#narrative direction

For those of you who don’t know who Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel is, for my purposes, he was a German Philosopher and a man who looked like several instances of Jacob Marley. He had several ideas about how history and social constructs work. His ideas have been adapted over the years to suit fictional storytelling and they do an extremely good job of it. The great wiki creature sums up the work of Hegel thusly:

Hegel's principal achievement is his development of a distinctive articulation of idealism sometimes termed "absolute idealism",[16]in which the dualisms of, for instance, mind and nature and subject and object are overcome. His philosophy of spirit conceptually integrates psychology, the state, history, art, religion, and philosophy. His account of the master–slave dialectic has been highly influential, especially in 20th-century France.[17] Of special importance is his concept of spirit (Geist: sometimes also translated as "mind") as the historical manifestation of the logical concept and the "sublation" (Aufhebung: integration without elimination or reduction) of seemingly contradictory or opposing factors; examples include the apparent opposition between nature and freedom and between immanence and transcendence. Hegel has been seen in the 20th century as the originator of the thesis, antithesis, synthesis triad;[18] however, as an explicit phrase, this originated with Johann Gottlieb Fichte.[19]

Already seeing some parallels? Good. (it’s ok if you don’t. Wikipedia likes to word everything like a scientific abstract.)

I know it says the triad name was attributed to a different dude, and that’s true, but in terms of our usage, we’re gonna keep dragging Hegel around with us on this journey because he’s associated with the philosophy behind it. So come, Hegel, you’re not getting out of this so easily.

The definitions for each of these instances are thus:

The thesis is an intellectual proposition.The antithesis is a critical perspective on the thesis.The synthesis solves the conflict between the thesis and antithesis by reconciling their common truths, and forming a new proposition

Sound a bit like SPN’s s1-5, s6-11 and ... now? Yeah, there might be a reason for that. Not sure if it’s on purpose, but considering how everywhere the dialectic is in writing, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was come across and adopted at some point. At least to an extent. (also just freaking read that description of them there, that’s so pointed, it pangs at my fingers when typing).

One the people who brought the Hegel dialectic into mainstream use in media was Blake Snyder, most notably in his book Save the Cat. The Book has been fairly influential since its publishing and it’s been used as a basis for many films and tv shows. I don’t know if the book influenced SPN, but it may have (the book was released in 2005). Whether the book was a direct influence or not, there are certainly similarities. The show may be taking influence from Hegel directly, it may have evolved on its own as part of the human approach to storytelling or, it may have came from another work influenced by Hegel… like Ghost in the Shell.

The longer something exists the more it has to explain itself. This isn’t true of all media, but it’s generally true of anything that wants to have a consistent, ongoing, story.

This is why shorts are allowed to be weird as hell and they get away with it, and it’s why SPN has been deconstructing itself for the last several years. It’s also probably why everything is people.. Other than because budget. If this whole thought process is true, this season will mark the beginning of act 3, the beginning of the synthesis part of the arc, and if my speculation is correct, the beginning of sublation or aufhebung as Hegel used it.

For our purposes, and as it's generally used in media, sublation here means “assimilate.” To merge two opposing factors into a single entity, the two factors may not be even in scope. From what I can gather, the message of the entire series is “humanity must learn to accept the aspects of itself that it runs from, that it others and demonizes as part of itself.” That may sound long, but messages in works are often sentences like that.

Reconciling the old to embrace the new” has been what myself and some others have been calling the theme of this season. This fits into the message I’ve derived from the show by giving the characters the incentive to try new ideas and to learn from what they’ve experienced instead of relying entirely on past rhetoric. Not everything about the past is bad, but weeding out what’s preventing positive progress and merging it to new ideas which better accept the real world is a step in progressing towards a culmination of the message. In order to do that, you have to dance the destiel a little. Cas is literally the ideals of the Winchester brothers, of “humanity” as represented by them. That’s his character role. He’s also a supernatural being, linking him to the idea that “the ideas that progress are within what we have deemed other”. This aspect of his character is enforced throughout the series and is come into direct text on multiple occasions. Dean is in love with a supernatural being that represents new ideals of progress and acceptance. To me this is what destiel ultimately is, or will be. Humanity (Dean) accepting that which it was taught to other (the Supernatural (queer) love of Cas, ie new ideals) as part of itself in order to progress as a person (species) to a better future. If one aspect of humanity (Dean) accepts it (culminates his love somehow), then the other (Sam), will be forced to accept it in turn because Dean loving Cas would give Sam a visual representation of reality being different than his upbringing and experiences had previously presented. Even in that paragraph, you can see elements of the Hegel loop poking through. You can also see some reflection on the show itself and its audience…

So, what does all this mean for the rest of the series? Obviously add sadness and pain where necessary. This is SPN after all, but as long as nothing directly opposes this narrative, this seems to be the direction they’re going here. Eileen’s death was really idiotic and broke a lot of narrative rules, but it doesn’t directly refute anything. It’s a single instance and it may not even be true (it probably is, but man, either Bucklemming eated more purple berries than usual, they really shared the wealth, their entire purpose on the writing team is to sew misdirection, or something’s up here… possibly involving that last one.)

Below are a what seems to be where this is going in some form or another using the Hegel Loop as a means for the message:

1) Dean and Sam must face and reconcile with their pasts on all sides. Their past with themselves, their past with each other, their past with the important people in their life, their concept of family and how it has affected their lives and so on. Since everything must support the themes of a work if it wants to follow the rules, this idea has to prevail with every force in the current canon. Thus: Supernatural(Angels) vs Humanity(SamnDean), BMoL vs Hunters (Also mirror each other). Similar to their “force concepts”, Sam doesn’t really understand Dean, just like the BMoLs don’t really understand hunters. They think they do, they’re very efficient and rely on heavy research and technology, but their intel sucks. Similar also to Dean, the hunters aren’t generally so keen on lending themselves to the BMoLs. They believe they have reason not to, and so too does Dean believe he has reason to keep Sam from knowing his true self.

2) The two ideals of the show must also be addressed and reconciled/embraced. I said before and earlier that Cas = the ideals on the show. And yeah, he does from what I’ve gathered. From s4 on, he has always mirrored the way the Winchester's and thus “humanity” operate on a thematic level as time as gone on.(Especially Dean, the “heart of humanity’) This is because he’s the show’s “Love interest”. That’s what the Love Interest does but boy, does he take it to new and interesting levels! Like Dean and Sam, he still has self worth issues, he still has issues with his understanding of family and where he belongs, what he can be trusted with, what he’s for. If you look closely, you can see him mirroring a lot of decisions on the sides of both brothers. As of now, they both are starting to embrace a new way of looking at things, and in turn, Cas is experiencing situations that challenge his beliefs and combine both perspectives into a single progression to “better ways”.

Mary on the other hand, holds the old ideals of the show. She is basically s4 Cas and because she wasn’t around to experience all the changes, she carries the old show with her. She is what Cas could have been without the influence of the Winchesters. Still headstrong and rebellious, but falling back on old ideas and operations. Dean and Sam have truly changed Cas, and Mary is a testament to that. Like Cas as well, when she was sent back to Earth from heaven, she rebelled, and we’re seeing her s4 and 5. Most likely she won’t last any longer because the show won’t need her to prove a point anymore, but what she represents is pretty clear to me. Mary’s mirror of Cas is twisted. It has a flipped perspective with the Winchester’s being the original family and the BMoLs (Angels) being where she originally puts her faith because they share her ideals. Technically the Winchester’s held Cas’ too. His feelings of heart and freedom were found with them, but because of Mary’s situation and old ideals, she runs to the BMoLs instead.

Add Mick and some nigh omnipresent Cas references and you have a season about Cas, a season about ideals where Dean, Cas and Sam try to confront themselves, each other and the concept of family and duty that they were all fed stringently throughout their lives and times being with each other.

Those above concepts there are the thesis and the antithesis incarnate. They are the current state of affairs bumping against the old ways. This is their sticking point, they are coming to a head and they must. The pics and promos from the finale seem to enforce the idea that they will deal with the confrontation of a sort of reality, just as they have been slowly recognizing the need to confront their own hidden, unspoken realities.

3) At some point Cas, Dean and Sam will have to “embrace” each other in however they plan on doing that. They will not leave all of their past selves but they will all move forward to something better and new.

4) Dean will probably tell Cas he loves him or some other gesture by the end of the season. Gotta visualize/solidify those themes, m’boy! Your medium says so. In turn, Sam will be forced to learn to understand a side of Dean he wanted to believe didn’t exist and that he may have been actively hiding from because it would mean some things in his past would take on a new color with some possibly saddening meanings for him.

*coughs* I will always be a little devilishly amused at the character roles in this season and how they relate to the show and fandom directly…

5) Most likely Rowena and Crowley will reconcile at some point as well, but it’s hard to tell. They may resolve their issues by the end of the season in some form or another. Crowley mirrors a lot of characters and Rowena is sort of dark Mary, so their resolution will likely follow a similar trajectory + Crowley and Gavin feels or something. Mary’s probably gonna ascend like Gavin did. 12.21 and some general themes with Crowley overall have lead me to suspect that he’s holding the cards to this new reality. He does kind of mirror a lot of people with Rowena filling in the gaps, so him being the one to reveal something would make sense.

6) The BMoLs and the hunters will probably merge in some way. There’s likely a reason we felt there should be more names on that table. We will soon see Dean and Sam act as generals of the hunters… if that ends how I think it will, we will end with more names on that table and a defended legacy/Bunker. They will take the good of the BMoLs and incorporate it into the hunting world. Kind of a new Bobby network but with more stuff.

So then what does the finale entail?

That’s where Ghost in the Shell and Alicia may give us a clue.

If you have not already seen this movie, I highly recommend it. Its influence is seen in all sorts of places. A recent example is Westworld. It is a bit gory, so if that’s really not your cup of tea, fair enough. The following contains spoilers for the movie and it will affect how I address what happened with Alicia and how I think it may reflect on the ending of the season. You are free to skip it, but it may be a bit confusing after. If you want to skip this section, press CTRL or Command + F and search “spoilers over” in the box.

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Ghost in the Shell involves Major Motoko Kusanagi, a cyborg who has feelings of limitation by her perspective. She believes that there is more to the world and she wants to experience and understand it.

Kusanagi: “There are countless ingredients that make up the human body and mind, like all the components that make up me as an individual with my own personality. Sure I have a face and voice to distinguish myself from others, but my thoughts and memories are unique only to me, and I carry a sense of my own destiny. Each of those things are just a small part of it. I collect information to use in my own way. All of that blends to create a mixture that forms me and gives rise to my conscience. I feel confined, only free to expand myself within boundaries.”

She is part of a Black Ops unit that investigates a hacker called The Puppetmaster who has been controlling people through their “ghosts” to do its bidding. “Ghosts” are basically brains or minds. In this world, cybernetics and biological aspects are fairly integrated but are not considered their own beings. They’re more augmentations for the humans rather than individuals.. In most cases. The people who are controlled by the Puppet Master are given false memories. They have no idea who they are or what their goals really are.

Over the course of the film, The Major and her companions investigate several ghost hacked people and the concept of identity. Eventually they learn that The Puppetmaster is actually a program created by an intelligence branch called Section 6.

The Major learns that The Puppetmaster has gained its own intelligence and has sought her out to merge with her and complete its perspective. It lacks the things a biological being has and has the vast knowledge of the internet. At the end of the movie, the two achieve sublation and combine into a single being, neither The Major, nor the Puppetmaster.

Before the merge, Kusanagi is hesitant. She fears losing herself to the merge and wants to remain an individual.

Kusanagi: You talk about redefining my identity. I want a guarantee that I can still be myself.

Puppet Master: There isn't one. Why would you wish to? All things change in a dynamic environment. Your effort to remain what you are is what limits you.

This and their inevitable merge may sound like just a narrative decision, but really it seems like a decision based on philosophy of the work and its themes. The issue of stagnation. Ghost in the Shell argues that humanity would inbreed stagnation if it stayed the same (sound familiar?) and only change can save it, even if it stops being human as we know it. An interesting thing to me about the above is that it sorta addresses something directly stated in text in SPN:

Gah, there’s no transcript for 12.19 yet. Paraphrase time!

“Something something he’ll lose what makes him special”

If there is an influence in Ghost in the Shell, no he won’t. I know there are some people that want Cas to stay an angel, and I get that. It’s a fundamental part of him to many people, but depending on how they culminate Cas’ “sublation” with the Winchesters, he may become human as part of that metaphor. Just as the show may change form, but still be itself. According to GitS, he can’t fear change to preserve “what makes him special” When Kelly is talking about the Nephilim, there’s a decent chance she’s really talking about Cas… and his birth.. As a human. She’s afraid something that is integral to him will be lost, but from what Alicia showed us, he will still be the same Cas.. just sans powers… and maybe + some emotions.

So what does this mean for SPN? Alicia gave us a possible clue. She became a “ghost in the shell” when her heart was placed into the twig doll, but she retained her caring nature and her memories. As far as anyone would need to know, Alicia is Alicia. It’s possible she could be controlled, but since the ring is what controls her, I doubt Max would ever utilize it. We will probably never see them again, because they have given us what they were meant to narratively and them staying longer would mean they would have to explain themselves beyond that point. If we see them again, expect some weirdness.

Even when Alicia was placed into the doll, she still looked out for Max’s well being. Even when Cas was influenced by the Nephilim, he was still concerned with Dean’s well being. In a way, Cas has been a “ghost in the shell” for quite some time, with the question about vessels. With Alicia’s gesture, I’d say it’s pretty safe to say Cas’ body is his and Alicia’s is hers even if they can be controlled. Even if they can lose their free will, it’s not lost entirely. Even when she her body, she kept being herself in an entirely different body… made from fundamentally “lesser” materials, she retained her heart and what made her, her. Adding heart and humanity to a vessel, still retains the heart of that person. Even if Cas is no longer an angel, he will retain that heart he has. Even if the show takes a new form, if it retains its heart, it will remain the show.

Cas is currently further possessed by the nephilim, but he’s still in there. And the nature of the apparent themes means it has to release him eventually.

On that note, if 12.21 gave me anything(other than deep confusion regarding what the hell is happening and several conspiracy theories), it’s further evidence of a possible GitS influence with Mary being brainwashed to do the bidding of the BMoLs to do their bidding and slowly remove her memories in favor of memories that suit them. In GitS terms, she’s been Ghost Hacked.

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Spoilers over. Below are what I think all of this means for the ending of season regarding Cas and Dean since they seem to be the focus of assimilation. It depends on what the show thinks about the nature of Hegel, but each of the following scenarios is possible based on what I’ve been able to figure out:

Cas and Dean will occupy the same body: As a possibility to save Dean’s muffins from burning in the finale like Gadreel did for Sam in s9? Sure. As a permanence? Doubt it.

Cas becomes human but gets a new vessel. This is mostly just unlikely because people would hate it. Again, possible if temporary but TPTB, I do not recommend stretching this over a long period. Alicia looking exactly like herself makes this pretty unlikely.

Cas and the Nephilim won’t stay merged.. That’s redundant. He can’t “merge with humanity” while merged with a half luci humanoid… no. The kid is symbolic of Cas, Sam and possibly Eve. Because of Cas’ current nature and the nature of the supernatural and humanity and their sort of “forbidden” merging. Cas and the Nephilim are one atm, because their stories are. Which gives further credence to some sort of change. The kid is basically “past present and future” incarnate. It contains all of those elements at the moment, but future is its focus, same with Cas and the themes surrounding him from what I’ve gathered. Its relation to Sam is pretty obvious, since he’s been related to “a potential” evil demon child for much of the series. It not being evil makes sense for his character arc.

I have no idea what will happen to the kid. There’s evidence for a lot of things. Some I like better than others. They’re mostly personal preferences at this point.

Cas remains as he is and voices that he is himself. If GitS or Hegel in general are an influence and the showrunners like this philosophy, this probably won’t be what happens. I know there are a lot of people who want Cas to stay an angel for various reasons, and they can believe that if they want, but it just doesn't’ seem to be the way the story is going. I could be totally wrong and may have missed something, but the nature of stories is change. Cas can’t go back to being full angel, not permanently anyway. Also, if the show’s message is as I’ve deduced, he’ll have to be human in order to fully be accepted as part of humanity. If he powers up, expect him to power all the way down. Cas is a character and characters serve the story and vise versa, they are locked in an inseparable state with their themes. Cas is the themes in this story, he can’t be a weird penguin forever. That’s not climactic enough for the medium he exists in. If it were a book, it would be more likely, but it’s unlikely in a filmed work. The show can’t be a weird penguin forever either, especially if the GitS influences are correct(the non-reductable part is a factor, but if the message is thus, everything is humans). Again, I could be wrong, and I don’t want to discourage other interpretations, this just seems to cover the most bases from what I’ve observed.

I’m still operating under the idea that 12.12 is a microcosm of the season and possibly the series up to this point, so we’ll see how that plays out. I expect Crowley to save the day somehow, some dramatic declarations, Cas injury and probably Mary injury, some fiddling with anachronistic presentation/perspective on reality and a prince of hell. For this particular exercise, I was more interested in what happens, rather than how we get to the happening.

1) [2 shot mid, profile] CASTIEL Good day, ma'am. [mid-close OTS] (CASTIEL gives her an emphatic thumbs-up, and says very intensely:) And good luck!

[Technically 2 shot, focus shifts from customer to Dean]

[Quick insert of mid-close Cas for reaction]

DEAN I'll have some beef jerky and a pack of menthols.

[Camera lingers on Dean]

[Mid close]CASTIEL ...What are you doing here?

[OTS mid close] DEAN Gee, it's nice to see you, too, Cas.

[OTS mid close]CASTIEL It's … Steve now. (gesturing towards his employee name tag) And... uh, you surprised me.

[OTS mid close]DEAN Well, the feeling is mutual. I mean, I knew you had to lay low from the angel threat, but, uh, wow. This is some cover.

[OTS mid close on Cas, he crosses behind the register. The camera settles in an OTS pos]

[OTS mid on Dean, cuts to OTS mid close on Cas’ coverage. Cas’ profile can be seen during Dean’s coverage.]

CASTIEL My Grace is gone. What did you expect? Do you have any idea how hard it was? When I fell to earth, I didn't just lose my powers. [cuts to OTS mid close on Dean] I –

 [cuts back to OTS mid close on Cas] I had nothing. Now... I'm a sales associate.

[OTS mid] DEAN A sales associate?

The beer delivery guy hands "Steve" a clipboard from out of frame. Cas reaches for before Dean can continue.

[Hand into frame] DELIVERY GUY Hey, Steve. Sign here?

[Mid 2 shot of Dean and Cas across from each other in profile with the counter between them. Delivery guy partially obstructs our sightline of Dean. Dean is not pleased with his blocking being blocked.

CASTIEL takes the clipboard and signs it, continuing to speak to DEAN.

[OTS close mid] CASTIEL I'm responsible for inventory, sales, customer service. I keep this place – (he hands the clip board to the delivery guy, who says "Thank you" and leaves) – Thank YOU (to the delivery guy) – clean and presentable. And when my manager's busy, I even prepare the food.

[OTS close mid] DEAN Wow. So you went from fighting … heavenly battles to nuking taquitos?

[OTS close mid] CASTIEL (nodding) Nachos too.

Scene.

^Notes about the scene above:

The shots make the characters seem a lot closer to each other except when it pulls back to the master and a couple of high angle OTS shots.

Dean and Cas being interrupted by the delivery guy is interesting. It kind of shows a sudden amount of space between them from what was a series of very close shots in 2D space.

The dialogue that’s given importance when it’s on coverage is generally regarding Cas’ job and humanity. Off coverage is reaction shots mostly. This editor seems to mostly cut around dialogue, or cut like mad. Check this out:

CAS: What are you doing here?

DEAN: Gee, it's nice to see you, too, Cas.

CAS: It's … Steve now. you surprised me.

DEAN: low from the angel threat, but, uh, wow. This is some cover.

CAS: how hard it was? When I fell to earth, I didn't just lose my powers. I had nothing. Now... I'm a sales associate. DEAN: A sales associate?

CAS: I keep this place – Thank YOU – clean. I even prepare the food.

DEAN: Wow. So you went from -  to nuking taquitos?

CAS: Nachos too.

----Interesting. Next!

2) Cas walks out of the Gas n Sip storage room [Master tracking mid 2 shot, follows Cas], Cas is annoyed.

DEAN: This is not you man, you are above this. C’mon!

CASTIEL: No Dean, I’m not.

[Ots Close] CASTIEL (cont.) I failed at being an angel... everything I ever attempted came out wrong. But here, at least I have a shot of getting things right.

[OTS close 2 shot, Dean in focus] Castiel (cont.) I guess you can’t see it, but... there’s a real [back to Cas’ ots close] dignity in what I do. A human dignity.

[OS to 3 shot mid wide] NORA: I hate to interrupt you guys but Steve, a customer had an accident in the men’s room.

[OTS mid 2 shot of Dean and Cas] CASTIEL: I’m on it.

[CAS OTS mid] NORA: Oh, and tonight. 7 at my place work for you?

[Back to the Dean/Cas OTS mid 2 shot] CASTIEL: Great.

[Close mid] NORA: You’re the best.

[Mop OTS mid 2 shot] DEAN: That’s what this i-[cuts to OTS close when he looks to Cas] -s about.

(Agh, the way Dean looks during this part of the scene is really similar to how he looks in the diner in 12.12 during his “support” there too)

[OTS mid close] CASTIEL: What?

[OTS mid close] DEAN: A girl.

[OTS mid close] CASTIEL: No, Dean. It’s not. Nora... She’s a very nice woman. [shot cuts to include more of Cas and a closer shot of Dean] I’m pretty sure she’s not a reaper intent on killing me... and she’s asked me out. Going on dates is something humans do right?

[CU Dean’s focus with Cas in profile] DEAN: Yeah, I mean my dates usually end when I run out of singles but yeah.. it’s something that.. humans do.

(Dean’s phone starts to ring)

[Master tracking mid 2 shot, follows Dean] DEAN: This is agent Lee Ermey. I’ll be right there.

[2 shot, Dean’s focus, Close mid CAS] DEAN: There’s another kill. Up at the highschool. You coming?

[OTS Close mid] I wouldn’t be much use, and I don’t have my powers.

[Dean’s focus mid close with close Cas’ profile] DEAN: So? I’ve never had powers.

[OTS mid close] CASTIEL: You are a hunter.

[Dean’s focus mid close with close Cas’ profile] DEAN: You’re a hunter in training, remember?

CASTIEL: Yeah, I remember. [cut to OTS mid close] you said I sucked.

[2 shot mid Dean’s focus, mid close Cas] DEAN: I didn’t say that. I said that there was uh, uh... you know, room for improvement. Come on!

[Master OTS 2 shot mid Cas focus] CASTIEL: *sigh* alright, my shifts over in 5 mins and my date’s not until later so..

[OTS mid close] DEAN: That a boy. I’ll go get the car. (pats Cas on the arm)

CASTIEL: Not just yet.

[OTS mid close] CASTIEL: I have to clean the bathroom.

Scene.

Some notes: Again, coverage dialogue involves stuff regarding humans and dignity.

This scene’s closest shots are of Dean when he decides Nora is the reason for Cas’ dignity. Dean is not pleased about it. It really reminded me of the diner scene in 12.12. Seriously, watch those scenes back to back, it’s freaky.

The mop gets a OTS mid wide 2 shot... Cas has a connection to the mop... Damnit director.

Cas and Dean sort of have their own space throughout the scene. We enter their “space” by following Cas’ track. We exit it briefly following Dean’s track when he gets the call. He goes back and we end the scene in the space but Cas exits it.

-----Onward!

3) [Wide of the Impala] DEAN: Cas.

[OTS mid. Most of Dean can be seen with Cas. Cas focus] DEAN: Wait.

[OTS close] DEAN: I can’t let you do this.

[OTS mid close] CASTIEL: What?

[OTS close] DEAN: You’re gonna wear that on a date?

[OTS mid close] CASTIEL: This is all I have, Dean.

[OTS mid. Most of Cas can be seen with Dean focus] DEAN: Okay. Uh.. lose the vest.

[Mid close, 2 shot, Cas focus] CASTIEL:  What are you-?

[Focus shifts to Dean at the end of his line] DEAN: Lose the vest. Come on.

[Mid close on Cas. He’s taking the vest off] DEAN: That’s a little better. Alright.

[OTS close] DEAN: And now your buttons. Why don’t you unbutton it?

Insert Mid of Cas undoing the buttons.

[OTS close] DEAN: Okay. That- that’s far enough, Tony Manero.

[OTS close] DEAN: Uh.. Yeah. Good. All right. Listen to me.

[OTS mid close] DEAN: Always open the door for her, okay?

[OTS mid with Cas’ profile] DEAN: Ask a lot of questions. They like that. And uh.. oh, if she says she’s happy to go Dutch? She’s lying.

[OTS mid close] DEAN: All right?

[OTS mid with Cas’ profile] Go get ‘em, Tiger.

The focus shifts from Dean to Cas and back to Dean. We can see Dean watching Cas leave.

Cas steps out of the Impala with Dean still watching. Dean watches the rest of the scene play out and gives Cas encouragement.

Cas approaches the house intercut with Dean’s PoV. We get a close shot of Dean watching him.

Heh, Dean tries to leave after being waved off but a truck with the brown and cream motif Cas’ current truck has, blocks him.

Scene.

^Ok, that scene there. Serious 11.23 vibes. Like, I had them before but man. I just watched the scene 4 times and agh. Dean even handles it more or less the same way. He leads in, and then backtracks. That was a long ass pause, and yeah, it may have been a joke, but there are only so many close shots you wanna doll out in a scene. These are the only close shots. All of them have coverage dialogue except the last one:

[OTS close] DEAN: I can’t let you do this.

[OTS close] You’re gonna wear that on a date?

[OTS close] DEAN: And now your buttons. Why don’t you unbutton-

[OTS close] DEAN: Uh.. Yeah. Good. All right. Listen to me.

[OTS close] DEAN: Tony Manero.

Close of Dean watching Cas approach the house.

By the way, that last one? It probably wouldn’t exist if it didn’t mean something. If there wasn’t some reason to show that close up, they probably wouldn’t have. They likely have tons of footage from different setups of that scene. They chose that shot. Why?

Actually, this entire episode feels that way. Especially that scene. Scenes are supposed to go through a -/+ emotional change or a +/- change. So.. what changed in the scene emotionally? What purpose did it serve in the ep overall? In the arc overall? What purpose did this ep serve?

Obviously, I can’t really know about the intent for any of this, but it really seems like Dean has a thing for Cas and vise versa by the editing. Not only that, but this ep is just saturated with romance film tropes.

Some of s12 really feels like an exploration of some of the concepts of this ep. Not sure if intentional, but it’s sure there.

Parallels for pretty much everyone abound. Davy is pretty good at using parallels to give density to his episodes without spending a lot of time explaining information. The parallels also tighten the story. When I say tighten, I mean there isn’t room for extra stuff after a certain point. The parallels make the story very centralized and everything sort of hones in when they’re used. They add density but also narrow the scope. It’s actually not bad at all when used correctly as long as you’re aiming for a centralized scope. It’s one of the reasons why Dean and Cas can’t have other long term love interests. The story is too tight and the parallels help build that to be the case. The best thing about them is that they tell us info we haven’t heard directly.

On that note, let’s start with the set up with Dean and Cas and Mary and Sam. These guys have been paired off since early in the season and it makes perfect sense. They’re paralleling S6 which calls for a betrayer. So we bring back a character who fulfills the same roll the betrayer did: To deconstruct a long held ideal for the purpose of rebuilding new ideals the audience can see on screen. Dean and Cas’ dynamic is crushed in a similar way Sam and Mary’s is crushed. The difference here is how Sam reacts to the betrayal. Unlike Dean, he still tries to maintain the initial “pedestal” that he put Mary on even after the betrayal is revealed and is in a way, refusing to construct or see a new ideal. He’s holding on to the old one because it sounds better on the surface, something people do in real life all the time (if you look closely, you can see part of the show’s message shining through). Dean gave Cas the benefit of the doubt, but when the betrayal was confirmed, the pedestal came down and only crumbled further until room for rebuilding was cleared with the old dust. Dean has the same reaction to Mary here but his pedestal was slowly crumbling even before the betrayal. Sam started losing his dynamic with Cas early on (”the boy with the demon blood”) and Dean did with Mary as well. 

Sam didn’t have a reason to maintain a good connection with Cas when he betrayed them. By that point, Cas was basically Dean’s npc and while Sam cared for him, it was more tangential. He does have a reason with Mary though and that reason is why Dean is forced to keep a dynamic with her too. He can’t run away and keep back like he did from Cas (albeit not completely, even then). Sam gives Dean a push to listen and to consider different information to what he understands. He’s right in this case, but the exercise is necessary for his character. Even if this ends badly, Dean needs to learn to accept other people’s decisions and Sam needs to learn to accept his own. It’s a test for both of them. When this ends, Sam will be wrong, but hopefully he will have learned that being wrong doesn’t always mean the end of the world and I’m guessing some aspect of the new episodes will give him something to be right about as well. Something Dean won’t approve of initially. Yay more parallels!

Throughout this episode Sam and Mary and Dean and Cas are given parallels. Dean pretty much entirely interacts with Cas directly(even on speaker, he calls Cas) and Sam interacts with the BMol and Mary. They also are given further parallels with who they interact with in this episode: Dean is given supernatural characters and Sam is given primarily humans. Dean is also given a Cas mirror and Sam is given a Mary mirror in the forms of Crowley and Gwen respectively, and just like Crowley is an “anti-Cas”, Gwen is an “anti-Mary”.. 

Gwen actually gives the audience some interesting information about Mary in relation to Sam and to this season’s use of opposing parallels for characters. Gwen in an “Anti-Mary”. In 4.03 we learn about Mary’s deal with Azazel to save John. We also learn about Mary’s apparent desire to get out. I do believe she still has that desire in s12, just like Sam does, but also like Sam, she has resigned to the idea that she’s good at it and can’t get away from it. I think both her and Sam see the BMoL as their only ticket out and want to believe that that thought process is good because it serves their goals and ideals. Another thing people do a lot in real life. In this case their motivation makes sense because as Cas points out in 4.03: “You realize, if you do alter the future; your father, you, Sam, you’ll never become hunters. And all those people that you saved, they’ll die.” Sam and Mary see the BMoL as a way to silence the lambs so they and the world can live in the way they believe is “normal”.

Gwen also wants to get out but in a different way. She wanted away from Marcus. She had an opportunity to get away but she couldn’t bring herself to tell Marcus. Mary was staying in but she didn’t tell John. Both characters were being proposed to. One wanted the white picket fence or thought she did, and one didn’t. Gwen didn’t love Marcus as much, and Mary did. As the audience, and in a way for Sam, we get information saying that Mary is better than Gwen. She really did love John and she really does love her boys. Gwen lives at the end of the episode. Even though she wished death on her boyfriend and couldn’t bring herself to tell him of her thoughts, she still lived. What does that mean for other characters? I still don’t think Mary will last the season (not in the capacity she has anyway) and this scene made me wonder about that further. It also makes a statement about how Sam confronts humans and their issues. Sam and Gwen save each other because the other is human. They also save each other to save themselves, both literally and metaphorically. Even after learning the nature of her transgression. In 5.03, Dean was already learning about things that went against the black and white world view back then. At the time, demon deals were just bad period and he contemplated stopping it for Mary, now they’re a thing that happens. Sam wasn’t there to see Mary’s deal but he’s here to hear of Gwen’s. I think Dean would probably have helped her too, but not without giving her a stern talking to. Sam doesn’t give saving her a second thought and honestly, leaving the Hell Hound alive probably wouldn’t have mattered much since she still had her programming. “Demons I get, people are crazy” Both Sam and Dean come to the rescue of Gwen and Mary despite their deals, but for different reasons and with different, almost opposing meaning. Dean came to save Mary already knowing about the deal, but because of Gwen and because of all the information surrounding Mary’s deal, we can infer that, that’s not all of what’s being focused on in his instance. It also tells us what the focus is for Sam. The audience is given further reminder of his thought process here. The show keeps reminding us of Dean and Sam’s different approaches and draws attention to how Dean and Sam have changed using each other as parallels.

Then we have Crowley. In some terms, I think Crowley’s issues here stem from a need to keep both he and Luci in the game. I find Crowley interesting and their “distant father to distant father” talk is kinda neat when written well. Some of Crowley’s actions seem to be a product of necessity but Davy at least piled some nice Crowlisms on to rule over the weirdness of 12.13. Him making th vessel the cage helps override some of the previous stupid. Thanks Davy. I’m also kind of glad to hear Crowley mention Gavin again just so we’re given more of reminder of how much he did care about having him around. It’s retroactive but it’s something.

Crowley is mostly a Cas mirror and Cas is often paralleled to John. Cas tends to be given fatherly storylines and Dean is given motherly ones... it’s still interesting and this season makes it really interesting. Anyway, in this episode, Dean is given Crowley to bounce off and makes a comment about saving Cas in the most pointed way imaginable. The show still likes to remind us of the parallels between Cas’ dynamic with Dean and Mary’s with Sam as the episode goes and it’s kind of glorious. You can reverse engineer a lot of what’s happening by taking one side and comparing it to the other. It’s one of the reasons I like the parallels here. They help me fill in blanks, almost like the parts of an algebra equation. Supernatural eps are actually a lot like math equations. If I can figure out an accurate algorithm, I’ll let y'all know.

Crowley standing in for Cas here kind of draws attention to how Cas and Dean have effected each other. They won’t admit it yet, but they’ve really rubbed off on each other. Dean now actively favors the truth and seeks it even when it hurts (unlike in 5.03, during an interaction with Cas), Dean now accepts aspects of the Supernatural and recognizes a gray area over a black and white “us vs them” mentality. Dean has begun crafting a new ideal that is his own because of Cas (season 7 explored the hell out of this), etc. Cas has become more human, and greatly with Dean’s influence. He understands regret, sadness, love and family. Cas even voices this over 12.10 and 12.12. Crowley has also learned to accept some of these aspects. In all ways, these characters have rubbed off on each other and it’s been good for everyone, as this episode points out with Gwen hugging Crowley (it had to be Crowley, he has a journey too) and Dean going back to save Gwen and give her the truth at her house. (those two things are combined for a reason. Association is fun).

Gwen’s hugging Crowley also sets up something for both he and Cas. By Sam saving Gwen because of her humanity, we can use her as a standin here. A human has embraced Crowley. He got a good gesture from doing something that favored humanity. This holds significance in his journey and probably means that he’ll embrace humanity in some way, eventually. Her embracing a Cas mirror also gives us some context for how humanity feels about Cas. They’re embracing him too, but like Crowley, Cas is afraid to fully embrace humanity back. He may love the Winchesters and especially Dean but his actions in the episode make it clear that he’s reluctant to fully embrace humanity, that he’s scared, that he still wants to make good with his birth family, but he will embrace them eventually. Gwen would have hugged Sam, otherwise.

This brings me to my last points. Miss Kelly and her baby. There actually isn’t much to go by here, but based on all the setup with embracing supernatural things, and Mary being wrong in this case and “a better way” and all that jazz, I’m pretty sure at least the baby will be fine, being alive wise. I’d like to say so will Kelly but sadly, she’s probably on the list. Unless she gets some characterization, she’s just screen time that could be dedicated to characters we already know. I know that sounds harsh, but we’re in a situation where either she’s going to stick around or not and the only way she’ll likely leave the baby is if she dies. Characterizing her could save her but I doubt they’ll do it. There’s only so much time they can dedicate each character and we have a lot of threads to go through this season. Trust me, I don’t like it and if they could give her a hidey-hole or something and have her willingly give the baby to someone else, that sounds like best case.

Before I started writing, I did scroll my feed a little and saw a couple of people being worried that Sam will kill Kelly because he killed the Hell Hound. I don’t think this is true. I think the Hell Hound being pregnant was more of a world thing rather than a story thing. If God killed most of the Hell Hounds, Lucifer would need a way to have more, since we know there are more. The Hell Hound being pregnant would give the reason for why he has so many. Also, the Hell Hound isn’t pregnant and the moment. If it was, it would be an oddly specific detail and the assessment would make more sense. Again, if I’m wrong, I’m wrong but even despite all this, the baby dying goes against the theme of the show at the moment. They could pull a Magda but that would be extremely anti-climactic and would betray all the buildup we’ve been given.

What they draw attention to matters. It’s set up. It can hurt but we’re given the contrast so the payoff has meaning.

One last thing: 

Dear Editor of 4.03, 

I saw what you did there with that insert of Deanna cutting bananas while Samual and Dean were arguing. I just wanted to let you know that i appreciate it and thought it was funny.

We editors gotta stick together.