Castiel (Supernatural)

Plot

After Dean Winchester is dragged to Hell by Lilith's hellhounds at the end of season three, the angel Castiel makes his first appearance in the season four premiere "Lazarus Rising" by pulling Dean out of the pit and resurrecting him. Since looking at his true form usually causes blindness, Castiel borrows the body of a devout man named James "Jimmy" Novak, who actually prayed for this arrangement. He explains to Dean that God brought him back because there's a job to do: Lilith is cracking open the 66 seals to set Lucifer free, and Dean has to stop her.

Throughout the season, Castiel pops up regularly, once sending Dean back in time and later ordering the brothers to stop witches from breaking another seal. He shows up with the angel Uriel to kill Anna Milton, a fallen angel who can eavesdrop on angelic conversations. Anna manages to banish them with an old Enochian symbol, but they track her down anyway. Castiel admits he feels bad about having to kill her, but before they can finish the job, the demon Alastair and his cronies attack.

Castiel nearly loses the fight until Dean steps in, and Anna gets her powers back. Later, Castiel grows suspicious of Uriel and calls him out. Uriel confesses that he and some other angels are helping free Lucifer because they're tired of God's silence and resent His preference for humans. Castiel refuses to join, attacks, and gets overpowered, but Anna kills Uriel before he can finish Castiel off.

Shaken by the questionable orders from Heaven and influenced by Anna, Castiel starts doubting Heaven's agenda. He later reveals that Chuck is a Prophet and, when Dean begs for help saving Sam, hints that the archangel guarding a Prophet will step in if the Prophet is in danger, giving Dean a secret way to rescue his brother.

Characterization

Castiel usually keeps his emotions hidden and carries a deeply serious demeanor. Even though some suggest angels might lack the capacity for real feeling, he often shows clear fondness for Dean. This bond and his developing emotions lead his superiors to demote him, worried that sentiment is clouding his decisions. During the fourth season, he nearly shows regret, hesitation, and anger on several occasions, and once lets out a quiet laugh at a joke Dean tells.

Actor Misha Collins says that through Dean, Castiel is picking up lessons about humanity and rediscovering his own, which slowly makes him more human. He starts wrestling with questions of right and wrong and whether to follow Heaven’s orders. Collins thinks that spending time with Sam and Dean leaves the angel feeling uncertain and more fragile, and that Castiel wishes he could be as decisive as Dean. After losing his link to Heaven in the fifth season, his human side grows faster.

He appears nervous in a brothel, gets visibly upset when he asks Dean for help, and calls the Archangel Raphael “my little bitch.” When he later becomes the “new God,” he grows arrogant but still shows a caring side, eventually giving back the souls to Purgatory and feeling remorse. He promises Dean he will find a way to make things right, revealing how much Dean’s opinion matters to him. After losing his memory, Castiel becomes more human than ever, though some of his emotionless nature remains.

When his memory returns, he deeply regrets the harm he caused Sam and sacrifices himself to save him out of guilt. Waking from a catatonic state, he acts insane and rambles about random topics, yet he still gladly helps Sam and Dean and knows plenty about supernatural matters. He refuses to fight, even when threatened, and calls himself “bad luck,” believing he should stay away from the Winchesters.

Development

The character was created for the fourth season to introduce Christian mythology to the series. Series creator Eric Kripke wanted to keep the introduction of angels a secret, so the character was described as a demon during auditions. Kripke named the character after googling "Angel of Thursday," because the show aired on Thursdays. Once Collins got the part, Kripke's main direction was that the character has an otherworldly quality and has not been up close with human beings for two thousand years, so he has a naive curiosity about their behavior.

Series director Kim Manners encouraged Collins to play Castiel with an air of "piousness." Kripke based Castiel's appearance on the comic book character John Constantine. To prepare, Collins read the Book of Revelation and somewhat based his character around his younger brother, who has something "angelic about him" and calmly stares into someone's eyes. To avoid biblically toned dialogue sounding "campy," Collins plays it as real as possible.

Because Castiel's true voice shattered windows in his premiere episode, Collins used a "gruff, resonant voice" for the character. When portraying the host Jimmy Novak, he created a distinction with different physical and personality traits and a "more boyish kind of sound." Speaking of the fifth season, Collins noted the big joke is that Castiel doesn't understand human behavior, and there is something funny in that if he's the straight man. He was hesitant about making the character "the funny guy" but believes the writers found "the line," allowing jokes to be more subtle and believable.

Reception

Critics and fans alike embraced Castiel from the start. TV.com ranked him ninth among the best new supporting characters of 2008, while TelevisionWithoutPity’s staff and voters named him the Most Welcome New Character for the 2008–2009 season. BuddyTV’s John Kubicek put him on a list of ten TV characters deserving their own spin-offs. TV Squad called him the top reason to watch the series, praising how the “slightly awkward, frighteningly precise angel” effectively conveyed the menace and vengefulness of God’s heavenly creatures.

Karla Peterson of The San Diego Union-Tribune labeled the character concept “genius” and actor Misha Collins “fabulous.” IGN’s Diana Steenbergen ranked Castiel fourth among the “Ten Things We Love About Supernatural,” noting Collins’ “somber intensity” and the character’s curiosity about humans. She highlighted his dual role as Castiel and his host Jimmy Novak in “The Rapture,” saying the audience instantly knows the person on screen is not Castiel.

Fan reaction was equally strong. Collins himself admitted he expected the role to be just another job and was unprepared for the enthusiastic response. Originally written for only a six-episode arc, Castiel’s part was extended through the rest of the season. When Supernatural was renewed for a fifth season, Collins was promoted to a series regular, a move he credits largely to fan support.