10 Controversial TV Show Retcons That Pissed Off Fans

It has long been accepted to never, ever take the stakes in Supernatural at face value. The Winchester brothers have died so many times each that it's difficult to ever believe they're in any real danger, and there are multiple instances across the lore of the show where information is retconned to suit a new angle of the plot and keep everyone safe.

But Archangels and their vessels are such a vital part of the plot that it's pretty annoying to never get solid answers on what their true functions are. Dean and Sam were preordained from birth to be the vessels for Michael and Lucifer respectively, and yet the show never commits to any definition of what it means to be a vessel.

In the third episode of season five, Dean and Castiel visit Donnie Finnerman in the hospital, who has been left braindead after being the vessel for Raphael. Castiel solemnly tells Dean that Michael's power will leave Dean's body in an even worse state once he's through with him, and that vessels end up paralyzed as a minimum after hosting an Archangel. This very clearly set up the stakes and emphasised the power of the Archangels: if Dean is taken over, he'll be left for dead once his purpose has been served.

But later on in the season, Michael tells Dean he won't leave him a "drooling mess", and in season 12, President Jefferson Rooney is completely fine after being Lucifer's vessel. So... what is the truth? Was Castiel just lying? Or did the writers put that bit of lore in for dramatic effect, knowing they would retcon in later to become yet another example of Winchester plot armour?

Archangels and angels in general are riddled with retcons that never make their lore entirely clear (remember when they weren't supposed to have visited Earth in 2,000 years?), which has a habit of pissing invested fans off when they just want to know the truth.