Famine
| 300px | |
| Name | Famine |
| Actor | James Otis |
| Dates | |
| Location | Neutralized by Sam Winchester. |
| Occupation | Black Horseman of the Apocalypse |
| Episode(s) | 5.14 My Bloody Valentine |
And then will come Famine, riding on a black steed. He will ride into the land of plenty. And great will be the Horseman's hunger for he is hunger. His hunger will seep out and poison the air.
Contents
Characteristics
Famine, also known as the Black Horseman, is affiliated with War, Pestilence and Death. Famine is one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Due to the times and technology, Famine travels in a black Cadillac Escalade which represents his black steed. Although his wheelchair seems to serve primarily as his transportation method, as he uses it to move around. Famine wears a sliver ring that enables him to greatly amplify or enhance his victim’s inner urges and cravings, effectively causing them to go insane for what they want.[1] Castiel states that Famine is "hunger."
Famine has an insatiable appetite as he embodies extreme hunger itself, therefore he can consume and devour any type of energy widely including human souls and dark souls of demons without needing to stop or take breaks during consumption. Famine owns a black briefcase that he uses to secure souls until he is ready to consume them.[1]
Famine can also perceive a person's soul and see what that person craves or desires simply by placing one hand on their chest, as he demonstrated on Dean and deduced that Dean remains unaffected by Famine's powers because he is already empty inside. Famine also states that hunger not only comes from the body by also comes from the soul.
Once Famine's strength is replenished, he will then be able to march across the lands with authority as described by Castiel. He will then be able to spread his influence upon his victims from vast distances, like he could previously before he was weakened by agricultural improvements.
Famine's Ring is one of three other Rings that are keys to Lucifer's cage. Famine arrives crippled, weak and hungry. Lucifer sent some lower-level Demons to assist Famine. His current location is unknown.
- Famine, like all Horsemen, is immune to Sam's powers.
- Famine drives a Cadillac Escalade.
- Souls of organisms seem to greatly strengthen Famine when consumed.
- Famine, like the other three horsemen, cannot die.
- Famine collects Souls in a briefcase, as does Death.
Appearances
5.14 My Bloody Valentine
When Famine first appears, we see him riding his Black Steed, he appeared to be weak and very frail. Lucifer has sent demons to care for Famine and help him feed on souls. He needs to consume souls to sustain himself - not only can he use human souls to stay sustained, but he can also use the dark souls of demons. Once strengthened he will "march across the land".
Famine amplifies people's hunger - for food, sex, love, attention, drugs. Even Castiel was affected by Famine's spell; apparently Jimmy Novak has a sweet tooth for red meat. Sam craves Demon Blood. Only Dean seems unaffected. Famine says this is because he is already "dead inside".
Famine sends two demons to purposefully tempt Sam. Sam drinks their blood, and then uses his powers to go and exorcise the other demons Famine brought with him, resisting the urge to drink more blood. Famine explained to Sam that his Demonic Powers don't work on him or any other Horsemen; illustrating that Horsemen are extremely powerful. But when Famine ingests all the demons, Sam turns his powers on him, seemingly destroying the demons that he just consumed along with his body, which left Famine in a very weak state. Cass said that once his hunger has been satisfied that he would 'march across the lands'; it was illustrated that if he had kept all of the demons that he consumed, that he probably would be given his true powers back. Sam however didn't let this happen.
5.20 The Devil You Know
Brady reveals that War and Famine aren't dead, but they have been taken out of the game, telling Dean, "See, War and Famine, even if I could cram the rings back on their bony fingers, I doubt it would do much good. They're withered husks right now, fetal position on the floor, all thanks to you. So I don't want the rings. What I want is retribution. And I'm going to rip it right out of your ass!"
Famine in Lore
The third horseman rides a black horse and is generally understood as Famine. The black colour of the horse could be a symbol of the dead. [2] The horseman carries a pair of balances or weighing scales, indicating the way that bread would have been weighed during a famine.
Of the four horsemen, the black horse and its rider are the only ones whose appearance is accompanied by a vocal pronunciation. John hears a voice, unidentified but coming from among the four living creatures, that speaks of the prices of wheat and barley, also saying "and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine." This suggests that the black horse's famine is to drive up the price of grain but leave oil and wine supplies unaffected. One explanation for this is that grain crops would have been more naturally susceptible to famine years than olive trees and grapevines, which root more deeply; the statement might also suggest a continuing abundance of luxuries for the wealthy while staples such as bread are scarce, though not totally depleted. Alternatively, the preservation of oil and wine could symbolize the preservation of the Christian faithful, who used oil and wine in their sacraments.
