The FanFair is a place for you to find and connect with people who love the things you love. It's a place to immerse yourself in all of your favorite fandoms, discover lesser-known fanfiction writers, and geek out with your fellow Wattpadders. We'll...
In 2005, no one expected Supernatural to turn into the phenomenon it has become today. The first episode aired on September 13th, 2005 on the CW and ever since then the show has garnered quite a bit of attention. Given the fact that the show was never intended to go past season 5, it is pretty incredible that it's closing in on 300 episodes. This is all thanks to the immense popularity that surrounds the show, which inspired the CW to keep it running for 13 seasons. It has also been recently confirmed that the show is to continue on to season 14.
The Supernatural fandom has a long-standing presence within the communities of Reddit, Tumblr, Twitter, and, of course, fanfiction sites. The fandom's constant presence within these communities could be attributed to the influx of younger fans and continual fandom of older fans. According to an article by Dana Reback of Chaotic Good Studios, the majority of Supernatural's original fandom consisted of women who were formerly fans of television shows similar to The X-Files. This data alone, she argues, provides the Supernatural fandom with an edge over others simply because the original fans were those who frequented fan forums and the like during the early years of the internet. Which, in turn, provides the fandom with a greater ability to organize within internet communities and make their voices heard.
It is often joked that, due to their large presence on Tumblr and other sites, the Supernatural fandom has a GIF or meme for any possible situation. This reinforces the thought that the show itself touches on a variety of topics. It seems that most of the time, when Supernatural is not even mentioned within a post, that a Supernatural fan will find and reply to the original post with something relevant from the show itself, whether that be a meme or a GIF. This practice is well known throughout internet communities and even other fandoms. It cannot be disputed that Supernatural is the only fandom that has the ability to post a GIF of an angel caressing a pineapple and claim it as their own.
One of the, if not the most famous part of the Supernatural fandom is the fanfiction that comes from it. At the onset, many of the stories were composed by female fans who added themselves, or a persona, into the stories that took place within the show. In their stories, it is well known that their characters would be romantically involved with at least one of the main characters.
While I can't deny, Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles of their obvious good looks, one of the important, if not the most important, aspects of the show is the bond of family. This family bond has struck inspiration in me and many others to write fanfiction in which a new character is added into the story that is either a daughter or sister of the main characters. The theme of family has strongly influenced changes within the Supernatural fanfiction community. According to Dana Reback's article, "Supernatural Gets It," many of the fanfiction writers began writing themselves into the show as a sibling or child of the main characters, rather than a romantic counterpart.
Additionally, there is a section within the fanfiction community itself that romanticizes the relationship between the Winchester brothers. This section of fanfiction is most commonly referred to as Wincest. The creators of Supernatural are quite aware of this section and even manage to poke fun at it. More specifically, in episode 18 of season 4, the Winchester's encounter a series of novels that contain their entire life story. Later in the episode, they are researching the novels and come across a small fan club website. The boys have a humorous conversation when Sam tries to explain to Dean what a slash fan is. Dean responds by saying to Sam, "They know we are brother's, right?" To which Sam replies, "It doesn't seem to matter." This small interaction, and in fact this entire episode, is just one of many where the characters break the fourth wall and use the creator's knowledge of the fandom to make comments on a variety of topics.
When it comes to writing fanfiction, I personally never saw myself getting into writing it. I've never really enjoyed writing, but when I joined Wattpad and started reading other fanfictions, Supernatural and otherwise, I just asked myself, "Why not?" I've always loved the show, and now I love writing my own fanfiction about it. Giving into the creativity has inspired me to write my own book and has made me realize how much I really do like writing. If you ever consider writing your own fanfiction, Supernatural based or not, my advice is to just go for it.
If that isn't enough to convince you then in 2014, Maggie Panos wrote an article for PopSugar where she included direct quotes from Jared and Jensen about the show's fanfiction. During a panel at the Summer Television Critics Association, Jared said, "I would love to read some of it, if I had time. I love that it's inspiring, though. That's the point of art and music. I do intend to someday go back and be a fan of it, because I am a fan of this." Jensen added, "If the fans are latching onto these characters and coming up with their own creativity... if this inspires a conversation, fantastic. It's art, we're entertainment, and people can draw from it what they will."
It can be seen, very clearly, that as the show itself has evolved so has the fandom. Up until this point, after 13 years, the show and fandom have grown quite a bit. There is no telling how both will evolve in the coming years, but I look forward to seeing it and being a part of it.
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There are still (older or long-time) fans who think that the current episodes and story don't quite reach the same quality as the early seasons. Nonetheless, the show only rose to massive popularity in the last 5 or 6 years, to the point where there are annual conventions and fans travel miles to see the actors and talk to them.
In your opinion, have the new episodes brought additional value to the show or it should have ended back in season 5?
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P r o f i l e S p o t l i g h t:
WattSupernatural The official ambassador-managed profile dedicated to the hit TV show Supernatural. Grab your salt and holy water, reload your shotguns and join the hunt. All demon hunters, ghostfacers, and even babies in trenchcoats are welcome.
