Episode poll 14.18: “Absence”

[caranfindel]

[Poll #2091947]

Remember, no spoilers in the comments, please, and that includes episode titles and casting information. Thanks!

Comments

[fanspired]

You know, I've been thinking about Dean's response to realizing Mary might be dead, and I don't think the issue was the snake, or that he blamed Cas. I think what was significant was who he didn't blame. When Dean's hurt it's always been his first response to lash out at whoever's available. Those that cop it are really just the collateral damage of his pain. In the past, when Sam's been the only one around, it's been Sam, but these days Dean has a choice. When Dean began the sentence about if anything had happened to Mary, he paused, like he was searching for someone to blame, before he settled on Cas and made him the scapegoat for his rage. He simply went through the pecking order and lashed out at the one he cared about least. He could have found an excuse to blame Sam, but he'd rather blame Cas. The real issue, though, is that the one person who might have been the obvious target of his rage, was the last person he wanted to blame. He blamed Cas, he blamed himself; everyone blamed themselves. But nobody expressed any anger toward the one who'd actually killed Mary. Nobody blamed Jack. If only Jack himself could have seen that and appreciated its significance.