The great Dean Winchester from Supernatural is now a legendary character. To his fans of the SPN Family, he's a fictional character but one that actually left a mark on audiences forever. It's easy to rewatch Jensen Ackles's brilliant performance of the extremely enigmatic character. Each episode of every season reveals a new side to Dean, with his charm, humor, and above all, his self-sacrifice emerging through his choices.
With this fascinating character though, there are moments when true fans of the show can recognize something that's starkly unrecognizable of Dean to do. While Dean's reactions weren't always predictable, his inherent need to save everyone he loves seems like it can never be broken, or can it?
Out Of Character: Pointing A Gun At Sam
Didn't every single fan gasp at the sight of Dean pointing a gun at his beloved brother when they were all trying to finally defeat Chuck in Season 15? Not even as a possessed Dean, or as another-world Dean, this is really Dean just snapping and losing his mind over what's most important to him.
This action was certainly way out of character for Dean. Even such a brief moment caused such long-term anxiety among fans because all they could think about when they first watched this scene were all those times Dean literally threw himself in the line of fire to save Sam. So, seeing the knight and shining armor of a big brother crumble into dust in this one moment of uncontrollable aggression was probably the worst thing fans have seen Dean do.
Redemption: Admitting His Mistake
Well, it sure is a good thing that Dean admits his mistake after the incident when Sam tries to stop Dean from feeding into his fixation on beating God. Real fans already knew an apology probably wasn't going to be too tearful or dramatic from the favorite big brother, but seeing him actually admit what he did was refreshing for fans.
Thankfully, this was the moment when fans discovered they didn't actually lose Dean to the blackhole of vengeance he clearly starts to fall into when rewatching the episode.
Out Of Character: Letting Cas Leave
Countless fans say that Dean could have, and obviously should have, stopped Castiel from leaving the bunker to "move on" as he says at this moment.
What's not surprising is how Dean becomes brutally angry at his longtime friend, basically a brother now, after Jack kills Mary. The fandom expected Dean to look for a scapegoat, but many will always be against Dean's hypocritical move, which is allowing Cas to leave. Out of all the things the angel and the hunter have been through, Dean just watches his self-proclaimed brother leave their family?
Redemption: Recognizing The Family Philosophy
The good news is that Dean eventually apologizes to Castiel and embraces that famous Winchester philosophy, "family don't end with blood."
When Dean and Cas go to Purgatory to search for the Leviathan Blossom needed to create a spell to trap Chuck, they both revisit the blaring problem between each other. Dean appears to still struggle to forgive Castiel in his involvement with Jack's soulless, overpowerful phase, that caused the death of Dean's mother. It's a real replenishing moment in seeing Dean tearfully apologize to Castiel once he realizes how much he needs his angelic brother.
Out Of Character: Insulting Jack
It's unfortunately normal to witness Dean despise most supernatural beings, but even when Jack is human, Dean just seems to have this aversion to "the kid" as he dubs him. Of course, that term becomes more affectionate later, especially after Jack dies and Dean refers to him as "our kid" when Jack's body is briefly possessed by a demon.
But Dean eventually blurts out to Sam that Jack isn't family to him anymore, clearly because of what happened to Mary. Seeing Jack try to regain a meaningful relationship with Dean was heartbreaking when fans first saw that, especially when Jack sacrificed his life for the greater good and Dean just went along with it. This entire situation was a huge insult to Jack.
Redemption: Understanding Jack
It's a relief to see Dean try to bond with Jack in one episode when he is human for some time. Taking him for a spin in the Impala and showing him the basics of living life for a day are all sensible things Dean does to help Jack acclimate. Also, when Dean listens to Jack's soul-rejuvenating revelation of unintentionally killing Mary, he actually listens and forgives "the kid."
This is Dean's way of quietly redeeming himself for the times when he constantly doubted Jack's entire presentation, and overall just didn't trust him.
Out Of Character: Saying "Yes" To Michael
Some will argue that this isn't necessarily something that's out of Dean's character, but it really is when considering all of the reasons why he never gave in to something like this.
Dean just isn't the surrendering type. That one's an obvious fact, but seeing him lose his grasp of what Michael would probably do (and then actually does!) was not met well by die-hard Dean fans. They're the ones that knew, from the second they first watched this moment go down, that Dean slipped on his usual non-surrendering persona.
Redemption: He Beats God By Getting Beaten Up By God
Fortunately, Dean reminds viewers that he never stopped being the fighter that he was simply born to be. At the end of Season 15, the boys and Jack face off against Chuck. What the boys do is actually a pretty jarring sight for viewers, as they helplessly watched God "get his hands dirty" and literally destroy their faces.
But Dean (and Sam) shows that this action isn't a way to give up. If any fans know the line from another famous film character, Rocky Balboa, "it's about how hard you get hit and keep moving forward," Dean embodies this perspective and takes a beating from God in order to beat him in the end. This action shows how Dean's fighting mode never really was turned off.
Out Of Character: Befriending A Vampire
Being that Dean, at least through the earlier seasons of the show, for the most part, typically associated any supernatural being as a monster, it was a strange thing for fans to absorb as Dean's Purgatory buddy was the vampire, Benny.
Even in Season 15, when other realities unfold of different Sams and Deans killing each other, fans get a glimpse of Benny. Dean basically adopted this guy as his other brother, leaving Sam and loyal Dean fans speechless due to his track record of looking down on anything that isn't fully human. After all, he couldn't even accept his own brother exorcising demons in Season 4.
Redemption: Proving To Sam He's His Priority
In the end, though, Dean proves to Sam how he will always choose his little brother over anything. There are multiple moments when the legendary hunter redeems himself with his brother throughout the 15 years of the show.
Not only does Dean save Sam countless times, but he also vocalizes how deeply he cares about his brother and that "there isn't anything, past or present" that he would put in front of Sam. It's clear in the end that Dean learned a lot in his life on how to better his relationships, primarily his relationship with his brother.