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mittensmorgul · 1 year

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Okay, I have a lot of thoughts i’ve been rotating for a while now, and even if I don’t have a coherent overarching meta composed in my head yet, I feel I need to at least record some of these thoughts for future reference. Buckle up. It’s a lot.

I’ll start with a few overarching themes and points that cover the entire series, and then move into the specifics of the most recent episode, the PENULTIMATE episode lol, 1.12. gonna just bullet point these for ease of reference purposes:

-a ridiculous percentage of the series has dealt with monsters/entities with their own little pocket dimensions. yes, this was a thing the original series touched on occasionally-- djinn dream universes created entirely inside someone’s mind, gabriel’s eternal tuesday time loop, gabriel’s weirdo tv land, the soul eater nest in 11.16, and even chuck’s bar at the end of the universe from 11.20. Or like... the entire concept of alternate universes introduced in 6.15 The French Mistake that may or may not have been a construct by Balthazar... up to interpretation... and the final seasons wrangling of several specific alternate universes

so far in The Winchesters we have, by episode:

(under a cut because this got long lol)

*eta: since it’s been pointed out to me that not everyone’s managed to memorize all the spn prime episodes by number, here’s the Mittens Decoder Page on the superwiki by episode number: http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/Category:Episodes

1.01 the Loup Garou and the Monster Trap Box (which can only be recharged by things that are “not of this earth”, specifically they will learn it’s a transporter device that sends creatures trapped by it back to whatever world’s item has “charged” the box) they were searching for, hidden in a secret chamber for years.

1.02 La Tunda, who lures victims into her little pocket dimension trap via roots pulling them underground. she can only be killed by being stabbed with a piece of her own wood/body

1.03 the Bori Baba who lures victims into a pocket dimension trap via a burlap sack. he can only be destroyed (and his captives freed) by them willingly relinquishing/destroying the beloved thing he lured them with.

1.04 Mars Neto who lures victims into a pocket dimension trap and makes them relive trauma and fight him. Could only be defeated/rendered mortal when the amphora containing his power was shattered.

1.05 djinn... but these are slightly different than any of the djinn we know from original canon. they can form a link directly into someone else’s mind and control them out in the real world, not just in a pocket universe trap... it turns victims’ own minds into the trap

1.06 a vengeful spirit of a POSSESSED VAMPIRE of an entirely new variety, who broke free of a trap where he’d been locked for decades, because his friends felt helpless against his growing darkness/involvement with dark magic that was twisting who he was. Lata had to force him to confront that and confess, and the possessing spirit chooses to leave John in an act of doing the right thing.

1.07 straight-up Akrida-- the monsters apparently from an alternate universe trying to invade our world to devour it all (reminiscent of the tentacle monsters Sam and Dean found trapped in a different MoL capitulum clubhouse and accidentally released in 12.17, but bugs instead of tentacles...). They are our overarching Big Bad, who bridge the gap between pocket dimension and possession/mind control that surrounds so many of the themes of the series. but this episode explores them in more depth (right down to the underground lair where the queen was trapped). I feel the need to mention it somewhere, but the akrida used radio waves as a lure for all the bizarre monsters our core four have been dealing with all season, connecting the akrida directly to every other specific monster we’ve seen them confront. Episode literally called “Reflections” which leads me into:

1.08 Loki/Gabriel? Who I already mentioned above as a creator of pocket dimensions and messing with minds in original canon. And for some reason at the end of the episode, he’s trapped inside a mirror, a bit of lore we’ve never seen connected to Loki or Gabriel leaving me to wonder how trapped he actually is... A reflection, as it were.

1.09 vampires... but more the sort we already know from spn prime canon. except the whole mission around them involves a PROPHECY unwittingly stamped onto John’s hand. We’re reminded that prophecy can’t be avoided, BUT you can control some of the circumstances AROUND the prophecy. Context matters, and tiny glimpses of things aren’t representative of the whole truth. (4.18 anyone...)

1.10 A very Magnus-coded (who if you remember created his own little pocket universe to live in with his monster zoo and collection of supernatural relics) disgraced MoL who lies about his identity, his past, and his motives for returning to the clubhouse now. Literally wants to transfer his and his wife’s consciousnesses into John and Mary’s bodies to get back the life the Akrida had stolen from them and he felt they were owed... with no self-awareness that this actually made HIM the monster in this case.

1.11 the Shadow Spirits generated by Maggie’s magical bracelet that both showed the wearer the truth about hidden motivations AND could also become a trap. Carlos and Lata are pulled into a shadowy trap (not just in their minds! they are no longer physically in the house! they were pulled bodily into some sort of pocket universe BY A SHADOW (you know, the proper term for the Empty Entity in spn prime canon?). Where their only hope for escape was Lata confessing her deep, dark hidden secret to Carlos. She was terrified that he would reject her if he knew the truth about her, that Carlos would be ashamed of her, but he reconfirmed that he loves her unconditionally, and nothing will ever change that.

She’d felt guilt and responsibility for the actions of others for so long, but Carlos helped her see the whole picture again, that it was not her fault, that she’d been helpless to circumstance and wasn’t at fault for her father’s bad actions-- even to the point where they led to the death of an innocent woman.

But the other function of this bracelet, used on Betty to show her the TRUTH of the akrida-possessed people finally gave US a look at how akrida possession works. It’s not just the little spikes in the neck doing the controlling through chemicals or whatever, they seem to function like some sort of weird antenna that connects them via mysterious green tentacles of light up into the sky. Where do they go? I thought the akrida queen was buried underground, not in the sky? Who or what is pulling those poisonous green strings?

aside to mention lata found the bracelet hidden in A CAN OF RAT POISON, along with a tasty treat that carlos devoured. the rat poison packaging was just a decoy to keep anyone else from accidentally finding Maggie’s bracelet (and her stash of tasty treats lol)

1.12 LIMBO’S HOUSE OF HAPPY. a fucking CARNIVAL TENT of a pocket universe, run by a literal clown who made a deal with a witch to create a perfect place where he would never feel sad again. (somebody PLEASE tell me this feels like 15.20... from the rando pie festival where Dean STILL doesn’t get to eat pie and has it smashed in his face instead, and then gets hung on a rusty nail after fighting off some vampire clowns/mimes and sent to a weirdo version of Heaven where he can apparently never worry about anything again? freaking dystopian, ffs... but also... very much a thematic summary of the entire metanarrative plot of the Winchesters as a whole...)

I’m gonna spend the rest of this post absolutely yelling about this last one. While watching, my brain just kept lighting up with references to past canon.

A CLOWN named LIMBO.

Of course, when we think about clowns in Supernatural, we always think of Sam’s lifelong fear of them. Apparently connected to the fact that Dean used to leave him at Plucky Pennywhistle’s as a kid, but also... almost every reference to clowns in canon prime are connected either to Azazel or to Lucifer himself.

My very first thought about LIMBO the CLOWN was 11.10 The Devil in the Details. Rowena being the one to magically assemble the “stage cage” where they’d summoned Lucifer to question him about Sam’s visions and dealing with the Darkness, and Rowena appearing in this episode (even if in an entirely different plot arc, she’s still ~there~) feels very relevant.

But we’d known that Sam’s visions in s11 were foreshadowing a return of Lucifer and possibly a trip to the cage. But... Clowns Specifically were used to foreshadow this. In 11.07 Plush, Sam was trapped IN AN ELEVATOR with a murderous clown, and the overhead shot as Sam frees the man in the clown suit from possession... looks like cage bars (screencaps from HotN):

Remember, this was TWO EPISODES before Crowley leads Sam and Rowena INTO LIMBO in 11.09. LIMBO. Where Sam’s worst nightmare becomes reality and he’s literally trapped IN A FAKE CAGE, IN LIMBO, WITH THE ULTIMATE CLOWN:

(screenshot from the superwiki page for 11.09)

LIMBO is where Cas says yes to possession by Lucifer, and right after this kills Rowena for her trouble, after she confesses that she’s the only one who knows the spell to force him back into the actual cage.

From 11.09:

Crowley: We are in the furthest reaches of Hell, Limbo, where I send unruly souls for timeout. Sam: This is where I meet with Lucifer? Crowley: What it lacks in ambience it makes up for in security. They come to an empty cage. Rowena paints sigils on the cage, while the thunderstorm continues to rage. Crowley: Makes your flesh crawl, doesn’t it Moose? I get it. I’m the King of this place. It’s still not my cup of tea. Sam: I don’t know, Crowley. I’d say it suits you. Dark. Empty. Crowley: Fascinating; the utter contempt, when I’m in the midst of saving the Winchester’s bacon, again. Sam: The point of this is to save everyone’s bacon, including yours. Let’s just hope she knows what she’s doing. This cell won't hold crap if the warding is not right. Rowena: Don’t you worry about me, Samuel. I’m a professional. Crowley: Are you certain you can do this without actually opening the Cage? Rowena: We are about to find out, aren’t we.

Rowena BELIEVED Lucifer would become her protector, bring her peace, security, power. But it was all a lie. And in this episode, she seeks out Ada under the pretense of talking to the specific demon Ada had trapped in a bonsai tree, looking for information about her son...

Let’s detour through some other clown references from spn, just for funsies. The cold open victim in this episode was the only one who could see the magical tent, and his friend saw and heard nothing of it (he didn’t have the magic ticket). It called back to the children in 2.02 Everybody Loves a Clown. They were the only ones who could see the Rakshasa clown, who used those children to gain entry to their homes to devour their parents.

There’s also the ghost of John Wayne Gacy in 14.13, an episode where Dean’s wish to reunite his family is fulfilled, even for a brief moment. (the ghost will return in 14.20 when Chuck cracks Hell open). But specifically this clown is tied directly to John and Mary reuniting before John chooses to go back to his own time to save everyone else and restore the timeline. John will only vaguely remember the events as some sort of pleasant dream. It comes with a side of Dean accepting his life, not WANTING to change it because everything he’s endured has combined to make him the person he’s become. GROWTH DOT GIF.

(and in 15.01 the clown ghost nearly gets sam, again...)

Which brings me back to the Akrida. Our mind-controlling, possessing archvillain of this entire narrative. Whose goal seems to revolve around being freed from a sort of cage to run riot across creation. They have apparently shifted reality, all because Dean knocked over some first mysterious domino and unleashing the chain of events he’s been recounting through the entire series.

Was that inciting incident going back in time to deliver the note to John? Was it giving John the key to the MoL clubhouse that sparked not only what appears to be a massive change in the timeline from what we’d known from spn prime, but possibly also GENERATED the akrida as a monster specifically that creates these sorts of pocket dimensions to devour?

Also, brief aside to mention DEANNA. Like, the entire early part of the season revolved around Mary concerned about Samuel being “missing.” And yet, we also learned that Deanna had disappeared to points unknown. She hadn’t been seen by anyone in MONTHS, was last assumed to be hunting with some group in Michigan (? I think? top of my head reference), and yet NOBODY has showed the same concern for her whereabouts as they collectively did for Samuel. It’s almost like they all have some sort of weird amnesia about her at this point. They just... aren’t concerned about her at all, and haven’t even mentioned her in weeks. Which makes me think she’s at the center of all of this. I would be 100% unsurprised if she’s the one possessed by the Akrida queen at this point. because otherwise, WHERE TF IS SHE. But also, WHY TF IS NOBODY ELSE SEEMINGLY CONCERNED ABOUT HER AT ALL?! It’s WEIRD.

I am generally losing my mind over all of this, and don’t know what Big Secret will be revealed in the finale, but hooBOY I am prepared to scream about it for weeks. This is all just stashed here for my own future reference purposes, and I’m sure I’ll come back and add more things as I think of them, but heck this will have to suffice for now :’D

#the winchesters #spnwin s1 spoilers #spnwin 1.12 #spn 11.07 #spn 11.09 #spn 11.10 #spn 2.02 #spn 14.13 #spn 14.20 #spn 15.01 #spn 7.14 #spn 15.20

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thevioletcaptain · 1 year

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Tarot Time II: The Reckoning

Or; My Nice and Accurate SPNWin Tarot Shenanigans

So if you were following me last September, you might remember the day that I was overcome with a sudden urge to do a tarot reading for season one of The Winchesters. Given that I think it's always a good idea to listen to random bolts of inspiration, no matter how far out of left field they've come, I immediately shuffled my cards and got to work.

I pulled fourteen cards in total — one for each episode, and one for the season as a whole — and made an attempt at predicting the story direction and details based on what I saw. While my more specific interpretations weren't all winners, the baseline meaning of each card has turned out to be shockingly accurate and relevant.

My original post and the follow ups can be found here and here, but you can find a breakdown under the cut, followed by the new three card spread I did tonight... this got long.

First, here are all the cards I turned over for that initial spread, along with their base meanings, and how each card ultimately connected with the episode it was pulled for.

1.01 Pilot — Ace of Swords The pursuit of truth and the action of taking control. Both of these things describe Dean's role as narrator and the active role he's taken in his own story by delivering the letter, as well as John and Mary actively seeking answers. 1.02 Teach Your Children Well — The Hermit Striking out alone, stepping away to find a clearer perspective without outside influence, and seeking or gaining independence. The major theme of this episode as laid out by Dean's narration is the importance of breaking free from your parents expectations and living your life on your own terms, while still taking on the lessons they taught you. 1.03 You're Lost Little Girl — The World (reversed) Being stuck in place, being unable to move forward until you’re ready to take responsibility and free yourself from what binds you. This describes (quite literally) Mary's encounter with the Bori Baba, & turned out to be the key to freeing herself from the trap. 1.04 Masters of War — Six of Swords Moving on after a loss, picking up the pieces and accepting support, and trusting the onward journey. This episode was largely centered around John's PTSD and his feelings of guilt and grief relating to his friend who was killed in action, and a major aspect of this was all of his friends and family (and the staff at the hospital) trying to offer him support. 1.05 Legend of a Mind — Two of Cups Healing damaged relationships, forming deeper bonds. The heart of this episode was all about repairing the broken relationship between Ada and her son Tony. 1.06 Art of Dying — Three of Cups Reunions, friendship and support when it’s most needed, the harvest, things coming to fruition. We saw Mary reunite with Tracy, Tracy reunite (unhappily) with Mac, John struggling and being offered support from all of his friends, and Tracy having to reap what was sown through a past betrayal. 1.07 Reflections — Nine of Pentacles Unfulfilling abundance, dissatisfaction, the certainty that something is missing despite appearances. This episode sees the core four get a lot of things they've been searching for — Henry, power for the Ostium, more information on the Akrida. But none of it is enough. Henry disappears after a few minutes & John doesn't get the time he needed. The Ostium doesn't have enough power to absorb all the Akrida. They find out they're missing information about the queen. 1.08 Hang on to Your Life — Seven of Cups Uncertainty when presented with seemingly clear choices, looking for flaws before moving forward. Samuel catching the flaws in Loki's tricks. Carlos finding the loophole in the deal. 1.09 Cast Your Fate to the Wind — Eight of Pentacles Acknowledging the desire to move forward, exponential emotional and spiritual growth, working through issues, being proactive. This describes John and Mary deciding to be together after dancing around it in the previous episode, Carlos and Anton planning another date, as well as John's attempt to avoid the fate he'd been shown by being proactive about his "death." 1.10 Suspicious Minds — Temperance Testing the waters and moving toward healing, finding peace and balance. Carlos taking things slow with Anton, Dean's narration in this episode talks about how rare happy endings for are hunters. 1.11 You've Got a Friend — Eight of Cups Letting go of old constraints, looking to the future. This episode had a strong focus on the way Lata's past was hurting her and holding her back. 1.12 The Tears of a Clown — The Tower Breaking free, total upheaval of the status quo, letting go of the fear of change. Honestly... how much do I even have to say for this one? People were trapped in a pocket dimension by a clown named Limbo, and broke free by facing things head-on. 1.13 Hey, That's No Way To Say Goodbye — The Devil (reversed) Total release and liberation. We'll see in a few days!!! Season One Overall — The Moon (reversed) Seeing the light, anxieties being put to rest. Ditto!

As you can see, this ended up being a lot more accurate than I could have hoped as someone who had really been neglecting their tarot practice.

So even though I already pulled a card for the season finale back before the show had started airing, I thought I'd do a simple three card reading for 1.13 tonight, now that we're almost at the end.

The photo at the top of this post shows the cards I pulled for this reading, and these are the three cards, left to right:

Page of Swords (reversed) This card means trouble, generally in the form of a young person who stirs things up on purpose, tells white lies, or arrives bearing news of large-scale change that will result in challenges for those concerned. Ten of Swords (reversed) This card means that the worst is over. Forgiveness and letting go of hurt. Healing of physical, emotional, and spiritual wounds. It can also signify a refusal to accept an ending, and holding on even if something is over. Three of Wands This card means new adventures are ahead. Exploration, excitement, and looking ahead toward a world of possibilities.

The first card was drawn to represent where things will kick off at the beginning of the episode, the second to represent the core of the episode, and the third to represent where things ultimately land at the end of the season.

With what little information we have from the episode promo, I'm inclined to think that the "young person" represented by the Page of Swords is actually Dean.

Sure, he's technically older than his parents right now thanks to the Jeremy Bearimy of it all, but chronologically speaking he's younger. And we know he'll appear in the episode at least once because we saw that little flash of his arm in the promo as he handed the letter to John back before The Winchesters timeline began. Maybe the episode will open with that flashback, and give us some more information about what Dean is up to?

Dean certainly did come bearing information that resulted in major challenges for the main cast, and presumably did so while knowing that he could potentially cause problems by messing with the past. And he told a white lie of omission by not being honest with John about who he is or why he was there.

(I will add that when I saw the Page of Swords I also thought of Jack, so I want to jot that thought down just in case. The idea that he might make an appearance is honestly just wild speculation that has been floating around in my head for a little while based on nothing but a combination of vibes, themes, and intense over-analysis of a handful of AlCal's social media interactions, so while I don't think it's super likely, it's still pinging my brain enough that I wanted to mention it just in case. As I see it, Jack's departure on SPN was just vague enough that even though he said he was going to float off and turn into a sunbeam after fixing Heaven, there's absolutely enough wiggle room for him to still have a physical form if that's what this story wants to do. Mostly just noting all of that down here on the one in a million chance that he shows up.)

The Ten of Swords really threw me for a minute, because initially I'd been thinking of the episode's core in terms of, essentially, the bulk of the story. But this card makes me think that the answer I got has more to do with the core of the episode in terms of the heart, the root, the foundation, the focus.

Because the finale is what the season has been building toward, and back before the pilot aired Robbie said that episode thirteen* would turn over all the cards (yes, I'm having a sensible chuckle about that right now) and spoke about it in such a way that it feels like whatever happens in this episode, it's the whole reason for the rest of the show existing.

With that in mind, I can't help but think that this card has more to do with us than the characters. Holding on. Healing. Forgiving. These are certainly things we all see Dean doing through his narration and music choices, but it also feels a lot like what fandom (and frankly, Jensen) has been getting out of this, too.

Finally, the three of wands. I think this one is pretty self explanatory, and I don't think I could have pulled a better card for the end of the season. This puts me in mind of the Buffy finale, to be honest. The battle is won. There's a whole world of possibility. It's time to look ahead.

I'm still keeping all of my fingers and toes crossed for a season two pickup, but if things don't work out on that front, an ending that has this kind of energy is one that I think I'll be happy with.

[*Edit for typo: I'd inexplicably written episode three here instead of episode thirteen. It has now been changed to reflect the correct episode number.]

#cass does tarot #cass becomes unhinged #honestly i'm still floored by how well all of the other cards fit #it's truly wild #of all the things for me to have a super accurate reading for it's a tv show #which i guess makes sense because of who i am as a person #but even so #i guess i should tag this as #fandom: the winchesters #and probably #meta adjacent #but it's really only adjacent in the same way that jupiter is adjacent to the sun #like it's connected but it's pretty far off

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