The Winchester Family Business

Sam Winchester and the Evolution of a “Freak”
 
In the world of Supernatural, the word freak connotes different, dangerous, evil, and nonhuman. Hunters throw around various permutations of the word to describe the creatures they hunt (freaks), the situations they find themselves in (freaky), or negative emotional states (freaked out). Of the Winchester brothers, Dean is particularly guilty of this; he’s referred to, among others, shapeshifters, werewolves, witches, angels, vampires, dragons, and even a phoenix and kitsune as freaks. 
 
Sam, on the other hand, rarely uses the word to describe something supernatural. In fact, he most often uses the word in any form to negatively refer to himself. Following John and Dean’s lead, Sam internalized early on that freak simply meant wrong. Freaks were something to be feared and hated and hunted; they were different and did not belong. And Sam, well, he never really felt like he belonged anywhere. 

You want to know how freaking impossible it is to critique season six Sam Winchester?  I mean, how in the world to you characterize a character that wasn’t a character for an entire half a season?  It just blows the mind. 

Nah, there’s certainly something more to soulless Sam than meets the eye.  After all, it’s an intriguing notion.  What exactly is a soulless man?  Still, I hit the wall of soulless fatigue right around episode 8.  Considering Dean’s fatigue came much sooner, I shouldn’t complain.  

(Read A Deeper Look At Season Six Dean Winchester)

Dean is in full panic mode concerning Sam. He discusses the situation with Bobby, considering either walking away from Sam or shooting him. He is uncomfortable, anxious, and agitated. Sam is not and has not behaved like his brother since he came back into Dean's life. He watched Sam stand idly by as Castiel tortured the young boy, Aaron, to discover that Balthazar had purchased his soul. Sam hadn't simply not raised a fuss, he had stared in open fascination. It was one major red flag for Dean that something was more than wrong with Sam...

 
Soulless Sam was perhaps the most daring aspect of Season 6. To turn a main character completely around is always risky. No other element seemed to be more polarizing. He was also perhaps one of the most unpredictable and puzzling characters the show has ever had. What made Soulless Sam a success can be attributed equally to both the writing and Jared Padalecki's outstanding portrayal. 
 

Remember this?  


 
As I may have hinted before, I have these little conversations with myself during the rare quiet times at my house.  Like when I’m reading a great article posing the question about the diminishing appeal of superheroes on TV.  Here’s the bizarre inner conversation that followed:

Warning: The following article may cause uncontrollable drooling, I advise you to get a bib, napkin, bowl, bucket… Whatever suits you better and prevents you to ruin your computer. :D

I choose Stephen Crane’s poem to frame this analysis because it points toward a specific tradition in American literature: naturalism’s brutal portrayal of the natural order. It also, with its notion of bodily ownership, underlines how “one” exists against the reality of the outside world, “because it is my heart….” Since Supernatural has now adopted the “natural order” as part of its narrative landscape, it has made more apparent the claim  that its creators and writers have consistently made, and that is the show is “American” fiction. 

Well, for Sam this time. It’s no secret: I miss my Sammy, I want to exclaim, and I have done so in my head countless times. Though I can understand how much Jared Padalecki must enjoy performing this development of Sam’s nature – and I am so proud of him watching him grow even more as an actor – I miss the loveable, sweet, compassionate younger Winchester. 
 
But we won’t allow the pain of missing a beloved character overcome us, right? It’s a new twist to our beloved show and despite my difficulties of loving these new turns, I can’t leave it be. It’s a part of my life now, this site is a part of my life now and the sweet, lovely, funny people that come here to comment, sigh or support aloud are a part of it, too, as kitschy as it may sound. I like kitschy, by the way. In particular at this time of year.
 
So, this illustrated song reminded me of the lost Sam, the man without a soul …