Meta Episodes

A meta reference, also called a meta-fiction technique or meta-fictive device, in a TV show occurs the show, or a character, demonstrates they are aware of their own fictional nature.

Supernatural is a show about stories. Urban legends, folklore, religion are society’s stories, most particularly America’s stories. There are personal narratives: the tales families and individuals tell about themselves and their relationships. Including the story telling of pop culture – be it movies, TV the internet or fan fiction – fits perfectly into this. Supernatural takes this commentary one step further, by commenting on itself as a story. The very first subtle meta nods occurred in the 1.01 Pilot when Dean introduces himself and Sam using the aliases Agents Mulder and Scully – a nod to the Show’s TV ancestry in the X -Files.

Dean is established as a horror movie fan, so the Show gets to reference its genre influences. The Shining in particular is oft-quoted, and visually referenced as well in 2.11 Playthings.

1.17 Hell House was the first episode to start playing meta seriously as we meet the Ghostfacers – the TV version of hunters dropping Buffy references, with an internet fan following that can literally bring the tales they read to life.

In Season 2, it was 2.18 Hollywood Babylon that started kicking hard at the Fourth Wall in an episode about movie making by writer Ben Edlund. The episode centres around a stolen script for a horror movie: Hell Hazers II: The Reckoning, The episode incorporated actual notes from the network that Kripke had received for Supernatural, pokes fun at Kripke’s movies Boogeyman, as well as using incorporated images from Supernatural episodes into movie posters. To top it off the movie producer in the episode is McG – and the real McG (Supernatural’s producer) appears in a crowd scene, as do many of the Supernatural crew.

4.18 The Monster At The End Of This Book marks the episode where Supernatural decided fourth walls were redundant as Sam and Dean discover a series of books - named after episodes of the Show – that are based on their life. The author of the books is Chuck Shurley – an avatar for Eric Kripke who Both the writers, and for the first time the fandom of the TV Show, are sent up. Supernatural fan – Becky – appears in 5.01 Sympathy For The Devil and later puts on a Convention in 5.09 The Real Ghostbusters.

Changing Channels through Sam and Dean into a TV world, where the Show got a chance to poke fun at TV Shows such as Gray’s Anatomy and CSI:Miami.

The following is a list of direct meta references in Supernatural i.e. references to the Show or its fandom.

1.17 Hell House

• The location of this episode, Richardson, Texas, is Jensen Ackles' home town.

2.18 Hollywood Babylon

McG is the producer of Supernatural, PussyCat Dolls: The search for the next doll, The OC and Charlies Angels and Charlies Angels: Full Throttle. The real McG can be seen standing behind Sam and Dean in the scene where the crew is listening to faux McG.

Martin Flagg and Walter are both references to the character ultimately known as Maerlyn in the Dark Tower (or Gunslinger) series written by Stephen King. Walter is a master of magic and conjuration.

Tara's last name, Benchley, may be a reference to author Peter Benchley, who wrote Jaws.

The set of Hell Hazers II: The Reckoning may look familiar. The water tower is from 2.08 Crossroad Blues and the cabin is from 2.16 Roadkill. The deer's head on the wall has appeared in the boys' motel room in 1.14 Nightmare, John's room in 1.21 Salvation, and Steve Wandell's home in 2.14 Born Under a Bad Sign.

Before they start the shot with the actors in the cabin, the sound clapperboard says Roll 6, Scene 6, Take 6. The number 666 is a reference to the devil and considered to be a "bad" number. Has been used in countless horror novels and movies.

Marty: Dude, right on, that’s my thing. Color me guilty, but that is me. I’m a total detail buff.

Sam: No, I can tell. I mean, the way you worked in all those Enochian summoning rituals and all the authentic language.

Enochian is an angelic language.

Kripke, who has said that the show and he himself are able to laugh about themselves, throws in a little side blow at a past project of his. When Dean goes to talk to Tara, he says he loved her in Boogeyman and she says it had a terrible script. Boogeyman was written by Eric Kripke and he admitted at the Paley Festival that the movie wasn't very good because it missed substance and soul, unlike Supernatural, which has it all, thanks to Bob Singer.

Brad is complaining about why the movie is so dark and that it should be lighter and not "so depressing". At Comic Con Kripke said that all of Brad's complaints and advice about the movie were taken from similar things he'd been told by Network Executives about Supernatural.

In the beginning the boys are on a tour of the Warner Brothers lot. The tour guide says that they are passing the place where Gilmore Girls is filmed, and if they're lucky they might get to see one of the stars. Jared Padalecki had a recurring role on Gilmore Girls, as Dean Forester. At this point, Sam looks uncomfortable and quickly leaves the tour bus.

In the faux trailer for Hell Hazers II: The Reckoning, writer Martin Flagg is also credited as the writer of Cornfield Massacre and Monster Truck, which are illustrated with images from Supernatural episodes 1.11 Scarecrow and 1.13 Route 666. There's also a shot of the hook from 1.07 Hookman, of Claire's desiccated hands from 2.07 The Usual Suspects, Gordon and his bloody knife from 2.03 Bloodlust and the inside of Angela's coffin from 2.04 Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things.

Dean: Yeah, for a vacation. I mean swimming pools and movie stars, not to work.
"Swimming pools and movie stars" is a line from the theme song of the TV show Beverely Hillbillies

Dean: Come out to the coast, we'll get together, have a few laughs...
This is a line by John McClane (Bruce Willis) in Die Hard

The dinner theater and pepper steak coupon mentioned when Dean and Sam were talking to Gerard St. James is a likely shout out to the Simpsons episode, Mayored to the Mob, in which Mark Hamill stars in a local theater production of Guys and Dolls and the dinner special is the pepper steak.

Gerard St. James, the actor who played "dead" crew member Frank, tells Sam and Dean that he was brought in by the producers to stir up publicity and that he's being heralded as "the new lonely girl." This is in reference to the YouTube video blogger lonelygirl15, actually portrayed by an actress hoping to score a movie deal through the exposure.

R Nelson Brown who plays Frank/Gerard St. James previously appeared in Devour as a tattooist alongside Jensen Ackles.

Movies and TV shows referred to in this episode:

1. Ghost Rider - The sketches shown to Tara are from Ghost Rider.
2. Creepshow
3. Gilmore Girls - the movie tour passes through the Star Hollows set. Jared Padalecki starred as Dean Forester in 65 episodes.
4. Lois and Clark - forerunner to Smallville, also a previous credit of SPN producer & director Robert Singer.
5. Poltergeist
6. Feardotcom
7. Ghost Ship
8. Boogeyman - written by a Eric Kripke
9. Metal Storm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn
10. Critters 3
11. Three Men and a Baby
12. Lord of the Dead - Tag line: Who knew the Lord of the Dead had a son who wanted no part of the family business?
13. The Evil Dead trilogy

Dean: Hey, we gotta go check out Johnny Ramone's grave when we're done here.

Sam: You want to dig him up too?
Dean: Bite your tongue heathen!

Johnny Ramone was the guitarist for the pioneering punk rock band The Ramones. He died in 2004 and was cremated, but a bronze statue of him was erected at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in 2005. His former bandmate Dee Dee Ramone is buried there.

During the course of the episode, Dean refers to several movies alleged to be haunted or cursed: Poltergeist,Three Men and a Baby

Sam's line "Does this feel like swimming weather to you? It's practically Canadian" may be a reference to the fact that while the scene occurs in California, the filming of the episode really took place in Canada.

4.01 Lazarus Rising

• Castiel is an Angel of Thursday in occult lore. This may be a reference to the fact that Supernatural aired on a Thursday night from 1.17 Hell House until the end of Season 5.