What is Supernatural?
Chances are you probably know of this series, even if you haven't watched it. Just as a warning for anyone wanting to watch, this page will contain spoilers. Supernatural is a CW show that ran from 2005-2020 with a total of 15 seasons and 327 episodes. The show centers around the journey of two brothers, Sam and Dean, and their unending fight against (you guessed it) the supernatural.
The show starts off with a darker and grittier style, following a very "monster of the week" style of episodes. There is an overarching plot of the boys looking for their father that sets them up for long and torturous journey.
These earlier seasons are some of my favorite. The entire story of seasons 1-5 being the best of the entire series. I love the creepier, southern gothic atmosphere of these seasons. The monsters feel far more threatening, and when demons are introduced, they feel downright dangerous.
Despite the way the show changes as it progresses, it's worth sticking around to see where the story takes the characters. I was deeply invested in Sam and Dean's stories, and it kept me around until the end.
Aside from all of this, Supernatural also became a staple fandom in the earlier days of the web, and was a prevalent part of the 2010s Tumblr experience as it was one of the "Trifecta" of SuperWhoLock (Supernatural, Doctor Who, and Sherlock). The fandom is actually considered to be the birthplace of the omegaverse genre, as well. The show even goes on to have an episode that acknowledges (and maybe pokes a bit of fun at) the existence of slash fiction within the fandom.
Supernatural and Religion
I'm a sucker for some religious themes, imagery, and guilt. The earlier seasons deal with angels and Heaven, the question of if God is real, and the concept of free will vs destiny. There is lots of imagery, especially involving Sam and his religious guilt, and Dean struggling to believe anything at all. I appreciate how the show actually paints the angels to not really be the good guys. They still want the battle between Michael and Lucifer to happen even though it will probably destroy humanity, and they actively pull strings to try and make it so.
God is missing, he hasn't been around. The angels don't even know where he is. He reveals himself in later seasons, and it becomes pretty clear he isn't exactly a good guy. By the end of the series, he truly is the bad guy. I think as someone who has been immersed in and hurt by religion, I liked seeing a show explore those themes.
There ain't no me if there ain't no you.
The heart of the show, despite what some may want to convince themselves, is the story and the bond between the Winchester brothers. The entire, long, drawn out, and seemingly endless events of the show are all set into motion in the first episode, when Dean shows up to convince Sam to leave college and help find their dad. Their relationship defines the show.
Their relationship is undeniably toxic, codependent, and obsessive. But I think that is what is so fascinating about it. It is not a normal or healthy sibling relationship. Sam and Dean were not allotted a normal childhood, having lost their mom when Dean was four and Sam only 6 months old. They were exposed to the things of nightmares for most children, and were raised more like John's soldiers than his sons.
The effects of Sam and Dean's messed up relationship are felt all throughout the series. Their bond at one point saves the world, while putting it in peril at other times. Because they always choose each other, and those around them sometimes suffer the consequences of that. During Swan Song, Dean is able to get through to Sam, and through his memories and his love for his brother, is able to overthrow Lucifer within his own mind to regain control of his body. However, in later seasons, we see the two choose one another over the option to sacrifice the other for the greater good.
Sam
Sam is my favorite Winchester brother (I have a whole shrine just for him). I won't get into it too much here about who he is and why I like him, but Sam is the emotional anchor. He questions the morality of hunting, whereas Dean sees all monsters as inherently bad and must be eliminated. Sam makes choices based on ethics and empathy.
Dean
I am very Dean critical. I have a sort of love/hate relationship with him. I actually do like Dean quite a lot, I just also happen to think he sucks a lot. His thinking is very black and white, he is abusive towards Sam many times, and is an angry man who makes it other's problem. But he is also fiercely loyal and protective, especially when it comes to Sam. He does what he thinks is good, he wants to be good and to save people. I think his flaws are what make him a good character.
The Ones They Meet Along The Way
Supernatural has some very fleshed out and interesting side characters that follow the boys along their journey in many ways. Some are short lived, some stick around for longer, leaving and coming back. These are the ones I enjoyed the most or were the most impactful in my opinion.
Castiel
One of the most notable side characters is Castiel. He first appears on the show in season four. His entrance is pretty incredible as he is the first angel we encounter, and similar to demons, they are very ominous and powerful in at this point in the show. Initially I was pretty sold on Cas, and at first he was a really interesting character. He was rigid, intimidating, and strict on following his duties as a soldier of Heaven. His naivety and lack of understanding humans/emotions adds an interesting dynamic in with the boys.
Eventually, through his relationsip with Sam and Dean and the events of the show, Cas learns to understand emotions and become more human himself. This is also unfortunately the point when he starts to lose me. I consider myself to be a Castiel liker, but I'm also kind of a hater. The show kinda allowed him to become a bit of a useless and whiny character by the end, often causing more problems than helping solve them. But, at least he was cool once.
Bobby
Robert "Bobby" Singer is a staple character of the show. He is one of the most important to the boys, serving as a mentor and father figure to the two of them. Bobby is a hunter, who knows a lot of other hunters. He also has a massive collection of books and lore information. I enjoyed Bobby's character and his dynamic with the brothers (I guess I can forgive him for saying Dean's his favorte... maybe).
The loss of Bobby honestly was very emotional for me, despite having it sort of vaguely spoiled. I had no idea how it was going to happen, though. The scene where it happens was eerily reminiscent to a real life death I'd very recently experienced, so it hit a little harder I think. Luckily in Supernatural, being dead doesn't always mean too much.
Rowena
Female characters are often short lived or very sidelined in Supernatural unfortunately, but Rowena who sticks around and is also one of my personal favorites. She is a tiny, powerful witch who has been around for a very long time. Initially she is not exactly a good guy, and kind of does some not so great things (but I support women's wrongs so it's ok).
Rowena becomes a recurrence throughout the show, sometimes causing problems for the boys, sometimes helping them (typically in acts of self preservation). Her overall arc by the end of the series feels very satisfying though, and I really love her relationship with Sam especially. She later teaches Sam magic and witchcraft, something I honestly wish they dove into a little more. Unfortunately it comes pretty near the series end, but Sam mastering witchcraft under Rowena's guidance would have been fun to explore.
Crowley
Crowley is absolutely one of my favorites. He's around for quite a long time, and, similar to Rowena, becomes a reluctant ally of the brothers. He does some terrible things, causes some problems for the boys, but he also helps them, even if begrudgingly and typically only when it benefits him.
Charlie
Charlie instantly became a favorite of mine, and I was so happy to see them bring her back consistently. She's nerdy, super smart, and capable. Like many characters on the show, her very normal life gets quickly turned upside down. She becomes someone very important to the brothers and I really enjoy their dynamic with her. It was also nice to get a canonically lesbian character in the show (even if they did her dirty like 99% of the female characters).
Jessica
We don't have her for very long, but I loved the snippets of her we see. I also love the tiny little peek we get into her and Sam's relationship. She brought a sense of normalcy that he didn't have for so long.
Cassie
Even though she was only in one episode, I liked her character a lot and wish so badly they had brought her back at some point like a lot of others. The boys don't get a ton of romantic partners, but she is definitely my favorite of Dean's. It's clear that he cares deeply about her, something that is a little rare for him when it comes to women.
Gabriel
Gabriel is my favorite of the archangels. He's a massive shithead and I love that about him.
Jack
Jack is one of the better things about later seasons. I didn't really expect to love him as much as I did, but he's just so precious. Sam sees himself in Jack and they have a very special relationship. Jack is also another example of why Dean sucks. He's terrible to the poor kid. Jack is a result from an unfortunate circumstance, and despite being a literal son of Lucifer, he wants to be good.
My relationship with the series:
Back in my Tumblr days, I actually didn't watch Supernatural. I knew of it, of course. I watched Sherlock and Doctor Who, but for some reason Supernatural never clicked with me. Honestly I was kind of a hater. I thought the show was bad, even though I had only seen the Famine episode (which is actually quite good??) and I think the people eating each other alive during the opening scene was wild to 17 year old me.
Someway, somehow though, my cousin managed to convince me to make the commitment to watch a show with 15 seasons. She was in the middle of rewatching and felt it in her bones that I would be Samgirl. That was a correct assumption, and I kind of went off the rails for a while with a deep fixation on Sam Winchester.
I had just finished season 5 when my grandfather somewhat unexpectedly passed. I was living with him and had become his caretaker at the time, which left me unable to work as well since I needed to be home to help him. My entire life changed overnight, and through the grieving process and learning to navigate my new normal, the show was an outlet for me to get my mind off of it all. I started a new full time job and spent evenings and weekends binging. I finished the show after three months, managing to catch up to my cousin so we could finish the last few episodes together.
A few months later we were lucky enough to meet Jared at a con! I was able to get an autograph as well as our photo ops. We even got photos with/inside an Impala!
As silly as it is, Supernatural is also the reason I met my boyfriend. One day on my lunch I opened a dating app I hadn't touched in months, and noticed I had a match from someone making a reference to it. I had nothing on my profile that indicated I liked the show. I was still deep in my obsession, and it had only been a few days since I'd met Jared. We texted for a day or so before he ended up showing me that he had the anti-possession symbol tattooed on his chest. Our first date was a week later, and now here we are after two years. It feels silly to say a low budget CW show has been so meaningful in my life, but it is a piece of media that I'll always love and appreciate.
More Stuff
Extra stuff I feel the need to include:
- a playlist for the version of Supernatural that exists in my brain
- a Dean Winchester playlist
- a Supernatural moodboard
