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Supernatural (2005-2020; Eric Kripke) had a fifteen-year run with over three hundred episodes and the series ending not because of ratings, but because the producers and actors had felt that the story had run its course (( Arbues, Jennifer. The Real Reason Supernatural Is Ending After Season 15. Looper. July 31, 2019. )). Supernatural shows the bond between two brothers through making sacrifices as serious as life and death. Many fans have been hooked on the show since Dean tells Sam in the very first episode that their “dad’s on a hunting trip and he hasn’t been home in a few days.” With it lasting fifteen years, they have run through a lot of supernatural lore, including demons, angels, vampires, and witches, many of these characters even becoming main characters. These episodes showcased Supernatural perfectly, showing the bond between the brothers, the angel’s “profound bond” with Dean, and Sam’s constant battle with his own inner darkness. Narrowing it down to these seven episodes was difficult, but they are the best ones to show the comedic and seriousness within the Winchester boys and friends.
7. Season 5, Episode 9: “The Real Ghostbusters”
Who you gonna call? Winchesters! Something’s attacking a small-town Supernatural book convention, and who else would you count on to solve the problem than the real Winchester brothers, with the help of some cosplay Winchester brothers? Chuck, pen name Carver Edlund, is a prophet of the lord and can see the Winchesters’ future which he then turned into a book series called Supernatural. During a LARPing event (Live Action Role Playing), Sam and Dean stumble onto a real paranormal investigation. While the cosplaying Sam and Dean are trying to solve the hotel-sponsored ghost hunt, the real Sam and Dean have to work around them to solve the dangerous poltergeist threatening all of the cosplayers. After they salt and burn the bones of the mother of one of the ghosts, the dangerous hunt begins, and the fake Sam and Dean save the day.
This episode really shows the difference between Sam and Dean and how they view the life they live. Dean focuses on why people like this story that is based on their life. The audience hears about how Dean thinks their life isn’t all that great even though Dean puts on a happy face most of the other times and goes about his job of killing monsters. Sam tries to stay in character enough to keep the fact that supernatural characters are real and tries to let the LARPers continue having fun while Dean is upset and frustrated that he doesn’t get to live a normal life like the people at this event do.
6. Season 5, Episode 4: “The End”
This episode shows a world where Dean doesn’t say yes to the archangel, Michael, to possess his body. Michael needs Dean to be his vessel to defeat Lucifer, who, in this reality, is possessing Sam. This world turns out to be almost zombie apocalyptic. The world has been infected with the Croatoan virus, explored in season two, a demonic virus that turns people murderous and evil. Dean enters this new reality and finds his future self, the leader of the group of survivors left in the area, including a few familiar faces. As future Dean tells past Dean about the mistake he made, not saying yes to Michael, past Dean finds out that to kill future Lucifer, they have to kill Sam. Also, as the group of survivors is loading up to kill Lucifer, Chuck tells Dean to hoard toilet paper like it is gold, sound familiar?
This episode really explores the depths that Dean is willing to take to keep Sam out of harm’s way. We have learned throughout the series how much stress Dean had on him since a younger age because his father was constantly telling Dean to take care of Sam. If something happened to Sam, it was always Dean’s fault even though Dean was a child himself. In a previous season, their father even left Dean to kill Sam if they couldn’t stop Sam from turning into some supernatural entity. Even after seeing what had happened in the world where Dean refused Michael, Dean was still reluctant because he wanted to save Sam.
5. Season 11, Episode 8: “Just My Imagination”
Sam’s imaginary friend, Sully, comes back to Sam for help because Sully’s friend has been murdered. Sully and his friends are Zanna, supernatural creatures that only children and other Zanna can see. In fact, when Sam, Dean, and Sully go look at the first murder victim, the mom of the child whose Zanna was murdered cannot see the victim wipes blood on her face after touching the crime scene.
This doesn’t seem like a major episode in the grand scheme of Supernatural, but this episode explains more about Sam and his childhood. Sully delicately talks to Sam regarding his decisions about saving the world, and there are flashbacks to Sam’s childhood showing how alone Sam felt. With what Sam had to deal with when he was younger, being left behind from hunting trips and on his own often, it’s no wonder that he had his own Zanna. There is also insight as to how the Zanna works with children, which can remind the viewer of their own imaginary friends from their own childhood.
4. Season 5, Episode 8: “Changing Channels”
Ahhhh, the moment we all find out Dean’s guilty pleasure is a procedural show about a certain doctor that wears cowboy boots. The trickster that Sam and Dean meet in season three on multiple Tuesdays in a row throws the brothers into many different TV shows. Greys Anatomy, CSI Miami, and a typical family sitcom are just a few of the channels the boys go through. While playing their parts in each show, Sam and Dean figure out that the man they originally thought was a trickster is actually an archangel, Gabriel. Gabriel is one of the brothers of Michael and Lucifer, and he is trying to convince Sam and Dean to play their roles as Michael and Lucifer’s vessels by literally having them play their roles in the different TV shows. Eventually, once Sam and Dean figure out that the trickster is actually an archangel, they trap him in burning holy oil. Once he is trapped, they are able to escape the warped reality without saying yes to becoming the vessels to the two archangels.
With Supernatural being a catastrophic show, this episode was a nice comedic relief while dealing with the demon and angel war happening throughout the rest of the season. This episode also introduced us, more so, to the archangel Gabriel who seems like he wants to be the only one causing chaos, not having to compete with his brothers for attention. Dean gets a kick out of making fun of Sam having to do a commercial for a genital herpes medication, while Sam pokes fun at Dean’s guilty pleasure of watching Dr. Sexy M.D.
3. Season 5, Episode 10: “Abandon All Hope”
This is definitely one of the more serious episodes on this list. Bobby, Jo, Ellen, Castiel, Sam, and Dean all enter a seemingly abandoned town in order to hunt the devil. The night before, they all hang out at Bobby’s house and drink; Castiel casually reminds them that since they are hunting the devil the next day, this would be their last night on earth, resulting in the most serious family photo. Meg, a common demon the boys run into through the beginning seasons, shows up with hellhounds which causes problems for Jo and Ellen. Unfortunately, Jo gets mauled by the invisible dogs, and Ellen, her mother, opts to stay with her as they call all of the hell hounds to them and explode the building. The Winchesters face off with the devil, and as soon as Dean is knocked out, Lucifer begins to taunt Sam with the fact that Sam will eventually say yes to him possessing his body as Lucifer releases Death, as in the Pale Horseman.
This is one of my favorite serious episodes that Supernatural has produced. Jo and Ellen have an amazing mother/daughter relationship that is abundantly clear during their final moments. Also, the night before they go hunting down Lucifer, Dean tries to hit on Jo, who turns him down. This is one of the very few moments that Dean is turned down through the whole series, especially by a returning character.
2. Season 10, Episode 5: “Fan Fiction”
A high schooler, Marie, writes a musical based on the Winchester’s life from the supernatural books that Carver Edlund (Chuck) wrote, and there is a supernatural entity attacking the actors in the play. The brothers come to check out what is happening, only to run into a young woman dressed as Bobby and saying “idjits” (Bobby’s iconic line). Both boys are taken aback as the high schoolers begin to sing about “the road so far.”
Seeing as many of the fans of the TV show Supernatural have written or read fan fiction about the characters within the show, there are many moments that gave a nod to the real-life fans of the show. There is specifically a scene when Jensen makes eye contact with the camera after talking to the writer of the musical about one of the fan-favorite OTP (One True Pairing), Destiel (Dean and Castiel). Towards the end of the episode, Dean gives a pep talk to the actors of the play that feels more like a pep talk for the fans. He says that while Marie’s version of the play is not what really happened in the Supernatural books, it’s her version, and that’s okay. And for all the fanfiction writers out there,
“You keep writing, Shakespeare.”
1. Season 6, Episode 15: “The French Mistake”
Best Supernatural episode starting as a deadly mission and turning into watching Jensen and Jared (the real actors) play Sam and Dean playing as Jensen and Jared playing as Sam and Dean. Confusing, right? To my knowledge, there hasn’t been a show that has done this before other than breaking the fourth wall, but this isn’t breaking the fourth wall. This episode explores what Sam and Dean would think of Jensen and Jared as real people and finding out that Jared married Sam’s demon friend from the show, Ruby (aka Genevieve).
Balthazar, an angel, sends Sam and Dean to an alternate reality in order to keep them safe from Raphael because he has launched an attack on Castiel’s allies, including Sam and Dean, to gain control of Heaven. In this new reality, Sam and Dean meet Misha, who plays Castiel in Supernatural, and after figuring out that Misha is not the real Castiel, they stomp away to figure out how to get back to their universe. Misha then yells out that he is going to tweet about the latest prank Jared and Jensen have pulled, which the real actors are notorious for. The brothers continue to investigate each other’s real lives, make fun of each other, and figure out a way to get back to their universe.
This is honestly like watching horrible actors getting cast as your favorite characters from a book, but it is much more enjoyable knowing that this is not how the rest of the show will go. The show takes you behind the scenes and almost introduces the fandom to more private moments of both of the actors’ lives, going to Jared’s house and Jensen’s trailer. This feels like a way that the show is showing their thanks for people supporting them for so long. “The French Mistake” is hilarious while also fitting into the season’s big problems towards the show’s end.
Supernatural’s Humor And Horror
Obviously, there are many more amazing episodes of Supernatural, including “Mystery Spot” and “Bad Day at Black Rock,” but whenever this show is mentioned, these episodes spring to mind. They have some amazing bonding moments between characters, including Jo and Ellen, before sacrificing themselves to save the world, which always brings me to tears. It is also nice to support a show that the actors love to poke fun of themselves, as they have participated in two amazing Supernatural parodies (1,2).
Comic-con videos on youtube with any of the cast feel more like friends talking than a famous actor talking to a room full of fans. Fifteen years watching the same two brothers build a strong fan base, and the show never seems to forget that. We have a feeling people will continue to join the fandom and create their own bonds with the characters to help Supernatural live on beyond the TV screen.