Supernatural 6x01

[wealhtheow]

New season!  Yay!  Based on what I picked up on inadvertantly before the season started, I knew that Sam was back from the Cage, Dean was living a domestic life, and their grandpa Samuel (henceforth called Sampa in my head) was resurrected.  My greatest fear was that Dean had grown rusty and stodgy, and lost all of his skills and badassery.  I really did not want to see him as a civilian.  Plus, I was really sick of Dean drowning his sorrows in alcohol, and I feared that he would have gotten even worse after Sam got sent to Hell. 

But instead, we got a healthier Dean than we've had in seasons.  In 6x01, he seemed lighter and more emotionally balanced.  He cracks jokes, doesn't drink himself to sleep, still had good reflexes and instincts but pairs that with a better ability to communicate.  After all the shit that's gone down in the last five seasons, he needed a long rest without any intense emotions or imminent danger.  He seems closer to the Dean I remember from the second season--wounded by loss, but not broken. 

Lisa was a nice surprise as well.  I'd feared she would die immediately, or be a shrew, or be a doormat.  Instead, she was solid and a touch wry.  I loved that she told Dean that she got to make her own choices about who to let into her life.  I am so very sick of the "protecting you by keeping you ignorant" trope, so I loved that, because she knows about hunting, Dean could honestly let her know what was going on. 

I really thought that Dean would leave his new life the moment he found out Sam was alive, and I think Sam and I were equally shocked when he chose to stay and protect his new family.  I assumed this episode would be all we'd get of Dean's domesticity, so now I have no idea how he's going to get pushed into hunting again.  Show, you have surprised me! 

Plot wise, it's pretty clear that the Campbells are up to something.  Even if we hadn't had the "get the djinn in the truck before the boys get back" scene, the fact that they cast AD Skinner is all the clue I need.  That man always plays characters who are mostly good, but have a second, less morally righteous angle they're working.  It's his niche.

So overall, far more good than bad, and I'm definitely looking forward to next week!