Supernatural's Buffy Crossover: A Hidden Gem Episode

Supernatural’s secret Buffy the Vampire Slayer crossover episode is likely one of the present’s most charming, but it is too usually missed. Each Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural stay extremely beloved, even cult-classic reveals, and every had a powerful run.

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Supernatural was on air from 2005 to 2020, and Buffy ran from 1997 to 2003. Whereas the reveals due to this fact didn’t overlap, there have been loads of Supernatural episodes that subtly (or not so subtly) featured main Buffy stars. One such Supernatural episode was season 7, episode 5, “Shut Up, Dr. Phil,” and it was the proper Supernatural–Buffy crossover.

James Marsters & Charisma Carpenter Play A Married Couple In Supernatural’s Unofficial Buffy Crossover Episode

James Marsters and Charisma Carpenter standing together in Supernatural — James Marsters and Charisma Carpenter standing collectively in Supernatural

“Shut Up, Dr. Phil” stars James Marsters and Charisma Carpenter, who performed Spike and Cordelia Chase in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, respectively. In Supernatural, the actors portrayed Don and Maggie Stark, a warlock and a witch who had a rocky marriage, to say the least. In truth, the episode noticed the 2 being violently antagonistic to at least one one other.

In a single significantly memorable scene, the girl who Maggie believes is having an affair with Don, Jenny, is making cupcakes. As she goes to take a chunk of her cupcake, Maggie bewitches it, putting a tiny, beating coronary heart within the heart, which Jenny bites instantly into after which (understandably) begins panicking.

Though that sounds ugly, the episode is definitely loads of enjoyable, with one marital feud involving Sam and Dean consistently attempting to intervene, just for Don and Maggie to assault them in varied methods and proceed arguing. Significantly given this was Supernatural’s Leviathan season, which isn’t largely thought of considered one of Supernatural’s best seasons, this episode was a shiny spot.

This was additionally good casting for each actors. In Buffy, each Spike and Cordelia had been charming but in addition characters who had been identified to have an angle and, significantly in Spike’s case, a darker aspect. They had been due to this fact pure matches for this episode, they usually even felt harking back to their Buffy characters.

Why “Shut Up, Dr. Phil” Is An Underrated Supernatural Episode

Charisma Carpenter in Supernatural looking angry — Charisma Carpenter in Supernatural trying offended

Though there have been various masterpiece Supernatural episodes, “Shut Up, Dr. Phil” is just not usually named as considered one of them. Whereas it may not be up there with a number of the franchise’s best possible, resembling “The French Mistake” or “Swan Track,” it is a nice episode of the present, and it deserves extra recognition than it will get.

Along with these thrilling Buffy cameos, this episode accommodates most of the components that make Supernatural so well-liked. It goes with out saying that Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester each shine within the episode, however “Shut Up, Dr. Phil” additionally displays simply how artistic Supernatural may get with deaths.

In any case, within the episode, one girl is murdered by a hair dryer at a hair salon overheating and preserving her trapped, and one other character is killed by a phantom nail gun. The episode can be stuffed with Supernatural’s darkish humorousness, particularly contemplating all these murders occur as a result of two spouses are mad at one another.

Different Buffy Actors Have Visitor-Starred In Supernatural

Felicia Day's Charlie Bradbury smiles in Supernatural. — Charlie Bradbury in Supernatural

Though “Shut Up, Dr. Phil” is definitely one to observe, that is removed from the one Supernatural episode that includes stars of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Reasonably, there are a lot of Buffyverse actors in Supernatural, a few of whom are main characters. One of the notable is Felicia Day, who performed Charlie in Supernatural and Violet on Buffy.

Charlie was a vital Supernatural character, as she grew to become a real youthful sister to Sam and Dean and acquired together with Dean significantly nicely. Arguably, hers was one of many saddest deaths in Supernatural total. Violet was a ‘potential slayer’ in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Day due to this fact had a key function to play in that present as nicely.

One more main actress to star in each Supernatural and Buffy was Amber Benson, who performed Tara Maclay on Buffy and Lenore in Supernatural. In each reveals, Benson’s character met a devastating finish. In Buffy, Tara, who was the girlfriend of one of many present’s fundamental characters, Willow, was tragically shot to demise in entrance of Willow.

In Supernatural, Benson performed Lenore, a vampire who was attempting to do higher than most and never kill people. Sadly, she additionally died, as she realized she may now not cease herself from feeding, and requested to be killed. There are myriad different actors who seem in each reveals, together with Mercedes McNab, Rob Benedict, and others.

It is smart that the 2 reveals have a lot overlap, given they’ve a lot in frequent thematically. Each are, after all, concerning the supernatural, however in addition they have deeper themes of household, sacrifice, and id. The truth that they had been launched at comparatively comparable occasions solely makes this all of the extra logical.

Subsequently, those that are followers of each Supernatural and Buffy the Vampire Slayer ought to give “Shut Up, Dr. Phil” a second watch (or a primary watch), because it not solely stars two of probably the most beloved actors from the latter however can be some of the underrated episodes of the previous.