The Most Pause-Worthy Moments In Supernatural

When it comes to saving people and hunting unholy, malevolent creatures, nobody does it better than those wayward brothers Sam and Dean Winchester. In a world where demons and angels are equally awful and God has completely left the building, the Winchester brothers are the thin line of salt between the human race and all of the things that go bump in the night. With friends, frenemies, and a trunk full of spell-enhanced weapons, there isn't much the boys can't handle. Whether they're thwarting yet another apocalyptic event or cheating death for the umpteenth time, these plaid-clad hunters are always a blast to hang out with. From conversations with Castiel about how the pizza man shows his love to hangouts with invisible friends come to life, the series is full of hilarious, emotional, and unforgettable moments. Hang onto your saltshaker while we portal into the most pause-worthy moments in "Supernatural."

In between the many emotional moments and outstanding mythology episodes of "Supernatural," the show has managed to serve up plenty of endlessly rewatchable comedic moments, many of which became instant fan favorites. One of the best among them is Dean's cheerful morning dance at the beginning of the Season 3 time-loop episode "Mystery Spot." Before their plans are ruined by falling pianos, deadly tacos, bad drivers, and Sam catching on that they're repeating the day like a broken record, Dean starts the investigation in a pretty good mood. At least, that's what we surmise by his dancing and singing to "Heat of the Moment" by Asia. Fans who couldn't get enough of this adorable Dean scene can find a full demonstration of Jensen Ackles' air guitar skills hidden at the end of "Yellow Fever" (Season 4, Episode 6) around the 40:50 mark. The lengthy "Supernatural" outtake features Jensen Ackles lip syncing to Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger" and delivering a leg guitar moment that's a highlight worthy of a closer look. 

One of the things that makes cult-favorite TV shows so fun to watch is that they occasionally contain hidden details that a casual viewer might not catch. If "Fringe" viewers look closely at every episode, they'll eventually start to see Observers — bald men in suits and hats who seem to be observing the events of that episode's story. Fans of "Evil" can find sigil clues hidden throughout every episode that, when decoded, lead viewers to an alternate reality game (ARG) puzzle.

"Supernatural" has its own recurring detail in the form of a mid-century starburst clock that shows up from time to time, and it's not always the same one. Although it doesn't appear in every episode, it turns up frequently enough that fans have made a game of looking for it. First appearing in "Bloody Mary" (Season 1, Episode 5), the clock seems to show up with no rhyme or reason, appearing on diner walls, inside homes, and even in some of the motels where Sam and Dean stay. Like the quirky motel room dividers the boys seem to encounter everywhere they go, there doesn't seem to be any hidden meaning behind the clock sightings. But it's still fun to spot the starburst clock.

From the moment Castiel first appears in "Lazarus Rising," it's not yet quite clear that to know the angel is to love him. Fresh back from a trip to the other side of mortality, Dean enlists Bobby to help him find answers about how and why he isn't still in Hell. The search for answers leads the duo to a spooky abandoned barn, where they plan to invoke a summoning spell and lure whatever dragged Dean back from Hell onto the mortal coil. After covering the space in "traps and talismans from every faith on the globe" and arming themselves with the "big time magic knife," they commence a summoning spell, fully anticipating a demon — or something even nastier — to show up for the party. Just as Dean is questioning whether Bobby flubbed the ritual, the barn doors fly open and in walks a guy with big mid-level manager energy.

As the trench-coated angel walks purposefully toward them, the hunters fire with their supernaturally beefed-up arsenal, but the bullets have no effect. When a knife-wielding Dean demands, "Who are you?" the angel matter-of-factly states, "I'm the one who gripped you tight and raised you from perdition." Despite getting stabbed and shot at, an unbothered Castiel just wants to talk. When Dean doesn't buy the new guy's claim that he's an "Angel of the Lord," Castiel simply takes a step back and shows Dean his wings in all their glory. The image of Castiel standing there with the shadow of his wings dancing against the sigil-covered walls is one of the most iconic moments in the series and would go on to inspire countless works of "Supernatural" fan art.

One of the great things about "Supernatural" is how much affection the show seems to have for its cosplay-loving fanbase. Fans who have room in their lives for angel blades and Dungeons & Dragons got a special treat with the Charlie-centric Season 8 episode "LARP and the Real Girl." When Garth assigns Sam and Dean a case involving LARPers, the trail leads them to an immersive LARP game called Moondoor and its sprawling medieval faire-style Battle of the Kingdoms — which Dean is unexpectedly very interested in. When the boys run into their old pal Charlie Bradbury — who just happens to be the Queen of Moondoor — she recommends Dean get decked out in full garb and become her handmaiden, and he's not even a little mad about it. The sight of the Winchester strolling around in chain mail and leather bracers with a wooden sword as he mingles with elves and orcs is one of Dean's more adorkable moments and absolutely worth pausing for.

For a long time, one of the most burning questions in "Supernatural" was what happened to God. Did he check out at some point? Was he even real at all? Although the show was shy on clues for a few seasons, this didn't stop fans from speculating, especially after the in-show "Supernatural" book series writer Chuck Shurley came along. As Chuck's story develops, clues stack up that seem to point to the author as the Big Cheese himself. The fact that Chuck's in-story pseudonym was Carver Edlund — a reference to producers and "Supernatural" series writers Ben Edlund and Jeremy Carver — plays into the metanarrative idea of the writer as God. Chuck's prophecies about the Winchesters and his sudden vanishing in the Season 5 finale "Swan Song" only fuel the fire. 

The theory would finally be confirmed in the Season 11 episode "Don't Call Me Shurley," when Chuck fully owns up to it, admitting that he is indeed the "cruel, capricious God" he passively says he is in "The Monster at the End of This Book" (Season 4, Episode 18). The moment comes when Metatron is suddenly transported while dumpster diving for a meal and unexpectedly finds himself in a bar with Chuck. After telling Metatron, "People can't see me unless I want them to see me" and handing the angel a pair of shades, Chuck transforms into what the scribe immediately recognizes as God — confirming what many fans had been screaming for the past seven seasons.

From the moment Castiel and Dean first face off in "Lazarus Rising," it's hard to deny that there's a serious connection between them. Whether that connection was one of profound, brotherly love or something else has been the subject of countless blog posts, podcasts, and fanfics over the years. For fans who dreamed of a romantic pairing between Dean and his guardian angel, lines like Dean's protest that he was not "groped by an angel" ("Are You There, God? It's Me, Dean Winchester") and Balthazar's comment to Dean about the angel in the "dirty trench coat who's in love with you" ("My Heart Will Go On") served up all the subtext needed to fuel the Good Ship Destiel. Fans of this One True Pairing finally get what they'd been dreaming of toward the end of the show's final season. The moment comes in "Despair" (Season 15, Episode 18) when, preparing to sacrifice his own life for Dean's, Castiel confesses his love for the elder Winchester, admitting that Dean has changed him. It's a devastatingly emotional but fitting ending for the angel who first airlifted Dean out of the hot box, as Bobby so colorfully put it.

When it comes to occult-influenced TV shows like "Supernatural," "Evil," and "Charmed," it's hard to deny the influence of supernatural horror films from the past; for instance, "The Exorcist." Released in 1973, the film adaptation of William Peter Blatty's novel made for a genre-defining moment, influencing countless films and TV shows since. The film, which revolves around the demonic possession of an adolescent girl, starred a young Linda Blair in the iconic role of Regan MacNeil.

That's why it was all too fitting when Linda Blair appeared on "Supernatural" as a detective who encounters the Winchesters amid suspiciously paranormal circumstances. Her appearance as Detective Diana Ballard occurs in "The Usual Suspects" (Season 2, Episode 7). The episode includes a cheeky reference to Blair's claim to fame when Dean asks Sam if she seems familiar before suggesting he could "really go for some pea soup" — a reference to the pea soup the possessed Regan vomits all over her room in one of the film's more memorable moments.

The Winchester brothers get into some pretty wild and wooly adventures during their hunting years. But few are more outright bizarre than the shenanigans they get pulled into every time they have a run-in with Trickster Archangel Gabriel -– even if he does eventually help them stop the Apocalypse. After their first encounter with Gabriel yields an alien probing and a sewer alligator ("Tall Tales"), Sam is familiar enough with the angel's brand of comedy to recognize him at the Broward County Mystery Spot when he traps the boys in a time loop ("Mystery Spot"). Unfortunately, Gabriel isn't through playing with them, and he transports the boys into an alternate reality game where they find themselves bouncing from one TV show world to the next as if they're stuck in a TV and Gabriel is channel surfing ("Changing Channels"). But before viewers work out the how and why of it all, the Winchesters are transported into a 1980s sitcom opener complete with Sam and Dean riding a bicycle built for two, and it's easily one of the most adorable Winchester moments in the series.

Some of the best fan-favorite TV shows wouldn't be complete without a holiday episode or 10. Fans of "Doctor Who" annually revisit Christmas specials like "The Snowmen" and "The Christmas Invasion," while "Psych" has a handful of holiday episodes including the show's own version of "It's a Wonderful Life" in "The Polarizing Express." The Season 3 episode "A Very Supernatural Christmas" pits the boys against a pair of pagan gods eager to make the Winchesters their holiday sacrifice. But the best Yuletide moment in the series is Winchester-free and takes place only in Rowena's witchy brain. The holiday scene can be found in the Season 11 episode "The Devil is in the Details." The episode begins with Crowley in an adorable holiday onesie opening gifts as his mum Rowena looks on with a glowing Rudolph nose and antlers. While it might not have been Rowena's perfect moment, the sight of the mother-son duo in holiday digs would make the perfect holiday card for any fan of the Wayward sons.

As anyone who has watched every season of "American Horror Story" can attest to, coulrophobia (fear of clowns) is a very real thing. Maybe it's the makeup or unnatural clown humor, but something about clowns can really rub some folks the wrong way. No one understands this better than Sam Winchester. Despite his countless run-ins with malignant supernatural beings, clowns are the one thing that Sam just can't seem to get comfortable with. But everyone eventually has to face their fears, and Sam certainly does in "Plucky Pennywhistle's Magical Menagerie" (Season 7, Episode 14). The episode finds the brothers coming face-to-face with children's worst fears, and everything seems to revolve around a Chuck E. Cheese-style pizzeria called Plucky Pennywhistle's. As things inevitably escalate, Sam ends up nose-to-clown-nose with his phobia. Dean manages to pull the old salt-and-burn in the nick of time, and the attacking clowns disappear, raining glitter all over his terrified brother. As the pair meet back up again, Sam sparkles like the aftermath of a Lady Gaga concert, and Dean can't help but remark that he looks like he was attacked by "PCP-crazed strippers."

Losing baby teeth can be a hassle, but there's nothing like a visit from the Tooth Fairy — and all the fat cash that comes with it. Unless, of course, you don't love the idea of a complete stranger climbing in through your window and paying you chump change for your genetic material like the little girl in "I Believe the Children Are Our Future" (Season 5, Episode 6). The episode centers around children's false beliefs coming to life — there's itching powder that leads to deadly scratching, a hand buzzer that electrocutes its victim, and let's not forget the unfortunate soul whose "face froze that way." But the appearance of a malicious tooth fairy that steals all of a man's teeth by pulling them out manually, seemingly without any Novocain, is some of the show's most gruesome nightmare fuel despite the tooth fairy's sparkly pink wings and tutu.

It's always strange to come face-to-face with someone who reminds you of yourself. But for Sam and Dean, who encounter an entire convention full of faux-Winchesters, the experience is downright grating. When someone claiming to be Chuck tricks the boys into joining him at a hotel in the episode titled "The Real Ghostbusters" (Season 5, Episode 9), they can't help but notice the parking lot full of black '67 Impalas, and it doesn't take long before they realize they've been lured to the first-ever "Supernatural" convention based on Chuck's books. As they take in the sight of Bobby and demon cosplayers amid "Got Salt?" merch and learn about a panel dealing with the "Homoerotic Subtext of Supernatural," it isn't long before they get caught up in a truly supernatural adventure. To save the day — and the convention — they team up with a pair of serious Sam and Dean cosplayers played by Ernie Grunwald and Devin Ratray. This makes for plenty of solid comedic bits, especially when it's revealed that the pair are a couple — a nod to the controversial Wincest ship that pairs Sam and Dean as a couple.

Besides angels, demons, and ghosts, Sam and Dean's hunting days find them facing off with all sorts of creatures over the years, and some are more puzzling than others. After encountering werewolves, djinn, wendigos, and ancient gods, there really isn't much that would surprise the brothers. But occasionally, they encounter a paranormal situation that even they have trouble figuring out. One of these moments comes up in the UFO-themed "Clap Your Hands If You Believe" (Season 6, Episode 9) which fittingly opens with a parody of "The X-Files" intro and stars sci-fi legend Robert Picardo of "Star Trek: Voyager."

When Sam and Dean find themselves on the trail of a potential alien encounter, they immediately dismiss the quirky spinster who tells them fairies are behind it, with a currently soulless RoboSam chastising her, "Don't dump your wackadoo over us. We'd rather not step in it." After Dean has his own paranormal encounter in a corn field, he starts to suspect that aliens are behind the whole thing, with Dean calling his abductors "grabby, incandescent d*****bags." Just as they're completely sold on the UFO idea, an orb of light enters Dean's motel room as David Bowie's "Space Oddity" plays. A fight ensues that ends with a microwave, leading Sam to comment that his brother "pizza-rolled Tinker Bell." The close-up of Dean's face as he realizes he's looking at a "little, glowing, hot naked lady with nipples" is one of the most priceless moments in the series.

As hunters, Sam and Dean are no strangers to magic and often perform spells to summon the occasional demon or stop the odd witch. But anyone who deals in magic knows that things don't always go as planned and there can be unforeseen side effects. That's exactly what happens when Dean goes full canine in "Dog Dean Afternoon" (Season 9, Episode 5). When Sam and Dean realize the only witness to a grisly set of murders is a German shepherd, they decide to try out a spell that could let Dean communicate with the witness. While the spell works, things start to get weird pretty quickly when Dean begins to show canine mannerisms like scratching behind his ears, hanging his head out the car window, playing fetch, and making eyes at a poodle. But it's the image of Dean standing in the window and barking at the mailman that stands as one of the show's more pause-worthy moments.