8.01 - Mini Picspam with meta-ish thoughts
Oct. 7th, 2012 07:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ash48I can't stop thinking about how familiar many of the scenes were in episode 8.01. I love the deliberate choices to "call back" or mirror past episodes. It not only uses our past knowledge of those moments but it also gives them extra significance by being used again.
I thought I'd take a little look at those moments.
1. Monster of the Week:
As I mentioned in my episode reaction, the very beginning is similar to many episode beginnings. We usually have a scene where innocent victims are terrorised and often killed (or munched!) by the MotW. They started this episode much the same, only this time the "monster" turned out to be Dean (poignant yeah?!)
The scene in 8.01 reminded me more specifically of the beginning of 1.02 (Wendigo).
The next few scenes are direct comparisons to 4.01 (Lazarus Rising). I love how Dean's return from Purgatory is mirrored in his return from Hell.
2. The Walk:
I think of this as a symbolic of Dean's journey. I'm sure Dean being framed in green is deliberate in both scenes. Green represents new beginnings and a sense of life and health. Opposite to the places he's emerged from.
3. The Testing:
Testing for the supernatural in each other has now become a returning from the grave ritual. We've seen it when Dean returned from Hell in 4.01, Sam from Hell in 6.01 and now both Dean and Sam in 8.01. It's a motif now - they usually come in threes. Each time it tells us something about the state of their relationship. This time Dean is all business (similar to Sam when Sam returned from the Cage) and Sam is "we've done this enough to know we're each other". So cool!
4. The hug
Another returning from the grave ritual. No wonder Dean was all "Well let's do this. Come here". They've done it so many times now. If we looked at each hug we could see how their response offers a window to their states of mind when it happens - that's probably for another picspam though. Here Dean seems thoroughly warmed and relieved. And Sam, even though surprised, does seem equally warmed. Dean likes to close his eyes when he hugs Sam. He gets totally immersed in the hug. (Different to the way he hugs Benny you will notice. All smiles but no eye closing...)
5. Sam with a mysterious woman:
I think this is an interesting comparison. 4.01 presented us with a "mysterious" woman with Sam in the beginning of the episode. She later turned out to be Ruby. Here we have another woman who Sam has obviously had a relationship with. I think it's no accident that each time one brother is without the other they form a relationship with another person. I think Lisa understood it. The boys aren't able to sustain a healthy relationship with another person when they have each other. (Epic love story I tells ya!)
6. The Impala's key toss: (no good pics for this one I'm sorry...)
The keys to the Impala have become very symbolic over the course of the show. They have been used quite a few times now to represent the various stages in the boys relationship (I plan to do a mini picspam on this later on so will examine each of those later). Twice now Sam has looked after the Impala while Dean has been away and both times he's tossed the keys back to Dean upon his return. I love that they chose to mirror the tossing action from 4.01. A handing back of the Impala is a ritual now.
7. Sammy's "who me?" face.
Both times Sam has handed back the Impala Dean has spotted something different with his car. The first time the iPod and this time the dog smell. Such great mirroring.
8. The phone call:
I'm not sure if this is a deliberate "mirror" as such but Dean's sneaky phone call to Benny reminded me very much of his phone call to John in Home. There's been a suggestion that Dean has become more like John in this episode (military man) so I wonder if this was done for that reason? I think it's possibly done like this to emphasis that Dean is keeping this from Sam - much like he did his phone call to John in Home.
There may be some others but they are the ones the came to mind on the first viewing. I do love that they have chosen to present the scenes like this. It raises the question...what will be different this time and why?
I thought I'd take a little look at those moments.
1. Monster of the Week:
As I mentioned in my episode reaction, the very beginning is similar to many episode beginnings. We usually have a scene where innocent victims are terrorised and often killed (or munched!) by the MotW. They started this episode much the same, only this time the "monster" turned out to be Dean (poignant yeah?!)
The scene in 8.01 reminded me more specifically of the beginning of 1.02 (Wendigo).
 |  |
The next few scenes are direct comparisons to 4.01 (Lazarus Rising). I love how Dean's return from Purgatory is mirrored in his return from Hell.
2. The Walk:
I think of this as a symbolic of Dean's journey. I'm sure Dean being framed in green is deliberate in both scenes. Green represents new beginnings and a sense of life and health. Opposite to the places he's emerged from.
 |  |
3. The Testing:
Testing for the supernatural in each other has now become a returning from the grave ritual. We've seen it when Dean returned from Hell in 4.01, Sam from Hell in 6.01 and now both Dean and Sam in 8.01. It's a motif now - they usually come in threes. Each time it tells us something about the state of their relationship. This time Dean is all business (similar to Sam when Sam returned from the Cage) and Sam is "we've done this enough to know we're each other". So cool!
 |  |
4. The hug
Another returning from the grave ritual. No wonder Dean was all "Well let's do this. Come here". They've done it so many times now. If we looked at each hug we could see how their response offers a window to their states of mind when it happens - that's probably for another picspam though. Here Dean seems thoroughly warmed and relieved. And Sam, even though surprised, does seem equally warmed. Dean likes to close his eyes when he hugs Sam. He gets totally immersed in the hug. (Different to the way he hugs Benny you will notice. All smiles but no eye closing...)
 |  |
 |  |
5. Sam with a mysterious woman:
I think this is an interesting comparison. 4.01 presented us with a "mysterious" woman with Sam in the beginning of the episode. She later turned out to be Ruby. Here we have another woman who Sam has obviously had a relationship with. I think it's no accident that each time one brother is without the other they form a relationship with another person. I think Lisa understood it. The boys aren't able to sustain a healthy relationship with another person when they have each other. (Epic love story I tells ya!)
 |  |
6. The Impala's key toss: (no good pics for this one I'm sorry...)
The keys to the Impala have become very symbolic over the course of the show. They have been used quite a few times now to represent the various stages in the boys relationship (I plan to do a mini picspam on this later on so will examine each of those later). Twice now Sam has looked after the Impala while Dean has been away and both times he's tossed the keys back to Dean upon his return. I love that they chose to mirror the tossing action from 4.01. A handing back of the Impala is a ritual now.
7. Sammy's "who me?" face.
Both times Sam has handed back the Impala Dean has spotted something different with his car. The first time the iPod and this time the dog smell. Such great mirroring.
 |  |
8. The phone call:
I'm not sure if this is a deliberate "mirror" as such but Dean's sneaky phone call to Benny reminded me very much of his phone call to John in Home. There's been a suggestion that Dean has become more like John in this episode (military man) so I wonder if this was done for that reason? I think it's possibly done like this to emphasis that Dean is keeping this from Sam - much like he did his phone call to John in Home.
 |  |
There may be some others but they are the ones the came to mind on the first viewing. I do love that they have chosen to present the scenes like this. It raises the question...what will be different this time and why?
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no subject
Date: 2012-10-07 09:56 pm (UTC)Dean didn't remember then - too much political nonsense in the air - but now he remembers: the purity of it.
The notion of purity in purgatory is fascinating to me and I think you're right, it comes down to the purity of the hunt. Dean has always loved hunting but over the last few years it's take such a personal toll - there's too much other crap surrounding it. Perhaps there he could simply enjoy the hunt - like he did when he hunted with John.
And Sam never doubts that it is Dean, either because he's fully committed to not hunting, or because he knows something we don't.
I really love how different Sam's reaction is to Dean compared to anything we've seen in the past reunions. He almost makes Dean's actions look silly - or over the top. Sam seems to be taken by surprise but is not actually surprised by Dean's return. I wondered if it's simply because it's happened before or because Sam just knows Dean that well. Hmmmm....
Dean's back to not being able to talk to Sam, because they get like that when they've been apart,
Yeah, good point. They have to relearn to communicate again (not that they've always been good at that *sheesh* boys...).
That scene really made me want to know more about Benny - I have a feeling he might be a thorn in Dean's side.
no subject
Date: 2012-10-08 10:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-10-08 11:07 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-10-08 03:00 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-10-09 11:47 am (UTC)I think it's a question of balance. Dean's been more miserable these past few years than he should be - he's not getting that he does do good, and that it's okay that there are no perfect moral choices. But on the other hand, Dean's first-season attitude was just wrong - Sam was right to say that it's supposed to be complex and hard, and you have to see the shades of grey to do the job right. Enjoy the notion of 'purity' too much and you end up being Gordon Walker, and nobody wants that. Fresh out of purgatory, I think Dean is struggling a bit to find the right balance. But given the murky nature of his own actions in purgatory, I'm pretty sure the capacity to do so is still there.
I wondered if it's simply because it's happened before or because Sam just knows Dean that well. Hmmmm....
Given that the leviathans (assuming they kept a hair or two) would find it ridiculously easy to copy Dean, and would have a really good reason to want to hurt Sam, I think it probably does go deeper than 'this has happened before'. I'm really curious to see what it all means. :)
That scene really made me want to know more about Benny - I have a feeling he might be a thorn in Dean's side.
Yeah, I think Benny is at best a mixed blessing, and likely to be a problem. He's an interesting choice for a friend - I mean, vampires are clannish, loyal and have a tendency to fall apart when isolated. In some ways, it's like they were made to be Dean's sidekick. But then of course there's the bloodlust, and the fact that Dean once was one ...