The Thing

The Thing is the 17th episode of Season 13. It aired on April 5, 2018.

Summary
Sam and Dean continue to collect the pieces necessary to open a rift to the other world in order to save their family. Their latest quest leads them to a Men of Letters bunker from the 1920s and a hungry God from another dimension. Meanwhile, Arthur Ketch (guest star David Haydn-Jones) makes a shocking decision about Gabriel (guest star Richard Speight Jr.) after an unruly encounter with Asmodeus (guest star Jeffrey Vincent Parise).

Plot
TBA.

Main Cast

 * Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester
 * Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester

Guest Stars

 * Richard Speight Jr. as Gabriel
 * David Haydn-Jones as Arthur Ketch

Co Stars

 * Jeffrey Vincent Parise as Asmodeus
 * Magda Apanowicz as Sandy Porter and Yokoth
 * Tiffany Smith as Ophelia Avila
 * Carl Montoya as Diego Avila
 * Lee Page as Asmodeus' Guard
 * Ivan Wanis-Ruiz as Marco Avila
 * Raye Adams as Joanne
 * Sean Depner as Buck
 * Chiara Guzzo as Amy

Featured Supernatural Beings

 * Archangel
 * Demons
 * Deities
 * Nephilim
 * Prince of Hell

Continuity

 * Arthur Ketch, Asmodeus and Gabriel previously appeared in Devil's Bargain.
 * A deity was previously featured in the Season 12 episode The Memory Remains.
 * The Archangel Blade was previously seen in Devil's Bargain.
 * A grace of an archangel was previously seen in War of the Worlds.
 * The Key of the Order of Letters was previously seen in the Season 11 episode Alpha and Omega.

Trivia

 * The episode was watched by 1.41 million viewers and got a 0.4 rating. This makes it the second lowest watched and rated episode of the season, with the lowest being War of the Worlds.
 * The title of the episode is a reference to the 1982 American science-fiction horror movie starring Kurt Russell, making this the third episode of the season to have titles referencing movies starring Kurt Russell with Tombstone and Breakdown being the first two.
 * All three of these episodes were written by Davy Perez.
 * It is revealed in this episode that Asmodeus injects some of Gabriel's grace into himself. This would explain why he has powers beyond those of the other Princes of Hell, such as the ability to shapeshift and smiting.
 * After finding the Seal of Solomon, Dean says "jinkies," annoying Sam. This is a reference to Velma from Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! who recently appeared in ScoobyNatural.
 * Sam is able to open the secret door to the Men of Letters outpost using the Key of the Order of Letters. Previously in The British Invasion, Mick Davies had told the Winchesters that their key opened every Men of Letters chapter house in the world.
 * Sam reveals that the Men of Letters had only one bunker, but they had smaller chapter houses or outposts all over the place. Two are revealed to be in Jamestown and Portsmouth, Rhode Island. In The Werther Project, another Men of Letters chapter house in St. Louis held the Werther Box before it was sold after Abaddon slaughtered the Men of Letters.
 * After seeing the interior of the outpost, the Winchesters comment that it looks familiar due to its obvious resemblance to the Men of Letters bunker.
 * In this episode, the year is given as 2018. In Good Intentions, it was around November, 2017.
 * The "Then" segment of the episode combines a voiceover from Henry Winchester taken from As Time Goes By, the Winchesters watching the Demon Curing Ritual records in Clip Show and edited footage from the flashback to 1932 in the beginning of Slumber Party to explain the Men of Letters.
 * This is the first time Sam and Dean saw Gabriel since the Season 5 episode Hammer of the Gods.
 * Yokoth and Glythur's names are a nod to writers Steve Yockey and Meredith Glynn.