Review: “Supernatural” Season 13 premiere sets up adventures to come

Saving people and hunting things, that’s the family business. The Winchester brothers, Dean and Sam, played by Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki respectively, graced our screens once more with the premiere of lucky Season 13 on Oct.12 on CW.

Since 2005, the show has captivated audiences with its supernatural monsters, lore, action, classic 1967 Chevrolet Impala and two heroes at the forefront. The show is dark, gritty, entertaining and riveting, offering detailed storylines every season. Sam and Dean have met demons, angels and every other supernatural being that you could possibly imagine. They’ve killed demons, “ganked” werewolves and vampires, stopped the apocalypse, defeated Leviathans, conquered The Darkness and gone to Hell, Purgatory and even Heaven. Both have made various sacrifices, from Sam losing his soul to Dean briefly becoming a demon and have died and come back once or twice. After all of this, our expectations are high for the Winchesters this season.

The road so far, as of Season 12, was about several things. The Winchesters got to know, and ultimately fought, the British Men of Letters. They were reintroduced to their mother, Mary Winchester, played by Samantha Smith. She had died of supernatural causes when they were small children and had been brought back by The Darkness. Sam and Dean developed a relationship with her, helping her adjust to the 21st century, while getting used to the idea of her being a hunter. Last but not least, they were focused on finding the child of archangel Lucifer, played by Mark Pellegrino. Kelly Kline, played by Courtney Ford, is the child’s mother and refuses to have an abortion. Sam and Dean, alongside the King of Hell Crowley, played by Mark A. Sheppard, and Castiel, played by Misha Collins, intend to find the child and kill it, as that child is a dangerous Nephilim, who would be born half-human and half-angel, and pose a serious threat to the world. Hence, much of the season consists of the brothers searching for Kelly and keeping Lucifer at bay.

In the season 12 finale, we were hit with heartbreaking bombshells that made our jaws drop. The first to die was Rowena, played by Ruth Connell, a redheaded witch that we have seen on “Supernatural” on and off since Season 10. She was killed by Lucifer as a self-assurance that he would not be placed back in his cage in Hell. She is Crowley’s mother, and though she is often an antagonist for the Winchesters, the audience can’t help but love her. She is charismatic, smart and funny. By the episode’s end, everyone is gone, leaving only the Winchester brothers and Lucifer’s newborn son, his appearance suddenly that of a teenager rather than a baby. Crowley and Castiel both die, while Lucifer and Mary wind up in a post-apocalyptic alternate reality. This was via a rift that opened as a result of the power possessed by Lucifer’s child. The rift is then sealed, leaving Lucifer and Mary trapped. The Winchesters are notoriously cursed, often losing the people that they care for the most, but this was a whole new level of loss, even for Sam and Dean.

To say audiences were shocked would be a gross understatement.

With the Season 13 premiere, we now know what happened afterward. The episode begins with Sam and Dean, right where we left them. Dean is outside and Sam is inside, staring at Lucifer’s son Jack, played by Alexander Calvert. Sam calmly starts to talk to Jack, trying to determine if the son of the malevolent archangel is good or bad, when Dean comes in and immediately shoots at Jack. Jack knocks out both Winchesters with a sonic scream and leaves to search for his father.

Jack winds up at a small restaurant, naked. Two teenagers discover him and call a police officer to the scene. While Jack is in police custody, Dean and Sam head off to begin looking for him. Dean insists they should kill him, but Sam argues they should give Jack a chance.,

Jack befriends the teenage boy who called the police but accidentally hurts his new friend’s mother, who is an officer, when he gets scared after hearing angel voices in his head. As it turns out, three angels who intend to use Jack’s almost limitless power for themselves have come for him. In a series of circumstances, the Winchesters kill one angel and banish the other two, but not before one angel stabs Jack’s friend.

As they watch Jack’s friend ride away in an ambulance with his mother, Sam and Dean discuss what to do with Jack. Sam, who had talked with Jack, had gotten to know him a bit more, receiving some insight into his intentions. To Sam’s surprise, Dean agrees to take Jack back to the bunker where he and Sam live. Dean reasons that this arrangement is temporary, until they can find a way to kill the seemingly impervious Jack, who withstood a stabbing directly to his heart courtesy of one of the angels who had come for him.

Season 13 began with a bang, and just like the previous 12 seasons, this season has proven that it holds plenty of excitement, angst, action and, of course, supernatural happenings in store with its opening episode. You can watch Season 13 at 8 p.m. ET on Thursdays on The CW network or on The CW website, where each episode is available for free for a limited time. Seasons 1 through 12 are available for streaming on Netflix as well.

Grade: A+

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