If you think the script acknowledges the fact that he changed his memory purposely, what is it you're not buying? That Dean is the type of person who would do that?

There's nothing I don't buy--I was saying that I found the deliberate reconstruction of the events was significant and interesting damage. But it's interesting to me because I find it more than fluid or veering, but rather a telling quantum leap.

Why permanent? Why not a never ending series of bendy ladies who can hold their liquor?

I think that would only work if they were also able to defend themselves against Demons and such, or if there was some sort of spell that would keep demons, and angels and monsters and gods from knowing they had associated with Dean, and hurting them as a way to get to him.

Also, I think part of paradise for Dean would be friends who were not endangered by what Dean did - either protected or tough enough not to need protection. Friends in the same town as his protected home.

Has Dean ever endangered a woman he had casual sex with?

Where have you seen him display a longing for a permanent relationship or more friends?

I don't know, I think the eagerness with which he latched on to Crazy Frank spoke of a longing for more friends.

Eagerness? Frank?

This is why I need to ask questions, because I totally don't see anything like that on my own. I got the impression he was kinda irritated with him at first, came to accept it was part of the package and he respected that, but he barely shrugged when he died.

He's defensive about his friendship with Benny, but by my count that brings him up to 2.5 (grudging acceptance of Garth is the half--if he'd sit down and have a beercoffee with him, or something, I'd upgrade it) but none of them are friends in a "I should get more of these" way.

He was hanging around Frank enough to pick up hacking tricks from him and such. I don't think it was a bum-around-and-have-beers-together kind of thing, but by that point his social circle was Sam's crazy ass, so I read it as an urge for companionship.

He was hanging around Frank enough to pick up hacking tricks from him and such

I'm not going to assume proximity to another hunter implies friendship, because it hasn't before, and "long enough to pick up hacking tricks" could just be one of the million things Frank was schooling him in.

I guess I'm looking for differences in either behaviour, motivation, or last on the list--actually admitting it.

by that point his social circle was Sam's crazy ass, so I read it as an urge for companionship

I read it as getting the tools he needs to be a badassed hunter, especially when Sam might be out of the game for his normal subject matter expertise.

My sister and I gush adjacently to each other, and in the depths of our sororal filing systems, we keep track of how much we've indulged each other in the things we don't actually share. Like, I watched Arrested Development as a birthday present to her, so she didn't hesitate to watch Community, but we do kinda have an impasse where she is in gay soap fandom, and I've got my Show.

She now feels she owes me some, in the give and take of things, and we have a longstanding conention when I say there are a lot of relationships out there where it's fun to read in subtext, but she insists that if they aren't making out onscreen, the male-male relationship isn't worth shipping. I've gushed White Collar a lot on this front, but she has decided she wants to have a look at the Destiel subtext.

WHAT DO I SHOW HER? This is like she's asked my ship out on a date, and I don't what perfume the ship should wear, or what kinds of conversation it should make.

What is D/C's (or D+C, either way) best ROI? If she's willing to watch one ep, which ep?

Free to Be You and Me? That at least has heavy Cas-presence. Otherwise I think you'd be gleaning maybe a minute or four of D/C moments out of a single ep.

I think "My Heart Will Go On" and "Mommy Dearest" would be pretty high on my list. Not sure how well the overall plots would play to a non-watcher, but the D/C is golden.