Frankly I see Dean as more the get-increasingly-quiet-drink-until-he-passes-out type than a sloppy drunk. That's my impression of how high-functioning alcoholics do it. I'd imagine alcohol poisoning would rear its head before touchy-feely oversharing.

Speaking of the characters being drunk (I am so happy that they didn't use this ep to make the characters be stupid drunk, and that Dean went uncommented as being sober at the climax within the ep, although the other in-ep comments speak to a worrying state of being), I loved how glassy-eyed Dean was when he and Sam were liquoring it up in the brewery office. Just that perfect edge of red-rimmed and silly. "I miss these conversations". So good that I wondered if they didn't actually film that with Jensen downing one or two highballs.

I can't believe we have to wait three weeks!

So, it's been Bobby this whole time. Why didn't Bobby give Dean a sign in the brewery after pushing the sword? Why couldn't he signal him in the motel at the end? I'm curious about Bobby's limitations and the reasons behind them.

Just caught up on episodes.

Favorite credit after the last episode: MR. FIZZLES as Himself

I'm assuming Bobby not being able to push a planchette, while being able to hand Dean a sword is a plot point rather than an error. Hmm, maybe he needs to be near the flask. Which does not explain his being unable to give some other type of sign when Dean asks. But again, I suspect we will get an explanation of that and the explanation will advance the story.

I'm rewatching and Dean's muttered "turn it off, turnitoff" had me laughing again. And so not what sober Dean would do.

I'm trying to think that maybe Bobby can only manifest and influence when Dean is desperate for something. But Dean was desperate for Bobby to give a sign and nothing. And I can't remember what emotional state Dean was in when his beer disappeared, or what his beer disappearing would mean other than Bobby saying "stop drinking so much" (except Sam was drinking too, at that point).

I do recall Dean invited the conversation after Sam revealed he'd tried to Ouiji Bobby. In the motel room with Garth, he said to Sam, "we're going to talk about this" or something to that effect. And at the end, Sam said, "Okay, let's talk."

Also Dean wasn't drunk enough to see the Shojo, and Sam was unconscious and relied on Dean to explain the sword's movement. Then he tried to explain it as the Shojo mishandling it. Nice denial, boys.

I hate that we have to wait three weeks for them to be able to see Bobby. Hmph.

Guys, I skipped a little, but didn't Cas' wife Daphne say she got a message from God that she was supposed to find and help Cas?

And it's been a little while, but it's never been established, truly, truly established, that God is dead.

I don't really have a theory about where the story is going, but I don't think God is dead or gone or whatever.

Of course, it could be a red herring, because I suppose any number of supernatural baddies could tell a devout person they were God, and make them believe it, but I don't think so.

And as for Bobby -- perhaps he is a traditional ghost, or maybe so much of his psychic imprint is on the flask that he's connected to it, despite the cremation. I mean, Bobby didn't leave the hotel room until Dean came back for the flask. And from the preview, we know he travels with the boys. And Dean takes that flask everywhere.

So why didn't he communicate with Sam? Perhaps he's under a geas, or perhaps...a mission? From God? Or he WAS in purgatory for a while...or, oooh, Crowley is controlling him? That would be EVIL.

I don't know. I can't wait to see.

(I do know that when we saw Bobby, I shouted "IDGITS!" at the same time Dan screamed "BALLS!" And we both were right!)

it's never been established, truly, truly established, that God is dead.

It's never been vaguely established either. It's only been said that he doesn't care. Who said he was dead? Last thing I remember out there, he was maybe Chuck.

It's possible that Bobby didn't communicate with Sam because Dean wasn't there, and because Dean wasn't there, the flask wasn't there, so Bobby wasn't there. So far, I don't think he's been anywhere the flask isn't.

What is still mysterious to me (and I think intended by the writers to be) is that Bobby could not give Dean s sign when they were in the same room along with the flask. Move something, flash the lights. And the whole "full Patrick Swayze" remark underlined that we would expect Bobby to be able to do that, that there is something here that needs to be explained.

It's possible that Bobby just hasn't figured out how to do everything ghostly yet. Knowing it can be done isn't the same as knowing how to go about doing it firsthand.

As of 7.01, Death seemed pretty certain that God is still alive, and he'd be the authority on the subject.