| Supernatural | |
|---|---|
| Season 3 | |
 DVD cover art | |
| Showrunner | Eric Kripke |
| Starring | |
| No. of episodes | 16 |
| Release | |
| Original network | The CW |
| Original release | October 4, 2007 – May 15, 2008 |
| Season chronology | |
The third season of Supernatural, an American dark fantasy television series created by Eric Kripke, premiered on October 4, 2007, and concluded on May 15, 2008. Traveling throughout America, protagonists Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean Winchester (Jensen Ackles) use their father's journal to help them carry on the family business—saving people and hunting supernatural creatures. The season begins with the brothers tracking down the demons released from Hell in the previous season finale. They become allies with a demon named Ruby (Katie Cassidy), who claims to know a way to release Dean from his demonic pact—he had sold his soul to a demon and was given a year to live in exchange for Sam's resurrection—and wants to protect them from the new demonic leader Lilith. As Dean's deadline approaches, their efforts are further hindered by Bela Talbot (Lauren Cohan), a professional thief of occult items who is often at odds with the Winchesters.
In the United States the season aired on Thursdays at 9:00 pm ET on The CW television network.[1] The CW ordered 22 episodes for the season, but interference from the 2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike ultimately limited the season to 16 episodes. Some storylines were thus postponed, which Kripke felt ultimately benefited the season by forcing the writers to focus on saving Dean. Despite its low ratings—it averaged only about 2.74 million American viewers—the series received an early renewal for a fourth season.
Warner Home Video released the season on DVD as a five-disc box set in Region 1 on September 2, 2008, in Region 2 on August 25, 2008, and in Region 4 on September 30, 2008. The episodes are also available through digital retailers such as Apple's iTunes Store,[2] Microsoft's Xbox Live Marketplace,[3] and Amazon.com's on-demand TV service.[4]
- ^ Bill Gorman (May 13, 2008). "CW 2008 Fall Schedule vs. 2007 Fall Schedule". TV By the Numbers. Archived from the original on February 27, 2014. Retrieved August 3, 2012.
- ^ Josef Adalian; Ben Fritz (December 17, 2006). "CW goes digital with iTunes". Variety. Archived from the original on February 23, 2009. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
- ^ Joanne Kaufman (July 9, 2007). "Gamers turn to XBox Live for movies". The New York Times. Archived from the original on January 19, 2012. Retrieved September 26, 2009.
- ^ "Supernatural: Season 3, Episode 1 "The Magnificent Seven": Amazon Video". Amazon. Archived from the original on August 24, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2012.