I agree it would have to be Sam too, considering the tragic life he's lead so far and his apparent 'destiny'. Dean dying wouldn't have the same impact, especially when you consider, like you said, that Dean's entire life is and always has been Sam.
Right, exactly. Considering that Sam's whole life - his desire to get out of hunting and then being forced back into it, his demon blood and his powers, his position as the apparent Antichrist - has been about hurtling toward something and his attempt to stop it, if it ends in his death, it's a tragic story and makes him a very tragic character. Especially since he's Dean's world and Dean would be left behind. If it was Dean who died - well, Sam isn't Dean-oriented the way Dean is Sam-oriented, and Dean's never had this nefarious destiny or that kind of struggle. It wouldn't be as poetic.
If it came to that and Sam died, I think Dean would probably end up getting himself killed, probably purposefully, because I can't imagine Dean living alone.
Self-destructive Dean is certainly probable, but it wouldn't satisfy me as much. I'd prefer to see him forced to live with Sam's death, with the fallout, alone, coping as well as he can (not that he'd ever really manage; you know he'd be broken forever). The death only stays meaningful if Dean is there to grieve. Also, I'm awfully sadistic.
Re: 159
Right, exactly. Considering that Sam's whole life - his desire to get out of hunting and then being forced back into it, his demon blood and his powers, his position as the apparent Antichrist - has been about hurtling toward something and his attempt to stop it, if it ends in his death, it's a tragic story and makes him a very tragic character. Especially since he's Dean's world and Dean would be left behind. If it was Dean who died - well, Sam isn't Dean-oriented the way Dean is Sam-oriented, and Dean's never had this nefarious destiny or that kind of struggle. It wouldn't be as poetic.
If it came to that and Sam died, I think Dean would probably end up getting himself killed, probably purposefully, because I can't imagine Dean living alone.
Self-destructive Dean is certainly probable, but it wouldn't satisfy me as much. I'd prefer to see him forced to live with Sam's death, with the fallout, alone, coping as well as he can (not that he'd ever really manage; you know he'd be broken forever). The death only stays meaningful if Dean is there to grieve. Also, I'm awfully sadistic.