An Open Letter of Appreciation to Ben Edlund
Dear Ben Edlund,
Thank you. Thanks for being a writer on Supernatural for so many seasons.
It’s bittersweet to know that you’ll be leaving to go work on Revolution, but I thought I’d let you know just how much your episodes of Supernatural mean to me.
When I first got into this show and started to really pay close attention, the episodes that really stuck out to me ended up being written quite often by you. Before I knew it, you were my favorite writer for the show. Your episodes were often the really funny ones like “Bad Day at Black Rock” or “Wishful Thinking,” or the emotionally powerful ones like “On the Head of a Pin” or “The End.” In season 6, “Clap Your Hands If You’ll Believe,” is by far my all time favorite.
What really moved me about them wasn’t just that you had an uncanny ability to get into Sam and Dean’s headspace or write about the various creatures with such ingenuity. That was simply icing on the cake to me. It was how your writing inspired me to write myself.
Writing is what I’ve always wanted to do. I’ve known that since I was six. It was never a choice. It just is. I write. Seeing someone become successful at it proves to me that it’s not a waste of time, that it can lead to a fulfilling career telling great stories for great characters that can impact others in ways I never thought possible. I know that my words can change the world because I’ve seen you words touch so many others and change the world. That’s powerful.
You inspired me to pick up writing again by what you wrote on this show, and for that I am forever in your debt. It is your episodes that I often re-watch when I need a little push to work on a piece.
How does that inspire me? Easy. Knowing that you let your imagination loose and do wacky things with the story—particularly “Clap Your Hands If You Believe” comes to mind—and turn it into something that is ingenious and amazing lets me allow myself to take chances. You brought us a suicidal talking teddy bear and turned the world of Supernatural into a TV show within a TV show. I know I can explore routes or try off the wall things and let things flow in a way that I might not have otherwise. No idea is off limits. You’ve taught me that there are no limits save those I place upon myself and my stories. So thank you from the bottom of my heart for that.
It also lets me see how emotions should play between characters and let them be natural. Not only will that allow the characters to have fantastic story, but it’ll make the audience feel deeply with and for them. I am always moved by the torture scene between Alstair and Dean. Sure it’s gruesome and dark, but what always gets me here is how quickly the tables turn and it is Dean that is being emotionally flayed before us. That is pure skill, Mr. Edlund.
Your writing sticks in our minds and in our hearts. You make us care about Sam and Dean so deeply. You made us believe in an Angel of the Lord and allow us to take him into our hearts, too. You’ve always added enough humanity into the story that makes us laugh and cry and relish the nature that is the human condition. You added so many layers of subtlety to the story, to the characters, to the world of Supernatural, and for that we can never ever say thank you enough. You have helped make their world reality for us.
I want you to know that no matter where you go, no matter what show you write for, I will always follow your career. I hope that you have many many years of writing ahead of you.
Thank you for the great episodes of Supernatural, Mr. Edlund. I can’t ever say it enough.
Most of all, I want you to know that you’ve made such an impact on us.
Sincerely,
Far Away Eyes
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Do you have a message of appreciation you’d like to send Ben Edlund? Please, share it here in the comments! No message is too long or too short.
WOW beautifully written FarAwayEyes but then you always have a way with words. I’m so glad you have picked up the writing stick and followed your dream and thanks to Ben for giving you the courage to do so.
Ben you will be greatly missed on this show for all the reasons mentioned in this letter. I will be following you also and watching Revolution as I have been from the beginning. Best of luck to you and hope you write for many more years. If the opportunity finds you back at SPN doorsteps, I hope you have the inclination to step inside and rejoin us. We will all be here so come on back, we will welcome you with open arms.
Thanks. It came from the heart and it just happened. I won’t be ashamed to admit I cried a little writing it. This show and the writing done it really means a lot to me, so it felt right to say thanks.
It’s only fair for all their hard work, after all.
Mr. Edlund is one the reasons I list as why I started watching [i]Supernatural[/i]. As most people know, my first real encounter with the show was at Comic Con 2010. I was in Ballroom 20 to see another panel and [i]Supernatural[/i] was just another panel I would have to sit through. But intrigued by my friend’s enthusiasm for the panel, I decided to pay attention. And besides focusing on the Jared, Jensen, and Misha, I focused on Ben Edlund. There was just something about him that drew me right to him. I just fell for his off-kilter personality and loved the way he spoke, the interesting and slightly unusual way he could string words and sentences together, if that makes sense. But what really stood out was an episode that he talked about for the then upcoming season six. He talked taking a slightly darker look at the world of fairies, how funny it would be to see Dean try to fight a fairy, and he was so excited to unleash this episode on to the world. Of course this episode ended being “Clap Your Hands If You Believe” and at the time, I said to myself “Based on that episode alone I would watch this show! That sounds hilarious!” Of course there were other factors that led me to watching [i]Supernatural[/i], but I was so happy when “Clap Your Hands When You Believe” aired because this was the episode I was most looking forward to seeing before I had even had a chance to truly watch all the other seasons. And it did not disappoint. I still love that episode to this day. But as I began to catch up and fall in love with this show, I was exposed to more of Ben’s episodes and fell for them just hard as I fell for “Clap Your Hands”. I always knew I was in for a crazy, funny, and/or heartbreaking time whenever I would see Ben’s name show up as the writer created with that particular episode. I would get a thrill down my spine upon seeing his name. His name became synonymous with quality episodes that will either make you laugh or cry or both. If I was to make a list of my top 10 favorite Supernatural episodes, his episodes would make up half, if not more, of that list.
When I heard he was leaving the show to create memorable episodes for Kripke’s [i]Revolution[/i], it broke my heart. I know that changes to writing and production staff is common in television, especially the longer a show is on the air. But this change cut me deep. I know the show is still in capable hands without him, but Ben Edlund brought a special banner crop of crazy that will be hard to replace.
We love you Ben Edlund! I love you! You are the reason I watch the show. I will continue to watch even though you will no longer unleashing your fever dreams for Supernatural. I wish you the best of luck on [i]Revolution[/i]. Eric Kripke and Company are very lucky to have you.
And just as a parting gift for a fandom that loves you so much, can you maybe, just maybe give us one more episode before you go?
Dear Ben
When Misha Collins dropped on the Aussie convention audience that you were leaving Supernatural, I couldn’t quite get my equilibrium back. I was in the front row, Misha was standing virtually in front of me and I was desperately trying not to cry, because that might have seemed weird. But the prickling in my eyes and lump in my throat was hard to deny. I sat there, gobsmacked, gutted, holding back tears.
You are my favourite writer on my favourite TV show, but in truth, it’s more than that. You inspire me. Your creative energy inspires me. Whether you’re writing wonderful words for talented actors to say, developing and nurturing beautiful characters, coming up with oddball theme songs, drawing crazy comic books or intricate scrawls on white boards that we’ve been privy to see, or speaking with enthusiasm about your work in interviews and podcasts, every little bit of it is inspiring. You mind inspires me.
I work in a creative field and I look to people like you who embrace creativity in all aspects of their lives. I have, at times, forgotten to do this, then I will listen to you speak or watch an episode of television you’ve written and a spark lights up inside me again and I start to write, or paint, or sketch or something purely for enjoyment. I was drawn to the creative fields because of my passion, but every so often the work overpowers that and I forget the love. You remind me of the love.
I heard Jensen and Jared call you a treasure and I think everyone in the room nodded in agreement. I know I did, because I believe that’s what you are; a unique voice to be treasured, one that speaks to me and makes me want to be better, be braver, be crazier, to ignore my fears and just go for it. I have a feeling we wouldn’t have episodes of television like “Smile Timeâ€, “Jaynestownâ€, “The French Mistakeâ€, “The End†or “The Man Who Would Be King†if you weren’t someone brave enough to just go for it.
Of course, you’re continuing to write and so you’ll continue to inspire and enrich my imagination with your particular genius…but I’d be lying if I didn’t say, I’m desperately sad you’ll no longer be writing for a show that has come to mean the world to me, for which you’re largely responsible.
I thank you for all the words you’ve given me. I thank you for all the times you’ve shattered my heart into a thousand pieces, for all the times you’ve made me clap my hands with glee, for all the times you’ve made me shake my head in awe and wonderment, for all the times I’ve felt compelled to write and write about how you’ve made me feel and for all the times where I’ve looked to your work for inspiration.
You are one of a kind, Mr Edlund. I will miss you terribly on the show that has taken my soul captive.
I wish you nothing but the best for your new challenge. I will, of course, continue to be watching and listening.
Forever, Amy.
Dear Ben Edlund,
Thank you. Thank you for your brilliant writing. Thank you for making us laugh in the middle of a tense and heartbreaking series of heavy, emotional episodes. Thank you for breaking our hearts in the best ways. Thank you for knowing these characters so well that the words you put in their mouths are natural (because Dean would so ask Sam to be his Valentine with a real human heart because he’s a dork at heart). Thank you for having Sam lose his shoe, for Dean becoming a PA on a film set, for helping gay love pierce the veil of death, for putting Dean in lederhosen, for showing us how dark Dean got in Hell, for the boys naming a baby Bobby John, for Jo and Ellen going out fighting with a ‘kick it in the ass’, for The French Mistake…just that entire episode, matter of fact the entirety of Everybody Hates Hitler as well, for giving us Castiel’s point of view. Thank you for these moments and so many more over the years of the show.
Thank you, sir.
Love and Best Wishes, Beth
P.S. Really, thank you for putting Dean in lederhosen. Thank. You.
Mr. Edlund. I am sad to hear you are leaving Supernatural. Thank you for all the work you have done on the show. You will be missed.
Dear Ben Edlund. I actually feel as if I’m in mourning ever since reading you are leaving the show I love above all others.
Your episodes, each and every one, have had such an emotional impact, whether dire or humorous. Your so very natural dialogue between our brothers, and theirs with others, is beyond compare. When seeing your name in the credits as writer I always know this will be an above average episode, and it always was.
I can’t help, even though wishing you all the success you deserve, that somehow, you will some day return to my beloved show, or even write a few episodes more for it.
Surely Eric would give you a little time off for doing that?
Thank you for all the absolutely delightful moments I will never ever forget, as I keep replaying my dvds every night before bedtime. Yes, I am obsessed with my show and you are greatly responsible for that, along with the wonderful Jensen and Jared who brought your words to life! Live long and prosper!
The fact that a writer on a TV show is this well known by the fans, and well liked, says something about the quality of writing. This is the first show where I followed the writers, directors and producers. I’ll single out Wishful Thinking because I’m a teddy bear lover and seeing a depressed bear was hilarious, if not a little nervy. Well done Mr. Edlund and good look.
Dear Mr. Edlund, thank you for the great years at SPN, for the laughs, the tears and the wonderful weirdness of it all. I’ve loved what you wrote from before your time with SPN and I will follow anything else you write in the future, you are truly inspirational. You will be sorely missed, Sam & Dean have indeed lost another father.
Godspeed to you Sir.
Thank you, Mr. Edlund.
For your wonderful and wacky scripts. For your wackier interviews and ideas you share with us. For staying amazing. For making Sam and Dean amazing. For Ed and Ronald and Ghosfacers and Kubrick and futureCas and Famine and and and… I could go on and on 8)
Thank you for everything. You, Sir, [b]ROCK[/b]!
The best of luck to you with Revolution and in your future endeavours.
Mr. Edlund,
You have been my favorite writer on Supernatural (and I loved your Angel ones as well)! I cannot imagine the loss that will be felt in the writers room this year without you. I know all will go on without you, but we all know it won’t be the same without you. Thank you for all your hard work and most of all your imagination!!! You are an amazing writer and just get what the fans want (even if we don’t know it until after we see it)! I am not a writer so I’m sure I cannot truly express what I’m feeling about you leaving and how much you mean to the show. So I will sum it up with thank you and best of luck (oh and please come back!).
Noooooooo!
Nonononononono-No
Uh…
No
I think that says it all
🙁
Mr. Edlund,
I’ll admit when I heard about you leaving, I froze in my seat, and broke out in a cold sweat. No one can quite shred my emotions the way you have, and I’ve loved every second of it. You sir, are sublime, and I truly thank you from the bottom of my heart. For all the tears, for all the laughter, for finding all the little nuances, and the moments that made me go, “Whoa!” This show has meant more to me than I can express, and I thank you for being such an enormous part of that. I wish you the absolute best of luck in your new adventure, and I will be tuning in to follow along, but you will be deeply, and profoudly missed.
And thank you Far Away Eyes for your touching, heartfelt, beautifully written letter. Thank you for saying what I would never be able to.
Thanks for the comment about my letter. It made me smile.
Ben Edlund, you are the writer we could count on for consistently excellent plots. You are daring and quirky and brilliant. Heads above all the rest.
There are no words – or not enough words – for how deeply you will be missed on Supernatural.
I wish you the best in all your future assignments.
Thanks, FarAwayEyes.
pretty sure Revolution isn’t actually purgatory – that was Lost.
By extension are you suggesting that JC is a leviathan?
I have this vague feeling I am being punked …
[quote]By extension are you suggesting that JC is a leviathan? The problem with posting my “not standard issue” trains of thought is that I can’t always tell if follow-ups are earnest or …jest meant in fun {grin}. If your route of defying the beaten path really took you from my starting point to “JC is a leviathan”, please elaborate! Cuz no, “leviathan” never entered my head, but one nice thing about beaten paths is that they’re pretty easy to follow. Stray and you might get Lost for a while… and look how we’ve circled back to Purgatory. Maybe that’s the real final destination of all roads (LOL).[/quote]
Do you think ‘not standard issue’ entirely does justice to the way your mind works? 😀
OK I give in, I have been reading your posts over the past few months and can’t work out exactly how dry/off the wall your sense of humor is, and the response above leads me to assume you are at least partly serious about the things you post. If you ARE only playing free association games, you win!
To clarify:
Yes. I was not serious. I don’t believe JC is a leviathan.
I don’t think that he has sent BE to purgatory and written secret codes about it in his episodes.
I also don’t think that he is playing a game where he is pretending he sent BE to purgatory and has written secret codes into his episodes.
Enjoy the road less travelled, it seems like a lot of fun 🙂
EDIT: Apologies, I just looked at this post again and it comes over as being snarky (I was going for funny, I may have missed), and that really wasn’t my intent, it is just hard sometimes to be sure that you are on the same wavelength as someone. Please don’t let me put you off your stride!
Fair enough 😀 Sometimes you have to take a step back and say … ok so what are the rules of this game again?
Glad we clarified it.
eilf, who broke the box? (sorry, unrelated to this conversation) 🙁
dunno, wasn’t me *looks shifty* :-*
ah ha!! 😆
Okay, Racestaffer and Eilf, thanks for bringing a smile to my face on what’s turning out to be a very dark day for me. Actually, I think I might be in Purgatory! Or maybe Hell, I can’t tell those two apart anymore. 🙂
Sorry to hear that Sylvie I hope things improve for you – happy to have helped a little 🙂