#too bad andrew died he would have loved the masked singer

[druwcapa]

Goncharov is so good guys, I finally watched it since everyone’s been talking about it and I cannot believe they were able to insert so much explicit queer rep on a 1973 movie... Sofia is my favorite character btw I wanna draw fanart of her soon, I miss her snarky face... Usually I’m not into mafia movies but this one is at the top of my list

[sortasirius]

What the Fuck Happened to the SPN Finale?

Okay so here it is, my Charlie Kelly style manifesto.

Before I get into it, I recognize that I will look like this to many of you, and that’s okay, I understand:

Secondly, your personal Takes about the writers don’t interest me, I don’t need to hear them. This, as I’ll explain, is going to remain a writer positive blog, and that’s the end of it.

Third, and most importantly: some of what I’m going to talk about is fact, and some is highly educated speculation. I will notate what is speculation, just so there’s no confusion or hot takes in my inbox that I’m a conspiracy theorist or stirring shit up for no reason.

A list of what I’ll be discussing

The episode in regards to the rest of the season

The episode issues: length, editing

Scene placement and speculation of scenes cut

The scrubbing of Jack, Cas, Eileen

Network involvement and general timeline of when things were cut

Misha: theories on where he was, official company line, why we can’t expect to hear anything directly

The silence of the cast post episode (in Misha’s case, mid episode) and what this might mean

Jensen speaking with Kripke about the ending: why it doesn’t mean what you might think (also why kripke remained positive on the ending)

Walker, and why this episode had a major shift

Why the network would do this or get involved

Why the writers of the show simply aren’t the bad guys here, and what I “want” out of this post, since I know it’ll get asked

This is very long and under a cut, but I hope you’ll give it a read.

The Episode In Regards to the Rest of the Season

So, I’ve discussed this already here, but it’s the most obvious thing to me, and that’s the way this episode simply doesn’t fit with the rest of the season.

These people in this room have, truly, been nothing but consistent when it comes to their arcs, especially this season, and the marked dropoff in quality for the finale episode is just too sus to discount to me.  Dabb’s whole focus has been character-based.  In his seasons, we’ve moved far away from MOTW and bro-codependency, the found family taking it’s place.  Does it really sit right to anyone that that was all thrown away in literally the last episode of the entire show?

This is speculation on my part, but as a writer myself, there is no way I would be happy or willing to stamp my name on something that I didn’t think would, at the very least, wrap up the season+ character arcs that I and my team had been crafting.

And before anyone comes in here saying, “well GOT did that!”  Bruh.  The writing was on the wall for GOT long before the final episode.  You could tell that the showrunners just wanted to be done (not only from the plot, but from the fact that they lobbied for a shorter season).  Miss me with that, it doesn’t apply here.  Andrew has, besides Singer and J2, been with the show longer than anyone.  He cares, he is meticulous and detailed, and this ending feels worse than anything Bucklemming has ever written, let alone Dabb.

Additionally, I’ve seen a lot of people say that Dabb was never behind Destiel, that it was all Bobo and Meredith and no one else.  That is reductive to the point of insult of the work Dabb has done to get this greenlit.  This man did not write the s13 Dean grief arc to be slandered like this.  That being said, YES, Bobo and Meredith were the leads on the DeanCas arc this season, but ANDREW IS THE SHOWRUNNER, TO GET EVEN THE CONFESSION APPROVED BY THE NETWORK HE WOULD HAVE TO HAVE THEIR BACKS.  AND HE DID.

Finale Issues

So, now that we’ve gotten the fact that this episode doesn’t hit on any of the major themes the show was barrelling towards all season, let’s discuss the fact that the episode is just...weird.

Not only is it shorter than any other episode (I think with the intro and the credits/crew thing at the end, it was around 38 mins), but it was also...idk, 90% filler?

One of the lovely humans in the POLOL server did the legwork here, and broke it down:

This is weird, y’all.  Most series finales are LONGER than normal (Lost, SOA, Longmire are the ones I can think of off the top of my head), and for the final episode to be this?  I saw more than one person point out that we only really needed 19 episodes, what was the point of 20?  AND THAT’S EXACTLY IT?  WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THIS FINAL EPISODE IF THIS WAS ALL WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GET?

It simply doesn’t make any sense, the first half of the episode was rushed, a final monster hunt gone wrong, but in the second half?  Nothing really happened?  Sam lived his entire life and Dean just drove around.  It doesn’t make sense to have all the emotional arcs left unaddressed in an episode that definitely needed some kind of spark.

Here’s the speculation I have: the episode seemingly went through a lot of changes between the initial inception of the final season and when we actually got it, but I think it would have been passable (as in, we wouldn’t be sitting here asking each other why each arc feels incomplete) until the editing room got ahold of it.  The only think that makes this episode make sense is network fuckery.  Truly, that is the only thing.  It explains the weird, cuts, the rushed pacing of the first half followed by nothing in the second half, the double montages of “Wayward Son” back to back, and Dean just...driving around for the last half of the episode.

Scene Placement and Speculation of Scenes Cut

Before I get into this section, the info of the shots in the episode I have come from a source that @occamshipper�� got a week or so before the finale.  She’s talked about this here.

So here’s what Min was given:

1-5: 1 INT MEN OF LETTERS – DEAN’S ROOM Dean is greeted by Miracle

6-10: 6 INT MEN OF LETTERS – HALLWAY/SAM’S ROOM Sam has his routine

D1 1 11-15: 15 EXT FARM HOUSE Establishing

N1 1/8 16-20: 19 Dad’s journal, marker, drawing of masked man in journal.

21-25: 23 INT IMPALA – PMP Driver picks the music

N2 1 3/8 1,2 26-30: 28pt2 INT BARN: A face from the past

28pt3 Sam and Dean say goodbye

28pt4 Shot early for technical reasons, presumably the overhead shot

N2 31-45: 41 INT MEN OF LETTERS – SAM’S ROOM Sam’s alarm goes off D4 1/8 1 46-60: 56 INT N7glasses for Sam, laptop.

So...it all fits right?  It all tracks with the actual episode, where it lands, etc.  The issue is between shots 29-40 which were apparently “too big to spoil.”  Uh.  Where are they?  And where’s 28 pt4?

After Dean dies, the next scene is Sam burning him, then shot 31, the shot of his alarm going off.

So.  Where are those 11ish shots?

PLUS we have the boards, which are scenes we KNOW were actually shot:

As well as scenes for 20 that were shot in 19.

It’s just...weird, it’s weird and again hits on the fact that the episode is so short and like 80% montage.

The Scrubbing of Jack, Cas, and Eileen

So now we have to reckon with the fact that Eileen was last mentioned by Sam after she got snapped by Chuck, Jack’s last mention is that he’s off being God somewhere, and Cas’ last mention is a ~knowing look~ between Dean and Bobby.

I’m sorry, make it make sense:

????????  That’s the end if it?  They don’t need to be discussed after this???  It’s just simply not something a writer would do, they would not introduce these characters, these arcs, without thinking there’s going to be some kind of follow through here.

So not only were three major characters (including two leads and both of the original characters’ love interests) completely wiped from the finale episode, it was as though Sam and Dean never even needed them, which just...ain’t it.

So why Eileen and Jack too?  Why not just take Cas out of it if they were afraid of the gay?  Because, ultimately, the episode went back to Kripke’s original story: just the bros, they only need each other and no one else.  They don’t want anyone else, they don’t need anyone else.  Easier to go back to something they knew was successful than trust the writers and their audience and take a big leap.

Alex even said he shot for 20 with “some of the guys” here.  What happened to that footage?

The complete 180 of it all still shocks me, I still cannot believe that we were essentially at the finish line, and the network just stopped short, and decided to go run another race, at the expense of the arc of this fifteen year legacy show.

Network Involvement and When Things Were Cut

Okay, now into the juicy stuff.

So I’ve pretty well established that network fuckery is clear, but how much did they get involved, what was the original intent?

Well again, we may never actually know what Andrew’s original script was, but I think, at the least, it would involve Dean speaking his truth to Cas and Sam living a life with Eileen.

Now, it seems today, that Misha said that Jimmy Novak was supposed to be in the finale in one iteration of the script, and while initially my brain was like “that truly makes no sense and he’s either straight up lying or telling a half truth,” I think what may be happening is Misha talking about as much as he can right now.

So Jimmy right.  Weird as fuck.  Why would he been in the Roadhouse and not Cas?  My current thought (this is about as reachy as I’ll get) is that Jimmy had no lines, could he have been in the Roadhouse as a red herring, like it said “Jimmy” in the script but it was just Cas in human clothes, a way to get around the network saying Cas couldn’t be in the final scene.  Also, you’ll notice that Misha didn’t say that Cas wasn’t supposed to be in the ep at all, just Jimmy in the last scene.

All this to say, there have clearly been multiple versions of the script, getting lighter and lighter with Cas and Eileen as the network pulled further and further back.  Remember, Dabb has to get things approved before they get shot, and if the network kept asking and asking and asking to cut Cas and Eileen, he had to find a way to work around it.  Granted, I still think that if we had been able to get a Dabb script that wasn’t torn to shreds in editing, it wouldn’t be so bad.  It may not be what a lot of us wanted (Dean speaking his truth to Cas and a reciprocation), but doing everything he could to give it to us in subtext or visual clues.

Plus, in all honesty, my man can’t keep his story straight anyway.  He said twice in his panel that the Empty and offscreen Heaven ending weren’t his original ending either.

In addition, remember that Jensen did ADR post episode 18, AND said in a meet and greet last weekend that Dean’s reaction to Cas’ confession was “cut down.” (Source here).  Many of us clowns got excited when we first heard about ADR, because we thought it would be upping the ante on Dean’s reaction, but I remember being a little sus when it was just crying.  My speculation on that is that they cut out Dean actually SAYING something, @winchestersingerautorepair​ spoke about that here.

The biggest sins were, in my opinion, committed during editing, where the network got too gun shy and sliced the episode until it was nothing but a heartless bro-fest of a finale, not mentioning anything about the other major characters that we all love, and letting the boys just suffer in separation until Sam died and finally joined Dean in Heaven.  The editing came by cutting all the major emotional beats between anyone other than Dean and Sam, leaving the skeleton of the story intact, just shorter and less...poignant than it was ever supposed to be.

Misha

We know Misha was in Vancouver, we know he quarantined, but we also know he wasn’t in the final scene, when he spoke about being in the last moment of the show months ago.  We were not crazy, he was there, he quarantined, and, in all likelihood (speculation but fitting with the timeline), he actually may have shot something (not much, but something).

I have sources here, here, here, and here showing where Misha was at that time.

Remember, the man was completely open about coming back until they finished shooting (look at this thread).  The switch happened, just like everything else, halfway through them shooting.

Please also remember Jake Abel posting his “Where’s Misha” video here.  Jake isn’t malicious, he isn’t being nasty here.  Misha was there, and everyone that’s trying to convince people he’s wasn’t just...isn’t telling the truth about it.

This is one of the things that makes me really mad, because they’re literally attempting to gaslight people into thinking, “oh we were totally wrong he was never supposed to be there” WHEN HE WAS THERE, WE KNOW HE WAS THERE.

So we’ve already heard from several people (Meghan Fitzmartin, Jay, a PA on the set of 19 (WHO WAS NOT WORKING FOR 20), Misha himself) that this was all down to Covid restrictions.  Ultimately, as this post says, we’ve heard FIVE versions of where Misha was.  None of it makes sense, but the Covid protocol seems to be the company line that others are repeating.

You may ask: why?  Why lie to all of us when we have questions?  Why, in Jay’s case, say that we’re all spreading false lies to stir up trouble, when we just have questions and things that do not make sense.  Simply?  Warner Brothers is absolutely massive.  These people have their careers to protect and are likely all under NDAs.  They want to work for WB again and don’t want to burn bridges, including Misha.  It sucks, but that’s why it’s unlikely that we’ll hear someone come out and say, “yeah we’re lying to you.”

Silence of the Cast Post Episode

So this is...probably the worst part of all this, at least in my opinion.

The guys had all been pretty excited about the end of the show (especially Jared, but Jensen’s panel last week was Jensen as happy and jokey and positive as I’ve ever seen him.  He was so excited about episode 18, about what it meant for Dean and for Cas, and I just cannot buy that he would have been that excited unless he thought there was something more in the episode.

Misha live-tweeted the episode, and was watching it with his kids.  It’s well known that Misha and the kids don’t watch the show because it’s too scary, and let’s ask ourselves, why would he have them watch an episode that he’s barely even mentioned in?

He also stopped live-tweeting at a very specific point in the episode (Dean’s death) and has not mentioned Supernatural since then. 

None of them, not Jared, Jensen, Misha, or even Alex, said anything about the episode for nearly 36 hours, when Jensen posted a salty photo on instagram.  It’s just...not what you’d expect for the end of a 15 year show, when the cast and crew are so close to the fans, so close to each other. 

My theory?  They didn’t know.  They thought Misha was, at least, going to be in the episode in some way, and when he wasn’t, they decided not to say anything.

You really think that Jensen “Heller” Ackles would have been so excited about the end of the show last week if he thought Cas wasn’t going to be in it at all?  Nah son, doesn’t make any sense.

Even today, in Jared and Misha’s panels, they seemed sad and...more than a little careful, both saying that there were things they couldn’t say, both talking around things that we all have questions on.

Jensen Speaking with Kripke

So this is where a lot of people are getting fodder to take shots at the writers, saying that Jensen hated it from the beginning, but I don’t think so.  I actually think I know what Jensen went to him about, and it wasn’t the lack of Cas or the weird pacing or the montages (which I don’t think were there when Jensen got the script); I think it was the manner of Dean’s death.

I know a lot of people were upset about that, upset with how...normal it was, coming off an episode where they literally beat God.  I actually didn’t mind it, I thought it was an interesting thematic take to be like: you can be a hero all your life, but sometimes shit happens, and you just die.

But imagine how hard that was for Jensen to read.  He would run to Kripke for that, because for him, Dean dying by being impaled by a piece of rebar had to be tough to swallow.

So, why didn’t Kripke say that?  Why didn’t he say, “oh well he had a problem with Dean’s death, none of that other stuff was in the script.”

Guys.  Why would he get involved?  He’s not going to burn bridges any more than anyone else is.  He said the ending was good because it’s the easy thing to do, it’s simple, will cause him no problems in his career, and he can just ignore the people trying to engage with him on it.

Walker

Something else to talk about is the major shift this episode had from the rest of the season: the shift from Dean to Sam.  I am NOT saying that Sam isn’t important, he definitely, absolutely is, but it was DEAN who really needed to wrap up his arc, Sam just needed to move on, get married to Eileen, become the leader he was always meant to.  So what changed?  What was with the shirtless scene, the Austin number and random case there, most of the episode being heavily Sam focused, going through his entire life in a montage?

Anyone else notice the 375 Walker promos, or Jared’s little spiel about Walker and how he hoped SPN fans would “come along for the ride.”

It’s...kinda obvious?  CW wanted to appeal to who they think the key demographic of SPN and Walker is: rural areas in the South.  It would explain a lot, why so much editing, why so Sam focused, the Austin number, the number of Walker promos, all of it.

I’m not saying this is fact, I don’t know that it is, but it is a little suspicious that even in Jared’s panel today, he talked A LOT about Walker and how he hopes SPN fans will watch it.

Why Would the Network Get Involved?

Simply put: $$$

If they think Walker can be the new SPN, and that those crazy SPN fans liked it originally, it’s a lot safer to go with the “original intent” of the show than do something risky (like making one of your two original leads queer).

And?  They don’t care.  They don’t care that the episode didn’t make sense, they don’t care that all the emotional arcs were left hanging, they don’t care by (potentially) smashing together two of Dean’s monologues (one to Sam, one to Cas) that it came of as...gross. ( @curioussubjects​ wrote a beautiful post showing how part of that death speech was likely meant for Dean here).  They don’t care, they never have, they just want to make their money and move on from the too-loud fandom that fought for representation too hard for too long.

It can’t help but feel insidious, which, honestly, it might be, but it really all comes down to the next cash cow, which, they think, is Walker, even at the cost of the fifteen year legacy show.

The Writers and What I Want

So here it is, all this weird, sus shit laid out on the line.  And you know what?  To me, there is no way to blame the writers, because they didn’t want this.

I don’t think Dabb and Bobo would have gone ahead with the confession in 18 without thinking that there would be some closure to that arc, they wouldn’t have done that not only to the fans, but for the sake of their own story as well: no writer wants to start something that they can’t finish. (And this applies to both Cas and Eileen).

Here’s a basic rundown of what I think happened: they had a clear arc from 18-20, ending in reciprocation at some level from Dean, Sam marrying Eileen, Hunter Sam as the new Bobby, Dean in heaven with Cas and big roadhouse reunion at the end. Covid prevented a good amount of that. Network had to stare at big gay 18 for six months, got cold feet. Thought about Walker, target audience and alienation of the rural areas if it went full gay. Misha quarantined and likely shot something (not much), he was then cut by execs and went home. They likely added in lines referencing Eileen and Cas to make it clear but more subtextual. They wrap, editing gets it and hacks it to pieces, so we get a shorter episode that’s mostly montages and jarringly bro-centric with nothing else. Arcs are left hanging. Dabb gets episode but it’s too late, there’s nothing he can do. Actors aren’t told so they can continue to do positive PR for the ending, they all found out at the same time we did: hence almost complete silence about the finale.

And you know what?  They warned us.  I talked about it here, but they’ve been telling us all season that Chuck wasn’t the writer, he’s the network.  I don’t think, still, that they thought it would be cut up like this, into something so unsalvageable that it’s been panned by almost everyone, even people who didn’t care much about Dean and Cas.

Finally, a masterpiece can be ruined by editing, and while I’m not sure even the script they ended up shooting on was a masterpiece (due to the network meddling already), but to me it’s blatantly obvious that it’s no one but the network that caused this, that took away closure for Dean, Cas, and even Sam.

So what do I want?  Nothing really, there’s nothing we can do, but I wrote this mostly to show people that the writers are not your enemy.   In fact, to the people trashing them?  You’re doing exactly what the CW wants you to: blame the obvious targets, blame Misha, blame Jensen and Jared, blame Dabb.  Scream and yell at them on Twitter and about how the show is ruined because of them.  The network keeps their engagement levels high, they don’t get as targeted for their behavior, and just keep moving along.

Just, please, think about who did this,  Mourn the show, be angry, but not at the people who fought tooth and nail for this for literal years, not the people who wanted it more than we did, not the people who cannot say anything because of their careers and the NDAs they’re bound by.

Someone is going to spill eventually, but until then, we just have to wait, and continue to be loud.

[charlie-minion]

Could the same SPN finale make a little more sense with some additions/changes?

I’ve had the idea for this post stuck in my head for days now, but with every new conspiracy theory and every new eventuality in the fandom, it became difficult to cool down enough to write something less ship-related and more narrative-focused.

What Supernatural and non-SPN fans have to understand is that a lot of us have expressed disappointment and frustration after 15x20, not because of Destiel (that’s just one part of the whole problem), but because the finale doesn’t make sense. Everything was leading up to something beautifully crafted until the end of 15x19. Beyond that, it’s hard to understand what happened. The story rendered all the character growth irrelevant, invalidated the themes of free will and “family don’t end in blood”, regressed to the original brother codependency they spent 15 years trying to overcome, made a queer non-binary character in a male vessel and a deaf female character basically disposable, and kept the show’s reputation of queerbaiting and misogyny until its very last breath.

That’s not going out with a bang! At least not a positive one. We all were ready to mourn Supernatural, but we wanted to feel proud of its legacy, and somehow TPTB managed to tarnish that legacy in less than 45 minutes. What a way to ruin the other more than 13,600 minutes of story!

It doesn’t matter who is to blame (The CW, Robert Singer, Andrew Dabb). It doesn’t matter why it happened (homophobia, censorship, marketing for Walker, bad writing). What matters is that at the end of the day, the finale that aired is what we got and that’s going to hurt for a long time. It hurts even more when we realize that the same finale could have easily made more sense, even without being perfect.

That’s what I want to do in this post. I want to show you how things would have been less jarring (for the fandom), while still keeping the goal to please the general audience.

Before I begin rewriting 15x20, I have to mention that I talked to my conservative boomer sister about the finale. She hasn’t watched the second half of season 15 yet (she’s waiting for Netflix to have it), but she’s been watching the show for a long time (she introduced me to it 8 years ago). She’s the perfect example of a viewer from the general audience. Loves the show but doesn’t give a second thought to it and definitely isn’t paying attention to character development or themes. Doesn’t engage with fandom, actors, or any of the show’s social media. Pure GA! When I told her the series finale had aired, she asked me about it and I refused to give her spoilers. Because of that, she told me the ending SHE wanted. She said she would be happy with either of two possibilities: the boys retiring and finally living a normal life OR they going to heaven and finding peace at last. She saw Sam and Dean as a unit, which means: both retiring or both going to heaven. AND she saw Cas as part of that, too. She wasn’t so sure about Jack. And for her, we could use the “Eileen who?” and it wouldn’t be a joke. She didn’t remember her.

NOW IT’S TIME TO WRITE A NEW VERSION OF 15X20 (KEEPING 15X18 AND 15X19 EXACTLY THE SAME AS THEY AIRED). This will be a very long post:

The opening remains almost the same. No “Carry on my wayward son” to induce feels. Too soon and too predictable! (Reasoning: Everyone was expecting it to play right there, so it would bring more tears at the end)

In the opening, after the scene where Jack says “People won’t need to pray to me or sacrifice to me”, we also see the scene from 15x19 where he says “I won’t be hands on”. Then we see the rest of the opening as it was. (Reasoning: People needed to be reminded that Jack would NOT intervene and that’s why later on, he would NOT save Dean).

We get the same montage, but when Sam takes a break from his morning run, we see him reading a message on his phone. A simple: “Hey Sam, what’s new?” from Eileen. Sam smiles fondly and begins to type a response we don’t get to see. The next scene continues the same, Sam making breakfast. (Reasoning: A text was a very simple way to show that Eileen was alive and still in communication with Sam).

The montage slowly ends as Sam enters the library (not after he sits down). He seems to be talking on the phone but we only hear an “I’ll tell him. Bye”. As he walks towards the table, he tells Dean: “Charlie says hi. Mentioned something about Stevie’s perfect scrambled eggs we have to try.” Dean’s answer is “Awesome!” (Reasoning: Just ONE line was needed to unbury Charlie and her girlfriend. ONE LINE).

Sam sits down, opens his laptop and everything continues the same. The title card shows for the last time.

YOU SEE? In the first 4 minutes they could have acknowledged that THREE WOMEN were alive and safe: Eileen, Charlie and Stevie. It wasn’t hard! Don’t blame bad writing on Covid! Now let’s continue.

Sam and Dean arrive at the Pie Fest just the same. Dean goes to get some “damn pie” and Sam takes out his phone. He dials and when someone picks up, he says “Hey, Jody, how are ya?” We don’t hear the rest of the conversation. The scene moves to Dean coming with his 6 portions of pie. Dean sits down and Sam tells him, “Talked to Jody. The other hunters haven’t had much work lately.” “That’s good, isn’t it?”, Dean says. All we get from Sam is “Yeah.” So, Dean looks at him and asks “what’s wrong?” like it happened in the episode. (Reasoning: Again, a couple of lines to make sure the people that were killed in 15x18 are safe and remembered by the boys in 15x20. Why is this important? Because they’re family!)

The conversation about Sam’s sad face happens the same. Sam is the one that mentions Cas and Jack. (Reasoning: Because this episode was so Sam-centered, it’s obvious he was the protagonist in the finale. If we see him communicating with Eileen, Charlie, and Jody, then it’s NORMAL, even expected of him to be the one to bring up Cas and Jack). Without these additions, it’s harder for people to understand that most of the finale was NOT from Dean’s POV but from Sam’s.

Dean’s “if we don’t keep living, then all that sacrifice is gonna be for nothing” stays the same. (Reasoning: I believe it’s necessary that the show sticks to the importance of “letting go” and “what is dead should stay dead” for the first time ever because the message is “even when you lose someone you love, you can still find some form of happiness and keep living, for you and for them, because that’s what they would have wanted”. Bringing someone back means “I can’t live without you”, and that’s just more codependency. It’s how the demon deals began in the Winchester family –Mary being the first one to do it. This would explain why Dean didn’t ask Jack to bring Cas back, as he asked Chuck. He understood Jack was NOT going to interfere anymore and accepted it. Besides, when Cas saved Dean from hell, Dean thought he didn’t deserve to be saved. This time that Cas saved him, Dean finally feels worthy enough to accept that YES, HE DESERVED TO BE SAVED ALL ALONG, just as much as he deserved to be loved by that angel of the Lord. In this scene, Dean also says that the pain is not gonna go away, which means that from HIS PERPECTIVE, it still hurts that Cas is not there. The problem is that the finale is not showing his POV but Sam’s.  

Sam pies Dean on the face just the same. (Reasoning: That part was just to avoid ending the scene on a sad note).

Everything related to the case happens exactly the same. (Reasoning: At this point, people don’t really care about the MoTW, they care about Sam and Dean).

NOTE 1: The case is important to show that even when the Winchesters are finally free of Chuck’s influence, they CHOOSE to keep hunting. It isn’t something they do out of revenge or because it is their destiny anymore. Maybe they were forced into the life at first, but they’ve learned to find joy in saving people. Being hunters is who they are. However, the fact that a job application was shown on Dean’s desk is also important because it means he was willing to explore what else was there for him besides hunting. Maybe he could find a balance? Maybe he was thinking it was time to quit? We will never know! The thing is that Sam only finds out about it when he goes into Dean’s room after his brother is dead, so maybe that’s when it hits him that Dean wanted to explore his options, and Sam starts to think it’s time for him to do the same.  

NOTE 2: I believe the masks the vampires are wearing is something we can blame on covid. If they had their faces covered, it was easier to use people from the SPN crew for some scenes, instead of using more actors unnecessarily.

NOTE 3: When Sam and Dean arrive at the barn, we get 3 visuals to remember Cas in the same scene (those are for the fandom, not for the general audience): a) the barn, obviously; b) the bag that resembles Cas’ trenchcoat so much that many people thought that’s what it was; and c) two feathers hanging on Dean’s right when he opens the trunk.

The scene with the throwing star happens the same. (Reasoning: The episode is still told from Sam’s point of view, so it makes sense that he fondly sees his brother as a man child).

Jenny the vampire? Uhhh… I mean, it’s not the best piece of writing I’ve ever seen, but it’s not the worst, so okay. That stays the same. (Reasoning: There is none, but she’s not what really ruined the finale, so whatever!)

Dean still dies impaled on a rebar. (Reasoning: OK. HERE ME OUT!!! I hate as much as everyone else that Dean is killed. I think it’s lazy writing, but that’s what we got and I can’t change that in this re-write, so if killing Dean is what we have to work around, then, memes aside, death by rebar is better and here’s why. There’s no one to blame for Dean’s death: no Chuck (the boys were willingly hunting even after Chuck was defeated), no vampires (they were all killed and were no real threat, so it was impossible for Sam to begin a quest for revenge against all vampires. What was Sam going to blame? A rebar? Can you kill it? Hunt it? NO. It was an ordinary death, a stupid accident. Just like any person can die at any moment by slipping on a banana peel. Is it a good death? No, but it’s good to know he doesn’t die trying to save Sam or Cas, because Dean Winchester is NOT willing to give up his life in exchange for anyone else’s anymore.

Sam takes out his phone and says he’ll call for help, but his phone is more visible to the audience. He dials and it’s almost to his ear when Dean stops him and Sam hesitantly hangs up. (Reasoning: People have complained that Sam didn’t call an ambulance, but actually he tried to. It’s just that people missed that part, maybe?)

After Sam puts his phone back in his pocket and says “OK” to Dean, he adds, “I’ll pray to Jack”. Dean’s immediate answer is: “No hands on, remember?” “But Dean”, Sam says, and Dean interrupts him with “OK listen to me” and tells Sam what to do with the kids they rescued. (Reasoning: Jack is God now and how come Sam didn’t remember? The viewers remembered, so it was necessary to include a line that ruled the option out and that showed Dean didn’t want Jack to intervene. The rest was fine).

The lines “You knew it was always gonna end like this for me. It was supposed to end like this, right?” disappear completely from Dean’s monologue. (Reasoning: This is the most problematic part of Dean’s dying speech. He fought God and earned free will, he is no longer controlled by fate or destiny. Accepting that he is supposed to die on a hunt regresses his character development and denies his desire to keep living. This was a total mistake and should be removed).

Instead, if going to heaven is the ending TPTB wanted to give Dean, at least he should say something more empowering. Sam tells him that both of them are going to take the kids somewhere safe. Dean answers and the scene follows like this: “No. Sammy, we made our choice, didn’t we?”, he smiles with difficulty. “We were free to write our own story and we did. We decided to keep saving people, hunting things. Because it’s what we love despite the risks.” (Reasoning: If Dean’s going to die it doesn’t have to feel like it was always meant to be that way. He should die knowing that he exerted his free will until his last breath).

The rest of the dialogue between Sam and Dean happens almost the same. Except that instead of Dean saying “‘cause when it all came down to it, it was always you and me. It’s always been you and me”, he says “’cause when it all came down to it, we’ve always had each other’s backs. Always.” And instead of Sam saying “Don’t leave me”, he says “I still can try to save you.” (Reasoning: It sounds way less codependent without diminishing the importance of their love and support for each other).

Besides, let’s change Dean’s “I’m not leaving you” for “You don’t have to be alone. You’ve still got family.” The rest stays the same word by word. (Reasoning: Dean reminds Sam that “family don’t end in blood” and there are still lots of people out there who love Sam and will be with him).

“I love you so much, my baby brother” stays exactly the same. (Reasoning: Dean always had trouble to express the big L word. I always believed and said many times that before Dean could say “I love you” to Cas or any other character, he had to say it to Sam. So, this is important as part of Dean speaking his truth).

The last part when Dean insists Sam tell him that it’s okay stays the same. (Reasoning: It’s the final moment when the codependency cycle breaks. No more running in circles).

The forehead touch between them stays the same. (Reasoning: I think I would do something similar if my sister were dying. I know there are w*ncest shippers out there, but it shouldn’t matter because the moment feels appropriate for that kind of goodbye). 

See? There are changes but not too many. That’s why I’ve been saying that it was easier to get it right, yet they still managed to screw it up.

The second montage stays the same. (Reasoning: Life goes on, but of course Sam has to mourn).

The call about a case in Austin remains the same. (Reasoning: It’s the only part of the episode where someone from the found family is mentioned, so I think that Donna’s name is perfect in that moment. However, without the other additions I’ve made in this re-write, that off-hand mention feels too little. Its purpose was to tell the viewers that if Donna was alive, so were the others, but the way the episode was executed gave us an isolated Sam, incapable of having friends and a family without Dean).  

After 30 minutes of Sam’s POV, let’s finally see the last bit of Dean’s POV that we’ll ever get.

Dean arrives in Heaven and Bobby receives him. All their conversation stays almost the same, except that after mentioning Rufus and before saying “and your mom and dad…”, Bobby adds an “Ellen and Jo let me borrow their place”. (Reasoning: If you’re gonna put the man outside the Harvelle’s place, at least mention them for Jack’s sake!).

Besides, after Bobby tells Dean that Sam will be along and that time in heaven is different, Dean gives a small smile and says, “Well, there’s no rush. I want him to have a long, happy life.” Bobby answers with: “I would expect nothing less from you, boy” and tells him he got everything he could ever want, etc., just like it happened in the episode, and finishes by asking “What are you gonna do now, Dean?” (Reasoning: It’s important we know for sure that Dean is NOT codependent anymore and that he doesn’t expect to have a miserable afterlife just because his brother is not there yet).

Instead of saying “I think I’ll go for a drive” Dean says, “I think I know what I want” and walks towards baby. Bobby still tells him to have fun. (Reasoning: “Know what I want” is ambiguous enough to help us introduce the last piece of the puzzle, the one thing Dean’s wanted for many seasons and has never been able to express).

 The biggest change is coming:

Dean gets on the Impala and has a moment of silence while he contemplates the wheel. He begins to pray: “Hey, Cas, you got your ears on? I hear you’ve been busy working on this updated Heaven with Jack. You were right about him, Cas. You had faith in him and he saved us all. You could always see the best in everyone, even when they couldn’t see it themselves. Even when I couldn’t see it myself. There’s so much I want to tell you. Maybe you can visit sometime. I hope prayer’s still a thing up here.” (Reasoning: Dean’s side of the confession was unaddressed and that was terrible writing. If there was no way to get him to speak his truth textually, at least take him as close to it as possible).

We listen to a flutter of wings and a “Hello, Dean” from the back seat. We don’t see Cas, but the camera shows us Dean’s cocky smile and he says “Took you long enough.” He turns around slowly. End of scene. (Reasoning: The flutter of wings confirms that angels have their wings back and ties that loose end. The final “hello, Dean” was highly anticipated and it made sense. If Misha couldn’t be there to film, for whatever reason, or if the problem was the kind of conversation Dean and Cas would have, then don’t show it, but leave the door open. Let us know that the two characters were reunited and will talk, but whatever Dean has to say is so private that it’s not for us to hear, only for Cas.  

We finally hear “Carry on my wayward son” and get a montage that begins with Sam playing with his kid. Then we see Dean driving, super happy, and Sam living his life to the fullest. We still get Sam’s Blurry Wife, BUT… we see pictures of Eileen in the living room (not just of John, Mary, Sam, and Dean). We also see photos of Jody, Donna, Charlie, and AU!Bobby. (Reasoning: FAMILY DON’T END IN BLOOD).

The scene where Sam is wearing the party wig and looks miserable inside the Impala is cut and nobody talks about it ever again because it never existed. We get a scene of Sam teaching his son how to fix the car instead. (Reasoning: First of all, don’t give Sam a life where years later he’s still in pain. Second of all, the fucking wig was a crime).

Sam’s dying scene stays the same. The only thing is that his son signs a couple of phrases to him before actually speaking. (Reasoning: More confirmation that Dean Jr. is Eileen’s son).

We hear the final “Evanescence-like Carry on my wayward son”. Again we see the photos and there’s family other than the Winchesters there. (Reasoning: Obvious at this point).

The rest is exactly the same. The show began with two brothers and it’s okay if the last scene is with the two brothers reunited in Heaven. At this point, the other parts of the story are acceptable enough for us to feel happy that they get to see each other again after years of a happy (after)life.

Now look me in the eye and tell me this was too hard to execute. I still think that bad writing is a thing we can’t deny here, adding to the possible meddling of the Network. Maybe Dabb wanted us to hate the finale because he couldn’t get away with what he truly wanted. If that was his intention, then kudos to him. He and The CW really gave us a finale that only 30% of the fandom liked.

I hope you guys have enjoyed this and it helps to give you some peace of mind. In my heart, this was the finale we got. It wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t drop the ball either.

[movietvtechgeeks]

Latest story from https://movietvtechgeeks.com/supernatural-big-win-comic-con-2017/

A 'Supernatural' Big Win at Comic Con 2017!

For the past decade, there’s been one show that has inspired me to brave the insanity that is San Diego Comic Con again and again. That show is Supernatural. In 2007, it was the prospect of seeing Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki in person that made me throw caution (and possibly good judgment) to the wind and fly all the way across the country with almost no notice just to hopefully sit at the feet of the two actors who brought to life the characters that had entirely captured my heart. My friend Kathy and I slept on the sidewalk to get in early and raced through the hallways to the room where the Supernatural panel was, breathless but triumphant. This was long before SPN had proven itself able to fill the gigantic Hall H, so they were relegated to the much smaller Room 6CDE. Little did Comic Con know, Supernatural was already a fan favorite, with the line of SPN fans wrapped around and around the building and many disappointed fans unable to get into the room. Jared wasn’t able to come that year, but Kathy and I made it in and sat there beaming at Jensen Ackles and Eric Kripke sitting right in front of us. I managed to snag an autograph ticket through all sorts of machinations, and thus had my first actual conversation with Mr. Ackles, after which I found Kathy and immediately burst into tears. Fangirl problems, what can I say? I’ve been back to Comic Con almost every year since, in the audience for the Supernatural panel as others began to notice the show’s passionate fan base and move the panels into ever larger rooms, until finally, we were in Hall H itself.  If you’ve never experienced Hall H, it’s something to behold. The first time I walked in, my jaw dropped – the sheer size of it is overwhelming. I felt a swell of pride the first time Supernatural was deemed worthy of Hall H, and that feeling has never gone away. This year was no exception. The lead up to Hall H is an event in itself. Thousands of fans camp out overnight (or possibly multiple nights) to get a good place in line. Back in the day, fans were on their own – we sat on the sidewalk that first year, wrapped in blankets and grateful when someone came by with some coffee and donuts. Then fans camped on the grassy areas on the side of the convention center, a few with sleeping bags. Now everyone knows that for Hall H, if you want to be sure you’ll get in and get a decent seat, you camp out. Comic Con has moved the line, first to the walkways along the marina, and then to the line tents constructed for just that purpose. My more intrepid friends slept relatively comfortably in inflatable beds that looked like giant orange kayaks or lounged in deck chairs. Many fans had pop up tents. On Saturday night, it was like a giant Supernatural slumber party, and fans woke up to Misha Collins bringing them donuts in the morning. A few years ago, I spent Saturday night with Misha and Osric Chau delivering pizza to the Supernatural fans waiting in the Hall H line, Misha merrily pedaling along in a pedicab festooned with multicolored lights and fans’ jaws dropping when they saw who was thoughtful enough to bring them dinner. But that’s how unique this SPNFamily is – the fans care, the cast cares. And Misha, frankly, is awesome. This year, the Supernatural panel was the first of the day in Hall H, and anticipation was running extra high. Many of us had heard that they had something “special” planned, but no one knew exactly what it was.  There was a keyboard and drums on the stage, so fans were guessing that we might be treated to a Louden Swain performance – I’d chatted with Richard Speight Jr. and Rob Benedict on Friday night, so I knew they were there to probably host the panel, but maybe the rest of the band was too? There were other theories, but no one knew for sure. Anticipation was running so high, in fact, that they let everyone into Hall H extra early, the gigantic hall filling up as fans flooded in and grabbed seats. I caught up with lots of fellow fans, with hugs and excited exclamations all around, then finally it was time for the panel to start. WB publicist Holly took the stage and again told us we were in for a treat, and then the lights went down, and the show began. And OMG what a show it was! Hall H is surrounded by 3 gigantic screens that travel the length of the entire hall, which means they are MASSIVE. As we all watched in awe, Sam and Dean appeared in Baby, of course, traveling – where else? – to Comic Con. Seeing and hearing Baby roar around Hall H with her boys was absolutely awe inspiring, the Impala’s familiar rumble shaking the entire hall and thrilling us to the core. Then we heard the familiar chords of Supernatural’s unofficial theme song, Carry On Wayward Son, booming into the hall. Suddenly the lights went up and there on the stage was the band who made that song famous, Kansas! OMG, I have no words. The screaming was deafening, and then everyone – the tens of thousands of people packed into Hall H – started singing along. Kansas belted it out like the rockstars they are, and the emotion in the room was probably enough to fuel a small city for a very long time. I’m getting emotional again just thinking about it. Jared, Jensen, and Misha snuck out into Hall H and stood in the back watching along with the rest of us. Jensen later put it best in a tweet: Mind blown.  I’ll say. After that unbelievable beginning, Rob and Rich took the stage. It’s an unusual thing to have the Comic Con panel moderators be actors who are actually ON the show, but Supernatural is the very definition of an unusual thing. Anyone who has ever witnessed Richard Speight Jr and Rob Benedict hosting a Supernatural convention knows how ridiculously talented they are and just how quick on their feet. They are not only naturally hilarious, but they KNOW this show inside and out. They know this cast. They’re part of the family. Which all means they are the most fantastic panel moderators anyone could ask for. Showrunners Bob Singer and Andrew Dabb, along with Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, took the stage next. Jared and Jensen shared their customary fist bump that starts and ends most of their panels, and Jared pulled off his often present beanie to show off that glorious mane of hair that Richard had just joked would qualify for its own spinoff. Jared and Jensen had apparently tried on masks to go out into the crowd to watch Kansas, but couldn’t find any that worked. Richard: Can’t hide the hair and the bowlegs. He’s right. Talk about iconic… Misha Collins was conspicuously absent for a few minutes. That gave the others plenty of time to mock lament Castiel’s untimely demise. Bob Singer: We have to go where the story takes us…and I think the guys will agree that frankly, Misha had become a bit of a prima donna… (Jensen making a face) At that point they were joined by Misha Collins, who ambled onto the stage carrying his own tiny chair. Misha: No one told me to come out, but I heard my name, so… Rob: This is awkward… It was a hysterical bit, and Misha made the most of it, looking unexpectedly adorable in his tiny chair. Andrew Dabb joked that they made way too many good things happen in Season 12, so Season 13 will basically be death and sadness (but then again, what season of Supernatural hasn’t been that??) Conversation turned to Lucifer’s son Jack curled up naked in the corner at the end of Season 12, which led Jared to ask if a character died (cough Cas cough), would he come back naked? Andrew: I’m not sure we could afford the blur effects. Misha: Oh, because it would take up so much of the screen? Richard: Well, we all know that Jared has been very… accurate… on his twitter feed… In other words, the panel devolved into a discussion of penis size. As you do. Misha eventually reminded Jared that last year at Comic Con, Jared grabbed his phone and tweeted for Misha. Misha: Yeah, and apparently I tweeted I hate fans. Which is a great thing to post at Comic Con! They did manage to talk about the coming season too. A major theme of the early episodes is apparently that Dean and Sam disagree on how to deal with Jack, with Dean wanting to take him out and Sam being more optimistic. In other words, Supernatural tackles the nature versus nurture argument.  Andrew pointed out that Sam can put himself in Jack’s shoes, as someone who was once believed to be ‘destined’ to do something bad. Andrew:  And Jack himself will continue to struggle with that in our version of “Hell’s My 2 Dads”. Which really sounds more like fanfiction than canon, gotta say. The brothers also differ in how they view Mary’s future. Dean is pretty sure it’s curtains for Mom, and is ready to accept that even though he’s bereft. Sam is holding onto the hope that she could still be alive, which causes some problems between the brothers in deciding what they do next. Bob Singer: Spoiler alert, Mom is not dead. Jensen: WHA?? Jared (channeling Sam): I told you! There was lots of discussion about what the AU world beyond the rift could offer as far as Season 13, including the possibility of bringing back other characters, like they did Bobby. Rob: So could that open up the possibility for other characters to reappear in the same way? Bob Singer: You have anybody specific in mind? Rob: Am I coming back?? Bob Singer: Well you are God… Singer then joked that Gabriel wouldn’t be back, much to Richard’s dismay. He then went on to say that they love to tease Richard, but that they think his directing on Supernatural has been just fantastic, and they’re so happy with him. There were lots of cheers at that from the audience, because YES. Richard, in turn, complimented Jared and Jensen on keeping the show fresh and high quality with their performances for all these years. We learned that there will be some characters returning, including Missouri Mosely and of course Jody and Donna. Andrew: And some of the people who are dead in our world are very not dead but very different in the Apocalyptic world. The possibilities are endless! Jared gave a shout out to the fandom, saying that it was a lot harder when they began the show because they didn’t have “this badass family” to support them. Jared, Jensen, and Misha also talked about the eventual end of the show (something that I don’t want to think about, btw…) – Jensen had a very powerful dream about the end of the show and Sam’s death, and the three of them were talking about it recently, and all got choked up. Their characters are so much a part of them that they feel real, and the thought of Jensen as Dean losing Sam is now heartbreaking to Misha. Which is pretty amazing. Bob Singer told a story that he feels crystallizes the relationships they have all developed. One day Jared and Jensen came to him at the eleventh hour and said that they felt that Dean and Sam’s lines on that episode should be switched. When they rehearsed it, they were tripping over the dialogue and realized that it worked better with the parts reversed – and it worked. Bob: And I heard it and said yeah, that’s right. But the idea that they feel comfortable enough to want to make this honest change, and we’re comfortable enough with the actors to know this is not about ego, it’s about making the show better. Those relationships are why I’m still here. Jared: As much as we tease the short guy at the end [i.e., Misha], we all enjoy each other as people. We have a legitimate friendship outside of working together. And we have a lot of trust in each other. Richard: The show is about family, but it has become family. And the other members of the family? The fans. (Which is why the book I just published is called Family Don’t End With Blood, and why both all the actors and many of the fans wrote chapters about how this extraordinary show has changed their lives). One of my favorite answers was when a fan asked about favorite props. Someone in the audience yelled out “Baby!” Jensen (indignant): Baby is not a prop. Baby is a part of me. Awwww. Misha (smirking): My favorite prop is Dean. Jensen (deadpans): And that’s why he’s no longer with us. A fan asked what their biggest fears were, and Misha joked that it was sitting on stage in front of a large group of people while his friends made fun of him (i.e. exactly what was happening). Bob Singer promptly got up and took Misha by the hand and put him over in his chair, and took the tiny one himself, which was all kinds of sweet and prompted Jensen to give Misha a big hug. Richard: Misha, you are so fired for accepting that kind gesture… Jensen shared what he wrote about in his chapter in Family Don’t End With Blood – that 13 years ago, being in front of all these people would have terrified him. Jensen: It’s daunting, to get up in front of all these people and not trip over your words – or just not trip! There was a shout out to the Wayward Sisters spinoff, and then Richard asked if anyone had any parting words. Jared: Yes. Thank y’all. We wouldn’t exist like this if you didn’t exist like that, so this is 50/50 here. Thank you all for giving us a chance to play these characters and tell this story. If that’s not a classy way to end a panel, I don’t know what is. I had the chance to ask a few questions of Jared, Jensen, Misha, Andrew, and Bob later that afternoon in the press room. Both the cast and anyone who had been at the panel were still sort of blown away by the fact that Kansas had played for us, so spirits were high all around. I had done press rooms years ago, but it had been a few years, so I was busy worrying about my brand spanking new tripod being able to hold up my phone without tipping over when suddenly Jensen Ackles appeared at our table. That caused some minor panic and equipment fumbling on my part before I regained my composure, but that’s not exactly a rare occurrence for me and Mr. Ackles. However, I got a nice wink of acknowledgment so maybe he didn’t notice the fumbling. I’m going with that. Jensen started out still talking about Kansas. How adorable is Jensen fanboying over the band? Jensen: They were like, we’ve wanted to do this for years! And I was like, you mean they didn’t somehow con you into this?? You didn’t lose a bet? And then the lead singer said would you like to come up and join us onstage, and I think I had to change my pants. Jensen had a lot to say about the new season. He’s clearly excited about the Scooby Doo episode, joking that at some point Dean may try to put the moves on Daphne. Most of that episode takes place in “Scoobyland, self serving” and I can’t wait! It was interesting to hear Jensen say that he thinks that Dean always perhaps recognized that there was a bit of good in Crowley, so that even though his eventual sacrificeself-serving, it was also on behalf of the Winchesters in the end. God, I’m gonna miss Crowley! It sounds like Dean starts the season feeling overwhelmed, with too much to process, so Dean just wants to fall back on doing what he knows best and blowing something away. Sam jumps in to stop him, and Jensen acknowledged that there’s a bit of a struggle there. My question will surprise absolutely no one – I wanted to know how different it felt with the brothers not exactly being on the same page, since last season they mostly were. Jensen: It does feel different, but it’s certainly not going back to like seasons where they were completely at odds. Me: That’s good! Jensen: It’s more let’s figure out how to handle this situation. Sam wants to deal with it one way; Dean wants to deal with it another. They’re not gonna argue about it; they’re gonna eventually get to the same place, it’s just how they get there is a little different. Have to say, I loved what Jensen had to say about the brothers – and I loved what Jared had to say up next too. Jensen ended his chat with our table by saying that this crazy wild ride on Supernatural is not even a dream come true, because he could have never dreamed this. Me neither, Jensen! I had a few minutes to try to reposition my camera a bit closer so it would pick up less of the room noise and more of just the person talking, and then Jared took a seat at our table.  Someone jumped right in and asked a rather deep question about whether or not Sam realizes how much Dean had to be a parent to Sam as well as his brother. Jared: Sam does know. Sam and Dean love each other as much as two human beings can love each other, truly. Me: (silently from directly across the table) OMG my heart! Jared: That also means they’re going to hate each other and piss each other off sometimes. But it’s forgiven, between Sam and Dean. And Sam has been what Dean needed too…. They are there for each other, and Sam realizes it, and Dean realizes it. I don’t think either Sam or Dean doubt that the other loves them. Seriously, my heart. This show, damn it. Jared said there’s a bit of a role reversal this season in that Sam is overwhelmed by the situation with Jack – Sam sees a lot of himself in Jack, someone who was destined to be “bad.” He even wonders sometimes if Dean feels that way about him. (Nawwww, Sammy…) I asked Jared if it felt good to be playing Sam as the optimist this season. Jared: Yes, it does, but I think we both know he’s probably hiding some things in his optimism as well.  He’s not really dealing with some things. Me: A little bit of a defense? Jared: I think so.  And if there weren’t things to deal with, he’d be a weirdo, because he’s dealt with a lot in 13 years. Me: That’s true! Someone at the table asked about the eventual end of the show (which I didn’t want to think about right then, thankyouverymuch!). Jared got a little choked up imagining the very last time there will be a Supernatural panel at Comic Con, and I got a little choked up right along with him. He also talked about the day Jensen came to set after having that powerful dream about the show ending. I’ve also talked to Jensen about that dream, which had a big impact on him and was full of evocative images about something that clearly will be a very emotional time in his life. Jared: I remember the day he came to set and he kind of seemed shook up, and I thought maybe it’s something with the kids. I left him alone for a second and then finally when we had time to talk about it I was like dude, you all right?  And he told me the dream, and he was like shaking it off, it really affected him. It’s gonna be really difficult; I love these guys. I love these characters, and I love this family. Luckily in this Supernatural universe that we’ve created together, it won’t be over. Misha was next at our table and immediately made us all laugh. Someone asked what they’d given him to prep for these interviews. Misha: Jack shit! We usually get this paper, single spaced… (Interrupts himself to say hi to me, since he wasn’t expecting to see me in the press room, which kinda made my day) Misha: … that delineates the DNRs – the do not reveals, not the do not resuscitates – Everyone: cracks up Misha: And then there are bullet points of what we should talk about for the coming season… And for this year for Castiel it’s just ‘well, no one stays dead forever on Supernatural’ and I’m like thanks a lot for throwing me to the wolves! So I’ll just tell you everything that happens in the first eight episodes to spite them. Never change, Misha. He said that the most relevant aspect of Cas’ death is actually how the boys process his death. Sam and Dean go through a grieving process and have to deal with the loss of their friend. When Cas does come back, he’s in a realm that we’ve talked about before on Supernatural but have never seen. The Empty maybe?? Misha: And he’s in there alone with only one other being, played by… a great actor… Me: I totally thought you were about to tell us the name! Misha: (grinning slyly) Sorry. He clearly wasn’t, but that smile is so adorable it didn’t really matter. Misha also talked about how unusual it is to play the same character over the course of a decade in a vastly changing set of circumstances and the gradual evolution of their characters over time too.  It’s surprising to him how organic the process is because they know these characters so well that it just happens. In typical Misha fashion, he asked the last question of himself, which was about the very last GISHWHES. He’s very proud of it and encouraged everyone to sign up – which I’m happy to say I already did. This will be my third time, and every time has been amazingly fun and frenzied and utterly ridiculous. Hope you’re all joining me! Executive producer and showrunner Bob Singer joined us next, talked about how this season is about a family dealing with being torn apart. Ouch.  He reiterated that Dean just wants to “shoot it in the face” while Sam wants to see if Jack can be of help to them, specifically in maybe opening up the rift again so they can rescue Mary, which causes some head butting between the guys. This season will be smaller in scope, more personal and more emotional, Bob said, which makes me all kinds of excited. He also teased that we’ll see some familiar characters return, but in the AU so they’ll be not exactly the same – which is also very exciting. Singer also talked about the Wayward Sisters spinoff, which still makes me all squeeful whenever it’s confirmed as reality – I think a part of me still doesn’t believe it! The spinoff set up will begin in episode 3 with the introduction of new character Patience, be picked up in 9 and then continue in 10, which will be the pilot episode. Bob has gleaned a better understanding of how we roll over the seasons. Singer: We’re spreading it out a bit because as much as everyone wants to see Jody Mills, when you tune into Supernatural you want to see Sam and Dean, so we hope by spreading it out a bit, we’ll keep everyone happy. He paused and then smiled. Bob: Which hasn’t happened on 12 seasons of Supernatural, so I don’t know why I said that… I had to laugh, not gonna lie. Andrew Dabb was last to visit our table. He talked a lot about the AU, a world which has never had Winchesters, and the potential for some interesting situations as the universes mix, which I have to admit, has me intrigued.  He also talked about characters returning, but cautioned against overdoing it. Andrew: You don’t want to be like here’s character X and here’s character Y, but now they’ve got an eye patch, so they’re totally different… More laughter. These guys are all funny, which has got to be part of the reason this show has survived for 13 years! Dabb went on to say that even though Supernatural has a lot of history, they don’t want to just rely on nostalgia, like a character comes back just to be like hey and wave and walk away. Dabb: If we’re bringing someone back, they’re coming back for a reason. Apparently, a character named Michael will be back, but it may not be the Michael we know and love. Which makes me long for Matt Cohen… Everyone at the table was excited to hear that the show has not forgotten about the witch twins, who I think intrigued all of us. They deserve their own story, Dabb said. Yes! Someone asked if there will be any meta episodes this season, and Andrew said they don’t like to do them too often, and they want to be sure to do them in a way that’s respectful to the fans. That was a pretty nice way to end a press room. I ended the day with frozen pina coladas at the Harbor House restaurant overlooking the marina with my friend Laurena, our aching feet up on chairs while we reminisced about the past five crazy days. I always say I’m not going to do Comic Con again – it’s too exhausting, too hectic, whatever – but by the time I’m going through my photos and writing up my adventures, I’m already planning for next year. As long as Supernatural is there, count me in!

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