Notes While Watching:
I remember watching that first scene the first time–it was scary as hell. Still majorly creepy.
The lighting is very dark, very noir compared with later seasons. Establishes how they pay for their life (credit card fraud), the metal rock, the lying-with-ease.
Hahah, no laptops yet. No gruff Dean voice, either. Begins Jerk/Bitch.
Poor Jess…
Mythology:
angry/vengeful/violent spirit (Woman in White), salt circles, John’s journal, the nursery fires
Thoughts:
What can be difficult about writing a retrospective is that…well, one, it’s been a long time since I’ve watched the first season and two, I already know where this boat is heading.
Still, the Pilot lays a good foundation for the next few episodes, which are by and large standalone. I think the showrunners/network planned to make Supernatural more episodic than what it became. Still, the epic story lines are definitely begun here.
The characters are what compelled me to continue watching. Most Supernatural fans would say the same. Though Dean and Sam are not fully realized in the pilot, they already have a dynamic that transcends the usual Older/Younger brother tropes. Older brother Dean is cool, canny, foul-mouthed, but also touchy about certain things (his parents, for one). Sam is responsible, intelligent, a bit snotty and arrogant (I love that his Achille’s Heel is established so early), and at this point, desires normalcy above all else.
In Comparison to Another Pilot:
I can’t help but compare the Pilot of Supernatural with the most recent pilot I’ve watched, Revolution (which also happens to be by the same showrunner, Eric Kripke.) I have a lot of complaints about Revolution, enough for a series of posts I’m sure, but the distinct difference between the two is, as corny as this sounds, heart.
Supernatural pumps with blood from the get go. Are there a number of problematic episodes scattered throughout? Yes. Eight seasons of twenty-two episodes–that’s a hell of a lot of story to generate. But the pilot’s beginning and closing scenes are visceral, tragic. The relationship between Dean and Sam is complicated and layered. What they do, how they interact, how they converse, feels real, nailed to solid earth, even as they hunt ghosts, monsters and demons . The supernatural/mystical lore is tacked to historical and mythological sources. Even though we, as viewers, accept that this premise is fantasy, it feels like Hogwarts did—that this world exists, just right out of our eyesight.
Revolution, on the other hand, has no heart. None. I could forgive (maybe) all (some) of the dumb plot holes if the characters responded to each other and to their situation in a reasonable way. But they don’t. All of the characters are flimsy card-stock—wounded, precocious, earnest young woman; drunk, disreputable, smart-ass uncle; charming, handsome, conflicted love interest—I mean, really? It feels like they’re jacked into a story instead of originating within the story.
Revolution feels too much like an obvious play to The Hunger Games/Walking Dead/Lost/Fringe/Supernatural/Buffy/Comic-Con set. And in being an imitation of the authentic, the show gets absolutely everything–from setting, to premise, to dialogue, to character, to costume, hell, even hair—wrong. Where the show could have been compelling—(Why in the world would Charlie set off on a quest looking like a beautiful woman? Dumb! Show her cut off her hair and bind her boobs–now that’s interesting)—it just fell apart.
Rant 0ver.
In Conclusion:
The pilot episode of Supernatural sets the tone for the entire series. The Impala, the lore, and the relationships for the entire show are accounted for. The premise and motivation for the first five seasons under Eric Kripke begin. It’s more than serviceable, and introduces us to two of the best characters ever on TV.
Under the Old Oak Tree 