The end of Supernatural wasn't just a TV event. It was a funeral for a show that somehow survived three different presidents, two networks, and about a dozen different apocalypses. By the time we hit the Supernatural Season 15 episodes, the Winchesters weren't just hunting ghosts; they were fighting their own creator. Literally. God was the villain. And honestly? It made things weirdly meta and occasionally frustrating for fans who had been there since the pilot in 2005.
The Problem with Fighting God
Chuck Shurley—the nerdy prophet who turned out to be the Almighty—became the final boss. This changed the stakes. Most of the early Supernatural Season 15 episodes dealt with the crushing realization that Sam and Dean’s lives were just a story for Chuck’s entertainment.
Think about that.
It meant every scar, every lost friend, and every burger Dean ate was part of a script. It sort of robbed the characters of their agency. Fans hated it. Fans loved it. It was polarizing. Episodes like "Back and to the Future" and "Raising Hell" showed the Winchesters dealing with a literal ghost apocalypse because Chuck got bored and opened every door in Hell. It felt like a greatest hits tour, but with higher stakes because the "writer" was actively trying to kill the main characters.
Dean's anger in these episodes felt real. Jensen Ackles played Dean with this specific kind of exhaustion that you only get after fifteen years of filming. He wasn't just mad at God; he was mad at the concept of fate. Sam, as usual, was the one trying to find a tactical way out. The dynamic worked, but the scope was so massive that some of the smaller, "monster of the week" charm got lost in the shuffle.
Not Every Episode Was a Winner
Let’s be real. Season 15 had some fillers that felt like they were stalling for time. "The Heroes' Journey" is a prime example. In this one, Chuck decides to make Sam and Dean "normal." Suddenly, Dean gets cavities, the Impala breaks down, and Sam becomes a klutz.
It was meant to be funny. For some, it was. But for others, it felt like the show was making fun of its own logic. If the Winchesters were only good hunters because God gave them "hero luck," does that mean they weren't actually skilled? It’s a debate that still rages on Reddit threads.
Then you had "Last Call." This was a standout because of Christian Kane. He played Leo Webb, an old friend of Dean’s who took a different path. Seeing Dean sing on stage—Jensen Ackles actually has a great voice—provided a much-needed breath of air before the suffocating darkness of the finale. It reminded us that the show was always, at its heart, about two guys in a car.
The Castiel Controversy
We have to talk about "Despair." This is the episode where Castiel finally bites it. Not just a temporary death—those happen every Tuesday in this show—but a final, "Empty-bound" sacrifice.
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He confesses his love for Dean. He experiences a moment of true happiness. And then the Empty takes him.
The internet exploded.
The "Destiel" shippers felt vindicated and betrayed all at once. Misha Collins played the scene with incredible vulnerability, but the fact that Dean didn't really say it back (or have much time to process it) left a bitter taste in many mouths. It felt rushed. It felt like the writers were trying to check a box while also avoiding a certain segment of the audience. The pacing of the Supernatural Season 15 episodes leading up to this was breakneck, yet "Despair" felt like a sudden stop.
The Finale Nobody Could Agree On
"Carry On."
Just mentioning the title of the series finale can start a fight at a convention. Because of COVID-19, the original plan for the finale had to change. They couldn't have a big party in Heaven with Kansas playing "Carry on Wayward Son." They couldn't bring back every guest star.
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Instead, we got a very intimate, very controversial ending.
Dean dies on a routine vampire hunt. A rebar to the back. After surviving Lucifer, Amara, and God himself, he dies because of a sharp piece of metal in a barn. It felt cheap to some. To others, it was the only way Dean Winchester could ever go out—fighting. He didn't want to grow old. He didn't know how to exist in a world without a war.
Sam’s ending was the opposite. He lived. He had a son (named Dean, obviously). He wore a very questionable "old man" wig. He died of old age. The final shot of the two of them on a bridge in Heaven was a tear-jerker, but the journey to get there was rocky.
Why Season 15 Still Matters
Despite the flaws, the Supernatural Season 15 episodes represent a monumental achievement in television. Very few shows get to end on their own terms. Even fewer get 327 episodes.
The season tackled the idea of free will versus predestination in a way that most philosophy classes wouldn't touch. Jack, the Nephilim, becoming the new God—a God who doesn't intervene—was a poetic way to solve the "God is a jerk" problem. It allowed the universe to continue without a cosmic puppet master.
What You Should Do Now
If you're planning a rewatch or diving in for the first time, don't just binge them all at once. Space out the final five episodes.
- Watch "Inherit the Earth" as the true narrative finale. This is where they actually beat Chuck. It feels like the ending of the plot.
- Treat "Carry On" as an epilogue. If you view it as a separate entity rather than the "climax," the death of Dean Winchester is much easier to swallow.
- Look for the Easter eggs. In the final episodes, there are dozens of nods to the first season—lines of dialogue, camera angles, and even the clothes they wear.
The Winchester story is essentially about the struggle to be "free." By the end of the Supernatural Season 15 episodes, they finally achieved it, even if the price was everything they had. It wasn't perfect, but it was theirs.