gonzosgirrl

Soldier Boy could have been a caricature if Jensen were not so talented, but he is nothing like Dean. Certainly not in performance, but not in writing either, IMO. SB is an asshole on paper (Dean is not) but Jensen's portrayal imbued him with some humanity.

Just moving this over here as there is some spoiler talk beyond the Herogasm episode. I totally loved season 1 & 2, and especially season one because it was like nothing else I'd seen, and I loved the idea of turning the superhero mythology on its head. I think maybe the Emmy nod went to their head a little though, both in terms of feeling the need to amp up everything that worked (the shocking gore, the language, 'comedy') to the extent that by the end of season three, I was left a bit fatigued by it all. A feeling definitely not helped by Kripke & Co's constant assertions that every episode, every scene, was ZOMG! GOING TO BE THE MOST EXTREME SHOCKING FUCKED UP BEST THING EVARRRRRRRRR. ZOMMGGGG!!!! The creative team has absolutely bought into the hype, IMO. Not gonna lie, I loved every moment of Soldier Boy, and I, too, love Frenchie and Kimiko . But there was far too much 'tell' about Soldier Boy that didn't fit with the 'show', and they kinda sorta ruined Kimiko with her sing-song, gleeful murder spree in the finale. So much of the clever, adult storytelling went right out the window (including the woobification of Black Noir). And now it seems they are going to center the next season around the battle for Ryan's soul. I'd be okay with that if it meant focus on real battles between a powered-up Butcher and psycho Homelander that ended with actual consequences (ie, Homelander's death) and Ryan was mostly offscreen. But given the actor's bump up to regular status, and the fact there's no way they are killing off Antony Starr, I have zero confidence that will be the case. The past three seasons I couldn't get the episodes quickly enough. I think I'm probably going to wait to binge next season if reviews prove me wrong.

https://tvline.com/2022/08/01/the-boys-season-4-cameron-crovetti-ryan-series-regular-spoilers/ So Ryan will be a series regular next season. It's not really a surprise, but I personally can't imagine any story line I'd rather see less than one centered around a tween. Especially not this show.

I'd suggest you find the Facebook group for the con you want to attend (Jacksonville) and join. That's where you're going to get the most specific info and people are generally welcoming and looking for friends also. Any of the groups I've joined have been private/need admin approval to join so they are fairly drama-free. ETA: this seems to be the most current Jacksonville page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Supernatural.JaxCon

Oh I agree, it was a dad/military/hunting thing for Dean's hair - which also explains why it grew out a little while he was a demon. But I think after a while, it became a Sam/Dean thing.

I say this without a bit of malice, I swear. Because 'hair' was Sam's thing, I'm sure of it. And teasing Sam about his hair was Dean's thing.

I call BS if it wasn't actually 'said' on screen. :)

One wrong. I don't recall Soldier Boy saying this at all. Nor did I recall Dean saying it, but since The Boys was more recent I figured I would have remember that. Hmmm.

😍

Well, I was responding to this: Which seemed pretty clear cut to me. And I disagreed with it.

So in order for Dean to have peace, there has to be some sort of 'hunt' in Heaven - people for him to save? Seems to me that would be the real 'memorex' heaven, since pretty much by definition people who have reached heaven shouldn't need saving from things. It's circular, and since I hate the finale no matter how it's interpreted, I'll bow out of this particular discussion, lol.

We'll have to agree to disagree then. I think that's a pretty narrow box to put him in. There is no bigger Dean fan than me, and I don't like much about Sam, but I don't think there is much room for doubt that he's including Sam in that 'peace'. There was not really a time in the series (outside of demonhood) where he legitimately didn't want Sam as a part of his life, them together and fighting the good fight. I'm not going to try to convince you (or anyone) of this, and I don't believe for a moment that Dean couldn't and/or wouldn't (indeed, did) do just fine without Sam - but it would never have been his choice.

And Dean's peace has always been with some version of Sam. Not in the co-dependent, wincest-fantasy way, but Dean has always wanted his family around him, and settled. No matter what Heaven is, unless you are actually put back on Earth, alive, you're... dead. We only saw the actual moment Sam joined him - I doubt they just got back in the car and drove around for eternity. Fact is, we don't know what happened from here. Maybe they went to John and Mary's and had that family dinner that Dean so clearly loved in "Lebanon". I'm just not clear what would have satisfied here, except resurrecting Dean. No matter what 'heaven' is, he's dead.

Sam is just as real as Dean is just as real as Sam. They are all dead. Anyone outside their own consciousness is not going to be any more or less real than they are themselves. IMO it's a concept of eternal peace, and regardless of my dislike of Sam, I do believe that he's part of Dean's 'peace'.

Real as opposed to what? It was established early on that heaven was the best of your memories. I'd like to think this is what heaven would be like (if I believed in heaven or hell, which I don't). I'd much prefer this to the warehouse of souls behind closed doors of later-seasons. There is a lot to hate about the finale (as in, pretty much all of it) but this concept of heaven isn't the worst.

My theory on this (and I think I've probably stated it somewhere in this thread before) is that each person's heaven is their heaven. Meaning, in Dean's heaven, Sam is with him. Maybe in Jo's heaven, Dean is with her. In Bobby's heaven, he's with his wife, not sitting on the front porch of a roadhouse. Etc., etc. Now, I don't really believe Dean's heaven would solely be "Sam" but I can accept that it would begin there.

They caught Covid.

I think that actors who have striking looks, whether handsome (like Jensen) or unique (say, Steve Buscemi) are always going to be recognizable on screen. You are never not going to 'know' that it's Jensen or Steve, but their characters are so well crafted and portrayed that you never think that they are just playing versions of themselves, or the same character all the time, because they are great actors. But you are also never going to accept lines like Badd wrote about "Dean" not being attractive, because he looks just like Jensen Ackles. And Steve Buscemi is a fantastic actor, but nobody is going to buy him being the Marlboro Man. It doesn't diminish their talent to observe this. Unlike, say, a William Shatner, who is Bill no matter if he's playing Captain Kirk or TJ Hooker. I think maybe the most amazing example ever of this is Carroll O'Connor. Archie Bunker was one of the most recognizable, iconic characters in tv history, and yet without changing his look at all, Carroll became Bill Gillespie on In The Heat Of The Night and there was no trace of Archie Bunker whatsoever. I think Jensen achieved this with Soldier Boy, following so closely on the heels of Dean Winchester.

I think because, at the point of this episode anyway, he is still craving "love", the adoration of the public at large. He can't go around wiping people/cities out anonymously, and he won't risk being anything less than perfect in the eyes of the world. When the definition of "hero" changes, so will he.

I've always side-eyed praise for an actor being great/believable in different roles. That's... acting. It's right there in the job description. LOL! What I find more impressive is when an actor can do what Jensen did with his dual roles in Dream A Little Dream of Me and The End, when he's playing the same character, with the same voice, and yet you know exactly who is speaking at all times, just from his body language. That's freaking talent. And having the range to go from super-angsty drama to comic relief, sometimes in the same scene and be absolutely believable - that's great acting, and Jensen is superb.

That's what we have the Bitch vs Jerk thread for. ;)

I just hope it's not another version of 'bullies always win' with an undfeatable douchebag laughing at the pathetic humans that worship them. I think the ending of this season of the Boys has soured me. Satire is great, but there has to be some relief once in a while or the joke loses its punch.

I never thought they would be mistaken for each other. It's not a diss, lol.

I totally saw him in the humorous/cocky side of both characters, and in the bravado in the face of being hurt (emotionally). I don't see this as any kind of negative - Jensen is genius at infusing his characters with this quality when the script calls for it, and IMO it did, many times, on both shows.

Yes, for sure, but I was specifically talking about what 'turned' John bitter. Dean suffered everything John did, and grew up with nothing but monsters a distant, demanding father and still wasn't bitter. Or at least when he was (which was totally earned) he turned it inward - he didn't take it out on the world around him.