Mary Winchester has been one of the most pivotal figures on the show during the first eleven seasons of Supernatural. Her death due to a deal with the demon Azazel is what ultimately led Sam and Dean to become hunters. We've seen dreams of Mary and hallucinations of Mary and even younger versions of Mary--thanks to time travel. The Season 11 finale upped the ante when the Darkness seemingly brought the real Mary back to life for Dean's sake. Recently, showrunner Andrew Dabb noted that the latest Mary will be a much realer version of the character. Here's what to expect from this latest version of Mary Winchester:
It's her. She was brought back. There is nothing demonic, nothing angelic. We're treating her very much as a character and the character who has been a part of Sam and Dean's story for 11 seasons. This is really her and she's having a real impact on our boys.
There we have it: Season 12 Mary Winchester won't be a trick or a dream or even a ghost. Sam and Dean will finally get their mother back, and she'll be around long enough that actress Samantha Smith will be able to wear something other than a white nightgown of doom. Considering that Sam ended Season 11 having been shot in the Men of Letters bunker by Lady Toni Bevell, Dean may need all the backup he can get when Season 12 kicks off. Unless Mary forgot all of her hunter training during her time in the great beyond, she could be a perfect ally in helping Dean to rescue Sam. Castiel certainly won't be much help if Lady Toni continues to banish him with blood sigils.
Andrew Dabb went on in his chat with EW to reveal that the Supernatural team has been thinking about bringing Mary back to life for a couple of years, and the Season 11 finale felt like the right time to do it. The Darkness is definitely believable as an entity with both the power and motivation to resurrect Mary. Now that the show is entering a new era with a new set of showrunners, the timing may be perfect to give Mary another go at life.
It should be interesting to see how the show operates with a trio of Winchesters rather than the typical duo. Allies like Castiel and Jody Mills have joined Sam and Dean from time to time, but Supernatural has always fundamentally been a two-man operation of human hunters. The boys may run into some difficulties if their mom wants to join up. After all, she was a hunter herself, and she might want to spend as much time as possible with her sons. If that quality time involves hunting monsters...well, stranger things have happened.
Supernatural returns to The CW for Season 12 on Thursday, October 13 at 9 p.m. ET. Check out our TV premiere schedule to see what else you can catch on the small screen this fall.
