This is the third January 24th without Supernatural, and yes, I still miss Dean Winchester. No one – no fictional character – has taken his place in my heart or captured my imagination like Dean did.
I honestly don’t think anyone ever will.
I’m very grateful there are still lots of other people who miss Dean too, and are celebrating his birthday. It’s been Dean Winchester birthday week on Tumblr and Twitter, with amazing gif sets and photos and fans posting about why they love him, from his most endearing personality traits to his most unforgettable outfits. I love seeing how important Dean is to so many people, how many people’s lives he touched in his fifteen years of “existence”.
I’ve written many many times about why I love Dean, from his loyalty and love for family and friends and especially his little brother, to his fierceness when any of those are threatened. He wasn’t always one to talk about his feelings, but Dean didn’t shy away from showing affection to those he cared about.
I love his little boyish delight in so many simple things too – when he’s making up new names for monsters and unrepentantly proud of it or sneaking a chance to climb into the ring and pretend to be a wrestling champion just for the fun of it.
The joy he got from getting to dress up, whether it was for a trip back to the Old West or be a nerd for the day, or to put on a tux and pretend to not want to be objectified.
He found happiness in all sorts of simple things, from the treat of a good burger or a delicious slice of pie to a night off to sit on the hood of the Impala with Sam and watch the stars. From a chance to live the normal suburban life for a day and mow your mother’s lawn to the pure joy of roaring down the road in his Baby, his brother beside him.
I love his strength, but I also love the fact that Jensen Ackles showed us his tenderness and vulnerability, that he let the sadness he felt in the face of overwhelming loss bring tears that he wasn’t ashamed to let fall.
I love his bowlegs and his impossibly long eyelashes and the freckles sprinkled across his handsome face and his green eyes that people wax poetic about in fanfic.
Honestly, there’s not much I don’t love about Dean Winchester.
Except that he and Supernatural are not on my screen every week.
This past season, we’ve seen some little glimpses of Dean on ‘The Winchesters’ and heard his voice every week as he narrates the new mission he’s on to figure out his parents’ past. It’s not the same as having the Winchester brothers back on Supernatural and back together again, but I don’t think that was the point. The point was keeping the world of Supernatural alive, and our glimpses of Dean help anchor that universe, in another time and perhaps another space. We’ll see him again soon it seems, and maybe get some answers about why he’s there and not in Heaven hanging out with Sam and driving around in Baby.
We’ve also heard Jensen and Jared talk about how much they want to bring back “OG Supernatural” with a revival, which never fails to leave me sitting there grinning and crossing every finger and toe I have hoping that happens. Every time they say it at a convention, the room erupts in cheers, and I can see them drink it in, thinking hmmm, maybe. I know they want to do it; I’m just hoping the insane network landscape right now allows it at some point in the not too distant future. Until then, I’ll enjoy the glimpses of Dean on The Winchesters and keep rewatching the 15 seasons of Supernatural that we were so damn lucky to get.
Take care of him, Jensen, until Sam and Dean are back to ‘saving people, hunting things’ and it seems all is right with the world once again.
Happy birthday, Dean Winchester!
Gifs by green circles, abordelimpala, heytheredean, sasquatchandleatherjacket, mooselys, mishha, itsokaysammy, elainamarie89
–Lynn
You can read Jensen and Jared and Misha’s
(and many more cast) thoughts on their
characters and Supernatural in Family
Don’t End With Blood and There’ll Be Peace
When You Are Done – info and links at:
Dean Winchester, was a man out of step with the world, who disregarded convention and rules, operating with a unique morality of his own. He was the very epitome of the Good Samaritan.
Dean gave far more than he took, found peace in helping people. Flawed and imperfect, reckless even, he just wanted to be like ‘Joe the Plumber’ he neither sought attention ( unless you were a pretty girl) or reward.
Carrying a heavy burden from a young age, as an adult he suffered unspeakable things but found the strength to smile and be strong for his family and friends. Dean lived life to the full savouring the small things, inspiring those around him to be better and find the best versions of themselves. It’s small wonder this fictional character still resonates.
Happy Birthday Dean!
As much as this was a scripted show, how
things translated into making the character grounded and real lies with the very gifted Jensen Ackles, Dean’s real life champion and best friend.
Dean’s birthday seems the perfect time to say thank you Jensen and for your valiant efforts to keep the world Dean inhabits spinning until you can bring him back to us
Thank you for this, it’s absolutely awesome 👌 and sums it up perfectly!!
Bring back SUPERNATURAL BEFORE it’s too late…
So many re-boots fail because the producers wait TOO LONG to bring ’em back!!!!