Hunters (TV series)

Hunters is an American/Australian cult horror television series starring Jensen Ackles, Michelle Trachtenberg, Chace Crawford, Kristin Kreuk and Masi Oka that follows in the footsteps of Supernatural. The first season is filmed in parts of the US and Canada, whereas the second season is filmed exclusively in the US, where the main characters live. Majority of the third season was filmed in Japan and some in Greenland, while the fourth season was filmed back in the United States, as was the fifth season.

According to creators Jackson Hoult and Renon Schafer, the sixth season is to be the final, and that they will dedicate more time to another project, Babylon 1. The series has aired a total of 66 episodes, and creators comfirm that the sixth and final series will consist of 20 episodes, and rumours circulate that the creators will also end the series with a two-hour film length finale, like the Babylon 1 season four finale to be aired in 2010 also.

Soundtrack
The show's soundtrack features mainly rock and metal songs. The song "Closer" by Kings of Leon appeared during the opening credits for the show, and become its main song. At the end of the first season the Type O Negative song "She Burned Me Down" played during the end credits. Creator Jackson Hoult has stated that the show chooses a selected song to play at the end of each season. For the third series it was "I Hate Everything About You" by Three Days Grace. Season four was acclaimed for its "exit song", Pearl Jam's "Jeremy". Season five's intro song to the season, Black Sabbath's "Heaven and Hell" was also well-recieved by critics. Another song by Type O Negative, "Wolf Moon", has been played in every episode involving werewolves, and other bands played throughout the series include everything from Metallica to Bring Me The Horizon. Also, the last eight episodes of the fifth season are named after what the creators call "classic metal albums/songs".

Production
The show's creator, Jackson Hoult, was heavily influenced by Supernatural, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and even Farscape. He wanted to make a show like Supernatural, but different in its own way. He and his long-time friend Renon Schafer became the driving force behind the show. On June 5th 2010 a promo was shown on SciFi.com promoting "Hunters" for the SciFi Channel, penning the slogan: "Evil can be a bitch, luckily there's these guys".



Premise
The show follows three paranormal "hunters, Dan Jones, Will Riley, and Tara Anderson, who also dealing with minor paranormal disturbances try to banish the demon X'arn. In the second season the recurring character Lee Carnigan joins the hunters, and in the third season Kisho Miromuto joins as well.. They combat many creatures like vampires, demons, ghosts, werewolves and other paranormal monsters of American folklore.

Season One
Main Article: Season One

Season One premiered in the 20th of June 2008 on WBC at 9:30 PM in the US and other countries including the UK, Australia, and New Zealand on the 5th of July 2008 on the WBC channels. The first season focuses primarily on Dan's struggle to save his girlfriend Jess (Michelle Trachtenburg) from being possessed by the demon X'arn. X'arn is the main antagonist in the first season, and as the season progresses the hunters track him inside Jess' body across the USA to Alaska, where the final confrontation takes place. X'arn was supposedly banished, but returns in the second and third seasons

Season Two
Main Article: Season Two Hunters returned for a second season in the summer of 2009, attracting twice the amount of viewers. Following fans request for a new character, the creators cast Matt Dallas, famous from his role in Kyle XY, as "Lee Carnigan", a hunter local to Alaska who helps the others in the first episode. Following the banishment of X'arn in season one he returns to wreak havoc in Jess' body, and the second season also features the introduction of the Dark Cult, a organization who collect and study occult things. The second antagonist is Mr. Apocalypso, leader of the Dark Cult, who after trying to bargain with X'arn is killed at the climax of the season. In the finale Dan sells his soul to X'arn to save Jess, and as he is dragged to hell Lee grabs him and follows him into Hell.

Season Three
Main Article: Season Three of Hunters 

Season Three of Hunters was announced at a press conferance in New York, attended by the show's cast and creators. Creators Jackson Hoult and Renon Schafer announced that their other show on SciFi, Babylon 1, which had ran a sucessful first season in 2007, would return in 2008 along with a third season of Hunters. The third season follows Dan and the others as they promise the Demon Council that they will destroy X'arn once and for all. Lee and Dan, who were taken to Hell at the end of season two, escape back to Earth and follow X'arn to Japan, where they meet hunter Kisho Miromoto, and Greenland, where he has taken Jess, Will, and Tara. The season ultimately ends with X'arn impregnating Jess with a demon baby, but Dan later discovers she was already pregnant at therefore he is the father. After the child is born and X'arn attempts to destroy it's abilities, Dan finally kills him with a magic sword. After X'arn is defeated, Dan proposes to Jess and acknowledges the child, Jeremy, as his own. At the final episode the Demon Council betray the hunters and kidnap Jeremy, fearing he will become like X'arn. The hunters then must face their enemy.

Season Four
The fourth season aired in early 2009, and follows the hunters as they battle the Demon Council and try to rescue Jeremy. Though they eventually destroy majority of the Council, their leader Abaddon becomes president in a human host and destroys everything the hunters have. Kisho, who swears to kill Abaddon earlier after he sacrificed the witch Beth, arrives as everything comes crashing down, and kills Abaddon with Oni-kataki, an ancient Japanese sword, thus destroying the Demon Council.

Season Five
Following the sucess of Season Four, the creators of Hunters and Sci-Fi announced the later half of 2009 would see a fifth season. The fifth season follows Lee and his debt to the demon Arianna, and the resulting conflict. At the end of the season Jeremy, rapdily grown and harnessed his powers, destroys Arianna and her minions, thus breaking the debt to Lee, who decides to part ways with the hunters, saying he caused too much harm to them.

Season Six
After concluding Season Five at the end of 2009, the creators of Hunters confirmed a sixth and final season would air in 2010. The season focuses on Dan and Jeremy's relationship as father and son, as well as an impending prophecy and the demon Belphegor's efforts to bring the Apocalypse.

Plot
The plot of Hunters revovles around Dan Jones, Will Riley, and Tara Anderson, a group of young paranormal hunters from Toledo, Ohio. Also joining the cast is Jessica Mathews, Dan's girlfriend who is possessed by the demon X'arn, the struggle against which provides as the main plot arc for seasons one, two, and three. Canadian hunter Lee Carnigan joins the hunters in the season two premiere Serpentine, where he assists the others the Norse mythological snake Jormund. He joins them until the end of season five, after settling his debt with the demon Arianna feeling he caused the others to much trouble. Japanese hunter Kisho Nakamuto joins the regular cast in the season three episode Sushi with Blood. He remains with the hunters until departing midway through season four, at the end of A Very Dark Goodbye after Abaddon sacrifices his romantic interest Beth in a ceremony, swearing vengeance. He returns in the season four finale Nation of Darkness, where he kills Abaddon with the Japanese blade Oni-kataki, but leaves after.

Another major character in the later seasons is Dan and Jess' son Jeremy, who makes his first appearance as an infant in season three's My Dark Son, after Jess is impregnated by X'arn. Dan and the others believe that X'arn is Jeremy's father, but it is revealed that Jess that she was already pregnant before X'arn corrupted the baby. Jeremy develops powers, such as rapidly ageing and being able to destroy powerful demons, e.g Arianna in Seventh Son of A Seventh Son. Dan is disapproving of Jeremy using his powers, as he believes he will turn into a monster.

Season Two (10 Episodes)

 * Serpentine: On their way home, the hunters encounter a creature of mythology terrorising the people of Valdez. With the help of Lee Carnigan can they defeat a giant snake?
 * Fuel, Blood: Doomheart returns and ambushes the hunters at a caravan site near Mt. Logan. Even with Lee Carnigan on their side, defeating the vampire as second time may be much more complicated.
 * Tunnels: The hunters travel to Mt. Logan where locals are going missing, and their burned bodies found outside a intricate tunnel system at the base of the mountain. According to local legend something evil has made its home deep within the mountain
 * Hands in the Darkness: After arriving in Whitehorse, Canada, the hunters are pursued by the mysterious Dark Cult into British Columbia. With all hope lost they find help from an unexpected friend.
 * Father and Son: Reunited with his father aka “The Silver Angel”, Dan leads the hunters to Alberta where he must face one of the Cult’s leaders. With the battle raging between the two sides, X’arn finds the chance to resurrect himself.
 * Rampage: X’arn returns to Jess’ soul and sends her on a violent killing spree. When Dan and his father try to save her Jess kills the Silver Angel and severely injures Dan, before disappearing.
 * Fallen Angel: As Dan recuperates and burries his father at Sioux Falls in South Dakota, he receives a dark premonition from X’arn that he is going to kill Jess in four weeks and that Dan and the others must get to Toledo to fight the demon.
 * Home, Damned Home: The hunters finally arrive in Toledo, but they must hurry to Lake Erie where X’arn plans to crucify Jess and devour her soul. As they confront X’arn, the Dark Cult arrive at the lake and Lee and Will try to hold them off.
 * Fate: While Jess dies on the crucifix and X’arn battles Dan, the Dark Cult finally overpower the other three and lock them in a van. Their leader Mr. Apocalypso threatens to kill Will, Lee, and Tara if Dan does not get the demon to speak with the Cult. When Apocalypso confronts X’arn however, he kills the mortal and the hunters escape from the van.
 * Damned: With the Cult in disarray Dan has only one choice to save his girlfriend, he must sell his soul to X’arn. When the demon accepts to sends Dan to Hell, Lee goes after him and the two find themselves face to face with the Demon Council.

Season Three (10 episodes)

 * Angels of Death: The Demon Council agrees to let Lee and Dan leave Hell if they can destroy X’arn. The Horseman of Death gives Dan a magic sword to kill X’arn, and the two hunters are transported back to Lake Erie. But X’arn and the others are gone, the hunters realise that two months have passed on Earth.
 * Ghost Samurai: When Dan and Lee learn that X’arn has taken Jess, Will, and Tara to Mount Kariba in Japan, they embark cross continent to save their friends. However when they arrive at the mountain, the find X’arn has gone and left phantom samurais to kill the two hunters.
 * Sushi with Blood: Tracking X’arn to Tokyo, Lee and Dan meet the Japanese Hunter Kisho who helps them find X’arn. Meanwhile X’arn eats sushi with human flesh.
 * Loki's Love: With their new friend Kisho, Dan and Lee track X’arn to Greenland and encounter the figure of Loki. When Dan receives a vision of the god flirting with Jess, he takes it personally and banishes Loki with the help of Thor.
 * Necros: While tracking X’arn, the three hunters are mysteriously transported back to Toledo, which has become a vast necropolis after an apparent nuclear holocaust. But when the dead begin to walk, Dan thinks that this must be an illusion.
 * Realm of Illusion: As Dan, Lee, and Kisho are trapped in three different possible apocalypses; X’arn impregnates Jess with a demon child while Will and Tara watch helplessly.
 * My Dark Son: Jess gives birth to the child in a matter of days, and X’arn takes the demon-spawn to an ancient place where he plans to corrupt the potential liberator. Meanwhile Dan, Lee, and Kisho escape X’arn’s apocalypses and Dan finds out about the baby. When X’arn encourages him to kill the child, Jess tells him he has Dan’s blood.
 * Rage: X’arn steals the half-demon and the hunters pursue him across Ohio, until they find he has entered another dimension. Dan calls on the power of the Demon Council and follows after X’arn, while the others wait in Ohio. When Dan confronts the demon a third time to save his “son” and girlfriend, X’arn cuts off the child’s tail so he can never reach his demonic potential and gives the baby to Dan, who then finally fulfils he promise to the Demon Council.
 * Strange Family: With X’arn destroyed completely, Dan takes the chance to propose to Jess and adopt the demon-child. She accepts and the group embarks for the city of Erie, where murderous crows are killing people.
 * Souls: Just as the hunters were certain all the commotion was over, the Demon Council decides to take the demon-baby from Dan and Jess as they feel he is capable of becoming like X’arn, who is psychically his father.

Season Four (16 episodes)

 * Highway To Hell: Dan learns of the Demon Council's plans to kill Jeremy and searches desperately for a way into Hell and a way to destroy the Council. Meanwhile Kisho meets a powerful girl called Tessa.
 * Unholy Vows: The hunters arrive in Maryland, Washington, where a local pastor is preaching the words of “a new angel”. But the angel is really Abaddon, the master of the Demon Council, or as Dan calls him: “Satan’s bitch”.
 * Drugs, Sex, and Demons: Following the tracks of Eligos, the embodiment of Lust, the hunters find him in Las Vegas, where he is gambling for a new kind of prize; the souls of the losers. The hunters must stop him before Las Vegas really does become Sin City.
 * Nice Day For A Wight Wedding: The hunters are sidetracked by the case of a bunch of ghosts replaying the wedding in which they all died in a mysterious fire. The hunters must find the long dead culprit to put the wedding to rest.
 * From Above: The hunters meet a young woman called Beth, who is a witch. Her and her family have sought refuge in the small town of Harper’s Hill. But when the angel of retribution Michael arrives to slay her, the hunters are faced with the wrath of God.
 * The Other Side of the Coin: In a Nebraska town the Demon Council’s influence has spread, where a man is halfway between a demon and a man. But the hunters soon realise that exorcising the demon will kill him, and must find another way to stop his eventual fate.
 * The Day of the Devourer: In the small Mississippi town of Fair Banks, a troubled young man calls forth the Egyptian monster Ammat and it goes on a violent soul devouring spree. Can the hunters find a way to stop Ammat before he devours the entire town?
 * Something In The Water: The popular tourist destination of Lake Sunrise in New York is closed down after its waters are found filled with blood. The hunters investigate only to unearth a sinister tale involving a witchunter and a Slavic water spirit.
 * It’s Really Not Funny: En route to the location of Choronzon, one of the Demon Council, the hunters are sidetracked yet again by a circus that has some dark secrets. Lead by the creepy clown Mr. Waffles, the freaks are not all that they seem.
 * Time and Her Master: Choronzon, demon of time, is trapped by the hunters in an abandoned town. He is without hope, but with the arrival of the Beast he may prove harder to kill than first thought.
 * Hunger: Although the hunters successfully killed Choronzon, the Beast is still at large and it is growing hungry. Without warning it moves on to the next town and begins to devour the countless souls of the living.
 * A Very Dark Goodbye: After Abaddon’s servants sacrifice Beth in a violent ceremony, Kisho is driven into vengeance and swears to kill the demon. With his departure the others must deal with another of the Council.
 * Deliverance: Seeking the take the battle to the Demon Council, the hunters are joined by many others of their kind and consecutively eliminate the Council one by one. But will it be enough to stop Abaddon?
 * John Said So: Using his immense power, Abaddon bends time to three years into the future, where he is Robert Adamson, District Attorney of New York. As what is written in the Bible comes true, Robert Adamson joins the presidential elections and his popularity grows even more.
 * Abaddon and Earth: Although his original host Robert Adamson was killed by Dan, Abaddon escape death by possessing Will and forcing him to shot his best friend. Five months pass, and when Dan awakens Robert Adamson has returned and is president, meanwhile Will is nowhere to be found.
 * Nation of Darkness: Just as all hope seems lost, Kisho returns with avengance. Abaddon, distracted as President Robert Adamson, has no idea what is going on. Neither do the hunters really; Dan is still recovering from his gunshot wound, Will is no where, and Kisho is a changed man. Can earth be saved from Abaddon, or will darkness reign supreme?

Season Five (15 episodes)

 * Back in Black: The hunters finally return home, but Lee has some past to confront in the form of demon Arianna.
 * Debts Gone Unpaid: Lee must come to terms with Arianna if he wants to survive, and strikes up another deal to save himself. Meanwhile Jeremy develops strange powers.
 * Back Downstairs We Go: Arianna takes Lee with her to Hell until the hunters can find a way to pay his debt, and they embark on the journey to Hell with the help of an old friend of the Silver Angel; Peter Schoffman.
 * Hunters Hunted: While tracking Arianna, the hunters and Peter Schoffman encounter a demon that "specialises" in killing hunters, and are trapped in his maze of death-traps.
 * Room 666: While Peter searches the local area, the hunters check into the Oak Plaza in New Jersey, where seventeen people have mysteriously died since 1967. They began with the murder of the former owner Harry Reufer's daughter Sarah, who he accidentally suffocated in a drunk frenzy. He was the first victim, drowned mysteriously in the bath in 1968. Can the hunters solve this mystery before the ghost gets them?
 * Welcome To The Jungle: The hunters are captured by Arianna and are trapped in a maze where they must fight other trapped hunters to escape.
 * Rebel Yell: Lee's past comes back to haunt him as Arianna enlist several rebellious werewolves to track the hunters down and bring Lee to her.
 * Heaven and Hell: Arianna continues to plague the hunters as they search for answers. Meanwhile, Dan realises that dark forces are still at work, and the destruction of the Demon Council did not end everything.
 * Jar of Flies: Using a powerful artifact, Arianna causes a town to become infected with a plague simlar to the one the hunters encountered in before, that is slowly transforming humans into demons.
 * New American Gospel: The hunters, discovering that there is a way into Hell via a Satanic church, journey to the church with Peter Schoffman. But when they arrive they must battle demons, Satan worshippers, and Arianna's servant Malekar.
 * Seasons In The Abyss: Following on from New American Gospel, the hunters are trapped in a Satanic church and are about to be sacrificed by Malekar in order to allow Arianna's realm to never be reached via Earth.
 * ...And Justice For All: As they wanted, the hunters are transported to Hell where the newly ascended Hammer of Doom, the fallen angel Arastel will decide their fates, along with Arianna and Lee's debt.
 * Still Alive...And Well?: After Peter Schloffman kills Arastel and sacrifices himself to eternal damnation, the hunters escape the realm of Judgment and search for Arianna, to finally end Lee's debt.
 * South of Heaven: Lee makes the drastic decision to finally give himself up to Arianna as the others approach. But can Lee be saved, or will he damn himself to eternity in Hell?
 * Seventh Son of A Seventh Son: As the end of Lee's debt draws near, the hunters must make some hard decisions. And what are the strange signs that keep appear, so familiar to Jeremy?

Season Six (13 episodes)

 * This Is Hell Part I: Dan comes to the realisation that Jeremy's powers cannot go unchecked after witnessing him destroy Arianna and her servants, while Jeremy himself is confronted by his Guardian.
 * This Is Hell Part II: Jeremy's Guardian, who remains nameless, reveals a dark prophecy in which Jeremy will be forced to kil his father, but can this be true?
 * Blood Bank: In search of answers, the hunters head on the open road and Will tells the others of a bizzare string of bank roberies, where no money was stolen but everyone in the bank's blood was drained. Could it be Doomheart returned once more, or vampires gone rogue?
 * Love Never Dies: Arriving in the small Idaho town of Pioneer's Hill, the hunters find that the locals seem to be taking "love never dies" to a whole other level, by believing that their dead loved ones can be resurrected.
 * The Rising: The hunters learn that the demon Belphegor is trying to bring the Apocalypse and that the blood of Jeremy is the key to his sucess.
 * Devil In The Details: The hunters encounter the servants of Belphegor in an isolated town, where they are trying to strengthen Belphegor's presence on Earth.
 * Godsend: A church is ransacked by Belphegor's minions, with strange markings written in blood.
 * Messages: Strange signs signal the arrival of Belphegor, and that hunters desperately search for answers.
 * Spirit Crusher: The dead keep rising across the country in small secluded areas, causing widespread chaos and wiping entire towns off the map. Is this the work of Belphegor, or something else?
 * War, War, War: An US army camp becomes increasingly violent and angry, with deaths resulting between the soldiers. A strange general tries to calm the chaos, but is he just the enemy in disguise?
 * Feed the World: A small secluded famine begins in the town of Summery; where people are going desperate for food. When the hunters arrive, they kidnap Tara and Jess.
 * Darkness Falls: Belphegor arrives on Earth and takes a host, beginning his plans for the apocalypse. Meanwhile the hunters search for a way to stop him and prevent the end.
 * Modern Day Martyr: Mike the third arrives on Earth For his 27th birthday and but Belphegor's presence again on the earth.

Season Seven (Revival)
Pizza Dales: Mike makes a Pizza for the Guys and Girls

Note: this is the revival of Hunters

Daniel Jones
First appearance: Pilot/Demon Within, Latest appearance: Modern Day Martyr

Dan is introduced as a young man caught up in the middle of a lot, his girlfriend is possessed by a demon. Early in the first season (Pilot/Demon Within) and (Bloody Revenge), he is seen to be wearing a pentagram necklace and comments that he wears it partly because he thinks he looks good with it. When the necklace is destroyed in The Church by Xerida the succubus, he takes it personally and kills her himself. Dan seems to also be a big fan of Jason Vorhees, and comments that the ghost of Jimmy Vaughn in Bloody Revenge is like a "jack-ass" version of him. Dan appears to like other horror films such as Nightmare On Elm Street, which he claims he watched when he was six, and Dracula.

In season two Dan seems regularly "pissed off" with the constant appearance of the Dark Cult, and tries to kill their employees or "piss them off in return". In Serpentine he visits a "magic shop" and buys a new pentagram necklace, but he says it is only "fifty out of fifty" to his old one. In Serpentine and Fuel, Blood, Dan seems confronted by Lee Carnigan. He however grows to accept Lee and often jokes with him, even when they are both imprisoned by the Demon Council in Fate and Damned, the season two finale episodes.

Lee Carnigan
First appearance: Serpentine, Final appearance: Seventh Son of A Seventh Son

Lee Carnigan is a twenty-eight year old paranormal expert who seems to know a lot about the Jormund in the first episode of season two, Serpentine. In Hands in the Darkness he joins the hunters and helps them combat many enemies throughout the second season. In the season finale of the second season Lee, along with Dan, are taken to the Demon Council after they defeat X'arn and the Dark Cult. The fifth season of the show centres mainly around Lee's debt to the demon Arianna. At the end of the season in Seventh Son of A Seventh Son, Lee ultimately accepts his fate and his soul is damned, but using his immense power, Jeremy destroys Arianna and her minions, saving Lee. However he decides to part ways with the others, saying he endangered them too much.

Kisho Miromoto
First appearance: Sushi with Blood, Last appearance: Nation of Darkness

Kisho Miromoto is a Japanese Hunter who meets the hunters when they go to Japan.

Mr. Apocalypso
First appearance: Hands In The Darkness, Last appearance: Fate

Mr. Apocalypso is the enigmatic and neurotic leader of the Dark Cult. His name is a pseudonym, and he says disgression is his greatest ally. He acts as season two's antagonist, and wants to ally with X'arn. He appears with a convoy of Cult members in Hands In The Darkness. He kidnaps the hunters and uses them to get X'arn. In Fate he finally gets his wish, but the demon simply casts him aside as a useless barrier to what he truly desires. With Apocalypso's death the Cult supposedly dissolves.

Beth
First appearance: From Above, Last appearance: A Very Dark Goodbye

Beth is a resident witch in Harper's Hill. The hunters help her in the season four episode From Above, assisting her against the Archangel. After rescuing her life, the hunters maintain contact with Beth as she provides insight, and Kisho begins to develop a close relationship. In A Very Dark Goodbye, Abaddon sacrifices Beth in a strengthening ceremony and Kisho swears vengeance for his true love.

Doomheart
First appearance: Sealed In Blood, Last appearance: Blood Bank

Doomheart, formerly Jon Everton Hart, is a 143 year old vampire and a secondary antagonist throughout the series. The hunters first encounter him in the season one episode Sealed In Blood when he kidnaps Tara and lures the boys to an abandoned gas stop near Calgary. After a confrontation, Will manages to stake Doomheart buy he is not dead. Back in Hell he springs a deal with X'arn in exchange for his life back, and kidnaps Jess in season two's Fuel, Blood. He bears a scar from Will's earlier stake, but the hunters manage to defeat him at his den inside Mt. Logan. He seemingly dissapears for a while, until resurfacing in season six's Blood Bank. Here, along with his "mate" Isabella, his clan are attacking banks and instead of stealing money they drain the patrons blood. Jeremy manages to finally defeat Doomheart with his powers, much to Dan's dissaproval.

Robert Jones aka the Silver Angel
First appearance: Hands In The Darkness, Last appearance: Rampage

Dan's father, and a well-known hunter, Robert Jones, aka the Silver Angel, trekks across the country hunting all manner of paranormal monsters. He rescues the hunters from the Dark Cult in Hands In The Darkness, and helps them in Father and Son. When X'arn resurfaces, the demon attacks Robert and he dies from his wounds. In Fallen Angel he is buried in Sioux Falls. He was also mentioned in season one's Bloody Revenge, and season four's Room 666, being a close friend of fellow hunter Peter Schloffman.

Peter Schloffman
First appearance: Back Downstairs We Go, Last appearance: Still Alive...And Well?

Peter Schloffman is a hunter of German decent, and good friend of Robert Jones. He encounters the hunters in season five's Back Downstairs We Go when he accompanies them on their quest to find a way into Hell and settle Lee's debt with Ariaana.