On one hand, I’m a firm believer in Eric Kripke’s “five year
plan,” and think that five years is a good run for a show. Both Buffy and Angel
show this, in my honest opinion. So it was with some trepidation that I
accepted this news, happy as it is, since Supernatural is my favorite show. The
positive part of this news was that, maybe, we’ll have more time to deal with
the “slowpocalypse,” since it’s barely been dealt with this season. Then again,
we were told they would wrap up the apocalypse at the end of this season, so
who knows?
 
However, this news was tempered when, later in the day,
Michael Ausiello reported on his blog that Eric Kripke would be stepping down
as showrunner at the end of this season
, and long-time writer and producer Sera
Gamble will be succeeding him (kind of a run on sentence, I know…). This isn’t confirmed yet, so I’ve not posted it as an actual news story, but it’s still got my mind going.  This
honestly has me quite worried. Don’t get me wrong, I adore, adore, adore Sera
Gamble. Her episodes are always amazingly well written and well-constructed,
and few writers have a better understanding of the Winchester
brothers than she does.
 
However, to me, as a showrunner, she’s unproven. Going back
to the Buffy analogy, after season five, Joss Whedon went off for a time and
put the show in the hands of Marti Noxon, one of the show’s producers. The show
totally suffered for this, and in my opinion, never really recovered. However,
Whedon’s temporary departure did give us Firefly, so it could be a good thing
in the end.
 
There are other parallels to this, most notably Doctor Who.
For four or more (if you count the specials) or more seasons, Russel T. Davies
was the show runner and occasional writer for the show. Say what you want about
Davies’ writing, he was a damned fine show runner. He’s now left the show and
is being replaced by Stephen Moffat, an amazing writer for Doctor Who and other
shows. Now, Moffat has been a showrunner on other projects, such as Jekyll and
Coupling, but still, this switch does have some fans nervous.
 
Going back to Supernatural, as a die-hard fan of the show
(hell, I have the tattoo, for example), this turn of events has me concerned.
Kripke (and executive producer Robert Singer) will still be involved with the
show, but how much will change? Will Gamble try to keep the show going forward
on its same tack, or will it take a left turn somehow? Will the show feel the
same without Kripke in the captain’s chair?
 
Time will tell in regards to these questions, but I’m
honestly trying to remain hopeful of the future here. In interviews with Sera
Gamble, you can feel her adoration of her show, to a point where I’m less
worried about her succeeding Eric Kripke as I might be otherwise. Still, if this news ends up being confirmed, this
is a major shift in the landscape of the show’s creative team, and I can only
hope and pray that the show doesn’t suffer for it as a result. A good story has a finite beginning, middle, and ending. I’d hate to see Supernatural dragged out longer than it needs to be, and again, have a decline in quality as a result. 
 
Well, now you’ve read my inane ramblings, what do you think?
Do you think season six is a good idea? Are you confident in Gamble to be an
effective showrunner? I’d love to hear what you think in the comments. Thanks
for reading.
 
Edit: Now we have word from Alice Jester — a well-known Supernatural blogger — that no one is certain whether Kripke is leaving or not. The fun keeps on keeping on. 
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