By Sam's deal with a demon, you mean working with Ruby? I mean, not like formal deals like Mary, John, Dean, and Bobby?

I think I think Mary's is the worst. I feel bad about that. But she brought John back to her--which is perfectly understandable, and more healthy than what her husband or son did, which was bring people back to life to live without them.

eta: No, Samuel is the worst, but I don't even see it in the same framework.

Clearly the whole lot needs somesort of demon addiction intervention.

Bobby's is easily the most justified, for the reasons Anne said.

I think Mary's had consequences that were so far-reaching, it made it just awful, but at the time she'd lost her parents and her boyfriend, and she was getting back only one. In that moment, it seems understandable.

John's was that weird combination of selfless and selfish -- saving Dean but leaving his sons without him, and Dean to feel the guilt of being saved while his father died.

Dean's so similar, too -- way to learn from the old man, boy. But he was so alone! Emotionally, sort of understandable.

I think Samuel's was obscene, and a really poor choice on the writers' part in terms of motivation and emotional logic, so I try to pretend it didn't happen.

Castiel ... probably doesn't think of what he's doing as a "deal" in the same way. There are huge amounts of rationalization going on there, all tangled up with really good intentions. I don't even know how to feel about it.

Interrupting to post that I just had a deam that was like a Show episode. All I remember is that Crowley split himself into two mini-Crowleys as a cunning disguise. Hilarious. I think I was Sam.

Castiel's does have the advantage of apparently just being a working agreement, with himself in the position of power and able to walk away at any time if he's willing to deal with the consequences of not having further aid from below. Of course, it's also for much higher stakes than any of the others were on the face of it, so the potential fallout is probably even worse.

Okay, so who dies? Last two eps before a finale, chances are good someone dies, I reckon. And...do they come back?

I vote for Balthazar's death, I think. If not him, Crowley. Final for both.

I'm also braced for the fall of Castiel and him not being regular next year, which would break my little heart. I hate the idea of any of them getting independent lives.

For the requisite end of season death, based on the teaser clip, I'm kind of hoping that

Sam's loss of memory carries over into season 7 and acts as metaphorical death of Sam the hunter

I can see all kinds of story-telling possibilities with that

Ooh. I definitely hope that doesn't happen.

I think it would be fascinating, but in fic or graphic novel format. It's not really right for the show.

I think Castiel is the most obvious, sadly. They've come too close with Bobby already, and they just killed Rufus. I don't think they would kill Ben, both because that's kid death, which is really grim, and because Dean's guilt would probably destroy him. Lisa possibly, because no court would ever give Dean custody, although his relationship with Ben would likely be irreparable.

Who am I forgetting? For once, I'm not worried that either Sam or Dean will go.

My money's on one angsty scene too many between Sam and Dean in front of the impala being the final straw that prompts it to drive itself off a cliff like the ending of Thelma and Louise.