Style Saturday: Wearing Winchester
Those boys are back again – Supernatural has risen from the darkness for season 11. The adventures of the brothers Winchester have long been jumping the shark, going from ridiculous to ridiculous with each season. This time around, they’ve found themselves going against the darkness that existed before the light. Or something like that, it’s really hard to follow. In any case, they’re battling an insurmountable force that, over the next 20-something episodes, they’re going to surmount in spectacularly melodramatic fashion.
The show has become famous for adhering, to an almost foolhardy extent, to the slightly comical mix of jovial humor and dark themes of family, self-destruction and inescapable destiny. For every moment of plot that shows someone condemned for all eternity, there’s another with Dean and Castiel having a misunderstanding over the tone of a joke. One need only search for “Supernatural gif” in google images to see the mix of poignant quotes and out of context one-liners that haunt every season.
Among the fandom, the characters are the most loved part, for good reason. Dean and Sam have maintained a great chemistry that’s held tight for the ten seasons, flanked by Castiel and Crowley who both help keep the air from getting stale when Dean and Sam run the danger of wearing a little thin with all the screentime. The Winchesters are the profoundly human to the Castiel and Crowley profoundly inhuman.
These outfits are an attempt to reflect the big difference between the brothers (who basically wear the same outfit, but with different colours) and Castiel and Crowley. (This is my first and likely only Style Saturday, I have no idea what I’m doing. Please, go easy on me.)
Dean and Sam
Being hunters of the demonic and brothers, Dean and Sam tend to wear more or less the same ensemble. The clothes reflect their need to blend in but also to be able to move and handle themselves in a situation. Indistinct, regular and absolutely masculine, Sam and Dean’s regular clothes make them hard to pick out from a crowd but don’t betray their ability to throw a punch, either.
Top down, it’s pretty basic; shirt, jacket, jeans and boots. The shirt is usually a block color – but I chose the red plaid as it’s a personal favorite. Both smart and casual, one can never go wrong with a well taken care of shirt and jacket combination. Allows one to slide into almost any social situation without a batted eyelid, which is handy for when you need to get cozy with some dark entities hiding out in human form. The jeans and boots combination can be a little heavy depending on the weather (though right now it’s definitely that time of year!) but they’re functional for any occasion. Slightly worn jeans, boots and the shirt give off a pseudo-lumberjack vibe; manly, but comfy.
Jeans €42, Boots €40, Shirt €31, Jacket €36
Total: €149
Castiel and Crowley
The REAL supernatural pairing of the show. Well, not really – Castiel and Crowley hate each other, mostly. They’re on opposite ends of the spectrum for Dean and Sam. Crowley is often an anti-villain they’re rallying against, while Castiel is a force for good that tries to work with the Winchesters but whose intentions often cause more trouble than they may be worth.
Creating an outfit that combines them is interesting to me as a fan of the show because they are the literal devil and angle on the shoulders of Dean and Sam and their individual outfits reflect that. Crowley is all black, all the time and Castiel is the simple man’s suit and jacket. No frills on either side. So, to put them together is something that’s a little difficult as you’re in semi-formal block colours either way, but I tried to spice it up in a way that fans of the show may pick up. Up front we have the raincoat, a mainstay of Castiel’s look. Totally functional and worthwhile for most any occasion. It is a bit expensive, but a good raincoat has many uses so it’s a one off payment worth making! Underneath, the ensemble is kept together by a core of a shirt and slacks combo. White and black, you truly can’t go wrong. Then, we’ve the black cardigan and the tie. Using the cardigan, it blends the dark nature of Crowley with the innocence of Castiel. Not to mention, it’s light, so underneath the raincoat you won’t be sweltering. The tie, with its blue and black, sets off the colour of the piece, followed by the converse underneath. And if you need to know why the converse are there, we can’t be friends (nah, we’re cool, converse are just the best shoe for any occasion!)
Raincoat €120, Shirt €40, Pants €28, Tie €60, Converse €48
Total: €296
