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.

I think Sam's grief is also not as overt as Dean's because his relationship with his father was very different. Not that he loved him less, but he certainly loved him differently.

Sam was a little more verbal and expressive about his grief for Jess, but sexual/romantic love is a different beast, for one, and it was also fresh and completely unexpected, as well as weighted with guilt.

I think, too, that as the series has progressed, Sam's reexamined their childhood a lot, and he didn't have a lot of time to do that earlier.

"I don't have any books about elephants."

After you quoted it in Natter, ita, I had to google it because I hadn't watched SPN yet. It's apparently a line from Fletch.

It's apparently a line from Fletch.

Oh, that's even better! It's a different kind of random.

I keep wanting to ask questions about the early episodes, when will this happen, when will that happen, but I'm just going to hold on to the things whose timings I don't precisely remember and be surprised. It's kinda exciting this way.

Happy Dean Day people!

And a happy Sam Day back at you.

I'm just holding out for pain. Forecast looks good.

Cloudy with a definite chance of angst, yes.

It's BOYS Day, people! In my world, anyway.

I think so too - apparently, they sent screeners out for this episode and reviews have been good.

I'm pretty clearly a Dean girl, but there's no good Dean without Sam in my world. I totally don't get the divisions that I saw when I was trolling for anything-just-anything to read.

I loved how, at TWOP, they had to close down the Sam thread and the Dean thread because people were getting too crazy. Hell, I love that they have a Sam thread and a Dean thread.

I'm a Dean girl because he's the one I'd be attracted to in real life. I love Sam too. If I honestly disliked one of them I'd have a hard time watching the show, since their twisty relationship is so much of the draw for me.