The CW series "Supernatural" starring Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles has spanned over 13 seasons with the confirmation for a fourteenth. The show follows two brothers, Sam (Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Ackles), in their antics of hunting Supernatural creatures. This a show that I love with everything I have as I have stuck with it for about five years and anyone I have ever known can tell you that they've been waiting for this article.
Through some research I've been doing for a project based on the first five seasons, I've realized just how damn good they were. This is not only from a story standpoint (I am VERY passionate about the psychic!Sam story) but also from an aesthetic standpoint.
Over 13 seasons, a lot has definitely changed. You can see after about season 8 there is just a constant rehash of storylines. Sure, they have explored some new topics such as Leviathans, biblical-era monsters, and Nephilim, the child of an angel and a human, but the same storylines over and over again are just boring. I am no longer affected by major character death, but more by minor character death. I am also constantly whining about what writers are good and bad as it shows through either fantastic or absolute garbage episode that is before me.
The amazing and interesting arc of Sam's psychic abilities was forgotten for a very long while and not mentioned until very recently in the 13th season. There are so many things from the original seasons that rarely come back into play with so much content to go over. It's always very exciting to see something from a long time ago in the "Road So Far" segment of the show. It almost gives me a glimmer of hope.
From the standpoint of aesthetic, I very much prefer the early seasons of the show. Originally, "Supernatural" was shot on film but later switched to digital in the later seasons. Due to the tone of the show, I prefer the older seasons' look.
Season 2
Season 11
There is a distinct difference between the way that light and shadow was used in the past and how it is used now. There is a joke in the "Supernatural" community that as the seasons go on and the storyline gets darker, the camera and lighting becomes lighter.
Overall, Supernatural is an amazing show and I would never give up the friends I've made from it and the experiences I've had from it. I just want the writers to come up with something original again.
