As a natural heir to the hit television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural has risen to prominence with a strong cult following, and this series of essays from contributors around the globe investigates the genre-bending series’ cultural footprint both in the United States and abroad. The writings explore topics such as folklore, religion, gender and sexuality, comedy, music, and much more, and a brief guide to all the episodes is also included. Supernatural follows brothers Dean and Sam Winchester as they encounter and battle evil beings such as vampires, shapeshifters, ghouls, and ghosts from a multitude of genres including folklore, urban legends, and religious history.
Hunting ghosts, demons, and monsters and staving off the Apocalypse may make Sam and Dean Winchester crazy, according to Dean, but it is that very premise that enabled Supernatural to build up a loyal fandom eager to come back for more. The show began its broadcast on the WB (before the network merged with UPN to become the CW) on September 13, 2005, and was conceived as a hybrid of the horror and road movie genres. The show mixes American urban legends with a Route 66 (CBS, 1960–1964)1 formula that focuses on two brothers traveling across the U.S. in a 1968 Impala, looking for their demon–hunting father while fighting ghosts and monsters. While the pilot episode sets up the back story about their mother’s mysterious death and their father’s mission to hunt all manner of supernatural beings, the second episode, “Wendigo,” establishes the show’s formula when Dean explains to Sam that he thinks their father left them his journal — his guide to “everything he knows about every evil thing” — in order to pick up where he left off: “you know, saving people, hunting things. Family business.” The episode ends with Sam and Dean taking to the road, in Route 66 fashion, to find their next hunting job. Along the way, however, the show becomes so much more.
Looking back at Supernatural’s first five years, the series not only draws upon the iconography and conventions of the road movie genre on an episodic level, but its entire narrative arc is constructed as a journey. This journey begins when Sam and Dean accept their father’s mission and ends when Dean drives the Impala into Stull Cemetery — not to stop the confrontation between Lucifer and Archangel Michael, now inhabiting the bodies of Sam and their half–brother Adam, but to be with Sam at the end regardless of the consequences (“Swan Song,” 5.22). This epic narrative trajectory is called to mind in “Two Minutes to Midnight” (5.21) as Sam and Dean, surrounded by fellow hunter Bobby, fallen Angel Castiel, and demon–ally Crowley, prepare for their next mission:
Dean: Good luck stopping the whole zombie apocalypse.
Sam: Yeah. Good luck killing Death.
Dean: Yeah.
Sam: Remember when we used to just hunt wendigos? How simple things were?
Dean: Not really.
Throughout the first five seasons, Sam and Dean hunted ghosts, vampires, shapeshifters, witches, werewolves, demons, ghost ships, haunted trucks, and pagan gods. They lost their father, traveled back in time to meet their mother, found and lost a brother, drank loads of beer, died and came back to life, and died and came back to life again. They went to Hell and Heaven. They met angels, Lucifer, Death, and God. They appeared in reality ghost–hunting show Ghostfacers! and, scariest of all, went to a Supernatural fan convention. It has been a hell of a journey and a journey to Hell.
Anonymous
Posted May 2, 2013
Book Review Outline
Book title and author: TV Goes to Hell an Official Road Map of Supernatural by Stacey Abbott
Title of review: The Best TV show/ Book I have read
Number of stars (1 to 5): 5
Brothers, Sam and Dean crisscross the country picking fights with ghosts, demons, and monsters.
Description and summary of main points
Sam and Dean Winchester’s mother was killed and they were raised as warriors by their father. They Melt silver into bullets, sharpen stakes, and when scared are given a gun. The boy’s father John Winchester has turned into a hunter (one who hunts for vampires, werewolves, shape shifters, and demons, wendigos, etc.) to find the thing that killed his wife Mary Winchester. John goes on a “hunting trip” ( to find and kill the thing that is killing people in any area) and hasn’t been seen or contacted in weeks, so Dean and Sam go looking for him, on the way the boys do jobs (kill whatever creature that is killing people in the area)
The author Stacey Abbott has got this book compared the book perfectly to the TV show maybe a few minor details are wrong, for example Dean drives a 4 door 1967 Chevy impala. In the book they drive a 1968 Chevy impala.
The book is just like the show full of action and mystery.
LittleCrit
Posted September 16, 2012
If you're going to author a book, unofficial or official, please at least get the basic facts straight. The two brothers do not canvas the countryside in a 1968 Chevy Impala, but a 1967 Chevy Impala. A small, almost meaningless tidbit, but how could I purchase a book that can't get the small facts straight?
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted November 16, 2011
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Overview
As a natural heir to the hit television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Supernatural has risen to prominence with a strong cult following, and this series of essays from contributors around the globe investigates the genre-bending series’ cultural footprint both in the United States and abroad. The writings explore topics such as folklore, religion, gender and sexuality, comedy, music, and much more, and a brief guide to all the episodes is also included. Supernatural follows brothers Dean and Sam Winchester as ...