Seven things to love about Supernatural

It’s only been a few weeks and I’m already feeling a gaping void in my Thursday nights … how will I fill that 9:00 time slot until January 21? I suppose there’s always Supernatural, seasons 1-4 on DVD, but it’s not the same as getting a new installment in the lives of Sam and Dean each week.

But who says we can’t celebrate all there is to love about Supernatural? Naysayers, you have my permission to stop reading now. We Kripke-shipers don’t need the likes of you raining on our parade, telling us that it’s campy, unrealistic and that Sam and Dean’s relationship goes beyond that of brothers, if you know what I mean.

If you haven’t yet been convinced that Supernatural is one of the best shows to ever hit the airwaves, perhaps this post will help….

Dean’s perve face
You know the one … every time he cracks a lewd joke, every time he ogles a pretty young thing. Dean’s got a “face,” and it’s so classic Dean.

Sam’s WTF face
Often in response to Dean’s lewd jokes, or when Dean scams Sam into sitting in the clown chair (season two, “Everybody Loves a Clown”), explaining what they’re doing somewhere they aren’t supposed to be … whatever the situation, Sam’s WTF face is highly recognizable and adds to the humor of Supernatural.

The one-liners and quotes
Not even sure what to say here without listing a gazillion or so of my favorites … then I realized that of course there are websites dedicated to these kinds of things. Not sure that these are my top ten, but it’s a good start to enjoy some of Supernatural‘s quotable lines.

The monster of the week
We get Tricksters, demi-gods, werewolves and shape-shifters, but the one thing you can always count on is clever fun. Where else do you get killer clowns, evil Santa, douchebag magicians and, well, The Devil himself?

Organically unfolding story arcs / character development
One thing Kripke does so well is to develop his characters in a natural way. Their personalities are always true to who they are, but their actions are always effected by what happens to them during the show and forevermore. The story arcs couldn’t happen without the character development, and the character development is perfectly progressed by the story arcs. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen this done so well in any other show.

The story arc-less episodes don’t disappoint
In some shows (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, I’m talking to you), I feel robbed when the story arc doesn’t progress in an episode. I remember watching Buffy, and when one of those episodes came on, I’d dub it a “cheap filler” episode and sulk while watching, whether or not it was any good. With Supernatural, I almost get giddy when it’s not a story arc episode, because I know I’m going to have one of the most fun hours of my week. Just this season, Sam and Dean have gotten stuck in TV land, we’ve met Dean in 30 years, and we’ve attended a Supernatural convention. Somehow, they even made a guest appearance by Paris Hilton work.

They don’t take themselves too seriously
This right here is the key to why Supernatural works so well. They could really screw up the whole Devil / Angel thing, but because they make fun of themselves and the subject matter within the episodes, it works. The moment they cross that line — you know, the one that Lost crossed when it put itself on the clever pedestal and pretty much knocked itself over but didn’t notice — it will lose something. Somehow, week after week, they toe the line with intricate perfection.

There’s an infinite amount of reasons to love Supernatural (and to count the days until January 21) — what are some of yours?

Clacked by Debbie McDuffee
on Dec 30, 2009 @ 14:00 EST5EDT