyone and everything is, however it feels like it’s too soon to reunite Dean and Cas on screen and I wouldn’t want that happening on a spin-off — i need it to happen in a continuation. 

However, it would be very sweet if there were mentions/threads/insinuations to the relationship/how dean feels, etc etc — with just the knowledge that Cas doesn’t know it yet. 

But, above all else, I really want this show to exist as its own thing and as world building and rule building for how the Empty works if that’s indeed where they are. The Empty has virtually no rules for its existence other than a select few from OG SPN so if this is indeed The Empty, a pocket universe inside The Empty, what have you — then I would hope that more rules are established for it. 

Questions remaining

Here are my questions remaining and that IDK if they’ll get answered in the finale but I’m okay if they aren’t

Why is Carlos so associated with death imagery?

Was John talking with anyone when he ‘died’ for a hot second in the vampire episode? And if so, who?

Who is The Witness? [I think if they’re real it’s either Chuck or it’s Dean] 

Are these the real John and Mary? 

What exactly are the Akrida? Does The Empty hold them and since Jack woke everything up, they’re out and about?

Are Gabriel, Chuck, and Rowena OUR Gabriel, Chuck and Rowena? Or are they actually from the 70s? [my guess is that they are ours, and that’s why we’re in The Empty]

Is Betty an Angel?

Why does Dean have the samulet dangling from his car?

Why isn’t Sam there?

Where TF is Deanna?

--

Okay I think that’s it for now. I probably have more. 

But lord I’m so excited for tonight. 

[hintsofhoney]

thoughts on the spn win finale™️

there are things I loved and things I hated and my overall feeling is just… confused on how I feel so I think I just need to get everything out and hope I’m not alone

first let me start off with if y’all listen to @endofthebookpod you know I’m the first to clown away when it comes to destiel in this show however I was not expecting to see cas in this finale and I’m glad we didn’t because I do want that reunion to be a big and not rushed thing etc etc

that being said, if I’m looking at spnwin as a stand-alone show, that finale was fan-fucking-tastic. the music, the way it tied dean into the story, the acting from the cast — everything was chefs kiss 5 stars, but

this isn’t a stand-alone show

and looking at the show as part of the spnu, I’m feeling kinda… empty. at least, until there’s a promise of more. I don’t like speculating about the unanswered questions, because why am I doing that if I’ve not been promised some sort of explanation in the future? trust me, if there’s a S2 or different continuation announced tomorrow I’ll be the first to hop in the clown car, but until then, I need to process the fact that if this is all we get (which I don’t think it will be, and I hope to god it isn’t, but if it is) then I’m just… not at all satisfied

and at the root of that — it’s not about no canon destiel — it’s about dean being actually dead. it’s about the fact that that god awful shit show of a finale wasnt invalidated, and yeah, I’m mad about it. because Dean deserves to be happy. he deserves to be happy more than anyone and he deserves to be happy and alive and while I of course think his happiness is with cas, I would much prefer if they were happy together on earth rather than after death, for no other reason than dean deserves to live. the message that his happiness can only be found after death is just… not it. if there’s one thing I want more than canon destiel it’s alive dean. which is why I probably feel kinda empty right now. 15x20 still happened and dean still went out that way and I hate hate hate that so so much

do I think jackles is stopping here? no. but i also don’t think the Winchesters is going to be the show that gives us everything we want. I’m holding out hope for a season 2, because I have fallen in love with this cast and these characters, but I don’t think we’ll be seeing dean again on the show if I’m being honest. do I think canon destiel is still the end goal here? yes. and you can pry my clown nose and tin hat out of my cold dead hands. but I think jackles knows that when it does happen, it needs to be big, it needs to be explored, it needs to be its own thing, and please for the love of god dean needs to be alive

so overall I guess I’m,,, really fucking upset that dean is actually dead but holding out hope for that to be fixed someway, somehow while also feeling very soft for this show as it’s own thing, the characters, the story line, the absolute rays of sunshine it has brought into my life over the past 7ish months. just lots of conflicting emotions I need a good nights sleep to process before I can get back to driving the clown car again.

here’s to never having peace and never being done!!

[reblogging4thewin]

KP's 2022 SPN Year in Review

Soooo much happened in my life in 2022 (well from end 2021 though 2022 really). I am so grateful for the friends both online and off who helped me get through it all 💜. I found myself focusing more on art and editing than writing - but I am really excited to share my Pinefest fic with you all in February!

The #1 creation I'm most proud of this year was my Haze Amv, but I am also blown away by how much my Me and My Broken Heart Amv took off - ending the year with almost 20k views - which is in-sane. Setting and sticking to a regular upload schedule has been motivating and rewarding - I'm excited to post January's video on Thursday too :).

Participating as an artist in a couple of bangs for the first time had me stepping out of my comfort zone and drawing the best human being I've ever drawn to-date.

Aside from making things, I also co-modded the new SPN Bang Bang with my friends @doctorprofessorsong and @you-cant-spell-subtext-without, which went wonderfully well; I"m excited for this year's round!

Last but not least, being an editor and guest for @endofthebookpod has been amazing so far, and I'm excited for the rest of The Winchesters season!

Without further ado, here's a recap of all of the SPN fanworks I made in 2022 (I'll also get my masterlist pages updated to include these):

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Fic (all G or T rated):

Did You Mean It? - PB Exchange - Cas realizes Dean's been flirting with him, so he confronts him - with some satisfying results. (reblog link)

The Theme is Dean - Dean birthday - Dean gets the themed party he's always wanted. (reblog link)

I'm the One He's Walking to - Valentine's Exchange - Is this a date? (reblog link)

Sleepy Stares - they are just so soft (reblog link)

You Never Let Me Say It Back - a poem by Dean (I am particularly proud of the wordplay in this one) (reblog link)

Regarding Bunnies - Easter; goofy Dean - Cas gets Dean a fluffy surprise, that yes they've discussed before. (reblog link)

Mon Pays Sera Toi - Dean really likes how protective Cas can be - it makes him feel safe, among other things. (reblog link)

Magic - Samwena drabble (tumblr only)

Rendevous - Drowley drabble (tumblr only)

What if Dean kissed Cas in The Trap? (tumblr only; in the tags)

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Amvs (I'm posting a new one every 5th now - YT channel):

Words Words Words - Dean Winchester - Comedy (YT link)

Squirrel all the Bad Guys Want - Dean Winchester, Drowley - Comedy (YT link)

When You Were Young - Dean Winchester, Destiel - Drama (YT link)

Haze - BAMF Cas, Destiel - Drama (YT link)

Dream Boy - Destiel - fun (YT link)

Me and My Broken Heart - Destiel - Drama (YT link)

The Shipped Gold Standard - Destiel - Drama (YT link)

Don't Let the Light go Out - Destiel - Drama - got (c) blocked on YT, so the Tumblr post has the original audio and the YT version has pitched concert audio that you can kind of hear me in 😳 (YT link)

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Gifs:

LGBTQIA+ SPN Characters

Aang and Cas entrance parallels

That pose from OTHOAP (which I like to think of as honk.jpg)

The totally-not-suggestive way that Cas eyes Dean in 5*02

500 Days of Winchesters - Spn Win / 500 Days of Summer Crossover - Suptober

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Art:

Dean/Cas/Benny drawing for Spn Bang Bang (Benny here is the best human being I've drawn to-date, and the reason I can no longer say that I can't draw people.)

Juliet the Hellhound drawings for Crowley Big Bang

Smoke - Drowley digital drawing - Suptober

---

Meta and meta additions:

The Winchesters initial thoughts

The Winchesters John meta (with gifs)

Rowena is Sam's Benny

SPN Witches' immortality and humanity

See #spn meta in the tags for more thoughts too

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Misc nonsense (non-serious ramblings, sketches, ideas):

Do you wanna go/ do you wanna get out of here

Putting on a tie is such a turn-on apparently

I'll just wait here then Destiel and Merthur parallel (I could go with you is also one but yeah)

A silly little amongus/SPN crossover sketch I might come back to and draw for real.

Sarah Blake references from 8*22 Clip Show

Unusual reactions to 'I love you'

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Non-spn stuff:

Sure this is an SPN year in review, but I did make a handful of other things that I thought it'd be weird to leave out.

Soldier Boy Soulja Boy Amv - (YT link)

Dreamling Dream Amv - (YT link)

Merthur She's got Sorcery Amv - (YT link)

Puppet History Can't Touch This Amv - (YT link)

A Solid Foundation - original sapphic horror story (Reddit link)

---

Last year's year in review post was more of a 'here's one fave; check out the pages I made that are a complete list.' But since blog subpages are hidden in the app, I figured I'd do a complete list in the post this year instead.

I plan on doing more writing in 2023 - Pinefest is only the beginning.

Happy new year everyone!

Since tumblr tags suck, I used this Tumblr OP finder to help me put this together.

[deanwasalwaysbi]

Inspired by The Prequel at the End of the Book @endofthebookpod Thank you to @callmestiletto for the footage

[queermania]

Can I request a specific gifset for The Winchesters?

you can but i can't promise i will get to it in a timely manner. i've still got a list of sets i want to make both for this blog and for the @endofthebookpod that i haven't been able to make yet because of nerve pain. it might behoove you to ask someone else this time but if you don't mind waiting, go ahead and send an ask with a request and i'll try to get around to it the next time i gif.

[wigglebox]

I had wondered a little bit of time ago I think when one of the first time travel interviews came out — or something i forgot what it was but indicating that this story will take some twists and turns 

i think it was when we were recording an episode for @endofthebookpod and talking about henry’s time travel to the future. 

the men of letters does have a spell to jump to the future so long as you have blood in the future aka a relative. so that would be significantly interesting if they do jump into the future for whatever or any reason. 

idk who else would help them out but if it’s john and mary jumping to the future for me it’d make logical sense that they show up to dean since he was first born. and then it’d be interesting if carlos or latika have relatives in the future too. 

so yeah i would honestly just love it if they did a little pop into the future using that spell. 

that would also mean that since men of letters at the time understood the presence of angels [since you need an angel feather for the spell] the core four would indeed learn about angels as well. 

WAIT WAIT WAIT. we’ve been thinking abt this all wrong. time-travel goes two ways. instead of thinking abt how spn fan favorites could show up in the past what about….an ep (or arc) where the prequel characters travel to the future…..a future that might end up erased or mind-wiped by chuck but still. image them showing up at the lebanon bunker like the huntercorp brothers. tfw just chilling between cases or something and then BAM. scooby-gang shows up, two of which claim to be john and mary, and they need help / resources from the men of letters. crucially sam is away for reasons and it’s deancas (jack can be there too) that gotta help (sorry samgirls but. no jred here) ���� thee 🤯 good 🤯 spn prequel 🤯 that lives in my miiiind 🤯

[endofthebookpod]

"Respectfully to Kripke and everybody else, [John being a veteran] kind of gets a little brushed over, I think, in Supernatural and like . . . how does war haunt you? How does that change you, you know? . . . How did that change John? Like, when we see John in Supernatural, he's just kind of this like, geeky good kid, you know, in the flashbacks, and it's like, he just came back from 'Nam, like he's not... he can't be that put together." -Rachel Lynett

[endofthebookpod]

"I can't remember exactly how we went about picking this particular episode for this moment . . . absolutely insane to me that I'm like working on a script and I get to even just write [Dean's] name down there. It was very strange. Yeah, I mean, so much of that was the brainchild of Robbie and Jensen working together as well, like they had a vision and a plan for the Dean of it all . . . It was super cool to see it happening, like to be talking about it for a long time and then for it to actually be on paper and then to see the early cuts of the moment and then when it was like cut with score and music like it gave me chills the first time I saw it. I was like this is such a cool ending to an episode and people are gonna be freaking out in the best way. And I'm so excited." –Nic Chatree Sridej

[endofthebookpod]

"[John eventually] gets to talk to his dad. And, like, what does that mean? Like, how does that change John's trajectory? Like, one of my biggest things I'm sad about with The Winchesters being cancelled is, like, I'd love to see how this John grows up. Like how does this John change having been able to talk to the ghost of his dad, having to fight all this, having to know about monsters before Mary's death, you know? How does trauma change when you can face it face forward rather than backward?" -Rachel Lynett

[endofthebookpod]

We Are Back!!

[endofthebookpod]

Hi, everybody! We're back with a brand new episode and it's a really special one. We're talking to the fabulous Rachel Lynett, who worked in the writers room on The Winchesters, and penned episode 1x09 "Cast Your Fate to the Wind." Tune in wherever you listen to podcasts to hear the full interview! (photo credit: Tangled Trails Media)

[endofthebookpod]

"So I'm Central American/South American. And so [La Tunda] was someone that I found in my research and I was like, we have to do her. We have to; she's so cool. And I know that it was like really important to Robbie [Thompson] to find, um, non-American specific monsters, which was a really fun challenge of like, finding mythology outside of Catholicism and outside of American mythology." -Rachel Lynett

[endofthebookpod]

Hello, friends! We're back with the first installment of our Robbienatural series! In this episode we talk about the unique and experimental way Robbie tells stories, with a focus on Slash Fiction, Bitten, Baby, and Safe House. We hope you enjoy it!