When it comes to the creatures of Supernatural, the lore isn't always what we expect it to be about any of the monsters of the week. It differs even more widely when it comes to the angels in the show. Angels and demons have been having it out for several seasons and in that time we've seen them not give two whits about humans, attempt to destroy the very Earth itself, behave in incredibly selfish and power-hungry ways, and generally dispel our previous conceptions about angels in general.
Then again, in some ways they've managed to prove the angels of the Bible to be true. Like fairies, angels have a pretty dark lore attached to them, depending on what you're reading. Many people might believe or even hope that angels are caring, helpful beings, like Terrance in It's a Wonderful Life, but in Supernatural's reality, they are warriors of Heaven who carry out God's will. Those who defied him ended up in Hell, which has been used for centuries to hold over the populace to make people behave. If God can cast his favorite angel away, he'll have no trouble doing it to you if you don't follow these ten rules, confess, or partake in whatever rules your religion dictates, right?
Some might believe in an orderly Host of Heaven that works in a perfect divine plan while others think that chaos theory applies if you're a celestial being or not.
Whether they bolster your angelic notions or destroy them, here are 25 Crazy Facts About Supernatural's Angels.
Male And Female Vessels
Many readers of the Bible point out that angels are all male in name and gender pronoun use. Not so in Supernatural. Between Anna, Naomi and other female angels we've seen in the show, there are plenty to prove that the Biblical angels aren't necessarily the ones that are portrayed in the show. We've even seen "male" angels like Raphael inhabiting female vessels, and vice versa. Castiel also had a female vessel at one point.
Not only do the angels take hosts of all genders, but they sometimes even form romantic relationships. Dean's fling with Anna and Cas's various relationships are some examples.
They Don't Need To Sleep Or Eat
Angels aren't humans, so they don't have to eat or sleep, which makes Cas' occasional vigilance over the brothers creepy or cute, depending on whether or not you're a fan of Twilight. That doesn't mean that they can't buy food, of course.
The constant protector of Dean isn't above sucking up to his buddy with a little pie every now and then.
We have also seen Castiel eat plenty of times, including the time he ate burgers by the "low hundreds" when his vessel was influenced by the Famine Horseman.
Castiel Is The Angel Of Thursday
The story behind Castiel's name isn't that remarkable. He got the name when Eric Kripke searched for "Angel of Thursday" on the Internet and Google spat out "Cassiel." Cassiel is an angel who appears in not only the Christian teachings but also in Jewish and Islamic stories. Cassiel means "Speed of God," or "God is my anger," which works pretty well with our Cas.
Cas isn't the first version of Cassiel to be used in media, either. From City of Angels (where he was played by Brooklyn 99's Andre Braugher) to The Mortal Instruments series, Cassiel is represented in several different forms.
Their True Form Blinds People
While some mortals can withstand the glare, many lose their eyesight after looking upon an angel.
Poor Pamela Barnes, who wanted Bobby Singer to rot after introducing her to the Winchesters, was a psychic who looked upon Cas in his true form.
She lost her sight forever only to later lose her life to a demon while working with the brothers. It's too bad that the show has a bad habit of writing off its interesting female characters because she had lots of potential.
They Can Be Banished With A Sigil
Sometimes you just need a little privacy when angels come calling, especially when they want your head.
By drawing a specific sigil, hunters and presumably anyone with the knowledge can banish angels away from a location.
Yes, it has to be done in blood, which is rather inconvenient, but it does work on multiple angels at a time in any given radius, including archangels.
Sam dubbed angel banishing sigils "serious blood magic," and given the number of times we've seen it save the brothers, we would have to agree.
Angel Blades don't work on archangels
Angels and demons are truly two sides of the same coin. Just as there is a demon blade that can take out demons quickly, which helped speed the plot along in Supernatural quite well, there's also an angel blade that works the same magic.
While it doesn't work on archangels, angel blades carried around by all angels, which is pretty creepy when you give it much thought.
The fact that you're expected to carry around a weapon to take out any of your fellow brothers and sisters at any given moment really points to a lack of trust and respect in the angelic community. Perhaps demons have a better code.
Angels Had To Audition As Demons
Ever wondered why none of the angels sing like little cherubs or flit about wearing diapers? For starters, it would be super boring, but it's also because Kripke and company didn't want that kind of an angel on the show. They wanted ruthless, fierce beings who could put up a fight against demons.
When they were first casting angelic roles, they had the actors, including Misha Collins, under the impression that they were going to be demons the whole time.
In the scope of the show, this makes lots of sense, given that both species behave pretty similarly.
Angels Are Jerks
Angels are pretty self-absorbed and care much more about their own agenda than assisting humans. They're also not above lying to manipulate a host and they certainly don't care if humans lose their lives in their crossfire, making them nearly as reprehensible as the demons they constantly fight.
Some of them have even gone into league with demons now and then in order to pursue their own desires.
Both Winchesters have been used by angels and demons so often that neither can truly trust anyone from either species, no matter how much they wish it were possible.
They Can Bring People Back To Life
Castiel first gave our first resurrection with Dean. We quickly learned that angels can bring people back from the underworld, but only when it suits their own plans. It is as simple as literally grabbing a person and dragging them back onto the mortal coil.
Not only is it something the angels regulate to only when it suits their own needs, but it's also not a perfect system.
Remember when Sammy returned without his soul? Not only was Sam's soul tormented for a year within that cage, but we also had Soulless Sam to contend with as a character, which nearly destroyed our faith in mankind.
Castiel Has Gone Through Three Trench Coats
Many fans don't take kindly to angels swapping out their trench coats, particularly when Dean Winchester is wont to cling to one of them in a truly touching "I can't quit you" moment. The fact that Castiel has changed coats over the years has become a symbol of the angel himself whom, let's face it, should have had plenty of other vessels by now, given his track record.
Although we're quite keen on keeping Misha Collins as Cas, there are plenty of viewers who want him to also retain the same coat so badly that they've even petitioned for it to be regulated to a single coat on the show!
Angels Go To The Empty, Not Purgatory
It's better than some places, but it seems like a pretty pathetic reward for those who've served the Kingdom of Heaven for millennia. When angels bite the dust on Supernatural they head to The Empty.
Supposedly an endless, peaceful slumber, it sure seems more like a more benign Upside Down to us.
The supposed void that existed before all else not only serves as the final resting place for angels but demons as well, which really only adds insult to injury. No matter who you serve, you end up in the same place.
Angels Are Programmed Like Robots
While some angels exhibit great ambitions to the point where they get themselves in pretty deep trouble, most seem to just follow orders like mindless drones.
It's a quality that makes them seem much colder than expected, especially when dealing with angels who stray from the herd like Castiel.
In fact, it's Cas's defiance of his own orders to help the Winchesters against the plot for Lucifer and Michael to battle that truly embodies the name Team Free Will.
If more angels were willing to defy orders from power-hungry leaders like Naomi they might have had a better chance of surviving.
The Angels Had No Idea What Azazel Was Planning
The angels may have had their own plans for the Winchesters all along, and they might claim to be privy on what God wants but they sure don't know everything.
Azazel, also known as Yellow Eyes, had his own plans for Sam Winchester, and the angels couldn't even fathom what his end game might be. Ultimately, his plan to open the gates of Hell still came to pass long after the Winchesters had defeated him.
Azazel's use of the Winchesters was really similar to the angels' use of the brothers, proving that neither side really had their best interests at heart, except for Cas - most of the time.
They Can Be Trapped In A Circle of Fiery Holy Oil
If you can trap a demon, it stands to reason that you can also trap an angel. We've already established that the two species have more similarities than differences.
An angel's powers are quite muted while within the trap and they are unable to leave it without it being broken.
The trap consists of a sigil with Enochian runes in each direction and burning holy fire.
The trap works on angels as well as archangels. Gadreel and Lucifer are two of the most recently trapped angels within the trap in the series.
They Have An "Angel Radio"
In order to keep in touch with one another, angels use what they dub "angel radio." It even works for angels who have lost their grace. The powerful communication tool can be a burden at times, especially in the case of Lucifer's son, Jack, who experiences excruciating pain when he picks up the wavelengths, but it has also come in very handy for angels like Castiel.
Cas used angel radio to broadcast a conversation with Metatron in order to usher in other angels to stop him, one of the oldest tricks in the book.
True Angelic Form Is An Wavelength the size of a skyscraper
According to Castiel, the true form of an angel is far from human but more like a wavelength. We have already established that the form is too hard for human eyes to look upon, often resulting in blindness for the human, but it's also massive.
The Chrysler building was used to define their true seize early on in the series, which sounds pretty impressive.
Angels appear more and more human between their actions and their appearances, so it's really hard to remember how their true forms appear.
An Angel Can "Upgrade" To A Seraph
Although the Seraphim are in a lower class of angels than the archangels, they do outrank the rest of the Heavenly Host and they are known to have super strength and abilities that surpass the average angel. Castiel, who was brought back as a Seraph by God after he helped the Winchesters during the Apocalypse and was quickly destroyed in the process, was "upgraded" to Seraphim level.
It's unlikely that this is a common event, however, as most angels regarded him with reverence after the act, dubbing him "God's Chosen."
They Are Mindless Sheep Without A Leader
Angels don't seem to know what to do with themselves without a leader. They are eager to attach themselves to any new leader who presents him or herself, at on point even seeking out Castiel as a leader.
Even if they choose a terrible leader, they'd still rather follow that angel's orders rather than forge their own paths.
In some ways this makes sense: angels don't want to be eliminated as a species and, like humans, they need a leader to keep them organized. It still bumps them down from the whole celestial entity category. What's the point of being so powerful when you can't even decide what to do on your own?
Angelic Grace Can be Removed
An angel's grace is what allows them to be a celestial being in the first place. Without it, they can still hear "angel radio," like Anna did when she lost her grace, but not much else.
Throughout the seasons, we learn that not only can an angel cut their own grace out, but angels can also steal one another's grace, which has made us question Castiel in some capacities.
Graces can also be taken and used in spells, as Metatron demonstrated when he stole Castiel's, causing him to become human and all of the angels to fall to Earth.
They're Not Above A Civil War
Those who are familiar with their Biblical history are scoffing: "Of course they're not!" That's the whole reason we have Hell, right?
It's the same reason war exists in the first place: somebody wanted more power than somebody else.
The angels plot, lie, and take each other out so often that it's really not a stretch to see how the demons came about in the first place.
The angels are also simply not above desiring godlike powers for themselves, as Castiel so aptly demonstrated. The road to Hell is clearly paved with good intentions.