In the fifth-season episode "Good God, Y'all!", Ellen reappears with Jo to help fellow hunter Rufus kill demons that have laid siege to a small town. By the time the Winchesters arrive, it appears that Jo, Rufus, and some other townspeople have become demonically possessed. However, Ellen and Dean eventually realize that War, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, is making the townspeople see each other as demons. Sam and Dean break War's spell just as Ellen is about to be killed by one of the town's residents. In "Abandon All Hope...", Ellen and Jo once again team up with the brothers to find Lucifer and kill him. Upon their arrival in a seemingly abandoned small town, however, they are attacked by the demon Meg and a pack of hellhounds. Jo is severely mauled, forcing them to barricade themselves inside a hardware store. Knowing that her wounds are fatal and that Lucifer must be stopped, Jo convinces them to build a bomb and to use her as bait for a trap. Ellen stays behind and opens the front doors while the Winchesters escape onto the roof. After Jo dies in her arms, Ellen blows up the building, killing the hellhounds and herself in the process.