Category:Origins

Title	Supernatural: Origins
Medium	Comic
Creator(s)	Peter Johnson (writer) Matthew Dow Smith (artist) Ben Abernathy (editor)
Publisher	DC's Wildstorm imprint
Release Date	Issue 1: 2 May, 2007
Link
Purchase	Via DC's Wildstorm Digital downloads by DC Comics

• Supernatural: Origins is the title of the Supernatural comic tie-in
• It was released on May 2nd, 2007.

• The title is written by comics writer Peter Johnson (who has previously produced material with Marvel comics), who is also a producer on Supernatural.

• The title is published under DC's Wildstorm imprint.

• There was an advertisement for Origins aired on The CW in April 2007, which you can view here.

• The trade paperback was released in April 2008.

Origins is, as the title suggests, an 'origins' story about how John Winchester became a hunter (within a pre-series timeframe). Narratively, it begins as a flashback at the end 1.01 Pilot. The story will be told from a variety of viewpoints, encompassing a range of characters fans are already familiar with (such as Missouri Mosely, Ellen, and of course a young Dean and Sam).

Concept Art

From the official CW Origins website, concept art by Matthew Dow Smith:

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Discrepancies between Origins and The Show

On July 10th, Peter Johnson responded to the fans' outcry over the obvious discrepancies between the Origin comics and the shows' canon on Jack Myer's Media Village.

He claimed that they decided to make choices based on the character transformation of John from ex-Marine and husband to hunter of the supernatural, and that all choices have been made deliberately. (e.g. the Impala isn't in John's possession right from the beginning, because it adds to John's transformation)

Peter continues: "Lastly, please know that I am a genre fanatic and have been reading and collecting comics for 25+ years now and have nothing but respect for what fans feel and have to say about these kinds of issues, being a complete hardcore fanboy myself. It is with this kind of history and fervent love of this genre, and this show in particular, that I am approaching this comic series. It means the creative choices are being made with thought, thorough discussion and, occasionally, my gut. Which is never right all the time, but it's all I got."

The main controversy concerned the role of the Impala. In the teaser for the Pilot, John, Sam and Dean are clearly seen huddled together on the hood of the Impala as their house burns. In the Origins comics, Peter Johnson had John acquiring the Impala after Mary's death. Following a Q&A session with Cynthis Boris on Jack Myer's MediaVillage sitePeter Johnson returned with the following response Source:

I've given a huge amount of thought to the Impala issue and have arrived at a conclusion.

As you may know from previous posts, I felt early on that there would be creative and character-driven value to seeing John get the Impala during his journey in the aftermath of Mary's death. It was a decision, and Kripke and I talked about it. However, I'm in violent agreement with many of your comments that the car is the third character in the show, and that it represents a sanctuary for this family following the death of Mary. I like it as the constant that remains after her death - as Mousitsa (Anna) puts it: 'baby' was there to support her three men after the fire.

These comments have made profound impact, and I agree wholeheartedly with the thematics they represent for the SN universe - for both TV and comics. So, despite the fact that #1 and #2 have both been published, I am going to propose making adjustments to revert to John already having the Impala from the get-go when the issues are collected into the trade paperback. I would like to restore this notion to the comics.

I believe in my heart and gut that it would be the correct version, not just to match the shot of John and the boys of the hood of the Impala in the pilot teaser, but much more importantly, for what the car represents in the continuity of the family -- before and after Mary's death. I'll be talking to DC about this on Monday.

In December 2007, Peter Johnson confirmed that the history of the Impala would be changed to the canon established in the Pilot, with the release of the trade paperback of Origins in April 2008.Source.

Links

• Official CW Origins website
• Wildstorm website
• Interview with Peter Johnson
• Origins LiveJournal community
• Interview with Peter Johnson, June 27 2007
• Interview with Dustin Nguyen July 2007
• Interview with Peter Johnson Dec 7, 2007