Pilot

"Supernatural" S1 E1, the pilot episode, delivers a compelling and eerie start to a series that would go on to become a cultural phenomenon. This episode is a strong and engaging introduction that masterfully sets up the core premise and the compelling dynamic between its two central characters, Sam and Dean Winchester.

The premiere wastes no time in establishing the show's unique blend of horror, mystery, and family drama. We are immediately drawn into the tragic and supernatural history of the Winchester family and the disappearance of their father, which serves as the main hook for the season. The brothers' reunion, driven by a shared mission to find their father, is handled with a genuine mix of brotherly banter and underlying tension.

The monster-of-the-week case, involving the urban legend of the "Woman in White," is well-executed and provides a perfect example of the show's chilling and suspenseful tone. It effectively combines a classic horror story with the show's distinct style.

Both Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles deliver strong, charismatic performances right from the start, embodying the distinct personalities of Sam and Dean. Their chemistry is palpable and immediately establishes the brotherly bond that is the heart of the series.

Overall, "Supernatural" S1 E1 is an excellent premiere that successfully introduces a compelling mythology, a thrilling blend of genres, and two charismatic leads. It's a must-watch episode that promises a long and captivating journey ahead.

The pilot does everything a good first episode should do. It gives you a flavor of the characters, gives a pretty good sense of the possibilities of the world and makes you want to watch the second episode right away. If I had one complaint about the opening it would be it is not as comedic as the show ended up being. It is true that over the years the show has shifted into more a melodrama, but the monster of the week format that plays for much of the early seasons is used to good effect here. The weeping woman (woman in white) is a good antagonist to build the pilot around as it is lore focused and a ghost with personality. Nutter's direction is very atmospheric. I wish the show kept the washed out look...it is just moodier.

This episode introduced the world to Sam and Dean; it is a classic of the show.

So, this episode was interesting enough. However, the whole time I was acutely aware that this was an episode designed to get the brothers together as a team, ready to kick supernatural butt. Therefore, the story felt a little contrived. The fact that Sam is roped into this by the death of his girlfriend, rather than naturally making the choice or learning what his true calling is - I didn't love that.

Ghosts aren't the most original idea, but at least they put a nice little spin on it. The show is a little darker than I expected, talking about child murders and whatnot.

I enjoyed the Nutty special effects. At times it looked really trippy.

The chemistry between the brothers is good. However, casting guys that are so handsome is a little distracting.

The dialogue felt a bit clunky and forced at times. Hopefully that gets smoothed out in later episodes.

Does this mean Sam isn't going to law school?

Wow, this new TV-series seems to be created especially and entirely for me ... as well as for all you other fanatics of horror, occult, monsters and suchlike types of evil, of course! "Supernatural" finally is a properly budgeted and professionally scripted TV-series revolving on two young brothers battling all kinds of malevolence they encounter during the search for their vanished father. Sam and Dean Winchester aren't easily shocked, as they literally grew up fighting monsters. When they were little children, an unidentified evil force burned their mother alive and ever since their father raised them to search & destroy evil all around the United States. This pilot-episode merely just introduces the characters, but still there's room for an intriguing type of malice, namely the Woman in White. Dean – the oldest brother – comes to visit Sam at university and informs him their father is missing. Sam is reluctant to join Dean on his search, as he finally hopes to live a normal life. Of course Dean convinces him and the brothers soon confront a beautiful white appearance in the dark night. The Lady in White represents the restless soul of a deceived woman, forced to commit murder and suicide and forever doomed to dwell around to kill unfaithful men.

The first episode of "Supernatural" is excellent, but not entirely flawless. The two main characters are introduced as likable and identifiable guys, but the inevitably remain stereotypes. They're brothers but with severely opposite characters. Dean is a witty daredevil, always fearlessly facing danger and providing the show with the obligatory sense of humor. Sam on the other hand is a shy guy, happy with his girlfriend and his anonymous life as a student. Probably because this is the pilot, and most of attention went to the character drawings & theme-introduction, the mystery surrounding the Lady in White remains rather vague and unsolved. That's a crying shame because it's a fascinating topic and it could have resulted in a petrifying little horror tale. The rushed finale also immediately exposes what presumably is the series' biggest weakness. Less than one hour of playtime isn't always suffice to resolve a supernatural case and/or to defeat a complex & powerful enemy. Hopefully this will be different in the next couple of episodes, when it's no longer necessary to show flashbacks about the boys' childhood. I already saw episode two – The Wendingo – and it definitely showed improvement. Even so, the pilot episode is hugely atmospheric and often chilling. The special effects are pretty amazing and far better than the visuals used in the majority of nowadays released horror movies. The creative mind behind "Supernatural" is Eric Kripke. He didn't really impress me with his "Boogeyman", but this TV-initiative is more than promising.

Without revealing too much, the pilot's ending assures the collaboration between the two brothers and even offers Sam a morbid motivation to carry on exterminating evil. Now I just hope the TV-stations in my country don't decide to prematurely cancel the airing due to disappointing viewer ratings....

It's kind of hard to judge this episode because it's the first episode of the show. Obviously there are better episodes later in show. If you love Supernatural you need to thank this episode for starting it all. This episode is pretty small scale in comparison to other episodes but it actually works in the episode's favor. You don't need the first episode to be huge in scale but you need it to good and effective and that's what we got. For a pretty small and simple plot it's iconic. The relationship between the brothers is the best part and even though this is the first episode Jared and Jensen's chemistry is so good it's no wonder they made a whole show with these guys. In the end it's a very simple episode but it sets every thing up so well that I can't help but love and appreciate it.