Supernatural season 4
Supernatural | |
---|---|
Season 4 | |
![]() DVD cover art | |
No. of episodes | 22 |
Release | |
Original network | The CW |
Original release | September 18, 2008 May 14, 2009 | –
Season chronology | |
The fourth season of Supernatural, an American dark fantasy television series created by Eric Kripke, premiered September 18, 2008, and concluded on May 14, 2009, on The CW.
This season focuses on brothers Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) encountering angels for the first time in their lives as hunters of the supernatural; this marks the introduction of eventual series regular, the angel Castiel (Misha Collins). The angels intervene to rescue Dean from Hell and bring him back to life after he was trapped there in the third season finale "No Rest for the Wicked". They explain that they have arrived on Earth for the first time in thousands of years in order to prevent demons from freeing the fallen angel Lucifer from Hell, as Lucifer would then cause the Apocalypse. The demons are led by the Winchesters' enemy, and Dean's murderer, Lilith. However, it becomes increasingly clear that something is wrong with Heaven and that the angels have their own agendas. Despite an initially happy reunion, tension grows between Sam and Dean because Dean fears Sam's growing demonic powers and distrusts Sam's returning demonic ally Ruby (Genevieve Cortese).
Cast
Starring
Guest stars
- Misha Collins as Castiel / Jimmy Novak
- Genevieve Cortese as Ruby
- Jim Beaver as Bobby Singer
- Julie McNiven as Anna Milton
- Robert Wisdom as Uriel
- Traci Dinwiddie as Pamela Barnes
- Kurt Fuller as Zachariah
- Christopher Heyerdahl and Mark Rolston as Alastair
- Rob Benedict as Chuck Shurley
- Katherine Boecher and Sierra McCormick as Lilith
- Juliana Wimbles as Cindy McKellan
- Jake Abel as Adam Milligan
- Dedee Pfeiffer as Kate Milligan
- Nicki Aycox as Meg Masters
- A. J. Buckley as Ed Zeddmore
- Lindsey McKeon as Tessa
- Mitch Pileggi as Samuel Campbell
- Samantha Smith as Mary Winchester
- Amy Gumenick as Young Mary Winchester
- Charles Malik Whitfield as FBI Agent Victor Henriksen
- Travis Wester as Harry Spangler
- Sydney Imbeau as Claire Novak
- Matt Cohen as Young John Winchester
Episodes
![]() | This section's plot summaries may be too long or excessively detailed. (February 2017) |
In this table, the number in the first column refers to the episode's number within the entire series, whereas the number in the second column indicates the episode's number within that particular season. "U.S. viewers in millions" refers to how many Americans watched the episode live or on the day of broadcast.
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | US viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
61 | 1 | "Lazarus Rising" | Kim Manners | Eric Kripke | September 18, 2008 | 3T7501 | 3.96[1] |
62 | 2 | "Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean Winchester" | Phil Sgriccia | Story by: Sera Gamble & Lou Bollo Teleplay by: Sera Gamble | September 25, 2008 | 3T7502 | 3.18[2] |
63 | 3 | "In the Beginning" | Steve Boyum | Jeremy Carver | October 2, 2008 | 3T7504 | 3.51[3] |
64 | 4 | "Metamorphosis" | Kim Manners | Cathryn Humphris | October 9, 2008 | 3T7505 | 3.15[4] |
65 | 5 | "Monster Movie" | Robert Singer | Ben Edlund | October 16, 2008 | 3T7503 | 3.06[5] |
66 | 6 | "Yellow Fever" | Phil Sgriccia | Andrew Dabb & Daniel Loflin | October 23, 2008 | 3T7506 | 3.25[6] |
67 | 7 | "It's the Great Pumpkin, Sam Winchester" | Charles Beeson | Julie Siege | October 30, 2008 | 3T7507 | 3.55[7] |
68 | 8 | "Wishful Thinking" | Robert Singer | Story by: Ben Edlund & Lou Bollo Teleplay by: Ben Edlund | November 6, 2008 | 3T7508 | 3.24[8] |
69 | 9 | "I Know What You Did Last Summer" | Charles Beeson | Sera Gamble | November 13, 2008 | 3T7509 | 2.94[9] |
70 | 10 | "Heaven and Hell" | J. Miller Tobin | Story by: Trevor Sands Teleplay by: Eric Kripke | November 20, 2008 | 3T7510 | 3.34[10] |
71 | 11 | "Family Remains" | Phil Sgriccia | Jeremy Carver | January 15, 2009 | 3T7511 | 2.98[11] |
72 | 12 | "Criss Angel Is a Douchebag" | Robert Singer | Julie Siege | January 22, 2009 | 3T7512 | 3.06[12] |
73 | 13 | "After School Special" | Adam Kane | Andrew Dabb & Daniel Loflin | January 29, 2009 | 3T7513 | 3.56[13] |
74 | 14 | "Sex and Violence" | Charles Beeson | Cathryn Humphris | February 5, 2009 | 3T7514 | 3.37[14] |
75 | 15 | "Death Takes a Holiday" | Steve Boyum | Jeremy Carver | March 12, 2009 | 3T7515 | 2.84[15] |
76 | 16 | "On the Head of a Pin" | Mike Rohl | Ben Edlund | March 19, 2009 | 3T7516 | 3.37[16] |
77 | 17 | "It's a Terrible Life" | James L. Conway | Sera Gamble | March 26, 2009 | 3T7517 | 3.13[17] |
78 | 18 | "The Monster at the End of This Book" | Mike Rohl | Story by: Julie Siege & Nancy Weiner Teleplay by: Julie Siege | April 2, 2009 | 3T7518 | 3.27[18] |
79 | 19 | "Jump the Shark" | Phil Sgriccia | Andrew Dabb & Daniel Loflin | April 23, 2009 | 3T7519 | 2.70[19] |
80 | 20 | "The Rapture" | Charles Beeson | Jeremy Carver | April 30, 2009 | 3T7520 | 2.95[20] |
81 | 21 | "When the Levee Breaks" | Robert Singer | Sera Gamble | May 7, 2009 | 3T7521 | 2.79[21] |
82 | 22 | "Lucifer Rising" | Eric Kripke | Eric Kripke | May 14, 2009 | 3T7522 | 2.89[22] |
Production
The mythology was expanded even more in the fourth season with the introduction of angels. While Kripke originally did not want angels to be featured in the series,[23] he changed his mind when he realized that he needed them in order to have a "cosmic battle" with the many demons.[24] With this concept added into the series' mythology, the writers came to view the show as being "about two greasers and a muscle car, but the canvas that they're on are demons and angels and battles and the apocalypse..."[24] While it was originally intended for the fourth season to feature an "all-out demon war", budget cuts forced the writers to change their plans, making it "smaller, more contained, underground, more guerrilla-style". Kripke feels this ended up benefiting the series, believing the brothers-centric episodes to be more interesting than the "epic" ones of the third season. Thus, the war was depicted in the writers' "scruffy, angsty, Supernatural way" while focusing more on the characters.[25] The writing staff felt that the fourth season's mythology had been the best since the first season.[26]
Reception
Season 4 received highly positive reviews and is the best reviewed season of the series. The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 100% approval rating for Supernatural's fourth season, with an average rating of 9.6/10 based on 5 reviews.[27]
References
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. September 23, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. September 30, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. October 7, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. October 14, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. October 21, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. October 28, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. November 4, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. November 11, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. November 18, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. November 25, 2008. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. January 21, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. January 27, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. February 3, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. February 10, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. March 17, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. March 24, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (March 31, 2009). "Top CW Primetime Shows, March 23–29, 2009". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ "Weekly Program Rankings". ABC Medianet. April 7, 2009. Retrieved November 2, 2009.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (May 2, 2009). "Top CW Primetime Shows, April 20–26, 2009". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 2, 2009.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (May 6, 2009). "Top CW Primetime Shows, April 27 - May 3, 2009". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 12, 2009.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (May 12, 2009). "Top CW Primetime Shows, May 4–10, 2009". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 12, 2009.
- ^ Seidman, Robert (May 19, 2009). "Top CW Primetime Shows, May 11–17, 2009". TV by the Numbers. Retrieved May 20, 2009.
- ^ Williams, Don. "'Supernatural' Creator Nixes Divine Intervention". BuddyTV. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- ^ a b "Interview: Eric Kripke from Supernatural". Fanbolt. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- ^ Williams, Don (April 22, 2008). "'Supernatural' Season 4 Faces Budget Cuts". BuddyTV. Archived from the original on August 4, 2012. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Keller, Richard (July 29, 2008). "The Supernatural Panel - Comic-Con Report". AOL TV. Retrieved February 20, 2014.
- ^ "Supernatural: Season 4 (2008-2009)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved February 17, 2015.
External links
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