Saturday, April 21, 2012

Blogging A to Z: Supernatural

The letter "S" OF COURSE means Supernatural

Supernatural is currently on season 7 on The CW Network, but if you haven't watched it, I highly recommend starting at the beginning on DVD, Netflix or reruns on cable (TNT airs it twice a day on weekdays - set your DVR! Or VCR if you're still hanging on that way).
Dean and Sam Winchester are brothers who hunt supernatural beings, demons and other crazies that go bump in the night. The series began with a lot of monster-of-the-week and urban legend story lines, with a main quest to find the demon who killed their mother when Sam was just a baby. Said demon also killed Sam's girlfriend in the pilot ep. (Suffice to say, women on Supernatural do not fare well. At all.). Their father, who taught them everything during a transient childhood of hunting monsters, is missing and the brothers use his notebook to follow clues leading to him. Dean desires to live up to his father's expectations while Sam adjusts to returning to the hunting life after a few years removed to pursue normalcy.

Later seasons play more with mythology of demons and eventually, angels. One of my favorite moments from the whole series is when the angel Castiel first appears. His wings are shown as massive shadows against a barn interior. I love that the angels on this show are extremely powerful, but they aren't friendly. Castiel quickly became a fan favorite for his very logical but amusing commentary, and in particular his friendship with Dean.

To say this show has a cult following is an understatement. When I mentioned looking for a cheesy image, believe me, there are sickeningly cheesy photo montages and wallpaper images of the Winchesters. And fan fiction, if you're into that.


Why You Should Watch: Let me count the ways!

  • Sam and Dean's loyalty to each other is probably the key piece -  they're a great team fueled by revenge and family legacy. 
  • Dean owns a 1967 Impala, which is super badass, but probably a real gas guzzler. 
  • Bobby Singer, their resource on cases is like a second father, and his relationship to the brothers intensifies in importance as the series progresses. He has a multiple wall phones labeled FBI, Fed Marshal, etc. for when the Winchesters need verification for one of their fake identities.
  • The special effects are good for a TV show, and occasionally awesome.
  • Fans of the show are extremely devoted, and one episode takes place at a Supernatural fan convention - but the Supernatural referenced there is a series of books, which tie into the story line.
Factoids: One of the original producers of Supernatural is Kim Manners, who is most famous for collaboration on The X-Files, but he's also filmed a number of successful TV pilots. Manners directed the season opener and finale for 4 and half seasons until his untimely death from cancer in 2009. Another X-Files tie-in, Mitch Pileggi who played Skinner, shows up mid-way through the series as the Winchester's grandfather. Lastly, Supernatural is also an anime series!

11 comments:

  1. I like this show, even if I've only seen a few episodes (I don't watch lot of TV. My kids hoard the television most of the time. If not them, then it's my hubs watching the news or some sports.)

    Have a fun Saturday!

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  2. I watched the first episode some time back but didn't quite get pulled in. Since it's on Netflix, I might just have to give it another go. So many people rave about this show, so I might be missing out on something good :)

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  3. Another one of my favorites! I keep hoping Castiel will come back to stay. His scenes with Dean are always so good.

    Ellie

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  4. This is a great show. I didn't think I would like it back when it started but I love the Winchester boys. I'm way far behind in the current season but I have all the episodes saved for a Supernatural marathon some day soon.

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  5. We don't have television stations at our house, so we're always looking for good series on Netflix. We'll have to check this one out.

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  6. I absolutely love this show!I have watched from the beginning and I never miss it!This show is just awesome.And the Winchester's are very hot!This is a great blog post!No one in my family even knew what this show was until I got the first season on DVD.I am completely addicted to it!

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  7. I've never seen it, but I admit, I am intrigued. Sounds a lot like Charmed, or am I way off? LOVED that show!

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  8. I've never heard of the series before but it sounds really good. I'll have to look it up on Netflix.

    Michelle :)
    www.michelle-pickett.com

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  9. My two best friends are fans of the show and last year I watched season 6 without seeing any other episodes. It was ok. Then at xmas one of my friends gave me the first season, i bought the second season and borrowed season three and four. Seson 1 was very similar to season six and I thought it was ok, actually I thought they were all ok. I paused for a break midway through season four and havent gone back to it yet, i think I overdosed. I was watching back to back episodes and I really think it is a show that should be watched weekly. I found the script very repetitive, the storylines and character development was contradictory and the winchester boys spent far too much time crying for my liking. All being said, the show was still entertaining and I will watch it but once a week is more than enough.

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  10. @Kate: season 6 felt like a rehash of a lot of themes already explored in the previous 5. The show's creator mapped out 5 seasons and exited after that; a new head writer was named, and I think that caused some of the unevenness of the series overall. I still watch though since I'm attached to the characters.

    @Jen I used to watch Charmed! I have to say, Charmed is really heavy on the cheese. I was always hoping it would get better, but it was pretty schlocky. Supernatural is much darker and grittier. No cutely dressed sisters who barely move their faces when they talk (what was it with that?! although I still have a fondness for Rose McGowan).

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  11. I just started watching this show on Netflix 2 weeks ago and I'm already on season 3! Love it!

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