Supernatural season 12 will give Castiel his day in the sun.

The wayward angel hasn't had an easy go of it these last few years (then again, who has?), but Misha Collins' character is slowly getting his ducks in a row. Debilitated by self-doubt, missing grace, and a turn as Lucifer's vessel, Cas has appeared more of a liability than an asset over the last few years, only breaking out his powers to save Sam (Jared Padalecki) and Dean (Jensen Ackles) from grave danger.

Now, however, Cas will join the Winchesters in the field while the Supernatural writers continue to flesh out his backstory.

"It's about telling smaller stories that impact more of our characters," co-showrunner Andrew Dabb told Entertainment Weekly. "For example, this year, especially toward the middle of the season, we're using Castiel in stand-alone episodes in a way that he hasn't been used in a long time."

Dabb spoke with EnStars about Cas' future at San Diego Comic-Con, elaborating on Cas' role in rescuing Sam and what's in store for Team Free Will following the search for Lucifer.

"You'll see - especially in the back half of our season - Cas more involved with things like that," Dabb told EnStars. "I think that even Cas with some of his powers back (or more engaged) isn't necessarily going to overpower stories is ways that I think maybe we feared he would in past seasons."

If there's one episode Castiel fans should definitely tune in for, it's episode 12.

"That's very heavily about Castiel and the journey he's been on, some things from his past that we're not aware of are getting brought to light," Dabb told Entertainment Weekly.

With millennia worth of stories to mine, we can't wait to see what the Supernatural writers are cooking up.

Supernatural will return to The CW on Oct. 13 at 9 p.m. ET.

Tags: supernatural television the cw