Ghouls
| |
| Ghoul | |
|---|---|
| Powers and Abilities | Feeds on human flesh and can take the form of the last person they ate. |
| Vulnerabilities | Decapitation or extreme head trauma. |
| Appearance | Human; can appear as any person they feed on. |
| Episode(s) | 4.19 Jump the Shark 6.10 Caged Heat |
Ghoul
Where does the word ghouls come from? Before it came to be applied to any random sicko or serial killer it meant went all the way back to the medieval Arabic ghul...it will dig up graves to eat the dead.
– Alex Irvine, The Supernatural Book of Monsters, Spirits, Demons and Ghouls
Contents
History
Ghouls are spirits of the dead that traditionally feed on the blood of the dead (with the exception of the ghouls encountered by Sam and Dean who are happy to drink warm Winchester blood. They can only be killed by decapitation or the destruction of their heads. They can shapeshift, appearing human by taking the form of the last person they ate. Ghouls are unaffected by silver or holy water.
Characteristics
Powers and Abilities
- They can take on the form of the person they have fed on.
Weakness
- Decapitation
- Extreme head trauma
Episodes
I should have known. It was the fresh kills that threw me. Ghouls don't usually go after the living. See, you're just filthy scavengers, feeding off the dead—taking the form of the last corpse you choke down.
4.19 Jump the Shark
Two offspring of a ghoul killed by John Winchester lure Sam and Dean to their town in order to take revenge. They take on the forms of Adam and his mother Kate Milligan, an old "girlfriend" of John's. Both are killed by Dean: the Kate ghoul is decapitated by a shotgun blast and Dean bashes in the brains of the Adam ghoul.
6.10 Caged Heat
Crowley shoves two ghouls into a room with Dean. They attempt to feed on Dean but are killed when Sam arrives to help.
Ghouls in Lore
A ghoul is an undead supernatural being originating from Arabian folklore. A ghoul or ghūl (which translated from Arabic means "demon"), is known to inhabit cemeteries or other types burial grounds; in lore they are known for preying on young children, drinking blood, stealing coins, and most famously consuming the flesh of the dead. It's in eating the dead they are able to then assume the identity/form of the deceased. In some lore, ghouls are not dissimilar to zombies, being corpses re-animated by witches or demons that can be commanded. Like zombies, the typical method for dispatching a ghoul is to destroy their brains.
