“Supernatural” Season 7 Episode Titles Explained: Part 2
7.18 “Party On, Garth”
In this episode, Dean gets a call from Garth, who needs help with a case he’s working. At first, the case is thought to be the work of a ghost, but soon they realize that they are hunting a shojo, or Japanese alcohol spirit.
“Party on, Garth” is a line from the 1992 Comedy “Wayne’s World.” The film follows two friends, Wayne and Garth, who try to promote their public-access tv show. Any “Wayne’s World” fans out there? Did you guys notice any shout outs to the movie in this episode?
7.19 “Of Grave Importance”
In this episode, Sam and Dean get a call from an old hunter friend, Annie Hawkins, who needs help with a case. When they arrive in town, Annie is missing, and they finally trace her last whereabouts to old, abandoned house that is haunted by the powerful ghost of a man named Van Ness. Bobby is able to use his newly trained ghost abilities to let Sam and Dean know that Annie is trapped in the house. After Van Ness is defeated, Sam and Dean return to the house to find that they can now see Bobby. Together, they give Annie a proper hunter’s burial.
This episode title seems to be taken from the commonly used idiom “grave importance” which really just means something that is vitally important. This title is also probably a play on the word grave since the remains of Van Ness’ victims were all hidden in the house.
7.20 “The Girl with the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo”
When Dick Roman acquires Frank’s hard drive containing sensitive information about Sam and Dean, he gives it to a brilliant, Hermione Granger-loving hacker named Charlie to crack. When she finally does, an email is automatically sent to Sam and Dean from Frank letting them know what’s happening. Charlie is curious about the contents of the drive and learns the truth about the Leviathans. When Sam and Dean track her down, they all join forces to erase Frank’s drive and hack into Dick Roman’s plans.
This title is a play on the title of the English-language adaptation of the Swedish novel by Stieg Larsson “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.” The book and film follow a disgraced journalist, as he investigates the disappearance of a woman 40 years prior. He is aided in his investigation by a pierced and tattooed computer hacker named Lisbeth Salander. This title is also referencing the fantasy RPG (role-playing game) Dungeons and Dragons. This title could not fit any more perfectly, in my opinion.
7.21 “Reading is Fundamental”
Sam and Dean break open the clay tablet they stole from Dick Roman, which causes a storm from which lightning strikes teenager Kevin Tran and causes Castiel to wake up. As it turns out, the tablet is the word of God, and Kevin has been chosen as a prophet to interpret the word.
This title is taken from the nonprofit children’s literacy organization Reading is Fundamental.
7.22 “There Will Be Blood”
In this episode, Sam and Dean frantically attempt to gather the three bloods of the fallen needed to perform the spell Kevin translated for them. The remaining blood needs to be collected from Crowley and the Alpha Vamp, who are less than enthusiastic about cooperating.
This title is taken from the 2007 film of the same name. The movie tells the story Daniel Plainview, a gold miner-turned-oilman during the oil boom of the 20th century. I don’t think I need to explain the blood connection, but since I haven’t seen this film, I wonder if there are any other nods to the film in this episode. Has anybody seen it?
7.23 “Survival of the Fittest”
In this awesome season finale, all hell breaks loose as the boys attempt to gather the bone of a righteous man while Bobby is running around dressed as a maid and Dick Roman is multiplying.
This title is taken from a phrase used in evolutionary theory as an alternative description of natural selection. This title is a good fit for this episode that pits every species against each other; angels, demons, leviathan, monsters and humans. With the kind of cliffhanger we were handed, it’s unclear who was, in fact, the fittest. I guess we’ll have to wait until next season to find out!
So that’s it for season seven titles. Were you surprised by any of these title references? I was surprised that there weren’t many titles taken from songs this season. There are usually a good number of song and album titles used, but this season seemed more focused on movies. Not a complaint, just an observation. Does anyone know how episode titles are chosen? Are the writers responsible? The directors? Is it a collaborated effort? As usual, I’m sure I missed some references so please add any additions to the comments section. Thanks for reading!
I think my favourite title this season was Girl with the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo.
The stolen car of the week in Party On Garth was the same kind as driven by Wayne and Garth in Wayne’s World, an AMC Pacer. That had to have been a shout-out to the movie.
Oh, that is a fun fact! Thanks for sharing. I have to agree that [i]The Girl with the Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo[/i] wins for most creative title.
Yeah, I noticed the car too.
In terms of titles, Season 7 wasn’t all that great. I keep thinking of titles like “When The Levee Breaks” and “What Is And What Is Never Should Be” and all the other Led Zeppelin shout-outs and wondering why season 7 didn’t get more of that. Especially the second half seems kind of direct. I think of the lot I liked The Girl With The Dungeons and Dragons Tattoo, and The Born-Again Identity. But my favorites this season were Hello, Cruel World and Meet The New Boss (maybe because those are my favorite episodes this season too)
Gah, of course I meant “What Is And What Should Never Be”. Early morning typos.
I do miss classic song references but it seems that each season leans more toward one form of media. This season seemed to favor books. I wonder what season 8 will bring?
Isn’t Time After Time a Cindy Lauper song?
So, we had one musical reference 😉
You know, I almost included the Cindy Lauper song. I was going to try and tie it in with Sam and Dean’s relationship and constant self-sacrifice.
“If you’re lost you can look and you will find me. Time after time. “
I thought it might have been a bit of a stretch. Who knows though!
I thought the S7 titles were awful. As I recall from early interviews, the music on the show was from EK’s personal collection and all the titles referenced rock songs. If the show decides to no longer use rock music titles, I hope the they are something better than this season.
Thanks for these Sofia, I couldn’t find anything to add to your descriptions. Very spot-on.
I happen to like the referencing to books and movies. Don’t get me wrong, I also love the shout-outs to classic rock, but it was a nice change. I’ll be curious to see where they go to next year. My favourite is probably “The Girl With the Dungeons & Dragons Tattoo”, it was a great book with a kick-ass heroine, so pretty appropriate for Charlie.
OK I SAW THERE WILL BE BLOOD W/ DAINEL DAY LEWIS RIGHT? SAW IT ONCE & DO NOT OWN IT SO I AM NO HELP.
IT WAS ABOUT GROUPS OF BROTHERS. VILLIANS, HEROS & TWINS.
SOMETHING THAT IS QUITE DISTURBING, I LOVE LUCIFER’S FORKED TONGUE. NUFF SAID. 😀
I HOPE THIS IS WHERE I READ THIS, I HAD A KATRINA FLASHBACK MELTDOWN TODAY. ALL MY FAMILIES JAZZ MUSIC LOST. ELLA, DIZZY, COUNT BASSIE,DINAH WASHINGTON,DUKE ELLINGTON, ETC. I DONT KNOW HOW TO USE A COMPUTER FORGET AN IPOD.
I READ WHERE THE LEVIS WERE NOT A SCARY AS THE DEVIL & HE WAS NOT REAL.? HE WASNT?? HE WAS TO SAM. SO WHAT MAKES A MONSTER REAL? JUST WONDERING. THANKS GUYS. PEACE