Friday, October 17, 2008

Geez, Hadn't Thought of That

I'm supposed to be writing. Well, I'm supposed to be updating my Romance Wiki, THEN writing. But I had to do this first. It's that instant gratification thing. And maybe the procrastination thing.

I rarely dip my toe into the Supernatural fandom. I have a few online acquaintances whose blogs I read, careful associations that are "safe" in that the posters and their commenters are mature and thoughtful and usually feel the way I do about the show. But every so often, they link to something that has exploded out there in the masses, and I dare to click the link, and I get splattered.

This time, the wank is about the Sam/Ruby issue, and it brought up a point I hadn't thought about. And, of course, I was compelled to comment.

First, some facts:

1. In "Lazarus Rising," when Dean finds Sam's hotel room, a half-naked woman opens the door. A short time later, Dean comments on a bra.

2. In a recent interview, Robert Singer said Ruby was possessing that woman at the time she opened the door.

3. Demons and spirits have made references to what Sam and Ruby are doing, and those references have sexual connotations.

4. Jared Padelecki, as quoted in an article, says he believes Sam and Ruby are doing something.

It has been pointed out that if Sam and Ruby are indeed having sex, and Ruby possessed a living woman who is now trapped in her body with no control over what the demon does to it, then that woman is being raped. This is a truth. (I'd say she's being raped by both Sam and Ruby, and that the possession itself is a form of rape.)

Now, of course no one wants their beloved Sam to have crossed that line, and apparently, the response has been over-the-top abusive to the people who have brought this up. That's unconscionable, and it disgusts me. No, we don't know what's happening yet, and maybe the implication is being misread, and that's fine. But if that is what's happening, it is rape. Period.

Now here's why I think that's not what's happening:

1. No matter how close they want to take Sam to the bad side, I really can't see them letting him cross over so completely. While Sam has disregarded the reality of Ruby's possession, and often considered individual life acceptable collateral damage in killing demons, this is something he would think about. Dean might not think that deeply when sex is involved, but Sam doesn't do casual sex.

2. We can't take demon references at face value. I mean, come on, they know how to push buttons and dig at people's tender emotional centers and twist truths to make them sound completely evil. I can see that maybe Sam has desire for the body housing Ruby, and an emotional connection to Ruby that could make him consider having sex with her, and then the demons using those feelings against him. Referencing them in a way that implies they are dirtier than they are, or have gone further than they have.

3. It's possible that Kripke and company haven't realized this factor is there. I find that hard to believe, unless the writing staff now has no women on it (and Sera Gamble obviously is in charge, so that's not the case). Even if they weren't aware of the implication, it's not too late to "fix" it. It has not been established that Sam has had sex with a possessed woman, so they can take that thread anywhere, including complete and honest denial that anything has happened.

So. That's what I think. Let's see if the wank follows me over here. :)

1 comment:

MJFredrick said...

Eeek! I certainly hadn't thought of that! Bet Kripke hasn't either.