Let’s all talk about Dead in the Water (S1 E3)

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    • journalbookbinder
        December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3862

        I admit. When I watched Wendigo last week, I cheated and also watched Dead in the Water, so I’m a week ahead. I’ll take this week off so I’m not ahead anymore. It’s REALLY hard to watch only one episode!!! But this week is Dead in the Water. Hold your breath, and comment. I keep accidentally typing “Dean in the Water”, well, that’s not wrong either!

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      • journalbookbinder
          December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3864

          I keep marveling at the dark look of season 1 and remembering how I fell in love with it right away. You could see the X-Files influence and I really love it.

          This one shows yet another sweet side of Dean (I sure remembered him being more of a cocky jerk in season 1 – no wonder I fell in love with him so hard – he’s not a jerk at all!). He can’t leave the situation alone even when the sheriff threatens him and Sam with arrest. He has to turn around and go back to check on Lucas (just in time for Sam to save Lucas’ mom from death in the tub!). Even if Dean doesn’t love kids, he remembers what it was like to be one; to be scared; and he can’t let poor Lucas suffer. Funny that compassionate Sam is the one ready to take off in this case (as he really wants to find John). I love that the mom here was also not going to take any bullshit or bad pickup lines.

          The father who ended up dying in the boat “explosion” (that was a big effect!) was truly great here, portraying a grief-stricken father with nothing left to lose who doesn’t care about anything anymore with his family dead.

          The ghost child in the water, just barely peeking above the surface with his hair plastered down was truly terrifying. Also, the shot of the Sheriff flailing as he was dragged down was pretty arresting. Dean got a kiss from the grateful woman (again; same as from the sister in Wendigo last week). It was all very g-rated and sweet.

          It’s kind of a long-standing Supernatural theme that “the truth will come out” and it was on display early here. Bad things haunt you until they are resolved.

          BTW, that was the easiest-to-unearth bicycle in history! If it had been buried for that many decades, it would have been much more difficult.

          The thing that got me the most in this one was Dean caring about Lucas – remembering himself at his age and Mary’s death and how traumatic that was. THAT early it was the first time we (and Sam) saw that Dean was not okay even though he tried to always appear that he was okay. These early ones are sad. They do NOT save nearly everyone. There’s a lot of pain. It’s really compelling though.

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          • kate38
              December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3878

              “This one shows yet another sweet side of Dean (I sure remembered him being more of a cocky jerk in season 1 – no wonder I fell in love with him so hard – he’s not a jerk at all!). He can’t leave the situation alone even when the sheriff threatens him and Sam with arrest. He has to turn around and go back to check on Lucas (just in time for Sam to save Lucas’ mom from death in the tub!). Even if Dean doesn’t love kids, he remembers what it was like to be one; to be scared; and he can’t let poor Lucas suffer. Funny that compassionate Sam is the one ready to take off in this case (as he really wants to find John).”

              That’s very interesting! I never saw Dean as the cocky one — quite the opposite. To me, Dean’s external bravado was a cover. Even as a small child, he was never allowed to be afraid. He always had to be brave for Sam and obedient to John. So, if you slap that on top of a big, fat dose of low self esteem, it’s clear that Dean isn’t self-assured at all. Yes, he’s a hit with the ladies, and he has confidence in some of his hunting skills, but at the end of the day, he’s the guy who never shows fear or insecurity because it’s simply not allowed.

              In contrast, Sam came across as the cocky one to me. He likes talking about how smart and well-educated he is, how he doesn’t want to follow anybody else’s rules, and how — at 22 years old — he wants to take charge of his own life. That sounds like cockiness and arrogance to me. Yes, Sam is socially awkward around women, but that’s not because of humility.

              I thought it was sweet that Dean connected so well with Lucas. Dean clearly remembered watching his mother die violently, so I’m sure he immediately understood what Lucas was going through. I remember (years ago) reading an excerpt from John Winchester’s journal. It talked about how, right after Mary’s death, Dean didn’t talk for months. He also refused to sleep unless he was in Sam’s crib with him, because even back then he was laser-focused on keeping his little brother safe. I don’t even have words for such mature devotion in such a young child.

              As you said, JBB – of COURSE we fell in love with Dean Winchester. How could we not?

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            • kate38
                December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3879

                “BTW, that was the easiest-to-unearth bicycle in history! If it had been buried for that many decades, it would have been much more difficult.”

                Good point. I’m guessing that these were kids who didn’t have any tools, so they dug a shallow grave with their bare hands, or maybe using twigs/branches. I guess it would’ve been hard to dig anything substantial with no tools.

                Speaking of fun glitches, did you notice the sink stopper when Will Carlton is drowning in the sink? Just a few bad edits, but the sink stopper goes from being in the sink to on the side (before Will puts it there) and then back into the sink before he puts it on the side. It’s just a cute little glitch 🙂

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                • PigNaPoke
                    December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3938

                    My perception has changed over the years. I remember on my first watch of the early seasons that I (like JBB) thought Dean to be a little too cocky and reckless but with a huge heart and excellent skill to back that up. I found Sam whiny and immature the first time around – especially during the first two seasons.

                    Since then, every time I watch it again, their characters make more and more sense to me and I love them just the way they are.

                    I agree with Karen on the assessment of Dean completely.

                    Sam on the other hand seems just as insecure to me as Dean in many ways. Where Dean wasn’t allowed to be afraid or weak, Sam was so overprotected at the beginning and shielded from the realities of the hunting life that he was very much alone in his struggles to fit anywhere. Dad wanted Sam out of the action for his own protection and Dean wanted Sam out of the hunting life so he would not have to deal and suffer the same way he had to. To me that leaves young Sam very much alone and socially disconnected. It is no surprise to me that Sam in this case became the “researcher”, no one restricted him from reading and learning and he had to spent much time on his own, amusing himself. We know that he always tried to prove his worth to Dean and Dad – like in the flashback in “Just My Imagination” episode – wanting to be part of the family team and being shot down. I can totally understand how the Sam found his value in being the smart one and the educated one, where the other two were leagues ahead in practical skill. Overtime it all evened out a little, of course, but Sam always stayed more of an introvert and attached to learning.

                    Even if he comes across as slightly cocky or “know-it-all” at times (I honestly think they both do here and there….they ARE two young alpha males after all AND competitive brothers) in the early episodes, I do feel that Sam defers to Dean when it’s important. He still wants to prove himself to Dean.

                    So, I think, for myself I am gaining more understanding and acceptance for Sam with every rewatch I do, but Dean will always be my first love.

                    PNP

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                • kate38
                    December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3881

                    “The thing that got me the most in this one was Dean caring about Lucas – remembering himself at his age and Mary’s death and how traumatic that was. THAT early it was the first time we (and Sam) saw that Dean was not okay even though he tried to always appear that he was okay. These early ones are sad. They do NOT save nearly everyone. There’s a lot of pain. It’s really compelling though.”

                    Very good point, JBB. After rewatching the early episodes several times, I got the impression that Dean never talked about the night Mary died, so Sam just assumed Dean was okay and was as “over it” as Sam was. But there were a few glimpses telling us that wasn’t the case. In the “Pilot” when Dean grabs Sam by the collar for speaking irreverently about Mary, in “Home” when Sam hears FOR THE FIRST TIME that Dean is the one who carried him out of the fire, and in this episode, when Sam learns that Dean was very traumatized by Mary’s death, but simply never talked about it and has always tried to be brave about it.

                    The weight this poor man has always had to carry is just mind-blowing.

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                • kate38
                    December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3880

                    I remember liking this one, and I still do!!

                    I’ve always liked Amy Acker, from her days on “Angel”. I loved her in this episode. She plays sweet country girl so well!

                    I liked the ghost story, but was hoping they’d tell us more about why Lucas was having death visions. They implied that sometimes traumatized people/children can become more sensitive to psychic energy, but every time I watch this episode, I find myself wanting more of an explanation. Did the visions go away when he started speaking again? Was the ghost speaking through Lucas via his drawings, sort of using Lucas as a conduit? If so, the ghost was TELLING Lucas who was going to die next, which is a terrible idea if revenge murders are your plan.

                    I also thought they made interesting use of the idea that losing a child is worse than death. They said it twice. I get that the ghost was punishing the people who’d murdered him by killing their children first (since that’s a punishment worse than death) before killing them. Sam said as much. But does anyone else think that’s a pretty mature approach for a child ghost to take? And how does a dead child know what his mother is going through? I liked that they made the point, but I guess I wanted more connection.

                    This one was nicely paced and had nice tension. I agree with you, JBB! I’m glad Dean couldn’t leave because he knew Lucas was afraid and had been trying to tell him something.

                    I thought it was really cute that Dean blushed a little and got a bit flustered after the kiss at the end. We don’t get too many “Aww shucks” moments from Dean Winchester. This one was sweet.

                    We’re flying next week, right?

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                  • PigNaPoke
                      December 8, 2020 at 10:54 am #3937

                      Whoohoo! ALWAYS liked this one a lot.

                      First off as I was an avid Buffy and Angel fan before SPN I was THRILLED with every guest actor appearance by previous B/A alumni and AMY ACKERS in this episode as the mom was perfect and a welcome sight. She did really well as the no nonsense young singly mother who called out Dean on his lame attempt at flirting! HA! Amy always brought a great mix of strength and vulnerability on Angel as well and I always enjoyed watching her.

                      All of the guest actors were again compelling and believable which made the show so darn watchable and relatable since the very beginning.

                      I had forgotten that Sera Gamble was involved from the start and wrote this episode.

                      The opening sequence was a little too long, I thought, as the underwater shots foreshadowed pretty clearly what would happen next (an attack from the deep) so there was not need to drag that out so much.

                      I love the fact that you can hear whispers but don’t understand them at the beginning. They only become clear when mom almost drowns in the bathtub. VERY creepy.

                      Sam’s puppy dog face and soft voice sure do wonders with the witnesses, huh? I am glad that they toned that down just a little bit later on. Sam is always lovely and empathetic with the witnesses but I like it better when it’s not too “sensitive”. Although, I have to say the fabulously beautiful close up of his face and gorgeous eyes when he talks to Andrea after her almost drowning is wonderful.

                      I just love SO MUCH all over again how complicated Dean is from the very start! He can be so understanding and smart about getting into Lucas’ defenses; we get a glimpse his own pain when describing how he is trying to be brave for his mom and then he behaves more like the rough big brother when he sets Sam straight about not running after John right this moment and about “ugh, we don’t have to hug or anything, right?” at the end. I also really like the little moment at the beginning where Dean flirts with the waitress and complains to Sam that they are allowed to have some fun, but then he seems to read in Sam’s face that it’s WAY to early after Jessica’s death for him to have any interest in another girl and suddenly Dean lets the subject drop and shows Sam a possible new case instead. Shows how tuned into his brother Dean is. And Jensen portrays it with so much finesse, it’s just completely draws you in and doesn’t let you go.

                      And Sam isn’t far behind in being a layered character, we just don’t get as immediate of a deeper insight as we gain with Dean.

                      This episodes sets into canon truth that ghost children are one of THE CREEPIEST things ever!!! Even if you see so very little of them like in this episode! It’s enough. It’s really scary. It was well-done.

                      I very much appreciated the mini-cliffhanger between Dean dragging Lucas out of the water, cutting to black, and the next shot where they walk to the car and Sam says “we can’t save everybody”. For a moment there – or really for five minutes to those of us who originally watched it with commercial breaks on TV…. – you didn’t know if they were successful in saving Lucas or not. Nice tension builder.

                      There was a lot of great things about this episode and I think it’s holding up very well even after watching it numerous times.

                      PNP

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                  Let’s all talk about Dead in the Water (S1 E3)

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