Supernatural: Am I in the minority?

Since I’m behind on my TV viewing (haven’t seen the latest episodes of Heroes, Bionic Woman or Flash Gordon, and yeah, those tapes are starting to gather dust), I thought I’d post my reaction/rant about another show I love and am up-to-date on, Supernatural. I haven’t been as in touch with the show’s fan base this year as in years’ past, but thanks to some downtime at work this week, I’ve been listening to some podcasts and visiting the message boards for this show. I have to admit, I was really, really surprised by the backlash against Ruby and Bella that I found.

So, okay, my initial reaction to the announcement of these characters was, "Ye gods. Not love interests!” Sure, Eric Kripke said they weren’t love interests, but we all know they very well could be. But, here’s my big confession: I’ve really enjoyed the way Ruby and Bella have been introduced on the show — slowly and in separate storylines. I really like the twist with Ruby being a demon. I so wasn’t expecting it. It adds a whole new dynamic to the show, and I’m really enjoying trying to figure out her motive for helping Sam and Dean. I have a sneaky suspicion she might turn out to be Lucifer and totally untrustworthy, but that’s just my two cents’ worth. And I have to admit, I’m really enjoying Bella too. This girl makes me laugh — out loud. Sure, she’s completely immoral and only out for herself, but she can deliver some funny zingers and one-up the boys like no other.

Come on. Having these girls on the show has really made this season fun. And it really helps that Katie Cassidy and Lauren Cohen can act.

No offense, but seeing the backlash against them really makes me wonder about this show’s fan base. On one hand, I could have predicted it, but that was before we ever saw the ladies in action. Now that we have, I wonder if the Bella-Ruby-haters simply aren’t willing to expand their universe beyond Sam and Dean. We all hate change, and Lord knows they’re both totally hot guys, so I can understand that. But, Supernatural will always be about the Winchester brothers. They’re the show’s core. I think the writers really learned from their mistakes in season two and have created two more interesting, important characters here. Ruby obviously has a purpose relating to the overall plot of the season — how to help Sam save Dean’s soul and life — but I can also see Bella’s purpose as being more long-term. She’s teaching Sam and Dean about a whole new world they’ve never been exposed to. Dean’s incredulous response to the idea that she knew about the demons and evil in the world and was profiting from it proves that.

By the way, here’s another confession while I’m at it — in season two, I found Ash a lot more irritating than Jo. I guess I’m just out of tune with the rest of the fan base about a lot of things, not that I care much. I’m really enjoying season three, a lot. Too bad the writers’ strike is probably going to cut it short.