The premise of the End was that Dean (Jensen Ackles) was sent to the year 2014 by Zachariah (Kurt Fuller) to see what the world would become if he did not say yes to Michael. He arrived in a world plagued by Croatoan (something we first encountered in Season 1), and eventually managed to find himself. That's right, we had the pleasure of two Deans, one more surly than the other.
We still got our laughs. When Dean 2009 proved to Dean 2014 he was in fact himself, he spoke of trying on girl's panties when he was 19. He'd kind of liked it. And Cas, no longer an angel in this destroyed world, became an orgy-enjoying hippie. Plus, you had to love how well Dean actually knows himself and called himself out when he was spouting BS.
But the comedy was not what made this episode so brilliant. And yes, you gotta love how much Jensen Ackles we got. He had to work hard, after all, conversing with himself and creating a future Dean who had evolved from now Dean in a believable manner. I had no doubt that Dean could end up that way by 2014 given the circumstances. The real gem of the episode, however, was a stunning performance by Jared Padalecki.
We hardly saw Sam all episode, just a bit at the start and finish, but in 2014 we had one wonderful scene in which Dean 2009 faced Lucifer wearing Sam to the prom. What poise, what talent. Padalecki kept the same reservedness which all other actors playing Lucifer on Supernatural have displayed thus far. It's as if one person has continually played that part, simply wearing different costumes, which is a testament to the abilities of all of them.
Plus, seeing Sam not even present in Padalecki's eyes, completely dominated by the scorned lover, there is a praise-worthy performance. No, I never want to see Lucifer in Sam's body again, but boy did it show what Padalecki is capable of.
Which part of this episode moved you?