7.21
Somewhat delayed because I have watched this episode through twice now and I still can't really wrap my head around how I feel.
My biggest issue is that I'm really struggling to come to terms with this 'new' Castiel. It was... weird, and I actually found it quite uncomfortable to watch at times. There were some shades of the 'old' Castiel in there, as well as quite a few hints of future!Cas, minus the bitterness, but for the most part it was like a complete... personality overhaul, and I am scratching my head as to why the writers decided to go that route. It seems like they're obsessed with constantly reinventing this character (this season alone we've had Godstiel, Leviathan!Cas, Emmanuel and whatever this was supposed to be), and I don't understand why we can't just have Cas. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, you know?
Also not sure how to feel about the "I don't fight anymore" bit either. On the one hand I feel like I should be happy about this, because here is a Cas who finally has agency and autonomy, dispensing with duties and obligations and finding his own way in life; but from a more selfish perspective, one of my favourite aspects of Castiel's personality has always been his 'soldierness', and it's such an integral part of his character, one that's informed so many of his choices up to this point, that I can't really imagine him without it. However, I doubt the pacifism will last, given the stakes involved, so I'm willing to wait and see what happens there.
Also, it would be super-awesome if mental health issues were not played for laughs :/
Having said all that -- there was a lot of this episode that I loved, so the bits I did like:
- The Dean/Cas interaction. Still not really getting why so many are saying the ship has been sunk. That 'Sorry' scene alone was so complex and layered with subtext and it feels as though they're even farther apart than they've ever been, not even remotely on the same page anymore. I also thought Dean's reactions to the situation were pretty much perfectly realised: there's obviously still a lot of unresolved issues and anger there, because they never got the chance to try and mend the bridges between them before the shit hit the fan. And yet there's still obviously despair and grief at what has become of Castiel, and I think a lot of Dean's frustration comes from his difficulty reconciling this stranger with the person he knew before. What he says to Kevin about angels breaking apart when they try to care just about broke me, but more importantly it showcases just how responsible Dean feels for Castiel's fate . Which I actually have issues with b/c a lot of the fandom tends to blame Dean for everything that's happened to Cas, which simply isn't fair: Castiel made his own choices, and to deny that is to deny him free will and essentially miss the entire point of his character arc. But of course Dean would feel guilty about it, because Dean feels guilty about everything -- and of course it's something that's only reinforced later on with what Hester says about Castiel being lost from the moment he met Dean.
I also loved that Castiel put himself between Dean and Hester, deliberately drawing her attention away from him, even though he says he doesn't fight anymore, even though he's assumed this position of neutrality, even though he doesn't like conflict and was quite obviously uncomfortable throughout that scene. In fact, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's the only time that Castiel intervenes directly with events throughout the entire episode? Ugh, too many feelings.
- I also enjoyed the conversation between Sam and Castiel, as I feel it gave a degree on the closure on some of the issues between them resulting from 6.22. It also makes sense to me that Sam would have an easier time forgiving and moving on than Dean; because I don't think he ever took Castiel's actions as personally as Dean obviously did, and he's also able to relate better to Castiel because of the fact that they've made similar mistakes.
- Meg. I find her to be a really interesting, complex character, and I was so glad we finally got some further development and exploration of that here. I almost cheered during her speech about her cause, because it confirmed a lot of my headcanon about her and also drew some nice parallels between Meg and Cas -- and to a slightly lesser extent, Meg and Dean. I enjoyed the manner in which her relationship with Castiel was portrayed here, too: she was very upfront about the fact that she needs him onside as a potential ally against Crowley, but she was also pretty patient with him most of the time and seemed to harbour a degree of genuine fondness (unless I'm reading too much into things with my shipper goggles?)
- Hester and Inias. Especially Hester; her disillusionment with Castiel seemed very real, and her beatdown of him was one of the most powerful moments of the episode, imo. I just wish she hadn't been killed off -- especially when her male counterpart got to live, though I did like Inias too. Also appreciated the fact that we got some more background on angel lore, what with the stuff with Metatron and the details about Castiel's old garrison.
- Kevin. There was some unfortunate racial sterotyping and I felt like his character could have been fleshed out a little more, but I like that he was painted as such a civilian. His reaction to suddenly being thrust into this world felt, again, very real; especially his freaking out at things that we tend to take for granted in the show, such as Meg's eyes turning black or Castiel appearing out of nowhere.
... So, yeah. Mixed feelings on this one. Maybe it'll grow on me more once we know how the end of the season pans out. Only two episodes to go now... eep!
My biggest issue is that I'm really struggling to come to terms with this 'new' Castiel. It was... weird, and I actually found it quite uncomfortable to watch at times. There were some shades of the 'old' Castiel in there, as well as quite a few hints of future!Cas, minus the bitterness, but for the most part it was like a complete... personality overhaul, and I am scratching my head as to why the writers decided to go that route. It seems like they're obsessed with constantly reinventing this character (this season alone we've had Godstiel, Leviathan!Cas, Emmanuel and whatever this was supposed to be), and I don't understand why we can't just have Cas. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, you know?
Also not sure how to feel about the "I don't fight anymore" bit either. On the one hand I feel like I should be happy about this, because here is a Cas who finally has agency and autonomy, dispensing with duties and obligations and finding his own way in life; but from a more selfish perspective, one of my favourite aspects of Castiel's personality has always been his 'soldierness', and it's such an integral part of his character, one that's informed so many of his choices up to this point, that I can't really imagine him without it. However, I doubt the pacifism will last, given the stakes involved, so I'm willing to wait and see what happens there.
Also, it would be super-awesome if mental health issues were not played for laughs :/
Having said all that -- there was a lot of this episode that I loved, so the bits I did like:
- The Dean/Cas interaction. Still not really getting why so many are saying the ship has been sunk. That 'Sorry' scene alone was so complex and layered with subtext and it feels as though they're even farther apart than they've ever been, not even remotely on the same page anymore. I also thought Dean's reactions to the situation were pretty much perfectly realised: there's obviously still a lot of unresolved issues and anger there, because they never got the chance to try and mend the bridges between them before the shit hit the fan. And yet there's still obviously despair and grief at what has become of Castiel, and I think a lot of Dean's frustration comes from his difficulty reconciling this stranger with the person he knew before. What he says to Kevin about angels breaking apart when they try to care just about broke me, but more importantly it showcases just how responsible Dean feels for Castiel's fate . Which I actually have issues with b/c a lot of the fandom tends to blame Dean for everything that's happened to Cas, which simply isn't fair: Castiel made his own choices, and to deny that is to deny him free will and essentially miss the entire point of his character arc. But of course Dean would feel guilty about it, because Dean feels guilty about everything -- and of course it's something that's only reinforced later on with what Hester says about Castiel being lost from the moment he met Dean.
I also loved that Castiel put himself between Dean and Hester, deliberately drawing her attention away from him, even though he says he doesn't fight anymore, even though he's assumed this position of neutrality, even though he doesn't like conflict and was quite obviously uncomfortable throughout that scene. In fact, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure that's the only time that Castiel intervenes directly with events throughout the entire episode? Ugh, too many feelings.
- I also enjoyed the conversation between Sam and Castiel, as I feel it gave a degree on the closure on some of the issues between them resulting from 6.22. It also makes sense to me that Sam would have an easier time forgiving and moving on than Dean; because I don't think he ever took Castiel's actions as personally as Dean obviously did, and he's also able to relate better to Castiel because of the fact that they've made similar mistakes.
- Meg. I find her to be a really interesting, complex character, and I was so glad we finally got some further development and exploration of that here. I almost cheered during her speech about her cause, because it confirmed a lot of my headcanon about her and also drew some nice parallels between Meg and Cas -- and to a slightly lesser extent, Meg and Dean. I enjoyed the manner in which her relationship with Castiel was portrayed here, too: she was very upfront about the fact that she needs him onside as a potential ally against Crowley, but she was also pretty patient with him most of the time and seemed to harbour a degree of genuine fondness (unless I'm reading too much into things with my shipper goggles?)
- Hester and Inias. Especially Hester; her disillusionment with Castiel seemed very real, and her beatdown of him was one of the most powerful moments of the episode, imo. I just wish she hadn't been killed off -- especially when her male counterpart got to live, though I did like Inias too. Also appreciated the fact that we got some more background on angel lore, what with the stuff with Metatron and the details about Castiel's old garrison.
- Kevin. There was some unfortunate racial sterotyping and I felt like his character could have been fleshed out a little more, but I like that he was painted as such a civilian. His reaction to suddenly being thrust into this world felt, again, very real; especially his freaking out at things that we tend to take for granted in the show, such as Meg's eyes turning black or Castiel appearing out of nowhere.
... So, yeah. Mixed feelings on this one. Maybe it'll grow on me more once we know how the end of the season pans out. Only two episodes to go now... eep!