A lot of "thank you sire, can I have another hot poker up the jacksy?"*

[bending_sickle]

On Thursday, I dressed up according to casual Vatican protocol (a black knee-length skirt and black jacket) and went with my parents to the Vatican. We'd been invited to a concert offered by the Italian President of the Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, to the Pope, on the occasion of the sixth anniversary of the current Pontificate.

The concert was in the Paul VI Audience Hall, and wow, it is one huge and gorgeous hall.





I felt a bit out of place, being surrounded by diplomats, politicians and people of the cloth, and a bit awed by the grandness of it all. I'd been at the balcony for Christmas mass with a similar crowd, but this felt a lot more personal, more "the club" kind of thing.


Sickle, slightly awkward. I'm sitting right next to the red carpet, with a clear divider between me and the Pope's path.

The orchestra and choir was on a stage, in front of the statute La Resurrezione ("The Resurrection") by Pericle Fazzini, which was wonderfully lit throughout to match the music's mood.





Everyone was in a hubbub until the Swiss Guard started showing up, indicating that the Pope was about to enter and the event would start. When he did, we all stood up and clapped as he walked down the central, red-carpeted aisle to his seat at the end, where the President would join him. Security wasn't obvious, but it was very much there. Although, of course, all the people in the room had been pre-aproved and checked and all that.



I was the designated photographer for my family, but between the lighting and the steady walk of the Pope, I couldn't get good enough photographs. Besides, I wanted to enjoy the moment and not have to worry about camera work. Thankfully, the Pope walked the aisle a few times.



The President then stood up to give the opening speech.



The concert itself was Vivaldi's Credo RV 591 and Rossini's Stabat Mater. The director was Jesús López Cobos, whom my parent's remebered seeing years ago in concert, back when he had a ponytal.



Then, concert over, orchestra represent!



Now it was the Pope's turn to say a few words.









Photo ops!


The mezzosoprano José Maria Lo Monaco - directly to the left of the Pope - looked especially moved by the Pope's presence. She was all teary-eyed and hands-to-face-in-squeeful-disbelief.


Sickle's Brief Review of Supernatural's "The Man Who Would Be King" 6x20:

• I couldn't watch this episode without pausing and jotting down dialogue and notes. I hardly ever do that, and I was engrossed with the episode to boot, but I really needed to take a breath and process during the episode.


• The episode title kept making me think of two things: 1) X-Men's final scene (or was that the second movie?), where Xavier starts his class discussion on the book, and 2) The Libertine's "The Man Who Would Be King".


• That said, the song ought to be an episodic fanvid. (It's a button I can't switch off, I'm sorry.) These lyrics, for example, work:
  
  Well I hear the words you say...
  But my heart has gone astray
  I watched friendship slip away
  But it wasn't s'posed to be that way


• Castiel: "Let me tell you my story. Let me tell you everything." - I'm not sure I want you to, darling. I want to know what you did, and I want to know why, but I'm scared I won't like it.


• Awkward car scene is awkward.


• Sam's on his own hunt? My ass, Dean. And your own codependent one.


• Man, both Castiel and Dean are lying to each other and it breaks my heart.


• Dean: "You'll call, right? If you get into real trouble?" - Ow, ♥. That right there is Dean begging Castiel to come clean. "You would call. You would tell me. Tell me now, and it'll be alright."


• Trying to figure out the dynamics between Crowley and Castiel is one long headache. I keep trying to figure out who's on-top got the upper hand. (Bad slashy brain! Well, good, but not now.) So it was Castiel who wanted the Mother? Is he the one calling the shots now? Despite Crowley's bossy, "You're distracted. That makes me nervouse," it sure seems like Cas is in charge.


• Castiel: "I'm holding up my end." - Oh, angel dearest...


• Crowley: "Forgive me, but I think you might have a little conflict of interest here." - Ya think? The whole everything of Castiel working with Crowley is a conflict of interest, is rubbing against the very grain of the angel. Keep you eyes on the prize, right, Cas? Ends vs. Means? *heart aches*


• Crowley: "...the Winchester's guardian." - ♥ Yes he is. Their very own guardian angel.


• Castiel: "...taught me how to stand up, what to stand for, and what generally happens when you do." - That last clause is so sad, how he learned suicidal determination from the boys.


• Castiel: "Sometimes we're lucky enough to be given a warning. This should've been mine." - Remember how you were asking God for a sign? Yeah, apparently even you think he's already given you one. Don't get greedy and ask for another one.


• That said, Absent Father theme is breaking my heart.


• Crowley: "Am I the only game piece on the board who doesn't underestimate those denim-wrapped nightmares?!" - How much do I love Crowley not underestimating the Winchesters? So much. Listing off the Big Bad they've killed? Reminds me of just how awesome they've been. Crowley being all McShouty? WIN.


• Castiel: "Just find Purgatory. If you don't, the both of us will die again and again until the end of time." - o.0 What does that mean, angel? What does that mean?!?


• Bobby's been doing a lot of torture recently... Torching the demon's bones, trying to get Mother's location, and now with this demon. I don't like it, and I don't like how okay he is with it. Or the boys, for that matter. Where's the Dean who said, "Torture? Oh, so, we're—we're torturing again." The Dean who was so horried at his future self going that way? Or even his present self, in On the Head of a Pin, who'd almost rather let the apocalypse go on if it meant not torturing.


• Castiel: "And the worst part of it... Dean, trying so hard to be loyal, with every instinct telling him otherwise." - It is the worst part, or at least the most painful part of the episode. Dean's rock-hardsolid faith in Castiel is breaking my heart. There's so few people he believes in 100%, that him just begging for some reason Crowley is alive other than Castiel's betrayal, hurts.


• Castiel's Fuck! eyeroll when the demon gave up Ellsworth's name was greatly loved.


• 0.0 Castiel. Grabbed. Demon smoke. Ladies and gentlemen, we can has badass. (It also reminded me of leonidaslion's The Fetters of Fenrir and made me very, very happy.)


• Castiel: "I did it to protect the boys. Or to protect myself. I don't know anymore." - The boys. THE BOYS. *draws hearts around the words and squees* *cries a little over Castiel's doubt*


• Castiel: "...when my motives used to be so pure." - *heart breaks* Castiel being so self-aware of his fall - or should that be Fall - is painful.


• Castiel: "I'm back." - Castiel's happy jaunty little almost-smile when he made it to heaven alive? Adorable. It's like he's about to break out in Numfar's Dance of Joy.


• The angels looking on Castiel as the new Chosen One - the Angel Who Lived - is both sad and scary. Sad, because of the position it puts Castiel in, and scary, because of the position he might be tempted to take.


• Castiel: "God wants you to have freedom."
  Rachel: What does he want us to do with it? - *Dalek voice* I DEMAND ORDERS! ...ahem. Honestly, though, this exchange is incredibly sad.


• Castiel: "Freedom is a length of rope. God wants you to hang yourself with it." - *head tilt* Are you saying you think God is letting you out to dry, Cas? That he's pulling your wings off one feather at a time like a child with a fly? That now that you have free will - a human trait - yet are still an angel, you're doomed? *cries*


• Castiel: [to Raphael] "You never look like you're joking." - Bwahaha! Oh, I needed that.


• Sam holding his shotgun over his shoulder is damn hot, just FYI.


• Bobby: "We talked about this, Dean."
  Sam: "Yeah, Dean-"
  Dean: "No, you talked about this. I listened. This is Cas, guys." - Break my heart some more, why don't you, Dean?


• Sam's one-eyed peek after his prayer to Cas was adorably taken from Dean. Oh, little brother ♥


• Dean: "Cas is busy :( " - Oh, Dean... You never really thought Cas would ever say no to you, did you?


• Castiel: Of course, Crowley wouldn't like it, but on the other hand, they were my friends." - \o/ He's so straighforward sometimes, it's adorable.


• Castiel: "...Superman going to the Dark Side." - Oh snap! Oldest mistake in the book, Cas! Dean's face when he caught that made me think one thought: RUN, Castiel. Run like fuck.


• Crowley: "You can't have friends. Not anymore." - It brings home just how alone Castiel has been all this time. Even with soldiers, even with Rachel as his lieutennant, even with his Crowley as his strategic partner and necessary evil, he's got no one. Had he told the boys first, had he loved Dean - yes, loved, damnit - just a little bit less and dragged him out of retirement, things might've been different. But now it's just him trying to keep himself together and afloat.


• Crowley: "Happy endings for all of us, with all possible entendres." - Have I mentioned how much I love Crowley's innuendos?


• Crowley: "God's favourite buddy boy. You've got what they call 'sex appeal'." - Yes. Yes he does. Unf. (The conflicted angst is just icing on the cake for me.)


• Castiel: "You're asking me to be the next Lucifer." - Aslkdjflskdf! I love that Castiel caught onto that angle so fast, and I'm sad that the audience was right. Well, not so much sad as terrified for what it all means.


• Crowley: "Fifty thousand souls from the pit. You can take them up to Heaven." - Castiel questions the admittance of Raphael's borrowed Heaven - Ken Lay's. Crowley says Castiel can take the souls in hell to heaven. What if Ken Lay's admittance was orchestrated or his Hell-bound verdict over-ruled by Raphael? What if other souls have been moved around too?


• Castiel: "The long road of good intentions." - Look for Sam's shoe. I hear he lost it on the way to Hell. Wow, that was harsh of me. Sorry, angelcakes!


• Seeing the boys put Castiel in an angel-circle breaks my heart. And I can see it does the same to Dean's.


• Castiel: "Just let me go, let me out, and I can-" - His desperation to get out of the circle, how much it hurts him to be so visibly in the wrong, in the eyes of the Winchesters, is heartbeaking.


• Apparently I cannot overuse the word "heartbreaking" enough in this review. Everything is heartbreaking.


• Dean: "You gotta look at me, man." - Castiel instantly does so, and his freaked-out floundering stops. Oh ♥ He's your anchor and moral compass and I mean that even in a non-shippy way.


• Dean: "Look me in the eye and tell me you're not working for Crowley." - He couldn't beg any more if he were down on his knees. And Castiel can't lie. And Dean's face when he loks away is the face of a broken heart, whereas Sam looks sadly resigned and Bobby merely annoyed.


• Sam: "Trust you? How in the hell are we supposed to trust you now?"
  Castiel: "I'm still me. I'm still your friend." - I just... *cries* The utter conviction that that will forgive everything, that that will make it okay... He really is a child - a "wayward orphan" - who still belives in words with capital letters, like Honour and Loyalty and Friendship.


• Sam: "Well, no offense, but you did a pretty piss-poor job of it." - Like I said to mrscastielftw: Um, Sam, what part of "near-impossible" do you not understand? You're lucky you've got all your fingers and toes! And Castiel's face at that is the face of one who's just been stabbed in the chest.


• Does the fact that Castiel couldn't bring out Sam's soul explain why he doesn't have an angel-handprint? And is that also why Castiel and Dean have a more profound bond?


• Sam: "Did you bring me back souless...on purpose?"
  Castiel: "How could you think that?"
  Sam: "Well, I'm thinking a lot of things right now, Cas."
  Castiel: [cannot even verbalize how this makes him feel] - I can, though. See my heart. See it break.


• Dean: "No, you had a choice. You just made the wrong one." - He made the best choice he could, Dean. Don't you dare beat him up over that.


• Dean: "Why else would you keep this whole thing secret, huh? Unless you knew that is was wrong." - Part of me agrees, but the other part says that maybe he was trying to protect you. Just a thought.


• Castiel: "It sounds so simple when you say it like that. Where were you when I needed to hear it?" - Castiel's face and voice saying this hurts me. And you know Dean, Castiel: he's all about the small picture. And sometimes you need to see the trees and not the forest so you don't chop them all down.


• Dean: "I was there. Where were you?" - While it was Castiel's choice not to involve Dean in the deal, it was Dean's decision to retire from hunting, and Castiel was just respecting that. It doesn't sound like Dean once gave thought to how Castiel was holding up, being sheriff of Heaven. (Not that I blame him, being out of his mind with grief.) But the thing is, Dean wasn't there.


• Castiel: "I can't turn back now. I can't." - What ball have you started rolling, angel?


• Dean: "It's not too late! Damnit, Cas, we can fix this!"
  Castiel: "Dean, it's not broken." - I have two reactions to this: 1) Please be talking about your relationship, pleasepleaseplease, 2) How's the view up there from your high-horse, boys? You think that with a five-minute recap you know better about Castiel's troubles and plans than he does? Give the angel a little credit.


• Crowley: "You know what I see here? The new God. The new Devil. Working together." - This brings me echoes of Sam, and how one should start paying attention when angels and demons agree. The angels - some of them, at least - think Castiel is the Chosen One, and Crowley thinks the same. The fact is, Castiel is, apparently, God's favourite. But then, gods aren't always benevolent, and maybe Crowley has his titles mixed up.


• Castiel: "Enough. Stop. Talking. And get out of my sight." - *shudder* Our angel's turned into cold hard steel. (Well, that or he's one second away from breaking down into tears.)


• Crowley: "What are you, Castiel? What exactly are you willing to do?" - That's his season arc in a nutshell, isn't it? He's being defined - molded by his actions. Trial by hellfire and holyfire and all that.


• Angel-proof house! I've been reading fics describing this since season 5! It's lovely to see it Kripked! Although I love that Bobby got some points wrong. Or did he? Our angel may not be 100% angel anymore. He's a fish that learned poetry, an angel who knows about freedom. He's evolved.


• Castiel: "I want you to understand." - It's all he wants, Dean. Remember the Titanic incident?


• Castiel: "I'm doing this for you, Dean. I'm doing this because of you." - Man up and take responsibility for freeing an angel, Dean. You taught the fish poetry, but you can't leave the lessons half taught. And how many times does Castiel have to say he's doing it for you, personally? That's your leverage, that's what you need to work on to understand what the angel is doing and how to stop him.


• Dean: "I'm asking you not to." - I love that Dean's still all about the small picture, the family picture. The "please, do it for me" picture.


• Dean: "Next to Sam, you and Bobby are the closest thing I have to family. That you are like a brother to me." - First off, Dean, Ben's going to smack you one. Second, you've done a piss-poor job of showing how much of a family you consider Castiel this past season. And thirdly, how adorable and telling is it that Castiel stands up a little straighter, a little prouder, at being called a brother to Dean?


• Dean: "So if I'm asking you not to do something, you gotta trust me, man."
  Castiel: "Or what?" - Let's compare that with Castiel at the dawn of terrestrial life: "I remember being at a shoreline, watching a little grey fish heave itself up on the beach. And an older brother saying, 'Don't step on that fish Castiel, big plans for that fish.'" (Was that a morally grey fish?) Here again is an older brother telling him not to do something, basically just because. ("I'm saying 'don't', just 'cause. I'm asking you not to, that's it.") And now, like Sam in Asylum, Castiel's "gettin' pretty tired of takin' your orders." Because it's only the older brother that can say "Just do it, trust me." The younger - Sam, Castiel - can beg the same, but that rarely worked for Sam, and it's not working for Castiel now.


• That said, Castiel's little yet huge moment of rebellion - saying basically, "What you gonna do 'bout it?" to his Reason personified - is both amazing and heartbreaking. Because it's not just rebellion, it's a declaration of war. Or he's letting Dean declare war on him ("Or I'll have to do what I have to do to stop you.")


• Castiel: "You can't. You're just a man. I'm an angel." - Oh, Castiel... Crowley's going to shout at you so much. "Did you not hear me say 'denim-clad nightmares', or were your feathers in your ear?" Unless he's egging Dean on in one last Call for Help, in the suicidal "stop me" sense of it.


• Dean: "I don't know. I've taken some pretty big fish." - Aslkjlskdfj! Fish! Is Castiel the fish now? Is he the one the older brother shouldn't step on now? The "big plans for that fish" fish?


• I love the editing of Castiel's final talk in the garden. It's the same editing as that used for Jimmy's screaming to Castiel, and for Dean's desperate phonecall in Born Under a Bad Sign when looking for Sam. I just love it when the dialogue continues as a voice-over and the face is silent.


• Castiel: "I believe it's what you would call a "tragedy", from the human perspective. But maybe the human perspective is limited, I don't know." - Well, this human considers it a tragedy, and certainly hopes its perspective is limited and that it isn't a tragedy. Believe me, I'm trying so hard to see the bigger picture.


• Castiel: "You have to give me a sign. Give me a sign." - It's when there's a lack of signs that we need faith, angel.


• Castiel: "Because if you don't, I'm gonna ch-" - Going to ch- what? Change? Challenge? (Oh, and Castiel? Don't threaten God. It can't ever end well for you.)


• In the promo, Castiel also says, "I'm afraid of what I'm becoming," and "Stop me!" Curiously, these lines weren't in the episode. What does that mean for where this is going? For the tone that's been set for Castiel's arc?


• I'm relieved that Castiel got to give his side of the story, that we got to learn about his betrayal of the Winchesters from his point of view. if we'd seen it from the boy's, he would've been the Villain indeed, and it really would have been presented as unforgivable instead of understandable. Sympathetic, rather than the stone the audience would have turned to along with the boys. It gives me hope for his character's arc and reunion with the boys.

Quote of the Day: "I'll Take Famous Murderers for 500" by Watchout! There's Ghosts

You said you never would, but a scar's a proven fact.

Links of the Day:
Supernatural:
spn_deanw's Discussion The Man Who Would Be King
and_ed's Review The Man Who Would Be King - "'Cas, you'll call, right? If you get into real trouble?' - I don't think I've ever heard Dean talk quite that way to Cas, with that much concern.
mrscastielftw's Review The Man Who Would Be King
erivar's Review The Man Who Would Be King - "For starters, since when has Dean regarded Castiel as a family and even a brother ever since this season started? I would have liked a little bit more development on that regard. All that happened tonight was Dean telling when there was never any showing prior. [...] I can count on one finger the many times Dean has shown care towards Castiel and that makes me pity Castiel."
captainlon's Review The Man Who Would Be King - "Dean saying he looks at Cas as a brother. That's sweet enough, but I don't buy that. Neither he or Sam or Bobby treats Castiel differently then a sidekick and calls for him when they need him."
ancastar's Review The Man Who Would Be King
bardicvoice's Review Mommy Dearest - "And I could see [Castiel], in refusing to lose his position and with it, the world, believing that accepting anything that staved off the apocalypse was worth doing. When you can't afford to fail, doing the unthinkable in order to win suddenly becomes not just thinkable, but apparently vital."
amber3444's Review Mommy Dearest
mrscastiel's Review Mommy Dearest ; Fanart Doctor Who Crossover You see, my friend has a painful burning sensation...
gwendolynd's Fic Finally Alive - Brilliant and disturbing
dontbitethesun's Fic I've Been Laying Down in the Devil's Lair
swordofmymouth's Fic Let My Beloved Come Into His Garden
eonism's Fic
angel_kink's Fic Complexities
de_nugis's Fic Like Black Holes in the Sky
t_fic's Fic The Fine reality of Hunger Satisfied
vasiliki's Fic The Angel Who Dared to Tread
melissos' Fic Untying Boots
fossarian's Fic It Usually Washes Off (Castiel/Meg)
dean_sam's flocked Supernatural, The Animation: Box Set photos ; Ben Edlun Interview - 6x20
greenelysium's Fanvid Breathless (Castiel)
's Fantrailer The Man Who Would Be King
ashdoode's Fanvid Here is Gone - SPOILERS for 6x20
secretlytodream's RPFanvid The Boy Likes Them Both
MoggleCrunch's Fanvid A Baby in a Trenchcoat (Dean/Castiel) - With dialogue and adorable, hilarious win.
emilywinter's Fanmix Innocent Son (Sam)
queeneve_84's Fanmix Through the Dirt: Season 6 - YouTube Playlist only
bl00dredsies' Icons
Atomicblonde's Tumblr Edlund referred to Dean and Cas' bromance as a 'long-distance marriage' ; Fanart Sam: I wish I had a better word than "sorry"

Doctor Who:
doctorwho's Discussion The Lodger's ship and the Silence ; Episodes Poll Results ; Poll: River-Related ; Discussion "We do you honor, you will bring the silence..." ; Discussion Theories regarding Amy and her transmitter
sadbhyl's Meta River's Timeline
such_heights' Fanvid Strict Machine (River)
snowgrouse's Picspam The John Simm Drinking Game
Atomicblonde's Tumblr And she's never comng backThe Slow-Burning Storylines of Doctor Who
Tacoface's Tumblr The Doctor's message seems to be...
TheShoelessOne's Sherlock Crossover Fic Two Doctors, A Nurse, a Detective, and a Scot
Ray Nelson's Short story Eight O'Clock in the Morning - Oh hai, the Silence!

True Blood:
Tumblr Fuck Yeah True Blood

Sherlock:
gracie_musica's Doctor Who Crossover Fic Second Fiddle (John/Donna)

Other Fandom:
9gag's Social Network Fanart You don't get to survive the apocalypse without...
Buffyverse Wiki

Multifandom:
starofthemorn's Icons - The Shadowless Sword, Primeval, Supernatural
spittingfish's Icons - Doctor Who, Torchwood, Buffy, Primeval, Queer as Folk

Random:
cleolinda's Tornado Update
wondermark's The Tinkerer's Handbook, page 7 of 8, Page 8
ontd_political's When Guys Turn Into Girls... - That article should sit in a corner and think about what it's said.
theweaselking's "Holy drinking water contaminated with arsenic is being sold illegally to Muslims by UK shops, the BBC has found."
Wachetauf's Tumblr There's a story behind every person
Tumblr's Animals with Suffed Animals
Atomicblonde's Tumblr Downton Abbey ; captain (n.) ; Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood ; A troll ; Sevenpoints: "It might sound odd coming from a slash fan, but I am all for heterosexual males being able to touch each other platonically, and I get annoyed when people skew that around to saying they’re gay." ; Comic
Tacoface's Tumblr Martin Luther King, Jr., quote ; I hold my girfriend's hand because... ; Comic: Denied vs Approved Adoption Situations
Birdy's Song Skinny Love
BBC's Last WW1 combat veteran Claude Choules dies, aged 110
Geek's Game developer david Braben creates a USB stick PC for $25
Notcot's Be Your Own Souvenir - 3D printing
Yahoo News' Kenya: Elephants killed near Prince William cabin - "Save The Elephants fitted seven animals near Mount Kenya with collars over the last year to track their movements. More than half have been killed..." ; "'We're seeing a lot of Chinese nationals caught in the airport in Kenya with ivory in their luggage,' she said. 'We have to assume the Chinese are involved at some level.'"
CBC's 3-D printer has potential to make organs for transplant - OMG, I can't wait for the future!
Birdbox Studio's
YouTube's Professor Brian Cox
Animated Short: Duel
Neil Gaiman's Weasel-necked penscils. & The opinions of a pencil-necked weasel-thief
Philosiology's Surviving a Philosopher Attack
Blur Studio's Gentleman's Duel (3D short annimation)
Stolen Camera Finder


* Crowley, 6x20

Comments

[seschat.livejournal.com]

I love everything you do, Adri--your review is perfection! ♥

Castiel: "It sounds so simple when you say it like that. Where were you when I needed to hear it?" - Castiel's face and voice saying this hurts me. And you know Dean, Castiel: he's all about the small picture. And sometimes you need to see the trees and not the forest so you don't chop them all down.

Dean: "I was there. Where were you?" - While it was Castiel's choice not to involve Dean in the deal, it was Dean's decision to retire from hunting, and Castiel was just respecting that. It doesn't sound like Dean once gave thought to how Castiel was holding up, being sheriff of Heaven. (Not that I blame him, being out of his mind with grief.) But the thing is, Dean wasn't there.

WORD! This, so much. While I adored the episode like nothing else (finally! I've been missing those episodes that leave you feeling like this and make you want to rant for all eternity), I felt that Bobby and the boys didn't really--listen?--or were too hurt and betrayed to really listen in any case, but Cas deserves it, doesn't he? Obviously, there was so much more to the story than Cas actually told them. And it wasn't all 'blah blah blah Raphael', Dean, especially you should know the world's not all black and white. In any case, I was practically yelling at the screen by the time they put Cas in the angel-circle (is that what it's called? I'm sorry, I don't know!), because I just wanted Cas to defend himself so damn much. But everything in his demeanour spoke of 'I deserve this, there's nothing I could tell them to justify what I'm doing'. Broke my heart, it did.

Also? I found Sam's reaction--odd, I guess? I would've thought Sam would be more understanding and more ready to listen to Cas' side of the story. I mean, c'mon, Cas is now practically at the point where Sam was a year before, and I doubt it was so easy for Sam to forget what it's like to be judged and unwanted and in constant doubt of yourself and choices &c. &c. I guess you could say that Sam's wary because of all what's happened, but as I see it, the writers didn't intend for it to read like that. In any case, I wish this parallel had been addressed in some way. Maybe it still will be, I certainly hope so.

Anyway, I loveloveloved all the Dean/Cas interactions, heartbreaking as they may have been, and I am quite EXCITE to see how it will develop. I don't think they will be at odds for long, to be honest, they are pretty whipped. :D

tl;dr long rant is long and these gifs express my feelings better, anyway:





'Oh Cas' & 'brb sobbing my eyes out', respectively. :D

Oh, and also, THE MOST IMPORTANT THING: HAI THERE ADRI YOU PRETTY LADY THESE PICTURES ARE AWESOME AND I LOVE YOU. ♥

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

I felt that Bobby and the boys didn't really--listen?--or were too hurt and betrayed to really listen in any case, but Cas deserves it, doesn't he? - Exactly. That's exactly what happened. Well, I have no idea what Bobby's feeling, but Dean's obviously missed the giant flaming neon call for help Castiel's got going. No one was listening and they weren't really thinking things through, either. (Such as Sam's failure to grasp that maybe souls are hard to break out from Lucifer's Cage.)

And it wasn't all 'blah blah blah Raphael', Dean, especially you should know the world's not all black and white. - They guys need to cool off and think for a moment. Raphael around = apocalypse = BAD THING. Castiel's trying to stop the Bad Thing. Sure, his methods may not be kosher, but it's not like he had an excess of help. So get to it and figure out how to stop an archangel, boys! Instead of how to stop Castiel, which I'm sure is what they're planning on doing. Argh.

angel-circle (is that what it's called? [...]) - I have no idea what it's called either.

I just wanted Cas to defend himself so damn much. But everything in his demeanour spoke of 'I deserve this, there's nothing I could tell them to justify what I'm doing'. - Yes. He just turned over like a dog, all "here's my soft underbelly, please rip it open at your leisure". Like when Sam asked if he left him soulless on purpose (which Cas' narrative suggests he didn't), Cas was all "I have nothing to say, there's nothing I can say."

[seschat.livejournal.com]

So get to it and figure out how to stop an archangel, boys! Instead of how to stop Castiel, which I'm sure is what they're planning on doing. - I'm so with you there, sweets :-// While I do wonder how they're planning on doing that, on the other hand, yeah--they have caught 'some pretty big fish'. (By the way, I loved all the parallels and allusions you spotted!) I hope it'll all work out in the end, though, and they all manage to get it together and work as the awesome team they are.

Buuuut--since it's long known that the writers like to rip out our hearts and torture the shit out of us, I suspect they will make a point of exploring this conflict thoroughly before they even attempt to fix anything. (Or give us hugs. C'mon, we need hugs, you guys.) :D

On an unrelated note, what I forgot to mention earlier--Raphael is so horribly type-cast, isn't he? Dear Lord! It shocks me every time anew. And so was Uriel and so was Rachel. I wonder sometimes how the writers get away with this shit, because--seriously. SAY THIS ISN'T JUST ME, ADRI. :-///

*huggles*

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

My hope for a happy ending for this season is tempered by the sheer massive amounts of torture the writers have put us through over the years. Come one, just thing that the boys have been working against each other for almost three whole seasons now, and they've just gotten back to being brothers. So if they do that with the leads, what can we hope for with The Sidekick (whom we haven't seen all season)? Oy. Season 7, you've got all my hopes!

I never really warmed up to Raphael. Sure, his voice is amazing, but he never gave me the "Eeeep! Wrong! And could totally smite me!" feeling that the other angels gave. Uriel I kinda liked, though, because of his calling us all "mud monkeys", and Rachel won major points for calling the boys on their selfishness regarding Castiel.

Maybe my brain's gone fuzzy now, but how to you mean Raphael, Uriel and Rachel are "horribly type-cast"? (Now Joshua, he could be called type-cast (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MagicalNegro).) I might be properly shocked if only I knew what to be shocked at.

[seschat.livejournal.com]

By "horribly type-cast" I meant that all black people and especially black men, for that regard, are portrayed as the antagonist, batshit and/or evil and end up being killed. Take Gordon, Henriksen, Uriel, Raphael (who, I suspect, is going to be killed off or in some way disposed of as well, sooner or later). I mean, sure, there are plenty white evil characters, too--but not exclusively, which is why I feel that the show plays off certain stereotypes with Uriel or Raphael so strongly. Therefore the "ARGH GUYS NOT THIS AGAIN" reaction.

As for Rachel--this may have been just me jumping to a conclusion, but my mind instantly went into "grr, sexism" overdrive, since, hey, they needed a fanatic yet inherently weak character who gets killed off, so of course they make her a woman. BUT, as I'm saying, this feeling was all me and I couldn't make a LEGIT point of this or anything--it's just. *flaily hands* I know the discussion about the portrayal of women in Supernatural is basically an old hat by now, but it--rankles. Maybe I'm just over-aware of little things like that at the moment; I recently went to the movies to see Fast and Furious 5 and it's the most sexist fucking movie I've seen in a long time. I CAN'T EVEN, ADRI. And the theatre was filled! Every seat taken! And it's not like I expected a lot of plot from this movie in the first place (it's action, there's cars; I ADMIT I WANTED TO PERV ON PAUL WALKER) but I believe I sure as hell was entitled to expect that women weren't solely and exclusively portrayed as, a) pregnant (and therefore a hindrance), b) soft, c) weak, d) in need of a rescue, e) sex objects or arm candy. In the first part of the 2Fast2Furious series there was at least Michelle Rodriguez to fill up the female BAMF quota a bit. But, what can I say--people seemed to like the movie, while my indignant rant was immediately cut off by cousin with the words do you always have to ruin everything. Yeah, so much for that. It's almost embarrassing to 'out' yourself as a feminist because the moment you say a word about sexism you inevitably get one of these looks--'Jesus, get over it already, women get preferred nowadays fucking everywhere, you're embarrassing yourself'--but. just. no. It may be partly true, there are some laws (kinda) to adjust the unequal distribution of women in positions of power and whatnot, which I suppose might come off as 'oh we prefer women now', but then I see one of these fucking movies--a Blockbuster! seen by a million fucking people!--that gets me going. Ahem. As you can see. (Sorry 'bout that.) But there are still a lot of things wrong with how women in our society, much less in some other countries, are perceived. So this was my "argh, grr" moment.

But to get back to the topic--I guess my whole point is that I wish the writers Supernatural would mix it up a little, let go of some of the stereotypes I feel occasionally still pop up. Now, I don't know whether you've seen the movie, but if you ask me, for example Constantine's Gabriel would make a great opponent with the appropriate creepy-factor. (Which I don't feel with SPN's Raphael either, for that matter. BUT HE'S GETTING KILLED OFF SOON ANYWAY.)

/RANT oh god what did i do just ignore this or something ;(;(

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

Ah, that's what I thought you meant, but since you had Rachel in the mix, I got confused, her not being a black man and all.

Yeah, there does tend to be a lot of evil black characters and not enough good ones for this to not be suspicious. And don't forget Jake, he fits the bill too. I'm often a bit hesitant calling out type-cast when it's not just the one black character being the one villain - or the one woman being the one manipulative evil bitch sort of character - because I can't help thinking that if the character where white, or male, I'd probably be annoyed that yet again they went the "white male" route and where's your ethnic mixing, people? and I don't know which extreme I'd be more comfortable with.

What I do like on SPN, though, is that the characters are still given equal or sort of equal weight. Meaning that they're not just running around muahahaing while the white villains get the backstories and the character development. I don't know what the numbers are for black characters - or of other ethnicities - are, how many characters, how many villains, how many victims, but I'm willing to bet there's a skew. Of course, just because there's some good black people or strong women doesn't mean that it undoes all the other stereotyped characters.

I'm more aware of the women aspect of it, partly because as you say, people have been so vocal about the issue, and also because I sometimes check out wtf_sexism, which is interesting because it makes me aware of thins I wouldn't have considered sexist before, just "how things are".

You should check out the essay The Portrayal of Violence Against Women in Fanvids (http://sqbr.dreamwidth.org/289492.html) (and the vids, especially "This Woman's Work"), wiki's The Male Gaze and Feminist Theory (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaze#The_Male_Gaze_and_feminist_theory) (which was an eye-opener for me, and if you've ever watched Twilight and co*, you'll see they se the female gaze, all loving close-ups of Edward's shirt buttons and stuff like that), more male gaze (http://gandt.blogs.brynmawr.edu/web-papers/web-papers-2/its-a-mans-world-the-male-gaze-and-the-film-industry/) and more here (http://www.freewebs.com/elizabethbarnes/).

I haven't watched Fast and the Furious 5 (although since Vin Diesel's in it, I'll have to, but WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO MICHELLE RODRIGUEZ?!? Woe!), but I'm not surprised that they treat women the same way they do the cars: look how sexy it is! let's do stuff with them! oh, look, plot's thataway!

the words "do you always have to ruin everything?" - See, I read that, and I just hear, "shut up, sexism isn't serious business, it's okay if it's entertaining" which, um, NO. It's especially bad when it's a blockbuster, like you point out, when it's entertaining and "innocent fun" and people are eating it up with spoons and thinking it's all okay. It is not okay to encourage the thinking that it's okay to be sexist or prejudiced in certain instances or for certain entertainment because that way we'll never move forward and shake off these -isms.

women get preferred nowadays fucking everywhere, you're embarrassing yourself - GRR ARGH NO IN A BIG BAD WAY. Affirmative action (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affirmative_action) is an attempt to stop or decrease discrimination, which means discrimination is still there and it's there so much that they need to make laws and use statistics to make people not be prejudiced asses. *breathes*

That said - and I should stop now, really, before more CAPSLOCK happens - I want to Castiel to smite the ever-living shit out of Raphael.


* Yes, I watched them, but in my defense, I had RiffTrax! And I mocked them! And I just wanted to get all the jokes people were making.

[seschat.livejournal.com]

AWESOME REPLY IS AWESOME. *smiiish* ♥

because I can't help thinking that if the character where white, or male, I'd probably be annoyed that yet again they went the "white male" route and where's your ethnic mixing, people? - Yeah, I agree. Both reactions are indicator for the same thing, in any case. :-/ I found an interesting post about this, and many of the comments are worth checking out, too, if only for the sake of variety. (Although, thanks to the discussion in the comments I remembered Rufus! He didn't even appear that often, admittedly, and I do wonder whether it's some kind of sick correlation that he got killed off the moment he got a bigger part, but there's an example of just a character being epic, no matter the skin colour. FOR GOD'S SAKE.)

Meaning that they're not just running around muahahaing while the white villains get the backstories and the character development. - Yes, thankfully! I don't think I'd be able to watch the show otherwise.

I'm not going to get too deeply into the portrayal of women into Supernatural other than saying that I'm quite cynically amused at the decided and absolute lack of female characters on the show at the moment.

I never even knew about The Male Gaze--or rather, that there's a proper term and essays and whatnot--but really, as you said, it is an eye-opener, and makes one notice this kind of shit even more and not only in blatantly obvious cases like The Fast and the Furious. Thanks for pointing me into the direction of those essays, darling!

Also, nope, no Michelle Rodriguez in the new part! (BEWARE OF SPOILERS: What with her dying in part three (four?). AND THAT, OF COURSE, ONLY TO GENERATE A FUCKLOAD OF MANPAIN FOR OUR HEROIC PROTAGONIST WHO GETS TO AVENGE HER DEATH STOICALLY.

See, I read that, and I just hear, "shut up, sexism isn't serious business, it's okay if it's entertaining" which, um, NO. - Thank you! God, sometimes I just need to hear that this isn't just me going crazy or being uptight. Speaking about these things gets you labelled as "Amazon", and one who has no sense of humour at that, in about 0.1 seconds, and I guess you've got to pick your battles, but it doesn't make shit like that remotely okay.

There's been a lot of talk here in Germany about "positive discrimination" and whether it's fair or not, but I've noticed that especially men in general are very hostile towards the concept. Even some of our profs make cracks about it, thinking they are being fucking hilarious or something. Mostly it only shows how horribly uninformed they are.

Oh, and about Twilight? Don't feel like you have to defend yourself, sweets, I've watched the first part, too, and 20 minutes of the second or so. The first mostly cracked my shit up, but the second one was too much for me to take. I also enjoy Twilight meta muchly, although it pains me to think of the disservice Ms. Meyer has done to women all over the world. Basically, the whole Twilight thing gives me the worst case of fremdschämen ever.

Aaaaaaaaanyway. To end this on a more positive note, this movie might really be something to look forward to, y/n?

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

I'm going to reply to the whole of your comment in a bit, but I had to say I've just watched the trailer, and I know they're going for "strong black female lead" and yet in the light of our discussion all I'm getting is "she's in a bodysuit, of course she is" and "she's fighting in hter underware" and "the best adjective you could come up with was beautiful? how novel". And, of course, TERROR.



THERE'S A SHARK IN THE POOL! A SHARK! IN THE POOL! MY CRAZY FEARS ARE ON SCREEN!

Sorry about the double-reply, LJ ate my comment.

[seschat.livejournal.com]

I DIDN'T ACTUALLY NOTICE THERE WAS A SHARK IN THERE. I DON'T KNOW WHY BUT I DIDN'T. AND NOW I FEEL BAD THAT I SUBJECTED YOU TO YOUR FEARS. X____X

And I guess we can't have everything or--yeah, they have to sell the damn thing, don't they, which I suppose means they need to up the sex-appeal--and it's not like the plot is so very novel, either--I'm thinking of Salt, which I thought kinda sucked--but it's simply refreshing to see them deviate from the cut-and-dry concept a bit.

AS FOR KINDA PROMISING TRAILERS, I discovered another one earlier. idk Adri I'm just desperate for something decent to watch

By the way, the character played by Cate Blanchett totally looks like my math tutor. IT'S, LIKE, 90% HER. CREEPY!

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

ASDLKJSD! I need to watch Hanna like, right now. *grabby hands* And your math tutor must be one scary woman!

Oh, Rufus. The thing is, he's basically the only exception to the "evil black man". Unless you count Henrickson 'cause he turned good later (but then came back evil with the Rise of the Witnesses). And you know his role only got bigger because they were going to kill him. The audience wouldn't care otherwise, or care that Bobby's upset, if we didn't get a chance to like him first.

The Male Gaze is a really interesting concept, especially since we never really notice it. It's like when literature is written in a woman's first-person POV, it's something to dance about and break out the good booze for.

no Michelle Rodriguez in the new part [...] What with her dying in part three (four?) - They didn't. Oh, the bastards! And of course? it's all about the manpain. (I've only watched part 1). Y'know, I'm getting tired of women's deaths being used as kick-starters for men's missions. Imagine if it'd been John who'd died in the fire and Mary had to raise the boys to be hunters like the rest of the Campbells. That would have been new.

There's been a lot of talk here in Germany about "positive discrimination" and whether it's fair or not - To be honest, when I was applying for my bachelor I was upset about the fact that some spots were reserved for people of a certain ethicity, and that there was a chance I might not get in because they'd filled in their quota. It felt like there wasn't a way to get fairness without a bit of unfairness for others. (Of course, there's people who'd bite my head off and say it wasn't unfair for me because I had more opportunities, but that's just not true for everyone. What about someone of non-positive-discrimination ethicities who have it just as tought as someone from a positive-discrimination ethnicity? On the other hand, PD does force people to think about giving monorities a chance, and puts in organization's face the fact that they have an unhealthy majority which might not reflect the applicant pool. Still, it's a complex issue and not something to joke about or cast aside.

Oh, and about Twilight? Don't feel like you have to defend yourself - It's just that I had no interest in watching it, and I felt like I caved. Like when I watched Titanic - again, no interest, had nothing but snark for it, and yet eventually I did watch it and I felt like I was validating it by giving it my time and attention. I don't know if I'd have watched Twilight and co without the jokes soundtrack (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RiffTrax), though. (To see what I mean, check out Wikiquote (http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/RiffTrax#Twilight_.282008.29).) And, okay, the main reason I watched it was so that I could finally get all the jokes from cleolinda's and made_of_fail_pc's posts and podcasts.

Basically, the whole Twilight thing gives me the worst case of fremdschämen ever. - Yes. It's wish-fulfillment at the twelve-year-old level, yet that sort of thinking should not be encouraged, or at least presented as some sort of romantic ideal. It's not. Far from it, in fact.

In conclusion: *smishes for you*

And obviously I can't type without screwing up html.

[seschat.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I'd love to watch Hanna right this very moment, too, except it hasn't even come out in Germany yet and all the available streams are crap. *flaily hands* I JUST NEED SOMETHING TO WATCH obsess over about RIGHT NOW :-///

It's like when literature is written in a woman's first-person POV, it's something to dance about and break out the good booze for. - Ha, yes. It is the bane of all the Chick Lit out there ever written, I guess, although the Bridget Jones series--which originated the whole genre, after all--is something I was pretty obsessed with for a while. Not that I'm saying Chick Lit is/has to be anti-feminist or anything, just that it is really silly to define your own worth by some guy or another who may or may not notice your existence. And still the end-game remains to get this guy, which is the only thing really that can fulfill and validate your life. IDK man. *rolls eyes*

Imagine if it'd been John who'd died in the fire and Mary had to raise the boys to be hunters like the rest of the Campbells. That would have been new. - That would have been epic! SO WHY! WHY COULDN'T WE HAVE HAD THAT. X___X Anyway, at least there's some fic about that, so I'm satisfied. Kinda.

On the other hand, PD does force people to think about giving monorities a chance, and puts in organization's face the fact that they have an unhealthy majority which might not reflect the applicant pool. Still, it's a complex issue and not something to joke about or cast aside. - This. Now, I'm not sure myself how I feel about women getting the job if, and only if, there's another candidate who's male and both are equally qualified, but if there weren't laws like that, the employer would make his decision based on sympathy points, and it'd be awesome if he'd care about nothing but the personality of the contenders, but how often is that the case, anyway? I think it just sucks that women can't get into positions of power and then get to hear it's their own fault because of some inane reason or other. IDKidkidkkkkkk.

Well, I caved to peer pressure by watching Twilight and without any hilarious commentary at that (except for my own, of course, haha), so I'm certainly not any better. ;D

Also, may I just say that I love talking to you? You, my sweet lady, are made of win. ♥

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

Anyway, at least there's some fic about that, so I'm satisfied. Kinda. - SHARE! WHERE IS THE SHARING?!

I love talking to you too! About everything! Simply put, you make me happy ♥

[seschat.livejournal.com]

Sunday Morning Coming Down by kellifer_fic
Summary: Mary was the one to survive, Sam to hunt and Dean to leave.

Dorsum ad Dorsum also by kellifer_fic
Summary: Seventeen years ago, a small family survives a terrible fire. Later, the mother disappears, taking the youngest son with her. Over the intervening years, Dean, the oldest son watches their trail go cold and his father sink further and further into despondency. Now he hunts alone and will learn that the only thing worse than never finding his family... is finding them.

I guess they don't exactly fit the bill, but I can't think of anything else right now. I remember these being quite excellent though.

*GLOMPS* You are my darling. ♥

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

\o/ *gets to reading* *runs back to hug you madly*

[seschat.livejournal.com]

Ha! I'm glad I could help. ;)

By the way, you don't happen to have any movie recommendations for me? I'm DYING of boredom. I AM EVEN THINKING OF UPDATING MY LJ, THAT'S HOW BORED I AM. ;(

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

*flips through movies and books list*

Fantastic Mr Fox - Adorable claymation based RDahl's book
Cherrybomb - English teenage angst and drugs and parties
Mine Vaganti - Italian film but worth it if you can get your hands on it. Main character is gay, his dad doesn't respond well, but it's a comedy.
Serenity - Joss Whedon's movie extending his cancelled Firefly show. COWBOYS IN SPACE. ALSO, ZOMBIES.
Monty Pythin and the Holy Grain - (On Youtube.) Remember that "run away! run away!" clip? It's from this. HILARITY ALWAYS ENSUES in this movie all the time. Everyone's obligated to watch this at least once. Subject matter is King Arthur and his knights.
The Life of Brian - Same as with the Holy Grail film. Subject is Brian, who's having a crap life while some idiot called Jesus gets all the fun.
The Chronicles of Riddick - Vin Diesel. Judi Dench. Need I say more? (Okay, aliens and crusades and empires and sexy New Zealanders.)

...how's that for choice ;)
Or you could dig up some Disney or Pixar film.

[seschat.livejournal.com]

Thankee, darling! THIS IS GONNA BE GOOD! :D *copies everything into a word document for future reference*

Do you have plans for tonight or are you staying in and enjoying your freedom? ;)

I just wish so much we could spend the evening together, because mine's filled with GRUMBLES thanks very much to P. I can't believe someone explains away telling a supposedly good friend that they outright annoy him with "that's just because you mean so much to me." That's because he wouldn't even bother with the people he didn't like, he says. Yeah, no, buddy. :D

Sorry, sorry. AGAIN. I JUST NEEDED TO TELL SOMEONE BECAUSE OF THE ARGH BUT NOW I'M DONE. I PROMISE.

TO MAKE UP FOR THE SURPRISE!DRAMA I PRESENT YOU THIS FABULOUS GIF:

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

I AM AN IDIOT WHO CANNOT TYPE. It's Monty Python and the Holy Grail, not that ridiculous mess I typed before.

I'm staying home, but I baked muffins! My excuse was to try out making cream cheese frosting for a banana bread I'm going to take to the office on my last day, but come on, who doesn't want muffins?

they outright annoy him with "that's just because you mean so much to me." - Aaaaaaaargh! *head desks* That boy, I just... Ugh. Here, let me best express my reaction via GIFs:








Now, to help alleviate your drama:


See? Not scary intimidating Misha! (I hope.)



Oh, and I should have posted this somewhere in our sexism/racism conversation:



Why yes, I have a lot of time on my hands XD

[ellie-234.livejournal.com]

You both thin Sam was wrong in his reaction and what planet are we living on? well the Dean /Castiel one obviously.

What did ypu expect? you see Castiel gets Sam out realizes there is something wrong and then leaves doesnt help Sam he leaves. . Sam is the one who has paid for Castiels attempt even with the best of intentions . He is the one who was left Souless . He is the one left to deal with what Souless Sam did.He is the one with the wall in his head and will suffer there. So yes Sam had every right to be upset .

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

I fully understand Sam being upset and don't think he was "wrong" in his reaction. At the moment, he's confused, he's doubting every word coming out from Castiel's mouth, and he still has the threat of the wall breaking hanging over his head every day. So of course his reactions are going to be strong. For example, I can see why he's suspicious about whether he was brought back soulless on purpose.

What bothered me was his use of "piss-poor" and his hostility - remember, Sam used to be the understanding brother, the "we can work it one" one, at least in the early seasons - and how he fails to appreciate what a monumental effort it was to get him out.

He wasn't in Hell, remember. He was in Lucifer's Cage, which last time around took the greater part of an apocalypse and the Horsemen's Rings to open, and was so remote in Hell that demons thought it was a myth. Plus, once Sam was out without his soul, that was it, because a) apparently Castiel couldn't get his soul out, and b) it's not like the preferrable option was to shove Sam back in Hell so he could have his soul.

To me it felt like he was lashing out, whereas Dean and Bobby were trying to figure out the facts and keep their cool.

And by the way, my opinion has nothing to do with any pairing or any character I might favour. So there's no need to bring that into the discussion.

PS (edited)

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

You both [think] Sam was wrong - Nowhere do I claim to speak for mrscastielftw. I just say that my comment first arose in a conversation with her.

[mrscastielftw.livejournal.com]

You are so right! He never used the lines from the promo. Curse the writers’ sudden but inevitable betrayal!

You really managed to capture the heartbreak from the episode in your review :( Poor Cas!

I agree Cas has evolved. He seems more at ease now with emotions. I think that he has shown more human traits now that he is an angel again then he ever did during season five as he was slowly cut off and then was eventually human – all the bitchfaces, expressions in general, insight into relationship dynamics, and snarky remarks that he makes to Dean. To use an example from this episode: When Cas says, "And the worst part of it... Dean, trying so hard to be loyal, with every instinct telling him otherwise." This would not have even crossed season four Cas’ mind. He would only have thought about how the distrust would affect the mission. I believe Cas may have been brought back differently – in a way that allowed him to remain angel, but also to retain certain aspects of humanity, which he could teach to the Host. (Although, I feel the need to add - Change doesn’t happen overnight. Sorry, Cas.) There is, of course, always the possibility that Dean made a mistake – possibly subconsciously - when they were putting up the angel-proofing, because he wanted to see Cas. - BUT I prefer the evolved explanation.

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

Every single scene had something to break my heart.

I believe Cas may have been brought back differently – in a way that allowed him to remain angel, but also to retain certain aspects of humanity, which he could teach to the Host. - He pretty much has to be not-quite-angel, I think. The less angelic he was in the last season, the more he learned about free will (and/or vice versa), and since apparently an angel can't be taught (or possibly even understand) free will, then these two states could be mutually exclusive on a sort of sliding scale (i.e. the more of one state, the less understanding of the other). So if Cas is going to be teaching the angels - the fish - to walk on land, he's got to have a pair of legs himself. (Sorry, I'm quite enamoured with the fish!cas metaphor.)

I just had a thought: Dean's the one who caught Cas' "Superman" slip, so he's the one who told Sam and Bobby that something was up and probably is the one who planned the whole trap. The switch from "Come on, this is Cas" to "he's been spying on us" is - you guessed it - heartbreaking.

[mrscastielftw.livejournal.com]

*Sobs* So very heartbreaking.

Speaking of Fish!Cas: If you remember in Doctor Who 06x01, River and the Doctor discussed "Jimmy the Fish" - I think it was code alluding to Fish!Cas!

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

*cackles madly* Aw, River and the Doctor meeting Jim the Fish XD

...and of course now I have an angst-filled image of the Doctor meeting Castiel and being all frowny-faced at him. But then Canton Delaware the Third - FBI agent, tailor, and King of Hell (deceased) - shows up and hilarity ensues. Note to self: find more DW/SPN crossover fics.

[mrscastielftw.livejournal.com]

...and of course now I have an angst-filled image of the Doctor meeting Castiel and being all frowny-faced at him. But then Canton Delaware the Third - FBI agent, tailor, and King of Hell (deceased) - shows up and hilarity ensues.
I want that to be a fic...or several!

♥

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

It might take bit of wading through to find the good stuff, but there's Fanfiction.net's DW/SPN section (http://www.fanfiction.net/Doctor_Who_and_Supernatural_Crossovers/21/2237/) and SPN Twisted's section (http://www.spntwisted.com/browse.php?type=categories&catid=35) (alas, lacking in DW season 6 era fics) to browse through, and this season 5 era fic (http://non_corporeal.livejournal.com/6639.html)...and that's as far as my google'fu has gotten me. I'm sure there's more out there.

Except for this gem (http://a-little-more-sonic.tumblr.com/post/5376984759/clearly-doctor-who-and-supernatural-were-meant-to-be). Jimmy the fish/angel taught the Doctor to dance! XD

[mrscastielftw.livejournal.com]

Yay, fic! Thank you :D

I hold out hope for the DW season 6 fics. Canton and Jimmy the Fish *Evil Laugh*

Jimmy the fish/angel taught the Doctor to dance - That is incredible!

[poisoned-sleep.livejournal.com]

You totally poped it up, girl! That concert hall looks magnificent, and you're looking sharp. :)

I still kinda miss Jean Paul II.

xxx
Kit-Kat

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

It was popetastic! The concert hall is huge and all the rows of lights and giant stained glass ovals make is look amazing.

There's a lot of photographs of JP2 in the streets now, 'cause of his beatification, and I have to admit, I kinda miss him too.

*smishes you*

[seschat.livejournal.com]

Don't worry about the typo, I didn't even notice and I knew what you were talking about, anyway. I really need to watch this movie sometime.

As for P, I didn't really get his reasoning either. To say it mildly. He was talking a lot of gibberish in any case, so much that I was actively wondering whether he'd been drinking. :'D

To continue with the trend of awesome gifage, this was me yesterday:



And this is me now:







Unrelated bonus gifs:



Sherlock!



And this one's for you ♥

[bending-sickle.livejournal.com]

So...you ain't bovvered? ;) *cheers you on*

*snuggles up to you* ♥

[seschat.livejournal.com]

NAH! :D

*glomps* ♥