Season 5

"Lilith did not break the final seal. Lilith was the final seal. I killed her, and I set Lucifer free."

- Sam

Supernatural was renewed for a fifth season by The CW on February 24, 2009. The season consists of 22 episodes and aired on Thursdays at 9PM EST.

The season premiered on September 10, 2009 with Sympathy for the Devil and ended on May 13, 2010 with Swan Song.

Spoilers ahead.

Season Summary
Immediately after Sam frees Lucifer from Hell, he and Dean become targets of both Heaven and Hell. They are threats because they are destined to be the respective vessels of Lucifer and the Archangel Michael (the eldest of the archangels and the one responsible for casting Lucifer from Heaven), who will fight in a destined match to determine Earth's future. This would result in the deaths of millions of innocent people who would be in the crossfire. If Dean refuses Michael, Lucifer will destroy the human race with the Four Horsemen, the living embodiments of the four plagues, however Sam saying yes to Lucifer will only speed up the Devil's plans. Additionally Bobby is crippled and wheelchair-bound. Faced with no other choice, Sam and Dean team up with their angel ally and friend Castiel to look for a means to defeat both Heaven and Hell whilst battling angels, demons and even archangels.

Their journey pushes the Winchesters' relationship to the breaking point as they both learn how they truly feel about each other and at points agree with Michael and Lucifer. Both from distrust in each other and from not seeing any other choice. They also learn that Michael and Lucifer are a lot alike and what Sam and Dean potentially could be, only further persuading them when Sam and Dean themselves become distant. The boys' journey also leads to the deaths of many of their dear friends such as Ellen and Jo while other old friends such as Anna side against them and the Four Horsemen continue to bring Hell to Earth as the brothers seem to think all hope is lost even after some personal encounters with Lucifer and Michael themselves. Meanwhile, Castiel begins a mission to find God even going as far as to face the archangel Raphael to find him, only to deduce from the angel Joshua, the angel who talks to God, that God won't help. Additionally, the brothers try to kill Lucifer with the Colt, who regain it from a powerful crossroads demon named Crowley, who is also the King of the Crossroads and wants the boys to kill Lucifer, but the they do not succeed. However, the boys eventually gain hope from the Trickster, who is actually the archangel Gabriel (who is the youngest of the archangels and left Heaven because he couldn't take the fighting between his brothers), and who also, after re-gaining his faith in humanity, tells Sam and Dean that the Rings of the Four Horsemen are keys to Lucifer's Cage and that the brothers can trap Lucifer. So Sam, Dean, Castiel, Bobby, and Crowley (who restores Bobby's legs) all go after the rings and after gaining them, Sam willingly decides to let Lucifer possess him to he can take back control, open the cage, and fall in.

In the season finale, their plan falters and Lucifer fully possesses Sam while Michael meets him on the battlefield. As the brothers talk, Lucifer tries to convince Michael to have them both "walk off the chess board" but Michael won't listen and decides to have an altercation with Lucifer. Dean, after finding the battlefield with help from Chuck the prophet, rides onto the field with the Impala in a desperate attempt to get through to Sam but Lucifer instead beats Dean to a pulp as he explodes Castiel and snaps Bobby's neck but in the end the Winchesters' love proves more powerful than Lucifer's rage and Sam re-takes control, opens the cage door and falls in bringing, Lucifer, Michael, and Adam into it with him. A resurrected Castiel, who is now more powerful than before, then heals Dean, brings back Bobby and the trio part their separate ways. While Castiel returns to Heaven to possibly try and rule it and Bobby resumes hunting, Dean, on Sam's insistence, goes to Lisa and retires from killing monsters and begins a new and normal life away from hunting to be with her. That same night, however, Sam appears outside their house mysteriously.

Main Cast

 * Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester (22/22), Alternate Lucifer (1/22), Gary Frankle (1/22) , and Lucifer (1/22)
 * Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester (22/22) and Alternate Dean Winchester (1/22)
 * Misha Collins as Castiel (14/22) and Alternate Castiel (1/22)

Special Guest Stars

 * Paris Hilton as Leshi and Herself (1/22)

Guest Stars

 * Jim Beaver as Bobby Singer (10/22) and Bobby's Demon (1/22)
 * Rob Benedict as Chuck Shurley (God) (4/22) and Alternate Chuck Shurley (God) (1/22)
 * Kurt Fuller as Zachariah (4/22)
 * Alona Tal as Jo Harvelle (2/22)
 * Samantha Ferris as Ellen Harvelle (2/22)
 * Richard Speight Jr. ﻿as Gabriel (2/22)
 * Cindy Sampson as Lisa Braeden (2/22)
 * Jake Abel as Adam Milligan (2/22) and Michael (1/22)
 * Genevieve Padalecki as Ruby (1/22)
 * Katherine Boecher as Lilith (1/22)
 * Steven Williams as Rufus Turner (1/22)
 * Adrianne Palicki as Lucifer (1/22)
 * Amy Gumenick as Young Mary Winchester (1/22)
 * Julie McNiven as Anna Milton (1/22)
 * Matt Cohen as Young John Winchester and Michael (1/22)
 * Chad Lindberg as Ash (1/22)
 * Colin Ford as Young Sam WInchester (1/22)
 * Samantha Smith as Mary Winchester and Azazel (1/22)
 * Traci Dinwiddie as Pamela Barnes (1/22)
 * A.J. Buckley as Ed Zeddmore (1/22)
 * Travis Wester as Harry Spangler (1/22)
 * Nicholas Elia as Ben Braeden (1/22)

Co-Stars

 * Mark Pellegrino as Lucifer (5/22) and Nick (1/22)
 * Mark A. Sheppard as Crowley (3/22)
 * Emily Perkins as Becky Rosen (2/22)
 * Rachel Miner as Meg (2/22)
 * Matt Frewer as Pestilence (2/22)
 * Bellamy Young as Sarah and Lucifer (1/22)
 * Titus Welliver as War (1/22)
 * Demore Barnes as Donnie Finnerman and Raphael (1/22)
 * Chad Everett as Old Dean Winchester (1/22)
 * Jon Gries as Martin Creaser (1/22)
 * Colton James as Gary Frankle and Sam Winchester (1/22)
 * Matt Ward as Young Uriel (1/22)
 * Carrie Anne Fleming as Karen Singer (1/22)
 * Kim Rhodes as Jody Mills (1/22)
 * Kerry van der Griend as Roy(1/22)
 * Nels Lennarson as Walt (1/22)
 * Roger Aaron Brown as Joshua (1/22)
 * Julian Richings as Death (1/22)

Trivia

 * The season had an average of 2.64 million viewers and 1.2 rating.
 * This season marks the first appearances of Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Heaven, Hybrids, Seraphim and Wraith.
 * Misha Collins has been promoted to main cast this season and this is due to the overwhelming positive response of the fans.
 * This is the only season where all of the Archangels (Michael, Lucifer, Raphael and Gabriel) are shown.
 * There were rumors that this was the last season due to Eric Kripke's statements over the years that he had planned for the show to run for only five seasons.
 * This season marked the shows 100th episode.
 * Fittingly, the episode 99 Problems is the show's 99th episode.
 * Despite his apparent death in Hammer of the Gods, Gabriel is revealed to be alive in Season 13's Devil's Bargain.
 * In Dark Side of the Moon, Joshua identifies God as the one who resurrected Castiel following his death at the hands of Raphael in Lucifer Rising/Sympathy for the Devil. In Swan Song, Castiel suspects that God resurrected him once again. In Don't Call Me Shurley, God confirms to Metatron that "I rebuilt Castiel more times than I can remember."
 * In Swan Song, when Castiel is resurrected, he comes back "new and improved" as a Seraphim, a rank confirmed by a comment in Season 8's Blood Brother.
 * In Swan Song, Castiel suggests that God helped "maybe more than we realize" to stop the Apocalypse. In Season 11, the revelation that God and Chuck are one and the same shows that he did help more than they knew in the guise of Chuck, something he explained as getting "a front-row seat" to the Apocalypse. God comments that he not only helped the Winchesters, he saved them, particularly by resurrecting Castiel so much.