'Supernatural': The showrunners talk Sam and Dean's new dynamic and all those flashbacks
by Emily Rome
Tags: Supernatural
Image Credit: Ed Araquel
Supernatural has a new showrunner, Jeremy Carver, returning to the show after some time away helming Syfy's Being Human,
and it looks like he is working to strike a balance between giving fans
something fresh and staying close to the show's roots. Supernatural
wouldn't be the same without classic rock, and tonight's season 8
opener delivered on that musical note straight away with Styx's "Man In
The Wilderness." Tommy Shaw croons in the 1977 song, "Another year has
passed me by / … What kind of man have I become?"
Indeed, that's the question Sam and Dean will be asking themselves –
and each other – this season as they grapple with all that's happened
during a year spent apart.
Carver and fellow executive producer Robert Singer were on hand to
answer reporters' questions about the new season following a screening
of the premiere. BEWARE OF SPOILERS if you haven't watched tonight's premiere (Supernatural's
150th episode!), titled "We Need to Talk About Kevin," but read on if
you want to learn about Carver and Singer's take on the premiere and
what's in store for the season ahead.
Dealing with the death and return back to life of a brother is
nothing new for Sam and Dean Winchester, but this time something's
different: Sam has quit hunting and didn't go looking for Dean when he
was zapped down to home of all dead monsters, Purgatory. Even though the
brothers have always asked each other to promise to do just that should
either one of them kick the bucket, Dean's pretty pissed to learn that
Sam has spent a year with a new lady friend and not saving people,
hunting things.
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Things are different this time around because Sam is, as Crowley said
in the season 7 finale, "well and truly alone." No Dean. No Bobby. Not
even a supposedly trustworthy, blood-supplying demon.
"I don't think [Sam] knew what he wanted to do, then he hit a dog,
and that started something new for him," Singer explained. "He got a
taste of something he had never had before, and it had a really profound
effect on him, one that he doesn't really expect Dean to understand."
That goes both ways: Dean doesn't expect Sam to understand what he
went through in Purgatory, to the point that he's keeping his new buddy
Benny a secret from his brother and he's being vague about whatever
happened to Castiel. But as soon as Sam opens up, Dean reprimands him
about his decision to put hunting aside.
"The fact that he's judgmental is probably not all that fair to Sam given what Dean's not saying," Singer teased.
"Might those tables turn in terms of who has to answer for what?"
Carver said cryptically. Beyond that, the two showrunners weren't eager
to reveal anything about how Dean spent his past year and how that will
impact the brothers relationship, but they did divulge plenty more about
what fans can expect this season. Here are some other things reporters
learned from Carver and Singer about tonight's episode and what's to
come in season 8:
The flashbacks will not be in every episode.?
Singer said they use flashbacks "where appropriate" this season, and
Carver added that the writers are planning to have these jumps back to
the Winchesters' past year "play heaviest in the first 13" episodes of
the season. Carver assured reporters that the story of how Dean and his
new vampire companion, Benny, got so close will be revealed in the
flashbacks.
The quest to close the gates of Hell will be a major season arc.
Carver confirmed that Sam, Dean and Kevin's mission to trap all demons
in Hell forever (yes, forever!) will be a major arc for season 8, but he
also plans to have this quest influence Supernatural beyond
season 8. "The questions that come up in this quest and the series of
discoveries are meant to start giving us those underpinnings for
questions and secrets and things that will be explored in future
seasons," Carver said.
As for just what closing the gates of Hell really means, fans
watching this episode undoubtedly want a peek at that hidden tablet
themselves, any clues to clarify whether this means Hell will also be
closed off to human souls. On that subject, Carver only said, "That's
something that will be clarified later on, clarified or dealt with."
Will we see Meg again and what she thinks of this demon-banishing
plan? The showrunners wouldn't say, though Carver acknowledged, "That
would be an interesting conversation."
Castiel's fate in Purgatory will be revealed gradually.
Cas was nowhere to be seen in the season premiere, and his whereabouts
since he disappeared from Dean's side upon their arrival in Purgatory
are unknown. But Carver promised that the show will start revealing what
happened to the trench coat-donning angel soon. "We'll be telling that
story of Purgatory pretty steadily through the first seven or eight
episodes," he said. "By episode seven or eight you'll start to get a
really good understanding of what happened in Purgatory to Cas."
The Supernatural team was very intentional with the contrasting looks of Sam's and Dean's flashbacks.
Singer, who also directed the premiere episode – his 24th time directing
for the show – explained the thinking behind the looks of Purgatory and
of Sam's year topside: "[Purgatory has] a real lack of color and high
contrast, a desaturated look to help [convey] the harshness of the
place," Singer said. "We wanted to contrast that with Sam's flashbacks,
which are diffused and have filters and are a little more dreamy, so you
get a sense that Sam's past year was kind of nice and warm and Dean's
was cold and stark."
Episode 4 of the season will be a found footage episode.?
The showrunners told reporters a bit more about the upcoming found
footage episode, "Bitten." Carver promised that it will be "pretty
unlike any episode that this show has ever done before," with a group of
college students played by guest stars Brandon Jones (CSI) and
relative newcomers Britni Sheridan and Leigh Parker carrying the
episode. He explained that it differs from season 3 episode
"Ghostfacers" in that "it ain't for laughs." Singer added, "Tonally,
it's 180 degrees away from 'Ghostfacers.'"
There's no need to worry that the dog Sam saves is another monster in disguise.
"Yes, it's really a dog," Singer said, adding that the canine will soon be known as Riot.
Why wouldn't you take a joint from a guy named Don??
No dogs in the Impala, and never take a joint from a guy named Don –
those are the rules, as we learn from Dean in this episode. Singer told
reporters eager to hear more about the Winchesterian advice, "Just so
you know that you're not alone, when we were on the set shooting [that
scene], I had at least 50 percent of the crew come up to me and go,
'Who's Don?'" Carver, who wrote the episode, wasn't forthcoming with any
story behind the line. He simply said, "That's just one of those
lifeisms that I think we can all agree to."
To learn what Jared Padalecki, Jensen Ackles and, yes, even Misha Collins had to say about the new season, check out the scoop EW's Sandra Gonzalez got on the Supernatural set last week. And stay tuned for the next edition of The Spoiler Room for more teases of what's in store for the Winchester brothers.
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