This topic may seem trivial, but it was inspired oleh an essay in the book In the Hunt: Unauthorized Essays on Supernatural. The essay(Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Jo the Monster Killer oleh Mary Borsellino) asserted that every woman on the tampil was either a damsel in distress atau killed/written off because they were in danger of becoming "Buffy" and therefore threatening the masculinity of the show. The essay was written before Season 4 (and apparently before Season 3 as well because no mention is made of Ruby atau Bela).

Frankly, it pissed me off. For one thing it painted everything in the tampil as a "regression" of the progress made oleh Buffy in how women are depicted on television, down to how the Winchesters use guns because they are a symbol of masculinity. What I learned from the essay is that some people seem incapable of viewing women on televisi as anything other than a representative of their sex. Jo Harvelle, for example, isn't a character she's a symbol for women everywhere. Her flaws and the things that happen to her then become a statement on women everywhere. So basically what they're saying is that a male character can be flawed and still represent men accurately, but a female character with flaws is an inaccurate representation of women. Right. Because women are perfect. Give me a break! oleh viewing all female characters as "feminine" role model and claiming that their "weaknesses" tampil how men denigrate women, they're saying that in order to be a feminine role model anda can't be real, anda have to be perfect. oleh placing Jo(for example) on a pedestal and comparing her to characters such as Buffy, they're robbing her of what makes her Jo and not Buffy. They're robbing her of her ability to be an individual character. She's a young, inexperienced hunter- not a super powered girl charged with the protection of the world. Another thing that's pointed out is how gruesomely the women on the tampil die. Hello!?! Everyone on this tampil dies a gruesome death.

Anyway, the essay got me to thinking about women on the show. And it's true, there have been some "damsels in distress"- but there's also been some men in distress too. Just because women can scream better than men doesn't mean men don't piss themselves when they're scared. And most of these people in distress are civilians. To expect them (man atau woman) to comport themselves with the skill and bravery of an experienced hunter is ridiculous.

Which brings me to Jamie. I've heard her referred to as a "Damsel in Distress"- which is not at all the impression I got from this episode. In fact, I even made a pick asking if people thought she'd eventually become a hunter. I can easily see that potential in her and she continues to be one of my favourite minor characters featured in only one episode.

In order to understand how Jamie is far from a DiD(Damsel in Distress) we need to examine exactly how layered this episode is. Monster Movie is black and white, right? Wrong. It's all shades of gray. Nothing in this episode is what it seems to be.

Dean starts the episode off oleh saying he's looking meneruskan, ke depan to a simple, straight forward, black and white case. He's tired of shades of gray. So he's eager to swoop in and save the hari oleh beheading some vampires. Well, of course it's not that simple. It turns out they're not dealing with vampire but a shapeshifter. A shapeshifter who is both monster and victim.

As for Jamie, she certainly looks the part of the DiD; beautiful, blond and sexily attired. But nothing is what it appears to be in this episode. From the first moment we see Jamie we get a subtle hint of role reversal. She walks past Dean and Sam and it's her that casually flirts with Dean in passing. Later, when Sam and Dean approach her in the bar and introduce themselves as FBI agents, she doubts their veracity. The sheriff didn't pertanyaan them but Jamie did. Right there it shows that she's observant, smart and doesn't take things at face value. All good qualities for a potential hunter. Dean flirts with her, but never is he in control of their dynamics. Jamie may be attracted to him but she knows cheese when she smells it. She gently rolls her eyes at his "rebel with a badge" speech. She lets him flirt with her but she turns down his invitation to go out because she's already made plans. She shows good character in not ditching her friend in favor of a hot guy. Later, it's Jamie who reopens the invitation and agrees to go out with Dean. She's the one in control, not Dean. She waits for him after work- but she doesn't wait forever like some DiD pining for her knight in shining armor. She's leaving when the shapeshifter shows up.

Upon his appearance she runs. DiD behavior atau common sense? A woman was just killed in a nearby park oleh a man described as a "vampire" and a guy shows up out of nowhere dressed like Dracula. If you're not armed with a gun atau trained in hand to hand combat, what exactly is the best course of action? Running. So then Jamie makes a wrong turn and ends up in a blind alley. Oh no- the female character made a mistake! Does that make her a DiD? No, it means she made a mistake because she's frightened. Does fear make her a DiD? No, it makes her human. What does she do when she's cornered oleh some big freaky guy? She maces the S.O.B. and escapes. She turns the corner and there's Dean. He tells her to run while he handles the wannabe Dracula. She does. Does that make her a DiD? No, it makes her smart. Let the trained federal agent handle the psycho so she can go get help. Don't stick around and get in the way atau provide the psycho with a potential hostage. And frankly, Dean doesn't fare much better than Jamie against the shapeshifter. The most he manages to do is rip off an ear.

When the truth is revealed to Jamie that they are hunting an actual monster, she immediately realizes that her first impression of them was correct- they aren't federal agents. And when she sees that they are just two guys traveling the country hunting monsters, she doesn't romanticize it. She cuts right to the jantung of the matter- telling Dean his life must suck. She sees past the glamorous heroics to what their life really is all about- sacrifice. And her startling insight affects Dean, prompting him to open up to her and reveal something important. Something she takes to heart. He tells her that the past few years he's lost his sense of purpose, doubted the merit of his life. But because of a "near death" experience he's been tentatively renewed. He cautiously asserts that what he does saves people and therefore his life must have real purpose, his sacrifices mean something and he might be important in the grand scheme of things.

After this confession, they kiss. Note that it's Jamie who initiates it, once again controlling their personal interactions. So the girl kissed the hero who saved her. Does that make her a DiD? No, it makes her a hot blooded heterosexual woman. Who wouldn't ciuman Dean if diberikan the opportunity?

They're interrupted oleh Jamie's friend Lucy. Once again Jamie shows good character oleh not telling her friend to take a hike and maintaining control of her "relationship" with Dean oleh inviting Lucy to have a drink with them. She's not some simpering girl desperate to rip her clothes off and tampil her "gratitude" to the hero. She praises Dean's fighting skills even though he didn't actually do much fighting and the shapeshifter escaped. Does that make her a DiD? No, that just makes her a sensitive person who sees beyond Dean's swagger to the insecurity underneath. She let him be the hero because it makes him feel like his life's worth living.

Then Dean recognizes that they've been drugged but Jamie doesn't- she just passes out. Does this make her a DiD? No, it makes her a trusting friend. Why would she ever think that Lucy would drug her? And so the monster captures both Jamie and Dean. Now they both need rescuing.

Jamie wakes up in "Dracula's lair". She's visibly frightened and she tells her captor that she just wants to go home. Does this make her a DiD? No, it makes her a person who's out of their element- kidnapped oleh a monster who's been pretending to be her friend and now demanding that she play some kind of weird game with him. I'd want to go halaman awal too. When she thinks she hears someone outside, she calls out to Dean for help. Does this make her a DiD? No, it makes her unarmed and unprepared to kill a shapeshifter on her own. She very intelligently calls out- letting whoever's out there know where she is and that she needs help. She's struck down and knocked unconscious oleh the monster. Does this make her a DiD? No, it makes her someone struck oleh a preternaturally strong creature.

So Dean is suffering from is own DiD moment- dressed up and strapped down- helpless to save himself. But do we denigrate him for not being able to save himself? No. After Sam rescues him, they set off to rescue Jamie, the supposed DiD. They rush in to save the day, but Sam is too focused on the DiD to pay attention to where the monster is. He's thrown through a wall, disarmed and knocked for a loop. Dean is also rendered defenseless oleh the shapeshifter. It's Dean who lays on the floor in classic DiD pose as the monster closes in. Shots ring out and Dean is saved. Sam must have gathered himself and retrieved his weapon. But "Dracula" turns around to reveal that it's Jamie who's gathered herself, stood up, taken gun in hand and saved the day. Jamie rose to the occasion and did something she's never done in her life. Shot and killed a monster. How can anyone watch this scene and then label her a "Damsel in Distress"?

Perhaps they're forming their opinion from the episode's epilogue, where the hero is proud that everything ended happily ever after. The monster was ganked and the hero got the girl. Jamie even thanks them for saving her. lol Even now, after she's the one who ganked the monster, rescued the DiD (Dean) and got the guy, she lets Dean play the hero. Does that make her a DiD? No, it makes her sensitive, generous, maybe even a little condescending. But it sure as hell doesn't make her weak, simpering, dumb atau in any way a Damsel in Distress.

Nothing is what it seems in this episode- as evidenced oleh the pertanyaan mark that follows "The End", asking the audience to pertanyaan what they just watched. Did they see a black and white episode about a Beautiful Damsel in Distress saved from an Evil Monster oleh Handsome Heroes? atau did they see an episode full of shades of gray, where the handsome heroes are rescued both physically and emotionally from a pitiable monster oleh the beautiful damsel in distress?

I have no trouble imagining Jamie eventually becoming a hunter. Now that her eyes have been opened to the possibility of monsters she'll take things even less on face value. I don't picture her just jumping in, but she'd be lebih suspicious of the unusual and if she encountered another monster I have no doubt that she'd take action and do what needed to be done to save people. The pertanyaan mark at the end could also signify the pertanyaan of whether atau not this is the end of Jamie's story atau the beginning?

What's just as interesting as Jamie's status as heroine of the episode, is the fan inability to recognize it. Are we so fooled oleh the pretty blonde in the silky white dress with the sweet smile that we can't see beyond that? If Jamie is the hero of the story, then that makes Dean the damsel in distress. Can the fan not accept that? Do we need Dean to be the hero as desperately as he needs it himself? oleh calling Jamie the damsel in distress are the fan doing what Jamie herself did? Letting Dean be the hero?

Which brings me full circle. Was Jamie written off the tampil because she was a potential "Buffy"? Did she threaten Dean's status as hero? I don't think so. She illustrated his need to be a hero but she didn't make him any less of a hero oleh being one herself. And the reason it's unlikely that she'll make another appearance on the tampil is simply because there's no room for extraneous characters atau characters who draw too much attention away from the central plot. This isn't a tampil about male/female relationships. It's a tampil about the relationship between two brothers. And that is why so many characters(both male and female) are either killed atau written off the show. Besides, why should Jamie atau Jo tag along behind the Winchesters when they've got lives of their own to lead?