#...Not to disappoint but... This Is Still About Lucifer in Wayward Sisters

[19catsncounting]

Wild idea: Alex Jones was one of Azazel's Special Children that he made just for funsies.

Research I didn't actually have to do but did: The Special Children Activation happened between 2006-2007 and Alex was kidnapped by Celia from her family smack-dab in the middle of that. 😃

[orionsangel86]

Season 14 Wishlist

Alrighty then! As per the last few season’s, each autumn before the season premier I will write a wishlist of things that hopefully will happen in the coming season, which I will then go through once the season is over.

For those of you curious:

Here is my wishlist for season 12 and here is my season 12 wishlist review

Here is my wishlist for season 13 and here is my season 13 wishlist review

Now as a slight disclaimer I need to stress that this isn’t meta, or me promising anything to happen (since I’m not a showrunner nor psychic) and is purely meant for fun - having said that most of the items on my wishlist are at least somewhat realistic wishes and within the realms (at least in my opinion) of actually happening.

So without further rambling here we go:

A decent arc for Michael!Dean. Yes, we all expect it to only last 3 episodes. which I find deeply disappointing. I would prefer if things are not as they seem and it turns out to last far longer than that.

Scenes inside Dean’s head. Like we got with both Cas and Sam when they were possessed, I really want to know where Michael has got Dean stashed away inside his head - and exactly what kind of experience that is for him. I can think of a whole bunch of different ways that could go - will Michael put Dean through hell? Or will he distract him the way of the Djinn with his idea of heaven? I am extremely excited by this idea and hope they don’t pass on the potential.

The missing scene from 13x23 when Dean said yes to Michael. There was definitely more to that and I hope so much we will see it - though I don’t think this is particularly likely.

Cas’s grief. Obviously. Last year I was all about Dean’s grief arc. This year, I need Cas’s to be just as bad. This is 10 years since the original story. Stopping Michael and changing allegiance to stand with Dean was Cas’s origin story - Remember how he reacted in season 5 when Dean was thinking about saying yes to Michael? Oh ho ho I can’t even begin to imagine how this will affect Cas. I want this to be a mirror of last year, and far worse than season 10. 

Sam’s continued leadership role. Now where I want to see Cas absolutely broken with grief over Dean’s possession, what I think would compliment it perfectly is Sam’s fearsome determination and functional leadership. It would be a great way to show how far the brothers have come to breaking the toxic codependency which has bound them to each other - that Sam is capable of functioning without Dean and without immediately trying to sell his soul or give his life for his brother. 

Sam and Cas working together. One of the things that I really hated about the start of season 10, was that without Dean around, Sam and Cas’s relationship just fell apart, and Sam was made to look pretty much like a douche by the show implying he had kicked Cas out of the bunker and blamed him for breaking his shoulder?!? (I found the whole thing very out of character for Sam but then destiel’s continued refusal to become canon tends to make Sam look occasionally douchey - but that is a meta for another day). Give me Sam and Cas as a team. Supporting each other in their grief and acting like the brothers (in-law) that they are.

Jack and Cas father/son bonding time - I mean I saw the promo and it looks like Jack is gonna be grounded for a little while... >.> but once he has written 100 lines of “I will not suggest killing my dad in front of my father” I think Cas will forgive him. I’d like to see Cas trying to teach Jack human things or mundane tasks with Dean watching them with a fond expression!

Addressing Dean’s abuse trauma - this one has been going around on tumblr recently so I’m latching on to other wonderful meta a bit here, but since last season explored Sam’s Lucifer trauma (and to an extent Cas’s Naomi trauma), it would be fitting if this Michael!Dean arc is followed up with an arc of recovery for Dean, not just from Michael, but from everything he has suffered since the apocalypse.

More seeing “behind the mask” with Dean. I think he has already massively grown into himself and out of his fathers shadow, but I’d just like more examples like with the chick flicks and the cucumber water.

Cas truly breaking free from heaven. Now I think that the ideal situation would be that Cas is the one to fix heaven, and that he leaves the angels by choice, and with them all respecting him and being thankful to him. But Cas needs to start to break free from that duty and obligation that he still feels to heaven. Even in season 13 he carried that guilt, and whilst this is more endgame stuff, I desperately want to see more progress on this. 

More hints towards Cas desiring human things and human feelings and basically desiring humanity for himself (no jokes guys, this time I DON’T mean Dean). I am a staunch human!Cas endgame girl after all. The show spent a lot of time in season 9 and 10 building on this for Cas and then it went a bit quiet. I’d like to see those threads picked up again.

In fact, when it comes to Cas, how about he starts answering some of those hundreds of unanswered questions that have been thrown at him since Carver era? How about he finds his place, where he belongs and AS WHAT in general? Cas, you have a home now and a family. Stop lingering in doorways. 

Sam showing us more of his personality. I think now that his Lucifer trauma has been somewhat addressed, Sam should be a bit lighter and more carefree. I’d like to know some more about him other than his obsession with serial killers which is frankly a worrying hobby Sam!

Mary and Cas bonding - in fact I just want to see all of the rest of Dean’s family bonding with Cas more. I want more knowing looks from Mary and even a conversation about the topic - oh wouldn’t that be a dream!

Dean coming out of the closet. Yes yes I know I know. Every year... But it is 20gayteen and next year is 20BITEEN and dammit the world is full of rainbows right now - Bert and Ernie made it official... Why can’t Dean Winchester? I’m totally cool with someone slipping THIS to Dabb. I won’t even ask for credit. ;)

Last year I wanted Sam to build on his relationships outside of Dean and we did pretty well last year with that. But of course, I want more. Maybe some Sam x Rowena? I’m game. 

On that note WITCH!SAM. I am still a huge lover of Sam practicing magick. It’s a story line with so much potential.

More badass ladies kicking ass. Aww man we were kinda blessed with this last year weren’t we? Keep it up show. Please keep it up.

Billie continuing to play a large role as Death. I find her captivating and want more.

Wayward Sisters returning. It still hurts, but we need to know what happens next.

JODY AND CAS NEED TO MEET GODDAMMIT. Also I want Cas to reunite with Claire again.

As per last year: The return of the mixtape. BRING BACK THE MIXTAPE (yup I’m gonna wish for it until I get it).

Please dress Cas up. The closest we got last year was the cowboy hat and the dreadful nazi uniform of AU Cas. Why can’t we have him in plaid? PLEASE.

Absolutely no Lucifer, Lucifer vessel or any hint of Mark Pellegrino. Plus no Kentucky fried chicken pantomime villains either. I’ll be happy if season 14 is free from this nonsense.

Saving the best for last, what do I always wish for above all else? You guessed it - DESTIEL. Do I want it to be canon? Well yes eventually of course. But in season 14 my wish is for their story to continue as it did in early season 13. More obvious destiel content, more of destiel built into the narrative and ideally, made explicit. A love confession? Even if only to a third party? That is undeniably romantic. Zero “no homo’s” would be nice. I just wish for further development on the destiel narrative. That is all. 

As always feel free to add to this with your own wishes! 

BRING ON SEASON 14!! :D

[postmodernmulticoloredcloak]

Wonky preliminary thoughts

I watched the episode once this morning then I’ve been various degrees of busy and sickly so the episode is sort of nebulous in my mind but I want to throw down the thoughts I remember thinking this morning... on a second watch I could change my mind. Honestly I don’t even know yet what this post is going to be like. I’m gonna make it up as I go. Let’s find out together.

- It’s a finale baby

Okay I haven’t touched my dash but I know my chickens and I know there’s gonna be wank, because people forget that every year when the finale comes out no one likes it. That’s it, that’s the finale, expectations are high because finales are supposed to be epic so people end up disappointed, some things were predicted 8 weeks prior and people complain that they were too obvious, some things were unexpected and people complain they came out of the blue, some people say Cas wasn’t in it enough some people write down explanations why his part was actually meaningful, you know the drill. This has been a typical finale: Dean makes The Sacrificial Decision (having Death kill him, become the soul bomb...) and things don’t just work the way he expected them to (sometimes positively like with Amara, sometimes negatively like with Michael).

I personally expected Dean to let Michael (although until recently I supposed it could be the original version of him) in since 13x15 (the showrunner’s own meta manifesto relatively to the ‘reverse season 5/reverse Swan Song’ nature of the final part of the season) and that it would be about shouldering himself the task of getting Lucifer killed since 13x20 (where he goes after Loki himself and is not enthusiastic about Sam’s revenge intents against Lucifer), and heck the ‘I let you in but you provide the power but I’m behind the wheel’ kind of speech was something I pictured in a thousand scenarios, so I didn’t get any shocks from that part of the episode’s plot, but I still enjoyed how we got there. And then, Lucifer is dead! *celebration noise coming from the fandom*

- Um okay let’s say you did your best

Okay, the impression I got from my first watch: the script worked, but the episode got wonky in its execution. Not even the special effects (insert a wonky gold star for the trying) but I remember being unimpressed by the sound/music? Is it just me? Like, sometimes the sound choices were too over the top? There were also overdramatic zooms but that’s Supernatural, and Supernatural without overdramatic zooms is like Supernatural without the Winchesters.

I liked the recap montage a lot (what do you think came first, Rowena’s line about the music or the idea of having that line inside the season to use it for the finale recap?). I got a bit sad because there was a lot of Wayward Sisters in it, and it would have been better if the finale came in a moment of celebration for it happening rather than anger and bitterness for the CW’s choices. Something I felt missing from the last portion of the season was Jody, but I was obviously okay with it because she was missing in preparation of her role in the spin-off. If we can’t change the network’s decision, I hope next season is packed with those characters.

Anyway, back to the episode - it was weird at times, you all know what times, let’s just run with it and make jokes.

- But in season 5 they said--

No, the act itself of Michael killing Lucifer wasn’t what was going to kill half the planet’s population. It was that act inside the large picture of that spell-like orchestration that was the apocalypse (seals, horsemen, omens, stuff like that). I would argue the large-scale damage that was expected wasn’t an accidental consequence, but kind of the whole point of the apocalypse. I hate myself for bringing it up, but you know Thanos killing half the people to ~save the universe~ or whatever dangerously ambiguous nazi crap that dumbasses have actually fallen for because Marvel is just that bad and dangerously ambiguously conservative? I think that the archangels kind of were similar to that mindset, making a huge sacrifice of humans to bring ~paradise~ because they were tired or whatever. You know, I know some people don’t think Supernatural is particularly progressive, but in the current media climate not framing the mass-murderous, abusive characters with nazi-coded intents as the actual heroes is apparently too progressive for some, so kudos to Supernatural for not making Lucifer or Michael the hero of the story but to stick to common sense and decency. (I know, this part is not about Supernatural but just me being salty at Marvel, but let me, please.)

- So while we’re talking about this...

I can say that what Supernatural did with Lucifer in season 13, in my opinion, has been really good. I’ve never been afraid they were going to ‘redeem’ him, so I wasn’t worried or bothered by the story throwing the tools of redemption at him. Because not only he didn’t pick them up, he couldn’t see them even if they hit him in the face. He didn’t understand what redemption even means. He kept seeing himself as the misunderstood victim, so instead of bettering himself he just felt sorry for himself, and completely missed the point of a ‘second chance’ or whatever he claimed he was after. So, eventually, it was all a lie. I think Lucifer’s “I’ve changed” attitude was partly a schemed lie (because he’s not that clueless), partly something he was convinced of himself, because he has his head up his ass enough to actually believe he was a poor victim. I think this narrative hits the nail on the head - white male fragility works like that, the men wrapped in toxic masculinity and male entitlement think they’re the victims of a big bad oppression from women and queer people and non-white people. But they’re just pathetic, and when the bubble bursts, all they can do is scream in rage and their ‘nice guy’ persona disappears. Lucifer’s 180° change of attitude towards Jack reminded me of the nice guys who start throwing all sorts of disgusting invectives against women after being rejected. So yeah, I think that Lucifer’s arc this season was sort of relevant, if you want to interpret it like this.

Either way, Supernatural, unlike some other pieces of media, doesn’t actually try to make you sympathize with abusive, violent, misogynistic men (unless they actually show to be self-aware and to seek change, and again you aren’t meant to sympathize with their bad side! Toxic masculinity is supposed to be bad, and slaughtering billions of innocents not justified for any reason, and especially does not make you the hero and the ones fighting to save the people the actual villains! *gasp*). There was even a clear dig at Trump, and I am pretty sure that’s Dabb’s answer to accusations of not being clear enough on the subject...

So yeah, I think this season’s big bad was an allegory for white male entitlement and the ‘nice guy’ victim complex, and Dean stabbed him (I’d say with the help of a Black man, sure it’s actually Michael another villain but momentary symbolism, I guess? Or maybe that just isn’t supposed to be relevant.) I felt someone cheer that was still bitter that Sam killed Alastair. You just know someone out there was still bitter about it. I mean it was teamwork, of course, but Dean provided the power and the stab. Oh, Dean letting Michael in to acquire the power to kill Lucifer (who killed Cas and Sam) as a parallel for Sam’s demon blood usage to acquire the power to kill Lilith (who killed Dean) *insert lengthy reflection here*

- Speaking of parallels--

Someone was irked at the apparent belief across fandom that Dean leaving Sam to the vampires in the cave was ~the codepencency being broken~? (I am not a fan of analyzing the show in these terms that have become so simplified, in case you’re wondering.) And of course now we see that that wasn’t so simple, because Dean makes the same face when Sam disappears with Lucifer and Jack, and Cas tries to stop him, but Dean decides to do the sacrificial decision (did he really expect Michael to keep the deal, really really?). But! (I wasn’t saying that things are still stuck in the 10x23 mud puddle, don’t misunderstand me!) This time it’s not just about Sam, it’s about Lucifer being set on really breaking dad’s toys on a large scale this time. Dean Winchester gives up his humanity to save humanity, because that’s his middle name, and not just to save his brother at the cost of harming the universe. Of course Michael is still on the loose and with a stronger vessel now, but hey, one threat at a time... But I also think there’s something significant with the fact that the last sequence of the episode shows Michael on earth, looking in his element and satisfied about it - to stop Lucifer, Sam, with Lucifer inside, went to hell; to stop Lucifer, Dean, with Michael inside... is on earth. Of course, next season he’ll probably be involved with heaven and whatnot, but I think there’s something significant there, but I’d wait to make much meta about Michael-in-Dean when we actually are shown more about it.

- So, overall?

Overall it was a good finale! Satisfying to have Jack discover Lucifer’s true nature and the nice guy lie shatter, emotional the Jack stuff, powerful that we didn’t see Dean actually getting possessed and Cas seeing it but only Cas being fraught about it, just there, kind of like the narrative was telling us, what do you even expect Cas’ face while losing Dean to Michael to look like? Now, this post is long enough and I’ll need a rewatch and some health points more to analyze the details, but I am sure that I’m going to enjoy analyzing them.

- And what now?

Oh, I expect a lot of fanworks of Charlie and Rowena during the hiatus. It’s probably already started...

Alright, more coherent and hopefully meaningful thoughts coming shortly (...maybe) to your screens ^-^

[cupidsbower]

Alive and burning brighter

Supernatural 13x09 “The Bad Place,” and 13x10 “Wayward Sisters.”

Wayward daughters, here we come!!!

The Bad Place

The title of this episode is interesting because there’s more than one way to read it, as with so much of this season. “The Good Place” is a TV show, which has a central twist [spoiler] of actually being an experiment in Hell, where people think they’ve been sent to Heaven by mistake, only to realise they’re really damned after all. So the Good Place is really the Bad Place. What does that mean for Supernatural? Is the title meant to be ironic or straight? Is the Bad Place Kia’s dream-walking destination, or is it something else? Is it an inversion -- a place people think is bad, but is actually good? The Earth of the Supernatural ‘verse has always seemed a place of horrors, until we contrast it with Mordor, or Purgatory, or Kia’s Bad Place. Of course, there’s also a horror novel by Dean Koontz called The Bad Place about a guy who wants a normal life but keeps getting dragged into a life of supernatural horror by his inbred family. On point.

This episode overtly sets things up for the Wayward Sisters ep to follow, but it still has some interesting things to say about our core story threads of how to be a good father, Dean’s wonky moral radar, and people having heard of hunting and/or Sam and Dean.

James continues to be a terrible father. He’s loving and decent, but doesn’t trust Patience enough to start being her own person and making her own choices. It’s no wonder she leaves. That’s not a tenable place to be if she actually wants to grow and have her own life. I hope James will get his head out of his ass and realise that. It would be nice to have him in Wayward Daughters as an ongoing supporting character, especially if we get to see the relationship become more healthy. That’s not something depicted enough, so it would be refreshing.

The writers continue to do the bait and switch with Jack, and it’s working because I can’t decide if it’s going to pay off with him actually doing something terrible when no-one expects it or if they are just using it for tension. I’m leaning towards tension, but I won’t be surprised if he ends up killing Lucifer down the track. Patricide, you know, would fit in with this season’s themes pretty well.

Dean’s moral radar continues to be all over the place. He still thinks Jack could be a monster, and that he’s going to go looking for Lucifer. That says at least as much about Dean and his own daddy issues as it possibly could about Jack. Assuming for a moment that I’m wrong and Dean moral radar is actually fine, perhaps it’s wonky for Jack because Jack is still forming his moral character and could go either way. I’d be tempted to go with this idea, because it’s interesting, except then we got the moment Dean decides to threaten Kia with a gun and force her to help them, falling right back into the old habits of making bad choices when family is on the line. That was more than a dick move, it was a monstrous one. The ends don’t justify the means, and he was plain wrong and cruel. I find Dean’s choice here even more interesting than the possibility that Jack is morally unformed. We’ve already seen this season that Dean’s emotional support system has shifted, and is much more reliant on Castiel now, and I’m wondering if the moral wonkiness we’re seeing is because he hasn’t really found his balance yet. Is he awkwardly straddled between needing his birth family for emotional support, and creating his own more adult connections? He’s so terrible at actually talking to Castiel about anything to do with emotions, so I find this an entirely believable reading.

We also have another instance of people thinking they know about the Winchesters. The angels kidnap Kia specifically as bait:

Kaia: Your plan? It sucks. They won't come for me. Female Angel: What do you mean? Kaia: I mean, you picked the wrong bait. I'm not the kind of girl folks come for. In this world, I don't even rank a milk carton. No one is gonna come for me. I'm not white, rich, blonde. No one's gonna fight for me. I don't matter. Female Angel: Of course you don't matter. But they think you do. They'll show. And when they do, we'll kill them and take the boy. (x)

I actually thought the dialogue in this scene was really clunky. It was like Berens had to shoe-horn stuff in, and used bad exposition to do it. It was really jarring compared to the rest of the episode. But putting that aside, the angels take on the Winchesters is that they will try to save anyone human, but also that it will be easy to kill them and take what they want.

Frankly, I’m living for this theme. For ages, I’ve wanted the text to explore what other characters know or think they know about the Winchesters, and it’s now quite clear this is a major arc this season. Anyway, Housemate and I were talking about this, and we were wondering why everyone (except Crowley) always underestimates the Winchesters. I made the following case:

When they are at their most deadly, no-one survives to tell the tale; or else it happens in a place where stories aren’t likely to end up with the Earth-bound monsters -- like Dean’s stint in Purgatory.

Those who do survive the Winchesters to tell the tale are often around when things go wrong, and Sam and Dean act like bumbling idiots. The scene in 13x12 is an example of this. The witches easily enspell Dean, and get away (temporarily) because Sam and Dean are rolling around on the ground fighting each other. Let’s be real, most of the pleasure in watching that scene was in Jared and Jensen pulling faces and being ridiculous. If the witches were to tell anyone about it at this point, it would be all, “Pfft, they aren’t all that.” I suspect a lot of the monster gossip about the Winchesters comes from those moments, and paints them as half-assed -- yes, they are hunters so sensible monsters steer clear, but they kill things by luck a bunch of the time, so the gossip goes. A hard-ass monster wouldn’t be that worried, based on the stories.

There must also be something in the gossip about the Winchesters being bleeding hearts who make stupid sentimental decisions -- mostly focused on saving people, and that always includes Humans, but can include monsters too if they are law-abiding. Hence the witch going to them for help, and these angels taking Kia as bait.

This really fascinates me, and I hope we actually get to see some of the gossip happening in an episode down the track. Even better if it’s played off against Sam and Dean at their most competent and deadly, so that the chasm between the stories and the reality is obvious.

There were two other things I particularly loved about this episode: The angels attacking the wards as a group. So cool. And that Dean and Sam ended up in a giant monster footprint. Housemate and I both screeched “Dinosaur World!!!” at the same time.

This season really is giving me all the things I want. :)

Wayward Sisters

*happysigh* We have all been waiting for this episode for ages, right? And it didn’t disappoint. The showrunners put some real care into this, from writing, performances, and direction, down to giving the ep prime place as the mid-season finale, as it deserved.

I wonder if “I Am the Fire” will be the show’s anthem in the same way that “Carry on My Wayward Son” is for Supernatural. Good choice if so.

Halestorm, I Am the Fire

There was something viscerally satisfying about seeing all these women on the screen together. I love them all. I love that Claire is being set up as the lead, the kick-ass Hunter with a chip on her shoulder. God, her opening scene was fantastic! Mr Werewolf. Hahahaha. She’s going to be great. I love that Jody and Donna are there as role models and protectors, and Donna’s smiling face is a treasure. I love that Alex and Patience have completely different skill sets from hunting but still have a place. I love the female energy.

I also really liked Kaia, and as always have mixed feelings about her fridging. The show really has learned, because here we have a fridging that is not a fridging. I’m still not happy with it, because the larger cultural trope of killing off the women of colour is still a thing, so it bothers we whenever it happens. But Supernatural at least seem to be trying hard to include more diversity, and to be fair to the writers, that presents a real problem given the genre and death count on the show. This new method they’re trying -- fridging some characters of colour as needed for the story, but making sure there are other characters who survive from the same demographic, is definitely a step forward. I’m never going to be 100% happy with this, as long as minorities of all kinds have a higher death count and lower representation on screen, but I will pay that Supernatural is actively trying to do better, and succeeding for the most part. As fridgings go, this was effective in deepening Claire’s characterisation in a way that should play out really well in the new show, especially with the New Kaia in the mix.

In terms of Kaia as a character, I’m sad they killed her because I liked her, but I’m pretty optimistic we’re going to get a similar Kaia with the hooded figure. With all the set up of Morder, we know that the people in the other worlds are very like the ones here, just with a few different quirks and edges, so the Kaia who came through is likely to have most of the same characteristics as Kaia Mark 1, including the dreamwalking. I’m happy about this, as I really want Kaia as part of the Wayward team.

Apart from that, I don’t have much to say. The writing was strong, and I loved the touches, like:

JODY: They were on a hunting trip and I haven’t heard from them in a few days. It’s time to come home. (x)

If this is what the show is going to be like, I’m here for it. I’m actually more excited for it than I thought I would be, and I can’t wait for the show to start airing.

I looked up a guide to the must-watch episodes to get ready for Wayward Sisters, because I thought some of you might find it useful:

Season 5, episode 15 - “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid”: This episode will introduce you to Sheriff Jody for the first time and show you how she got into the supernatural life. Season 9, episode 19 - “Alex Annie Alexis Anne”: In this episode, we not only get to see Sheriff Jody in action as a hunter, but also her rescue and “adoption” of Alex. Season 10, episode 8 - “Hibbing 911”: Though this isn’t Sheriff Donna’s first episode, it is the firs.  where she’s clued into the supernatural realm, and where she begins her friendship with Sheriff Jody. Season 10, episode 9 - “The Things We Left Behind”: This episode reintroduces us to Claire and shows us the troubled, solitary life she’s been leading since losing her father. Season 10, episode 20 - “Angel Heart”: Claire hunts down her mother in this episode, and ultimately loses her. While it’s tragic, the episode ends with Claire being sent to live with Jody and Alex. Season 11, episode 12 - “Don’t You Forget About Me”: If you only have time to watch one episode, watch this one. This was the first episode where we got to see some glimpses of Wayward Sisters. It is our first look at the unique hunting family Jody has created. Season 13, episode 3 - “Patience”: This episode introduces us to Patience, and gives us insight into her powers. It’s also where Jody and Patience first meet. Season 13, episode 9 - “The Bad Place”: In our first introduction to Kaia, we learn about her powerful dreamwalking abilities, as well as the lonely life she’s been leading as she’s tried to find some sort of peace from “the bad place.” It’s also the last episode to air before the backdoor pilot. (x)

I’ve actually already seen the next two eps, but will post about them separately, otherwise I’ll get too far behind.

Previously:

I never opened myself this way (13x01 and 13x02)

You say you’ve only got one life to live (13x03, 13x04, 13x05)  

Let me tell you people that I found a new way (13x06, 13x07, 13x08)      

[ramianne]

Supernatural Season 13 Episode 3 ‘Patience’ - Review

I love doing reviews but I never feel like I write good enough to do some, but this episode just got me so hard I have to talk about it. Prepare yourself for a very (very, VERY) long post. And obviously, this is just my very own personal opinion which is completely biased due to my personal preferences. 

I loved this episode so much it hurts. I already watched it 5 times. God was it good. Let’s try to sort this out.

1) The return of Missouri Moseley. Now I don’t have to recall how badass she is. And she proves it once more in this episode. Obviously I was seriously pissed they bring her back just to kill her basically, but hey, it’s Supernatural, could we really expect something better from them? #SarcasmOverload. The big bad point in this episode imo. Still, the fact that she didn’t scream, she didn’t want to give that pleasure to the wraith, it takes an incredible strength to do it. So Missouri Moseley, you are a bamf woc who deserves all the love and respect in the world. 

2) The wraith. First, I was very glad to see another wraith, since the last one we saw was in season 5, meaning 8 years ago. It feels good to see the show dusting off some old monsters that we haven’t seen in years, like the show hasn’t forgotten its early beginnings. And to bring it back along with the psychics, I think it’s a very clever writing move. Obviously the psychics are special targets for a wraith since they have a special brain which gives them abilities. So it must taste better for a wraith. But what intrigued me & made me feel really weird in this episode was that I had a lot of rape vibes. The wraith really seemed to have physical pleasure from eating the psychics. It just couldn’t help myself but see a lot of parallels between that & rape. The fact that he wanted Missouri to scream because “it would be better”, the weird parallel I can’t not see between a penis and the weird member coming out of his hand, the fact that all his victims were women, the fact that he told Patience he would milk her brain (parallel with her body) because she will taste (feel) so good, the non-consensual sniffing, the fact that he kept Patience from screaming in the highschool, the insult ‘bitch’, I mean I really got this vibe. 

3) Patience. So I was very excited to meet her since she will be in the Wayward Sisters spin-off, but I didn’t know what to expect. I wanted to be objective: even though I love Wayward Sisters, will I truly like Patience? Well let me tell you I have a new crush. Patience is so great. She is smart, kind, she knows how to fight (seriously how badass she was when she ripped the wraith’s.... member off?), and we just saw a tiny glimpse of who she is. And on top of all that: she’s so gorgeous it frustrates me. OMFG I love her so much. 

4) Jack. Now I know he won a lot of hearts in the premiere already but he didn’t win mine until then. Sure, he’s sweet, but I still didn’t know what to think of him besides that. I was intrigued for sure. But in this episode I truly felt him and ached for him. He seems to be an incredible emotional sponge and I relate so much to that. And after only a few days of existence, he already hates himself and blames himself for a lot of things that are not his fault. I realised in this episode I am very much like him at the moment. And I firmly believe my new found love for this character is entirely due to Alexander Calvert’s incredible performance. So congratulations, you won another heart. 

5) Sam. And all the relationships we saw this episode. So first, his relationship with Jack. Obviously he understands what Jack’s going through better than Dean throughout his own past (demon blood). I knew we were going to see that. But I was afraid of was Sam falling back into the “I’m a freak” speech, or at least trying to get his own redemption through Jack. But that’s not what I saw. It seemed to me Sam truly believed he was good despite his past, that he doesn’t see himself as a freak anymore, and not only that, but he believes he is good. Now I know it’s not new (we saw glimpse of that in season 12 as well), but I truly felt it in this episode. 

Also, Sam and Dean. So yeah, they don’t agree, but they talk, and I’m so glad that we have that, this reassurance that neither of them will do anything in the other’s back. But also, I am so glad to see Sam getting angry towards Dean. I always thought that his anger was the most interesting side of his character. Sam is usually the one that keeps his emotions in check. He doesn’t push them down, but he’s able to control them. It’s an ability I so wished I had. But it seems to me anger is the only emotion that he can’t really control, and imo that’s why he gets angry in very rare occasions: because he knows he doesn’t fully control it. Also, may I say that him being angry with Dean, him taking the lead with Jack, it makes me wonder if he’s going to be more proactive this season, and if that is a continuation of him becoming a leader in 12x22. 

And finally, Sam and Castiel. Now Castiel didn’t interact with him obviously, but 2 things. First, maybe I’m wrong, but Sam said for the first time that Castiel was his family. Not that he didn’t think it before, obviously he did, but every time Castiel was designed as a full member of the brothers’ family, it was said by Dean. I truly liked that for once, Sam said it. And that makes me think that Dean is quite insensitive towards Sam’s grief. Sam knows Castiel means something very special to Dean compared to him, but still, Dean acts as if Castiel was not special to Sam too. Sam considers Castiel as not only his friend, but his brother. I would love to see more Sam-Castiel interactions, even though I know Misha and Jared can’t stay serious for more than 3 seconds so it’s not likely to happen. Anyway, I really love what we saw of Sam in this episode and where his character is going. 

6) Just before my favorite part, I just wanted to quickly talk about Castiel. So he’s definitely in the empty, I cannot wait to see more of him in the next episode. I was just a little disappointed in how it was filmed. So when Jack calls Castiel, we discover the latter laying on his front in a full black place. And when he hears Jack calling him, he opens his eyes. Well I believe the episode would have had an even better cliffhanger if it stopped right after Castiel opened his eyes, just like in the season 9 finale when Dean opens his eyes as a demon. Instead, we had a weird waking up with Castiel taking his time. Realistically though: Castiel is still a warrior. He has reflexes. He wakes up, after being dead (I believe he knows he got killed), in a black black place where there’s nothing, first thing you do, you jump on your feet and look for an imminent threat. You don’t take your time. But whatever. 

7) Finally, Dean. As a strong Destiel shipper, I will nonetheless skip over the parallel between his grieving and Sam’s one with Missouri reading his mind, or the parallel between his behaviour and John’s one after Mary’s death. I will directly jump on the last scene that turned me into a sobbing mess at 3am. I would like to comment on the fact that I usually don’t cry in front of a film or a TV show etc. For poignant scenes, I might have a few tears in my eyes, and it’s already rare. But actually cry? It happened to me maybe 10 times in my life. For example, I didn’t cry for Castiel’s death. But when Dean yelled at Sam how hurt he was? I couldn’t stop crying. And also, usually, I cry when I watch the scene for the first time, but when I rewatch it, I don’t anymore. Here? I cried during the 3 first times I watched it.

I am so happy that Dean shares more of his pain with Sam. He’s not a total closed shell and it’s great as for his character’s development. He’s not as closed as for John’s death for example, he lets people see he’s hurt. He doesn’t waste time about it, he doesn’t want to talk for hours about it because it’s Dean, but at the same time, I don’t feel like he’s trying to hide his pain. I’m glad for that. Now as for his stance towards Jack, as a lot of people, I don’t agree with Dean. But at the same time, I didn’t really understand Dean’s opinion in the first two episodes. So yes, Jack is Lucifer’s son and has a great potential of evil, but I didn’t understand why he was so oblivious on the fact that nothing is set in stone and Jack can be good. Why is he so sure Jack will be evil? Why can’t he give him a chance? He gave a chance for others before. And even though we could say that his grief makes that he doesn’t see straight rn, I couldn’t really put my finger on why it was correlated. 

And then this scene happened, and I finally completely understood it. I think deep down, completely rationally, Dean doesn’t believe Jack is evil. He has a potential of evil, a great one might I add, but I think deep down, Dean also believes Sam when he says Jack can be good. So his very negative pov towards Jack comes from the fact that Jack reminds him of his losses, of what he tries to get over with. We know Dean never dealt with losses well. John, Kevin, Charlie, Jo, Ellen, Mary, Castiel, the list could go on and on. Everytime, because it’s Dean, he blames himself. He couldn’t protect them. And now, with both Mary (he couldn’t save her, save his mother, for the second time) and Castiel dead at the same time, he really has a hard time to proceed it. He tries the best he can to deal with the grieving process as fast as he can. He tries to get over it. And yet, there’s this being, this kid he sees everywhere because he lives with him, that reminds him every second of who he lost a few days ago. (Might I add Jack looks like a young version of Castiel? Woops). So Dean has someone to blame everything for, and because he can get behind the argument of “Jack is going to be evil because Lucifer’s son”, he’s going to use it and hide behind this idea. He wants to kill Jack not only for the potential threat, but also & mainly because he wants to stop being reminded all day long of his losses. He wants to blame someone else than himself. 

And then, this incredible line : “He manipulated him. He made him promises, said “Paradise on Earth”. And Cass bought it. And you know where that got him? It got him dead! Now you might be able to forget about that, but I can’t!”. This wonderful line. Especially the last sentence. It wasn’t about being angry with Sam anymore. It wasn’t about Jack anymore. This was a cry of pain. It was Dean yelling at Sam his pain that he can’t get over with. Despite all he tries, he just. Can’t. Forget. Cass. I will skip over the fact that he basically declared to Sam that Castiel was even more special to him than to Sam, and I’m sorry, but what can be more special than being brothers? You get it. But still. This cry of pain that tears Dean apart, it destroys me. It also shows that Dean tries to not think just about Cass, and yet. Dean blames himself for Cass’s death imo. Because again, he couldn’t save him. But why is Castiel special? He couldn’t save Mary either. But Castiel is his savior. Again, the show goes back to its beginning. Castiel is Dean’s savior, the one that made Dean believe he deserved to be saved. He deserved something. And Dean spent years after years watching Castiel giving up on everything just for Dean, doing absolutely anything for him, die, sacrifice himself, kill, and Dean tried to return the favour. He gave Castiel a place not only in his life, but in his family. He went personal to Cass (mixtape), he listened to this oh so lonely creature, believed in him as an individual, not as one angel between a million. He made Castiel an individual, he made Castiel unique, and yet I’m sure Dean still thinks it was not enough because he couldn’t save him or protect him. He couldn’t protect him from being possessed by Lucifer. He couldn’t save him from being slowly killed by Michael’s spear. He couldn’t save him from being killed by Lucifer, and he couldn’t bring him back. Dean couldn’t save his savior. And despite all his efforts, he can’t get over that. 

And now my questions. More exactly, my question. Why is Jack so dependant of what Dean thinks of him? He gives Dean’s opinion a very special importance, and I just can’t get why. Tbh, I can have an idea why, but it’s a Destiel one, and I try as much as I can to be objective and not let my Destiel filled brain see everything as a proof of Destiel. I was very pro-Destiel in the last paragraph because I believe it is canon, but the answer to my question is more of a theory than canon. That’s why I ask it. 

It almost seems to me Jack gives more importance to Dean’s opinion than Sam’s, and Sam’s always with him. So why? The very obvious Destiel answer would be: he has a profound bond to Castiel and so he gives a special importance to Dean just like Castiel does, and so just as Castiel very much looks up to Dean, Jack looks up to him as well. He chose Castiel to be his father because Kelly “told” him Castiel would protect him. And so, he chose Dean to be his model, and to care about him because Castiel must somehow have told him to. But if we skip this theory, why would Jack do it? He didn’t give much importance when the angels tried to kill him. And I can’t believe he chose to look up to Dean randomly. Because if it was a random choice, then by now he would have changed his mind and choose Sam because Sam is way more comprehensive and nice towards him. But no. He keeps giving Dean a special importance. 

So guys, why? 

[monkeysatemylastrolo]

I realised this morning one reason why I am particularly annoyed by Missouri being killed off.

Because it didn’t even have to be her.

Think about it- how much of that episode would have changed if they had just had her role played by another random psychic we’d never seen before? Pretty much nothing. This other psychic could still have got Sam’s number, albeit through different means. Sam still would have turned the case over to Jody, because he still cares about what happens with Jack. Dean still would have yelled at Sam about it and gone on the case anyway, because that’s what he does when he’s in one of these moods. The alternate could still have had an estranged family who needed protection. They could still have stayed behind and been killed. That death would still have had pretty much exactly the same amount of emotional weight for all of the characters involved. People would still like/dislike Patience (both the character and the episode) exactly as much as they do now. There was nothing in this episode which made the story at all unique to Missouri.

But they brought her back anyway. They brought her back, didn’t even utilise her to the full extent she could have been, and then discarded her without a second thought. They brought back a one-off character a large portion of the fanbase genuinely likes, and why? For nostalgia? So a character in the spin-off would have a tenuous link to the Winchesters which would have been just as strong without her? To (I think?) retcon her past into being an actual Hunter instead of a psychic Hunters could come to for help? To replace her with a younger model because they don’t think Wayward Sisters viewers would be interested otherwise?

There was no point.

And it just annoys me. I’m fine with SPN bringing back characters we’ve met before. It creates a sense of continuity. What I’m not fine with is them continuously bringing back characters (Lucifer, Mary, Castiel, Crowley, Missouri) and then either screwing with their characteristics or not having a single clue how to handle them properly (or, oftentimes, both). It’s jarring. It’s bad storytelling. And it’s just an all-round blatant attempt to drive up hype with shock-value, only to disappoint fans when the creators screw it all up.

Bring back characters for a reason (which actually makes sense and is about that character) or don’t bring them back at all. It’s as simple as that.

[bibliophileiz]

Supernatural “War of the Worlds” Review Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Tolerate b*cklemming

These people are far from my favorite writers on the show (that would be Berens, Glynn and Yockey, the last of whom wrote my two favorite episodes) but every time an episode they wrote airs I want to dissect all the good and bad of it anyway, and this is no exception. This is I think their third episode in a row I’ve felt the urge to review. I think it’s a coping mechanism to help me tolerate these episodes.

This was not b*cklemming’s worst episode – I still think that was the one in which Eileen died – but it was not great either. It’s watchable, don’t get me wrong. But we’ve had a string of stellar episodes this season except for two. Two. And they were both written by this duo.

Unequivocally bad things about this episode:

- Who the FUCK decided to put b*cklemming in charge of apocalypse world? There do indeed appear to be no women, period. I kept hoping the creepy hunter who attacked Mary in their last episode only thought there were no women because all the women around had the good sense to avoid him, but … nope. It appears he was right. The whole apocalypse place looks like the cast of Lawrence of Arabia with a darker aestetic.      Either mittensmorgul or elizabethrobertajones (I can’t remember which and the post is too far back for me to find but both have excellent blogs!) pointed out this just keeps b*cklemming from writing creepy rape scenes all over apocalypse world, which is a fair point. However, b*cklemming has written plenty of problematic sexually violent stuff victimizing male characters, albeit usually being victimized by women (April to Cas, Toni to Sam). Also it just generally irks me when an otherwise well-written show suggests women can’t survive harsh circumstances. I know they have to stay on Supernatural, but someone please keep this pair away from Wayward Sisters. - Asmodeus sucked only marginally less in this episode than when he was introduced, and that’s only because he had the suckiest introduction of anyone in this show. He. Is. Still. Awful. I can’t believe the show is going to waste the Keeping-Cas-Locked-Up-In-Hell story line I’ve been waiting for on this assclown of a villain. - AU verse Kevin Tran is like … I would say Diet Kevin Tran except I usually like diet drinks better than their counterparts, so I guess it’s more like … Vegan Chocolate Kevin Tran. I can see the resemblance, but the original has more flavor and more richness and doesn’t work for genocidal war criminals just to see hot women. My theory before this episode aired was Kevin’s a double agent for a group of hunters who have formed a resistance, led by Asa Fox and, eventually, Mary Winchester, and if we ever get an apocalypse episode written by Berens or Glynn, I might even be proved right (about the double agent part. The Asa Fox part is a stretch, I realize this). In the meantime, this was a total waste of the character. - Did b*cklemming just forget the show is about Sam? He had that one scene with Ketch which is super forgettable. In all his other scenes, he was just kind of there. It was like they were writing and would occasionally say, “We need to give Dean’s sidekick a line now.”

Good Things (several of which have nothing to do with b*cklemming)

-Cas’ sex hair is back. - I didn’t hate the Cas-Lucifer team up as much as I expected to. In fact, I thought the scene between them at the bar was the best in the episode. I unequivocally hated the way these writers – really all the writers – wrote Lucifer last season, but b*cklemming actually wrote some of my favorite Lucifer material in the entire show. Specifically I’m thinking of Lucifer (as played by Misha Collins) telling Amara she may defeat God but she will never be him – not a Lucifer redemption moment by any means, but certainly a moment where he gets to be something other than an entitled brat. It shows even though he hates God, he also admires him. You also see this in his reaction to finding out Kelly’s pregnant. She said he was excited because it was the first time he created anything, which I remember thinking was a really in-character reaction to have. This explains why he’s so interested in whatever Cas has to say about Jack too.      However, I don’t want my enthusiasm for dad!Lucifer to be taken as me wanting a redemption arc for this fucker, because I don’t. I don’t hate the idea of him almost being redeemed. We the audience are sympathetic to Jack, and once Jack realizes he can be good, he’s going to want to redeem his father, Luke Skywalker-style. I like the idea of Jack trying to “save” Lucifer – “There is still good in him, I know it!” – and for Lucifer to kind of go along with it until something happens and Lucifer reveals himself to be as entitled and jealous and petty and power-hungry as he’s always been, and then Sam and Mary or maybe Cas get to kill him. If we’re sticking with the Star Wars parallels, then I want it to be like the moment Han Solo offers Kylo Ren a second chance and Kylo stabs him instead. I like Lucifer, but at the end of the day, fuck him. - Related, I also didn’t hate Mark Pellegrino. He’s never been a bad actor, he’s just been a shallow one, but that’s the material he had to work with. When he has decent lines and isn’t smirking around evil-for-the-sake-of-evil dialogue, I find I want to punch him less.      More specifically, he did a good job posturing while also showing the audience he is terrified without all his power. That little flinch when Asmodeus enters the bar, before he pretends to relax and starts casually threatening Asmodeus, was great. - We finally got acknowledgement the universe is running out of angels. - Guys. Rowena might still be alive. If Ketch is alive and Rowena isn’t, I might stop watching this show. - Cas’ sex hair is back. -Speaking of Cas, I was concerned he wouldn’t tell Dean he was working with Lucifer because he thought Dean would be mad or because he would want Sam and Dean to stay away because danger or because Lucifer talked him out of it or some bullshit like that and it would be last season all over again. I’m so, so glad they didn’t go that route even though it means we get more shapeshifting (voiceshifting?) Prince of Hell nonsense. - Lucifer calling Asmodeus the runt of the litter made me feel better. At least b*cklemming admit theirs is the worst Prince of Hell. - “Honey, you’re not Lucifer. My ex-husband’s Lucifer.” - Did I mention Cas’ sex hair is back? - I liked the witch and on the one hand wish she’d had more to do but on the other hand am worried b*cklemming would have killed her if she had another scene. - When Asmodeus referenced a hunter in his payroll, I thought, ‘I bet it’s David Haydn-Jones.’ I love being right. - Dean asking if Ketch’s tattoo was a stick-on. - The shots at the playground are all beautiful. Good job Richard Speight, Jr.! - The fight scenes are. So. Good. - Seriously. Cas’ sex hair. It’s back.

Questions I have

- Where did Lucifer get that jacket? - Why do the demons call Jack “the Jack”? - How does Ketch know Sam and Dean are looking for Jack? Sam said he reached out to “every hunter we know” but firstly, how many of those are left that aren’t dead and secondly, who of them knows Ketch but doesn’t know he’s evil? - How does Lucifer know Kevin? I thought he was locked up during Kevin’s story line.

Now let’s talk about Ketch.

I’m so used to bad writing from this pair, I didn’t even see the Ketch reveal coming. Based on their not-great track record, here is a list of things b*cklemming would totally do: - Write a less-evil twin for a dead character. - Have Ketch torture and kill a bunch of witches – to find Rowena – so he can find and kill her – because she’s a witch. - Have Arthur Ketch’s less-evil twin Alexander Ketch still ask about Mary even though he’s never met her. - Look like they’re about to give Ketch a redemption arc.

So I totally bought it. 

Like … good job? Good for them for fooling me by being, like, the lowest bar of competent. It’s sort of like how I spent all of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince thinking Malfoy couldn’t be up to anything because he’d spent the five previous books showing up way too often to make the same bad jokes about Harry and Co. over and over. It’s not as good as writing well the first time, but points for improving.

And at first I was excited because I thought – and still think – Ketch will make a much better villain when not loaded down with Men of Letters baggage because the Men of Letters were cartoonishly stupid and Ketch was actually threatening when not anywhere near them. But … where are they going with this?      k-vichan pointed out this episode undoes both Mary’s victories from last season – knocking Lucifer into AU World and killing Ketch. Which is typical b*cklemming. To be fair, we knew Lucifer had to come back, but what could they possibly do with Ketch they haven’t already done? His villain arc ended perfectly – Mary killed him in defense of Dean. That was literally the best way he could have possibly died. It was the cathartic, climactic moment of last season’s emotional arc.      I’ve seen some people suggest Dean will get to kill Ketch now and – no. No. Killing Ketch was always going to be Mary’s victory, and I’ll be disappointed in the show and the writers if they take that away from her. 

All in all, a mixed bag of an episode. Which is disappointing after a string of nothing but good episodes this season from everyone but b*cklemming. (Ish. I’m afraid we may not be looking at the cowboy episode rationally. I’m going to have to wait until Netflix gets the new season and watch it again and decide then if I’m being rational about liking it or if I’m just excited about Dean’s cowboy hat and Cas’ fake western accent.) But next week we’re back to Glynn and then Berens and then Wayward Sisters, so hopefully it’s a long time before we have to deal with this nonsense again. Meanwhile, here are some things I want out of future episodes.

- Kevin being cool again. - Mrs. Tran. - Mary Winchester. - (louder for the people in the back) MARY WINCHESTER! - Rowena. - Dean figuring out the Cas he’s talking to on the phone is not Cas. - AU Resistance leader Asa Fox - Something cool in apocalypse world other than a church Jerry Wanek built. (Good job Wanek, I’m so sorry it couldn’t be in a better episode.) - Maybe some other AU resistance versions of characters like Bela Talbot (unlikely but a girl can dream), Godron Walker (AU Resistance Gordon Walker would be awesome!), Ellen Harvelle (bonus points if she and Bobby are married), Jo Harvelle (acceptable if they can’t get Ellen), FemCastiel (bonus points if she also ends up in Real World and meets Sam and Dean and Dean’s like, “Who’s the hot angel?” and she’s like, “My name is Castiel,” and Sam starts laughing and Dean’s like, “Fuck, I hope Chuck’s not making this one into a book.”)

[crownjulesb]

Carry on my wayward Supernatural family…

It’s been a little while since this convention, sometimes it takes me some time to organise my photos, and thoughts post-con!

Supernatural conventions – i.e. cons specifically for the TV show “Supernatural” – have not only a cool fanbase, but the BEST music taste at the evening parties. Classic Rock non-stop. And of course, the almost obligatory checked flannel shirts! Starfury cons, I have found so far, are some of the most laid-back and intimate conventions out there. Kudos to Sean Harry and his team of staff, and all the volunteer stewards for making the weekend go so smoothly. Starfury Cross Roads took place at the Birmingham Hilton Metropole Hotel between the 18th and 20th May 2018. This was the first Supernatural con for Starfury; hopefully the first of many. Gold tickets for Cross Roads 2 are already sold out! Regular tickets are still available though, at the time of writing.

My friend and I try to book a room at the same hotel (using the Starfury booking link, of course) as that means you’re right in the thick of it for the whole two and a half days/three nights. And you get breakfast – which is very important! We have only gone for Regular tickets to all of the Starfury cons, and you get just as much contact with the guests as those in Gold. The main differences between the ticket types are the Friday night meet and greet for Golds only, and the reserved seating for Golds at the front of the Main Hall. But you get to meet everyone you want to at the autographs and photos, and still get a decent view of the stage even with a Regular ticket.

The guests for this event were: Mark Sheppard (Crowley), Mark Pellegrino (Lucifer), Kim Rhodes (Jodie), DJ Qualls (Garth), Ruth Connell (Rowena), Alaina Huffman (Abaddon), Keith Szarabajka (Donatello), Ty Olsson (Benny), Julian Richings (Death), and Katherine Ramdeen (Alex). TEN guests! Wow.

Talks (Q&As) go on throughout the weekend, with each guest appearing on stage 2 or 3 times, which is good because throughout both days there are also autograph and photo sessions which take place concurrently. This year my friend and I managed to get all of our photos AND autographs done on the Saturday, which meant we could sit and listen to the talks all day on the Sunday. One day of standing up, one of sitting down!

Mark Pellegrino’s Autograph.

Me and Mark Pellegrino.

Mark Sheppard and Me.

Julian Richings’ Autograph

Katherine Ramdeen’s Autograph

Me and Ruth Connell

Me and Kim Rhodes.

Me and Alaina Huffman.

Alaina Huffman’s Autograph. This one to be added to my Stargate collection!

The autographs from the other guests present, I collected within the event programme.

As requested by Ty Olsson and DJ Qualls, here’s a signal boost for their graphic novel project. Check out The Hero Project on twitter for info.

Each of the guests had something unique to bring to the weekend festivities. Kim Rhodes was an absolute hoot – the standout of the event for me – a very friendly, enthusiastic, potty-mouthed, wonderful woman! She shared the stage often with the other ladies in attendance, particularly Katherine Ramdeen, who was a delight.

Save the Wayward Sisters spin-off with… TAMPONS! This was Ann’s fault…

https://twitter.com/crownjulesb/status/997854452718632962

https://twitter.com/katramdeen/status/997879932754841603

Alaina Huffman, and Ruth Connell were also such fun to listen to and interact with. The boys also did not disappoint, the two Marks bounced off each other well in the Sunday talk, giving us stories of their lives and past jobs, as well as Supernatural-related anecdotes. Julian Richings and Keith Szarabajka had both separate and joint talks, and at one point we were treated to a reading of a short play written by Keith and performed by Julian and another lady (whose name escapes me sadly) about aliens coming to Earth – to destroy it! DJ and Ty shared the stage on Sunday and we learned a lot about them both, particularly the strange tangents that DJ goes off and does, learning new skills – such as Ancient Egyptian history, grading diamonds, and certain types of horticulture.

A selection of my favourite photos from the talks (around 40 here, more on Flickr!):

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To see all of my photos from the event, view my Flickr Album (All Rights Reserved).

Each night there were the parties, and their fab choices of music as mentioned earlier. On the Saturday night there is also a costume competition, which was won by a baby!?!? Unfair competition, perhaps?! But he was dressed as an angel, so I suppose that’s alright! The Supernatural cons are a bit more family friendly… not all of them can be quite as extreme as the Hannibal and horror fans at the Red Dragon cons!

Overall I had a fun time at our weekend away with the stars of Supernatural. Next year the focus is on the British Men of Letters… with related guests.

Starfury Cross Roads - Supernatural Con Report. Carry on my wayward #spnfamily. @starfuryevents Carry on my wayward Supernatural family... It's been a little while since this convention, sometimes it takes me some time to organise my photos, and thoughts post-con!

[19catsncounting]

Hey does anyone still think about the thematic differences between Supernatural and the Wayward Sisters and how self-isolating male hunters are compared to community-building female hunters and how this was shown from the Harvelles to even arguably Missouri Mosely and even Samuel Campbell who is his daughter's father almost more than a man himself (especially in Season 6) is not immune to this?

And how the Wayward Sisters could have been built not on sacrificing yourself to this singular all-consuming relationship with your brother and sacrificing yourself for the world second or in name only, but instead on what it takes to cut yourself into useful and digestible pieces for the sake of keeping your place in that community because you're almost certain that it's This Community or Solitude Forever (Alex you can never escape the life no matter how much you don't want it you've gotta pitch in do you want your family to die on this hunt Claire you know you'll never find anyone to love you unless you make yourself softer and then are they really loving you are you even worthy of love anymore Jody your husband and son would still be alive if you listened and learned you can't lose another child in every sense you can't quite let your children be defenseless children either and you know so well how sick this fear makes you and how you're dealing with it the wrong way your son got to be a child but your daughters can't be that vulnerable Even Donna you have Your Role to play here you're not good enough as a hunter but you're funny and happy and you don't take up that much space so that's exactly how much space you're given to exist in).

And yes, a lot of these things are echoes of Kripke Supernatural but instead of too-intimate and dark and quiet confessions that the Winchesters share and know that no one else could ever have the context to fully understand it's Community it's All Our Problems the humiliation and shame is all-encompassing because there is no privacy Everyone Sees You Everyone Knows You Everyone Wants To Fix Help You.

[orionsangel86]

Hey tumblr people, friends, SPN family,

You may have realised that my blog has become the virtual version of tumbleweed rolling through a desert in recent weeks/months. I noticed on checking my blog recently that I have had an influx of new followers which I think is predominantly thanks to a shout out from Shirley (@destieldrabblesdaily) which I am infinitely grateful for because I consider her one of the best blogs in the SPN fandom. It is for that reason among others that I feel pretty damn bad about not being around recently to share in your speculation, meta and general love for the show.

I haven’t said much since the finale, or even about the finale. I never wrote an episode review for any of the last 3 episodes of season 12. (still haven’t seen 12x21 and don’t plan to) I guess I just want to explain why.

In the past few months SPN has been losing its grip on me, I guess I always thought this would happen one day as it always has in the past with other things that I have falling in love and obsession with until I just… well… get over it. Usually its when a show finishes or movie franchise ends though, rather than whilst it’s still going on. I haven’t felt that itchy desire to constantly check my dash, or write meta or obsess over speculation for the show lately at all. I tried re-watching season 12 and I just couldn’t maintain my concentration. I instead started watching other shows – American Gods is fantastic – and getting out a bit more as well. Tumblr kinda sucked me into this pit where my social life pretty much dried up and became non-existent. Though in all fairness, tumblr also got me through a pretty nasty stint of depression.

I keep hoping that this will be temporary, that perhaps when season 13 comes to our screens that I’ll jump right back in, but I’m not so sure. I guess I’ll watch it, but I don’t know how much I’ll participate in fandom in the future. I want to, I still have that desire to get involved but I don’t have the energy or desire to write meta about the actual show right now. I guess I kinda feel like everything is already being said by the other fantastic meta writers on tumblr and my opinion isn’t really needed.

The thing is, I am tired of SPN. I am tired of the game they are playing with us. I say this, knowing full well that they are dangling destiel in front of us like a carrot dangled in front of a donkey, so close but still so far. Eventually we will get our carrot – of this I am almost certain – but they sure as hell will continue to put us through a bunch of utter crap before we get there.

This is what I am fed up with. I did start re-watching season 12 and I just can’t fathom some things that drove me crazy. Like why when we were first introduced to the British men of letters, it was two strong women who ruled the screen, but by the end, it was another two generic white men to add to our already generic white guy cast. They could have written it in so many different ways to how they did.

Billy’s death pissed me off, so did Alesha’s and Tasha’s. By the time they took Eileen from us I was fuming. Then when they went and wrote off Rowena with an off screen death only told to us in description form I had given up.

On top of this they continued to write scenes of non-con, scenes of violence against POC and women that could easily be avoided whilst maintaining suspense and drama, a dodgy plot point centering around a women fighting her right to choose against the white men trying to take that choice away from her, and on top of it all, fucking Lucifer still being a big part of the show when his character should have died at the end of season 11. His entire story this season was so boring I wanted to skip most of his scenes. I hated HATED his character.

I’m sorry to be negative. The show did some wonderful things this year that I am so happy about. Dean’s story arc was wonderful. His confrontation with Mary in 12x22 had me in tears and I screamed FINALLY out loud as he opened up and admitted things that he has kept inside for his whole life. Dean held this whole season together he really did. The emotional plot was wonderful, it’s what kept me around until the finale because I could see Dabb’s plan for the characters emotional development so clearly in the subtext and later text. Well, until 12x19 for Cas because after 12x19 I don’t understand a fucking thing Cas did and I bloody hope he really has been mind wammied by Jack all this time because otherwise it doesn’t make a lick of sense for his character development.

Ultimately, what season 12 did that was GREAT was threefold:

It built up Dean’s emotional development to its climax where he has finally let Sam ‘go’ and admit the years of abuse he suffered under John, as well as admitting that he was a parent to Sam rather than a brother. Dean’s entire story throughout the whole series has been building to this point and it was WONDERFUL to see.

It built up Sam’s story in the same way, in that he was able to finally break free from under Dean’s wing and accept his own responsibility and place in the world as a whole – as a leader and hero – rather than something tainted and wrong. Season 12 signalled the end of Winchester toxic co-dependency and I was HERE FOR THAT.

It gave us destiel. Now, I say this with certainty guys, although I know it is still contested. Consider it my parting gift to you. Destiel is real and we are going there. Season 12 basically gave it to us because it did things that it cannot now backtrack on. I have never been more certain. Even AFTER 8x17, after Dean’s confession, after “He’s in love… with humanity” and “it was all about saving one human” even after 11x19 and our Hunting Husbands, I still had a whole bunch of doubt on the topic. Now though? I don’t see how it is possible to watch 12x10, 12x12, 12x19 and now, the end of 12x23 without being like “hang on a freaking second – what the hell actually is going on with these guys?” Destiel is gonna happen. This is my speculation for you. Cas will be brought back but he will be brought back wrong and probably under Jack’s control and will walk away from Dean – still crying at his feet – all cold and emotionless as if Dean was nothing to him. Dean will then stop at nothing to get him back. I predict that will happen around the mid-season finale and it will be a big moment for destiel. Another 8x17 but more intense perhaps? Another ‘crypt scene’ but this time with a love confession from both sides? Guys I see it. I can’t not see it now. The one thing season 12 did was take away my doubts. Destiel is real and it is happening and I am pretty sure we will get there by end of season 13.

The problem is, this is no longer enough for me. Even if Season 13 starts with Cas coming back to life in some spectacular beauty and the beast moment which ends in a kiss and a cut to their wedding day… its still not enough anymore. I can’t watch this series just for a ship. I can’t keep going for the fucking carrot dangling in front of me when my hoofs are bleeding and raw and my back is breaking from the weight of all the shit I’ve been forced to carry. The carrot isn’t worth it.

I used to adore this show. Not for destiel, but for the stories, the mythology, the characters and their colourful world of Supernatural things. Now, the characters are slowly reaching peak development and I am getting fed up of watching them get beat down. I want them to have their peace, their happy ending. The stories are no longer fresh and exciting. They are Lucifer and his ridiculous Nephilim baby/not baby.

I am also so fed up of Cas’s story not making sense, of him being controlled or brainwashed or forced to do things he hates. Of his absence when it makes no sense (like when Claire is involved and not a word is spoken about him) or of writers writing him so off key that he comes across idiotic. (thanks Bucklemming). I can’t keep watching the writers butcher this character I adore with all my heart.  

I am so so happy for Wayward Sisters and I will support it with all my might. If only because these writers need to UNDERSTAND that they cannot keep killing off the female characters on this show like they mean nothing. Its just heartbreaking to think that we will never get Charlie, Eileen, Rowena, Billy, Alesha or any of the other female characters who have been wrongly killed off in Supernatural join the female cast of this spin off. I’m excited for Wayward Sisters more than I am for Supernatural right now, because Supernatural is just a massive disappointment for me.

I am sorry I feel this way, its been eating at me for a while. I think it’s the reason I have taken this break. I just can’t put all my time and energy into something that feels toxic to me. I live in fanfic at the moment because it is the characters I adore without the awful truth of canon – even if occasionally canon does still give us those fanfic moments – it’s the other moments that are the issue.

*sigh*

I’m sorry. Part of me desperately wants to hold on with all my might, to come back and throw myself into speculation and meta and all the stuff you guys are so awesome at, but another part of me is so so bitter its preventing me from feeling any joy from it.

Maybe when season 13 comes on I’ll forget this post and just start this blog up again. I certainly miss talking to the bloggers on here I consider my friends, I just feel that without contributing to anything I have no purpose on Tumblr, and I don’t want my negativity to affect anyone else. So in the meantime, this is goodbye. I may still visit and reblog stuff occasionally, but I won’t be writing anything for a while. A long while probably.

It’s been fun Tumblr, but from now on consider this an extended hiatus. Perhaps I’ll see you in the Autumn… perhaps this fleeting romance is over for good. I won’t know until I know. As for Supernatural, I have said my bit. Expect Destiel along with a side of bitter disappointment. Wayward Sisters will be amazing though. So long as they don’t let Bob Singer or Bucklemming anywhere near it that is.