I forget how gentle and kind Tessa is (though also how implacable). If there's such a thing as reapers I want Tessa.

Oh, absolutely. The bare feet and the soft clothes instead of the jeans and boots, the exposed throat, the bloody wounds. Poor little almost dead boy.

Still, I will look for screencaps.

I can send you some when I get home.

Brilliant!

The bare feet and the soft clothes instead of the jeans and boots, the exposed throat, the bloody wounds. Poor little almost dead boy.

V-Neck Shirts of Angst!

Seeing him in scrubs like that made me think of pudding. And boop.

However my favourite line from "Sam, Interrupted" is far and away "I don't have any books about elephants." I love the delivery. It goes through my head at the most random of times.

Also, Kripke is a royal bastard. I'm putting myself back in my mental state at the time 2.01 aired, and I can't believe he killed John! Poor Sam, discovering him. And Dean, knowing the price. Mnnf.

Also, Kripke is a royal bastard. I'm putting myself back in my mental state at the time 2.01 aired, and I can't believe he killed John!

Yes. Sam dropping the coffee and running to John. Sweet Jesus that hurt.

The slo-mo silent reaction to death is done over and over, but damn. It sure can work.

Yes. Sam dropping the coffee and running to John. Sweet Jesus that hurt.

Particularly since that's pretty much the sum total of Sam's grief that we get to experience (other than the 'I'm not okay and I know you're not either' line.)

That's pretty harsh, Morgana. Yes, JA did get the car-smashing scene, and it was stellar, and it did set fandom's little heart a-pittypat. But Sam was obviously in pain--doubly so because of grief for John and worry for Dean, who was behaving un-Dean-like. Just because JP didn't get to smash things with a crowbar doesn't mean he didn't play Sam's grief.

I rather like his simmer-until-boil rage and other negative emotions. When he does explode it's more impressive. I can't think of a scene I've played back more than his "I don't want candy" drunken, desperate confrontation with the crossroads demon. Unless it's "I'm a whole new level of freak." There are others, as well. These two happen to be my favorites because I'm a biiig fan of the wingspan.

Thing about the JJs, this series has been such a master class for them in film acting. Going in, season one, I was already aware of JA whenever he was onscreen. He brings energy whether the focus is on him or not, he's giving you reaction without pulling focus from the main point of the scene. JP has become a master of that, too. I think back on a lot of Dean pyrotechnics and what JPs giving us is subtle (and not-so-subtle) reaction. Dean's roadside confession scene was made exponentially more excruciating by Sam's reception of it, his desperate attempt to absorb the information, process it somehow, and give Dean what he needed at that moment, which was space, and not what Sam wanted, which was to reassure, and probably to hug, break down as well. We saw Sam's struggle to stay strong for his brother. It was actually a microcosm of his theme for S4.

I don't think JP or Sam are taking a back seat in the acting department. I do think the writers haven't devoted an equal share of attention to Sam's journey, and I wish they would.