Supernatural has aired for nine seasons now, and in that time the series has taught us everything we need to know about being a hunter of the paranormal, otherworldly, and weird. Always carry salt and a lighter, memorize the exorcism spell, get the anti-possession symbol tattooed on your person as soon as possible, and prepare a stack of fake IDs. When Dean and Sam Winchester roll into town to investigate a case, they have to present themselves as legit professionals because trying to explain the whole saving people, hunting things family business doesn’t go over well most of the time.
Over the years, the Winchesters & Co. have pretended to be a variety of government agents, doctors, reporters, and even priests. They have to have the world’s largest stash of faux badges and cards for their different aliases. I have a big pile of club and discount cards taking up a not-tiny amount of room in my purse – where do they keep their IDs and who keeps them organized? Yes, I have burning questions. Anyway, the Winchesters make their aliases interesting by using names of famous musicians such as Ted Nugent and James Hetfield.
Once in a while though, they break the pattern and pull their aliases from sci-fi movies and comics. My nerdy heart grows three sizes when it happens so I’ve rounded up the best instances when the Winchesters & Co. have given fake geeky names over the years:
1) They start the geek references in the third episode of Season 1, “Dead in the Water.” Sam and Dean investigate a mysterious drowning in Wisconsin, and Dean introduces them as U.S. Wildlife Service Agents Ford and Hamill. He’s clearly referring to Harrison Ford and Mark Hamill in their roles as Han Solo and Luke Skywalker. Thankfully no one they talked to was also a fan of Star Wars.
2) In Season 2’s “Heart” (it’s episode 17), Sam and Dean head to San Francisco to look into deaths that seem related to werewolf activity. Dean says he and Sam are Detectives Landis and Dante, and those names have horror film connections. John Landis directed An American Werewolf in London while Joe Dante directed The Howling. Yep, that one should be hashtagged #iseewhatyoudidthere.
3) “Long-Distance Call,” episode 14 in Season 3, features victims receiving phone calls from dead loved ones urging them to join them on the other side. This is why you let all phone calls go to voicemail, kids. Sam and Dean pretend to be with the phone company and go by the names Mr. Campbell and Mr. Raimi – as in Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi. In this episode, we also hear Dean’s outgoing voicemail message that says, “This is Herman Munster…”
4) Bela, a character who pops up from time to time, uses a couple of vampire related aliases in Season 3. She calls herself both Bela Lugosi, the actor who played Dracula, and Mina Chandler, a combination of a character and actress name from the same Dracula movie.
5) My favorite reference happens in the first episode of Season 4, “Lazarus Rising.” Dean’s searching for Sam and calls the cell phone company to turn on GPS tracking on Sam’s phone. He gives the name Wedge Antilles, and Bobby’s impressed that he knows to use that name.
6) Bobby hits the road with other hunters, but he’s also one of the few in the profession who have a home base. He’s often ready to take calls to verify identities, and in Season 6’s “Weekend at Bobby’s,” we see his phone has lines for various numbers including the FBI, Health Department, etc. His name for the CDC is labeled as Frank Castle, which I choose to believe is because of Marvel’s The Punisher.
7) Season 7’s third episode, “The Girl Next Door,” is all about human-like creatures called kitsunes. The kitsune they’re after uses the alias of Amy Pond, the Eleventh Doctor’s companion in Doctor Who.
8) When Charlie enters the series, the geeky references go up. In episode 20 of Season 8, “Pac-Man Fever,” she finds a case for Sam and Dean involving djinn. Dean and Charlie pose as FBI Agents Hicks and Ripley from Dwayne Hicks and Ellen Ripley from the Alien franchise. We also see Charlie’s stash of passports and aliases include Christine Le Guin, Annie Tolkien, and Susan Asimov. The last names are all taken from sci-fi and fantasy authors and appropriately, the Tolkien passport is for the UK.
9) “Devil May Care,” the second episode of Season 9, has the best references. Sam and Dean head to stop Abaddon and her followers from wreaking havoc and pose as FBI agents named Stark and Banner after Marvel’s Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, a/k/a Iron Man and Hulk. When the military person they give those names to doesn’t believe them, she calls to get verification from Kevin who’s not so good at lying. He says he’s Agent Kevin Solo. Best.
Did I miss including any of your favorite aliases in Supernatural? Please share them with me in the comments.
I especially liked Season 5, Episode 15, “Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid” where their FBI aliases were “Dorfman” and Neidermeyer”. It sounded familiar but I had to Google it. “National Lampoon’s Animal House” character’s. It is always such a challenge to figure them all out. Ha ha ha!
I can’t remember which ep it was in but one time when Dean gets pulled over by a cop who checks his license and calls him Mr. Hagar…that was funny!
Agents Wilson and Fisher in Season 9 were the Wilson sisters and Roger Fisher of the band Heart.
Agent taggart and rosewood the larping episode season 8
Annie Tolkien in the passport is signed Tokien :p
Agents Moscone and Mosely – from Midnight Run – I damn near fell outta my chair when Dean said those names. I freakin’ LOCVE that movie 🙂 Here’s a full list of all the aliases used on the show – http://www.supernaturalwiki.com/index.php?title=Aliases
Shaw and DeYoung. Reference to the band Styx. The episode when they are in the comic store finding about the books Supernatural
Spears and Aguilera.
Crowly calls Sam the green giant and i think farmer brown. The Hulk and some weird hillbilly
The Green Giant is a reference to the vegetable brand Green Giant and their mascot, The Jolly Green Giant.
I don’t know the name of the episode, but the guys, I believe, call themselves FBI Agents Gibbons & Beard. ZZ Top fans, clearly. 😀
Season 9 agents Aguilera and Spears
You misspelled Misha’s name in the tags. And personally, I’m a fan of classic rock as much as I am sci-fi and fantasy, so I enjoy their more usual aliases too.
Agents Tyler and Perry[Aerosmith]not sure what season
Meu seriado favorito!!!
Agent Plant and Agent Page. Robert Plant & Jimmy Page from Led Zepplin
Agents Stark and Banner! From 9×02.
Also all of the X-Files nods.
Agents Michaels & DeVille were a total nod to Poison! That’s my fave!! I can’t remember the episode right now though. X)
I thought that was also a reference to Michael (Dean) and Lucifer (Sam).
I think this alias was more of a nod to their angels! Michael and Lucifer (aka the devil :P) but that’s just my opinion(:
I love that the “Hell Hounds” (or “Ghostfacers” as they are known later) are Spangler and Zeddemore 🙂
I love the many X-Files references, as Kim Manners was involved for a while in Supernatural. Plus, watching Mitch Pileggi as Samuel was awesome.
My favorite was definitely Agents Dorfman and Niedermeyer, from Animal House.
I never remember them latter but I love the classic rock references. My favorite was the Bon Jovi one cause Dean calls Sam on that and it was just really funny.
Someone did a great video montage of this…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5b1EPseb54o
The Stark and Banner one was my favorite!!
Everytime Crowley calls them Moose and Squirrel..it cracks me up. Not aliases exactly, but still funny as hell.
Those remind me of Rocky and Bullwinkle!
best when his phone rings, and the caller is either “Moose” or “Not Moose” 😀
rocky and bullwinkle
Bela’s last name is Talbot, a reference to Lawrence Talbot, Lon Chaney’s character in The Wolf Man. And Charlie’s main alias is Bradbury.
Could also be a reference to David Talbot from vampire chronicles
In the 2st episode of the first season when they are investigating their first case while searching for their dad they impersonate FBI Agents and when they are leaving and the real Agents arrive Dean nods to them and says “Agent Mulder, Agent Scully” A clear reference to the X-Files.
lol oops 1st Episode not 2st 😛
With my kids we still play ‘slugbug’ but with a twist. Smart cars are ‘Fairies’ the soul is ‘I’ve got your Soul’ FJ Cruiser is the best, Jefferson Starship!
I still love when Castiel introduced them as Agent Spears and Aguilera
They also introduce themselves as “Agents Moffat and Davies” in one episode (I can’t remember which). That is, of course, a Doctor Who reference.
I love the Scarecrow episode in season one when Dean says “My name is Bonham, John Bonham” and the guy Scotty at the gas station says “ain’t that the drummer for Led Zeppelin” to which Dean replies “oh classic rock fan huh?”