Kevin Tran
First off, Osric Chau was really the only choice for this role. He's managed to create a character that is both inside and outside the world of Supernatural, and to a great degree, he gives us a glance back at the younger Sam Winchester, who was himself brought onto a "path" that he did not choose. Chau's acting choices demonstrate an intuitive understanding of Kevin's situation, especially in the latter half of season eight when Kevin's anger is tangible as is his willingness to use his intelligence as cleverness. Kevin Tran loses a type of innocence to the Winchesters' world; he loses what Sam never had – the ability to not know the world beneath the world.
When we first meet Kevin he's a smart high school senior who's on his way to college, perhaps reminding us that Sam, too, was like Kevin at one point - before being chosen as Lucifer's vessel, before images of a burning Jessica on the ceiling, just before. Kevin's evolution, as well, gives us an idea of how this world can affect "normalcy," the ideal against which Sam measures most of his and Dean's lives. Kevin's physical deterioration in Season 8 mimics Sam's own decline as both characters are put in service during this heavenly war. Kevin moves from an innocent looking teenager to a bedraggled, war-ravaged, young adult. It is interesting to note that for both characters, Sam and Kevin, the act of being chosen is disease-like, eating away their mortality from the inside, as if their bodies are too fragile for the work that "God" has given them.
Their bodies, then, are not so much vessels as they are vulnerable, more vulnerable than other bodies. It is almost fitting that the characters that are driven by intellect, by their minds, are held hostage through their bodies. It reinforces a sense that one can overcome bodily illness with the power of the mind….of the soul. In season 8, both characters experience the trials of what it means to both be chosen but also to choose. Now the question for the Kevin Tran character is what becomes of him, what next? Is his journey that of a Winchester? Will he be drawn into this life, never to return to the normal that was his world? Will he be sacrificed, as so many others have been, to the cost that is the Winchester legacy?
Charlie Bradbury
If Kevin is comparable to Sam then I would argue that Charlie is Dean's psychological double, in certain ways, or she's the writer's (Thompson) view of Dean through a particularly affectionate lens. When we first meet Charlie, we are introduced to a classic fangirl – a convention going, collectible loving fangirl. Now my initial reaction was hesitation. This show and its view of fandom can be quite troublesome, but both Felicia Day's performance and the narratives within which she's placed are not blatant commentary. Rather she comes into the world much like Kevin does, unsuspecting and chosen, although this time, like Dean, she is pulled into the hunting life by association. Her quirkiness is a mixture of intelligence and instinct. We find out that she didn't finish high school (like Dean) but that she's built a life full of fun and safe adventures, acting out her life through fan activities but not in an unhealthy or near dangerous way. She enjoys life.
As we get to know Charlie we see that she not only enjoys life but she has a moral core, such as in "LARP and the Real Girl" when she refuses to leave the Moondor game because her "people" are in danger. She shares this no soldier left behind trait with Dean and as we see her evolve we can see why he develops an affection for her. She also has a thread of insecurity, also seen in "LARP" when she doubts her heroic nature, a nature that Dean reaffirms by telling her that out in the "real world" she is, in fact, a hero. But seeing Charlie also allows us to see a side of Dean that is very much a part of his character - the caretaker. He cares for Charlie as he does for Castiel, as he does for Sam. Dean is both like Charlie but also utterly unlike her.
But also there is the mother issue – the dying mother trope that Charlie shares with Dean. Having lost my own mother this past December, this storyline thread affects me in a very personal way. Charlie, for all of her carefree love of the world and humor in extraordinary circumstances, is still a daughter at heart. She's still a child in so many ways. The final scene that we see of her in Season 8 is heartbreaking, as she shares one last visit with her mother, opening the book they shared as a final goodbye. The brilliance of this scene is that it humanizes Charlie and pushes her back from the edge of caricature she was perched on. In a strange and comforting way, she comes into Supernatural to remind what there is to love about Dean and also how Dean loves others.
Garth Fitzgerald
If Kevin and Charlie give us new perspectives on Sam and Dean, then Garth reminds us of the world outside the Winchesters. Like Charlie, Garth is carefree, fun-loving, and capable, but unlike Charlie, he seems to lack a tragic past. While on the surface Garth appears to take Bobby's place after the older hunter's death in season 7, he is more than simply a replacement. He understands the life in a way that Bobby and the Winchesters don't and he actually reminds me more of Rufus than Bobby.
Garth provides comic relief but he also gives us a touchstone for the hunting life, again reminding us that this is not just a Winchester story. Hunters exist. Hunting is work and not just a destiny or a heritage. While Garth appears in a handful of episodes, he is mentioned in many more. He's charged with protecting Kevin during Crowley's hunt for the young prophet. He's the person who assigns cases to hunters, including the Winchesters. The show moves him from a jester type character to a serious figure in the hunting world, allowing us to witness someone's evolution to expert in this world.
Just like with Chau's and Day's portrayals, Qualls gives Garth a sense of humanity through humor and sense. In the confrontation scene between possessed Dean and Sam in "Southern Comfort", Garth is the one who breaks through the emotional tension and confusion. He tries to reach Dean while Sam grapples with the trauma of the fight. Qualls brings to Garth a level of authenticity that makes us believe in Garth's sincerity and courage – he is the everyman who deals with the extraordinary, but instead of being overwhelmed by this fact, he embraces the path that life has put him on. What a refreshing figure in an often dark and hopeless landscape.
I, for one, am happy that all three are in our lives. Thank you, show, for bringing them here. And thank you, Osric, Felicia, and DJ, for giving them life with your voices, minds, and bodies.
Comments
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Dean's relationship with Charlie has revealed quite a bit about Dean's character, which is pretty much what a secondary character's purpose in a drama is supposed to accomplish, and I love the way Dean and Charlie connect. But why set up a similar situation between Kevin and Sam and then go nowhere with it? More's the pity. Some fans have been saying that Sam needs a friend and a confidant, someone to connect to, and other fans say that they don't understand Sam, can't see why he does what he does and so can't root for him because he's inexplicable. And yet there is a character who seems tailor made to connect with him in Kevin, and yet we've seen only one small (unsatisfying) scene in episode 1 of season 8 and nothing since. Why? Why is Kevin not utilized to reflect on Sam the way that Charlie is used to reflect on Dean; or Garth or Krissy or Cas or Benny or all of the other characters that Dean has connected with in season 8 that have helped to round out his character and explain his motivations and POV? It was like when Henry Winchester and Sam had that scene that wasn't a scene? I kept wondering during the episode "shouldn't these two guys have plenty to talk about?" "why aren't they having a conversation?" "why are we shown nothing about what is so obviously something that should be discussed between these two characters?" "Why doesn't Sam ever talk to ANYBODY, even those people who seem to have so much in common with him?"
I know that this is a tired old argument and your lovely article isn't about this issue, but this is where my mind went immediately upon reading it. Perhaps this should be moved to the bitterness thread?
Seriously, they are the epitome of the screen versions of 'Mary-Sue'. Charlie goes from being a hacker to being able to shoot better then Dean. Garth goes from being a F-up, to the new Bobby, of all things, and Kevin Tran goes from being a nerd high schooler, to out witting the top demon of the moment; Crowley. And all this in the space of a friggin year!!! Come on. Jo grew up in the life and she was still wet behind the ears when she died. Sam and Dean still get one upped by stunt demons and they've been at this since they were kids.
None of these characters feel like they fit in supernatural, they are the guest stars you can sort of like, in doses, but to be treated on the same level as Ellen, Jo, Ruffus or Bobby, is insane, to say the least. So far, the only thing done right with any of the new characters introed in season 8, was the killing off of Mamma Tran and finally closing the book on Amelia.
The fact of the matter, these 3 ppl, water down, an already watered down, show. Supernatural used to have a gritty and dark aura about it, (occasionally broken up with humor, which, in its way, enhanced the darkness of the show) now, there is a level of camp that is highlighted, and enhanced, by these three characters. Plainly put, the only new addition to the show that has not negatively worked against the feel of the show has been Benny.
If the new writers want to bring in new supporting characters, fine. But please make them fit and not try and reinterpret this great show, just to make it more palatable to some geeky new audience that would not understand it anyway.
But Kevin is far and away my favorite.
And I can see why you didn't mention her since she was so briefly in the episode last season -but where's the love for Jody Mills?!
E, we once again agree. In the first episode of the season, we they were sitting in the Impala after his girlfriend got killed. Dean has a PTSD moment, I'm assuming, and goes off on Kevin because he's not over a few hours later and leaves Sam in the car with Kevin. So I'm like cool they're going to bond over this but it immediately switches to Dean talking to Benny. WTF! To me they've alluded to how similar they are on several occasion. But it has not really gone anywhere. I still don't understand why Cas and Sam don't talk considering they've both made similar mistakes and have been comrades in arms for several years. Why does Sam not speak to people more? It's kind of frustrating. Maybe it'll happen this year.
Despite doing very well by the supportings, sadly S8 also perpetuated some frustrating patterns. :/ But the field of recurrings isn't anemic and the characters we've kept are being fleshed out and are believable and appealing.
I'd love to see Sam connecting more with these other characters--I agree with the above commenters that Sam and Kevin seem to have a connection that could be developed and also we need more Sam and Cas scenes (we're told they're good friends but we don't get enough scenes with them). I think SPN is richer for Sam and Dean having meaningful relationships outside of only each other, and these characters add a very necessary richness to the world of the show.
Nice article! I'm looking forward to seeing where these characters go in S9 (and crossing my fingers they'll have longevity).
That being said, all three characters are welcome additions to the show; Kevin has really developed a lot since his introduction in S7, where he was a bit shrill and annoying. Charlie is great and hope to see her a few times in S9.
About the three characters
Kevin mirrors Sam but has zero scenes which tell us about what Sam went through this season..all these characters are a waste in my eyes if they are used only to give us insight about Dean.