Supernatural, perhaps more than any other ongoing genre television series, is known for referencing its own fictional existence, stopping just short of pointing and laughing at the audience through the television screen.
Indeed, several episodes throughout the series have, for lack of a better phrase, “gone full-blown meta,” including season two’s “Hollywood Babylon”, season four’s “The Monster at the End of the Book”, season five’s “Changing Channels”, and now, maybe more than ever, tomorrow night’s “The French Mistake”. Below, we have video previews and images to whet your appetite.
In “Hollywood Babylon”, Sam and Dean found themselves on the set of a Hollywood horror movie directed by McG, who, as it so happens, produces Superatural. “The Monster at the End of the Book” was about Sam and Dean discovering that their lives had already been written down as a series of trashy horror/fantasy novels. And “Changing Channels” was about the Winchester brothers being transported to a “television world” where they had to live through TV show after TV show after TV show (analogs of Grey’s Anatomy, CSI, and Three’s Company appeared).
“The French Mistake” seems to be a culmination of all these metafictional ideas. Sam and Dean have been transported to the set of their own television show – Supernatural – by Balthazar, the rogue angel. In this world, Sam and Dean are recognized as Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles, and they’re forced to endure things like “makeup,” “acting,” and Bill Murray’s half-brother Brian Doyle-Murray as their director. (Also — Genevieve Cortese, the second actress to play the now-dead Ruby, returns as Jared Padalecki’s real-life wife. )
Check out the videos below:
–
“The French Mistake” Preview
–
“The French Mistake” Extended Preview
–
“The French Mistake” Clip
–
Click on the images below to enlarge:
Last week’s episode, “Mannequin 3: The Reckoning”, though cleverly titled, was a bit of a letdown after two excellent outings in the form of “Like a Virgin” and “Unforgiven.” “The French Mistake” seems to be a return to form, so to speak.
If there’s one thing Supernatural does better than any other TV show out there – and the truth is, there are probably a number of things – it’s metafiction. Supernatural’s strange but effortless combination of action, horror, comedy, and tragedy is apparently the perfect place for breaking the fourth wall, believe it or not. Still, I wonder what meta-master Grant Morrison would think?
–
Supernatural airs Fridays @9pm on The CW.
