so there's this picture on tumblr that's technically spoilery, but then again not really. so i know it probably doesn't belong here. should i post it in spoilers lite?

It's in Spoilers already, tiggy, if it's the one I think. It reveals the premise of the episode, and I didn't know if that was too much for lite.

Whitefont discussion of it there should be okay. It counts as "article."

ahhh...i don't go to Spoilers. i can handle the Lite, but not the whole shebang!

I'm rewatching Caged Heat. I like the division between Dean and Cas. Cas evidently believes that Robo!Sam is Sam, and that bringing the soul back will just add pain. Dean doesn't think that's Sam, and bringing the soul back will bring Sam back.

I'm surprised that little time has been spent talking about easing the suffering of the soul in the Cage. If Cas had suggested, for instance, freeing it to Heaven, or something. Because it seemed to be either reinstate it, or leave it to the hatebang.

Is that the picture I saw, ita?

I still wish they'd defined "soul" a little more clearly, because Dean and Cas *and* Sam seem to have completely distinct ideas of what it will mean to Sam.

I'm thinking Heaven might not be the safest place for Sam's soul what with the civil war and all. But they couldn't leave it where it was either. Hmm. Safe deposit box?

"Dean Winchester's standing behind you." I love that.

Yeah, Amy, it's the one you've seen.

I wonder if they're going to get clearer about souls. I think it's possible that the disagreement is deliberate. I hope so.

I'm of the school that thinks it wasn't really Sam this whole time, that the replicant T1000 is lesser and not equal to a human being. I liked him, I liked his dry sense of humour and his heartless devotion to Dean and killing evil things. But I miss *Sam* and I hope he doesn't come back too broken.

Also on the list of things I love, Cas. Almost every second of him in Caged Heat. I despise the bit where he ran from hellhounds though. Summarily dispatching Crowley almost made up for it.

Watching Appointment In Samarra now. The doctor's assistant is smoking hot. And Tessa!

I'm thinking Heaven might not be the safest place for Sam's soul what with the civil war and all

There hasn't been an implication that, say, Ash and other people aren't safe.

I've seen a lot of fics that posit a divide between angel Heaven and dead people heaven. But it's usually to add angst to Dean dying and being separated from Castiel. I don't know what it's based on. Zach and Joshua did just fine.

I'm of the school that thinks it wasn't really Sam this whole time, that the replicant T1000 is lesser and not equal to a human being. I liked him, I liked his dry sense of humour and his heartless devotion to Dean and killing evil things. But I miss *Sam* and I hope he doesn't come back too broken.

This is where I don't know what I think. Maybe Buffy spoiled me -- there, the demon retained the human's personality and lost only the moral compass and sense of guilt. Here, I don't know what the dividing line is.

Robo!Sam certainly had none of his old sensitivity or compassion, and he seemed to know right from wrong but just didn't care when it suited him (a la Angel and Spike et al). He actually seems to be missing more of himself than Spike or Angel did, but at least they didn't make him straight up evil.

I'm still unclear on what exaclty it means to be walking around without a soul but I hope that is purposeful.

There hasn't been an implication that, say, Ash and other people aren't safe.

yes, but Sam is Satan's Special Snowflake... or now that that big battle is over, is Sam not so important anymore?

I've seen a lot of fics that posit a divide between angel Heaven and dead people heaven...

That would make sense. I'm familiar with Dante's Hell being many layered, it would work for Heaven too.