Look at me, creating my own bandwagon! :D

[loony_moony]

So EW picked their top 15 favourite SPN episodes, and while their list is really not half bad (Swan Song though? Really? That episode was so bad, I actually thought I'd stop watching the new season after it), I've decided to make my own list of 20 favourites plus extra awards for episodes with specific scenes/themes I really liked. BECAUSE I CAN. :D

My favourite 20 Supernatural episodes!

20. No Rest for The Wicked (3x16)



I have two words for you: MEAT HOOKS.

No really, fucking MEAT HOOKS.

But apart from the MEAT HOOKS (excuse my capslock, I seem to be unable to write these words in lower case), this episode was a solid wall of PAIN Kripke rammed the heads of the viewers into. It was a terribly painful episode to watch that ended in a truly scarring ending, wherein Dean's worst nightmares were coming true, and his emotions were so visible and tangible, it was really hard to detach onself from him. I personally couldn't rewatch it for several months afterward. And even though I knew season 4 meant Dean was coming back to life, that summer was a true hellatus, and this fangirl's soul was bleeding.

Say what you want about season 3, but that was truly one of the strongest episodes of the series.


19. Dark Side of the Moon (5x16)



Fitting that after talking about hell, one of my favorite episodes was also about heaven. Of course, in SPN verse, heaven is not very heavenly, and it's drawn so in truly stunning colors. I thought it then, and I still think so now, that heaven in SPN is a wonderfully plausible concept, in a very Judeo-Christian sense, of course. Also, the start of the episode is extremely strong. My one beef with the episode was the big character fumble the writers did with Zachariah. Listen, I know there is a recurring theme of every semi-male character on this show but Sam and Castiel wanting to jump Mary Winchester's pants, but really? That's just so heavy handed when the semi-male in question is Zachariah. The deal with holy tax accountants is that they are, as Alan Rickman puts it in "Dogma": "As anatomically impaired as a Ken Doll". So, there's that.




18. On The Head of a Pin (4x16)



Oof, this episode. See, here's the deal: That has to be one of the hottest episodes on this show, ever. Dean torturing, Sam executing, Castiel coldly calculating. Those are all things that are disturbingly hot, and even disturbingly hotter on this particular episode, because this episode? Is gorgeous. It's gorgeously shot, gorgeously blocked, played by gorgeous men being gorgeously bloody. Yes, even Alastair. And by the way, the whole "eye for an eye" thing Dean does to Alastair is even more amazing, considering how Dean discovering he broke the first seal was pretty much the eye for an eye for him torturing in the first place. I love even more how badass Sam looks when he smokes Alastair out, and how disturbed Castiel looks upon witnessing it (also, bloody Castiel? Only second in hotness to bloody Dean. Blood Sam's mostly just adorable to me).


17. The Rapture (4x20)



What a wonderful exposition episode. Castiel's almost Don Quixotian battle against his own brethern gets magnified ten folds when the audience discovers the sad, depressing existence of the guy he inhabits. How Jimmy Novak, not unlike the Winchesters, also comes from a bloodline of vessels, and how his daughter becomes one out of devotion to her father and her faith. I remember thinking about how medieval Supernatural gets when it deals with humans and demons, but how Biblical it gets when dealing with angels. I still think it's true. In any case, it's a Misha-full episode! HOW AWESOME IS THAT. :D


16. Lazarus Rising (4x01)



Such a beautiful episode on so many levels. My one qualm which is the reason for the relative-low placement on this list, is of course how much red I see when Dean slaps the demon-possessed girl. But apart from that, it's pretty much a perfect season opener, with a fantastic introduction to not only angels, but also the most badass entrance scene ever for Castiel. And a whole new slashy aspect of the fandom was born that day. But really, what stroke me most about the episode was what bellanut had said about the mini scene of Dean walking into the deserted service station, which was that apart from the intense symbolism of him hobbling along a long, sun-struck road, was a beautiful scene in which a very beautiful man walks. Hey, I didn't say I was deep. :D




15. Changing Channels (5x08)



DOCTOR SEXY! NUT CRACKER! HERPEXIA! GUTTERBALL! How fucking classic is this episode. Jeremy Carver strikes again (WITH an allusion to Mystery Spot might I say!) with some brilliant fucking writing, including some of the sharpest spoofs I've seen. BWEE! And I loooove me some Trickster/Gabester goodness too. SO! Spoofs + Trickster + Jeremy Carver = HAPPY MOONAY
okay, so maybe I thought the whole dramatic revelation at the end was kinda dumbly executed, but the rest of the episode is so BWEEful I can ignore that.





14. In The Beginning (4x03)



Another fantastic expository episode on the show (Jeremy Carver *SOB*), this time with added Awesome Campbells! I mean, seriously, how amazing is Mitch Pileggi as grandpa Samuel. SO AWESOME. I think that was also the episode where everyone he didn't like Mary Winchester suddenly discovered they LOVED her, and those who loved Mary Wnchester before that totally went "I TOLD YOU SO". Because young Mary Winchester, you guys, is 100% KICKASS. As in, she kicks Dean's ass. Also: Priests costumes! Impala buy! Terrible chronological plotholes! Ah, classic Supernatural.


13. Death Takes a Holiday (4x15)



Don't you love it when this show takes a theme it dealt with for a whole season and then just flips it completely on its head? In this case, Dean and Sam become the ghosts they spent all of season 1 killing and harming in various ways. And they discover how to kick ass like ghosts. And also there is Tessa. Don't know about you, but I love me some Tessa time. I especially love me some Tessa time when she helps Dean remember what happened to him during "In My Time Of Dying" (another theme flipped upside down). And I love, love, LOVE, Alexander Gould as the dead little boy to whom Sam gives empty promises (and all the Samgirls went "HOW COULD YOUUUU" while the Deangirls cackled in their corner). I love the whole premise of the episode, the plot, the characterization, EVERYTHING. DON'T BE SUCH A PRUDE. :D


12. What Is and What Should Never Be (2x20)




Oh god oh god, talk about painful. How much of a punch to your kishkes was this episode. Dean gets his dream world and even there, nothing's perfect. It's Raelle Tucker's swan song on the show before she went to kick ass on True Blood, and how beautiful was it? The level of pain generated by every scene Dean and fake!Mary Winchester have is just nigh-unbearable. And Sam saving Dean from certain death, and just, that whole episode. *tiny sob* It was the perfect set-up for "All Hell Breaks Loose" in terms of the love in the Winchester family, and especially the love between Sam and Dean, just ebfore they get viciously torn apart. Such sweet pain does this show give. I swear I'm now a tv masochist because of it.


11. Something Wicked (1x18)



I know, I know. Took me 9 episodes to get to something from season 1, but hey, I got there! This is a huge personal favourite episode of mine, and I feel like it's where the show really starts to hit its stride in terms of all the different elements coming together. It's a wonderful MotW episode (and very reminiscent of the buffy episode "Killed By Death", where another MotW haunts pediatric units to kill little kids), and it ties neatly in a bow the present and the past for Sam and Dean in a way that would become very common in later seasons. Also the themes of Dean's guilt, his protectiveness and his unhealthy devotion to his family are put in the limelight, in comparison to a similar thing that happens to Sam on "Faith". And it also has the best gay joke on the show still: "One king or two queens?""Uh, two queens" "YEAH, I BET." :D


10. Free to Be You and Me (5x03)



OOOH OOOH OOOH I LOVE THIS EPISODE. I mean, the minute the montage of Dean and Sam living separate lives set to "A Simple Man" kicks off, you know you're in for a treat. Plus, we have kickass!Castiel moment ("How was Jerusalem?" "ARID"), AND the awesome Adrianna Palicki coming back as fake!Jessica to haunt Sam's dreams. Plus, a fantastically terrifying pre-"The Song Remains The Same" discovery of what happens when an archangel possesses a mortal, and Sam has some downtime before his life catches up with him, a moment of foreshadowing for "Dark Side Of The Moon". And lets not forget how wonderfully this episode sets up Dean and Sam's inevitable bromantic reconciliation on "The End". A true crossroads episode.




9. It's a Terrible Life (4x17)



Hey, look! A Sera Gamble episode I didn't hate! In fact, an episode I really loved! I know, you guys; double rainbow, so intense. Speaking of rainbows, SAVE IT FOR THE HEALTH CLUB, PAL. LOL. The soy lattes, the master cleanse, the salad for lunch. You bet your ass Dean Winchester is hungry by the end of this. And lets not forget that this episode is actually the intro episode to Zachariah, and hilariously, in the beginning, he's actually useful! Dean needed some time out of his head, after that horrible scene at the end of "On The Head Of A Pin" where it was such an angst-and-single-manly-tear fest, even the most staunch Deangirl was going "OH, BROTHER", and there was much pity for Jensen Ackles. ANYHOO, Smith and Wesson, GHOSTFACERS, Dick! Wizard! Thorough enjoyment, even with the super-gore that is the Gamble trademark.

8. Ghostfacers (3x13)

SPEAKING OF GHOSTFACERS. :D They are basically the best secondary characters on this show apart from Castiel. SO MUCH LOVE OMFG. Also so much love (omfg)? This episode and the way it's done. How many tv episodes have you seen done this way? Also, how fucking inhuman can one person be to look stunningly beautiful on the most unflattering angels EVER? JENSEN ACKLES, DNA SAMPLE PLZ. Just to make sure you have a blood type *snicker*. No, he would not be a good Claude he would not be a good Claude he would not be a good Claude Anyway, hilarity and awesome horror! Also, angst! And plotholes! I love it when we have unapologetic plotholes. :D


7. Tall Tales (2x15)



SPEAKING OF FUN AND HILARITY. I can't even tell you how many times I've seen this episode. All I know is that I know every facial expression the boys make in here to a tee. THAT'S HOW MANY TIMERS I'VE SEEN THIS EPISODE. So much brilliant characterization spoof! So much unsubtle-and-yet-subtle slapstick comedy! And of course, this is the introduction to the Trickster/Gabester, who is everyone's favourite ambiguous villain on this show. AND FOR A GOOD REASON. So many classic moments! WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR YOUR BLAH BLAH! TOO PRECIOUS FOR THIS WORLD! God, I love this episode.




6. The End (5x04)



The moment I saw the "Oh, Death" trailer for season 5, I knew this would be one of my favorite episodes ever. It's just so wonderful. We have Dean witnessing his bitter, future self pointlessly dying at the hands of Samifer, aided by a disillusioned, angry Castiel who spends his time living like Misha Collins a hippie, because his life has no meaning. We see the ultimate development of the Croatoan virus, and we literally see Dean realizing he can't go on without Sam on his mission. A surprisingly joke-free Edlund episode, which is very unusual for him, but is wonderful all the same. HEY, IT'S THIS SHOW I LOVE HERE. :D


5. Monster Movie (4x05)



In honor of this lawlful masterpiece, I shall write a haiku:

Black and white filming,
Those boys sure have cheekbones that
Could cut glass with ease.

Oktoberfest has
Never been so bloody and
Funny, with beer and love.

The last verse didn't make
Sense, I know. Whatever. Hey,
Supernatural.

Jamie is kickass,
He just plays the Cassio!
I have a coupon.

Now for the big one:
Rehymenated. Jeez, Dean.
The Dude doesn't care.

In short: I LOVE IT.
More episodes like this, please?
Now, a Black Russian.


4. A Very Supernatural Christmas (3x08)



I mean, if you wanna rip Neil Gaiman off, at least do it with style, like this episode did. SUCH A FAVOURITE OMFG. The MotW are amazing, the jokes are amazing, the heart string tugging is amazing. I mean, though we witness Ridge Canipe's lolarious acting skills (why can't they ever cast someone good for young!Dean?), we get tiny little Colin Ford, who's probably the size of Jared Padalecki's breakfast and acts circles around all the other young actors on the show. We get holiday cheer and gore in the middle! Santa jokes! Bad Singing! THE AMULET UGH UGH MY HEART UGH. This episode is such a standout. YES, I KNOW, I LOVE JEREMY CARVER SHUT UP.


3. Faith (1x12)



And here we are introduced to hurt!Dean, a concept that many fangirls (and Kripke) love too much for comfort, but for a reason, and that reason is that hurt!Dean is one of the very best Deans. He's dying, and it's all a part of his job. He takes it in stride. Sam is the audience when he just refuses to accepts it, and baffles at Dean's acceptance of the fact he's dying. And he whole ripper storyline is a great foreshadowing for Tessa and later seasons. Plus, fabulous montage set to "Don't Fear The Ripper". Did I mention that hurt!Dean is one of the very best Deans?


2. In My Time of Dying (2x01)



So here's the deal: I know we make fun of "Supernatural" a lot. I mean, in the age of "Mad Men", how can a show like "Supernatural" be taken seriously? It's ridiculously underdone in comparison. Even "True Blood" has more substance.

But you know what?

I believe that "In My Time Of Dying" is one of the best season premieres in all television. It seriously is. It's perfectly balanced, it's expository without alienating the continuing storyline ("Salvation"-"Devil's Trap") of John Winchester rejoining the fold, and it's completely and utterly heartbreaking on several layers. It sets the tone not only to the rest of the season, but also the rest of the show, because it introduced a new look and feel to "Supernatural" that would double and triple the fanbase for obvious reasons. More brotherly bond, less saturated MotW. More cohesive storyline, less fragmented missions. More backstory, less random characters. I'm not ashamed to say that it's because of this tone that I myself became a rabid fangirl, so hey, join the party. :)


1. Mystery Spot (3x11)



Talk about mindfuck. Know how much of a mindfuck this episode was to me? So much so that I couldn't stop talking about it for weeks. In my mind, it's the perfect "Supernatural" episode still. It's a perfect blend of tragic comedy into comedic tragedy. It's Sam flayed open for everyone to see. It's tons of inside jokes and homoerotic one-liners and physical comedy. It's Trickster/Gabester gold. It's a painful foreshadowing of the end of season 3's MEAT HOOKS, it's plain and simple, Winchester drama wrapped in perfectly entertaining hilarity and ending with a hug. And that is a mindfuck.




And now, if you'll excuse me, instead of watching this season's premiere, I have to go and see Alice In Chains in MSG, because my sister's making me. GRRRRRRRR.

Comments

[audrarose.livejournal.com]

Oh, this is awesome. I'm so excited for tonight! (and I can't watch it until tomorrow either. hrmph.)

[goingxmissing.livejournal.com]

*____* this list. oh, show. i do love you so. except you've made me want to rewatch form the beginning which i have already spent far too many hours of my life doing :(