Supernatural Talk

Tarts talk about After School Special

By Suzette Chan
March 9, 2009

Welcome to Supernatural Talk, where Tarts talk about Supernatural, their favourite show about demon-hunting brothers. This week: episode 4.13, "After School Special."

Sam and Dean go back to one of their (many!) old high schools, where it seems something is possessing nerds and driving them to murderous revenge. Sam and Dean have different feelings about going back. We discover in flashbacks that neither brother was who the other thought he was in high school, and Sam learns the pain of unintended consequences.

Besides the pilot, this is the third episode to feature scenes from the Winchester brothers' childhood. How does the use of flashbacks (and specifically this episode's) affect your take on the present plot and character development?

Patti Martinson, Staff Writer: I think the only other "flashback" episode I've seen other than this one is the Christmas episode from last season. The boys were much younger then and I thought it was a much better episode than "After School Special". It's hard to explain the difference, but I think the Christmas episode was more subtle and meaningful, especially when it went back to "present time," whereas "After School Special" dropped a number of anvils on you.

Katherine Keller, Culture Vultures Editrix: In my case the use of flashbacks is colored by the fact that I've read both of the comic series, which also followed their lives on the road. The comics are set when Sam and Dean are pre-teens. Sam's a baby in the first series and about seven in the second series. Also the comics aren't just little snippits of what life was like for Sam and Dean as a child; moreover, they are largely told from John's POV, and they're more in depth than the flashbacks. They give more insight into what John was going through and how he loves Sam but is also deathly afraid of the fact that he might have to kill his son.

(In the floppies of the first series, the writers played a bit fast and loose with continuity — this after an announcement that they were going to be canon — and got reamed for their sloppy, lazy writing by fans. The trade corrected those errors.)

I was a bit surprised at the sense of anger I saw stewing in Sam in "After School Special". Dean was rather like I expected him to be, although he's clearly a skoosh mellowed by age in the present day.

I think the anger I saw in Sam was because he saw himself as trapped in the Hunter lifestyle with no way out, and this is where he first saw that no, he could have a life as something other than a Hunter.

Suzette Chan, Assistant Copy Editrix and Staff Writer: I love the flashback episodes! Not only do they give us background about events that shaped how and why the brothers have turned out as they have, they show us the boys' decision-making processes and their reaction to consequences. We've seen that Dean's pathological need to protect Sam arose from a couple of instances where he was given direct orders by his father to do so. In the first case, Dean was just four when his dad entrusted him to take baby Sam away from the fire when their mother was killed (pilot episode, 1.01). In the second ("Something Wicked," 1.18), a pre-pubescent Dean went off to play video games against his dad's instructions, leaving toddler Sam open to a near-fatal attack by the shtriga — an incident for which Dean still blamed himself years later. The second proper flashback ("A Very Supernatural Christmas," 3.08) shows his resulting overprotectiveness. He wasn't saving Sam from supernatural monsters in that episode: he was shielding Sam from knowing the extent of their father's mania. This was really poignant because we saw Dean following his father's instructions, but to a degree way beyond what John Winchester could have imagined. (Then again, John Winchester did not see himself as a monster.) So in a way, we saw Dean's very internal rebellion, which sets up or explains the adult Dean's deeply conflicted relationship with his father.

In "After School Special" we're seeing the boys' lives start to diverge. Sam didn't know what happened to Dean and the popular girl, and Dean didn't know about Sam and the bully. So they have kept secrets from each other in the past; they just didn't seem like a big deal back then, or they seemed like personal secrets. Now the secrets that they're keeping from each other could lead them to cause harm to each other — or the destruction of humanity!

The teacher's intervention was a nice addition to Sam's backstory. We knew that Sam rebelled against his father, but we also know that Sam and John are very much alike. So it made sense that an external influence gave shape to Sam's unarticulated discomfort with the Winchester way of life. Poor Sammy — so smart, yet so susceptible to outsiders whose words justify selfish impulses he harbours!

The meta-interesting thing about the use of flashbacks is that they underline a classic trope, most evident in gothic literature and film noir, of the concept that the past presses upon the present, in ways that make it difficult for characters to escape or reinvent themselves. This is a major thread in the character development on Supernatural. The Winchester brothers just can't pretend the past didn't happen and live lives of their own choosing. They can't just give up the family business and follow their bliss, as Sam's teacher suggested. They're tragic heroes who are in constant conflict with their past, and who always have to weigh potential happiness against their duties to either fullfill or confront their supposed destinies.

Wolfen Moondaughter, Assistant Reviews Editrix and Den Mother:I thought there were a lot of interesting little revelations about their characters! The time-jumping was a little confusing at times, though — I wish they would have done a fade, or had the past be in black and white or something.

I have a tendency to see Sam as the one who is fragile and needs protecting, and forget that he actually is a protector, so I was glad for the evidence of that. I was baffled at first as to why he had such fond memories of that place, especially given the treatment he and his friend received from Dirk, but every thing played out really well, and it was obvious by the end why he did. For one, it was probably the first time his heroics were seen by others, the first time he got recognition for his actions. The first time it didn't have to be a secret. For another, it was a taste of the normalcy he craved (and still craves, really, at least partially) so badly (although I'm not sure he would ever really feel satisfied in an ordinary life either).

And lastly, it was the one place where he encountered someone of authority who seemed to give a damn about what he wanted and actually advised him to be true to himself. Sure, he still went into the family business, but at least there was more of a sense of him doing it because he felt it was the right thing to do, not because he had no other option. Duty is easier to follow through, I think, if we feel we are choosing that path rather than being forced upon it. Granted, we could argue that he was still forced upon it to save those he loved, but he could have chosen to put himself first. In choosing to keep others from suffering Jessica's fate, in choosing to avenge her and save his father, he could tell himself that he wasn't just doing it because he was expected to by his father and brother. If he hadn't tried to go to college, if he had stayed in the business because of other people's expectations, his heart would never have been in the work the way it is now. Of course, his ex-teacher asked a very telling question: is Sam happy? It seems he's now reconsidering his position on that. If he stays with the work still after that, then it could strengthen his determination more than ever, but at least he's got the reminder that it still is, and always will be, his choice, and he could walk away again if he's willing to accept the potential cost. That concept may be the very thing that saves him from the machinations of Lilith.

Dean may have fallen a little in my eyes, due to, as Patti said, his seeming "one-note jerk"-ness, but it doesn't really affect his character in the end, because who he is now is what matters. Besides, I'd say the girl he was seeing hit the nail on the head at the end there, when she accused him of wearing a mask: he may be a man of simple and primal inclinations, but there is something more to his bad behaviour than just the clichéd hormones of the high school years. I don't think it's a coincidence that Dean bears the name he does: he seems to be a reincarnation of sorts of James Dean (a fact which I don't doubt there is a tonne of meta in the fandom regarding, perhaps even quotes from the writers). He lives on the road, lives fast, and probably expects to die young — hell, he already did once! So yeah, it makes perfect sense to me that he's completely callous as a youth; at least he has better reason than most of the guys his age. And, well, probably a sense of entitlement. Which makes that scene in the hall all the sadder: his younger brother was getting glory that had long been denied Dean, while Dean himself was seen as a joke.

Dean had always embraced the role of Hunter because he saw it as the way to win his father's approval. Looking after Sammy was his job; when young Sam shows signs of being able to take care of himself, where did that leave Dean? Dean was always top dog, but at that point, the one person (besides their dad) whom Dean loved was becoming a true sibling rival. I mean, here Sam was not only negating Dean's purpose (because anyone could be a hunter, but protecting Sam was his task alone, even over his father), but Dean had every reason to fear that Sam might replace him in their father's affections as well! I can certainly see how that would leave Dean conflicted and frustrated.

I can also see how this girl having seen through him so easily and yet not seeing the truth about him being a hero would aggravate the hell out of him. In fact, like Sam, this might have been the first time that he realised that it actually matters to him what others think — and therefore the first time it bothered him that he couldn't brag about what he does for a "living". Now imagine if he really was starting to like that girl, too! I mean, I think that he generally restricts his interests to casual sex because anything more in a relationship isn't practical. If he was slipping in his resolve, considering at any point having a deeper relationship with that girl, even if he decided against it, then losing her affection would probably hurt much more than any of his other one-night-stands.

Suzette: On James Dean, I agree. the influence is definitely there, and it's definitely a big part of what makes up Dean Winchester. Actually, according to interviews with Supernatural creator Eric Kripke, Dean was named after the character of Dean Moriarty, who was modeled after the beat poet Neal Cassady, in Jack Kerouac's On the Road. The fictional Moriarty led a much more desultory and debauched life than the real-life James Dean. Dean Winchester has a long way to go to reach his primary namesake's levels!

But about Dean having every reason to fear that Sam might replace him in their father's affections: I don't get that vibe. Dean has known since he was a child that protecting Sam was more important than anything else in the world. Dean has been shown to be completely without jealousy about the special attention to Sam. He's been exasperated by Sam, but he doesn't resent his little brother. Dean's had low self-esteem — and the incident with Amanda didn't help — but he has invested hope that Sam will rise above the hunter lifestyle and make it in the normal world: if a Winchester could escape the life, it would be Sam. But after the conversation he had with Sam in "Criss Angel is a Douche Bag," it seems that Dean's given up on that particular pie in the sky. I think he'd just be happy for Sam to keep fighting on his side as long as they live, and not on the side of the demons.

Wolfie: I could be reading too much into it, but seems to me that Dean has been resentful of Sam's treatment of their father and lack of interest in their work, in the beginning of the series, in a way that suggested to me that he thought Sam was taking their dad's affections for granted and was ungrateful, which to me would suggest, if not jealousy, at least envy, a feeling that Sam has something Dean wishes he had more of.

What did you think of the episode's twist on the bully narrative? How will Sam be affected, now that he knows the consequences of his actions and the truth about Dirk?

Patti: I did like the "reversal" of Dirk the Jerk considering himself the victim here, not Sam. While I found that hard to swallow, given what we saw of the episode, I did like the effect it had on Sam, who is convincing himself he is not the bad guy, much like Dirk whitewashing his own behavior a bit.

Katherine: Sam's going to carry a certain amount of guilt over that, but Sam's more ruled by his intellect than his feelings. What I mean by that is that while Sam will always feel bad that he so utterly humiliated Dirk, he'll also remind himself that (a) he had no way of seeing the future and (b) standing up to a bully and standing up for your friends is the right thing to do.

Frankly, I don't find Dirk that sympathetic a character. He didn't deserve an excess bullying, but the fact that he was such a vicious shit to others cannot be papered over.

Suzette: I liked the twist. It did double-duty. It carried an After School Special-type of message that all bullying does is beget more bullying, and it also showed us something about Sam. He is indeed ruled by his intellect, but he's not always equipped to deal with things that are difficult to rationalize, like being humiliated in front of the entire school. So he gives in to his anger, and falls back on the hunter training that's inherent to a world he does not want to belong in. Sam did not case Dirk like he would have investigated monsters. He did not seek the whole context for Dirk's behaviour. He's still a bit like that: now he's feeling desperate and lonely, so he's thrown in his lot with Ruby, based on her record of saving him and his brother, but he has not made any serious effort to find out who she truly is, what she's done and what her real agenda is. It's as if he's too afraid to look.

Now that Sam has learned what happened to Dirk, I think he'll pretty much doubt and question almost every action he decides to undertake. It was really discomforting to see Lil' Sam soak up the adoration of the other school kids, the ones who were basically rooting for whomever was more powerful. Will Sam now recognize that impulse and resist leading a demon army? Or will circumstances get so out of his control that he would not be able to resist the call? If he does go for it, I'm sure he'll rationalize it as the only way to prevent an apocalypse, and he'll have faith in his own humanity to control evil influence. Sam will think of it as a one-way street: he would control evil, but evil won't control him. But of course, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Sam is in great danger of taking this road.

Wolfie: It's not really a new twist, but I still appreciate it. I appreciate any story that asks us to place ourselves in other people's shoes and realise that there's depth to other people, that they aren’t just the labels placed on them (whether they're the ones placing the label or not). I think it's important to be reminded that there's always some factor we don't know that affects a person's behaviour. Of course, this means that seemingly good people aren't necessarily as altruistic as they seem either, but I digress. I do agree with Patti, though: yes, Dirk lived a pretty sad life, but that doesn't mean he had to lash out as he did. In fact, despite his trying to be sympathetic to Dirk, Sam is proof of my sentiment: he lived a pretty horrible life himself, but he didn't make the lives of innocents miserable; he stood up in defense of another and effectively punished Dirk for his actions when no one else was willing or able to. And I think the show touched on that as well: often things that happen in our lives may explain why we behave badly, but that still doesn't excuse it. Also, I didn't see Sam as whitewashing his own behavior; he seemed to be accepting it, to me, as well as accepting that he'd painted Dirk as a rather two-dimensional being in his head; I thought he felt guilty about the part he played, even though I personally saw his action as pretty justified.

At any rate, I'm not sure if the revelation will affect Sam all that much, simply because he's a pretty stand-up, righteous guy already, even if he has been slipping a bit. I guess if anything, maybe it will slow his fall a little, help him to remember to act with compassion. For some, it would have been a lesson, but for Sam I think it was more of just a refresher course.

What did you think of young Sam and teen Dean?

Patti: I was more impressed with a young Sam than I was with young Dean, although the age and size difference was hard to adjust to. Teen Dean was more of a one-note jerk, I thought, but with Sam being more complex.

Katherine: I liked that they showed pre-growth spurt Sam. The scene where Dean is so much taller and bigger? LOL.

I also liked that yeah, we saw that Teen Dean could be a self-centered jerk. I also like how, although he wanted to step up and take on the bully in Sam's stead, he also realized that he had to let Sam try to settle it first.

Suzette: Lil' Sam is adorable! The actor, Colin Ford, was really good in "A Very Supernatural Christmas", but now he has all of Big Sam's mannerisms down pat. In this episode, I totally believed I was watching the same person in the flashbacks as in the present. So, as they relate to Sam, the connections between the backstory, the characters and the larger themes of the show were reinforced for me. I love that Lil' Sam was undersized for a young teen, while Big Sam is oversized for an adult. Sam felt very small and inconsequential as a kid, and now he's bigger than life, with demon-destroying powers to match.

Brock Kelly as Teen Dean was a bit stiffer, and I was pulled out of the show reality a couple of times. But then again, this was his first time in the role. He did have the voice down, so the threat that he and his older self makes to "rip out his/its lungs out" really worked.

Wolfie: I thought they both did a fantastic job; they both had the mannerisms down really well! If I had any complaint, it was that the younger Dean didn't much look like Ackles, so it was a little harder to accept him. But then he did the same sort of quirky things with his lips, and it helped immensely — that and, like Suzette said, he had the voice down!

Any other comments?

Patti: I wasn't really into this episode until about halfway through. "High school was hell" is a pretty common trope, and it is hardly surprising that Dean and Sam didn't have the best experiences in high school.

Another nit-pick I had was how easily the boys got jobs at the school and how they managed to find the the school bus at the end of the episode.

Katherine: Dean's red gym-shorts! OMG, I'm dying laughing. "The whistle makes me their god." ROFL.

But that look on Sam's face before the final cut to black? Oh man, pull out my heart and stomp that sucker flat.

Wolfie: I, too, loved Dean's gym clothes. Particularly since he seemed to have no clue how ridiculous he looked!

Suzette: It was interesting that the teacher barely remembered Sam. Like so many beloved teachers, he is a fount of good but generic advice. It is a bit sad that the only emotional concern that comes Sam's way is in the form of school board-approved bumper stickers from a well-intentioned teacher. Once again, the road to hell is paved with good intentions: What does Sam need to do to be happy? Would it lead him to the dark side?

Barry, the picked-upon kid, looked like The Simpsons' Millhouse come to life!

I liked the references to all those teen movies and TV shows from the 80s. Dean invoked 21 Jump Street and his blonde girl was named after Amy Heckerling, the director of Fast Times at Ridgemont High and Clueless. There were also references to The Outsiders, Revenge of the Nerds and Heathers. Someone pointed out to me that there was a scene in The Goonies were a kid threatens to put another kid's hand in a Cuisinart. Since this is Supernatural, they can actually show characters doing that!

I was really struck by the scene where Sam puts salt in a girl's mouth to exorcise the ghost. So simple, so brilliant! And it generates a lot of visual action, more than the brilliant, but less visually exciting idea to wrap a guy in salt-soaked rope. What are Sam and Dean's salt bills like, anyway?

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