spn - 516 - dark side of the moon

[retro_eidas]

• DYLAN! Finally! Excellent (and heartbreaking) use of "Knockin' on Heaven's Door". Especially with how very daddy-like that Dean came off like in that scene with wee!Sammy.
  
  
• Dark side of the moon, indeed. Trippy moon/sky effects are trippy.
  
  
• Zachariah is still the douchebag of Oz? Nice to know!
  
  
• Heaven is the Matrix. Or possibly Libria. The dystopian monolithic system has to get taken down or receive a serious blow before the end of this season.
  
  
• BTW, Matrix incidentally is Latin for "womb" and we get Evil Mommy Mary at the end of the ep. Though Heaven is a creation of a totalitarian patriarchy. Heaven is more like a dreamworld prison for most with the face of Evil Mommy half representing the end of the road and the other half an absent, apathetic Daddy (mirrored in the non-perfection that was John/Mary's actual relationship with John absent and them separated)
  
  
• I did love the image of Mary as both loving and monstrous....which is pretty much God in a nutshell. Or perhaps the anima mundi (aka, the Garden, where the "Axis Mundi" ends and originates. The Garden in Heaven. Zachariah vs. Joshua. The clashing - or collusion - of Spirit and Nature). At least the omnipresent and omniscient figure who could create Paradise, humanity and Hell. Also Joshua and God communing because they're both gardeners, though they can only nurture things to grow. They can only tend to the creation, not actually create it. That's mom's job. If God can only tend, then who is God's consort? Or, perhaps, who created "God"? Sophia or maybe Gaia or Nut? The primordial goddess did exist in religion far before the patriarchal systems took over (pick up any Campbell, which Kripke has done, it's there), maybe SPN intends to reflect that?
  
  
• "You're my little angel." and "I never realized how long you were cleaning up dad's messes." Foreshadowing? Dean is the "righteous man" destined to "stop" Armageddon (aka, God's mess). Though we know Dean can't be Michael or Lucifer. If Dean as suprsekrit (scary powerful) angel is still on the plate? My money is on Metatron or Abaddon (if Death doesn't pilfer that name).
  
  
• If they do want to go all the way with the Asshole Deadbeat Daddy thing with God, I have a sinking feeling that Mary's words = God's words re: angels
  
  
• YAY ASH!! You be that one man resistance! YAY PAMELA! But she's hocking Heaven's wares. Meh Pam, meh to you! "Better the attic than the basement." They're both still prisons. Hell breaks you with pain and torture, Heaven breaks you with bliss.
  
  
• Though one of Dean's "Heaven" memories was having to comfort his mom after she refuses to take John back? Oh Oedipus Dean.
  
  
• All of Sam's "Heaven" memories were either of the idyllic family life (I figured he was talking BS knocking the possibility of a normal fam life in "Swap Meat", a deep-seeded part of him still venerates that as the ideal) or being away from the accursed Winchester family. Including Dean. Not surprising, but Dean's hurt at that realization (Sam's Heaven = Dean's Hell)? *wibbles* Not to say Sam necessarily owes Dean equal, co-dependent devotion that Dean unhealthily displays. He shouldn't. Though the idea that Dean is, in part, the "womb" prison to Sam that he's so desperate to get away from, no matter the love there? That stings. Even (supposedly) "perfect" relationships need a break for awhile, methinks Dean-Sam are up for one and probably by season's end (though they'll undoubtedly come back together in 6x01, but damn, these two need some mutually agreed upon time apart, without one or the other having to run away or ignore their problems).
  
  
• "What in the hell" and "son of a bitch"? Dean really is imprinting on Cas. And yes, that IS what the kids are calling it these days.
  
  
• Cas gave up the amulet. Then Dean gave up the amulet (though for Dean it has multiple and personal meanings). Very "Take this cup from me" moment from both Cas and Dean. You know Sam is going to fish that thing out of the trash (even if he likely can never be the "righteous man", likely the one that's got to somehow keep that guy on the path, but that's going to be hard with Dean's faith and Dean's seemingly unflappable angel BFF's faith both being so broken).
  
  
• Hey Cas! Anyone ever tell you an awesome way to rebel against an a-hole deadbeat Dad is lose your virginity to a bad boy? Oh, Dean? Time to pay up on the whole Saved You From Perdition thing. Why must all of Dean's love interests apparently must come packaged sharing ultra-angsty daddy issues??? Seriously though, with Daddy rendered a dead end, the prophecy is still in play and Dean is still the only one who can stop this mess. Cas has to throw all his faith in the Dean basket. Hopefully we get the return of the intense staring contests, possibly with extra shouty and frustrated hotness. Mutual mantears wouldn't go amiss either.

Comments

[cherryshadowz.livejournal.com]

Oh I loved that shot, thought it was wonderful to see Dean in so much pain and yet he's still feeling for others. I was very sad to see God turn out this way, I was hoping to see a different take something I really didn't expect I would have even taken the "God is dead" over "God says its your turn" but I don't know I guess it fits.

[eido.livejournal.com]

God may still be playing a long game (something like Leto II in the Dune series maybe). Like maybe He seems like a total dick now but we get to the finale and it ends up not quite as bad when we see His bigger picture. Then again, it's apparent they were paralleling "deadbeat dad" John with God in the ep. Again, not surprising they went with John = God (and thus wouldn't be shocked they could take that all the way and God sacrifices Himself not unlike John did), sucks for the heroes though. *sighs* At least we did get some good angst out of it.

The Matrix anvils in 5x16 were interesting too re: God considering one of the religions The Matrix is based on is Gnosticism. "God" in Gnosticism, like the machines/the Architect in the Matrix movies, really isn't a nice guy and needs to be neutralized. Maybe "God" in SPN is similar? Daddy dies, kids (both angelic and human) have to grow-up and move on without him.

[cherryshadowz.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't put it past the writers to reveal a sympathetic look at how God see's things. In the end I just think I was expecting something more which makes little sense since they wouldn't put off the big God reveal if He wasn't going to be a dead-beat or a dues ex-machina. I agree with you on the John/God parallel and I just can't help but feel that at this point subtlety is out the window.

I like this idea, I've seen others explore this in fanfiction its rare and at times passing but I always found that this view on God and his children both the angels who don't know how to function healthily without God and humanity that struggles on even when they live in perpetual doubt is the most interesting and rich. Its very open and one can think about it for quite a while.