Supernaturalis a fan-favorite,cult classic television triumphthat famously followed the monster-hunting brothers Dean and Sam Winchester. For 15 exhilarating seasons, the demon-slaying duo faced countless evil and saved the world time and time again, sacrificing their lives on numerous occasions and giving up any semblance of a normal existence to keep people safe from things that go bump in the night.
Jensen Ackles and Jared Padelecki starred as the fearless brothers Dean and Same, respectively. Devoted viewers couldn’t get enough of Dean’s love of his 1967 Chevy Impala “Baby,” and all things rock related. The show featured an impressive collection of rock songs and cool scenarios, colored with stylish jackets, sweet cars, and monster hunting.
Dean’s favorite band was far and away, Led Zeppelin. Many episodes of the series were named after some of their most iconic songs, and the brothers oftenused names of band members as aliases— but production couldn’t afford to actually use their songs. Let’s take a look back at the show’s whopping 327 episodes and see where the legendary tunes would have packed the most punch.
Article contains spoilers
11"Baby Come on Home" — Season 1, Episode 9: “Home”
In the first season episode"Home,“After being plagued by nightmares involving his and Dean’s childhood home, Sam feels compelled to return to their former residence in Lawrence, Kansas to look into his disturbing dreams and protect the family who now lives there. As thedemon-fighting duoset out to rid the place of a malevolent poltergeist, the brothers are forced to face their past trauma and the memories trapped within the home’s walls while trying to keep its current inhabitants safe.
Why The Song Would Work Great
Aside from the Led Zeppelin song title being absolutely perfect for the season one episode,“Baby Come on Home"is extremely fitting for the brothers to finally be able to return to where they grew up after years of being away. The home was truly the only place where Sam and Dean had some semblance of normalcy, which sadly went up in flames (both literally and figuratively) when their mother was murdered by the powerful demon Azazel while trying to protect an infant Sam.
10"In My Time of Dying” — Season 2, Episode 1: “In My Time of Dying”
Over theshow’s fifteen seasons, Sam and Dean were put through both the physical and emotional ringer, having been killed on numerous occasions while also harrowingly losing one another countless times. In the opening episode of the second season, Dean is left fighting for his life and is in a coma after being involved in a car wreck with Sam and their father John. A Reaper reveals to the elder Winchester brother that if he refuses to move on, he will one day become a vengeful spirit, prompting John to make the ultimate sacrifice for his sons.
Why the Song Would Work Great
Clearly theSupernaturalwriters knew exactly what they were doing when they named the episode"In My Time of Dying,“a nod to the Led Zeppelin song, as the lyrics completely capture the tragic events of the heartfelt episode. Just as things were looking extremely bleak for a death-facing Dean, John ends up striking a deal with the demon Azazel and offers up his own life in exchange for his son’s. After years of fighting things that go bump in the night, John is finally able to rest and make peace with his boys.
9"What Is and What Should Never Be” — Season 2, Episode 20: “What Is and What Should Never Be”
Sam and Dean are given a glimpse of what their lives could have looked like had they not been swept up in the world of monsters and demons in the season 2 episode"What Is and What Should Never Be.“After crossing paths with a djinn, Dean is transported to an alternate reality where his mother was never murdered by Azazel and both he and Sam were given a normal upbringing. Dean eventually learns that all the innocent lives they saved as hunters are dead in his new peaceful world, and he must give up his happiness and face the djinn.
The title of the song and episode is pretty self-explanatory, and despite Dean being able to be reunited with his long-lost mother and have a more “normal” life, he misses the thrill of the hunt and his close connection with his brother Sam. He realizes that the djinn is manipulating his reality and that he is actually in an illusory world. Dean is forced to give up a simpler existence because that destiny was simply not meant to be, no matter how much he wished it could have been.
8"Ramble On” — Season 2, Episode 22: “All Hell Breaks Loose (Part 2)”
Fans ofSupernaturalare well aware that Dean can’t get enough ofhis beloved classic rock, and both"Ramble On"and “Traveling Riverside Blues” are tied for his favorite Led Zeppelin songs. In the season 2 finale episode"All Hell Breaks Loose (Part 2),“Dean is left in shambles after Sam’s tragic death at the hands of Jake, so in order to save his brother’s life and resurrect him, Dean literally makes a deal with the devil and sells his soul to a Crossroads Demon (a reference to legendary blues musician Robert Johnson, who Led Zeppelin often covered). He is given one year to live before he must pay his due.
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Not only can the lyrics in “Ramble On” be applied to the shocking death of Sam, but they also capture the sacrifice and spiritual journey Dean embarks upon when he offers up his soul to save his brother’s. Dean knows he is on borrowed time and has only one year left to live, and he is all-too-willing to give his life for Sam’s and keep pushing forward until that day arrives.
But now it’s time for me to go
The autumn moon lights my way
For now I smell the rain, and with it, pain
And it’s headed my way
7"That’s the Way " — Season 3, Episode 16: “Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked”
In the season 3 episode"Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked,“after striking up a deal with the Crossroads Demon to save Sam’s life, Dean has just 30 hours left until his year is up and he is dragged to hell. Sam and Bobby race against the clock to find a way to get him out of his contract, and the desperation and anguish the younger Winchester feels knowing his brother may soon be ripped from him is hard for audiences to watch. Though finding a loophole appears futile, Sam is willing to go to the ends of the earth to try and save Dean’s soul.
“That’s the Way"is a poignant and effective track to pair with the episode, as it is one of Led Zeppelin’smost beautiful balladsthat wonderfully captures the unbreakable bond the Winchester brothers share. Sam’s agony as he tries to figure out how to keep Dean safe is heartwrenching, even though Dean has come to terms with his own fate and would gladly do it all again. The episode ends with a shattered Sam clutching the body of his brother after he was mauled by hellhounds.
That’s the way
Oh, that’s the way it ought to be, yeah-yeah
Mama say that’s the way it ought to stay
And yesterday I saw you standing by the river
And weren’t those tears that filled your eyes
And all the fish that lay in dirty water dying
Had they got you hypnotized?
6"Kashmir” — Season 4, Episode 1: “Lazarus Rising”
3.96 million viewers watched with bated breath as America’s favoritemonster hunter Dean Winchestermiraculously emerged from the pits of hell and was brought back to life in season four’s"Lazarus Rising.“A completely bewildered and stunned Dean quite literally digs himself out of his grave and is left unsure of where he was and how he got there, having been brutally tortured for months before being resurrected.
“Kashmir"is without-a-doubt one of Led Zeppelin’s most exciting and universally lauded singles, and such an epic tune is the perfect choice for Dean’s electrifying resurrection from hell in the season four opener. After having been seemingly dead for four months, Dean eventually discovers he was pulled from hell by the angel Castiel. The opening sequence of the episode was one of the show’s very best, withBuddyTV calling the thrilling montage, “There is no show on TV that can get a viewer that pumped up for an episode.”
5"When the Levee Breaks” — Season 4, Episode 21: “When the Levee Breaks”
After Sam becomes too dependent on his demonic powers and continues to have a shocking affair with the nefarious Ruby, both Dean and Bobby realize they have to save Sam from himself and the dark path he is continuing to go down. They attempt to return him to his old self and find that Sam is not so willing to let go of his newfound capabilities, leading to a massive showdown between the brothers.
Another instance wherethe Led Zeppelin songalready matches the perfect episode,“When the Levee Breaks"is jam-packed full of unforgettable guitar and harmonica solos and stellar vocals by Robert Plant, and its overwhelming cool factor and legendary beat pairs winningly with Sam’s struggles with detoxing from demon blood. It was a major moment in the series when Sam’s dark side and power lust was revealed to Dean, and the brothers even got into a violent and brutal brawl after Dean called Sam a monster.
4"Dazed and Confused” — Season 4, Episode 22: “Lucifer Rising”
After a vicious fight where they finally come to blows, in the next episode of season 4,“Lucifer Rising,“Dean and Sam are forced to set aside their own personal issues and save the world once again. Dean shockingly learns from Castiel that he is not actually supposed to prevent the apocalypse from happening — he’s supposed to end it once it inevitably begins. Castiel then rebels against heaven in an effort to help the Winchesters. Despite all their valiant efforts, the final seal is broken and Lucifer is freed from his cage.
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“Dazed and Confused"definitely describes Dean after he learns his true destiny and also just makes sense to be played as the final few minutes of the episode unfold. Both Sam and Dean take out the deceptive Ruby and kill her for being one of Lucifer’s minions, and Sam also uses his demonic powers to eliminate Lilith, which inadvertentlycommences the apocalypse. Ruby completely manipulated Sam in order to free Lucifer, and her actions and trickery are brilliantly summed up in the classic tune.
3"Houses of the Holy” — Season 6, Episode 20: “The Man Who Would Be King”
Told from the perspective of the heavily conflicted Castiel, the season 6 episode"The Man Who Would Be King"follows the morally struggling angel as he questions whether stopping the apocalypse was ultimately the right decision. Dean also learns that Castiel has been closely working with the demon Crowley, and the Winchester vows to stop him from whatever his master plan is at any costs. This builds up to Castiel eventually taking full control as a new God in the following episodes and asserting his dominance and reign.
Season sixheavily features angels, Satan, and demons, so “Houses of the Holy” is an extremely appropriate song to go along with the events that occurred. Fans watched in horror as Castiel became something he had always tried to fight against, and assumed the role as God. The tune in general is perfect for the entire season, as the brothers team up yet again to take down a newly escaped Lucifer while also battling against both angels and demons alike.
2"Stairway to Heaven” — Season 9, Episode 22: “Stairway to Heaven”
In the season 9 episode"Stairway to Heaven,“Castiel makes it his mission to stop the angel Metatron, but must try and remain a stoic and commanding leader to his other fellow angels. He is torn between his allegiance with those like him and the Winchesters (specifically Dean), and he refuses to kill the demon hunter to appease the other angels under his leadership. Dean also becomes more attached to the First Blade, which is able to kill any being both supernatural and human.
Undeniably Led Zeppelin’s most iconic hit and one of the greatest rock songs of all time, “Stairway to Heaven” is used as the title of the penultimate episode of the ninth season, though it can certainly be used in nearly any episode of the enduring series. The brothers are constantly facing death and an uncertain future as they battle one unfathomable evil after another, and witnessing Dean listen to “Stairway to Heaven” with Sam riding shotgun as they go on another monster hunt would be amazing for devoted fans to witness.
