*Disclaimer: Opinions stated in article belong to the author and may not reflect those of WinchesterBros.com
Author: Annie46
I want to start off by saying I am a fairly mature person and understand that TV programmes are just fiction; they are not real in any way. That said I have invested nearly ten years of my life in Supernatural and, more specifically, Sam Winchester.
I fell in love with Sam during Season One; he was one of the most interesting characters that I have ever come across. He seemed old beyond his years, stubborn, gentle, the voice of reason. Dean has never really interested me beyond the brother bond; Dean, in my opinion, is a much more clichéd character, the hero, the narrator, rush in and shoot now talk later. Sam was the more layered character and Sam is the one who has changed the most over the last ten years.
Recent episodes have left fans saying what has happened to Sam? The Sam we knew back in Seasons one & two would never do this/say this. That’s probably correct but this is NOT the Sam we knew in Seasons one, two or even three, this is a Sam who has grown up, whose experiences along the way have changed him and the way he views his life.
I really wish that the writers would do a Stanford era episode where we get to see Sam’s college life in flashback. A lot of what we learn about Sam pre series is gleaned from excellent fan fiction. We don’t know what it was really like for him at Stanford, we don’t know how long he was alone before he met and moved in with Jess and we certainly don’t know anything much about Jess apart from the fact she liked the Smurfs! It would be nice to know the Sam that existed back then; the Sam that lived his longed for normal life but that Sam is long gone.
We have seen the brother’s relationship mostly through Dean’s eyes; Dean is the big brother, the protector and he takes this role very seriously indeed. We know through flashbacks (Something Wicked, A Very Supernatural Christmas and Bad Boys) that Dean was practically a father figure to Sam. It was Dean that cared for him, gave him Christmas, told him about their dad and what he did. We have no real concept of what Sam actually felt about this. We know he gave Dean the amulet that was meant for his dad and we know that the brothers were almost dangerously close but we have no real concept of what they were like just before Sam ran away to Stanford.
As the series progresses we have to assume that Dean had no real need for Sam while he was hunting with John and it is an assumption because we don’t know much more than what Dean tells Sam in the Pilot. We know Dean has been hunting alone but we also glean that he doesn’t want to. He actually tells Sam that when he persuades Sam to come along on the hunt for Constance Welch. It is interesting to see how Sam takes very little persuading. He goes with Dean without much resistance and it does give us the impression that Sam missed Dean as much as Dean missed Sam.
It takes almost all of Season one for the Winchesters to become ‘Brothers again’ and even in the episode Shadow Sam is talking about leaving Dean and going back to Stanford. He tells Dean that they will always be family and that Dean will just have to let him go. It is interesting, in retrospect, that this hasn’t happened. Dean can’t let go of Sam and that is where the problem invariably lies.
Dean’s inability to function alone has led to Sam’s personality changes. Sam looked up to his big brother for at least three seasons and he tried desperately to get Dean out of his hell deal. However it is clear that Sam didn’t want to come back in the first place. He quoted Dean’s what’s dead should stay dead’ on several occasions but Dean just wasn’t listening. In fact Dean never listens, he plunges in without thought and does what he thinks is right. Often it makes him seem heroic and Sam seem ungrateful. It is easy to see why Dean is the more popular character because Dean is the protagonist and Sam is the cypher. Sam has so many things happen to him it is surprising he is still as sane as he appears and, inevitably, every time Sam is threatened along rides Dean like a knight in shining armour and saves him.
Problem being it is clear that Sam does not want to be saved…
Why are so many people – fans of the show from the beginning – confused by Sam’s words and actions? I’m not at all surprised to be honest; in fact the only thing that surprises me is how long it has taken for Sam to actually address his brother’s almost frightening co-dependency. At this point it might be interested to remember Sam’s drunken desperation while Dean was in hell. Sam was out of control and did a lot of things (including becoming addicted to demon blood) to get his brother out and then to seek revenge for his brother’s stint in hell. I truly believe that Sam’s experiences in Seasons 4 & 5 have coloured the way he feels now. He has seen the damage the Winchester’s can cause when one is trying to save the other and he is trying to break this almost unrelenting cycle.
It is also interesting to reflect that Dean is very rarely alone even when Sam is not around; he has hunted with Castiel, Crowley and Garth. He hunted with Benny while in Purgatory and he was with Lisa and Ben while Sam was in hell. We never, ever get to see Dean alone. In Free to Be You and Me we see Sam making his own way through the world, he gets a job, he tends bar, he tries to turn his back on hunting but we see Dean immediately take up with Castiel. Dean does not do alone well and it is easy therefore to see the truth in Sam’s words. However we know from the show that Sam can live without Dean and did so seemingly happily during Dean’s year in Purgatory. Again it would have been nice to see more of Sam before he hit the dog and met Amelia. The Sam/Amelia bright coloured flashbacks did nothing for me and I could never really understand what Sam saw in her. There were theories that this life was all in Sam’s mind and that Amelia was a substitute for Dean and I kind of liked those theories. I didn’t understand Sam’s motives at first, couldn’t comprehend why he didn’t look for Dean but now it all becomes clear. In Sam’s mind (and whether he was in his right mind or not is debatable) Dean was gone, Castiel was gone and he was all alone. The Leviathans could be dealt, Crowley had taken Kevin and Sam could finally walk away. So he did.
However when push came to shove the brother’s chose each other again and worked together to close the gates of hell. Sam went through the trials (again something wrong with Sam) and Dean supported him. The brothers finally appeared to be on the same page and during the Season eight finale had a real heart to heart. However it is this heart to heart that makes me question the way Sam feels now. During his conversation with Dean about stopping the trials Sam clearly says that in confession he confessed to all the times he had let Dean down. He also explained that he felt Dean was always choosing others over him – a vampire, an angel – this seems to jar with what Sam is saying now. Sam wanted his brother to be a big brother, wanted to be the person he chose over everyone else. Now Sam doesn’t want Dean to play big brother, he wants to be left alone, he wants his brother to choose others over him. Weird character shift or simply lazy writing? I don’t actually know but it is certainly something to think about.
And now, halfway through Season nine and Sam is getting a lot of flak from Supernatural fans. They dislike him for what he is saying to Dean, they think he is acting out of character, they think he is cruel. Me, I think that Sam grew up, he isn’t the Sam from seasons past, he is this Sam, his decisions and actions coloured by what has gone before. He may have been tactless, he may have been insensitive, but I believe what he is saying is true. To truly become brothers again the Winchesters (particularly Dean) have to work as equals. Dean has to see that Sam is a person in his own right, not his helpless little brother anymore. If that happens then the brothers might have a chance, if it doesn’t their fragile relationship is doomed.
Sam Winchester is still an enigma but he isn’t someone to be hated or vilified, he is just a frightened little boy who finally grew up.