Recapping this one has been near impossible. This has an extra special attention to detail, since so much unfolded, so get settled in and enjoy!  Also, tons of screencaps in this one, since Jared, Jensen and even Misha gave us so much. 
 
The opening shot profiled the slow churning devil's trap ceiling fan of the panic room, filtering in the only natural light. Sam is in the same place where he was last week, still trying to comprehend what's going on. You're screwed Sam, that's what's going on. 
 
Dean opens the small opening in the door, and there's a very clever lighting trick that happens here. On Sam's side, there's a red light directly above him, giving him a red hue, probably signifying some sort of Hell. We know how this show has been messing with the color red all season. Dean is nearly monochrome, his steely glare looking washed out in the dingy light.   Two entirely different worlds, separated by a thick iron door. Even if the intention doesn't really go that far, it's cool.




 

Sam isn't happy. "Okay, let me out. This isn't funny." "Damn straight," Dean says. Sam's not coming out until he dries out. Sam apologizes, but naturally that does nothing. Dean tells him not to apologize, for its not his fault. “Not your fault that you lied to me over and over again. I get it now, you couldn’t help it.” Sam can't believe that Dean is going there, calling him a junkie, but Dean mentions Sam's strung out behavior lately. "You're actually trying to twist this into some kind of ridiculous drug intervention?" An exasperated Sam asks. "If it smells like a duck," Dean replies. It smells like a mess to me. 
 
Sam tells him he's not drinking the demon blood for kicks, he's doing it to be strong enough to kill Lilith. Dean calls Sam's behavior weak, not strong. Sam tries to hold onto his patience and tells Dean that killing Lilith is all that matters, but then loses it and accuses Dean of being so self-righteous he forgot about her. You see Sam, Dean holds all the cards right now, so pissing him off is probably not a good idea. 
 
Dean says he and Bobby will kill Lilith, and Sam has a benchwarming seat to the apocalypse. Dean closes the slot in the door, and Sam goes nuts, pounding on the door and yelling at Dean to let him out. Dean tries to ignore him, but as he gets to the top of the stairs he stops, and his face tells it all. This is ripping him apart inside.


 
Birds and now I'm feeling like the world is going to end.
 
Sam is on the cot, and he's jittery. Okay, more than that, the world is going fuzzy. This is just the beginning of some spectacular drying out scenes which Jared just nails. He's completely awesome in this one. 
 
Anyway, Sam gets up, a little dizzy, and goes over to the door to check it out. Yep, locked tight. He takes a long breath out and sees fog. Then the light goes off and on. Uh oh, spirit time. Sam yells out for help, turns and poof, it's Alastair. Sam is completely freaked. I would be too, but I already know this is one awesome hallucination.
 
 
 
Alastair is complete with sinister grin and scalpel, and he's deliciously evil. He announces with delight he has Sam all to himself, and flaunts the scalpel to "How will we pass the time?" Next Sam is strapped to the same torture table Ruby was in "Heaven and Hell," except Ruby was naked in that and Sam isn't. Oh come on Sam, you can't hallucinate yourself naked? 
 

 
Sam is terrified and pleads with Alastair who starts to slice anyway, because he's evil like that. Sam lets out this long gasp of terror (complete with squishy sound effects) and then breaks into full fledged screaming, yelling "please."  Alastair stops while Sam whimpers, and thanks him in an extra creepy way how pleased he is with his politeness, before slicing more. Sam screams his fool head off, then we see him stretched out on his cot in the same position without restraints and alone. Remind me never to drop acid. That's likely what I'd hallucinate now. 


 
Two glasses of whiskey are poured while Sam’s screams ring in the background. Bobby hands a glass to Dean, and I guess Bobby is off the wagon. Yeah, Winchester strife will do that to him. A torn apart Dean asks Bobby how long this is going to go on. Bobby, who's a little on edge himself, responds with some awesome sarcasm. "Here, let me look it up in my demon detox manual. Oh, wait, no one ever wrote one." Not only is Bobby unsure how long this will take, he's not even sure Sam will survive this. That bothers Dean more. 

 
 
The phone rings and it's Rufus, as in Rufus Turner from "Time Is On My Side." We were told once early in the season Rufus would appear, but they must not have been able to work that out. Bobby tells him to “suck dirt and die” and instantly hangs up. Rufus immediately calls back, and judging by the look on Bobby's face it isn't good.
 
Back to our junkie, who wakes up, finding himself completely in tact. Alastair wasn't real. You know what else isn't real Sam? Your 14 year old self standing there in front of you. Yay, Colin Ford is back! It's so cool they found a way to get him and Jared a scene together. He tells older Sam “The answer is yes, you’re hallucinating.” Older Sam is completely freaked, again. “It’s me, I mean it’s you.” I do so love it when hallucinations of my younger self have fun with me. 


 
You gotta love the young spunky Sam, for he gives the grown up one a deserved what for. After he confirms that older Sam is losing his mind, younger Sam demands an explanation. They were supposed to be normal. Older Sam claims he tried, but it didn't work out that way. “Sorry kid.” Likely story. Younger Sam pushes harder, because he's mad. "Sorry kid? That’s what you have to say? It’s all we ever wanted. We were so close. You got away from dad, you quit hunting, you were going to become a lawyer and get married. Why’d you blow it?” Ouch, teenagers are pretty blunt, aren’t they?