99 Problems, revisited

[feliciakw]

I re-watched "99 Problems" this afternoon. I really do like that ep. I love having Michael Shanks as one of the guest stars, and I liked that Sam and Dean had the opportunity to work with a larger team, that they found a community where they didn't have to pretend.

I also really, really liked that Dean was able to gank the baddie because he was a servant of Heaven. If Michael had not ended up being written as arrogant as they wrote him, and if they hadn't pounded the whole "you don't have a choice" destiny thing, I would have really liked Dean and Michael to have worked together (and Jensen to have had the opportunity to play Michael). As it is, I love that Dean fulfilled his destiny in a totally unexpected way.

One of the things that really jumped out to me while watching the ep this time was the Psalm displayed at the front of the sanctuary. They had it listed as a passage for Epiphany, which makes me go "bzuh?", but otherwise, I was kinda struck by it.

Psalm 69, the beginning of which reads like this (from the NIV):

1 Save me, O God,
for the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in the miry depths,
where there is no foothold.
I have come into the deep waters;
the floods engulf me.

3 I am worn out calling for help;
my throat is parched.
My eyes fail,
looking for my God.

Sound like someone we know? Like, how Dean's been feeling about things recently, especially in this ep?

I thought so.

Comments

[just-ruth.livejournal.com]

I never noticed the Psalm - someone was doing their homework for that anyway.

This episode annoys me for one huge reason and that is continuity - this wonderful congregation is in BLUE EARTH MINNESOTA and not one mention of Pastor Jim Murphy? Not good! Yes, I am being anal about it.

All it would have taken was one line - "Pastor Jim was my sponser to seminary" or something and I could enjoy the episode more.

[feliciakw.livejournal.com]

I actually thought the shout-out to Blue Earth (and Pastor Jim) was pretty cool. It was a tidbit of trivia that we who have seen the show from the beginning would get and appreciate, but would not distract newcomers to the show. Mentioning Pastor Jim specifically might, I think, sound awkward to someone just coming to the show. (Pastor Jim? Who's that? Why is he important? What happened to him?) I understand your frustration (and it's not like mentioning Jim would be the most confusing thing Show ever did), but I liked that precious little nugget of inside information being for those of us who are invested in the show. *clutches Precious in greedy little hands*