Ever since that kiss, only one episode after their first
meeting, Hunters were shipping Crobby full throttle, myself included. And
here’s why:
One of my favorite points I’ve ever heard about Crowley and
Bobby was that they have the same catchphrase.
While Bobby mutters “Balls,” Crowley can often be heard mumbling
“Bullocks” in the same manner. In
America, balls is a word for a man’s testicles, and in Britain, bullocks is a
word for a man’s testicles. This initial recognition led me to wonder, could
Bobby and Crowley be foils of each other?
For those of you who are unaware, a foil is a literary
device defined as “a character that shows qualities that are in contrast with
the qualities of another character with the objective to highlight the traits of the other character”
by literarydevices.net (URL: https://literarydevices.net/foil/). I’m a huge fan of this literary device, and
it has been proven to work well in some famous works (IE Shakespeare).
Back to Crobby, my thought here is that Bobby and Crowley
are, essentially opposites of each other, intended to show off the light/dark
theme that appears to be ongoing throughout Supernatural, but particularly
relevant to Season 5. While there is a
possibility that the “Bullocks/Balls” similarity could be a complete
coincidence, I think there’s more to it.
Here’s why:
| BOBBY | Episode | CROWLEY | Episode |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kind-hearted father figure | 7.10 | Vile demon & horrible father | 6.04, 9.21 |
| Loves wholeheartedly without abuse | 5.01 | Loves no one except himself (and maybe Bobby...?) | every single episode |
| Gruff & "redneck", takes no shit | 1.22 | Sleek, charming, & charismatic | 5.10 |
| Grew up with a horribly abusive father and submissive mother | 7.10 | Grew up with a horrible & absent mother, & no father | 10.09 |
Bobby's character can be evidenced from his rugged nature, his family values (see "Death's Door) and his ability to love Sam even when he finds out the boy started the damn apocalypse (this show is on drugs, but luckily they're the fun kind!). Crowley's character, in contrast, can be evidenced by his charisma and charm, his lack of values (or family for that matter), and his inability to truly care for anyone outside himself, except perhaps Bobby.
Due to the nature of the foil as a literary device, it seems
logical and natural to ship these kinds of characters together; after all opposites
attract, right? Now the problem with
this reasoning is that the nature of the show does not allow for any extraneous
footage of this pair. Being that they
are background characters (as opposed to Sam and Dean), there isn’t much for me
to analyze in any way that could really prove the ship. This unfortunately may be the case with a few
of the ships in this blog. You’ve been
forewarned.
However, there is one example I'd like to make a note of that contradicts Crowley's "me, me, me" nature. In 5.20, Bobby sells his soul to Crowley in order to obtain the location of the fourth and final of the Horsemen, Death. As shown above, Bobby seals this deal with a firm kiss on Crowley's lips. However, it's later revealed that there was more to that contract with Crowley than Bobby at first realized. In 5.21, Bobby gets a fun surprise from Crowley:
*Having been paralyzed in an accident earlier on, Bobby sits in a weheelchair while he, Castiel, Crowley, and the boys prepare to kill the devil*
Crowley: Bobby, you just gonna sit there?
Bobby: No, I'm gonna riverdance.
Crowley: I suppose if you want to impress the ladies.
*confused looks from Sam, Dean, and Bobby*
Crowley: Bobby, Bobby, Bobby. Really wasted that crossroads deal. Fact: you get more if you phrase it properly. So, I took the liberty of adding a teeny little sub-A clause on your behalf.
*faces of realization from Sam and Dean*
Crowley: *to the boys* What can I say? I'm an altruist. *to Bobby* Just gonna sit there.
*Crowley points to Bobby as he slowly stands up for the first time in months*
Bobby: Son of a bitch.
Crowley: Yes, I know. Completely worth your soul. I'm a hell of a guy.
Bobby: Thanks.
Crowley then scoffs and calls the situation maudlin (beware those chick flick moments!). However, any Crobby shipper can tell that this is a shippable offense. Crowley has shown some actual feeling, and we aren't going to let go of it that easily! Now we can tell that this is an actual kindness and a moment of genuine generosity because there is no benefit for Crowley for Bobby to get his legs back. This does not lead to anything for the King of the Crossroads (or later, of Hell) that would be worthy enough to give Bobby back his legs. And yet, Bobby does get his legs back, and Crowley is the cause of that.
That’s all I’ve got for this ship. Stay tuned for an official ratings post from
moi!
Ever your Assbutt,
Castielle
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