Of angels and humans
Feb. 13th, 2010 12:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gwaevalarinThere is so much to talk about in this episode, so instead of giving each character just a little attention I'll concentrate on Castiel.
When Dean calls Cas on the cell-phone they had almost the very same glitch they had last week: Dean has barely told him the name of the hospital, let alone the city they are in, when he turns up. That could so easily have been avoided by Dean starting their location with the city. Last week, to Anna, the city wasn't mentioned either. I'm almost beginning to wonder if there's a purpose behind this.
Anyway, Cas turns up instantly which leads to this little awkward moment. On the one hand, still being on the phone with someone who's standing right in front of you is silly, on the other hand you want to end a phone conversation properly. So that was a little comic relief that made perfect sense in Castiel's attempts to get adjusted to human life, at least when he's around the Winchester boys.
What I found odd is how fast Castiel shows up when Dean calls him while he's supposed to be busy searching for god. Either he has more or less given up on his search, maybe hit a dead end, and is spending his time just sitting around doing nothing, waiting for Dean to call. Because he wants to help but he doesn't want to bother the boys. Or he is willing to drop everything as soon as Dean calls. Either way, his attention is concentrated on Dean and Sam. They are like family to him by now, the closest thing he has to a family and I think, while he still might be looking for god, it's rather something to keep him busy. At least from what we've seen of his search so far. I'm not sure Castiel still really believes he's actually going to find him. But what else is he supposed to do whenever Sam and Dean are not asking for his help?
But with all his unease and awkwardness when it comes to human things, as soon as he is back on familiar territory - angel business, Enochian sigils - he is in control and appears a lot more self-confident and... angelic again. His talk about Cupid being Cherub and therefore a lower order of angel makes me wonder what order of angel Castiel actually belongs (belonged) to. Sometimes he seems hardly more than a foot soldier and then he can order a Cherub to manifest. But the only thing I know for sure is that Anna was his superior and he initially seemed to be slightly higher up the chain compared to Uriel. So I'm still a little puzzled on that front.
The scene in the diner - before Dean and Cas start acting out of character - shows perfectly how Castiel is still trying to get to grips with life on earth. How is isn't really an angel any more but he's not human either. He's sitting at the side line, watching life instead of participating in it. He's curious, he tried to figure it out and understand some of it, but life is still something only other people, humans, have, not him. So maybe, Jimmy's craving for red meat is the one to come through to affect Castiel because Castiel himself craves a litte bit of humanity, a little bit of the experience of human life. After all, he is clearly enjoying it. Or is that Jimmy as well? Because Castiel kind of reminds me of Jimmy when he finally got to eat again in "The Rapture"? Especially in the car. That smile looked very much like Jimmy and not like Cas at all. Neither our Cas and nor the human future Cas from "The End".
That something interesting we learn there: Jimmy is still around, trapped inside his own body without any control. But from the way Castiel talks about him and the way, Jimmy's craving can affect him like that, I get the feeling that Castiel takes good care of him. Of course it must still be a nightmare for Jimmy but I believe that Castiel is making it as bearable for him as he can.
This is also the first time that Castiel refers to things like sex, love, attention like he understands them. In a human way. Whenever he refered to sex as mating it sounded more like he was talking about some abstract, biological process. When he talked about love it was rather something like devotion and not the messy, human version. Maybe that's Jimmy's influence, too. Experiencing Jimmy's craving like that might help him understand the concept of starving for something. Maybe even realise that he has been feeling the same thing to a certain extend for a while but could never really figure out what it was.
Dean and Famine both suggest that Dean is unnaffected by Famine. Dean claims it's because he does what he craves for anyway and Famine states that it's because he's dead inside. I think they're both wrong/lying. Because as far as I can see, Dean is affected. After all, he's not acting any less out of character than everyone else. The effect is just seemingly reverse. But what Dean secretly craves for isn't food, alkohol and sex. What he really craves for is not needing those things to numb the pain. I wonder, if they had been under Famines influence much longer, would Dean have starved to death?
Now, talking about Dean being "dead inside". I think his desperate plea at the end of the episode proves that he's not. He's broken, probably beyond repair, but not dead. We also got a clear hint here on how and why Dean might say yes to Michael. After all, Dean turns to the heavens for help. Which I found very sad considering, that he just left his angelic friend inside to guard Sam. Castiel is cut off from heaven and he doesn't have the resources or contacts any more that his brothers have. But he can offer Dean something, that no one in heaven can: He can offer him true friendship. But Dean doesn't let him. Sure, Dean trusts Castiel, probably more than he has ever trust anyone besides Sam, his Dad and maybe Bobby. But he still keeps Cas at bay. He doesn't let him close and therefor Castiel can't really help him. Even though he is trying.
"Dean, Sam just need to get it out if his system and then he'll be..."
He sees how much it hurts Dean to lock Sam in for a cold turkey and he tries to offer a little bit of comfort. But Dean won't even let him do that. He cuts him off and leaves to "get some air".
And I believe that this hurts Cas a lot more than he shows. He tries to hide it but you can see it in his eyes. He is hurt as well as concerned. He is used to being closely connected to so many other angels, not in anything like human friendship or brotherhood but still. And now, that he discovers emotions and really needs someone the only family he has are Sam and Dean. But those two are struggling. Sam with his blood addiction and Dean with... well, his broken self. And Castiel wants to help them. So when Dean walks outside to aks the heavens for help instead of turning to Cas and leaves the angel behind to look after Sam and Castiel stands there wanting to hep Dean but knowing that he won't let him, I think that is just as heartbreaking as Deans breakdown.
When Dean calls Cas on the cell-phone they had almost the very same glitch they had last week: Dean has barely told him the name of the hospital, let alone the city they are in, when he turns up. That could so easily have been avoided by Dean starting their location with the city. Last week, to Anna, the city wasn't mentioned either. I'm almost beginning to wonder if there's a purpose behind this.
Anyway, Cas turns up instantly which leads to this little awkward moment. On the one hand, still being on the phone with someone who's standing right in front of you is silly, on the other hand you want to end a phone conversation properly. So that was a little comic relief that made perfect sense in Castiel's attempts to get adjusted to human life, at least when he's around the Winchester boys.
What I found odd is how fast Castiel shows up when Dean calls him while he's supposed to be busy searching for god. Either he has more or less given up on his search, maybe hit a dead end, and is spending his time just sitting around doing nothing, waiting for Dean to call. Because he wants to help but he doesn't want to bother the boys. Or he is willing to drop everything as soon as Dean calls. Either way, his attention is concentrated on Dean and Sam. They are like family to him by now, the closest thing he has to a family and I think, while he still might be looking for god, it's rather something to keep him busy. At least from what we've seen of his search so far. I'm not sure Castiel still really believes he's actually going to find him. But what else is he supposed to do whenever Sam and Dean are not asking for his help?
But with all his unease and awkwardness when it comes to human things, as soon as he is back on familiar territory - angel business, Enochian sigils - he is in control and appears a lot more self-confident and... angelic again. His talk about Cupid being Cherub and therefore a lower order of angel makes me wonder what order of angel Castiel actually belongs (belonged) to. Sometimes he seems hardly more than a foot soldier and then he can order a Cherub to manifest. But the only thing I know for sure is that Anna was his superior and he initially seemed to be slightly higher up the chain compared to Uriel. So I'm still a little puzzled on that front.
The scene in the diner - before Dean and Cas start acting out of character - shows perfectly how Castiel is still trying to get to grips with life on earth. How is isn't really an angel any more but he's not human either. He's sitting at the side line, watching life instead of participating in it. He's curious, he tried to figure it out and understand some of it, but life is still something only other people, humans, have, not him. So maybe, Jimmy's craving for red meat is the one to come through to affect Castiel because Castiel himself craves a litte bit of humanity, a little bit of the experience of human life. After all, he is clearly enjoying it. Or is that Jimmy as well? Because Castiel kind of reminds me of Jimmy when he finally got to eat again in "The Rapture"? Especially in the car. That smile looked very much like Jimmy and not like Cas at all. Neither our Cas and nor the human future Cas from "The End".
That something interesting we learn there: Jimmy is still around, trapped inside his own body without any control. But from the way Castiel talks about him and the way, Jimmy's craving can affect him like that, I get the feeling that Castiel takes good care of him. Of course it must still be a nightmare for Jimmy but I believe that Castiel is making it as bearable for him as he can.
This is also the first time that Castiel refers to things like sex, love, attention like he understands them. In a human way. Whenever he refered to sex as mating it sounded more like he was talking about some abstract, biological process. When he talked about love it was rather something like devotion and not the messy, human version. Maybe that's Jimmy's influence, too. Experiencing Jimmy's craving like that might help him understand the concept of starving for something. Maybe even realise that he has been feeling the same thing to a certain extend for a while but could never really figure out what it was.
Dean and Famine both suggest that Dean is unnaffected by Famine. Dean claims it's because he does what he craves for anyway and Famine states that it's because he's dead inside. I think they're both wrong/lying. Because as far as I can see, Dean is affected. After all, he's not acting any less out of character than everyone else. The effect is just seemingly reverse. But what Dean secretly craves for isn't food, alkohol and sex. What he really craves for is not needing those things to numb the pain. I wonder, if they had been under Famines influence much longer, would Dean have starved to death?
Now, talking about Dean being "dead inside". I think his desperate plea at the end of the episode proves that he's not. He's broken, probably beyond repair, but not dead. We also got a clear hint here on how and why Dean might say yes to Michael. After all, Dean turns to the heavens for help. Which I found very sad considering, that he just left his angelic friend inside to guard Sam. Castiel is cut off from heaven and he doesn't have the resources or contacts any more that his brothers have. But he can offer Dean something, that no one in heaven can: He can offer him true friendship. But Dean doesn't let him. Sure, Dean trusts Castiel, probably more than he has ever trust anyone besides Sam, his Dad and maybe Bobby. But he still keeps Cas at bay. He doesn't let him close and therefor Castiel can't really help him. Even though he is trying.
"Dean, Sam just need to get it out if his system and then he'll be..."
He sees how much it hurts Dean to lock Sam in for a cold turkey and he tries to offer a little bit of comfort. But Dean won't even let him do that. He cuts him off and leaves to "get some air".
And I believe that this hurts Cas a lot more than he shows. He tries to hide it but you can see it in his eyes. He is hurt as well as concerned. He is used to being closely connected to so many other angels, not in anything like human friendship or brotherhood but still. And now, that he discovers emotions and really needs someone the only family he has are Sam and Dean. But those two are struggling. Sam with his blood addiction and Dean with... well, his broken self. And Castiel wants to help them. So when Dean walks outside to aks the heavens for help instead of turning to Cas and leaves the angel behind to look after Sam and Castiel stands there wanting to hep Dean but knowing that he won't let him, I think that is just as heartbreaking as Deans breakdown.
