Eight years since the episode first aired, I still can’t make it through the devastating scene featuring Dean Winchester in Supernatural‘s “Regarding Dean” without crying. When the show revolves around hunting various mythological creatures, and the battle between Heaven and Hell, Supernatural is no stranger to major character deaths. Furthermore, with 15 seasons and over 300 episodes, there are certainly plenty of Supernatural episodes that have us in tears. That being said, sometimes Supernatural is able to pull on fans’ heartstrings without killing anyone at all, proving its ingenuity.

Despite being predominantly an action-packed monster-hunting show, Supernatural has always been good at exploring other genres and themes, from comedy to Westerns. Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, as Sam and Dean Winchester, have excelled in their roles, bringing Supernatural‘s strange world to life through their emotive performances. However, Ackles’ abilities particularly shine in season 12’s “Regarding Dean,” an episode that contains one of the most devastating scenes in the show, despite its lack of character death, and it even competes with things like Dean’s ultimate fate in Supernatural’s controversial finale.

Dean Winchester’s Memory Loss Is Still So Devastating To Watch

“Watching Him Become… Not Him… This Might Actually Be Worse”

Supernatural season 12, episode 11, “Regarding Dean” is an episode that shows the series at its best. When Dean is hit by a witch’s spell on a hunt, he wakes with no memory of the night before. As Sam and Dean continue their investigation, Dean gradually shows further signs of memory loss, forgetting Lucifer’s son, the case they are working on, and a rather disgruntled woman. While this memory loss initially plays out as a comedic gag, with Dean hilariously calling a lamp a “light stick,” the episode quickly ends up delivering one of the saddest moments in Supernatural.

Realizing the severity of the situation, Sam calls Rowena (Ruth Connell) to help. However, while the pair look for a cure, Dean desperately tries to remember key facts about his life, reciting: “My name is Dean Winchester. Sam is my brother. Mary Winchester is my mom. And Cᴀss is my best friend.” Yet, with each repeтιтion, he slowly forgets the information, and we watch as the Dean Winchester we know fades away. The moment hits harder than a Supernatural character’s death, as even Sam remarks: “I’ve seen my brother die, but watching him become… not him… This might actually be worse.“

Weirdly, Dean’s Memory Loss Hits Harder Than His Supernatural Death Scene

“Regarding Dean” Offered Something New And Worse Than Death

In a way, Dean’s memory loss scene actually hits harder than his Supernatural death scene. As Sam says in the episode, seeing someone like Dean, who notoriously has a strong sense of idenтιтy and is very self-ᴀssured, slowly forgetting who he is, is absolutely devastating. The emotional scene in “Regarding Dean” is a testament to Jensen Ackles’ talent, as it never fails to make me cry, even though we have seen Dean die many times in Supernatural. So the fact that it stands above Dean dying, even for Sam, showcases just how horribly sad this scene is.

Disregarding personal opinions about “Carry On,” the harsh reality of Supernatural‘s series finale is that, although it was an emotional affair, with Sam and Dean dying for the final time, its impact was somewhat subdued by previous deaths. Dean was going to die in season 1, and Sam died in season 2. Throughout the show, the Winchesters have a habit of dying, so the finale’s events were nothing new, just final. That is also why Dean’s memory loss scene hits a lot harder, as it’s something that has never been done in Supernatural before, so it is unexpectedly heartbreaking.