Supernatural Fandom

Supernatural is a TV series that follows two brothers as they go up against things "that go bump in the night." The show was originally scheduled to be five seasons long but it recently ended with fifteen seasons! Despite struggles the show faced finding content and new writers stepping in, the show continued. The series long run has been credited to the fans. These fans have many different ways of celebrating and connecting with the show that showcases the show's deeper meaning beyond the fantasy.

SPN Family

"Pentaheart" from the SPN family website
The fandom calls itself the SPN Family and has a main webpage that tells its story. The three main actors in the show Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, and Misha Collins started a movement towards kindness when they interacted with their fans outside of the show. The fans took this and ran with it. They have created online communities where they do not tolerate any hate and work to lift each other up. They also advertise the charities the actors are running as well as the merch the fans have created on their own in these communities. The symbol for the fandom is what they call a "pentaheart" which contains a symbol from the show and angel wings to represent the good they are trying to do. This family has connected to a deeper meaning in the show: a journey of self-discovery and working through hardships. 

Fan Fiction

Supernatural fan fiction can be found just about anywhere. There are several archive websites set up and more can be found on platforms like Tumblr and Wattpad. According to the Supernatural Wiki, there were 40,000 stories back in 2011 when there were only five seasons. Many of the stories written explore how different relationships could have played out, what would have happened if any of the characters had siblings or a child, and some even go as far as creating their own monsters or threats for those characters. Many of these stories are quite impressive and contain multiple chapters. These fans spend a lot of time reading these works too. According to the Supernatural Wiki, these fans collectively spend 18.5 million minutes reading fan fiction on Wattpad every month. 

Cosplay and Merch

shezz's cosplay as Rowena
The fans continue to connect with the characters through cosplay. There are many listings on Etsy for props and costumes for these characters. Many of these cosplays make their way to the SPN Family social media pages or just on social media in general. Some of the cosplays follow the character depicted in the show while others put their own spin on the character. When the cosplayers put their own spin on the characters it is oftentimes a way of self-expression. However, the one thing these two approaches have in common is the people had fun. Another thing that is common on Etsy and other fan pages is the creation of merch from the show. There are mugs, shirts, pins, and so much more that people have created.
example of crafylikeamonkey's merch













Fun on Tumblr

Tumblr itself has lots of Supernatural fan activity. It hosts as a melting point for all the ways Supernatural Fans interact within the fandom. One of the running jokes occurring on Tumblr is that the SPN family "really do have a gif for everything." Many posts that had nothing to do with Supernatural are quickly hijacked by Supernatural fans. They have surprised themselves by how quickly this happens and how many uses their gifs have. 

Works Cited
“Fan FIC Archives.” Supernatural Wiki, http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/Fan_Fic_Archives.

“We Are SPN Family.” We Are SPN Family, https://wearespnfamily.weebly.com/. 

"Sandra Mendez". “18 Tumblr Posts That Prove the Supernatural Fandom Is Everywhere.” BuzzFeed, 18 May 2021, https://www.buzzfeed.com/sandramendez1/supernatural-fandom-too-strong. 

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