Help...

[ash48]

Ok guys. I seriously need some intervention. I NEED to see and understand Dean's side of the story in S9. I need to start feeling sorry for him like so many others seem to. I actually mean this. By the end of S9 I was so god damn pissed off with him I can't even find it in my heart to feel bad that he's "become the very thing he hunts". He HAS become the very thing he hunts and not just because he's a demon now. He's been heading toward this for a while. It's actually one part of the S9 story telling that makes a lot of sense to me. He's slowly been blurring those lines and the consequence is what we are seeing now. I know we can feel sympathy for what they are doing to their characters the fact that Dean's actions have lead him here, but I am still struggling (so much!) with why people are still blaming Sam for what's happening to him.

So what the am I missing? (I promise I will listen if you can shed some light).

(this is actually effecting how I am feeling about the show atm and how I react to gifs (etc) that are highlight how bad things are for Dean. I need to stop thinking "but he deserves it!" and start feeling sorry for him. And stop reacting to things being said against Sam.../o\. I just wish I could understand why people are still so hard on Sam. All he did was tell some truths - in ONE episode).

Comments

[quickreaver.livejournal.com]

Step one: STAY AWAY FROM TUMBLR

Step two: Don't try to make sense of the characters' actions right now. There is none. This generation of show writers uses gimmicks like half-finished sentences and far-fetched behavior to generate drama, and they hardly bother to consider if a character would actually DO something like this. I just roll my eyes and watch the pretty, these days.

Now, regarding the Sam blame, here's my belief:

The blame is coming from fans who relate very, very closely to Dean's behavior. They, too, fancy they would do ANYTHING within their power to save a loved one. Sounds noble on paper, right? But in practice, it's a very different thing and we both know why. Not gonna go into that again.

But here's the thing: because Sam did not respond with glowing admiration for Dean's decision, Sam must be wrong! Dean did the brave and honorable and selfless thing in making this decision for him! Sam had no right to distance himself from Dean, the little ingrate! Now, look what he made Dean do! Dean was forced by indoctrination to protect Sam at all costs and could make no other choice! See? SEE, SAM? See the villain you have made?

Yeah, right.

But this is likely what the fans who continue to heap blame on Sam say to themselves, because it absolves them of the possible guilt they would feel from making the same choice. They cannot, or will not, put themselves in Sam's shoes. It's willful denial. It's blissfully lacking in self-awareness.

"I would've done the same thing so it couldn't have been wrong."

It's very VERY difficult to sit back and admit something you believe to your very core might, indeed, be wrong. Then you have to wonder, "What else am I wrong about?"

And THAT'S why Sam gets blame from a certain quadrant of fandom.

It has nothing whatsoever to do with Dean as a character. Characters aren't living, thinking, breathing people (as much as we'd love them to be!) They are pieces on a chess board, especially for this current batch of writers--with a few infrequent, inspired exceptions. I am NOT, in the least, convinced Carver and co. can write the Winchesters (or Cas, for that matter) with any sort of believability these days. They time and again shove the characters into behavior I find stretches credulity. Might make for good drama and ratings, but in terms of internal logic? Makes not one lick of sense to me.

Regardless, I'm in it 'til the bloody end. I MUST see what happens. I love my fandom and my Supernatural, even if it's fatally flawed. I've grown attached (albeit from a distance) to the actors and the universe SPN has created. It's brought me hours of entertainment and a whole new circle of friends. I just have to work a little harder at ignoring the parts I loathe.

Hope this helps just a little, sweetie! *hugs to a pulp*

[novakev.livejournal.com]

*applauds* Everything here is well stated, and I agree.

Tumblr is toxic. Sometimes you just got to watch for the pretty - you can roll your eyes instead of shake your head (laugh instead of cry or fume). Though, this too will still make you cry.

Great insight to the reasons why some would hate on Sam. I was dumbfounded about it, so thank you for this!

[kazluvsbooks.livejournal.com]

I cannot see why anyone would hate Sam, honestly!!

I am 100% bi bro and i know they both make mistakes, the difference is that Sam ALWAYS forgives Dean (Amy killing, Amelia phonecall etc) and almost never brings up Dean's wrongdoing. So fandom forgets about those and the one time he can't let it go (Angel posession) he is thought to be ungrateful etc.

All Sam's mistakes have been done trying to do the right thing to save other people and going about it the wrong way - same as Dean.

The way Dean is written he is always bringing up Sam's past mistakes while not apologizing for his own so Sam's mistakes are fresh in our minds where Dean's have been buried.

I LOVE the show don't get me wrong, family is pain, love and tangled emotions, the older we get the more there is.. that is life and that is the show.

I am blessed to have found SPN and i won't be letting go even long after it is gone..

we are spoilt with the talent that is J2 and the writers,crew AND showrunners, compared to shows of a similar budget? Ours is a miracle.

[ash48.livejournal.com]

I love your positive words! I feel a lot of that also. I still have a lot of love for the show (even though I am frustrated by many elements of it). I am particularly grateful to have met so many wonderful people thru it. I am also very grateful that people are willing to engage in discussion with me (still!). :D

And yeah, our show is a miracle. We are spoiled by the lovely Js and all the other actors who appear on the show. And by the access we have to the writers and crew.

Thanks for the reminder of all things positive. <33

[ash48.livejournal.com]

*HUGS* you back. In Dean's words..."hold me QR, that was beautiful". And that makes a lot of sense. <333

And interestingly it wasn't tumblr that for me going. It's been a build up of "general" comments I've seen around the place on LJ. It's not hate (not by the posters - but sometimes by other people making comments), it's just an observation that Dean is the way he is because of Sam. And maybe there's actually some truth in that in terms of their history and the way Dean reacts to Sam etc. It's just the constant reference to Sam's words (the single most destructive dialogue ever written I think...) that wears me down. The lack of understanding of Sam's perspective. I know Show made it difficult to see Sam's pov (grrrrrr), but I had hoped there had been a change of heart towards him after the finale (and I think there has been actually, but every now and then I'll come across a flippant comment about Sam not wanting to be brothers and that's the route of all their problems etc.).

What I still don't believe (after all the talk and meta etc etc) is that people were expecting Sam to be ok with what Dean did. I remember after ep 1 the first thing I said was..."boy, Sam is going to be PISSED" (I even played around with the idea that...what if Sam isn't pissed. I left a prompt at a comment meme. Which was hilariously filled). And when he reacted like he should have done - bloody pissed off and hurt - fans are like "what? The bastard! How selfish and mean". It just makes my me scratch my head!

Thank you honey! I'm in for the long haul. I know I've been advised to stay away from meta and comments but it's a major part of the fun of fandom for me. I love the discussion. It usually helps me stick with it - and at the moment I feel like I'm needing a lot of help. ;)

<333

[cassiopeia7.livejournal.com]

Well said, woman!! Your explanation for the Sam hate makes more sense than anything I've read, well, ever.

. . . and yeah. Tumblr. *shivers*