I’ve been dreading and fiending for this last season of Supernatural starring Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester. The first time I saw it a few years back, I thought it was a cheesy spoof of the Buffy and Angel series (David Boreanaz as a repentant vampire is a great premise): Every week, the two brothers would hunt down monsters and the eponymous supernatural.
Though after being sucked in by a few episodes with very hot actresses (Supernatural’s formula = 2 strapping guys, a baddie, and the inexorably smoking-hot damsel in distress), I began to love the story arc. Sure there were monster-of-the-week episodes a la Buffy et al, but most of the episodes revolved around a particular season’s theme. This season, that theme is the impending apocalypse inadvertently started by the two brothers. Oh, and hot girls; that’s this season’s theme too. Coincidentally, hot girls also happened to be a co-theme for seasons 1, 2, 3, and 4.
And did I mention hot girls? I did? It bears repeating though. Some memorable ones were Tricia Helfer, Sarah Shahi, Taylor Cole, Katie Cassidy, and Emmanuelle Vaugier (*swoon*).
Jared Padalecki is the stereotypical morose, tall, dark, and handsome, with a physique rivaling those of male strippers on the Vegas Strip**, while Jensen Ackles is the womanizer with the drop-dead gorgeous looks. Together, they travel around the country chasing down ‘bad sons-of-bitches’ and saving everyone they can. And they do it in a classic ’67 Impala tuned to old-school classic rock.
Each week is like a one-hour horror flick, replete with CGI effects, action, drama, and surprisingly tasteful humor. It blows my mind how the writers manage to be funny and scare you at the same time without it being too artificial. They’re just that damn good.
But CGI effects and hot girls aside, what keeps me coming back is the brother-brother relationship between Sam and Dean. Sam is the intellectual younger brother, bound for Stanford Law School when a horrible tragedy causes him to rejoin the ‘family business.’ Dean is his cool older brother who protects Sam as much as possible, even at the cost of his own [spoiler deleted]***. Their mother died when they were children, and their father raised them to be crazed paranormal hunters. Season 1 starts with their father missing, and so the only family they have left is each other.
If you love something, it is very likely that you see some of yourself in it. People love their mates because they find something akin to their own values; sure opposites attract, but the last time I checked, we don’t mate with primates. I love my Droid phone because it feels very utilitarian and business-like, though very deftly cool. I associate with loyal and honest people, because I consider myself loyal and honest. I enjoy classic novels because I aim to be classic. Etc.
And I love Supernatural because its main theme of brotherly love mirrors my own relationship with my older brother. He is probably the coolest guy I know and became my role model when I lost faith in my father. I am the little brother he took care of when our parents were sometimes not emotionally or financially or physically there. And being brothers, he teased me incessantly, though he never tried to hurt me intentionally.
Whereas Dad selfishly and blindly pursued pipe dreams, my brother used his own money, the little that he had, to buy me school supplies and clothes when I was in high school. Whatever I needed, my brother would try to provide. It’s rare to see a perfect foil in real life; the hero and anti-hero only appear next to each other in fiction.
And the thing about Sam and Dean’s relationship is that though they never say it explicitly, you can tell by their actions that they love each other. And so it is with my brother.
You can watch the current season of Supernatural online here. The quality isn’t all that great though, but it’s good for catching the episodes that you missed when you’re working graveyards.
You can watch the current season of Supernatural online here. The quality isn’t all that great though, but it’s good for catching the episodes that you missed when you’re working graveyards.
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*an inside allusion
**this is not a first-hand observation
***I don’t want to ruin it for you
3 comments:
Man, you write alot of posts! I can't keep up. You write really well though! They are quite the entertaining read... I skimmed the page down to this one. It's cool of you to share about your relationship with your brother. :) Got to see a more personal post from you. :) I have seen supernatural a few times... but since I hate horror movies, you can understand why I stay away from it. I too am impressed by the storylines and CGI for a little underrated show on the CW.
ur bro is a true hero. i've seen one episode of supernatural. it did have a super uncool guy (was he bald?) who made a wish with a coin in the wishing fountain to make a hot girl love him unconditionally. he was played by Ted Raimi who plays Joxer in Xena: Warrior Princess. it was a good episode.
- eggs
Laura,
I'm glad you're enjoying the blog! I'm trying to diversify my subject matter and to subdue my humor a bit. Keep reading, won't you?
eggs,
I remember that episode. But that uncool guy did take the coin from the fountain to undo the wishes... Even the supporting characters in Supernatural are well-developed.
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