Canon Discrepancies

A list of Supernatural inconsistencies that have occurred during its run.

Archangels
In "The Great Escapist", Metatron described the archangels as wanting to rule the Universe, forcing him to flee so his vast knowledge would not be used by them. This is inconsistent with the behavior of the four archangels, who have not showed signs of wanting to take control over the Universe or even make contact with the Tablets, objects that would have granted them the power to do so. Ironically, Lucifer was in possession of one of these tablets since he had hidden it inside his crypt, yet he showed no signs of wanting to use it.

In "Hell's Angel", Amara refers to Lucifer as the "first son", which is inconsistent with statements made by Michael and Lucifer throughout season 5, in which Michael is the first son and Lucifer is the second. It is unclear why Amara said this.

Grand Canyon
In season 8's episode "The Great Escapist", Sam recalls a visit to the Grand Canyon when he was four years old, however, Dean mentions in season 2 episode "Croatoan" that they have never been to the Grand Canyon.

Writer Ben Edlund admits this to be a mistake on his part.

Lilith's plan
For the entirety of season 3 and most of season 4, Lilith's plan was to kill Sam Winchester in order to rid herself of any opposition so she could claim the throne of Hell. She sends a number demons after Sam and personally attempts to kill him in the season 3 finale, only to become scared when Sam proves immune to her powers.

By season 4's episode "The Monster at the End of This Book", Lilith wants to make a deal with Sam and obtain his soul in exchange for escaping her fate as the final seal to Lucifer's Cage. Again, she makes an attempt to kill Sam, indicating she was pretending to offer a deal. By the season 4's finale, she has submitted to her fate and lets Sam kill her as he was pre-destined to.

This behavior is odd since Lilith had, pre-season 3, ordered Ruby to act as a double agent and feed Sam demon blood so he would become powerful enough to kill Lilith anyway. Her motive for killing Sam appears inconsistent with her endgame.

Lucifer's Cage
There seems to be an inconsistent statement regarding how Lucifer was cast into Hell and subsequently the Cage. It is initially said that God had been the one to banish Lucifer into his prison, though season 5 reveals that Michael did it on God's orders following the conclusion of the First Heaven Civil War. Dean tells Rowena in "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" that God had dumped Lucifer into the Cage himself, which is untrue.

The Darkness
Up until season 11 finale "Alpha and Omega", killing Amara has never been stated to cause any side effects. Prior to this, attempts have been made by the angels and Dean, though both have failed due to the power gap. It is mentioned that during the First War against the Darkness, God and the archangels did not destroy Amara simply because they were not powerful enough, and had to resort to tricking her and then imprisoning her.

After God is weakened by Amara, the sun and plants show signs of decaying since God and Amara must co-exist or both must cease to exist in order to allow creation to remain.

This is due to CW, the network which hosts Supernatural, demanding a change of script since God cannot be killed. Rob Benedict, who portrays God, also revealed at a convention that God was originally supposed to die until CW intervened.

The missing year between season 5 & 6
The first five seasons take place in the current time, matching with the year the season was aired in. Season 5 concludes around May 2010. Between season 5 and 6, a year has gone by during which Dean has been living with Lisa and Ben Braeden, and by the time Sam gets his soul back in season 6 episode "Like A Virgin", a year and a half has gone by since the season 5 finale. This would put the date around November 2011.

However, the Supernatural crew decided to resume their tradition of giving each season the same year it was aired in, leading season 6 to be marked with the year 2010.