8.13 reaction / review

[ash48]

My first reaction was...KEEEEY SMAAASHHHH!!! NO WORDS!!!. *thud*

Then I thought - that's stupid because of course I'll have lots of words!! ;D

But before all the words I have to say SO SO SO MUCH LOVE! So much love that it feels like I can't put it into words. Because that, my dear friends, is essentially EVERYTHING I love about my show.


Dear Show,

I know I was harsh on you for the first 10 episodes and I'm sorry I said you didn't care but you have to admit you made it VERY difficult. So it's not entirely my fault.

That said, I would now like to say thank you THANK YOU for giving back the love.

Yours gratefully,
ME!


It's been a long journey hasn't it? Nearly 8 years to get the brothers to this place. A place of peace and contentedness. A place with a new direction and purpose. And a home that actually feels like them.

It's weird because I feel like if that had been the end of the series I would have said...yes, THAT'S how it should end. That was curtain!ep if there ever was one.

But it's not the end (thank god!). In fact it feels like a new beginning. If they've done a "reset" then I couldn't be happier with the way they have done it. The Men of Letters is inspired and, just like Dean, I've put on my comfy slippers and settled in.

SO much to love in this episode, I have to count the ways....

The shallow:

1. Dean's wet hair!!! (and robe and SLIPPERS!!) <3333

2. Sam in a sweater vest and blazer! <33333

3. Dean with the sword! HA! Oh Dean... cutting himself...

4. HURT SAM!!!!! \o/ Can we just take a moment....
.
.
.
thank you *happy place*

5. Dean said "Little brother". I love it when either of them say big or little brother. I just....*hearty melty*

6. Dean eating! I'm not sure why it stood out this time but Dean was enjoying tucking into some food and it really played along with everything we know about Dean. He's happy. And when he's happy he enjoys his food. AND SHOWERS!!! (love the call back to an earlier ep on how he loves the water pressure).

7. Sam's hair!.. Um...you know I have a thing for Sam's hair right? Ok. Nice and floppy in this one. :))

8. Dean's face! (need I say more?! I am seriously struck at times just how attractive that man is. It's just not right. Really...)

9. Everybody loves bacon! (I'm sure they lurk our journals...)

10. "Quiet time" HA! (and they've been lurking my classroom. Loved that line!)

11. CODES!! "Something stuck to my shoe." \o/ They worked SO WELL together.


The not so shallow:

Damn but there were some lovely things going on in this episode.

As always the MotW story mirrors what's going on with the boys. Here we have a young man not taking the time to listen to his grandfather or take on his duty in his family. He "smoked" the very thing that would have given him knowledge. It was a book that was important and should have been preserved. Sam and Dean weren't aware of their "legacy", but now that they have been they are ready to take on this new responsibility. Books and secrets are now theirs to preserve and so will take up that mantle.

I take my hat of to Ben Edlund for this one. It was nicely paced, not (too) wordy, and made some lovely parallels between Aaron's story and Sam 'n Deans. Phil's direction was tight and featured some beautiful cinematography.

The Men of Letters bunker set was STUNNING! The art deco is gorgeous and one of my all time favourite styles, so to see the brothers in this glorious setting makes my wee heart jump for joy. I love how this is all so unexpected and yet it fits them so well. In many ways the Winchesters conjure nostalgia (for me anyway), so this nostalgic, classic, romantic setting is so perfect.

I love that the actor who played the golem wasn't just hired for his height. He could act and he added the feeling of Frankenstein's monster to his role. There were many similarities and I'm sure it was no accident. He was a "monster" who understood the world around him. What an inspired invention by Edlund. I loved him.

Sam immersing himself in the books and in the role of a Man of Letters is, quite possibly, may most favourite thing so far this season. Now that's reallove. I think of Sam having dinner with Amelia and her father and then compare it to him sitting amongst these books with Dean by his side and there's just no comparison. I wonder if that's been the whole point all along? I'd love to think so, but I think it's too subtle. But I'm taking it like that. I've never seen Sam happier or more at home. And I can't express my utter love for that.

And Dean too. He has a good shower, food, quality alcohol and a happy little brother. He HAS found his bat cave. It's the break they not only deserve but it's been a damn long time coming.

I did like that Kevin, Garth and Castiel were mentioned. As much as I'm more than happy for every episode to be like this and contain just them and a MoTW story line, I know that there is a bigger picture. There are people that are still connected to them so it seems right that they are concerned about them.

The ending was simply beautiful. Quiet and meaningful. Dean gets his regular beers out for himself and Sam but notices the top shelf stuff. When Sam gets his he sniffs it and takes a moment to enjoy it and savour this new found safety and purpose. Dean is content. It feels like the show has been reborn.

I can't remember the last time I've felt this level of satisfaction after an episode. I know the show is all about the angst but damn it's nice when it's not. I watch for the bro love, the peril, the mystery, the intrigue and it had all that in this one.

I leave you with these two images. They kind of sum it all up for me....

Comments

[gateslacker.livejournal.com]

Sam immersing himself in the books and in the role of a Man of Letters is, quite possibly, may most favourite thing so far this season. Now that's reallove. I think of Sam having dinner with Amelia and her father and then compare it to him sitting amongst these books with Dean by his side and there's just no comparison. I wonder if that's been the whole point all along?

YES to this! Sam seemed so comfortable in his own skin for the first time in, like, forever. Dean seemed more relaxed than I have seen him in, like, forever. I can't decide if I really, really like the new mythology for its own sake and the possibilities it brings to this universe or if I just really like seeing Sam and Dean, these Boys in their Bunker, at ease in a way that we haven't really seen before.

(Except, occasionally, when they are driving down the road in the Impala).

Of course, I realize that I liked the first part of the season more than you did but I do think it is a valid consideration that this really was the point. Sam *thinks* he found "something that he never really had before" in Amelia but his palpable defeat and lost brokenness tell a different story. Dean *thinks* that Purgatory was this "pure", almost rejuvenating, experience but his barely concealed anger and constant tension once back just does not fit someone who has been "purified."

Perhaps it was too subtle or even completely accidental, I don't know. Still, I picked up on it and I am probably only mildly meta brained when I am actually watching the show so, maybe, it can't be that subtle. It is what this show has consistently done well, though; a fair mixing of both subtle and obvious. And maybe I am giving the Show more credit than is really due but, to me, there have always been these layers. It's why I can't stop talking about this show. It's why I am completely addicted and actually having a bit of trouble watching all the other stuff that I used to like but which is now piling up on my DVR. It's why I get something different out of most of the episode, no matter how many times I have watched.

It can't all be accidental, can it?

[ash48.livejournal.com]

Of course, I realize that I liked the first part of the season more than you did but I do think it is a valid consideration that this really was the point. Sam *thinks* he found "something that he never really had before" in Amelia but his palpable defeat and lost brokenness tell a different story. Dean *thinks* that Purgatory was this "pure", almost rejuvenating, experience but his barely concealed anger and constant tension once back just does not fit someone who has been "purified."

Yes yes. I can absolutely buy this. I am pretty sure the first half was about bringing them to this point. Personally, I don't think they executed it as well as they could, but I think there was an overall idea about having them so at odds with each other that this new place could offer them both something they didn't get when they were "apart".

It is what this show has consistently done well, though; a fair mixing of both subtle and obvious

Totally agree. There are moments of giant anvils and then moments when we almost have to look so deep we're not sure it's even there.

It's why I get something different out of most of the episode, no matter how many times I have watched.

I think there are definitely layers. I also think as fans we come at each episode from slightly different view points so sometimes we're not seeing what someone else sees (which is why I love discussing it so much!). I am easily swayed when I hear someone else's opinion on something in the show. I look back on some of the early eps and the set up seems clear.

I also wonder if this ep (and the previous one) seem so good simply because there was such turmoil before. I suspect Carver upped the angst to make this moment even more powerful. If they found the bunker with their relationship in a peaceful place it might not hold the same feeling it does now. The bunker is now synonymous with them at peace. I think their choice of decoration and warm glowing colours was absolutely no accident. As far as I can tell fans love it and I'm sure that was exactly what they were going for. So er....well played SPN!

Thanks for your thoughtful comment. :))