Where Supernatural went wrong with Crowley’s character

Crowley’s character was originally one to fear and question every step of the way on Supernatural, until a turning point in the Season 8 finale. Here’s where the writers went wrong with the character development.

While writing about how Lucifer is becoming the new Crowley, it got me thinking about what went wrong with Crowley’s character. Just where did the Supernatural writers fail to develop the former King of the Crossroads and the King of Hell? At what point did he start to become a joke?

For me, it all started with the Supernatural Season 8 finale. There was that epic moment when he screamed, “I deserve to be loved.” It was a human side to the character we’d never seen before and something that we could have done with more of later on. This brought an opportunity the writers missed the mark on.

The addiction to human blood

More from Supernatural

• Jensen Ackles and The Winchesters cast kick off #SaveTheWinchesters campaign
• Will The Winchesters be saved? (Can Supernatural fans save the prequel?)
• Did The Winchesters get renewed? (Is The Winchesters season 2 happening?)
• Is a new episode of The Winchesters on tonight? (March 14, 2023)
• The Winchesters Season1 finale explained: Did it connect to Supernatural?

Supernatural has brought up a lot about addiction over the years. Sam faced demon blood addiction, while Dean found himself unable to stop killing because of the Mark of Cain. Castiel found himself addicted to power in Season 6, as he attempted to stop Raphael. Crowley’s addiction was human blood in Supernatural Season 9.

After opening up the feelings and gaining a human element to his character in the Season 8 finale, the writers had a chance to explore this more. They could have delved into the exploration of a demon soul starting the transformation back to human and never quite accomplishing it. Rather than just turning everything back to normal, there was a chance to show that human soul fighting to make a comeback.

Instead, Crowley fought off the addiction without really showing how. One minute he was craving human blood and the next minute he was back to his usual ways.

Watch your favorite shows on fuboTV: Watch over 67 live sports and entertainment channels with a 7-day FREE trial!

Losing a role for Crowley

After this point, Supernatural seemed to lose a role for Crowley in the story. The demons no longer respected him but he couldn’t quite fit in with the Winchesters. There was a chance for Crowley and Deanmon to cause havoc on the world, but all they did was play fussball and drink! Deanmon made Crowley look like a mockery in front of the other demons and this Deanmon storyline stuck around for all of three episodes.

There was so much wasted potential within the storylines that came after the Supernatural Season 8 finale. Crowley was a character that turned up now and then but didn’t have a major role unless the Winchesters needed him. There was never a chance to stand out on his own and cause the havoc and instill the fear he did way back in Seasons 5 and 6.

Next: Mark Sheppard shares his views on the terms fandom and the SPN Family

Do you think the Supernatural writers lost it a little with Crowley’s character? Where could they have delved deeper? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Supernatural Season 13 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.