The Winchesters: A Supernatural Spin-Off That Falls Flat

Hello there.

I'm not one to judge a show by its cover, but today's pick is a doozy - "The Winchesters".

It's a spin-off of the hit series "Supernatural", although it was initially marketed as a prequel.

I'm bringing this up because it's worth mentioning.

Number of seasons (episodes): 1 season (13 episodes)

Episode length: 38-48 minutes

Release years: 2022-2023

Country: USA

Plot:The story follows the love story of John and Mary - the parents of Dean and Sam Winchester. John returns from the Vietnam War and meets 19-year-old demon hunter Mary. They team up to uncover the truth about their families and protect the world from evil. Meanwhile, John's mom, Mary, wants to shield her son from the dangers of demon hunting.

Main cast/characters (I'll mention a few):

Meg Donnelly - Mary Campbell

I'll be honest, I'm not a huge fan of the character. In the original series "Supernatural", the actress who played Mary Winchester from the past was a much better fit for the role. I mean, she looked more like a model for a magazine than a demon-hunting girl. As for the current actress, she seems more emotionless to me. This isn't the Mary I was expecting.

Drake Rodger - John Winchester

Okay, so I'll give the show some credit - the actor who plays young John is actually pretty good-looking. But let's get real, it's not the same guy who played John in "Supernatural". Here, he's more aggressive and takes to demon hunting like a fish to water. I mean, if I were in John's shoes, I'd be freaking out after meeting a demon for the first time, not jumping straight into the fray.

Nida Hurshid — Lata 'Lata' Desai At first, I thought she was just a student who would bail at the first sign of trouble. But nope. As far as I can tell, she's been in the know for a while now, but it wasn't until John showed up that she started holding her own with the rest of the team.

She's the team's resident researcher – digging through books, finding info on monsters – that's her thing.

I initially thought she'd be the team's 'witchy woman', but I'm not even sure if that was in the first season or if I just imagined it.

JoJo Flautas — Carlos Serrantes At first, I was annoyed by the character. But that was just in the first season – when I'm introduced to a new show and new characters, I hate them all equally.

He's super chatty and loves to joke around, but he's also always there to help his friends, even if it means putting himself in harm's way. If I'm not mistaken, he was the first one to call the team 'family' (if you're a fan of Supernatural, you know how much they beat that drum).

Tom Welling — Samuel Campbell, Mary's father Recognize him? Recognize him? That's Clark Kent from Smallville. Oh man, how you've aged... I mean, can you imagine this guy now in red underwear over blue tights? In Supernatural, the actor who plays him is different. The show takes place, I'd say, a year or two after this one, but Samuel looked older and thinner, and he was bald. Okay, that's just nitpicking from a fan.

As for the character, I didn't learn much about him, except that he loves his daughter, is a bit rough around the edges, and, honestly, I wouldn't cast him as Superman now.

Richard Speight Jr. — Loki He showed up in just one episode. He was in Supernatural, and the same actor played him. I could've written a whole essay when the camera first landed on him, but it looked like a joke, like, 'Hey, look – everything's connected.'

Jim Beaver — Bobby Singer If you've ever watched Supernatural and not known Bobby, then you've just not watched Supernatural. The guy shows up for like two minutes with Dean, and he's basically just his buddy.

Jensen Ackles — Dean Winchester, son of John and Mary (narrator) For the entire series, he's the narrator, often chiming in at the end of episodes with some unspoken conclusion, like 'hunting changes people' (not exactly, but you get the idea.

But he's not just a voiceover guy. When the characters get their hands on photos of him, it's not the guy we finally see in the last episode. I mean, in the last episode, he looks nothing like the Dean we've known for 15 seasons of Supernatural. He actually looks like the show's creator, making a cameo in the end.

I think we've had enough of the characters for now. I mean, what's the point, right?

Let's move on to the actual show.

I have to admit, even before the show came out, I was intrigued by the idea. I was curious to see how they'd mess it up (back when the last season of Supernatural was still airing). When the show finally dropped, I wasn't exactly chomping at the bit to start watching, considering how far the original series had fallen. And when it was confirmed that The Winchesters would be cancelled after just one season, I was pretty much out of there.

So, what's the point of the show, you ask? I'm guessing it won't surprise anyone to learn that the events of the show take place in a 'parallel universe' (a la the original Supernatural, where it was clear that John wasn't in the loop on the monster-hunting thing until Mary's tragic death). I mean, if you remember Supernatural, it was pretty clear that John wasn't aware of the supernatural world until Mary's death. But here, John is a full-fledged hunter who's still got his beer goggles on, having just returned from war.

Thankfully, it wasn't just a mistake on the creators' part, and they address it later in the show.

Jensen Ackles and his wife Danneel decided to cash in on the fans, I guess, after 15 years of building up a following. They came up with a story that's only going to be interesting to those same fans. I'm not sure what they expected, but the show ended up being unnecessary, and the conclusion was butchered beyond recognition.

I gotta ask, was this spin-off really necessary? The show takes place in a 'parallel universe,' but let's be real, the events that unfold here don't affect the main series in any way. Yeah, we find out that our local John, Mary, and the gang are fighting some cosmic threat that could destroy all the different versions of the world. But honestly, it feels like fanfiction written after the main show wrapped up – and I'm not just saying that because it probably is.

Whatever, let's just leave it for the fans to dissect.

The show itself has that same atmospheric vibe as the later seasons of the original – it's a bit of a snooze fest, but you're curious to see how it all wraps up, given how abruptly it got canceled. And at the same time, you're wondering why you're even bothering. Out of all the characters, I've got to say that Carlos is the only one who really stood out to me – he's not just a chatty sidekick, but he's actually 'alive' in the moment, unlike the rest of the cast who just seem to be going through the motions.

Honestly, I don't have much to say except that, in my opinion, this spin-off is completely unnecessary. And to be honest, it's just a waste of time. If you want to see the younger versions of John and Mary, just watch the original 'Supernatural' – the casting is spot on, if you ask me.

And all this business with parallel universes has already soured the original for me, so I don't see the point in messing with my head even more.

Check out my review of the original 'Supernatural' series