Supernatural after Michael: Buckle up for the next Big Bad

From ghosts to gods, Supernatural has always been synonymous with a featured antagonist, as any bingeworthy series will be. After Michael and Dean are no longer soulmates, what will be the next “Big Bad” situation to fill season 14?

With Dean set to participate in the much anticipated 80s slasher tribute episode of Supernatural season 14, we assume he’ll be just himself again by that time. Whether or not this is the case, it reminds us there will be an “after Michael.”

Let’s keep in mind, this does not necessarily mean we are looking for a character to track or defeat. Truly, a situation or force of any kind could be the new antagonist post-Michael!Dean. For example, dare I mention demon blood?

Sam got a divine detox after unwittingly releasing Lucifer from the cage, but as we have to ask ourselves about every other death on Supernatural, are the cravings ever really gone? Would it be too much to see something like that rise to the surface during the quest since Sam knows he has some immense power tucked away?

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He would know, though, how intensely irate everyone would be about that. Plus, lessons learned and willpower, right? So what else could we be looking at? Let’s take a look:

Other Lands

Apocalypse World is at the forefront right now when we think of alternate realities. But let’s not forget, there are lots of others. To be sure, we have no idea how many.

But there are some we’re aware of and they are not pretty, not at all. The Winchesters have crossed several of them and left their mark, stirring up all kinds of vendettas along the way.

Did you forget we saw Bad Place Kaia hop on through a little random rift with a sinister look and a quest to feed that creature, only to never (what the heck?!) be addressed again?

Wayward Sisters are for sure showing up in Supernatural season 14, but we still get to wonder what that storyline is going to entail. I don’t it’s at all far-fetched to assume we may finally get to go there.

We’ve seen faerie, tentacles, djinn dream worlds in which to be trapped, piercing the veil with dream root, even Supernatural-is-just-a-show land.

There are literally infinite alternate realities where no-good stuff is invisibly coexisting right this second. And good grief, there’s always Heaven, Hell, Purgatory, the cage, the empty, and Chuck knows where else. Do we really want to find out?

Forgotten foes

Remember that time Dean let the wee Kitsune go as an act of good faith in season 7’s “The Girl Next Door?” Maybe it was his guilt about killing Amy behind Sam’s back but he was trying out the whole “give ’em a chance” thing. Now what were those last words Amy’s son, Jacob said to Dean? Oh yeah, “The only person I’m going to kill is you.”

And he’s not alone in having a bone to pick. I mean, if you want to get detailed, there’s still Death, (both of them), among others.

They got Osiris just too easily, sucker punch style, with that ram’s horn. Surely that is enough to irritate any ancient Egyptian god. Bobby said killing him wasn’t going to work out but the horn stabbing would tuck him in for a “dirt nap.” Unfortunately, nap is the operative word there.

If he woke up and came back to exact revenge, who knows if he’d even be alone. Isis appeared briefly on Supernatural for a quick death at the Elysian Fields Hotel in “Hammer of the Gods,” but the IRL lore of Egyptian gods and their underworld is vast, to say the least.

Shedim

There are always the classic monsters and such, as well as some horrors that were only really teased. Asmodeus took Jack on a very sketchy but heavily concentrated mission to release the shedim. Sure, that got thwarted but what was it all about?

They’re still in some remote corner of Hell, more than ready to scratch their way out of a hole at the first opportunity. Was Asmodeus the only one that knew where they are or wants them out? Is he even actually dead?

Supernatural showrunner, Andrew Dabb, teased that Castiel gets a little desperate in season 14. A rewatch of “The Rising Son” will jog your memory if you’ve forgotten the level of dreadful the shedim are.

These abhorrent and malevolent critters are reminiscent of Jefferson Starships in that they embody multiple characteristics of other beings. Does this mean “possibly with black eyes,” might not be the obvious spoiler we think it is? It’s a fact that Castiel will do absolutely anything he deems necessary for family, but you think chatting up demons is the level of wicked he’ll need to solve the Dean quest?

Gods of yore

We’ve talked Osiris and Chuck, but there are others. Aside from the fact that everything else has a counterpart in the alternate dimensions we’ve seen, there are tons of open doors here to complement the Supernatural season 14 story.

It’s not uncommon at all to see new lore swoop in unexpectedly like when we met the ancient happy pagan couple who wanted to literally have Sam and Dean over for “A Very Supernatural Christmas” dinner.

Back at the Elysian Hotel, a slew of gods was slain but there was plenty of indication in Supernatural they were not unique in their existence. Of course, there was Loki, and mention of other tricksters from Aztec and African cultures along the way.

Chronos, Prometheus, and Zeus were all Greek and handfuls of other mythology have been represented. In “The Thing,” we even met Yokoth and Glythur (tentacles!) who were goddess and god of another realm. But don’t fret, they closed that rift (*looks around nervously*).

Witches and familiars

I’ve said it before but Rowena did some weird and unmentionable stuff in “Various and Sundry Villains” that we’re led to believe is her breaking any bonds on her power as a witch. Purple grace-like light show and purpley/blue glowing eyes?

Is this what happened or not? Fan chat has brought up the idea that her eyes were some new shade, not the blue we see with angel infestation (think Michael!Dean), but what if she actually summoned a helper?

Later on when she summons Billy as Death to get Crowley brought back. Going full charge on Sam, it looks like possibly more than witch stuff. If she let someone in to do a job, it’s plausible that she’s sauntering around with that someone still in there.

We saw Michael fulfill his deal with Dean in the bargain to sort out Lucifer but these angels seem to go ahead and become squatters when the deed is done. Remember Gadreel!Sam?

Rowena could end up in that same boat if the showrunners of Supernatural want to take that road. Even if not, it leaves us with the fact that she is an intensely powerful witch. The most powerful, as far as we know. And she’s still got a mission to get Crowley back.

Plus, last we heard, Sam was meant to be the death of her one day. This would sure give him a reason to make it so.

On the road to find a way to free Dean from the grasp of Michael, she’s not been one to make reasonable and expected decisions. Now she has the sassy, revengy, rogue version of Charlie at her side. She’s probably looking for a suiting little apprentice. Two redheads with a vengeance and an ancient spellbook? Yikes.

All these ideas aside, there’s no lack of the old standby. So many characters are gone and not forgotten, making for excellent ideas as comeback kings/queens. Many like Gabriel or Crowley went out as friends but could be peeved from the event that removed them. Some like Alastair or even John Winchester would come back ready to roll. And I’m just going to throw this out there but just because Dean is free of Michael, doesn’t mean we will be.

Anything is possible and with Supernatural continuing it’s amazing and historic lengthy run. Creativity is a must to keep it fresh. It’s never been a worry before so I’m certain we will be at the edges of sanity, as always. Any way you look at it, you’re gonna need to fasten those seatbelts!

Where do you think the story will turn after Michael!Dean is solved? What do you want to see in Supernatural season 14? Let us know in the comments below or send us a tweet with your own Big Bad idea!

Tune in on Oct. 11 for the Supernatural season 14 premiere at 8/7c! Head over to the SPN Hunters page on Facebook for more!