Supernatural Featured in This Week’s Entertainment Weekly – Why I Didn’t Like It
I’ve been a subscriber to Entertainment Weekly for a number of years, and I’m very pleased to see that they finally have given some deserving space to Supernatural after years of only giving them little blurbs in upcoming previews. They’re even mentioned on the cover, which is cool for those skimming at the newstand.
Still, I wasn’t thrilled with the article. True, I appreciate any mainstream press for the show, and this was long overdue, but the writer Alynda Wheat went for sensationalism instead of capturing what makes this show great. The cover states, “Supernatural. It’s Sexy! It’s Scary! So Why Do the Stars Want out?” Huh?
The inside explains a little more. “So why do the stars and creator want to vanish after one more spooky season?” I still don’t get it.
After turning to page 28, the pretty is there. There’s a fantastic two page shot of Jensen at the wheel of the Impala, looking all sexy, while Jared can be seen leaning in through the passenger side window. Then there’s two pages of story, but the main focus seems to be on how everyone’s burned out and wants the show to end. Sure, season five is a given, but no one seems thrilled about it.
I hated the slant and the way quotes were used to serve the purpose of stirring up trouble. Of course Jared and Jensen are tired and Kripke doesn’t want to go more than five years. That’s been said by them several times in interviews. We also know from those interviews they love what they do and appreciate the fans. There’s only a hint in one sentence that they love their work. “Ackles and Padalecki are also eager to move on, even as they affirm their love for the show.”
Even Ken Tucker, and EW critic who has said in other columns he’s only recently started watching the show, had a chance to list five pivotal episodes to catch us up. He didn’t exactly nail it. Here are the episodes he picked:
“Home”
“Born Under A Bad Sign”
“All Hell Breaks Loose Part I and II”
“Bad Day At Black Rock”
“Lazarus Rising”
I agree with three of those, but the Pilot should be on that list, as well as “Mystery Spot.” Considering it was Bela that got the mention for “Bad Day At Black Rock,” we know they’ve got it wrong and really don’t know this fandom.
Overall, I had hoped that this article would be a way to intice new fans, and it failed miserably. If anything, it managed to stir up trouble in an already turbulent fandom. They didn’t really get to the heart at all of what the fan experience is all about, and why the “show’s fiery fan base,” is that way. They didn’t even give an adequate explanation as to what drives the show and makes it successful, aka the chemistry between the lead actors and the family drama behind the horror.
There are a few positives, like they did give Misha Collins a good mention. They also got a quote about the show from CW President Dawn Ostroff, showing that Hell has indeed frozen over. They also preview a few episodes to come, so WARNING SPOILERPHOBES.
I know that the rule in Hollywood is there’s no such thing as bad press, so I guess exposure is something. Still, I hate anything that misses the point. Luckily, loyal fans will know the difference.
Yeah, I have to say, this article didn’t impress me either. Jensen and Jared actually came across as impatient to get the hell out of Dodge, or Vancouver as it were, and back to their “normal” lives. But I’m going to put that down to the fact that this interview took place in Feb with 8 months of shooting season 4 under their belts and working 12 to 14 hour days really takes its toll.
I work in the film and TV biz as well and I can tell you that shooting schedules can be brutal. I remember the director asking me at the end of one film shoot what I had thought of the experience and I told him to ask me again in 3 months time after I had caught up on my sleep! When I’m working a gig I’m always in a state of exhaustion so I’m more than willing to give the guys some slack on this.
One last thing that bugged me in the piece was that the synopsis given for Born Under A Bad Sign was off. Did the guy even watch it, I wonder?
That all said, it’s nice to see all the recognition the show is getting this year in the press. Looks like our secret is out!
I have it on very good authority (Jared told someone I know and trust personally) that he and Jensen were signed for six seasons. He said that in another interview once too. It’s very possible that sixth season is an optional thing that requires negotiation (I’ve seen that done before with other shows), but it’s there in the contract somewhere.
Rose, I so agree, they probably got them after along day of shooting, plus in February both were fried over promoting their movies. Someone I met at the NJ con that got to do interviews with them on the set said she didn’t get a chance to talk to them until well after midnight.
I actually agree with Dawn Ostroff for once! 😮 I think I’m gonna explode! It’s way too early to be bringing up such things. I wish they had gone for promoting the awesome story line more and generating excitement about the show.
I could not agree with you more, Alice. I did enjoy the suggested episodes, even if they were not perfect. It was a nice way to possibly turn on some new fans.
But yeah I agree that it was sensationalized. While I certainly did not read too much into Jensen and Jared being tired (we’ve known this for years) I expected more from Alynda.
I know this was ages ago but I had to throw in my two cents by agreeing with everything you said. When I read the interview I was really surprised at how negative their comments sounded. I knew to chalk it up to being tired but new people could have seen it as the to stars not being happy with what they have and complaining about it…which is an undeseerved generalization for those two. After the article I thought season 5 would be the last for sure. Then I saw all the great interviews coming out of their trip to Australia and goodness was the vibe completely different. They seemed so revitalized and enthusiastic. Misha Jensen and Jared were giggling all throughout the Channel 10 interview. The interviewer must have thought they were high 😆