Back in 2005, I remember when Supernatural first went on the air on what was then WB11. I was a little kid then and I was much too scared of the potential to be scared. I hated scary movies. Still do. That was probably the right decision. Supernatural isn't exactly scary, but it employs enough of the horror movie tricks that I probably would not enjoy myself.
Now that I'm older, I can more easily watch these episodes. Helping the matter is that this first season lacks in scares, for better or worse. I'm not saying that as a bad thing either. I'm not watching Supernatural to be scared. The show did manage to have some freaky and unsettling moments though.
The first season shows enormous potential, but ultimately too many of the episodes have stock monsters. Whenever the show managed to make an episode about the season-long arc or an extensive look into the character, it was a much better show. To the show's credit, each episode contained something that contributed to the overall show past that episode.
The pilot episode was like nearly every other pilot: good and extremely rushed. In 42 minutes of screen time, Sam and Dean's mother gets killed, their father disappears, and Sam's girlfriend gets killed. One of the weaknesses to the season is that Sam understandably spends most of the first half of this season getting over Jess' death. That's only a problem because Jess was a nothing character. It wouldn't have made any difference if we never saw her on the show, because she had that much character development.
The only way I could think to fix that would be to have her appear in flashbacks in a few episodes following the pilot. Flashbacks aren't that great, but it would help us care about his struggle. Not only that, but it's not like the monster of the weeks were that compelling. They could probably have easily shed 3-4 minutes and not suffered at all. (Then again, I don't think Friday Night Light's Adrianne Palicki would be up for it anyway. She's not that great of an actress. There's like no chance she could have done what I want in 15 minutes of screen time spread across a couple episodes.)
The show took a little while to find its ground. After the pilot episode, brothers Dean and Sam mostly just visited the monster of the week, probably bickered, and then defeated it. The success of the episode largely depended on how good of actors the people they saved were. In most cases, they weren't great. Still, the show was finding out what worked and what didn't and all of them were still self-contained episodes. This paragraph is harsher on the first eight episodes than I intend. I mostly enjoyed them.
Then, creator Eric Kripke wrote "Home," his second episode after the pilot. Kripke seems like a good showrunner to me. He only wrote four episodes in the first season, and all of them were pretty important to mythology of the show. He didn't seem too interested in writing stories that were simply standalone. "Home" is technically standalone, but Sam gets his first vision. Kripke was quoted as saying the standalone episodes were "hit-and-miss," which is pretty much correct.
The show was surprisingly quick to play with its formula. In "Scarecrow," I was not expecting the show to actually separate the brothers for an extended period of time. Plus, it introduced "Meg Masters," played by Nicki Aycox. Aycox thankfully is very good in this role and provides a worthy opponent. In "Faith," Dean basically is condemned to die, but they unknowingly use supernatural forces to cheat it. Helping the show is the questions it raises about who deserves to die and casting Buffy's Julie Benz.
Other stand-out episodes include "Nightmare," where Sam gets a premonition of a man being killed. Not only do we find out where Sam's powers may eventually be, but we get to see a scenario where they could have ended up if their father took a different route to parenting. John Winchester isn't exactly the greatest parent, which he readily acknowledges later in the season, but things could have turned out worse.
I hope Supernatural continues its emphasis on season-long arcs, because it was easily the strongest part of the first season. Sam gets the brunt of character development as he gets over Jess' death gradually throughout the season, learns to forgive his father, and discovers his powers. "Provenance" does a good job of somewhat allowing Sam to get over Jess by having him date for the first time. He's not completely over it, but it's a step. Also, I admire the show's restraint as it's close to a year in the show's time when he does that.
I also liked how the father-son dynamic between Sam and John worked. John opened up to Sam about his parenting, and Sam seemed to finally understand he's more like his father than he thought. It was also a nice touch for Dean to question his father at the end, as he seemed more like a loyal soldier. Sam helped him to not just blindly follow. These characters were pretty well fleshed out by the end. Other problems with the show aside, that's kind of my most important aspect of a TV show -character.
Lastly, I really liked the show's restraint with Sam's powers. He only really telekinetically moved one thing and that was because he foresaw his brother's death. In the finale, his "father" dares him to move the gun, but he can't. I was fully expecting him to move it, and I applaud the misdirection as instead John is just that strong of a guy.
Pretty much the only way this show works is if the two leads have believable chemistry as brothers. Boy, do Jensen Ackles and Jared Padelecki manage that. Ackles probably IS Dean in real life, because he pretty immediately shines. I had some issues with Padelicki to begin the series, but he got stronger as an actor as the series went along. One thing I don't understand is that Dean seems to pretty much get any girl he wants - which is believable to a point - and yet Sam is virtually ignored. Some of that has to do with will - Dean seeks out girls, while Sam does not. But is Padelicki really that less attractive than Ackles? I actually have no idea, but it was a bit distracting. (I'm obviously more of an Ackles fan and it was still weirdly one-sided to me.)
And while I did have some problems with the guest stars - probably a budget issue - the important guest stars could act. Jeffrey Dean Morgan is fantastic in very little screen time. The aforementioned Aycox is basically the only recurring villain and justifies it. I also liked appearances from Benz, Amy Acker, and Jim Beaver, who I'm thrilled is in many more episodes of this.
What I find interesting is that Supernatural is molded by X-Files veterans, yet does not in any way evoke that show. The first two episodes are directed by David Nutter, who directed quite a few episodes of The X-Files in its first few seasons. Kim Manner, who directed 52 episodes of The X-Files, directed five in this first season. And it's not only the directing as writer John Shiban plays a prominent role in this season. Shiban is one of only four writers who write more than two episodes n this season, with Kripke and the team of Sera Gamble and Raelle Tucker being the others.
I hope Kripke assembles a more consistent writing team in the second season and I don't even mean that as from episode to episode. The first season features a TON of writers, some good and some not so good. Less writers means a more consistent voice and hopefully a better season.
The first season has its problems, but there's no question I feel more confident in committing to this show than before I started. The show nailed the important aspects that I care about - character development and a good story arc - and its weaknesses can definitely be improved. I'm looking forward to the next season.
Grade - B+
Playlist
1. "Found a Job" - Talking Heads
2. "White Unicorn" - Wolfmother
3. "Bang Bang You're Dead" - Dirty Pretty Things
4. "Holiest" - Glass Animals feat. Tei Shi
5. "Weekend" - Priory
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