Unhuman Nature
So Jack is getting worse and Sam, Dean, and Cas rush him to the hospital. The three worried dad’s are all on stand by, freaking out in their own ways. Dean is a little more frantic than the others, but that is probably because Cas and Sam are the more ‘logical’ of the group. I also find it interesting that while Sam is the hunter leader, Dean is still the leader of Team Free Will and TFW 2.0. The last episode Dean seems to be deferring more and more to Sam’s leadership, but we still see that they as a group still kinda defer to Dean. Dean was inthe middle of the group in almost all the hospital scenes and when he walked into the library; Cas, Rowena, and Sam all quickly gave him a status report.
After the hospital is a bust they go home and call Rowena. Sam tricks her there with a story that Dean is deathly ill, and Rowena comes running because she actually genuinely cares about Sam, Dean, and Cas. She meets Jack officially for the first time and while she refuses at first she learns how good of a kid he is and agrees. While Rowena is giving the boys her assessment, Dean is suddenly having headaches and issues with vision. So not only is something going on with Jack, but now something is going on with Dean. However since they got so much going on, Dean decides to hide the fact....because that worked out so well when Jack did it. This is a running theme...all season. Rowena tells them that unless Jack gets some archangel grace soon, he will die.
Everyone has different reactions to this.
Jack decides that is he’s going to die he should go out and knock a few things off his bucket list. Jack is very sure that the only source of archangel grace is Michael and he isn’t going to be helpful. Jack is also overwhelmed with everyone's exceptions of him since his birth and he just wants to be normal while he can. Dean understands that and Dean also know he can’t stop Jack. If he doens’t go with him, Jack will run off on his own. So Dean and Jack go out together.
Dean teaches Jack to drive using the Impala and I...I can’t emphasize how important that is. The Impala has had very very very few people have been behind the wheel of the car. As of now the only drivers were Sal, the first owner, John, Dean, Bobby, Jesse, Andy, Adam, Meg, Charlie, Rowena, Kelly, Tracy, and Jack. Now Sal and John both owned it before Dean. Jessie, Andy, Charlie, Rowena, and Kelly all stole the car in order to drive it.. oh and not to forget those weird creatures in Baby who kidnapped Dean and had him hog tied in the back seat. The only people Dean has actually let drive the Impala outside of Sam to that point was Bobby, Tracy, and Meg. For the latter two it was an emergency, and Bobby is family. Dean loves his car very much, it’s his most important possession. Sam says he barley even lets him drive. Yet Dean not only let Jack drive, it was Dean’s idea and he pushed Jack to drive. It also reminded me of Ben since Lisa had a picture of Dean and Ben in the front seat of the Impala and Dean had fond memories of teaching Ben how to work on the Impala.
The scene of Dean teaching Jack how to drive with the Impala isn’t only my favorite scene from this episode. It’s probably my favorite scene of all of season 14. It’s such a beautiful scene and it actually reminds me of when I first learned to drive. I pretty much did most of what Jack did, down to the whole driving with one arm to copy my Dad’s movements. I grew up in farm country. My Dad taught me to drive when I was little, when my feet could first reach the pedals. We used to spend hours working on that truck and when I finally got to drive it... I just mirrored every move my dad was doing and he was so proud of me.
Then Jack decides to go fishing because it was a memory that Dean talked to him about with John. Jack says that it isn’t the big moments that are important, but the little times like that...although my first fishing trip and my first driving experience weren’t little memories at all and I don’t think they were that way with Jack too. Jack just wanted a chance to be human, and like how Cas relied on Dean to teach him how to be human, Jack let Dean show him too.
I know a lot of people where upset that only Dean got highlighted here, but honestly I think it was important for Jack. Jack had been doing a lot of hunts with Cas lately. And Jack and Cas had a close and positive relationship since he was born. The same thing with Jack and Sam. Dean and Jack had a very bad start, and like Sam says...Dean hasn’t forgiven himself for how he treated Jack at first. Dean was the one Jack had worked so hard to prove himself to because Dean was the on who didn’t trust him, who didn’t even like him at first. From experience I can tell you some of those relationships end up pretty powerful. Jack doesn’t have as many amazing memories as he does with Sam and Cas because they started out so rocky. He got to do a few special things with Sam and Cas already, albit most were off screen. So yeah, I’m glad Jack and Dean got to have such a good time together.
Sam, Rowena, and Cas are tearing through every resource they have looking for a way to save Jack. Cas is looking through all the archives; Rowena is calling every witch in exsitance, even the ones who hate her; and Sam is calling every hunter and ally they have. The only lead they turn up is Arthur Ketch recommends a shaman. Cass goes to see him but his treatment for Jack actually makes it so much worse. In the end Rowena says all they can do now is just be by his side as he dies.
And while all this is going on (Jack dying, Dean hiding his condition from the others because eh probably doens’t really think much of it and figures they can’t afford to be worried about him too), turns out Nick is now a serial killer. So, yea? And he has found that a demon that is responsible for his families murder...oh and he woke up Lucifer in the Empty so that’s fun.
