#sadly all my ideas include Benny in some form I’m sorry

[dykedvonte]

Am speech from IHNMAIMS but in a Yes-Man au where he betrays Benny early and now you have to save the Mojave from Yes-Man trying to do a whole robo take-over.

Yeah you drag Benny’s ass around with you cause like hell you’re gonna clean up his mess alone.

[canonicallysoulmates]

hey! i love reading your opinions on episodes because you're really clear and coherent and i tend to agree with you about a lot of characters and stuff. but i haven't really watched the show since 8x01 because i got too mad at how the writers treated sam (yk, about him not looking for dean in purgatory etc). i've kept up with what happened in the show but now i kinda feel like really catching up. what episodes are must watch in your opinion? you don't have to answer if it's too much to ask :)

Usually, I find my episode opinions to be a mess so saying you find them clear and coherent is such a compliment to me, thank you!  I put a lot of work into them so that makes me happy ❤️

I completely understand about s8, that season almost got me to stop watching too, though I will be honest and say the 2nd half was much better than the 1st.

I’m sorry this took me so long to answer but I wanted to give you something through and it’s a lot of episodes to go through; I wasn’t sure if you wanted my must watch in terms of enjoyability or if you’re looking for something more plot centered so listed below is a mix between episodes I find most watch due to how entertaining they are and how much I love them, and episodes that I find most watch in terms of you want to have a general idea of the main plot of the season, something important was introduced or something new was learned about Sam and Dean, those types of episodes will be marked with an asterisk. 

All the episodes listed were because I feel like they had something extra to offer, this is in no way a list of all the episodes of those seasons I like. 

Season 8:

Episode 11, LARP and the Real Girl: While this is a good, fun, episode in general,  the main reason I’m including it, in this case, is that this is, in my opinion, the turning point in s8. This is when the bs unnecessary drama stops and Sam and Dean start to come back together as a team. So if you wanna see that I recommend it if you wanna see them choose each other over Benny and Amelia that happens in the episode previous to this one, episode #10 ‘Torn and Frayed’, but for me, this is the one where the shift really happens. If that shift doesn’t interest you feel free to skip like I said it’s included because of the shift in the brother’s relationship. 

Episode 12, As Time Goes By*:  Big things happen in this episode, we get to learn a little bit about the Winchester side of the family tree, meet grandaddy Winchester, the Men of Letters are introduced they play a big part in Sam and Dean’s story, the Bunker is mentioned for the 1st time. Definitely, a must watch in terms of overall story. 

Episode 13, Everybody Hates Hitler*: This is another episode that’s a must watch in terms of story, this episode introduces us to the Bunker where the boys live. But other than that it is a skippable episode.

Episode 14, Trial and Error*: I swear I’m not recommending the whole 2nd half of s8 it’s just that there were a lot of storyline heavy episodes in a row. This is when the main plot of s8, the Trials, come into play. 

Episode 21, The Great Escapist*: This is only a must watch if you’re interested in the plot, a character that plays a big part at the end of this season and the main of s9 is introduced in this episode. This is on this list purely due to that fact. 

Episode 23, Sacrifice: If you watch only one recommended episode from s8, make it this one. It’s one of my favorite episodes, it gave us the amazing Sam and Dean church scene, it gave us “Don’t you dare think that there is anything, past or present, that I would put in front of you!”, it’s just a  fantastic episode. 

Season 9:

(While I liked season 9 more than season 8, for me, there really aren’t any must-watch episodes that have nothing to do with the plot.) 

Episode 7, Bad Boys*: We learn about an important part of Dean’s past.

Episode 11, First Born*: The Mark of Cain which plays a big part in this season and is the main plot of s10 is introduced. 

Episode 16, Blade Runners*: Important weapon, the First Blade, is introduced.

Episode 17, Mother’s Little Helper*: We learn more a bit more about the MoL and grandaddy Winchester.

Season 10:

Episodes 1-3, Black, Reichenbach & Soul Survivor: I very much enjoyed demon!Dean as well as Sam desperately looking for Dean which is why these three episodes are on this list as sadly demon!Dean only existed for this short period.

Episode 18, Book of the Damned: This is one of my favorite episodes of s10 cause I’m a slut for Sam being desperate to save Dean and doing whatever it takes even if it means going behind his back to find a cure. And it gave us this beauty, “But I can’t do it without my brother. I don’t want to do it without my brother. And if he’s gone, then I don’t…”

Episode 23, Brother’s Keeper*: Dean killed Death for Sam. Also, important for understanding the main plot in s11.

Season 11:

Episode 2, Form and Void: For me, this is a must watch solely on the fact that Sam is a complete badass and genius who finds a cure for a brand new disease, and cures/saves himself and others. 

Episode 4,  Baby: Move over Sam and Dean, it is this show’s leading lady time to shine! This is honestly one of the best episodes of s11 and in the series as a whole, it’s entertaining, it’s fun, it’s creative, it’s an hour of Sam and Dean from Baby’s POV and it is glorious, definitely an episode one can watch multiple times and never tire of.

Episode 8, Just My Imagination*: It’s a fun episode where we get to learn more about Sam’s childhood.

Episode 10 The Devil in the Details*: Plot-based recommendation. Something happens at the end that has carried over all the way to s14. 

Episode 16, Safe House: Fun, enjoyable episode that gives us a glimpse of how Rufus and Bobby hunted together. 

Episode 17, Red Meat: If you watch nothing else from s11, watch this episode. It is heartbreaking, it is amazing, it is fantastic. Make sure you have tissues handy because you will bawl your eyes out. 

Episode 20, Don’t Call Me Shurley: One of my favorite episodes of the season, I find it a beautiful episode in both the writing and the direction, it’s the return of the Samulet, great Sam and Dean scenes, I love the song at the end. It’s just a really fantastic episode. 

Season 12:

Episode 11, Regarding Dean: My favorite episode from this season, it made me laugh it made me cry. It has great brother scenes, it has great Rowena scenes, it’s an episode so excellent that I even recommend it to people who don’t watch this show.

The end of Episode 18, The Memory Remains: I know this is supposed to be a must-watch episode list but the only part of this episode I consider must watch happens in the last 5-minutes and Sam and Dean carving their names on the table is definitely must-watch.

Season 13:

Episode 16, Scoobynatural: It’s my two favorite characters, Sam and Dean, in my favorite cartoon. It’s a grownup episode of Scooby-Doo! It’s so much fun! Like just thinking about it makes me wanna go re-watch it. 

Season 14:

Episode 4, Mint Condition: Sam and Dean hunting things, saving people. The Family Business. Enough said, grab some snacks and curl up to watch this episode that will make you fall in love with this show again.

Episode 12, Prophet and Loss: Also known as the one where BuckLemming drowned us in feelings and shocked us by writing something not just good but fucking amazing! Honestly, I will be thinking about that ending scene for the rest of my life. 

Episode 13, Lebanon: Episode worthy of being the 300th. Absolutely beautiful, focused on the heart of the show, definitely a must-watch for any fan.

And with that we reach the end of the list, I know s12 forward there aren’t any plot based episode must-watches, I apologize for that but I feel like the plots are pretty easy to follow s12 forward with just watching the first and final episodes of the season. 

I really hope this is what you were looking for in some way, shape or form. And if you decide to watch any of the episodes on this list, I hope you like them!