Content Notes
This entry endeavours to provide some information on the content of Supernatural episodes and this website, that can be used to assist fans in curating their experience of the Show and our fandom, and the Supernatural Wiki. This list is by no means exhaustive. Fans should feel free to add any information you feel is relevant. If in doubt, please contact Managing Editor Jules Wilkinson via admin@supernaturalwiki.com
Spoilers
This site remains free of spoilers for the show up until the time of first broadcast, with the exception of episode titles. The exception would be an event in an episode that receives wide media coverage ahead of the broadcast - for example 13.16 Scoobynatural. Please be aware that entries related to early seasons may contain references to later episodes that may be considered spoilery for the earlier episode.
Sex
There is very little onscreen sex in Supernatural, and it is generally brief and not explicit. You can find a full list at Sexual Encounters, which covers those of Sam, Dean, Castiel, and Crowley. Interestingly, in the episode 1.13 Route 666, Supernatural editor Anthony Pinker reported "The violence we don't get a lot of notes on." For that episode though, "... The note I got from the network was 'The girl can't be on top.'"(cit.S1Com, p. 77) The use of pornography is not infrequently mentioned.
The Super Wiki contains sexual content related to the show as well as documenting and discussing sex in fanworks. This does include Wincest -- which is the fandom ship that focuses on romantic and sexual relationships between the members of the Winchester family.
When following links offsite to fanworks, particularly fanfic, please heed the author notes, warnings, and ratings on the stories.
Religion
Much of the mythology of Supernatural draws on religious lore, particularly from the Abrahamic religions, although it is often altered from accepted canon. Deities and stories from many other religions including Hindi, pagan, Wicca, and Greek and Norse mythology also appear.
Representations of paganism and Wicca in Supernatural have been criticized as portraying the followers and deities as evil and violent. The depiction of the Hindu gods Ganesh and Kali in 5.19 Hammer of the Gods were deemed highly offensive by the President of the Universal Hindu Society.
Violence
Supernatural features gory deaths of both human and supernatural characters by a variety of means in most episodes. Guns and knives are commonly used, as well as other weapons. Blood, human organs, and dead and dismembered bodies are frequently seen. That content is reflected in the content of the Super Wiki.
Sexual Violence
While never explicitly stated, it is strongly suggested that sexual violence and rape are tools of torture in Hell. On a number of occasions Dean makes veiled references to it and Lucifer strongly infers that he sexually abused Sam while he was in Lucifer's Cage.
There are broader issues related to dubious or non-consensual acts throughout the show, particularly related to the possession of humans by both angels and demons, Sam's "body swap" experience in 5.12 Swap Meat, and the use of "love spells" in 4.08 Wishful Thinking and 7.08 Season Seven, Time for a Wedding!.
There are number of fan essays written on these topics linked on the Meta Essays entry.
Slurs
In 3.05 Bedtime Stories when Sam talks about the details of the fable of Cinderella, Dean says, "Dude, could you be more gay?" The slur "prostitute" is used by characters in both 3.04 Sin City and 8.14 Trial and Error. Throughout the Super Wiki the term sex worker is always used, unless it is a transcript of dialogue from the show.
A number of gendered insults, particularly "bitch," are used liberally through all seasons.
Suicide
This section lists episodes where suicides or suicide attempts are shown on screen. More detail will be found at each episode entry.
- 1.14 Nightmare
- 2.05 Simon Said
- 3.04 Sin City
- 3.14 Long-Distance Call
- 6.06 You Can't Handle the Truth
- 8.08 Hunteri Heroici
- 9.22 Stairway to Heaven
- 9.23 Do You Believe in Miracles?
- 10.19 The Werther Project
- 11.17 Red Meat
- 12.19 The Future
- 13.20 Unfinished Business
- 14.12 Prophet and Loss
- 15.05 Proverbs 17:3
