How Long Will The Winchesters Be Able To Carry On?

By: Stacy Miller

When a television show has been on a long time it faces a serious problem – can it maintain its momentum and keep viewers interested or should it throw in the towel? Case in point, The CW’s “Supernatural.” Currently, the network’s longest running show, “Supernatural” begins its 12^th season on Thursday, October 13, 2016. The saga of brothers Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) has kept fans enthralled since September 2005. Anyone who watches the show is familiar with their tale: A demon kills the boys’ mother on the night of baby Sam’s six month birthday (November 2, 1983) causing father John (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) to learn all he can about the supernatural and train his boys to protect themselves. This knowledge and skill became “the family business” with their mantra being “Saving people, hunting things.”

Early seasons of “Supernatural” focused on hunting monsters and other urban legend evil like Hook Man, Bloody Mary, etc. Rock salt and silver were Sam and Dean’s weapons of choice. But there was also the larger mythology, which was killing the demon that destroyed their family when it killed Mary Winchester (Samantha Smith). With the defeat of The Yellow Eyed Demon a/k/a Azazel at the end of Season Two, the show began to change focus. Sure, there was still that pesky vampire or shapeshifter lurking in the shadows, but now “Supernatural” concentrated more on Sam and Dean’s relationship as brothers and the idea of self-sacrifice. Dean even sold his soul to a demon in order to have Sam brought back from the dead and had a year to live before he was Hell bound. Powerful entities like Lilith and Lucifer replaced the wendigos as the threat.

This direction probably was needed. I don’t know how many urban legends are out there and if there were enough to sustain the series, but if “Supernatural” had followed the path of chasing down and hunting these, could it have lasted this long? Or would viewers had tired of the “blast them with rock salt” and moved on?

Season 4 of “Supernatural” saw the series taking on religious themes with the introduction of angels (though angels were briefly mentioned in the Season Two episode “Houses of the Holy”). However, these beings weren’t the cuddly ride on clouds type. They were warriors and most had their own agendas (think Zachariah and Uriel). In fact, Dean often referred to them as “dicks with wings.” Ironically, The Winchesters battled the heavenly beings almost as much as the demonic ones. The character of the angel Castiel (Misha Collins) was added and soon became a friend and, unfortunately, on occasion an adversary. And with Season Five, King of the Crossroads Demon and future King of Hell Crowley (Mark Sheppard) made an appearance, changing the dynamic of “Supernatural” forever. It was still the story of Sam and Dean, but adding these two additional characters (and later series leads) opened the series up to more types of storylines. There were angel wars and demon power struggles in Hell.

There are viewers of “Supernatural” who are more fans of the monster and urban legend episodes and others who like the larger mythology. I include myself in the former. I find my favorite episodes of “Supernatural” have been the ones where Sam and Dean use their skill and training as hunters to fight the monster. I can think of several monsters that I would love to see on the series that we haven’t seen yet. I feel the biggest problem though of Sam and Dean going up against a “big bad” like Lucifer is the feeling of after you defeat the Devil, where do you go from there? How can viewers be satisfied with the itty bitty monster after that?

In the eleven seasons of “Supernatural” that have currently aired, there have been many episode and storyline hits, but also some misses. Some ideas that might have sounded better on the page came off a little bland on the screen. This is no fault of the writers, who do a fabulous job creating this world and the characters we’ve loved for so many years. Conception and execution don’t always play nicely together. In speaking with other fans of “Supernatural,” the same ideas constantly come up. There are those who are open to any storyline on the series as long as it sticks with the meaning of the show and doesn’t compromise Sam and Dean by making them look like buffoons. Part of the reason for longevity of “Supernatural” is the overwhelming affection fans have for these two characters. Sam and Dean love each other above all others and have (and will) give up their lives for the other. Watching their weekly adventures is the closest that some viewers may come to having a real loving family.

However as much as Sam and Dean Winchester are beloved, I seriously doubt that viewers would continue to watch “Supernatural” if an episode was about them sitting around watching football. What would the conflict be…Sam drank up all the beer and Dean polished off the snacks? What about the danger…Their cable goes off before the winning touchdown? So, the fans I’ve spoken with are open to characters from the series rich history making a return appearance. One of the most popular of these being Sheriff Jody Mills (Kim Rhodes), who has already been confirmed for Season Twelve.

But perhaps the biggest shocker of the last season was the surprise return of Mary Winchester. The Winchester matriarch will join her sons in the hunt during Season Twelve. The question will be how Mary working with her boys will be received by fans. Will three hunting Winchesters be better than two? It’s a bold move for the show and the writers. Back in Season Four, when it was revealed that Mary had been a hunter from a long line of a family of hunters, it changed Sam and Dean’s history. It wasn’t a fluke that the Yellow Eyed Demon chose the Winchesters for his late night visit to baby Sam’s nursery. Azazel had decades dormant plan that he was bringing to fruition. The decision to make Mary a hunter opened up “Supernatural” to a world of storylines that can be explored with Mary’s return in Season Twelve. Viewers will be curious to find out where Mary’s spirit has been all these years as Ash told Sam and Dean in the Season Five episode “Dark Side of the Moon” that he had looked all over Heaven for Mary and John (which is another story in itself). Will Mary be a take charge hunter like John was by barking orders to her sons? That would be interesting to see since Sam and Dean have never had a mother in their lives. Will they listen to her?

It’s looking like Season Twelve will be about the new role Mary Winchester will have in her sons’ lives and their hunter world. But is there a plan in place for subsequent seasons thereafter? It’s too early to tell whether there will be a Season 13, but it’s never too early to plan for the future of “Supernatural.” Especially since a new guest star addition to “Supernatural” Season Twelve include Rick Springfield. He will be playing Vince Vincente, the vessel Lucifer takes over. He is joined by “A Different World” vet Kadeem Hardison as Russell Lemmons who will be involved in Springfield’s storyline as well as share a past with Crowley.

I know there are viewers who welcome Hardison’s casting. I’ve heard “Supernatural” be criticized in the past for its lack of diversity. Whether adding Kadeem Hardison was a deliberate choice of the show in order to draw in more African American viewers is uncertain, but with television viewership changing it’s good to see this new character added to the canvas. But will Springfield and Hardison remain throughout Season Twelve and to Season Thirteen (if there is one)? We’ll have to wait and see.

Going back to basics versus moving in a new direction will be the key to finding ways to continue “Supernatural” in the years to come. Sam and Dean come from a rich history of hunters and Men of Letters so story line possibilities are endless. As viewers, we haven’t seen all there is to learn about these two brothers and their family. Moreover, supernatural evil (whether it comes in the form of monsters or another out worldly source like angels, demons or reapers) will continue to be present in the world of “Supernatural.” God (Rob Benedict) and sister Amara a/k/a The Darkness (Emily Swallow) may have another tiff requiring the expertise of Sam and Dean (hunters, therapists…they do it all). Who knows? The best thing I have found about “Supernatural” in my eleven years as a fan and viewer is that like Sam and Dean, the show is a fighter. Against all odds it has endured and grown. So, the bottom line is that “The Road So Far” for “Supernatural” and Sam and Dean is vast and whether these ‘wayward sons’ can carry on looks hopeful.