caffienekitty (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
caffienekitty) wrote2008-07-14 01:21 am
caffienekitty) wrote2008-07-14 01:21 am
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SPN Meta: Season 4 Theory and Speculation.
Note, THEORY ONLY. But if you are an extreme spoilerphobe, you will probably wish to avoid this spec. If it hadn't come out of my own head, I'd be avoiding it like crazy.
Season 4 Story Arc Theory and Speculation
Okay, so in lieu of writing the post-ep tag to "No Rest for the Wicked" that dragged me out of a dead sleep on the Saturday after the episode aired and just kept going and going and essentially started encompassing all of season 4, here's a summary as my theory of season 4. Posting before the actual spoilers get too hot and heavy. Also posting to get this behemoth out of my way so it will stop scaring the crap out of every other bunny I have going by being all dark and ominous and loomy and let me get on with writing actual fic and so forth.
If any of this makes no sense, I blame it being 1:30 AM on a work night.
So, I predict three phases in season 4:
Phase One -Steal Underpants Get Dean Back.
I'm really hoping the first ep of Season 4 will start out with Bobby's view of things from NRFTW. (Which I'm going to stop abbreviating because I just mentally read that as "National Radio, For The Win!"
Bobby's viewpoint of events at the Season 3 finale: watches the time hit midnight, watches the boys and Ruby through binoculars run into that nicely visible to Bobby's vantage point dining room area and block the doors. Sees, from that vantage point, Lilith-in-Ruby's-puppet turn on the boys, sees very clearly Dean go flying and get pinned to the table, because that table is so perfectly placed in front of the window. Sees Lilith sashaying around a bit, kissing Sam and opening the door. Sees Dean yanked out of sight below table level and can only see Sam's reaction to what's happening to Dean before Lilith whites out the room. Bobby turns away from the window and slides down the wall in the other house reacting to that.
When the expected boom doesn't come, and Bobby starts hearing some rhubarb among the watching flunky demons, he prairie dogs. Sees the house intact and the light fading from the front room, risks the binoculars. Sees Lilith looking down where Sam was, thinks she's killed him, but then Sam scrambles up. More rhubarbing from the peanut gallery. Watches Sam confront Lilith, raise the knife and Lilith-smoke go bursting out the ceiling. Massive rhubarb from flunkies. Some smoke out after her, some stand around shoving each other for a bit, a few run off on their own. Bobby watches Sam start to cry over Dean until he drops from sight.
Now. Applying logic and "how they are going to film" meta to events. No further scene inside room, or if there is, no angle that includes dead!Ruby's puppet is necessary. Logically, Ruby being made to go 'far away' by Lilith implies she won't be immediately available to re-inhabit her corpse, so there is no need to have Katie Cassidy there for the premiere, (or actually for the show since if Ruby does return, she'd probably want a fresh suit not so full of holes) which would also save on the budget. Sam carrying Dean's corpse out through the Holy Water sprinklers would be cool, but these are not small boys, and while they are strong, packing a co-star that weighs as much as you do and is doing his damnedest to be a literal dead weight through water spray, while... hm. Either conveying utter anguish, or slipping straight into Mystery Spot Sam and being so walled off within himself he's emotionless. I'm thinking number two, because after Mystery Spot, and now this, that has to be right on the surface. Anyway. Not logistically practical to have Sam Packing Dean, though if Padalecki can do it, that would be sofa king awesome.
Fireman's carry. Yeah, okay, they can do that. Hee. Sam carries Dean through the sprinklers. *glee*
Still, leaves the problem of Dean's corpse. Sam's not going to give up on getting Dean out of Hell, even if he doesn't think there's a chance. And he'll want to stuff Dean back into his own body. Zombification's not practical, and not effective, and requires the dead spirit to be available to bind back into the body. Any kind of embalming is right out, as is stuffing Dean's corpse into a large freezer that all weird research and so forth aside, I doubt Bobby has available. Sam's going to have to get Dean possessed in order to preserve his corpse. Yeah, everyone's probably already figured that out.
Maybe there'll be a few flunkies who watched Lilith smoke out willing to follow the boy-king now that he's resisted that nukey-thing of Lilith's. Can Sam trust them? Hell no. Of course not. Would he use them if that's all that was available and deal with the consequences at some future point in time? Hell yes. As has been shown as early as Faith and carried straight through to Time is on My Side and No Rest for the Wicked. Sam will do anything to save Dean and damn the future consequences. He'll find a way to get a demon into Dean so his corpse will stay fresh. Ish.
Ooo. Maybe he'll try summoning Dean. And it'll HURT. Because Dean can't answer.
I'm betting he'll try that Ruby-summoning thing again since he thinks she can help him flip his psychic lightswitch (because from nothing to Lilith-killing power in under 30 hours, that's a light switch.) Also, Ruby is a known quantity. So going for her makes sense, even if dragging her back from wherever Lilith sent her ("far, far away" *k-krk*) so soon afterwards makes very little sense. He'll try to get her regardless.
And seriously, stepping out of storyline for a second, Jensen playing Ruby-in-Dean? Taking all Ruby's backstory and established mannerisms and re-interpreting them? Would be kind of awesome. Also her way of standing. I'm totally seeing a "Don't stand like that." "Like what?" "Like that. Just don't. It looks... really really wrong." moment. Hee.
Somewhere along the line, (besides the whole Bobby going WTF you're summoning Ruby to possess Dean, are you nucking futz Sam??) there will be a confrontation between Sam and Bobby. Hyooooooge. Because I think Bobby's known about Sam all along, with the little leading questions and side-eyes and so forth. More than likely pre-Stanford. Maybe pre-Stanford by several years. He's been watching Sam, and there will be a huge confrontation between them about what Sam's doing, doesn't he know what this means, and Sam going "Why didn't you tell me! I could have saved Dean, Bobby!" and oh, I have half a damn scene for it written. It's made of a very large pile of "OW" and I think we'll be seeing it or some variation. Epic Bobby yelling and Sam yelling back regardless.
Sam and Ruby-in-Dean will go off to turn on Sam's psychic switch to get actual Dean out of Hell, Bobby will get stuck between his familial feelings for the Winchester boys and the rabid pack of hunters (possibly lead by the old hunter guy from Time is On My Side, although he's a bit hermitty to get out and shake the bushes so maybe someone else, (with Ellen as a double-agent, sort-of maybe?)) about to start tracking Sam's ass. Premiere will end on that separation, and no Dean out of hell yet. I'm guessing.
Next couple eps will be dealing with the hunters, and the suddenly much more active now that the threat of Sam is actualized demons from Lilith, with the occasional fence-jumpers showing up and trying to get in on whatever the boy-king is doing because hey, he took a hit from Lillith and is just fine, while Ruby-in-Dean gets Sam to break down his resistance to his powers. An ep, maaaaybe two, three if they're feeling particularly cruel. So yeah, three.
Meanwhile in Hell while all that's going on, things are happening with Dean. The welcoming committee, the possibility of some exposition on the family backstory being revealed or invented to try and break Dean, and he won't give up and he won't give in, but it won't be an easy thing for him, or for us watching. He has the pendant, which as I've said a billion times, I really hope they'll be using as a plot device.
Oh, if Sam takes it off Dean's body in a 'while you're in there, you don't get to wear this' fight with Ruby-in-Dean and wears it himself it may kill me stone dead, especially if the connection element is forefronted overtly. Like Elizabeth's pendant hitting the water in Pirates of the Caribbean. Hee. Maybe not so much, but yeah.
Other News. Lilith will take the Colt and try to open the gate. I'm torn between "Right away to get reinforcements who didn't just see Sam resist her mighty nukey-hand", and "a few eps down the road after she's regrouped" Sam and Ruby-in-Dean aren't quite ready for Sam to go toe to toe with Lilith yet, but go to the gate and get Dean out (and kick Lilith's (hopefully age-appropriate ass because I suspect we'll be getting more of the Lilith/Sam implications) again and gain more followers unavoidably.)
Followed by the complete destruction of that gate (or possibly that in the finale), and some seriously disturbing stuff whereby Sam forces Dean back into his own corpse and binds him in there, and doesn't care where that leaves Ruby, even though she's been helping him do this (for her own ends). At this point, exit Ruby permanently, probably.
Not sure how they'd do all that, because the budget isn't up to covering 'epic demon battle thing and gate going foom' at this stage of the season, I suspect.
Anyway, end phase 1 (maybe episode 4?) with Dean waking up in himself, possibly visually in reverse of his death scene. Moment of "Yay, everything's fine now!" and hugging, dammit! EPIC HUGGING IS AVAILABLE AT EVERY LEVEL OF BUDGET, KRIPKE!
Phase 2: Everything's FINE!
Followed by (***PLEASE***) PTSD Dean and an extended period of attempting to force everything go back to the way it was by Sam. Dean walling up, breaking down, getting really really shouty with Sam about what just happened, etc, and Sam just letting it all roll off because Dean's not in Hell anymore and Sam's world is just fine now, thanks. Several episodes of trying to be 'Saving People and Hunting Things' because post-Mystery Spot and post-S3 finale Sam will want the Winchester version of normality for Dean and himself and will try to make it happen, no matter what.
After the initial stages of re-adjustment, on several occasions, everything will seem fine, and back to normal. With peekings of Sam still being a scary psychic S.O.B. to set up a discordant jangle every so often.
However, demons will keep showing up randomly or attached to cases or to bask in the glow of the boy-king or whatever, Sam will be dismissive of them, or up for using some of them as allies, since they will all appear to want to help (though I hope we get at least one who's playing both sides of the fence, because that has to happen.)
And then a metric ton more shouting. Because to get Dean out of hell, Sam's... becoming, even though Dean still doesn't believe in Fate or Destiny, or anything like that. Sam's working with demons, and they're mostly acting like he's the boss, and this will not be happy-making for Dean. And so there will be hurty shouting, and there will be a lot of it.
Sam will slowly be drawn further into the whole 'being the boy-king' thing in the name of hunting down and stopping Lillith, for all intents and purposes 'going evil' without conciously doing so, through the machinations of his new cadre. Dean will see this and see that Sam's getting some evil wool pulled over his eyes and is being further enmeshed into something where he's not going to be in control of his 'allies' anymore.
Dean will be astounded that Sam doesn't see what he's done and doesn't see that it should never have happened and that the whole damned world is going to go to hell because of it, and that Sam can't understand why Dean's so furious and scared of what Sam's turned himself into. And Dean will want Sam to turn back, and be Sam again, but Sam will be so far influenced by his new allies, he won't see it.
At some point, Dean and Sam will separate. Either due to the being hunted problem or the 'Sam can't you see what's happening, you can't do this'/'Got you out of hell and I can handle it, so STFU Dean' problem. Or both. Sam will be very hurt and confused that Dean isn't happy that Sam figured out a way to get Dean out of hell, so what if it's causing Ragnarok and he's hanging out with demons who are trying to pull his strings half the time. Dean will be heartsick at what's happening to Sam, but get to a point where he can't just go along pretending it's all okay. Or something like that. Then for the rest of the season, they will effectively be on opposite sides. Sort of. Yeah, ouch.
End phase 2. I suspect this would be coming to a head right before winter or spring hiatus, because Kripke is a bastard.
Phase 3: The OW! STOP IT, KRIPKE! Part of the Season.
Sam will be all 'fine then, I'll stop Lilith myself (with my little army of followers)'. In the process, darker and darker he goes, but has become too blinded by his goal and that all his intel is being filtered through his new BFF's the demons to realize how far down he's going and that he's becoming as much of a threat as Lilith is while still thinking he's doing the right thing, roughly.
Dean (working with Bobby, who may have cut ties with Sam earlier on in a 'Chased John away with a shotgun' kind of moment but will be willing to help Dean bring Sam back from the dark) will be trying to get Sam to stop and turn away from what he's doing and at the same time trying to keep Sam safe from the hunters after him so he can be saved and not killed, as well as trying to do damage control on what Sam's 'allies' are doing in his name.
Dean'll sort of end up on the side of the people hunting his brother, but not really, because they'd be as likely to tear Dean apart for what Sam's made him as they would Sam. In logistical terms, Dean would essentially be a spirit or low level demon with no powers (...maybe?) possessing himself, so he's likely to be considered as huntable as Sam, if that little tidbit gets out. Dean may be even affected by some of the demon trappy stuff.
Also, Dean and Bobby will be alternately helping the hunters chasing Sam keep Sam from doing some of the things the demons are pushing him into, while at the same time, keeping the hunters from catching and killing Sam.
Dean will be hurt and trying to bring Sam back from the dark, somehow, for the rest of the season, with Bobby (and hopefully another ally in Ellen working both sides of the fence, but I don't know if the budget can handle that) and be very much otherwise alone in this pursuit. Sam will still be hurt and pissed off that Dean doesn't understand that he did what had to be done, and will be trying to stop Lilith, but the things that are being drawn into his camp by his stepping up to the demon-king plate will be guiding him to their own ends, making stopping Lilith moot in the terms of raising Hell on earth, because Sam will be doing the job she was, and it will sneak up on him until there is a late season confrontation between the boys (final showdown with Lilith) where Dean finally gets Sam to realize what's happening, and what he's doing. And I hope to GOD it's not over Bobby's death. But I suspect it will be. Because that's what's been foreshadowed by Mystery Spot, isn't it. Bastard. BASTARD!!! Frag. Bobby's toast, guys. Crap. DAMN you, Kripke!
ARG. It's just theory. Calm.
Anyway. A significant event (pleasenotBobbypleasenotBobbypleasenotBobby) causes Sam to realize what he's doing, finally, and makes him start to try to turn away from it all, only it will seem like it's too late, he's gone to far, the demons have their king and they won't let him go, and season four ends with Sam trying to escape the chains of command he's unknowingly wrought. And the hunters chasing him catching up and possibly killing or looking like they've killed both of them. Or... I don't even want to think about it. Or some other thing that will make us all look back at the season 3 finale and go "Ya know, in retrospect, that was pretty frigging mild."
So anyway, there's my take on what might happen in Season 4, posted in order to slay the giant evil looming plot-bunny. Let's see how wrong I am this year. Who knows, they might pop Dean immediately out of hell like it's a giant metaphysical toaster and spend the rest of the season in Acapulco drinking chi-chis.
NO SPOILERS, RUMORS, OR ANYTHING BUT THEORY IN COMMENTS PLEASE!!!
Season 4 Story Arc Theory and Speculation
Okay, so in lieu of writing the post-ep tag to "No Rest for the Wicked" that dragged me out of a dead sleep on the Saturday after the episode aired and just kept going and going and essentially started encompassing all of season 4, here's a summary as my theory of season 4. Posting before the actual spoilers get too hot and heavy. Also posting to get this behemoth out of my way so it will stop scaring the crap out of every other bunny I have going by being all dark and ominous and loomy and let me get on with writing actual fic and so forth.
If any of this makes no sense, I blame it being 1:30 AM on a work night.
So, I predict three phases in season 4:
Phase One -
I'm really hoping the first ep of Season 4 will start out with Bobby's view of things from NRFTW. (Which I'm going to stop abbreviating because I just mentally read that as "National Radio, For The Win!"
Bobby's viewpoint of events at the Season 3 finale: watches the time hit midnight, watches the boys and Ruby through binoculars run into that nicely visible to Bobby's vantage point dining room area and block the doors. Sees, from that vantage point, Lilith-in-Ruby's-puppet turn on the boys, sees very clearly Dean go flying and get pinned to the table, because that table is so perfectly placed in front of the window. Sees Lilith sashaying around a bit, kissing Sam and opening the door. Sees Dean yanked out of sight below table level and can only see Sam's reaction to what's happening to Dean before Lilith whites out the room. Bobby turns away from the window and slides down the wall in the other house reacting to that.
When the expected boom doesn't come, and Bobby starts hearing some rhubarb among the watching flunky demons, he prairie dogs. Sees the house intact and the light fading from the front room, risks the binoculars. Sees Lilith looking down where Sam was, thinks she's killed him, but then Sam scrambles up. More rhubarbing from the peanut gallery. Watches Sam confront Lilith, raise the knife and Lilith-smoke go bursting out the ceiling. Massive rhubarb from flunkies. Some smoke out after her, some stand around shoving each other for a bit, a few run off on their own. Bobby watches Sam start to cry over Dean until he drops from sight.
Now. Applying logic and "how they are going to film" meta to events. No further scene inside room, or if there is, no angle that includes dead!Ruby's puppet is necessary. Logically, Ruby being made to go 'far away' by Lilith implies she won't be immediately available to re-inhabit her corpse, so there is no need to have Katie Cassidy there for the premiere, (or actually for the show since if Ruby does return, she'd probably want a fresh suit not so full of holes) which would also save on the budget. Sam carrying Dean's corpse out through the Holy Water sprinklers would be cool, but these are not small boys, and while they are strong, packing a co-star that weighs as much as you do and is doing his damnedest to be a literal dead weight through water spray, while... hm. Either conveying utter anguish, or slipping straight into Mystery Spot Sam and being so walled off within himself he's emotionless. I'm thinking number two, because after Mystery Spot, and now this, that has to be right on the surface. Anyway. Not logistically practical to have Sam Packing Dean, though if Padalecki can do it, that would be sofa king awesome.
Fireman's carry. Yeah, okay, they can do that. Hee. Sam carries Dean through the sprinklers. *glee*
Still, leaves the problem of Dean's corpse. Sam's not going to give up on getting Dean out of Hell, even if he doesn't think there's a chance. And he'll want to stuff Dean back into his own body. Zombification's not practical, and not effective, and requires the dead spirit to be available to bind back into the body. Any kind of embalming is right out, as is stuffing Dean's corpse into a large freezer that all weird research and so forth aside, I doubt Bobby has available. Sam's going to have to get Dean possessed in order to preserve his corpse. Yeah, everyone's probably already figured that out.
Maybe there'll be a few flunkies who watched Lilith smoke out willing to follow the boy-king now that he's resisted that nukey-thing of Lilith's. Can Sam trust them? Hell no. Of course not. Would he use them if that's all that was available and deal with the consequences at some future point in time? Hell yes. As has been shown as early as Faith and carried straight through to Time is on My Side and No Rest for the Wicked. Sam will do anything to save Dean and damn the future consequences. He'll find a way to get a demon into Dean so his corpse will stay fresh. Ish.
Ooo. Maybe he'll try summoning Dean. And it'll HURT. Because Dean can't answer.
I'm betting he'll try that Ruby-summoning thing again since he thinks she can help him flip his psychic lightswitch (because from nothing to Lilith-killing power in under 30 hours, that's a light switch.) Also, Ruby is a known quantity. So going for her makes sense, even if dragging her back from wherever Lilith sent her ("far, far away" *k-krk*) so soon afterwards makes very little sense. He'll try to get her regardless.
And seriously, stepping out of storyline for a second, Jensen playing Ruby-in-Dean? Taking all Ruby's backstory and established mannerisms and re-interpreting them? Would be kind of awesome. Also her way of standing. I'm totally seeing a "Don't stand like that." "Like what?" "Like that. Just don't. It looks... really really wrong." moment. Hee.
Somewhere along the line, (besides the whole Bobby going WTF you're summoning Ruby to possess Dean, are you nucking futz Sam??) there will be a confrontation between Sam and Bobby. Hyooooooge. Because I think Bobby's known about Sam all along, with the little leading questions and side-eyes and so forth. More than likely pre-Stanford. Maybe pre-Stanford by several years. He's been watching Sam, and there will be a huge confrontation between them about what Sam's doing, doesn't he know what this means, and Sam going "Why didn't you tell me! I could have saved Dean, Bobby!" and oh, I have half a damn scene for it written. It's made of a very large pile of "OW" and I think we'll be seeing it or some variation. Epic Bobby yelling and Sam yelling back regardless.
Sam and Ruby-in-Dean will go off to turn on Sam's psychic switch to get actual Dean out of Hell, Bobby will get stuck between his familial feelings for the Winchester boys and the rabid pack of hunters (possibly lead by the old hunter guy from Time is On My Side, although he's a bit hermitty to get out and shake the bushes so maybe someone else, (with Ellen as a double-agent, sort-of maybe?)) about to start tracking Sam's ass. Premiere will end on that separation, and no Dean out of hell yet. I'm guessing.
Next couple eps will be dealing with the hunters, and the suddenly much more active now that the threat of Sam is actualized demons from Lilith, with the occasional fence-jumpers showing up and trying to get in on whatever the boy-king is doing because hey, he took a hit from Lillith and is just fine, while Ruby-in-Dean gets Sam to break down his resistance to his powers. An ep, maaaaybe two, three if they're feeling particularly cruel. So yeah, three.
Meanwhile in Hell while all that's going on, things are happening with Dean. The welcoming committee, the possibility of some exposition on the family backstory being revealed or invented to try and break Dean, and he won't give up and he won't give in, but it won't be an easy thing for him, or for us watching. He has the pendant, which as I've said a billion times, I really hope they'll be using as a plot device.
Oh, if Sam takes it off Dean's body in a 'while you're in there, you don't get to wear this' fight with Ruby-in-Dean and wears it himself it may kill me stone dead, especially if the connection element is forefronted overtly. Like Elizabeth's pendant hitting the water in Pirates of the Caribbean. Hee. Maybe not so much, but yeah.
Other News. Lilith will take the Colt and try to open the gate. I'm torn between "Right away to get reinforcements who didn't just see Sam resist her mighty nukey-hand", and "a few eps down the road after she's regrouped" Sam and Ruby-in-Dean aren't quite ready for Sam to go toe to toe with Lilith yet, but go to the gate and get Dean out (and kick Lilith's (hopefully age-appropriate ass because I suspect we'll be getting more of the Lilith/Sam implications) again and gain more followers unavoidably.)
Followed by the complete destruction of that gate (or possibly that in the finale), and some seriously disturbing stuff whereby Sam forces Dean back into his own corpse and binds him in there, and doesn't care where that leaves Ruby, even though she's been helping him do this (for her own ends). At this point, exit Ruby permanently, probably.
Not sure how they'd do all that, because the budget isn't up to covering 'epic demon battle thing and gate going foom' at this stage of the season, I suspect.
Anyway, end phase 1 (maybe episode 4?) with Dean waking up in himself, possibly visually in reverse of his death scene. Moment of "Yay, everything's fine now!" and hugging, dammit! EPIC HUGGING IS AVAILABLE AT EVERY LEVEL OF BUDGET, KRIPKE!
Phase 2: Everything's FINE!
Followed by (***PLEASE***) PTSD Dean and an extended period of attempting to force everything go back to the way it was by Sam. Dean walling up, breaking down, getting really really shouty with Sam about what just happened, etc, and Sam just letting it all roll off because Dean's not in Hell anymore and Sam's world is just fine now, thanks. Several episodes of trying to be 'Saving People and Hunting Things' because post-Mystery Spot and post-S3 finale Sam will want the Winchester version of normality for Dean and himself and will try to make it happen, no matter what.
After the initial stages of re-adjustment, on several occasions, everything will seem fine, and back to normal. With peekings of Sam still being a scary psychic S.O.B. to set up a discordant jangle every so often.
However, demons will keep showing up randomly or attached to cases or to bask in the glow of the boy-king or whatever, Sam will be dismissive of them, or up for using some of them as allies, since they will all appear to want to help (though I hope we get at least one who's playing both sides of the fence, because that has to happen.)
And then a metric ton more shouting. Because to get Dean out of hell, Sam's... becoming, even though Dean still doesn't believe in Fate or Destiny, or anything like that. Sam's working with demons, and they're mostly acting like he's the boss, and this will not be happy-making for Dean. And so there will be hurty shouting, and there will be a lot of it.
Sam will slowly be drawn further into the whole 'being the boy-king' thing in the name of hunting down and stopping Lillith, for all intents and purposes 'going evil' without conciously doing so, through the machinations of his new cadre. Dean will see this and see that Sam's getting some evil wool pulled over his eyes and is being further enmeshed into something where he's not going to be in control of his 'allies' anymore.
Dean will be astounded that Sam doesn't see what he's done and doesn't see that it should never have happened and that the whole damned world is going to go to hell because of it, and that Sam can't understand why Dean's so furious and scared of what Sam's turned himself into. And Dean will want Sam to turn back, and be Sam again, but Sam will be so far influenced by his new allies, he won't see it.
At some point, Dean and Sam will separate. Either due to the being hunted problem or the 'Sam can't you see what's happening, you can't do this'/'Got you out of hell and I can handle it, so STFU Dean' problem. Or both. Sam will be very hurt and confused that Dean isn't happy that Sam figured out a way to get Dean out of hell, so what if it's causing Ragnarok and he's hanging out with demons who are trying to pull his strings half the time. Dean will be heartsick at what's happening to Sam, but get to a point where he can't just go along pretending it's all okay. Or something like that. Then for the rest of the season, they will effectively be on opposite sides. Sort of. Yeah, ouch.
End phase 2. I suspect this would be coming to a head right before winter or spring hiatus, because Kripke is a bastard.
Phase 3: The OW! STOP IT, KRIPKE! Part of the Season.
Sam will be all 'fine then, I'll stop Lilith myself (with my little army of followers)'. In the process, darker and darker he goes, but has become too blinded by his goal and that all his intel is being filtered through his new BFF's the demons to realize how far down he's going and that he's becoming as much of a threat as Lilith is while still thinking he's doing the right thing, roughly.
Dean (working with Bobby, who may have cut ties with Sam earlier on in a 'Chased John away with a shotgun' kind of moment but will be willing to help Dean bring Sam back from the dark) will be trying to get Sam to stop and turn away from what he's doing and at the same time trying to keep Sam safe from the hunters after him so he can be saved and not killed, as well as trying to do damage control on what Sam's 'allies' are doing in his name.
Dean'll sort of end up on the side of the people hunting his brother, but not really, because they'd be as likely to tear Dean apart for what Sam's made him as they would Sam. In logistical terms, Dean would essentially be a spirit or low level demon with no powers (...maybe?) possessing himself, so he's likely to be considered as huntable as Sam, if that little tidbit gets out. Dean may be even affected by some of the demon trappy stuff.
Also, Dean and Bobby will be alternately helping the hunters chasing Sam keep Sam from doing some of the things the demons are pushing him into, while at the same time, keeping the hunters from catching and killing Sam.
Dean will be hurt and trying to bring Sam back from the dark, somehow, for the rest of the season, with Bobby (and hopefully another ally in Ellen working both sides of the fence, but I don't know if the budget can handle that) and be very much otherwise alone in this pursuit. Sam will still be hurt and pissed off that Dean doesn't understand that he did what had to be done, and will be trying to stop Lilith, but the things that are being drawn into his camp by his stepping up to the demon-king plate will be guiding him to their own ends, making stopping Lilith moot in the terms of raising Hell on earth, because Sam will be doing the job she was, and it will sneak up on him until there is a late season confrontation between the boys (final showdown with Lilith) where Dean finally gets Sam to realize what's happening, and what he's doing. And I hope to GOD it's not over Bobby's death. But I suspect it will be. Because that's what's been foreshadowed by Mystery Spot, isn't it. Bastard. BASTARD!!! Frag. Bobby's toast, guys. Crap. DAMN you, Kripke!
ARG. It's just theory. Calm.
Anyway. A significant event (pleasenotBobbypleasenotBobbypleasenotBobby) causes Sam to realize what he's doing, finally, and makes him start to try to turn away from it all, only it will seem like it's too late, he's gone to far, the demons have their king and they won't let him go, and season four ends with Sam trying to escape the chains of command he's unknowingly wrought. And the hunters chasing him catching up and possibly killing or looking like they've killed both of them. Or... I don't even want to think about it. Or some other thing that will make us all look back at the season 3 finale and go "Ya know, in retrospect, that was pretty frigging mild."
So anyway, there's my take on what might happen in Season 4, posted in order to slay the giant evil looming plot-bunny. Let's see how wrong I am this year. Who knows, they might pop Dean immediately out of hell like it's a giant metaphysical toaster and spend the rest of the season in Acapulco drinking chi-chis.
NO SPOILERS, RUMORS, OR ANYTHING BUT THEORY IN COMMENTS PLEASE!!!
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Will respond more coherently to things later, but at the moment I just want this on a t-shirt. And as a postcard campaign.
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But they better not do anything to Bobby. OR FACE MY WRATH.
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THANK YOU for mentioning this, because I so totally agree with you: Bobby knows something. A hell of a lot more than he's letting on, that's for sure. I started noticing this as early as BuABS - there was more than concern for Sam in Bobby's eyes at the end of that episode. Talk about some fear and wonder...
Anyway. Interesting take on season four (and personally, how much you want to bet Sam's darkside more or less by the end of the season?)... *chews on lip*
Dark this season will be. Very dark. And I can't believe I just channeled Yoda there. *facepalm*
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how much you want to bet Sam's darkside more or less by the end of the season?
No bet here. I've been waiting for it to happen since 'Bloody Mary'. ;-) Sam's going darkside, until Dean wakes him up and makes him smell the coffee. And by then, Sam's demonic chain of command will have him so bound up that it will take a real fight to get Sam back and keep Hell from rising. And so that'll be season 5. :-)
Hee. Yoda. Yes, very dark. Dark like the inside of a cow, and just as full of blood and guts. This season's gonna slay us.
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Dude. Yes! I'd totally forgotten about that! I so think you're right on the money there. And my guess is that's going to come out at some point in season four. Because while Sam and Bobby are friends, there's a distance in that friendship that is unlike Bobby and Dean.
Oh, I could so meta on that. *facepalm*
See, I figured Sam would go darkside around about Asylum, and if anyone's going to save Sam from himself, it'll be Dean. Oy, very dark season coming up, I'm thinking.
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Totally. Not only would Sam be a potential time bomb, I would say, much as it hurts, that Bobby might be keeping that bit of extra distance from Sam in case... well. In case Sam goes dark and Bobby has to hunt him down.
I don't think Bobby can though. No matter how much distance he thinks he's keeping from Sam, I don't think that Bobby will turn around and put Sam down like Old Yeller when things go bad. For one thing, they're family, particularly Dean, and if nothing else, even if Sam's cutting a bloody swath across the face of the earth, Bobby can't do that to Dean. But damn will it hurt if any of that comes up.
I do also wonder what Bobby knew when he gave Sam the pendant to give John, and what that subsequently implies...
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Yeah, so not wanting to go there. At all. Oh, the angst!
I do also wonder what Bobby knew when he gave Sam the pendant to give John, and what that subsequently implies...
Me too! I hope we'll find out somehow!
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AND WHAT IF DEAN HAVING THE PENDANT IS THE REASON HE ACTUALLY GETS OUT OF HELL. How cool would THAT be? What if Bobby KNEW giving it to Sam would get the pendant to DEAN? Because Dean is Bobby's favorite...
Actually I just wrote a fic of AVSC and I thought about putting that in... that after The Big Reveal between Dean and Sam and John over John's journal, they show up to Bobby's and Bobby's like OH HEY SAM I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE.
...
That. Would be. So cool.
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If Bobby had planned it all along though, that'd be a little freaky :-) But he totally could have because Bobby's awesome.