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"Supernatural" Soars on its Masterful Mythology

Jared Padalecki (left) and Jensen Ackles in "Supernatural."

Published: October 15, 2008 at 12:47 PM GMT
Last Updated: October 15, 2008 at 12:47 PM GMT

By Ed Martin

Supernatural could have jumped the shark right then and there. Instead, it popped the clutch. Viewers quickly learned that Dean had literally been rescued from hell and returned to life by an angel named Castiel (played by Misha Collins, pictured below), who identified himself as a "warrior of God" and is at times as creepy as some of the demons the boys have fought through the years. As Castiel explained, angels are suddenly interacting with humans for the first time in 2000 years because an all-powerful demon named Lilith (whom the brothers have fought in the past) is busy bringing about the Apocalypse (by breaking the seals referred to in the Book of Revelations), and if she succeeds Lucifer will be free to walk the earth. With his demon hunting skills so finely honed, Dean is much too valuable to leave in hell at this critical time. But his rescue came with a warning. "I dragged you out of hell," Castiel told him. "I can throw you back in."

Meanwhile, soulful Sam, who was infected in his infancy by the blood of the Yellow-Eyed Demon -- a hateful entity that murdered the Winchester brothers' father, mother, grandfather and grandmother and countless others, including Sam's fiancée - has developed the ability to exorcise demons from the humans they inhabit without harming said humans. The driven Dean doesn't approve, because the exorcisms allow the demons to go free, whereas killing the host often results in killing the demon as well. Also, Castiel chillingly warned Dean that no good can come from Sam using his power. Apparently God isn't cool with it. (The show revealed much more about Yellow Eye and his long-established connection to the Winchester family in a thrilling episode this season that further enriched the series' past and present drama.)

Most of the credit for the continued excellence of this show goes to series creator Eric Kripke, a writer who knows how to tell a damn story, and his creative team. But the hard-working Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, who literally carry every episode as Dean and Sam, respectively, also deserve special notice. As I said above, I think much of the press looks at them as two more CW pretty boys. But that's like dismissing Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Sarah Michelle Gellar as just another WB babe. Ackles and Padalecki bring just as much emotional depth to their portrayals of two brothers fighting to save the world from evil while continually sacrificing their own happiness as Gellar did to her sublime depiction of a tentative teenager tasked with the same challenge. Gellar, however, consistently received much deserved praise for her work throughout all seven season of her show. After four years it's time for the press to throw the same support to Ackles and Padalecki.

To communicate with or to be contacted by the executives and/or companies mentioned in this column, link to JackMyers Connection Hotline.

http://www.jackmyers.com/...watercooler/31006674.html

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The "Friday The 13th" Remake Teaser...



Here is the original SOURCE in case YouTube pulls this video down.

http://community.livejour...notheydidnt/29042137.html (YouTube)

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New Watchmen footage from the SCREAM AWARDS

( screencaps behind the cut )

http://community.livejour...notheydidnt/29031080.html (YouTube)

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Another Jared Interview

...from the Scream Awards here:

http://www.joblo.com/video/arrow/player.php?video=Scream2008Montage3

Jared's interview starts at 1:09.

Jamie King also discusses My Bloody Valentine further in.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS.

http://community.livejour...com/dean_sam/6017002.html

by guest poster Liana Beck (mousitsa@sbcglobal.net)

Fan campaigns have been around a while, and really kick into high gear in reaction to news that a favorite show is facing the doom of cancellation. Occasionally fan campaigns arise that use the uniting force of devotion to a show to carry out deeds that can truly benefit society as well. In this regard, Supernatural fans have quickly become known for their generous efforts on behalf of charity. Such labors of love no doubt have a great deal of altruism built in, but there is no denying that the ulterior motive of 'Show Promotion' is also lurking underneath.

RISING RATINGS

Supernatural, now in its fourth season, is exhibiting a creative excellence that surpasses even its freshman year. Creator Eric Kripke and his team of writers continue to weave an intricate and captivating tale that stays fresh and unique. The two stars, Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki, not only carry each scene every week, but their on-screen chemistry - assisted by their off-screen friendship - brings an unparalleled depth and realism to the brothers they portray. They also prove every minute they're on screen that they have loads of acting talent to go along with the eye-candy they provide. In terms of ratings, it's premiere episode saw an overall increase of 40+% in all demographics, not to mention the largest yearly increase among all entertainment series returning for the 2008-09 season, despite its Thursday night "timeslot of doom." And the numbers continue to remain steady and higher than last year as the season progresses. It appears word about this gem of a show is finally getting out. It can effectively be argued that these successes are directly connected to the ongoing and unrelenting promotion efforts undertaken by fans, heeding the pleas by Mr. Kripke of "tell a friend to tell a friend."

Despite an obsessively dedicated fanbase and ratings that position it as the second highest scripted drama on The CW, Supernatural has been "on the bubble" in terms of renewal every year. This is in part due to the older-skewing demographic it attracts, rather than the teen female niche that CW unabashedly covets. Its viewers also pose a double-edged challenge. Genre audiences can be extremely dedicated and loyal, but can also be a thorn for the network. Their devotion, attention to detail, and above-average knowledge of inner workings can lead to a vociferous and tech-savvy fanbase that doesn't hesitate to tell the network what is going right (or wrong) with a show - for better or worse. When it comes to Supernatural, the threat of cancellation became the driving force behind a variety of campaigns.

A PRE-EMPTIVE STRIKE

This smart fanbase realized long ago that a majority of the promotion budget was being dedicated to shows serving the niche, such as Gossip Girl and 90210. Furthermore, fans knew that it is better for action to be pre-emptive rather than reactive, thus recognizing that the key to survival was based on ratings. And the key to ratings was dependent on getting more viewers. They knew that if people watched once, the quality of the show (with its perfect blend of scares, suspense, family drama and comedy) would have them coming back for more. And what better way to carry out this task than to flood the internet with mentions and praise of Supernatural? The buzzword here being the creation of "buzz." After all, there is nothing wrong of taking advantage of an ingrained human trait such as curiosity. Besides the presence created through hundreds (thousands?) of blogs and websites, fans have also understood that it is important to make advertisers aware of the vast support through an array of postcards and communications - after all, it's all about the money. In addition to showing appreciation to the advertisers, there is also the ongoing onslaught of postcards to the network offering a constant reminder of this support. Efforts quickly transformed from the reactive ("save Supernatural") to the pre-emptive ("support Supernatural").

Fan-driven promotional efforts began as early as February, 2006 and really took off the following year after Mr. Kripke's plea. In an effort to increase the positive presence of Supernatural, as well as give back to the community on behalf of not only the show, but its talented lead actors, various charity works were undertaken. These have included sending care packages (complete with Supernatural DVDs) to American soldiers via Operation Winchester and the organizing of Fandom Rocks whose recent drive raised an unparalleled $9000 for fan-chosen charities, thanks in part to the support of the show's producers, writers, directors, and actors.

Even an innocent and sincere idea such as a photobook project can transform into unexpected fundraising. When Becky (a.k.a. janglyjewels) offered to print a book that included photos of fans with Jared Padalecki to present to the actor at the recent EyeCon Convention, over 200 fans sent in their pictures taken with the actor and kindly offered a few dollars to help offset the printing costs. When those few dollars added up to not only cover the cost but surpass it, the extra funds were then earmarked for the Animal Rescue Site. Other fans also jumped in to donate, leading to an astounding $5000, an amount which in essence helps about 2500 dogs and increases their chances of adoption. Watching videos from EyeCon and seeing Jared's emotional reaction easily brought tears to our eyes and an an admiration in the ability of this fandom to come together in such a manner.

GATHERING THE TROOPS

The latest effort arose as a simple suggestion among online friends on the CW Message Board and blossomed into a full-fledged promotional one-stop shop. Lindsay and Heather, better known as "LindsayW" and "sn1fan" first met on the CW Board before meeting in person at a Supernatural Convention. The friends certainly did not fit into CW's demo niche, each being over 30 and with professional backgrounds of Market/Event Planning and Software/IT instead of high school term papers and pom-poms. Lindsay says of their humble beginnings, "We had a thread on the CW Lounge for ways that fans could help, but knew a cohesive website made more sense and could serve as an all-inclusive resource for a fan looking for ways to promote his/her favorite television program, Supernatural." Heather adds, "It first started off being called 'Save Supernatural', so we started all these promotions and were trying to find a way to get all the info into one place for all the promos like postcards and letters. This led to creating the website, which we decided to change to 'Support Supernatural' since it looked like the show was already 'saved' by gaining renewal."

Following in the inspiration provided by preceding charity projects, and the naming of specific charities from show stars Jared and Jensen, the two friends proceeded to launch a campaign to raise funds for PETA, the Humane Society of the U.S., St. Jude's Children Hospital, and Doctors Without Borders. Fans came forward and helped them meet their initial goal of $500 per charity (or $1000 per actor) and the outpouring of support has been truly touching, especially in these financially troubled times. At the urging of supporters, the fundraising time period was extended to allow even more fans to participate, and with about one week left in the campaign, are hopeful that the support will continue in order to allow at least $1000 per charity. The hope is to have combined donation amounts that will truly make a difference. And as an added bonus, every person who donates will be entered to win one of two subscriptions to Titan Magazine. Please take a moment to visit the plethora of information organized on the site, which includes detailed info on this current fundraising project. Even a $5 donation will help towards meeting and surpassing the goals. (www.supportsupenatural.com)

The ladies have already received an acknowledgment from PETA's Director of Major Gifts who has made Jared Padalecki aware of the efforts as well. Donations are accepted via PayPal on the website, a direct gift to the charity of choice, or forwarded to the ladies to submit in one bulk package. It is their hope now that they will be able to announce impressive numbers at Creation's Salute to Supernatural, scheduled on Nov. 14-16 in Chicago.

GET ON BOARD

Once again, the beauty in all this is that the love and appreciation for a television show led to an idea, then a friendship, and ultimately to a desire to want to go beyond that and make a difference. Any show that has that kind of power to bring together total strangers in such a manner must have some special quality about it. Supernatural most certainly has this special quality. If you have yet to experience it, we urge you to tune in to The CW, Thursday, 9 pm to discover it for yourself. Although you might want to leave the lights on and hang on tight to your security blanket when you do! Oh, and don't forget to tell a friend to tell a friend.

As mentioned in this article, other Charity and Promotional Links on behalf of Supernatural:

Operation Winchester: http://opwinchester.super...underground.com/index.php

Fandom Rocks: http://www.fandom-rocks.com/

Supernatural Underground: http://supernaturalunderground.com/

Promotional materials at Team Winchester: http://teamwinchester.com/

Live Journal promotional community: http://community.livejournal.com/promote_spn/

Editor's Note: While we here at SFUniverse are fully behind fannish charity efforts as a whole, we do not endorse any of the above named charity efforts specifically. Though most fannish fundraising does go to the announced charity, there is a potential for money going astray. Please be careful about where and to whom you give your money.

http://www.sfuniverse.com...aritable-deeds/#more-3578

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