I think it’s interesting that John Winchester, who had never hunted previous to the death of his wife, turns out to be one of the greatest hunters ever. Just the way Sam and Dean talk about him, like nothing ever got away before the Striga. He literally never fails. We see it in the flashback sequence when John comes in, yelling and firing his gun. He’s powerful and trained and kind of scary. It’s amazing that this very simple family man turns into this unbelievable powerhouse.
I love episodes like this where we really get glimpses into what makes Dean the man he is in present day. He is tormented by his constant need to be loved by his father, bound to a blind obedience because the one time he disobeyed, things went wrong. His father is extremely hard on him (with reason... John’s orders were to keep them safe and Dean didn’t listen) but it doesn’t help with Dean’s unbelievable guilt. Dean tends to believe that he is at fault for people’s deaths even when he’s not. He feels responsible for everyone and everything.
Speaking as an older sister, I can relate to this feeling. My younger brother and I used to beat on each other constantly, but if he ever got seriously hurt on my watch or it was somehow my fault, the guilt would eat me alive. I remember, very clearly, sitting in my bathtub at eight years old, crying after a mud fight turned ugly with a grain of sand in my brother’s eye. To this day, I can’t forgive myself for hurting him, even if I was just a kid.
I love when Dean finds kids who he sees himself in, like Michael. In these moments, it’s easy to see that Dean is not as gruff and mean as he acts. He understands what it’s like to love someone so much and feel responsible for them.
This episode, seeing Michael, makes me wonder about the people Sam and Dean change as the travel, especially the kids. Like Sam said, they’ll always know that they should be afraid of the dark. The sad thing is, I could totally see Michael becoming a hunter. He had the right spirit and if he feels he could protect the way people he protects Asher, he would. How many other kids like Sam and Dean and Michael are there out there, who see the monsters underneath the bed and grow up to destroy them?
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