I did not have the opportunity to attend one of the Supernatural conventions in the years they were previously in Dallas, so when they announced they were returning, I quickly bought my ticket! And this con definitely did not disappoint! It was a wonderful weekend spent with good friends, in spite of it being so hot outside. The venue is literally in a field in the middle of nowhere, at least an 8-10 minute drive to the nearest hotel, or food, or lattes (as my partner in crime, Lynn, desperately needs, lol)
[This post is by Kim, in case you didn’t figure that out. It’s true, I do need my morning latte. And sometimes my afternoon one. Good thing that Dallas con was populated by tons and tons of friends! Kim and I stayed with one of them, her husband and kids graciously welcoming four of us into their home. That meant not only four additional people in the house, but nightly Supernatural rewatch viewings and people coming and going at all sorts of times. But combine Texas hospitality with SPN Family hospitality and you’ve got — well, you’ve got brisket cooked all day on the bbq and homemade potato salad and cole slaw and some of the best damn drinks I’ve ever had (shout out to bartender hubby!) That also meant there was always someone stopping by Starbucks or sneaking in some lunch for hungry vendors. Thank you to everyone who was so kind, it made the entire con so much fun]
[Okay, back to Kim’s Friday wrap up and beautiful photos…] — Lynn
The convention kicked off on Friday with our favorite band, Louden Swain, and perhaps the best emcee in the entirety of the world, Mr. Richard Speight Jr. In their opening, Richard attempted to chastise Rob for his love of corn nuts… and a fan actually had a bag of corn nuts that she quickly tossed at Rob. And the giggles and laughter and jokes began, and listen, this is why I’m here. For the laughter, not the corn nuts.
[And if you think the jokes were G rated, think again…] — Lynn
The first panel of the day was Rachel Miner. Apparently she’d had a rough day, dealing with flight delays among other things, but she said she didn’t even care, because she knew she was coming to be with her #SPNFamily. Aww.
She talked about the show:
Her favorite moment was probably the Pizza Man scene with Misha. She said at that time, she was already struggling physically, and when Misha realized that, he just picked her up and spun her around for the kiss. It really sums up just how good these people truly are and how much they are always there for each other.
A fan asked her about Jack. She said she thinks Meg would feel parental towards Jack, because Cas feels that way, adding, “when you care about someone (as Meg cares about Cas), then you care about what they care about.” She also said if she wrote an episode for Meg and Cas, it would be a road trip… just the two of them, trying to be human, and just being really bad at it. Listen, I would 100% watch and rewatch that episode!
She said one of her favorite things about Supernatural is that it lives in the gray area. “Good people do bad things. Bad people are hurt and lost, and yet they do good sometimes too.” Yup, that pretty much sums it up! She also talked about the show’s end. She said it really has to be about the boys, it has to be about the strength and resilience of the human spirit. From her mouth to the writers ears, am I right?
She is working on some new projects, specifically centered around representation and how important that is. She believes we need more diversity in physicality in media, adding, “If Meg comes back to Supernatural, there is no way she would be a victim.”
Jason Manns was the next panel. Before he started his panel, we were treated to “Wagon Wheel” featuring Jason, Richard, and Rob. (insert swooning sounds here)
Jason explained to the few people who didn’t already know that one of his songs was included in Supernatural, perhaps 10 years ago; yes, he would like to be on the show in its final season, but he would prefer to be just some guy walking in the background because he’s afraid he’d mess up other wise. Lol, it’s okay Jason, we’ll take it!
[Actually that would be hilarious if Jason Manns is just randomly strolling through the background every other episode and no one ever comments on it…] — L
Jason sang several songs for us during his panel, including one of my personal favs, “Soul.”
And let’s not forget to mention the giant banner of Jason hanging all by itself at the back of the theater. Rich said it looked like something that you would see on a milk carton, thus launching the “Jason Is Missing” joke that ran throughout the con weekend.
Gabriel Tigerman was the next panel on Friday afternoon. At this point, I’d like to mention that I missed his panel (photo ops) but no worries! Lynn is so good with her live tweets, it’s really the best notes for writing these recaps! Also, I recently discovered a new photographer, Melissa Fudge and I actually got to meet her in Dallas. She graciously agreed to share some of her photos of Gabriel with us for this article.
Gabriel told a story about fanboying over Michael C. Hall. When Michael finally stopped to say hi to him, Gabriel had just taken out his new Invisalign and was frozen there holding it in his hand, complete with the spit strand! (Ewwww) So he has much sympathy for any of us meeting the people we fan. (Moral of the story – do not wear your Invisalign to cons!)
Gabe is the most incredible story teller. If you’ve never seen him onstage, do yourself a favor and catch him the next time he’s at a con. Be prepared for your sides to hurt from laughing though.
Gabriel talked about his experiences on Supernatural. At the time, he didn’t know the importance of Baby, so he was confused about why everyone was so nervous for him to drive the car. He also believes Andy was on the side of good… meanwhile, Gabe is on the side of whatever kept him on the show, hence, be gentle driving Baby.
He also talked about reading fanfiction, saying it was mostly “blah blah blah, blow job, blah blah blah.” I get you, Gabe. I’ve never read fanfiction, but that’s pretty much what I expected it to be. Lol.
[Oh people, alot of it is alot better than that…] — L
Briana Buckmaster was the next panel. She talked about playing Donna, saying how freeing it was to play a character in uniform with her hair up and not wearing any make up… I relate to this so much because this is literally me everyday, except without the uniform. She also talked about the donut scene opposite Jensen Ackles; she wanted to be a pro and not crack, but it was so hard! I cannot even imagine trying to get through that scene!
She talked about Kim Rhodes and their friendship, saying they fell in love over cookies and coffee. She said their first scene together was the lollipop scene:
Briana: Sorry, I swear a lot.
Kim: You don’t know me yet.
Lol
She also talked about the women who inspire her, including Kim Rhodes and Lisa Berry, among others. She said these women make her feel bigger. She went on to say, “We don’t have to do anything to be better than ourselves. Confidence is a muscle.” And that’s Briana, just dropping truth bombs that explode inside of me and seep into the darkest corners of my soul.
She also mentioned that all the guys have crushes on Alex Calvert. They all think he’s so cool and try to imitate how he dresses. I’ll tell you what Alex had to say in response to that when I do the recap of Sunday in Dallas – LOL.
Briana talked about music and singing, saying, “For me, it isn’t about getting rich or being famous. It’s for me.” Oh and, God bless the fan that asked her about musical theater, because Briana belted out a song from Ragtime and it was glorious. G L O R I O U S.
The final panel on Friday featured Samantha Smith. She talked about working with Jared and Jensen, and said that Jared is amazing, he wears his emotions on the outside. She also said she loves working with them, but it’s a little challenging to work with them all together, at the same time. (As we all can imagine…)
She said when she read the script and saw that Mary was leaving, she was worried, but she came to understand Mary; she thinks that Mary saw herself as a liability, so that’s why she left. She also said she felt the flashbacks in her final episode were the “most Mary she’s ever been.” Oh I couldn’t agree more. I so wish we had seen more of that Mary.
She talked about that montage scene showing the initials on the table. She said when she first saw it, she just started crying. Same, Samantha, Same.
[YMMV] – L
Speaking of crying… her favorite moment was the 300th episode with Jared, Jensen, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan. She said Jared was telling every bad joke that he knew, they were throwing food, and arguing about whether Sam and Dean would drink wine. In other words, it was a good time.
Samamtha said it was quite awkward to kiss Jeffrey while Jared and Jensen were watching. Ok, but personally, I’d risk that awkwardness, just sayin.
She also said that “having all four of us together in that episode felt very big”, and they all just kept crying. Again I say, Same, Samantha, Same.
She talked about Jack, saying that Mary would forgive him. Jack is like a two-year-old having a tantrum, so you have to forgive.
Samantha: So she basically mommed herself right out of existence.
And that ends Friday in Dallas! After panels, we went back to our friends’ house where we were treated to a full, home cooked meal including smoked brisket and cake. Let me say that again – Caaaaaaakkkkkeee. It was a good day indeed.
Coming soon: Saturday panels in Dallas!
-Kim.
@MamaPrior
Thanks for all the amazing photos and summary , much appreciated for those of us who couldn’t be there.