The long wait is finally over – the new book, ‘Supes Ain’t Always Heroes: Inside the Complex Characters and Twisted Psychology of The Boys’ released on December 5! We delayed the release in solidarity with the writers’ and actors’ strikes, but now the book is ready for reading just in time for us to all … Read more New Book on ‘The Boys’! ‘Supes Ain’t Always Heroes’ Now Available!
Fifteen years. Two brothers. Angels and demons. A story like no other. And one of the most passionate fan bases of all time. That’s Supernatural. When a show you love ends after changing your life in countless ways, saying goodbye is hard. When characters are as richly written as Sam and Dean and Castiel and … Read more There’ll Be Peace When You Are Done
Wondering where you can find Supes Ain’t Always Heroes, There’ll Be Peace When You Are Done, Family Don’t End With Blood and our other Supernatural books? Here’s all the information you need and links to order! Supes Ain’t Always Heroes: Our latest book is a deep dive into the hit streaming show The Boys, another … Read more Where To Find It – All Our Books on Supernatural, The Boys and More!
The last Supernatural Creation con (on land anyway) of 2025 was in Nashville, as it usually is – but this time it was earlier than it has been in the past, starting on Halloween. I have too many little kids in the family to let me disappear on actual Halloween, so I flew in early on Saturday for a quick in-and-out weekend in Nashville.
Here are some highlights and photos (and some tweets with short videos of some of the panels too).
Made it in time to catch a glimpse of the lovely Felicia Day.
And for Misha’s panel!
Someone asked Misha for advice on how to keep going in these very difficult times.
Misha: You just have to keep doing what you can to fight for good. That’s what drew us all to Supernatural too.
He went on to say that we can pass down the stories that inspire us – like Supernatural.
Misha: So we can fight the demons in this world.
That is so much of what makes this Show so special, and so inspiring to so many of us.
Misha talked about his kids getting older – his son now answers his phone calls with “whaddya want?” But then he comes to him for comfort when he has a bad dream, so Misha takes solace in that. I can relate.
Misha shared his favorite memory of accomplishment – when he and Jared and Jensen were wrestling and Jared tapped out lol.
Misha: I guess the best moment I had in all the cons I’ve been to and all the time I was working on Supernatural, onscreen and off, a feeling of like vanquishing accomplishment that came from this moment, I believe an Orlando convention years ago, where we got drunk and wrestled and Jared tapped out, and it just felt so unbelievably good.
Somehow it’s been five years since the Show that changed my life aired its final episode.
Last year I wrote that same sentence (with a four obviously). It’s still true that November 19, 2020 seems like a lifetime ago and yet something that happened just yesterday. The entire world has changed since then, but all those changes seem to have only made Supernatural more relevant. Its message, to “always keep fighting” no matter what the odds you’re up against, is a reminder needed now more than ever. There are days when it seems hopeless, with so many things going in the wrong direction – but then I remember, that’s what Sam and Dean faced just about every day. And they never gave up.
That might be Supernatural’s most powerful legacy – giving us some inspiring role models to help us keep going when problems seem insurmountable. I can still rewatch an episode and feel just a little bit more hopeful, and some days I really need that.
Five years ago, I turned on my TV to watch the series finale live, as I had watched almost every single episode of Supernatural for the past 15 years. Jared, Jensen, Misha and many of the other actors tuned in too, all of them as emotional as we all were.
I had friends on zoom to watch “with”, but the rest of the family knew to give me some space because there was sure to be some ugly crying. (There was, and they were probably grateful to miss it!)
Misha pulled off the crying alot better than I did.
My tears then were for a multitude of reasons. Sure, Dean dying was agonizing – and a master class in acting from Ackles and Padalecki – and I let myself sob so much I felt sick, quite literally.
Sam grieving his brother, and the perfect music cues that accompanied that, kept the tears flowing.
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The montage that followed, the realization that the cycle was broken, that Sam did live and left hunting and had a life while he waited to join his brother – that made me cry too. Not out of sadness, but out of appreciation for what the Show managed to do in its ending, and how much that made sense to the story I’d been following for 15 years.
I cried through the bridge scene too, smiling through my tears – emotional with gratitude that the Show allowed us the only kind of happy ending that made sense for the Winchesters. Seeing Sam and Dean’s joy in being reunited warmed my heart – seeing the behind the scenes photos of Jared and Jensen celebrating all they accomplished over those 15 years did too.
And then Supernatural gave us an extra gift. They included all of us – the fans who had kept Supernatural on the air for all those years – in its final goodbye. We all got to hear Bob Singer call “cut” for the last time. We all got to metaphorically stand on that bridge and say goodbye to something that has meant so much.
I’m still grateful.
I worried that the fandom would disappear after the finale – that it would finally fragment for good and people would drift away to other shows and actors and fascinations. Of course there’s been some of that. Social media platforms have changed, fans continue to split into factions who see the Show and the characters differently and struggle to allow others their own perspectives. Other shows have captured fans’ imaginations. And yet, five years later, there is still an active and vibrant fandom. Sometimes the factions arguing about whether Dean or Sam was John’s favorite or what the color of a wall really means threaten to take away some of that joy, but then I realize that means people still care enough about the Show to argue about it – so I should really be grateful when I see the passion still there in the arguing!
I’m even more grateful that creative and talented fans are still making edits and videos and art and fanfiction and writing articles about the show. They’re still passionate enough about it to spend their hard earned cash to go to conventions – even now, five years later, there are more Supernatural conventions than any other show. Every time I’m at a con, the number of new fans who just discovered the show and binged it is shocking. In a good way!
That means the Supernatural actors have stayed close too, spending time together at conventions and in their free evenings during those weekends. Most casts wrap filming and go their separate ways, but this cast never has completely – and it seems like they like it that way. Rob Benedict and Richard Speight, Jr. bring their fellow actors together on their Supernatural Then and Now podcast regularly, along with the writers and producers and crew who helped make the show so amazing. Jared starred and Jensen directed and Jake Abel guest starred on ‘Walker’. Rob, Rich, Ruth Connell and Gil McKinney joined Jensen on ‘The Winchesters’.
And coming up, we’re a very very lucky fandom indeed – because Jared, Jensen and Misha are all reuniting in an episode of ‘The Boys’ thanks to Supernatural creator and The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke. To say that I’m looking forward to that is such an understatement, it’s laughable.
I’m glad the actors have stayed close, but I’m even more grateful that the friends I’ve made through Supernatural have remained close too. I met some of my best friends in this fandom, and those friendships continue to stand the test of time. We’ve been there for each other through a lot of ups and downs over these past five years, from pandemics to politics to personal crises. There are no better friends than my fandom friends, who are now way more than that – they’re forever friends. We met through Supernatural though, and I’m so glad that we still share a love for the show. I need people in my life who will never say no to a rewatch of The French Mistake!
Of course I miss the Show. For a while, there was talk about revisiting the Supernatural universe “in five years” – which would be now. Obviously that isn’t going to happen, and who knows if it ever will since its actors are busy doing all sorts of other exciting things. In the last year alone we’ve had Jensen starring in ‘Countdown’ and guest starring on ‘Tracker’ and Jared guest starring on ‘Fire Country’. Jensen will be revisiting Soldier Boy in Season 5 of ‘The Boys’ and starring in the prequel ‘Vought Rising’. Jared will soon start filming ‘The Bodyguard’. They’ve both got other projects in the pipeline as producers, and Misha is developing a film project and is in the process of writing a dystopian novel.
The fandom has supported them in all their subsequent projects – I think we all feel a special sense of pride when “our boys” are doing what makes them happy. But even if they never put out any creative content again, I’d always be proud of them for what they created with Sam, Dean and Cas. They created something unique – special – that changed lives for so many people.
It’s been almost ten years since we wrote Family Don’t End With Blood, and five years since we wrote There’ll Be Peace When You AreDone – both books were intended to celebrate all the ways that Supernatural is special. Its chapters, written by the actors and by the fans, are about all the myriad ways Supernatural has changed all of us. It’s a permanent reminder of what made Supernatural special.
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A few months ago, a publisher contacted me to write another book, for a series of books on the TV shows that have mattered, that have had an impact. Unsurprisingly, Supernatural was one of them. I couldn’t say no. It seems fitting to be working on that book when the 5 year anniversary comes around. Because Supernatural HAS had an impact – on me, and on so many others. I can’t count how many people have stopped by my vendor table or emailed me after reading the books to tell me their own personal story of how the Show changed their lives – or saved it.
Five years later, my love – and my gratitude – are as strong as ever.
Thank you, Supernatural. I miss you….for now…
Lynn
You can remember all the ways Supernatural was
special – to us and to the actors – in their own words
I have been waiting for a Supernatural con in my hometown for a very long time – finally Creation brought their The Road So Far tour to Philly in October. Yay!!!
It seemed extra special because we had just celebrated the 20th anniversary of the show’s premiere way back in 2005.
Credit: Barb LeVan
Philly gave Supernatural a warm welcome, the Philadelphia Zoo even posting an invitation to fans to come do a meet and greet with their very own Sam and Dean (hedgehog version).
Look how adorable they are – almost as cute as the real thing!
photos: Philly Zoo
Of course they’ve got their own Impala!
The con being local also meant I could set out on a leisurely half hour drive into the city each morning…. Yeah, no, that didn’t happen. The traffic was so insane that it took me three times that, and was nervewracking too. However, on Thursday I found a great spot in the hotel garage, so all was well.
I got set up in the vendor room with a little help from my friends and settled in to welcome everyone to Philly!
It turned out to be a great con, though my driving woes weren’t any less than when I’m going a long distance somehow. Friday’s drive didn’t go any better than Thursday’s, and when I got to the hotel garage there was not a single spot in the entire structure! I drove around, increasingly upset because frankly driving is just not my favorite thing… like at all… and was finally told by a parking attendant that there was one “over there a few rows”. It turned out to be a tiny sliver of pavement between a giant truck and a cement pillar, with a trash can chained to the pillar to make it extra challenging. After approximately 30 attempts, I squeezed my Honda in. Never mind I could barely get out and the trash can….well, it had a few dents. Sorry, trash can.
Saturday’s drive was better, but the parking was even worse. When I got there, the ‘FULL’ sign was already up. I was already late, and driving is not really one of my better skills, as I’ve mentioned, and my knee is dislocated, so the thought of driving around the city looking for another lot and then limping to the hotel was really not a pleasant one. I parked my car in front of the hotel and got out to ask if I could do valet parking and was told THAT was full too! WTF? I think a few tears might have rolled down my face at that point and the (very nice) man took pity on me when he saw my knee brace.
“I’ll find a place for you, ma’am,” he kindly assured me. “Just leave it there.”
I wasn’t able to see many panels this time since I was coming and going, but I caught some of the ladies’ panel, which I always try to do. This time we got Kim Rhodes, Briana Buckmaster, Ruth Connell, Samantha Smith, Alaina Huffman and Julie McNiven!
Ruth Connell talked about working with Alaina Huffman and passing on the importance of working WITH other women and supporting each other.
Alaina: I get to play and be supportive with people I love, I’m not competing with other women. That’s my circle.
Briana: I worked very hard to make everyone feel included.
Ruth and Briana and Kim all wrote insightful chapters in Family Don’t End With Blood, all about their journey to Supernatural and what they’ve learned from the fandom. Julie wrote a chapter in There’ll Be Peace When You Are Done, taking us behind the scenes of filming Supernatural and what it was like working with Jensen Ackles in that backseat in the Impala scene. (Spoiler alert, he was a gentleman).
They all talked about how powerful it is to meet fans in person, like they’re able to do at cons.
Ruth: Supernatural and this fandom are the gift of my life.
Julie talked about her young son, who at the holidays opens every present and exclaims “for me??” Awww.
Ruth told a story about little Margaret repeatedly calling for “Daddy” and when that didn’t work, calling: “Rob!!”
Awwwwww
Saturday was also Misha Collins day, as always.
He kicked off his panel stressing about trying to use up all the Asian pears from his pear tree and taking suggestions.
A fan asked, who slays the most?
Misha: Who slays the most? I hate to say it, but Jensen.
The second episode of Tracker’s Season 3 was just as suspenseful and entertaining as part one – and I cannot wait to see where the rest of the season takes us!
Jensen Ackles was back as Russell Shaw and I am already addicted to having Russell as part of the show. His dynamic with real-life bud Justin Hartley, along with both actors’ talent, make the duo thoroughly believable as brothers.
Interestingly, it’s a totally different dynamic than Ackles had/has with his onscreen brother Jared Padalecki on Supernatural. Russell has similarities to Dean, but to me he seems very different. The characters share a troubled upbringing and a complicated dad, and both are invested in repressing their worries and pretending “it’s all good”, but they do that differently. Russell doesn’t feel the same about Ashton Shaw as Dean Winchester did about John, and he didn’t devote his life to watching out for his “little” brother either.
That makes the brotherly dynamic very different too. It’s clear Russell and Colter care about each other, but they’re both fiercely independent men who spent their adult lives separated and took different paths. Nobody followed “the family business” – which we still don’t know very much about, other than Ashton Shaw was involved in some pretty messed up stuff. They’re both highly skilled and competent, but they come together on equal footing, with very little big brother/little brother dynamics still in evidence after all those years (although Russell was protecting Colter by leaving and letting him believe he played a role in their father’s death). Now, Russell is as likely to defer to Colter as the opposite, and they’re adept at trading off responsibilities so each can play to their strengths. That makes them a formidable team indeed!
(We all expected Russell to get hurt at some point in the episode thanks to the stills released – the reality is a lot smarter. Like I said, a formidable team).
Also, who’s lucky enough to have this job??
Russell is also both charming and an asshole, but hanging out with Colter has already had an impact on him. In this episode, he confides to his brother that he wants to do something different with his life – he wants to use his (considerable) skills to do some good in the world. To make a difference. Like Colter’s done.
(Don’t change him too much, Elwood Reid, I kinda like that he’s a charming asshole.)
I don’t ship Russell and Reenie, but I do think it’s adorable that he’s got a bit of a thing for her. His disappointment whenever she doesn’t return his affections is just so cute – and those mannerisms are so very NOT Dean Winchester, by the way. Colter’s grudging affection for Russell’s crush is also adorable – though there’s the possibility of complications there eventually if they choose to go that way, since Colter’s got his own complicated feelings for Reenie.
Until then, I’m happy to watch Russell try to have serious conversation with her in the car (and get behind the wheel to do a tire-screeching 180 which…. Is there anything hotter? I think not.)
I’m also really happy to see Randy sharing the screen with the Shaw brothers and with Reenie, instead of on his own just on the phone. Chris Lee is also adorable, and a really nice guy in real life, and I was thrilled to see him share a scene with Ackles in this episode. (He’s the character who loves to eat, not Russell – that must be a great relief to Jensen Ackles!)
In addition to how much I’m enjoying Russell and Colter, the 2 part season opener was a great story – creepy, suspenseful, with twists and turns I didn’t see coming. The whole idea of “the process” being all-seeing and all-knowing and sickly twisted and ruthless was so disturbing, and I felt for all its victims – and their victims. The fact that it was all about an algorithm gone rogue – and that’s so disturbingly real life – just added to the tension.
No black and white good and bad, it was all shades of gray, which is often the story telling I appreciate the most. Russell and Colter navigated the challenge of that admirably, and we’re left with even MORE questions about their family. Why DID the algorithm identify Dory and their mom as people who have something to hide who wouldn’t go to the police if something bad happened?? I want to know more!!
Looking forward to the rest of the season – and very much hoping that when Ackles is done filming Vought Rising up in Toronto (cannot wait for more Soldier Boy!!!) that he can make a little time to reprise the role of Russell Shaw!
There’s been talk tossed around about a spinoff focused on Russell, but after pondering it today, I think it might be even better to just have Ackles as regular on Tracker. Russell and Colter really do make a dynamic duo, and there’s so much more we have to learn about the mystery of their complicated family too. Fingers crossed…
I always look forward to the Chicago Supernatural convention every year – it was the first Creation con for my favorite show and I still remember the off-the-charts excitement of being there, way back in 2007!
It’s also the con where I met one of my dearest friends when I got stranded there during a hurricane and she came to my rescue and offered me a place to stay during the storm. (We had met once, at the con, but we were SPNFamily so she drove over and rescued me from the dodgiest motel ever, the only one that wasn’t fully booked in the storm. She may have literally saved my life). Another of my dearest friends was also there with some of her besties, so the con was extra special. So were a few other friends who I wish I could see more often. In between being in the vendor room and enjoying panels, there was lots of good food and drink and even better conversation. What more could you ask?
On Friday, I joined the Matt Cohen and Gil McKinney panel already in progress – which sort of explains why they were being feral raccoons at the time…
Matt: Every animal I portray ends up with Jensen’s bowlegs…
These two are a great example of two people who didn’t even work together on the show, but they’re a great onstage duo who are always amusing. What are their favorite made up words?
Gil: Dingleberry
Matt: Fuckery!
A fan asked for their help in naming her eighth (!) ferret.
Matt: Squoose (a combination of Moose and Squirrel). I’m brilliant!
Matt also, for some reason, told Gil all about the “geoduck” (pronounced, for some reason, gooey-duck). Creation helpfully put a photo up on the screen so everyone could … uh, marvel? The geoduck was a thing at cons about a decade ago, so it was amusing to see it make a triumphant return.
Matt to Gil: I’d serve it to you raw…
I also caught some of Sam Smith’s panel. A fan brought the actual nightgown that she wore as Mary burning on the ceiling in the pilot – which is actually not white, but pink!
Complete with blood stain. Hey, it’s Supernatural…
Sam said that when Kripke told her that she’d be back she was skeptical.
I’ve been so looking forward to the return of Russell Shaw on Tracker. I watch the show regularly and love it, but the addition of Jensen Ackles as big brother Russ to Justin Hartley’s “little” brother Colter made this week’s season premiere feel like old fashioned appointment TV. I put “little brother” in quotes because Jensen Ackles seems to constantly be playing shorter big brother to an unusually tall little brother, first to Jared Padalecki’s Sam and now to Justin’s Colter. However, as always, Ackles holds his own – and then some!
My local station, CBS Philly, decided to torment me and the two friends who joined me for the series premiere by delaying the broadcast of Tracker – which meant we happily turned on the TV with great anticipation at 8 pm only to find…. 60 Minutes. We also had no idea if that meant Tracker would be on soon or would be pre-empted or what, and there was no information for an annoying 20 minutes. I may have tweeted the local CBS affiliate a time or two…
Anyway, they did finally broadcast the episode in its entirety, thankfully.
And it was absolutely worth the wait!
Russ gets a memorable return in the middle of a bar fight that a despondent Colter sorta kinda picked with a bunch of assholes harassing the waitress. Russell gets a punch in the mouth for his trouble before Colter realizes who’s grabbing his shoulder from behind, which seems to delight Russell more than anything, and then the brothers are on the same side in the fight (and the remaining asshole wisely runs away).
Seems a worried Reenie sent his big bro after Colter when he disappeared after finding out there’s a lot more to his father’s death than his mother was letting on – and it wasn’t Russell’s fault after all. The discovery of Otto as the man who their mother sent to convince their dad to let her leave him (and who ended up instrumental in his falling to his death) has sent Colter spiraling, withdrawing from everyone in his trusty Airstream. Even Reenie!
We’re treated to a probably long overdue heart to heart talk between the brothers, with Colter especially letting his guard down and apologizing to Russell for blaming him for their father’s death. Russell wants Colter to follow his example and just repress all the bad childhood memories of how their father deteriorated and started to lose it, which are clearly very painful for both of them. Colter says he’s not built that way, and Russell grudgingly accepts that, a moment that I loved.
It’s clear Russell cares very much about Colter. He volunteers to stick around and keep him company – and help with the next case, which Russell is eager for them to take on. He’s a bit Dean Winchester coded in that, finding purpose and distraction in throwing himself into “the work”. He’s right, though – it seems to get Colter back on track and out of the withdrawal and isolation he’d sunk into.
(Sure, Russ is also offering to help because he just got fired from his job, but whatever).
Russ is a bit of a fuckup, but he’s a very endearing one. His heart seems to be in the right place just as much as Colter’s is, but his methods are even more unconventional. Both Shaw brothers were raised by a father who trained them to be survivors – perhaps even more than good old John Winchester – but Russell also learned to keep his feelings to himself more than Colter. He deflects, he makes jokes, he shrugs off anything that hurts – but you get the feeling that he also feels things more deeply than he lets on. His eyes are soft even when he’s insisting he just wants to get on with it, and his concern for Colter is very clear. Ackles, as always, is up to the challenge of showing us all those repressed emotions with just a facial expression or tone of voice. The real life long-term friendship between Hartley and Ackles make their emotional scenes together ring true, along with their acting talent.
Russell jokes about his interest in Reenie also, ribbing Colter for once “swerving” into her lane and having a short-lived thing, but he also seems genuinely disappointed that she’s got a lawyer boyfriend and that’s probably good for her.
(Though Reenie, are you sure, girl? I mean, look at him! All that long hair swept down over those soulful green eyes, I mean….)
Okay, anyway. Ackles is always attractive, but the long hair just works SO well.
We still don’t know very much about what their father was involved in or why it made him paranoid or made their mother want to leave him and take the kids – and I like that they’re leaving the mystery a mystery for now, spooling out information little by little. Russell admits that while he saw more than Colter did, and clearly tried to be the protector, he too was “just a kid” and not in control of what was happening. They were both victims, along with their sister Dory. We just don’t know yet exactly what happened, or how bad things got.
For now, the Shaw brothers take on a case that turns out to be way more dark and twisted than it seemed at first, which was intriguing.
The people murdering other people seem more terrified than murderous, asking if “you’re them” and desperate to follow “the process” and instructions before a loved one being held runs out of time. It’s confusing and disturbing and the sense of time running out was palpable. Twice the show threw a curveball that surprised me, which I always appreciate. (I did not see that car coming!)
The final scenes were especially disturbing, tragic and ultimately chilling, as “the process” becomes personal for Russell and Colter.
Luckily this is a two parter, because I can’t wait to watch next week and see what happens next!
Congrats on a stellar season premiere, Tracker – and kudos to Ackles, Hartley and Fiona Rene, and special shout out to Chris Lee, who joined the cast last year as Randy, Bobby’s tech genius cousin. Chris is a great guy in real life and brings humor and warmth to his role on the show. I miss Teddy and Velma and Bobby, but all were mentioned so maybe they’ll be reprising their roles at some point too.
Last year’s Creation Supernatural con in Austin was very memorable – for a few reasons. One was the Radio Company concert at Sagebrush, and the other was the fact that everyone there almost melted thanks to it being the most absurd temperature I’ve ever experienced.
Of course, I returned to Austin for yet another Supernatural con in the same month. Luckily it wasn’t quite as absurdly hot – and not so luckily, there was no Radio Company concert.
There was, however, a mini Radio Company “show” when Jensen Ackles and Steve Carlson and the Scott sisters joined Louden Swain at the Saturday Night Special, and a Radio Company panel with Steve and Jensen, so at least we got our Radio Company fix – without melting!
The flight there was uneventful but an entire box of books hadn’t made it to the con unfortunately. That meant I sold out of books by Saturday – my apologies to anyone who came by to purchase a copy of Family Don’t End With Blood or There’ll Be Peace When You AreDone and I didn’t have any left. Thanks to everyone who did come by – it was lovely to meet everyone!
I did a few more panels than I usually get to do since I wasn’t needed in the vendor room the entire time, so that was the silver lining. One of the best things about a con in Austin is that I love the city. My son used to live in Houston and we’d pop over to Austin for the day, and I fell in love with its weirdness – and its delicious food. Thursday I had tacos and queso with my friend Sadie, and some good conversation to go with it. Another night after dark when it cooled off, I joined a friend at the hotel’s rooftop pool (best part about the con hotel!) to lounge poolside and catch up (though the lounge chairs were out to get both of us by periodically collapsing…)
Friday I caught most of Chad Lindberg’s panel because I just love Chad. I’ve known him since way back in 2008, when he was starring in a film called “My Big Break”. He introduced me and Kathy (my Fangasm co-author) to the filmmakers, Tony and Elizabeth, and we became fast friends. When they took ‘My Big Break’ on the road, we came along for some of the screenings along with Chad – which is how we ended up on Bourbon Street in the middle of the night for Chad’s first trip to New Orleans, and several other memorable adventures.
I also adore his character of Ash on Supernatural. Chad wrote a chapter for There’ll Be Peace When You Are Done all about portraying Ash, with lots of priceless behind the scenes insights.
Every year I worry about the same thing – will this be the year that no one remembers it’s the anniversary of the premiere of my favorite TV show of all time? Will this be the year that I’m celebrating alone and missing it as much as ever, without the validation of my fellow fans?
Every year it turns out I didn’t have to worry – and this year it feels like I have more company than ever.
Happy 20th anniversary, Supernatural!!
Twenty years ago today, the pilot episode premiered on what was then The WB network.
I didn’t see it live, but I saw it soon after thanks to a good friend who had fallen in love with the new series after seeing it promoted at Comic Con that year. She recorded the episodes on VCR tapes and when we all got together, we’d watch them together, sometimes squeeing over “the boys” and their badass black Impala, sometimes covering our eyes and screaming when it was too scary. It wasn’t long before I fell down the rabbit hole of loving Sam and Dean and Supernatural, and I’ve never looked back.
It’s hard to believe that was two decades ago – the world has changed so much and so have I, but all those years somehow haven’t changed how I feel about the show. In fact, I think I’m more emotional than ever when I rewatch episodes that have become even more beloved for their familiarity, like a worn-soft comfy blanket that keeps me warm emotionally when the world is cold.
I am so grateful that Supernatural has continued to air for so long, from TNT marathons to Hulu to every other platform that has hosted it over the years. I am so grateful that the show’s cast has continued to attend fan conventions all over the world, many of them devoted to Supernatural. How many shows that premiered in 2005 can say that in 2025, twenty years later?? Every time I’m at a convention and Jared Padalecki asks, “who’s first time” and a third of the audience raises their hands, I’m in awe of the staying power of the Little Show That Could.
I remember when we didn’t dare count on even one more season, let alone fifteen. When we were a fandom that was tiny in size but disproportionately large (and loud) in our passion for our Show. I remember sending postcards to the studio, first The WB and then The CW, pleading for more. The first time I was invited to the set, the office was plastered with them, a constant reminder to the hardworking cast and crew of just how much fan support was out there.
That support is still there.
It was obvious when the show aired its finale episode five years ago, so many fans posting to show their gratitude and to share how special the journey has been for so many of us.
It’s obvious at every fan convention, in the cheers of the crowd and the eagerness to ask questions about the show even though it’s been over for five years now.
The fans have followed the talented Supernatural cast on to many other projects, supporting them in all sorts of roles and helping those projects succeed too. At the same time, for many of us, we haven’t moved “on” from the fictional characters who so inspired us. Sure, the relationships may be “parasocial”, but that doesn’t make them trivial – we find meaning and inspiration and a sense of belonging from the fictional worlds we love revisiting.
Supernatural may not be airing, but it is far from forgotten.
This year, that’s especially obvious. TV Insider camped out at a Supernatural convention for two days to see for themselves that the passion for the show is very much alive, publishing a 20th anniversary Supernatural special magazine and releasing priceless videos of Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles and Misha Collins reminiscing about the show they too continue to love.
Entertainment Weekly posted their video of Jared, Jensen and Misha today, buying some gorgeous boots in Austin and reminiscing about their time on Supernatural by answering 20 questions for the 20th anniversary (see full video at end)
Also, I mean, LOOK at them!
The “official” Supernatural Instagram and YouTube accounts were quiet for a while, but they’ve been active recently, posting content to help us all reminisce as we celebrate #SPN20. Richard Speight, Jr. and Rob Benedict host the SPNThenAndNow podcast that’s doing a complete rewatch of the show, and there are countless other podcasts and Youtube channels still conjecturing about everything and anything related to Supernatural.
I had a chance to chat with both Jared and Jensen about the 20th anniversary happening today just a week ago, and their mix of incredulity and fondness and gratitude felt similar to my own. It seems impossible that it’s been so long, but at the same time I am SO very grateful that I am in such good company in still loving it.
Supernatural changed my life. I met some of my best friends in this fandom. I’ve traveled places I never would have gone otherwise. I’ve laughed, cried, hugged and been hugged, and been understood in a way that’s rare to find in this world. I’ve written six books on the show, two of them with the Supernatural actors, an experience I cherish.
I just signed a contract to write another, celebrating how much, after 20 years, the show matters.
Thank you, Eric Kripke, for creating such a special story. Thank you, Jared and Jensen and Misha and all the many talented actors, writers, directors and crew who brought that story to life so vividly. And thank you, SPNFamily, for every warm hug, shared adventure, impassioned debate about my favorite topic of conversation, and most of all for still being here celebrating with me, twenty years on.
Here’s to many more! (And perhaps, someday, to more Supernatural)
Happy 20th Anniversary, Supernatural.
With love.
Here’s the video from EW – it will make you laugh, maybe tear up a little, and most of all make you very grateful that they have so many fond memories of Supernatural.
WARNING: SPOILERS FOR THE COUNTDOWN SEASON FINALE!
You never know what to hope for with a season finale when you don’t know if you’ll get another season. Do you want the threads left dangling so there could be a possibility of more, or would you rather they get mostly tied up neatly just in case?
There are up sides to either, but there’s a lot I’ll be left wondering about if there’s no season 2. So I guess we cross our fingers?
Will They or Won’t They?
Many fans got invested in Mark Meachum and Amber Oliveras’ relationship, which has been a tease throughout the series. I would be fine with them being partners and friends and demonstrating real care for each other, and that might make the most sense if they’re going to keep being on the same task force together. On the other hand, there are undoubtedly some romantic feelings there between the characters, so I could see it going that way too.
The two do a lot more dancing around each other in this episode, with everyone watching seeing clearly that they both care about each other and are into each other, and possibly yelling at their screens when they are both with someone else. For Oliveras that’s Julio, who seems like a really great guy – but she just doesn’t seem that into him. For Meachum, there’s a new person, a fellow officer he reconnects with.
She was surprised he called; he was surprised she answered. They clearly have some history, but she says she was “between things” and her mom didn’t like the last guy, so why not?
Mark: What does she think about me?
Hannah: She can’t stand you.
He doesn’t seem either surprised or too bothered by this and neither does she, judging by their immediate makeout session in the doorway.
Oliveras texts him to hit her up about the case, but the (understandably) eager woman reminds Meachum “clock’s ticking”.
What an appropriate thing to say for a show called ‘Countdown’! Also, who can blame her?
Oliveras doesn’t look very happy about it the next morning when she sees that Meachum didn’t respond to her at all. She confronts him about it over coffee at HQ and Meachum is studiously casual.
Oliveras: Hey, you didn’t text be back.
Meachum: Oh, I didn’t…what did you want?
He claims he didn’t want to interrupt her and the doc’s romantic dinner by “inserting himself”. When she retorts that she was the one who texted him, he defensively says that maybe HE was having a romantic dinner.
Oliveras: Oh, where’d you take her, Pink’s Hotdogs?
Meachum: Don’t ever denigrate Pink’s.
I mean, he’s right. That was one of the first places we went on our first trip to LA. And they were good!
Oliveras and Meachum continue to snark at each other as they go after Todd. She says Julio is reliable and stable. Mark snarks that’s what every girl wants. (Gotta say, since we’re in a fictional media world, Mark is 100% right. The girl never stays with Mr. Reliable and Stable. Of course, she doesn’t know she’s in a TV show…)
Oliveras: Julio is not boring.
Meachum: Nah, he’s… steady… stable…
Oliveras: You’re exhausting.
Meachum isn’t giving up easily though. He reminds her that opposites don’t really attract, so when they try to be with someone from the ‘normal world’ it’s a disaster because they don’t get it and they never will.
Mark: So we push it down and we fake that we’re normal.
Oliveras: So, what? Break up with Julio and be with you? Because you’ve just been waiting for me, pining, all by your lonesome…
He says maybe he has.
She says he’s full of shit.
Meachum: You helped me through a tough time, okay? That means something to me. Whatever this is, it doesn’t require extra work. This is magic you can’t fake, and you know it. And I know it.
As we head into the season finale of Countdown, I wanted to look back over the evolution of one of the show’s main characters, Mark Meachum (Jensen Ackles). We’ve gotten to know Mark better than any of the other task force members, and to be honest, it’s the fact that Jensen Ackles stars that got me watching in the first place. Like the others he’s brought to life so vividly, Ackles’ acting talent made Meachum an interesting character.
Let’s look back at what we know about Mark and what’s kept him feeling real and human, instead of an unrealistic bigger-than-life superhero. I value that about all the characters Ackles plays, even when he’s literally playing a “supe” (as in Solder Boy). We still see their humanity, and often their vulnerability too.
One of the reasons I hope there’s a Season 2 is that we don’t know very much about Mark Meachum’s past yet. Or even his personal life in the current one. We do get a few glimpses of domestic Mark, in his comfy little house or having a beer on his comfy little front porch.
We also get hints of a difficult and troubled childhood and adolescence, but I’d really like to know more. How have those experiences shaped who he is today?
And who IS he today?
Well, first off…
He’s a Charmer
Mark can come off like a jerk sometimes, and in fact he can sometimes BE a jerk. Especially when he feels rejected, so he needs to let that person know he does NOT care (because of course he does).
But he can also be both charming and adorable.
He turns that charm on Oliveras right from the start, though most of the time she’s not buying it.
