Ok so...season four ended on a doozy. Sam ganked Lilith in order to keep her from breaking the last seal. That ended up being the absolute worst thing Sam could've done because Lilith herself was the final seal. To make matters worse, the angels knew it was going to happen and actually wanted to bring on the apocalypse as well. All the dominos have fallen into place and now the end of days has begun. NOTE: I will definitely have to spoil major parts of this season since its 4 seasons worth of buildup. You've been warned.
The drama this season is absolutely fantastic. Its all about Dean trying his damnedest not to say Yes to Michael while he and Sam try to stop Lucifer. Its made just so damn much harder because Sam is Lucifer's vessel. No matter what they do, everyone says the same thing: The only way this can end is a knockdown drag out fight between brothers and only one of them can come out on top.
I really like how this show paints the angels in this season. They're very much egotistical and holier than thou but they aren't letting people suffer because they believe in the greater good or paradise or whatever. They talk a big game but really...they're doing it because sky daddy stopped calling millennia ago and they're tired of keeping the gears turning. The heavenly bigwigs just sound so defeated, frustrated, and burned out. They simply do not care at all about humanity but god help any talking monkey that does anything to displease them or get on their nerves. They straight up only tolerate Dean because they need Michael to show up for the big brawl. They're very inhuman but incredibly petty and human at the same time.
So...the Trickster in this season twice and I absolutely love him. His actor has done a great job at stealing the scene whenever he shows up. The man has such a great arc. See...the greatest trick he ever pulled is making people think he was a Trickster. He isn't one, he is an archangel, Gabriel specifically. Dude went into hiding after Lucifer's fall because he got utterly sick of seeing Lucifer and Michael at each other's throats all the time. Its really kinda tragic. The man doesn't want to watch his brothers fight and kill each other but both he knows damn well are two stubborn to avoid it. At this point he doesn't care who wins, he just wants this little family spat to stop. The other episode is so good that I kinda don't want to cover it here because I don't think I could do it justice.
Something I didn't put together until I started writing about this season is the little allegory with the Winchestors. I thought it was weird they were specifically the vessels of their opposite angel personality-wise. Then I realized its not just brothers going head-to-head as the classic trope. It sums up the brother's roles in their relationship. Dean is this big rebel who disrespects and disregards authority, except when its an order coming from John. He becomes a good little soldier on that front. Meanwhile Sam is the complete opposite. All too eager to respect authority to a point...except when John shows up. Dean and Sam essentially are Michael and Lucifer so I guess that kinda makes John God in their little family dynamic.
I had planned to try to cover it all when I first started typing this post but man this is a lot to cover so I guess thats my cue to leave some of this in the dark. This season is downright perfect. I mean, how could it not be? Its been four great seasons worth of buildup coming to ahead. On the off chance you haven't seen this show, I highly recommend the first 5 seasons and I can't praise it enough. I knew it was good, I just forgot how good until this rewatch. All in all, its just fantastic tv.
