The first season received a Metacritic score of 59 out of 100 based on 22 reviews, indicating "mixed or average reviews". The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 87% approval rating for the first season, with an average rating of 7.32/10 based on 31 reviews. The website's consensus reads, "Despite some too-hip dialogue and familiar thematic elements, "Supernatural"s vigilante brothers manage to stir up some legitimate scares." Tanner Stransky of "Entertainment Weekly" gave the first season a B, saying the show "comes off as weekly installments of a horror movie series", but that "Adding to the show's cred are the '67 Chevy Impala the boys rumble around in and their kick-ass soundtrack". Jeff Swindoll of "Monsters and Critics" "really liked" the first season for its "horrific content and the brotherly chemistry between its two stars". He also noted that the season finished "with one bang of a cliffhanger". Swindoll enjoyed the second season, too, saying that it "still works thanks to the brotherly chemistry between Padalecki and Ackles" and noted the second season focused more on the show's mythology.