< Supernatural (TV series)

Supernatural (TV series)/Characters


The Winchesters

Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles)

"I got a GED and a give-em-hell attitude."


Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki)

"You know me. You know why. I'm not leaving my brother alone out there."

(to Castiel) "I'll find a way to kill you. And I don't sleep."

John Winchester (Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Matthew Cohen)

Mary Winchester (Samantha Smith, Amy Gumenick)

  • Action Girl: Well, she was a hunter when she was younger...
  • Action Girlfriend: While John was still a sweet, kind and innocent person, his girlfriend was busy kicking monster ass.
  • Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence
  • Badass
  • Dead Ex Machina: Saves her sons from the poltergeist in "Home."
  • Deal with the Devil: She was manipulated into making one with Azazel to save John, as revealed in "In the Beginning."
  • Death by Origin Story
  • Death Glare: When a time-traveling Dean and Sam interrupt former-hunter Mary's normal lifestyle, she gives them quite a deadly glare.
  • Hot Chick with a Dagger: Watch how she uses the angel sword/dagger in her fight against Anna in "The Song Remains the Same." She definitely knows how to handle weapons.
    • Funnily enough, in that moment she actually looked eerily like how Sam wields pointy objects. Lamarck Was Right?
  • Hot Mom: Dean himself notes this in "In the Beginning."

"Sammy, wherever you are, Mom is a babe. I'm going to Hell. Again."

Adam Milligan (Jake Abel)

Sam: You may not believe it, but Dad *was* trying to protect you.
Adam: Well, I guess the monster that ate me didn't get that memo.


Hunters

Bobby Singer (Jim Beaver)

"Idjits."

Ellen Harvelle (Samantha Ferris)

Jo Harvelle (Alona Tal)

Gordon Walker (Sterling K. Brown)

Rufus Turner (Steven Williams)

  • All a Part of the Job: Rufus gives this kind of speech to Dean, by way of pointing out that regardless of whether or not Dean gets out of his crossroads deal, his best hope is to end up like Rufus (i.e., bitter, secluded and alone, but alive rather than dead).
    • He got killed off three seasons later, btw.
  • Ambiguously Jewish: He did say "I know what I want for Hanukkah" about Bobby's digger.
  • Black Best Friend: To Bobby.
  • Cool Old Guy: "What? What am I, a heathen? I know what Craig is."
  • Drink Order: One bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue. He was also something of a general scotch connoisseur, but his favorite was Johnnie Walker Blue.
  • Informed Judaism
  • Killed Off for Real: In Season 6.
  • Magical Negro: Not in that he had powers beyond being a Badass (formerly) retired hunter, but in that he had a ridiculous amount of helpful connections who helped him to do everything from digging up Bela's dirty past to not only digging up intel on Crowley and his human life, but finding out that he had a son, what happened to said son, and where the artifact Bobby could use to summon said son's ghost was...and then successfully stealing it and hiding it from the police. Somewhat averted in that his motivations weren't really selfless as much as utilitarian.
    • Justified on the connections and knowledge part: all of the older generation of hunters seem to be crazy prepared (see: Bobby) and extremely well connected (see: Ellen) simply by virtue of having been in the job for some years.
  • Noodle Incident: With Bobby.

Bobby: (on the phone) Suck dirt and die, Rufus. You call me again, I'll kill ya. (hangs up)
Dean: What's up with Rufus?
Bobby: He knows.

    • In "And Then There Were None," Bobby says that he and Rufus used to be as close as Sam and Dean until something happened in Omaha. No real details are given, except that Rufus lost someone he cared about and swore to never forgive Bobby for it.
  • Police Brutality: At one point in "Weekend at Bobby's," Rufus is heard over Bobby's phone, shouting, "That is excessive force, officer! I know my rights!"
  • Twofer Token Minority

Samuel Campbell (Mitch Pileggi)

Christian Campbell (Corin Nemec)

Gwen Campbell (Jessica Heafey)

Mark Campbell (David Paetkau)

Garth Fitzgerald IV (DJ Qualls)

Bobby Better drop a dime to the FBI.

  • hangs up* *FBI Line rings*

Bobby Willis, FBI. (Beat) No, Garth, not me-the-FBI, the REAL FBI! How are you still alive?!

Dean You don't suck.
Garth (completely sincere) Wow! That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me!


Angels

The Trickster / Gabriel (Richard Speight, Jr.)

Castiel (Misha Collins)

"I'm the one that gripped you tight and raised you from perdition."

  • Adorkable
  • Angelic Beauty
  • Anti-Hero: Began as a Type III (his first appearance; if you're on the side of good, you need not fear him), but is now definitely a IV. At the end of "The Man Who Would Be King," it's implied he's about to tip straight into Type V.
    • And in the Season 6 finale, he goes straight into Villain Protagonist territory.
      • And then in the Season 7 premiere, he realizes the error of his ways and pulls a Heel Face Turn, only to get taken over by the Leviathans.
  • Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence
  • Asexuality: He gets nervous at brothels (though this is arguably due more to him being in a "den of iniquity"), displays curiosity about human sexuality, and has even tried kissing, but for the most part, he's portrayed as asexual.
    • However, his future self from a post-appocalyptic world seems to love orgies.
      • Technically that's not his "future self"—something quite obvious as of the end of Season 6--but either an alternate future self or just part of an illusion Zachariah came up with. Why Zachariah chose to have him adopt that personality to show Dean is still a mystery.
    • In episode 7.21, "Reading Is Fundamental", he admits finding it boring to watch over humanity at times - the wars and sex got repetitive.
  • Ascended Extra
  • Asskicking Equals Authority: A subversion at first, as he seems to be fairly low-ranked despite how much ass he kicks. As the series goes on, he becomes less powerful and a traitor, then loses his angelic status entirely. BUT THEN, after standing up to both Michael and Lucifer, he gets revived by God (again), more powerful than ever. He then returns to Heaven as the "new sheriff in town," as Michael, Lucifer and Gabriel are all out of the picture, and eventually ends up having to deal with the remaining archangel, Raphael.
  • The Atoner: For his actions in Season 6 and going off the deep end as God after he regains his memories mid-way through Season 7.
  • Back from the Dead
  • Badass
  • Berserk Button: Don't mess with the Winchester brothers.
  • Big Bad Friend: Throughout Season 6 and more so in the finale.
  • Blue Eyes
  • Breakout Character
  • Broken Angel: As of "Dark Side of the Moon."
    • Though he seems to have regained his faith in God after being resurrected a second time in "Swan Song."
      • Scratch that last point; he's become even more broken, as revealed in "The Man Who Would be King"--he's working with Crowley, spying on the Winchesters, losing his faith in God, and doesn't know what to do.
  • Brought Down to Normal: As of "Two Minutes to Midnight." But this gets reversed in the fifth season finale.
    • This also happens to him in the Bad Future of "The End."
  • Chaste Hero: This trait was completely absent in his future self in "The End", however.
  • Cloudcuckoolander: Taking on Sam's pain has apparently caused his personality to change into this. For perspective, he will occasionally ask someone to "pull his finger" and tried to play a game of Sorry! while having a serious conversation with Dean.
  • The Comically Serious: "Assbutt?"
  • Corrupt the Cutie: No one in this show is going to pass up the chance to corrupt a virgin angel with a conscience. Just ask Dean, Meg, Ellen, Jo, Balthazar, Lucifer, etc.
  • A Day in the Limelight: In "The Man Who Would Be King."
  • Deadpan Snarker: He actually gets better at sarcasm the longer he spends time on Earth.
    • He has also learned to be very subtle about it:

Castiel: Sam, Dean, I have to get back.
Dean: You're leaving?
Castiel: I'm in the middle of a civil war.
Dean: You better tear the attic up, find something to help Sam.
Castiel: Of course. Your problems always come first.

  • Deal with the Devil: He makes one with Crowley to find Purgatory and gain the souls there.
  • Demonic Possession: It isn't exactly stated whether Castiel himself got taken over from within by the Leviathans at the end of "Meet the New Boss" or whether they just hijacked control of his vessel, Jimmy Novak. Either way, Castiel clearly wasn't in control anymore, especially considering the change in voice from a deep monotone to one that sounds more like an insane Misha Collins.
  • Deus Exit Machina: Even as a low-ranked angel, he was way too powerful, forcing the writers to turn to this trope (usually using the angel-banishing sigil). This was a major reason his appearances were mostly cameos in Seasons 4 and 6.
  • Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?: His line to Raphael in "Free to Be You and Me" as he and Dean are leaving the house where Raphael is trapped inside a ring of holy fire.

Raphael: Do not leave me here, Castiel. I will find you.
Castiel: Maybe one day. But today, you're my little bitch.

Castiel: (to Bobby) You're right. Pardon me for highlighting their crippling and dangerous empathetic response with (uses air quotes) "sarcasm."

  • Emotions vs. Stoicism
  • Face Heel Turn: Slowly happens throughout Season 6, and finally occurs fully in the season finale.
    • Heel Face Turn: When he realizes how badly he's screwed up by messing with Purgatory, he agrees to return the souls.
    • As of "The Born-Again Identity", it looks like Cass is back to Face.
  • The Extremist Was Right: His plan to team up with Crowley to find Purgatory, then crack it open and absorb all of the souls inside in order to gain enough power to defeat Raphael. Well, it worked, but...
  • Fallen Angel: Resigned from Heaven.
    • Though in the last episode of Season 5, someone (presumably God) granted him full angel status once again, and he became in charge of keeping Heaven whole.
  • The Fatalist: All angels take this view; Castiel was the first to avert it.
  • Foe Yay: Most blatantly with Meg.
    • Occasionally with Dean, when they argue.

Castiel: *glares*
Dean: Cas, last person that looked at me like that, I got laid.

      • And Crowley, who likes to hurl suggestive remarks at Castiel every chance he gets.
  • A God Am I: In the Season 6 finale, he absorbs all the souls of Purgatory and proceeds to declare himself the new God.
  • The Gods Must Be Lazy
  • Good Is Not Nice
  • Good Powers, Bad People: Once he starts working with Crowley, he seems to stop resurrecting people and start Mind Raping them.
  • Good Wings, Evil Wings
  • Have You Seen My God?
  • Heroic RROD: The stress of containing the souls of Purgatory (and the Leviathans) causes his vessel to start decaying and nearly kills him.
  • Hero of Another Story: In Season 6, after the Apocalypse was over, Castiel was in charge of trying to hold Heaven together and leading his own faction of angels against Raphael and his followers, who were still hell-bent on re-starting the Apocalypse while Hell was in disarray. Frankly, the depiction of such a war would've been beyond the writers and the special effects team, so it took place mostly off-screen.
  • Ho Yay: With Dean and Balthazar.
  • I Did What I Had to Do: As of Season 6, he's doing/done a lot of things he'd rather not do, but finds he has no choice, since he has to lead half of Heaven against the other half in a bid to prevent Raphael from re-starting the Apocalypse. He also kills another angel, despite saying he doesn't want to, and even pleads with the angel beforehand.
    • He also takes this attitude in "My Heart Will Go On" when Fate calls him out on having Balthazar alter history in order to create thousands of new souls to back his side of the war.
    • As of "The Man Who Would Be King," this has been taken to a whole new level.
  • Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: All throughout Season 6.
  • Knight Templar: What he's become in Season 6, in regards to the War in Heaven. To the point that he's working with Crowley, of all people.
  • Lack of Empathy / No Sympathy: Castiel may be one of the few angels with a sense of ethics and he might tend to be portrayed as a Woobie (especially in fandom), but the fact that he's an angel first and foremost means that he doesn't have the kind of empathy allowed to humans. This allows him to think little of killing children, wiping out entire towns, and murdering his own kin.

After Dean tells him that he and Sam have been murdered in "Dark Side of the Moon":
Castiel: (flatly) My condolences.

To another angel in "The Third Man":
Castiel: Why won't any of you listen!?

  • Parental Abandonment: The main reason for his fall to Earth in Season 5. God is still missing in Season 6, but Castiel continues to follow Him by leading on side of a civil war.
    • Not anymore.
  • Perma-Stubble
  • Pretty Boy: Well, he's possessing one (seeing the real him would, y'know, burn your eyes of your skull).

Game show host: Mr Trickster does not like pretty-boy angels!

  • Quizzical Tilt
  • Rebel Leader: Seems to be his role in Heaven circa Season 6 against Raphael, and the main reason he's not been around too much.
  • Redemption Equals Death: Subverted. At the end of the Season 7 premiere, Castiel tries to fix everything he's screwed up as well as trying to make amends with the Winchesters before he dies. However, he's unable to stop the Leviathans and it later turns out that he survived the encounter.
  • Sealed Good in a Can: Since he had absorbed Sam's insanity, he was residing in an asylum, waiting to be brought out.
  • Semi-Divine: In Season 5, after rebelling against heaven to help the Winchesters save the world from the upcoming apocalypse, he steadily loses his divine power until he's basically human by the end of the season.
  • Slasher Smile: Oh boy. Happens twice in the premiere of Season 7, once before he starts a massacre, then again to show that, yes, Castiel is pretty much gone.
    • Though it's implied in that first case -- and outright stated in the second -- that it was the Leviathans doing the smiling.
  • Someone Has to Die: A non-lethal version in which Castiel decides to make amends for busting Sam's wall by absorping his Hell memories into himself, restoring Sam's sanity and ending up in the nut house as a result. Well, you break it, you buy it...
  • The Spock
  • Spock Speak: Most of the time, but he starts acting more human as he gets more Character Development.
  • The Starscream: To Crowley in Season 6.
  • Stealth Hi Bye: Sometimes without Hi or Bye.
  • The Stoic
  • Straight Man: He takes Bud Abbott's deadpan shtick to a whole new level because he usually has no clue what the joke is or even that there is one, which makes him come off just as hilarious as Dean. Highlighted by having a Bizarro future version of him be mucho mellow.

Dean: Are you...stoned?
Castiel: Generally, yeah.

Castiel: That's everything. I believe it's what you'd call a tragedy, from the human perspective.

  • Trenchcoat Brigade
  • Unkempt Beauty: The stubble, wind-blown hair, loose tie and hobo trenchcoat shouldn't be that attractive, but on Cas, it works, so much so that he's right up there with Dean as the most fetishized character in the fandom.
  • Utopia Justifies the Means: After becoming God, he slays Raphael's followers and starts going after sinners on Earth.
  • Villain Protagonist: By the end of Season 6.
    • He comes to his senses in the Season 7 premiere.
  • We Have Reserves: Crosses over with Fridge Horror. In the Season 6 finale, Castiel backstabs Crowley and sends him away. When Crowley returns with Raphael in an Enemy Mine situation, he forces Castiel to leave, taking the Real!Blood with him. They discover too late that Castiel swapped the blood beforehand. However, this meant Castiel knew Crowley would return with a vengeance, and still put up his fellow angels as guards in the warehouse. He knowingly sacrificed his own men in his bid to become God. A far cry from when he tried to teach angels free will.
  • "Well Done, Son" Guy
  • Well-Intentioned Extremist: If you've read all the spoilers so far in his character sheet, you'll know why he's here.
  • Wham! Line: "I am an angel of the Lord."
    • And, "I am your new God."
  • With Great Power Comes Great Insanity
  • What the Hell, Hero?: He's working with Crowley, lying and scheming behind the Winchesters' backs, ready to sacrifice human souls for his goal, and okay with changing history such that 50,000 people die horribly. At any rate, this is definitely what Sam and Dean are thinking.
  • Wolverine Publicity: Especially in Season 6, where he's given his own solo TV bumper and publicity stills alongside the Winchester brothers, despite having less than 50 minutes of screentime throughout the entirety of the season.
  • Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds
  • The Worf Effect
  • You Are in Command Now: After the averted Apocalypse and the deaths/imprisonments of the archangels, Castiel finds himself going from a foot soldier (though one in charge of other angels like Uriel) to the acting "sheriff of Heaven", though he was challenged by Raphael, the only remaining archangel.

Uriel (Robert Wisdom, Matt Ward)

Anna Milton (Julie McNiven)

Castiel: We still have orders to kill you.
Anna: Somehow, I don't think you'll try.
And, later:
Uriel: There is no will! No wrath! No God.
Anna: (to Uriel, after she stabs him with an angel-killing sword) Maybe, maybe not. But there's still... me.

Anna: (suddenly appearing in the backseat) Hey, guys.
Dean: Ah! (jerks steering wheel, but manages to get the car under control)
Anna: Smooth.
Dean: You ever try calling ahead?
Anna: I like the element of surprise.

Zachariah (Kurt Fuller)

"Lucifer may be powerful, but I'm...petty."

Lucifer (Mark Pellegrino, Jared Padalecki, various)

Baldur: You think you own the planet? What gives you the right?

Lucifer: (sticks his arm through Baldur's chest, killing him) No one gives us the right; we take it.

"You know, I never understood you pagans. You're all such...petty little things. Always fighting, always happy to sell out your own kind. No wonder you forfeited this planet to us. You are worse than humans. You're worse than demons. And yet you claim to be gods! ( kills Mercury) And they call me "prideful.

(In "Sympathy for the Devil"):
Lucifer: This is your choice...You people misunderstand me. You call me "Satan" and "devil", but do you know my crime? I loved God too much. And for that, he betrayed me — punished me. Just as he's punished you. After all, how could God stand idly by while that man broke into your home and butchered your family in their beds? There are only two rational answers, Nick — either he's sadistic, or he simply doesn't care. You're angry. You have every right to be angry. I am angry, too. That's why I want to find him — hold him accountable for his actions. Just because he created us doesn't mean he can toy with us, like playthings.
Nick: If I help you...can you bring back my family?
Lucifer: I'm sorry. I can't. But I can give you the next best thing. God did this to you, Nick. And I can give you justice. Peace.
(In "Abandon All Hope"):
Lucifer: "Castiel. I don't understand why you're fighting me, of all the angels...I rebelled, I was cast out. You rebelled, you were cast out. Almost all of heaven wants to see me dead, and if they succeed, guess what? You're their new public enemy number one. We're on the same side, like it or not, so why not just serve your own best interests? Which in this case just happen to be mine?"

(to Sam) "I was a son, a brother--like you. I had an older brother whom I loved, idolized. And one day I went to him and begged him to stand with me. But Michael...Michael turned on me. Called me a "freak," a "monster." And he beat me down. All because I was different. All because I had a mind of my own. Tell me, Sam--any of this sound familiar?"

  • Satan Is Good: Subverted. He sincerely wants you to think this, and in his first few episodes at times, you might even be tempted to believe him, but ultimately he's an egotistical monster and was once referred to by Death himself as a child having a cosmic temper tantrum.
  • Sealed Evil in a Can
  • Soft-Spoken Sadist: He's very calm, cool-headed, and acts in a casual, gentle and polite manner. That doesn't stop him from torturing and killing to get what he wants.
  • Torture Technician: He took an innocent human and tortured her until she lost her humanity and became the first demon, Lilith. He's also been torturing Sam while he was in Hell and also after Sam had escaped from Hell.
  • Villains Never Lie: "Contrary to popular belief, I don't lie. I don't need to."
  • Xanatos Gambit: Lucifer's trying to summon Death and use him as a pawn. While Sam is trying to stop him, Lucifer says that Sam could just say "yes" and end this conflict. Either Lucifer will get Sam to be his vessel (one of his main goals) or he'll just go ahead and use Death (as well as the other horsemen) to bring destruction on Earth.
    • By the season finale, Lucifer actually gets to use Sam as his vessel just like he had predicted.
  • Yandere: "I was punished for loving God too much" and "Because I loved Him" (the reason he was cast down by God, or so he claims...)

Raphael (Demore Barnes, Lanette Ware)

  • Arch Enemy: To Castiel in Season 6, with them leading opposite sides of Heaven's civil war. Though one can argue that their feud went back to Raphael's first appearance in Season 5.
  • Authority Equals Asskicking: One of the four top dogs in Heaven, his mere presence on Earth caused a massive thunderstorm that blacked out the entire Eastern Seaboard of the United States. For a healthy dose of Fridge Horror, he was not the most powerful archangel, so who knows what Michael is really capable of...
  • Badass: He might've been a grade-A Jerkass, but the sheer level and magnitude of his powers was like no other being seen in the series, ironically looking far more impressive than Michael, the strongest archangel in Heaven, and tying with Lucifer as the most visually powerful and impressive of the archangels.
  • Blow You Away: Father Reynolds, while administering Last Rites to Father Gregory's spirit in "Houses of the Holy," called Raphael "Master of the Air." Later, when Raphael appeared to Dean and Castiel on Earth, an incredibly powerful storm was blowing outside, and increased with intensity as the scene went on, eventually beginning to destroy the house they were standing in.
  • Do Not Taunt Cthulhu
  • The Fundamentalist
  • Gender Bender: In "The French Mistake." Or as close as gender-less being as come to this.
  • A God Am I: A shade of it; in Season 6, when Castiel asks Raphael how the angels can justify trying to re-start the Apocalypse, he says it's what God wants. When Castiel asks how he knows that, he says it's because it's what he wants. At the very least, he's appointed himself as the ultimate interpreter of the absent God's will, which is much the same thing, and seems to think he can boss Castiel around purely due to both his higher rank and superior power. Worst case scenario, he may even have been the one who talked Michael and some other angels into going along with the Doomsday scheme.
    • And in the Season 6 finale, he thwarted Castiel's plan to become the new God...in order to hijack it for himself. Unfortunately for him, he got Out-Gambitted along with Crowley by Cas and killed shortly after.
  • God Is Dead: He was of the belief that his "Father" is dead. When asked why by Castiel, Raphael simply answered: If God was really alive, why wouldn't He stop the horrors of the 20th and the 21st centuries, including the coming Apocalypse?
  • Good Wings, Evil Wings
  • Holy Hand Grenade
  • Jerkass
  • Light Is Not Good
  • Karmic Death: Raphael killed Castiel (off-screen) by blowing him to pieces. Guess what Cas visits upon him in the Season 6 finale.
  • Killed Off for Real: In "The Man Who Knew Too Much," by Castiel.
  • The Nth Doctor
  • Scary Black Man: He might not have been as physically imposing as Uriel, but in terms of demeanor, attitude and possible danger level and the threat he was, he made Uriel look incredibly sad in comparison and as threatening as baby puppies.
    • In "The Third Man," he completely trashed Castiel and could only be stopped by Heaven's answer to nuclear weapons. It only killed his vessel.
  • Shock and Awe
  • The Stoic:

Raphael: Do I look like I'm joking, Castiel?
Castiel: You never look like you're joking.

Michael ( Matthew Cohen, Jake Abel)

Balthazar (Sebastian Roche)

Sorry, you have me confused with the other angel. You know, the one in the dirty trenchcoat who's in love with you? I...don't care.

Demons

Meg Masters (Nikki Lyn Aycox, Jared Padalecki, Rachel Miner)

  • Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Befriends Sam in her first appearance before he knows she's a demon by bonding with him as two fellow hitch-hikers.
  • Black Eyes of Evil
  • Blondes Are Evil: Well, she possessed a blonde in Season 1...
  • Dark Action Girl
  • Dead Little Sister: To be accurate, her first host body had one.
  • The Dragon: For Azazel.
  • Dying as Yourself: Meg was thrown out a several story high window but her powers kept the body alive. Episodes later, Dean and Sam exorcise the demon from her body, and the real Meg thanks them right before dying from the injuries.
  • Enemy Mine: Makes a... shaky alliance with the Winchesters in the sixth and seventh seasons.
  • Foe Yay: With Sam and Castiel. Also with Dean, to a lesser extent.
  • Gender Bender: She once possessed Sam to torment the brothers and made him kill other hunters.
  • Hero-Killer: Killed Pastor Jim and Caleb, both of whom were old friends of the Winchesters and implied to be Heroes Of Another Story. She is also responsible for the deaths of Jo and Ellen.
  • Karma Houdini: Seven seasons in, and Meg is still alive. Somehow.
    • Meg has now been taken by Crowley to Hell, so karma eventually gets her in a way.
  • Known Only By Their Nickname: Since the demon's real name is never revealed, the characters (and fans) just call her Meg, after the girl we first see her possessing. It could have been revealed in "Caged Heat", but...

"Meg": Crowley.
Crowley: Whore.

Meg: This is kind of a turn-on, Dean, you hitting a girl.

Azazel aka The Yellow-Eyed Demon (Fredric Lehne, various)

  • Arch Enemy: To the Winchesters, especially John.
  • Big Bad: For Seasons 1 and 2.
  • The Chessmaster
  • The Chooser of the One: He chose a variety of possible candidates before narrowing it down to the one who would release Lucifer and become his vessel.
  • Deal with the Devil: Made one with John in the Season 2 premiere. Also manipulated Mary into making one in the past, as revealed in "In the Beginning."
  • Demon Lords and Archdevils: A very high-ranking demon, and the only one to answer directly to Lucifer himself. His existence alone kept other demons from targeting Sam.
  • The Dragon: For Lucifer.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: His "children". He tortures and nearly kills Dean for killing one and sending the other to Hell.
  • Evil Genius
  • Eyes of Gold: His trademark. Just the mention of "Yellow Eyes" or "Yellow-eyed demon" around people makes them really scared.
  • Faux Affably Evil
  • The Heavy: In Seasons 1 and 2. One might argue he's this for the majority of the show.
  • Hellish Pupils
  • Known Only By Their Nickname: He is only referred to as "The Yellow-Eyed Demon" or some variation during the two seasons he appears. We only discover his real name from a third party well after he has been killed.
  • The Man Behind the Man: Has been in both positions.
  • Manipulative Bastard
  • My Death Is Just the Beginning: He doesn't get to say it, but boy, is it true.
    • Not really, his death certainly was not part of his plan. His plan had just been set into motion to the point that his death, didn't stop it.
  • No Name Given: His name wasn't revealed until four episodes after his death.
  • The Nth Doctor
  • Oh Crap: When he sees that Dean has the Colt, and a clear shot.
  • One Shot Kill: Dean visits this upon him via the Colt. To be fair, he really didn't see it coming. His plan keeps right on working, anyways.
  • Red Right Hand: His yellow eyes.
  • Uh-Oh Eyes

Crossroads Demon (various)

Ruby (Katie Cassidy, Genevieve Cortese, various)

"On the bright side, I'll be there with you. That little fallen angel on your shoulder."

Maid: (enters and gives Sam a piece of paper) I'm at this address.
Sam: (beat) I'm sorry. What?
Maid: Go now. Go through the bathroom window, don't stop, don't take your car, don't pass go. There are demons in the hallway and in the parking lot.
Sam: (realizing) Ruby?
Ruby: Okay, yes, so I'm possessing this maid for a hot minute. Sue me.
Sam: What about-
Ruby: Coma girl? Slowly rotting on the floor back at the cabin with Anna, so I've got to hurry back. See you when you get there. Go!

  • Sexy Mentor: To Sam in Season 4.
  • Sixth Ranger Traitor
  • Suspiciously Similar Substitute: Her character could be summed up as "Meg plus Heel Face Turn." Possibly lampshaded in "Sympathy for the Devil" when Dean confuses Meg for Ruby despite having personally killed the latter only one episode ago.
  • Ted Baxter: "I am awesome!"
  • Took a Level In Kindness: YMMV, but Ruby comes off as nicer (read: less bitchy) after Season 3.
  • Waif Fu: Uses martial arts a lot more than she does telekinesis or other demon powers. Justified in her case, since she's a superpowered demon and thus capable of taking a punch and throwing it back.
  • Was Once a Man: Like all demons, she used to be human until centuries of torture in Hell irrevocably altered her. Unlike other demons, she seems to remember her humanity and wants to help Sam and Dean defeat Lilith.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: In "I Know What You Did Last Summer", Sam calls her out on the fact that for a self-proclaimed Noble Demon she's still possessing people against their will (which led to the death of her Season 3 host). She apparently listens to him, and chooses to possess a comatose girl just after she dies.
  • Wicked Witch
  • Woman in Black

Lilith (various)

Castiel: (to Dean, in another episode) Lilith has a certain sense of humor.

Samhain (Don McManus)

  • All Hallow's Eve: Samhain is the inspiration for it in Supernatural.
  • One-Scene Wonder: Gets summoned and sent back to hell to never be seen again within the same episode.
  • The Quiet One: Most demons are quite chatty. After saying a few lines when he is first summoned, he doesn't say another word for the rest of the series.
  • Summon Magic: Can summon monsters including zombies and ghosts.
  • Ungrateful Bastard: Kills the witch who summoned him and calls her a whore.
  • Weaksauce Weakness: Has horrible vision, which is why masks can fool him. However, unlike most demons, he is immune to iron.

Alastair (Mark Ralston, Christopher Heyerdahl)

Crowley (Mark Sheppard)

Now if you'll excuse me, I have a little Hell to raise.

"Just trying to hit double digits."

"This isn't Wall Street; this is Hell. We have a little something called integrity!"

  • Evil Brit
  • Evil Counterpart: In a sense, to the Trickster/Gabriel. He is a demon while the other is an angel. Both are Affably Evil. Both are the fifth season's Ensemble Darkhorses. Both help Dean and Sam. Both resigned from their job in Hell and Heaven. And finally, neither of them want the Apocalypse to happen.
    • He's also this to Castiel, in that neither wants the Apocalypse to happen, both help the Winchesters, and both get cast out from their respective groups based on the previous two facts.
      • Both he and Castiel also try to introduced a new way of doing things to demons and angels, respectively, only to be met with opposition.
  • Evil Versus Evil: He helps the Winchesters to try and stop the Apocalypse, but bear in mind that he's still a demon. That just means he's less evil than Satan himself.
    • And in Season 6, we find that he and Eve, the Mother of All (non-demon) monsters, don't get along either.
  • Face Death with Dignity: Subverted. He's fully willing to face death, but Castiel doesn't want to kill him.
  • Faking the Dead: In Season 6, after Castiel "kills" him. Turns out they're actually working together and set the whole thing up.
  • Friendly Enemy: Played with, especially at the end of Season 5. Ultimately he's still a demon who crawled his way to the position of King Of Hell WITHOUT the angelic power someone like Lucifer had to back him up, so the Winchesters know damn well not to trust him. But he's honest with them (most of the time) and he doesn't play the mind tricks that Lucifer or Ruby did.
  • Genre Savvy: When Castiel tells him not to worry about the Winchesters, he's almost outraged and spits out a list of super-powered heavyweights that said the same thing about them, all of whom are either dead or locked away at the Winchesters' hands. All by two human boys who "shouldn't have been any trouble for them."

Crowley: Am I the only game piece on the board who doesn't underestimate those denim-wrapped nightmares?!

  • Hey, It's That Guy!: Mark Sheppard had to appear at one point, after all.
  • Ho Yay: Not only is he Ambiguously Gay, he also kisses every guy who makes a deal with him. And he has pictures to prove it.
    • He also loves to drop double entendres and situational puns. All the time.
    • It is extra amusing at the end of Season 6 because the main target for his witty remarks and flirting is his business partner, Castiel. Needless to say said remarks go straight over Cas' head.
  • Laughably Evil
  • Long-Lost Relative: His son Gavin. Father and son both hate each other. Crowley suggests that Bobby torture Gavin's ghost, and Gavin rats Crowley out, thus allowing Bobby to get his soul back.
  • Man of Wealth and Taste
  • Manipulative Bastard:In the Season 7 finale, due to his manipulations, Dick Roman is killed and Castiel pays for betraying him as he ends up in Purgatory along with Dean.
  • Meaningful Name: Crowley being either Aleister the occultist, or AJ (formerly Crawly) of Good Omens.
  • Noble Demon
  • Only Sane Employee: He seems to think of himself as this, as far as Hell is concerned. Especially since getting promoted and finding out that trying to show demons a new way of having things work...doesn't work.
    • Well, now he's the Only Sane Employer. And, considering what his industry is, this is probably true.
  • Out-Gambitted: By Castiel in the Season 6 finale.
  • Playing Both Sides: Does this to the Winchesters and the Leviathans in the Season 7 finale.
  • Sarcastic Clapping
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here / Villain Exit Stage Left: In "The Man Who Knew Too Much," he quips "Exit stage Crowley" and disappears, following Castiel absorbing all the souls of Purgatory and becoming the new God.
  • Suddenly Shouting: He does this a lot.
  • Vetinari Job Security: Is starting to move into this position since becoming King Of Hell. Neither the good guys nor most of his fellow demons want the chaos that would result from removing him.


Monsters and Supernatural Beings

Azazel's Special Children -- Sam Winchester (Jared Padalecki), Max Miller (Brendan Fletcher), Andy Gallagher (Gabriel Tigerman), Ansem Weems (Elias Toufexis), Scott Carey (Richard de Klerk), Ava Wilson (Katharine Isabelle), Lily (Jessica Harmon), Jake Talley (Aldis Hodge)

Tessa (Lindsey McKeon)

Lenore (Amber Benson)

Pamela Barnes (Traci Dinwiddie)

God / Chuck Shurley (Rob Benedict)

The Four Horsemen -- War (Titus Welliver), Famine (James Otis), Pestilence (Matt Frewer) and Death (Julian Richings)

  • Bad Boss: Famine either uses the demons under his orders as sacrifice or as lunch.
  • Cool Car: Each one of them has one. War has a red Mustang, Famine has a black Chevy, Pestilence has a greenish-grey Pinto, and Death, the last we see, has a white Cadillac Eldorado.
    • Well, some are less cool than others. However, they are all puns, as each type of car is named after a horse, and is the color of horse that each respective horseman rides.
      • Of course, they mixed two of them up; in Revelation, Death rides the pale horse while the white rider is generally labeld as Pestilence. Possibly lampshaded/foreshadowed earlier in the series when Alastair said about Death, "You know he doesn't really ride a pale horse?"
  • Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: War, thanks to Ruby's knife ("C'mon, kids, you can't beat War!"), Famine (courtesy of Sam and his demon powers, which Famine forced back on Sam) and Pestilence, thanks to the last bit of angel left in Castiel.
  • Evil Old Folks: Famine.
  • Evil Tastes Good: Famine's favorite food? Human souls, but he could go for some demons too. And they are DELICIOUS!
  • Fingore: War and Pestilence both get their ring fingers cut off.
  • Four Is Death: And you can add War, Famine and Pestilence.
  • Gotta Catch Them All: The Horsemen's rings are the keys to trap Lucifer again.
  • Hey, It's That Guy!: War seems on good terms with Lucifer, but it wasn't always the case.
  • Humans Are the Real Monsters: War thinks that we only need a little push to all kill each other, and Famine is not a big fan of our tendencies for always wanting more than what we can handle. Pestilence considers that bacteria and microbes aren't chaotic or destructive; we are. At least, Death is not so hard; he just sees us as incredibly insignificant.
  • Master of Illusion: War uses his ring to confuse two groups of humans by making them think that members of the other group are demons.
  • Plaguemaster: Pestilence.
  • Quirky Miniboss Squad: Four powerful beings that have to be beaten before going for the Big Bad.
    • Unconfirmed to be either angels or demons. They can't be killed in any normal way, are not confirmed to have to be possessing anyone, and Death, at least, claims to be just as old as God and capable of killing Him.
  • Ring of Power
  • Smug Snake: War.

Death (Julian Richings)

Dean: You're not serious?
Death: No, I'm being incredibly sarcastic.

Karen: When I came back, there was a man at the grave. He was so thin, like a skeleton.

  • Leitmotif: "O Death" is pretty much used as one the first time viewers see, well, Death.
  • Mister Exposition: Gives info on how to trap Lucifer again and later about the Leviathans.
  • No, Mr. Bond, I Expect You to Dine: Death offers Dean a seat and a meal in the first two episodes they meet. He's very civil about it.
  • Non-Malicious Monster: Death isn't interested in Lucifer's plan for bringing about the Apocalypse. He's not terribly interested in Earth, as it turns out...but it doesn't stop him from killing everyone in the restaurant where Dean meets him, apparently just by his presence.
  • The Omniscient: He appears to be this, although there are limits to his knowledge (such as assuming instead of already knowing what Sam, Dean, and Bobby summoned him for in episode 7x01, and surprise at being informed that they want him to kill "God"—i.e. Castiel). If not absolutely, he is at least functionally omniscient.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: Death is much more level-headed and temperate than his "brothers," even though that doesn't stop him from being sarcastic.
    • In the first episode of Season 7, he even gives the Winchesters advice on what to do after they bound him, which is what he was so angry at Lucifer about that he told them how to defeat him. And brings an eclipse to aid in the spell to open Purgatory a second time. He's arguably the most reasonable super-powered being on the show. Though he did say he'd kill them if they ever tried to bind him again.
      • Considering that a certain archangel pulled the same stunt on him a couple seasons earlier, his anger and subsequent threat of swift death if they ever tried to bind him again is justified.
  • Subbing for Santa: In "Appointment in Samarra," Death agrees to retrieve Sam's soul if Dean will act as him for one day.
  • Summon Bigger Fish: In "Meet the New Boss," after Castiel declares himself the new God, the Winchesters--with an assist from Crowley--bind Death to their bidding so they can have him kill Castiel. It doesn't do much good, as Castiel frees Death from the Winchesters' control.
  • Suspiciously Specific Denial: Death doesn't care about humanity, Earth or helping Dean. He's very specific about that, while giving Dean advice on saving Earth and humanity.
  • Tall, Dark and Snarky
  • Time Abyss: With massive amounts of Nightmare Fuel, Uncanny Valley, Cryptic Conversation, and all other manner of unsettling tropes. In his few appearances he has explained several times that he will persist throughout eternity, and is the only thing that could truly never die.

Death: This is one little planet, in one tiny system, in a galaxy that's barely out of it's diapers. I'm old, Dean. Very old. So I invite you to contemplate how insignificant I find you.
Dean: I gotta ask, how old are you?
Death: As old as God. Maybe older. Neither of us can remember anymore. Life, Death, chicken, egg.

Alpha Vampire (Rick Worthy)

  • Badass Boast: "When your kind first huddled around the fire, I was the thing in the dark. Now you think you can hurt me?"
  • The Dreaded: The Winchesters haven't forgotten the fact that it took twelve hunters (most of whom died) to bring him in the last time and treat the situation with the appropriate gravity.
  • Enemy Mine: Gives the Winchesters his blood, which they need to kill the Leviathans and allows them to go free after he learns that the leviathans are trying to stomp out all other monsters, including his kind, to preserve their food supply.
  • Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: You just don't call Eve a whore in front of the alpha vamp and walk away from it. Edgar found this out the hard way. God knows what'd happen if the alpha learned that Dean was the one who killed her...
  • Family Values Villain: Shows shades of this. Considers all vampires his children and even his snacks call him "Daddy".
  • Genre Savvy: He had borax on hand in case the leviathans tried to betray him.
    • It gets better. He probably didn't even know about their weakness to borax until Dean mentioned it. He could have ignored the suggestion but he didn't and it saved his life. That's one smart vampire, dude.
  • Implacable Man: It takes more than chains, dead man's blood, and demons to keep him down.
  • Last of His Kind: According to Crowley, he's the only alpha who didn't die in Season 6.
  • Leaning on the Fourth Wall: When the Alpha Vampire says to Dean, "See you next season," it's actually a metaphor for the way the Winchesters hunt, focusing all their efforts on one Big Bad per year.
  • Like a Badass Out of Hell: Offscreen, no less.
  • Monster Progenitor: All vampires descend from him.
  • No Honor Among Thieves: He believed the leviathans would let other monsters in on their big plan to turn the human race into a burger franchise, because they're all "family", related by Eve. He seemed genuinely upset when Edgar told him that they're actually trying to kill him and his children so they don't have to "share".
  • Scary Black Man
  • Stockholm Syndrome: The virgin he keeps around for food doesn't want to be saved when offered the chance and calls him "Daddy".
  • Super Senses: Like all vampires. He could even sense that Sam had no soul in Season 6.
  • Too Badass To Torture: "Ouch. Stop. That hurts." All in slightly-bored deadpan.

Dr. Eleanor Visyak (Kim Johnston Ulrich)

Eve, the Mother of All (Julia Maxwell, Samantha Smith)

Leviathans -- Dick Roman (James Patrick Stuart), Dr. Gaines (Cameron Bancroft), Edgar (Benito Martinez), Chet (Sean Owen Roberts), Agent Valente (Morgan David Jones)

  • Achilles' Heel: The only way to kill a leviathan is to stab it with a bone of a righteous mortal dipped in the blood of a fallen angel, the King of Hell and a father of the fallen beasts (an alpha monster, the first of a monster species). This weakness is fairly hard to use against them because of meeting the above conditions and that they managed to keep it a secret until "Reading is Fundamental". As for their other weakness, see Weaksauce Weakness below.
  • Big Bad: For Season 7, more specifically Dick Roman.
  • Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu: Turns out killing a Leviathan drags the nearby souls who killed them into Purgatory.
  • Corrupt Corporate Executive: Dick Roman, the man possessed by the head leviathan, is one of the richest men in America, and since his possession has slowly started becoming the most powerful, via multiple massive corporate takeovers.
  • Dangerously Genre Savvy: Despite being Smug Snakes, Dick Roman and the Leviathans have their moments. For example, when the Winchesters are gathering what they need to kill the Leviathans -- a bone from a righteous mortal and blood from a fallen angel, the King of Hell, and an Alpha monster—Dick summons the current King of Hell, Crowley, and traps him in his office, therefore ensuring that the Winchesters need to go into his office before they can finish the weapon.
    • Gets better in the finale, as Dick has several other Leviathans copy his identity, so the Winchesters don't know which one to attack.
  • Demonic Possession: They take control of Castiel, or at least hijack his vessel Jimmy, at the end of the Season 7 premiere. Noticeable was the change in tone of voice from Castiel's deep monotone to one that sounds more like an insane version of Misha Collins's normal voice.
    • In the following episode, Jimmy's body is about to be destroyed by their power, so they disperse, mass-possessing an unknown number of people across the country.
  • Eldritch Abomination
  • Evil Laugh
  • Fantastic Racism: They seem to share Lucifer's opinion on humans and demons.
    • They also despise the monster races sired by Eve (vampires, werewolves, etc), viewing them as mutts who're taking up their food supply. Because of this, they've specifically engineered their human complacency drug so that it poisons monsters as a side effect.
  • Faux Affably Evil: Most of them tend to come across as this.
  • Fight Off the Kryptonite: Dick Roman pulls a villainous version of this trope by enduring a sustained barrage of borax-based cleaning products by the Winchesters long enough for him to catch up to them and fire the shot that ultimately killed Bobby Singer.
  • Hero-Killer: Just one of these guys (Edgar, who's implied to be little more than a Mook Lieutenant) delivers a worse beating on the Winchesters than they've ever received on the show, with the (possible) exception of Lucifer. Afterwards, Dean actually calls an ambulance, which—as the Television Without Pity recapper pointed out—he's never done before in the entire series' run.
    • As of "Death's Door", Dick Roman has successfully killed Bobby Singer.
    • In "Reading is Fundamental", a lone leviathan is revealed to be able to slaughter angels with disturbing ease.
      • In "Survival of the Fittest", it is revealed that the Levianthans have killed an entire garrison of angels.
  • Human Resources: Dick Roman wants to turn all of humanity into complacent and stupid food sources for the Leviathans. They consider seven billion humans to be a limited resource.
  • I'm a Humanitarian: Not much of a surprise on this show, but their first instinct/threat regarding anything seems to be "Eat him."
    • One of the only ways to kill leviathans is to have them eat themselves or each other.
  • It's Personal: They got Castiel and Bobby killed. Dean's method of coping with this is to single-mindedly devote himself to taking them down, in a way that'd make John Winchester proud. (Or seriously concerned.)
  • Killed Off for Real: Dick Roman, after being stabbed with what is described in Achilles' Heel. However, it is an example of Broke Your Arm Punching Out Cthulhu, as killing a Leviathan brings those who killed it into Purgatory.
  • More Teeth Than the Osmond Family
  • Names to Run Away From Really Fast: Just watch Dean's reaction after Death first mentions them in "Meet the New Boss."
  • Nigh Invulnerable: They shrug off being shot point-blank with silver, and Edgar survived having a car dropped on him.
  • Sealed Evil in a Can: Let's put it this way -- God created Purgatory "just to lock those poisonous, clever things away."
  • Slasher Smile
  • Slave to PR: As Dean notes to Roman, being in a celebrity's body means he can't just kill Dean himself, particularly in public.
  • Space Whale Aesop: In "Slash Fiction," Bobby didn't see the point of Sheriff Jody Mills cleaning up Rufus' cabin. After testing every monster weakness imaginable on the captive leviathan, the thing gets burned by borax that leaked into the basement while Jody was scrubbing the floor above. A lot of lives could have been saved if the average hunter was more into household chores.
  • Smug Snake: Many of them, Roman especially.
  • Villains Blend in Better: They seem to be adapting to the modern world fairly well, considering they predate everything on Earth. Justified since they gain the memories of anyone they possess or shapeshift into (though they need DNA for shapeshifting).
  • Villain with Good Publicity: Pretty much everyone outside of the main characters and some of the side characters believe that Dick Roman is a businessman and a nice one too. In one episode, someone endorsed him for the Presidency. This is Justified though with the implication that Dick makes in "There Will Be Blood" that he is replacing media figures with Leviathans that are in human forms, so he can look popular in the public eye. Of course, most people do not know about his plan.
  • Voluntary Shapeshifting: Combined with their Demonic Possession, leviathans can be virtually anybody.
  • Weaksauce Weakness: They're immune to every monster-slaying technique and implement that's ever appeared on the show (including decapitation), but are damaged by borox, a common ingredient in cleaning supplies, that burns them like acid. Oddly enough, they were just as surprised at the revelation of this weakness as everyone else.
    • It's safe to assume there wasn't any borax in Purgatory, making it impossible to them to learn of this Weaksauce Weakness.
  • Wham! Line: "This...is going to be...so much fun."
    • Also, "Cas is gone. He's dead. We run the show now."
    • And from "Reading is Fundamental", "Rock beats scissors...leviathan beats angel."
  • You Have Failed Me...: When Dr. Gaines' plan to use drugged fast food to make humans more complacent draws unwanted attention, Roman kills him—by forcing him to eat himself.
    • Turns out this is standard protocol—unless you've really managed to piss Dick off, in which case he'll just eat you himself.


Other humans

Jessica Moore (Adrianne Palicki)

Ash (Chad Lindberg)

Agent Victor Henrickson (Charles Malik Whitfield)

  • Back for the Dead
  • Badass: All it took was a phone conversation with Dean for the Brothers Winchester to realize how screwed they were. Though this came dangerously close to a Creator's Pet-type conversation.
  • Determinator
  • FBI Agent
  • Heel Face Turn: In his last episode he ends up helping Sam and Dean fight off legions of demons and it is even implied that Hendrickson may become a hunter afterwards. Then Lilith shows up and slaughters everyone, him included.
  • Inspector Javert
  • Pre-Ass-Kicking One-Liner: To standard operating procedure in his first appearance. When a cop on a case he's about to take over says: "I'm sure you're going to say you'd like me to cooperate and...," he responds with: "I don't give a rat's ass what you do. You can go eat a donut and bang your wife for all I care."

Lisa and Ben Braeden (Cindy Sampson and Nicholas Elia)

"You're a liar, Dean. You say family is so important, but what do you call people who care for you, who love you even though you're a dick? You know you're walking out on your family, right?"

Bela Talbot (Lauren Cohan)

Chuck Shurley (Rob Benedict)

Becky Rosen (Emily Perkins)

Sheriff Jody Mills (Kim Rhodes)

Frank Devereaux (Kevin MacNally)

Kevin Tran (Osric Chau)

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