Sam/Dean

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Pairing
Pairing: Sam Winchester/Dean Winchester
Alternative name(s): Wincest, Dean/Sam, Samdean, Weecest (if the incest happens while they are underage)
Gender category: M/M, Slash
Fandom: Supernatural
Canonical?: No
Prevalence: High
Archives:
Other:
Sam and Dean: screenshot from the television series
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Sam/Dean, or Wincest as many of the fans like to call it, is the original OTP in Supernatural fandom. It is one of the most popular pairings within Supernatural fandom.

It is also correlated with J2, the RPF ship of the actors (Jared and Jensen) who play them.

Fandom

Ship Appeal

wincest themed LJ icon, design by lostt1
You know Sam and Dean Winchester are psychotically, irrationally, erotically codependent on each other, right?
canon, the angel Zachariah, 5x18 "Point of No Return"
A popular Wincest photomanip based on a screencap from season 1 episode 21, by an unknown creator, that was widely circulated in the fandom

The main appeal of the Sam/Dean pairing is the incredibly intense, chaotic, consuming and emotional connection and indescribable love between Sam and Dean as depicted on the show itself. (They are each other's world, would die for each other and actually do so; then they come back because you don't leave your brother behind!). The relationship between the two brothers is the emotional center of the show; showrunner Sera Gamble has referred to Supernatural as “The Epic Love Story of Sam and Dean”.[1] Some fans are drawn to the idea of Sam/Dean as tragic romance and have even argued that Sam/Dean are the M/M version of Romeo/Juliet.[2] (It also doesn't hurt that both characters are played by attractive young men.)

In response to a 2007 meta post by a non-Wincest shipper, a few fans explained that while the incest was a kink for some Wincest shippers, for others, the fact that Sam and Dean were brothers was not a factor in their interest.

On the show, there have been many references about Wincest, including many outsiders thinking they are a gay couple to the activities in which Sam/Dean engage in having romantic undertones (chick flick moments, emotional bonding, star-gazing together), to being declared as metaphysical soul mates bonded for life that also share Heaven together. Many fans also feel that Sam/Dean's love for each other is much more then that of a brotherly, platonic or friendship love and that their connection and bond is more along the lines of a romantic love. This is because Sam/Dean's love for each other has been seen to be extremely emotional, intense, passionate, all encompassing, highly co-dependent and consuming.

History

The first episode aired on September 13, 2005[3], and Sam/Dean slash kicked off immediately. The Supernatural slash community sn_slash (Supernatural Slash - For all your brotherly needs) was founded the very next day and the first story posted was a short 350-word snippet called Reunion by janedavitt.[4] Other stories that implied incest such as "Burdens In The Dark" by wistful_fever (16th September)[5] soon followed.

Common Tropes in Fanworks

  • Incest: Sam/Dean fic ranges from deeply angsty and intense on the part of one or both brothers about their relationship being incestuous and thus "wrong", to cheerfully accepting with romantic fluff (with their on-the-road hunter childhood, they were raised different from other kids anyway, so what's one more thing?) of the incest factor.
  • Pre-Series or Wee!cest: a focus on their relationship pre-canon, often showing them having a romantic relationship, sometimes with them breaking things off when Sam goes to college, these stories, especially if they contain sexual elements, are called wee!cest
  • Raised Apart: A subgenre of Sam/Dean fic involves the raised-apart trope, where the brothers were separated when Sam was very young, and on meeting as adults without knowing who the other is, are intensely attracted to each other.
  • Amnesia: usually a curse or spell causes the brothers to forget that they're brothers, but they decide (usually based on evidence of their constant proximity and remaining feelings of affection) that they must be involved and act on it, angst follows.
  • Hurt/Comfort: fics seems to be pretty evenly split, with both Sam and Dean being the object of the hurt and receiving comfort
  • Protective Dean Winchester: exploring Dean's protective instincts towards Sam, and the lengths Dean is willing to go to save Sam, often emphasizing the emotional components of Dean's behaviour
  • Codependency: examining the codependent nature of Sam and Dean's relationship, this can be shown in a negative or positive light depending on what the creators wish to explore
  • Deathfic or Near Death: these experiences are usually used in fic as a way to explore Sam and Dean's deeper feelings for each other. These stories can sometimes be dark, ending in permanent death, while others will find a way for Sam and/or Dean to avoid their fates at the last moment, or they will contain the resurrection trope, where a revelation of feelings occurs after one of them returns
  • Evil!Sam with Dean: Sam becoming evil, as the Boy!King of Hell, or by drinking demon blood. Dean's role in these fics varies, sometimes he is Sam's consort, or he fully embraces becoming evil and is a demon, or he remains human and is lost in the situation, either way he almost always refuses to leave Sam despite what he has become
  • Smith & Wesson: focusing on the alternative reality in the episode It's a Terrible Life, where the boys were named Smith and Wesson, this universe can be attractive to fans because in it the Winchesters are not brothers, thus avoiding the incest issue
  • RPS: Because some Supernatural slash fans don't want to write, draw, or vid incestuous pairings, there is also a J2 or Jared/Jensen fandom within SPN based on the two actors rather than the two characters. J2 is a highly popular pairing within RPS fiction and within the SPN fandom. This is why Supernatural is sometimes called the fandom where RPS has the moral high ground.

Challenges

Controversies

  • Incest: The ship is subject to same general controversy that all incestuous ships are.

Fanworks

Fanfiction

Fanart

See also Category:Supernatural Art

Vids

Doujinshi

See also Category: Supernatural Doujinshi

Zines

See also Category:Supernatural Zines

Art Gallery

Meta and Ship Manifestos

Further Reading

Archives and Links

References

  1. ^ Super Women: Supernatural's Executive Story Editor Sera Gamble at Sequential Tart, 01 December 2006.
  2. ^ For example, the TV Tropes page on Dean contains several references to Romeo & Juliet. His relationship with Sam is basically Romeo and Juliet on steroids. When it comes to Dean's devotion to Sam, love doesn't just make him crazy, it makes Dean extremely co-dependent, depressed, self-destructive, and suicidal.
  3. ^ epguides.com/Supernatural
  4. ^ janedavitt. Reunion, 14 September 2005. (Accessed 02 March 2010)
  5. ^ wistful_fever. Burdens In The Dark, 16 September 2005. (Accessed 02 March 2010)
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