Supernatural

Erin Giannini has served as an editor and contributor at PopMatters and has published and presented work on television series such as Supernatural, Dollhouse, iZombie, and Angel. She is the author of Joss Whedon Versus the Corporation: Big Business Critiqued in the Films and Television Programs. She lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

• Introduction:The Family Business: Supernatural’s Unlikely SuccessPART I: IN THE BEGINNINGChapter 1: On the Road So Far: A Trip through TV History Chapter 2: Creating (and Recreating) SupernaturalChapter 3: Sam, Dean, and the Great American Road StoryPART II: THE SUPERNATURAL WORLDChapter 4: “We Saved the World. A Lot”: Supernatural and Its PredecessorsChapter 5: God(s) and Monsters: Supernatural, Folklore, and ReligionChapter 6: Blasting the Fourth Wall: Supernatural’s Metafictional EpisodesChapter 7: Deals With the Devil: Supernatural’s Political HellPART III: “PEOPLE WATCH THIS?” SUPERNATURAL’S CULTURAL IMPACTChapter 8: Supernatural and the Changing Television LandscapeChapter 9: Beyond “Sam” and “Dean” Girls: Supernatural and Fan ActivismConclusion: The End of the Road?Appendix: The 30 Must-See Supernatural EpisodesBibliographyNotesIndexAbout the Author

With this absorbing text, Giannini takes a deep dive into Supernatural, an immensely popular horror TV show that—despite a then-unknown cast—defied expectations and garnered legions of fans. Giannini considers the show’s wide-ranging influences, including Route 66, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Roseanne, and The X-Files. She also looks at the role that each of the show’s four showrunners had in shaping the series and the exploration of the main characters’ arcs. The book discusses the role of religion, politics, and folklore in the series and pays special attention to Supernatural’s numerous metafictional episodes, in which the writers comment on the overall narrative, as well as the activism of the dedicated fanbase. Finally, Giannini explores Supernatural’s evolution as the television landscape changed, its impact on other CW television shows, and the showrunners’ later work. In an appendix, she reveals her selection of must-see episodes. An insightful and entertaining analysis that fans of the series will devour.