Musings on a Sixth Season for Supernatural
by Sylvia Bond
The announcement has come down that the CW has picked up Supernatural for a sixth season. If you can’t take my word for it, ask the CW. Or go ask anyone in the Supernatural fandom and they will tell you all about it, the reasons why it’s good, and the reasons why it’s bad. They’ll tell you how they’re so happy they can’t breathe, and can’t wait for the next season because it’s going to be perfect, while the same time they hope and pray that the opening title images are changed to something more suitable. Then there are the fans who are rolling their eyes and are planning on changing the channel the second Season Five is over, on account of it won’t matter any more, since Show will be preparing to jump the shark for real this time.
Here’s my take on it.
Supernatural has been picked up for a Sixth Season!!! And you can’t argue with that. You can’t argue with more Sam and Dean any more than you can argue with the air you breathe or hot oatmeal on a cold, snowy Saturday morning.
I have only read one announcement about this whole thing, so I don’t know any of the details about how it’s going to work, just rumors, and there are plenty of those on the ground.
I heard that Kripke’s signed up for next year, but then I heard he was out and moving to Tahiti. Then I heard he was back in charge, but only if he wears white gloves to the set at all times.
I heard that Show’s circus is moving to Toledo, Ohio, where unemployment has skyrocketed and the Mayor is giving Show huge, huge tax breaks for filming there.
I heard that one of the guys who places the cones to direct traffic when Show is on location is going to be promoted to Head of Catering, and that the Lighting Guys are going to form their own union.
I heard that Jensen Ackles is signed up to direct every other episode, and that Jared Padalecki will now head up the writing team so as to ensure that Sam will be in 100% of every scene of every episode, per my request. I heard so many things, I’m not sure what is true anymore. As to whether any of this will come to fruition, all I can tell you is that the idea of more Sam and Dean brings a great deal of pleasure to this fangirl’s heart.
But.
What happened to the Five Year Plan? This is the plan we’ve heard touted about Show since day one, that Kripke had a five year plan, end of story, that he knew where he was going all along, that he still knows, and that we fans just need to be patient and wait for the story to spin itself out. Because story is what matters here right? At least this is what I bought into, that’s what I was promised.
Perhaps I’m not totally married to the Five Year Plan, exactly, since, after the first few eps there was a team of writers, and since too many cooks will change any broth, it wasn’t Kripke’s very own baby any more. But I bought into the Story of the brothers, and very content I was about that. So content, in fact, that I have a paid up ticket in First Class to watch Sam and Dean saving people, hunting things. I have a permanent membership in Team Free Will, I have my maps, my compass, my journal with its scribblings and newspaper clippings, and my Firefox browser open to www.ghostbusters.com.
I am ready for the boys to stay in more skanky motels and backwoods cabins, I am ready for more urban legends, and credit card scams, for more hurt/comfort and angst and emo, and for Sam and Dean to walk the earth in their flannel shirts, bleach-worn jeans, and sturdy boots hunting bad things that hurt people. And I am so very ready for Magical Bobby to die, I can’t tell you. But even if he sticks around, I’m so in love with this universe, I’ll put up with just about anything, even the Soap Angel saving the day too often, if I could watch Sam push his Samhair out of his eyes just one more time.
But why was Show renewed? That’s what I don’t get. Because heretofore now, Show was struggling to stay on the air, the way I heard it, and every meeting of the Suits in LA had as their first item on the agenda: Getting Rid of Show. They didn’t understand what they had bought, it wasn’t making them any money, they had the writers doing crazy things that were not suitable for the story of Sam and Dean, and I despaired of them ever getting it right. Only now, halfway through the long-promised Season Five, which was to reveal all the secrets and earnest beginnings in the engaging story about the Family Winchester and tie things up with a nice, tidy bow, Show has been renewed.
It happened so quickly and so unexpectedly, I suspect demonic hands were at work and I’m fairly comfortable stating that Show has sold its soul and made a deal with the same demon who made a deal with the guy who owns Wal-Mart. Show has certainly broken the promise of the Five Year Plan and it has to be money that the demon promised, because I can’t imagine anything else that would cause Show to break the pact of the Story, something which has always been sacrosanct to me. Because it’s the story and the characters I connect to, even though, ostensibly, the idea of “story” on TV was developed to sell soap, oh, so many years ago. Commercials are the underlying reason behind the whole thing: tell a story and folks will stick around long enough for you to hustle your wares. No matter how much we tell ourselves any different, no matter how earnest the writer or purpose-driven-to-develop-his-craft the actor, it’s all about the soap.
So can I blame Show? Not really, not when its underlying purpose was always to busk bubbles. But there are so many people involved who believe the cover lie, me included, that the STORY was the point here, it must be a hard pill to swallow. Because the journey of Sam and Dean and the Impala, and the filling up of gas tanks, and the bad food in crummy diners, the grimy, grotty motels, the whole “we do what we do and don’t talk about it” motto, not to mention the washing of the smalls in the bathroom of a Denny’s and having as their reward only a kiss now and then – all of that was the off-the-grid background to a story that mattered.
Sam and Dean matter, and everything the people of Show did and performed and took care of (from gaffers to best boys to the blood artists and the writers, and yes, Ackles and Padalecki) matter because the story they were telling matters. Matters like the air you breathe and hot oatmeal on a cold, snowy, Saturday morning. That Show signed up for another season was akin to it selling out, and made the whole of what Sam and Dean worked and slaved and died and literally went to hell for mean nothing. As in, “Whoops! That’s not the end! We got a whole pile of money here that says we keep going.”
I control nothing. Not the vertical and certainly not the horizontal. Plus, just because the CW picked up Show for a sixth season does not actually mean it’s going to happen, so it would be a waste of my energy, certainly, to gnash my teeth and sit in the corner to rock and worry about it. Obviously, however, I care. You’d only have to look at the reviews I’ve written to know I care. But Fate will have its way and I’m willing to let the future unfold before me even as I struggle with the idea that if Show sold its soul, will I then be selling mine if I watch Season Six?
I guess it depends, doesn’t it.
But, you ask, what does it depend on? It depends, I answer, it depends on what they do with Season Six. (Okay, I’m rocking in the corner just a little bit here.) If they continue with this nonsense they’ve currently got going on with a cast of about a thousand angels and demons, and if there are secondary characters continually stepping in to save the day, and if we get deus ex machine every other minute and plot holes big enough to drive trucks through, and Sam and Dean are constantly written in as afterthoughts, then yes, if I continue to watch and write about Show during Season Six, it will be akin to selling my soul. Though, as I have said, for Samhair, I’m willing to do quite a bit actually. So just keep that in mind, okay?
But. If Show is able to own up to its promise, both to itself and to me, the viewer, then that will be another story altogether, no pun intended, and no demon deals will ever have to be made. And here’s what Show might ought to want to consider to not only satisfy me and my Samhair fetish, but to also be true to what it started. Which is, as everyone who’s anyone knows, a story about two brothers, on the road, saving people, hunting things.
If Show needs an overarching story to connect the eps, a Magical McGuffin could easily be produced that would keep the action moving forward and that would keep the boys moving from motel to skanky squat to yet another motel. It could be a person, for example, it could be about how Sam and Dean are searching for a person who knew The Dad, someone who could tell Sam and Dean whether John was truly at rest in heaven. (And frankly, if Show doesn’t use The Dad as a motivating factor at some point, I think it would be very foolish indeed because The Dad is one major pivot in the whole plotline, and not to use him would be a waste of a perfectly good character.)
Or, perhaps, there could be some item that might free Sam from his bloodlust, once and for all, once the apocalypse is truly averted, once the world is saved. Sam and Dean could spend many, many eps hurtling across America looking for it, and the set dressers could have a field day trying to recreate motels in such places as East Jesus, Iowa; Pokipsee, New York; and Intercourse, Pennsylvania.
Oh, and here’s a novel idea. Why not write a story about how Sam and Dean become brothers again? I know, shocker, right? Write a season where the all the episodes are about Sam and Dean learning to work together and to trust each other. That’s it, just that. That would be the main story, the most important story.
And set that against the never-ending work of being a hunter, of the boys tracking down urban legends like the Barking Doberman or the Cactus Full of Spiders. Maybe have the boys encounter previously engaged monsters of the week, like the Woman in White, because surely they’re bound to do this once in a while. Maybe they could meet up again with people they’ve met on the road (like Sarah from Provenance), so as to weave the lines of their crossing the country into a believable network of support, which must surely exist after all their efforts and travels. And then just keep doing that, keep doing what Show does best, over and over and over until Sam and Dean drive off into the sunset in their beloved Impala. Because the best stories are the ones that you can just tell, that you know in your soul, keep going, even after you close the book.
I wouldn’t have to sell my soul for that kind of Season Six, and neither would Show. And if Show has already sold its soul, as I’m thinking it has, then after a season of eps about Sam and Dean saving people, hunting things, just that and nothing more, then I feel pretty sure that Show could be redeemed and its soul set free.
Sylvia Bond is a ten-year technical writing veteran with too many degrees under her belt to count. She lives in Colorado, but does not ski, preferring instead to spend her money and time at the annual Great American Beer Festival, taking road trips across the United States, and reading historical fiction from the comfort of her fluffy green arm chair. She has been involved in fandom since 1993 and been writing fanfic since approximately 1993. What she finds most amazing about fandom (besides the open heartedness of fans and the sheer amount of creativity) is how visible fandom has become. “In my day,” she says, “we had to hide behind P.O. boxes to get fanfic. But nowadays, people wear t-shirts that shout their affiliation and share their shiny toys on the internet.” It’s a wonderful world.
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Sylvia Bond is a ten-year technical writing veteran with too many degrees under her belt to count. She lives in Colorado, but does not ski, preferring instead to spend her money and time at the annual Great American Beer Festival, taking road trips across the United States, and reading historical fiction from the comfort of her fluffy green arm chair. She has been involved in fandom since 1993 and been writing fanfic since approximately 1993. What she finds most amazing about fandom (besides the open heartedness of fans and the sheer amount of creativity) is how visible fandom has become. "In my day," she says, "we had to hide behind P.O. boxes to get fanfic. But nowadays, people wear t-shirts that shout their affiliation and share their shiny toys on the internet." It's a wonderful world. 
Well, I don't think the show was in danger of getting the axe any second recently – maybe in the first two years or even the second to third pickup. But since then they have had early pick up announcements and more positive press from the suits at the CW and across the board. So, I don't see any kind of demon deal to get a sixth. It started looking more and more likely as early as last fall when fifth season started
I'm just happy for more of my show and of course, the return of Samhair – unless of course Kripke kills off Sam and Jared comes back as a spirit to guide Dean and Cas thru sixth season – oh god, I think I just threw up in my mouth a little
Okay. Thank you so much for making me laugh at an inappropriate volume in my workplace. Sam as a spirit guide? Please! Don’t give them any ideas!!!! Though, perhaps death would be better than cutting a single hair on that lovely boy’s head……still, as so many have said and I’ll repeat here, it’s the SAM and DEAN show, not the Dean and whoever show!!!! (And seriously, demon deals can sometimes be a long time in the making, so you never can prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt that the demon deal didn’t start right after S2 ended.)
i also may be the only one here who genuinely likes Bobby and Castiel. But because I came in late maybe I'm naive for them
I loved Bobby in the beginning but not so much anymore. However, I am still in love with Castiel. If there is a legitimate reason for an angel to be in season six I'd love seeing him next year.
I like the idea of the Show coming back because I'd like to see the aftermath. I like the idea of seeing what happens after something big happens…its like in movies, there's big fanfare and bang and boom and everything is tidied up in the end, but what comes after? I remember reading a review for the last True Blood season finale where they were bummed Eggs got killed and they'd hoped to see his character develop from the guilt of all the killing hehad done, even if he had been controlled to do it… but how do you continue to live after you suvive the end of the world? What happens when it's quiet? So I'm pretty psyched. I also got into the show late (season 3 or 4, I don't remember) so I've been playing catch-up and I'm grateful for just being able to be a part of it still.
Maybe because I came in later I'm more forgiving, even in looking back, I just like the idea that there is always going to be something to say as long as the world exists.
Hon, so by your own admission you don't know anything about what's going on, and yet you are spouting an article about how Supernatural has done a deal and sold it's show for money and broken promises? Don't you think that's a little… premature of you? I've read plenty and recently too. I'll fill you in. Speculation is all mine. All quotes are paraphrases.
I read an interview where Kripke said he had a 3 year plan. I read an interview where Kripke said he had a 5 year plan. I read an interview where Kripke admitted he makes it up as he goes along and adjusts as need be. I read an interview where Kripke said he woke up one day and said to his writing staff "hey! we're doing angels! (but they're dicks!)" even though he previously was always anti-angels by his own admission.
I read an interview (from the end of last year) where Kripke said "HELL, NO!! NO. JUST NO. I WILL NOT BE DOING S6 NO. THE SHOW IS OVER. IT'S MY SHOW AND MY ENDING AND IT IS OVER. IF THERE IS A S6, I WON'T BE THERE. I AM DONE. NO WAY!". Five months (or so) later I read an interview with The CW president Dawn where she said "Kripke is realising that he wants to do a S6. He likes it." Read between the lines: I forced him to like it whether he likes it or not *evil laughter*.
Then I read an article saying Kripke was stepping down as showrunner. Also Robert Singer and Jeremy Carver were leaving. Originally I heard most senior staff were leaving. Sounded like a bail.
Not too long after that I read an interview where Kripe said, "well, one story closes (S5), another starts (S6). Buffy came back after the apocalypse, we can too………………" Then I heard that Kripke couldn't attend the 100 episodes party for "personal reasons." Must have been freaking HUGE to miss your own birthday party.
The CW had Kripke on a 5 year contract, but had the BOYS on a 6 year contract.
Likely conclusion: The CW is forcing another season. Kripke is unhappy and perhaps others are too. As in "we own the boys and we own the show and we will continue the show with or without you and everyone else, we don't care. Unless you want the show to go to hell, we are hoping you'll stay."
CW sold the show's soul. No one else. Reason: The CW is in trouble, it cannot afford to lose Supernatural, even if it hates the show with all it has.
"Why not write a story about how Sam and Dean become brothers again? I know, shocker, right? Write a season where the all the episodes are about Sam and Dean learning to work together and to trust each other."
^^^ If we get this I will be ecstatic. This apocalypse storyline, with the boys as afterthoughts, has sucked the heart and magic out of the show. I want next year to be about the boys, their angst and their relationship.
I love that Sera is taking over next year and hopefully she'll rein in the Dean show.
And my Sam hair fetish is hoping for many glorious Sam hair moments too.
I'm cool with a sixth season in which Sam and Dean do nothing more than mow lawns and lay by the pool in lounge chairs, preferably shirtless, drinking tropical cocktails with little pink umbrellas in them as just rewards for averting the end of mankind. Pretty much anything that gives me more Sam and Dean is fine with me (unless it involves Paris Hilton) because it's the Sam and Dean characters that keep me coming back for more, not the story itself.
Seriously, if you magically slotted two different characters into Show, I would not have tuned in for four plus seasons and eagerly looked forward to a sixth season. I don't tune in to find out what's going down with those wacky Angels or just what kind of mischief the demons have got themselves up to or how, exactly, Lucifer is going to kill all of humanity. I buy the DVDs and watch each episode multiple times because I enjoy watching Sam and Dean deal with the stuff that gets thrown at them. As long as Season 6 doesn't change the Sam and Dean characters fundamentally, I'll be there to watch.
That said, I'd love to see a season-long arc that deals with some form of the boys passing the torch. Kind of the way Buffy finally got some semblance of a normal life by sharing her slayer powers with other potentials so that she was not longer The One, I'd love to see Dean and Sam find some kind of peace in passing along their skills and knowing that others out there will share the burden or even take it over. Not that I want the boys to learn they have some long lost illegitimate children out there (GAH!!), but some way for them to go on even after they're gone.