A prequel to the immensely successful CW seriesSupernatural,The Winchestersfollows the story of Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean’s (Jensen Ackles) parents, Mary Campbell (Meg Donnelly) and John Winchester (Drake Rodger), as they hit the road hunting monsters. It premiered in mid-October 2022 and is already filling the proverbial voidSupernaturalleft behind. Mary, a seasoned hunter since birth, encounters John, who only recently discovered his hunting lineage via his presumably deceased father, on the day he returns home from Vietnam. Herein lies the catalyst for the show, as Mary and John’s paths seem inextricably linked after their first meeting.
The reviews for the series so far are extremely positive, and rightly so.The Winchestershad a tall order to fill as the only greenlit spin-off of one of the most successful shows in CW’s history. Thankfully, it manages to live up to the hype and expectations, all while carving out its own path in the world ofSupernatural. The show has clear echoes of its predecessor but refreshingly offers new stories with diverse characters.
For any fan who was sad to see the original 15-season series finally come to an end,The Winchestersdefinitely scratches theSupernaturalitch they might be feeling. For many reasons, the show is what the world ofSupernaturalneeded in a prequel.
The Winchesters Captures the Same Tone of the Original Series
BeforeSupernaturalwent meta in its later seasons, the first five seasons were spooky, gritty, and generally self-contained. There was always an overarching story aboutSam or Dean’s fate, but generally, each episode was able to stand on its own based on the cases in which the brothers worked. Each week viewers were introduced to a new monster Sam and Dean would manage to kill by the end of the episode.The Winchestersappears to be following that blueprint well without feeling derivative.
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What begins as a search for Mary’s missing father, Samuel, turns into a case-by-case monster-hunting road trip, much like the early seasons ofSupernatural. Lost fathers seem to be a recurring theme for both shows. The difference here is that Mary and John aren’t alone. Along for the ride are Mary’s friends, Carlos (Jojo Fleites) and Lata (Nida Khurshid), as well as Ada Monroe (Demetria McKinney), a bookstore owner with connections to Samuel. AScooby-Doogang of sorts, the group travel in Carlos’s van as they work cases while investigating the disappearance of Mary’s father.
While the premise of both shows is similar in their set-up, there’s also a definite through line via the show’s main characters. Mary is very much like Dean; she’s brash and to the point. Meanwhile, John echoes Sam’s behavior; he’s more inquisitive and empathic. Even some mannerisms John displays are reminiscent of Sam, which seems too similar to be an accident. Viewers can clearly see the family resemblance with ease.
Also, in trueSupernaturalfashion, the music inThe Winchestershits the nail on the head and manages tocapture the toneperfectly. Music inSupernaturalplayed an important role as the show progressed, andThe Winchestersappear to be tapping into that concept as well.
The Show Provides a Much-Needed Female Perspective
While many of the leading women inSupernatural, such as Jo, Ellen, Rowena, and Charlie, were strong, independent characters in their own right, they were often sidelined, given the show centered around Sam and Dean. Also, all too often, female characters were used in stereotypical ways or as a simple means to end depending on the case the brothers were working. However, the prequel appears to be course-correcting in that regard.
The spin-off might be calledThe Winchesters, but the star of the show is clearly Mary Campbell. She’s the leader of the pack and doesn’t shy away from the role. Much like Sam and Dean, she was born to be a hunter, and it shows. Given the show takes place in 1972, all the women ofThe Winchestersappear to be defyingtraditional gender standardsof the time.
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John’s mother (Bianca Kajlich) owns and operates a mechanic shop, and Ada owns a bookstore and appears wicked smart regarding the occult. Lata knows how to do the research needed for the gang to take on the monsters they encounter as they search for Samuel. The women of the show hold their own space on the screen, andThe Winchestersappears to be leaning into it.
Viewers Can Enjoy the Prequel Without Having Watched Supernatural
AlthoughThe Winchestersis a spin-off series, having seenSupernaturalis not a prerequisite for watching and enjoying the show. WhileThe Winchestersoffers fun callbacks to its predecessor, the series stands on its own and can be viewed without any prior knowledge of Sam or Dean. In fact, the prequel has a bit of an advantage over the original series in the sense that its creators already know what works on screen. Since they were involved in the original, they can expand on concepts that were successful or completely steer clear of what didn’twork inSupernatural.
Whether or not someone was an avid fan of the original series,The Winchestersis a show worth watching. New episodes ofThe Winchestersair every Tuesday on The CW.
