The Boys Season 5 Just Paid the Sweetest Tribute to Supernatural's Most Iconic Character
If you watched The Boys Season 5, Episode 7 and caught a very specific reference to a beloved '67 Chevrolet, you were not imagining things. Eric Kripke — the creator of both Supernatural and The Boys — just can't resist sneaking the Impala into his work. And honestly? We wouldn't have it any other way.
Season 5 of The Boys has already delivered a stunning, star-studded Supernatural reunion (more on that in a moment), but the latest episode takes a more subtle, dialogue-based approach to its tribute. And it's arguably the more emotionally resonant of the two homages, because it doesn't just reference a show — it references a character.
That character, of course, is Baby — the 1967 Chevrolet Impala that served as Sam and Dean Winchester's home, sanctuary, and silent partner for 15 seasons of Supernatural.
What Happens in The Boys Season 5, Episode 7?
Warning: This section contains spoilers for The Boys Season 5, Episode 7.
The scene in question takes place during a conversation between Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles) and Homelander (Antony Starr). The tension between the two has been building all season — Soldier Boy is Homelander's biological father, a fact that has driven the season's most complex emotional dynamics.
In Episode 7, that relationship reaches a decisive turning point. Soldier Boy announces that he is leaving America entirely, wanting nothing further to do with his unhinged, aspiring-god son.
His exact words carry a very deliberate weight. He tells Homelander that their relationship was never going to be the warm, suburban father-son fantasy — no playing catch in the front yard, no classic car restoration projects. Specifically, he says it was never going to be "fixing up the old Impala bullst"** — before calling Homelander "too weird" and walking out.
The Impala reference is casual, almost throwaway. But for any Supernatural fan watching, it lands like a thunderclap.
Because Jensen Ackles is Dean Winchester. And Dean Winchester's most sacred possession in the world was Baby — his 1967 Chevrolet Impala.
Why the Impala Matters So Much to Supernatural Fans
For viewers unfamiliar with Supernatural, it's worth explaining just how important the Impala is to the show's mythology — and to its fan base.
The 1967 Chevrolet Impala (nicknamed "Baby" by the fandom) was more than just a vehicle on Supernatural. It was:
- The Winchester boys' only true home — they grew up in that car, slept in it, stored their weapons in the trunk, and drove it across America for 15 seasons
- A character in its own right — Series 11's episode "Baby" was told entirely from the perspective of the car itself, a critically acclaimed experiment in perspective storytelling
- A symbol of the brothers' bond — When things fell apart between Sam and Dean, the Impala was the constant that held them together
For fans who spent 15 years with the Winchester brothers and their beloved car, hearing Jensen Ackles — as a different character, in a completely different show — casually reference fixing up an old Impala carries an almost uncanny emotional resonance.
The Bigger Picture: The Boys Season 5's Supernatural Reunion
The Impala Easter egg in Episode 7 is the second major Supernatural callback in Season 5 — and the context for the first one helps explain just how deliberate all of this is.
Earlier in the season, Episode 5 delivered a full-scale Supernatural cast reunion that sent the internet into a frenzy. Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins, and Jared Padalecki all appeared together — playing Supes in the world of The Boys — alongside other major Hollywood stars. It was fan service of the highest order, and it worked beautifully because Kripke earned it through years of building the Supernatural mythology into The Boys' DNA.
For a show that's always operated as a biting satire of superhero culture, having the actual Winchester brothers show up as superpowered beings is exactly the kind of layered, self-aware joke that The Boys does best.
Eric Kripke Has Been Doing This Since Season 2
Here's what's especially delightful for eagle-eyed fans: this isn't even the first Impala reference on The Boys.
The 1967 Chevrolet Impala first appeared — in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it Easter egg — in the Season 2 finale of The Boys. After Stormfront is exposed as a Nazi sympathizer, an animated video circulates online depicting an Impala running her over.
This Easter egg works on multiple levels simultaneously:
- It's a direct reference to Baby
- It connects to the fact that Dean Winchester killed Adolf Hitler in Supernatural Season 12 — the owner of Baby taking down history's most famous Nazi
- And it connects to The Boys' own Soldier Boy, who is explicitly described as a parody of Captain America — the superhero most famous for punching Hitler
It's all connected. And Kripke knew exactly what he was doing every step of the way.
Eric Kripke has confirmed that he and fellow producer Phil Sgriccia — who also worked on Supernatural — found the animated Impala cartoon online and couldn't resist including it. They love adding callbacks to their previous collaboration whenever an opportunity presents itself.
Soldier Boy, Dean Winchester, and the Ghost of Supernatural
There's something poetic about the specific way the Season 5 Impala reference is deployed. In Supernatural, the Impala represented the dream of a stable, loving family that Sam and Dean never quite got to have. Fixing up an old car together is the kind of simple, domestic bonding ritual that the Winchester boys rarely experienced.
By having Soldier Boy — Jensen Ackles, Dean Winchester himself — use that exact image to describe a normal father-son relationship he's rejecting, Kripke creates a moment of devastating layered meaning. Soldier Boy is abandoning his son. Dean Winchester never got to have a normal life with his father.
The Impala isn't just a callback. It's a mirror.
And the fact that Homelander — who has desperately craved paternal approval all season — is the one being denied that "fixing up the old Impala" fantasy makes it even sharper.
The Boys Season 5 and Supernatural: A Complete Easter Egg Timeline
| Season | Easter Egg | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Season 2 Finale | Animated Impala running over Stormfront | Dean Winchester killed Hitler; Impala = Baby |
| Season 5, Episode 5 | Full Supernatural cast reunion (Ackles, Collins, Padalecki) | Direct cast crossover event |
| Season 5, Episode 7 | Soldier Boy's "fixing up the old Impala" dialogue | Heartfelt character-level reference to Supernatural's most iconic element |
Why This Matters Beyond Fan Service
The Boys is a show that has always used its pop culture references purposefully, not decoratively. Every satirical jab, every Easter egg, every cameo is tied to a thematic point. The Supernatural callbacks throughout Season 5 aren't just there to make fans happy (though they absolutely do that). They serve the show's larger meditation on legacy, fatherhood, and the stories we inherit.
The Winchester brothers' relationship with their father — flawed, complicated, defined by sacrifice and resentment in equal measure — is one of the central emotional engines of Supernatural. Soldier Boy and Homelander's relationship mirrors that dynamic through the darkest possible lens. Both are stories about monstrous men who created broken sons.
The Impala, in both contexts, represents the road not taken. The normal life. The simple bonding ritual that never happened.
Eric Kripke is too smart a storyteller to let that parallel go unexplored. And Season 5 of The Boys is better for it.
FAQ: The Boys Season 5 Supernatural Impala Easter Egg
Q: What is the Impala reference in The Boys Season 5 Episode 7? A: Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles) tells Homelander their relationship was never going to be a "fixing up the old Impala" type of father-son bond — a direct nod to Baby, the iconic 1967 Chevrolet Impala from Jensen Ackles' previous show, Supernatural.
Q: Is the Impala a character in Supernatural? A: Effectively, yes. Baby — the 1967 Chevrolet Impala — is one of the most beloved "characters" in the show, so central to the Winchesters' story that an entire episode was told from the car's perspective.
Q: Was there a full Supernatural reunion in The Boys Season 5? A: Yes. Episode 5 of Season 5 featured Jensen Ackles, Misha Collins (Castiel), and Jared Padalecki (Sam Winchester) all appearing together as Supes in the world of The Boys.
Q: Where can I watch The Boys Season 5? A: The Boys Season 5 is streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime Video.
Q: Has Eric Kripke confirmed these Supernatural Easter eggs are intentional? A: Yes. Kripke has confirmed that he and producer Phil Sgriccia deliberately incorporate Supernatural callbacks into The Boys whenever they can, calling it a love letter to their previous collaboration.
Conclusion
The Boys Season 5 Supernatural Impala Easter egg is exactly the kind of storytelling detail that separates a good show from a great one. It's small, it's subtle, it rewards long-term fans, and it carries genuine emotional weight beyond the surface-level nostalgia hit.
Eric Kripke has been threading Supernatural DNA into The Boys since Season 2, and Season 5 represents the most explicit and emotionally resonant expression of that ongoing love letter yet. Whether you came to The Boys through Supernatural or found Supernatural after falling in love with The Boys, the connection between these two shows has never felt more intentional — or more beautiful.
Baby may not have gotten a physical guest appearance. But in Kripke's hands, she didn't need one.
External Authority Links Used
- Amazon Prime Video — Streaming home of The Boys
- Wikipedia: Supernatural (TV Series) — Show history and context
- IMDb: The Boys — Cast, episode information, and ratings