I love my f-list for giving me alternative ways of seeing some of this.
To me, the "God has left the building" means that God is not present in this situation. When someone says, "Elvis has left the building"--which is typically where this originated--it means that the person in question (Elvis) is no longer in the building literally, or that he's removed himself from the public by retreating to the green room or other private quarters, making himself inaccessible to his public. Thus "God has left the building" to me means that Zach is telling Dean that God is not there, is not accessible, and Dean can forget about seeking any sort of comfort or reassurance or aid or strength or whatever from God--in this, the Final Battle, Armageddon, during which Dean is expected to kill Lucifer.
I have a problem with Zach handing Dean that kind of hopelessness.
Or, if God is still around, still there, Zach speaks with such blatant disregard and lack of respect that it makes God look weak. Also not an agreeable option.
Re: the "Heaven as Stepford" comment . . . if it were just Dean saying it, I could go along with it as a misconception Dean has. We've talked about that over the course of the season, how Dean's questions and doubts are very real and expressed in a real and Dean-like manner. But it's not just Dean who's saying this. Anna said essentially the same thing. Both times a character has said this, it's been in episodes written by the same writer. The way it's presented here, it doesn't feel as much like a character trait as something the writer is saying. One of my f-list called it propaganda, and I understand where she's coming from.
Now, when Dean starts in on a "there's a right and there's a wrong here," and "people matter," I'm totally behind him on that score. And being willing to fight to stop the destruction of the world. Because Dean has always been about the saving people (except for the one time when he was drunk on grief and whiskey when Sam was dead, but those were extenuating circumstances). So in that regard, I'm right there with Dean.
So I'm willing to give Show a chance to explain itself next season, to show us that Cas is really the one doing God's will, or that God is testing the good guys, or whatever. But I'm not very confident that Kripke will go that route.
I've been burned by favorite shows in the past; I'm really not expecting anything different here. On the contrary, I'm kind of impressed that it's taken them four seasons to get to this point with me.
Thanks, though, for sharing your point of view. Having people to talk me down is a good thing, I think. :-)
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2009-05-21 12:32 am (UTC)To me, the "God has left the building" means that God is not present in this situation. When someone says, "Elvis has left the building"--which is typically where this originated--it means that the person in question (Elvis) is no longer in the building literally, or that he's removed himself from the public by retreating to the green room or other private quarters, making himself inaccessible to his public. Thus "God has left the building" to me means that Zach is telling Dean that God is not there, is not accessible, and Dean can forget about seeking any sort of comfort or reassurance or aid or strength or whatever from God--in this, the Final Battle, Armageddon, during which Dean is expected to kill Lucifer.
I have a problem with Zach handing Dean that kind of hopelessness.
Or, if God is still around, still there, Zach speaks with such blatant disregard and lack of respect that it makes God look weak. Also not an agreeable option.
Re: the "Heaven as Stepford" comment . . . if it were just Dean saying it, I could go along with it as a misconception Dean has. We've talked about that over the course of the season, how Dean's questions and doubts are very real and expressed in a real and Dean-like manner. But it's not just Dean who's saying this. Anna said essentially the same thing. Both times a character has said this, it's been in episodes written by the same writer. The way it's presented here, it doesn't feel as much like a character trait as something the writer is saying. One of my f-list called it propaganda, and I understand where she's coming from.
Now, when Dean starts in on a "there's a right and there's a wrong here," and "people matter," I'm totally behind him on that score. And being willing to fight to stop the destruction of the world. Because Dean has always been about the saving people (except for the one time when he was drunk on grief and whiskey when Sam was dead, but those were extenuating circumstances). So in that regard, I'm right there with Dean.
So I'm willing to give Show a chance to explain itself next season, to show us that Cas is really the one doing God's will, or that God is testing the good guys, or whatever. But I'm not very confident that Kripke will go that route.
I've been burned by favorite shows in the past; I'm really not expecting anything different here. On the contrary, I'm kind of impressed that it's taken them four seasons to get to this point with me.
Thanks, though, for sharing your point of view. Having people to talk me down is a good thing, I think. :-)