I think their relationship was way more obviously ho-yay from the start than Dean's with Cas

I think it was deliberately written more relationshippy, but it lacked not just in Cassy subtext, but intimacy. Like, they'd barely circle jerk. That's why I have difficulty with Purgatory fuckbuddies, but less with the threesome. A LOT LESS (recs welcome).

but it lacked not just in Cassy subtext, but intimacy

The way they look at each other both during and post-Purgatory is so full of twinkling and heat! For me, anyway.

The reason I can never see Dean as gay or bi is something Matt said a while ago. If Dean was sexually into men, he'd boast about his conquests. Sam would hear about him scoring a Mariner or a Navy Seal or whatever.

The way they look at each other both during and post-Purgatory is so full of twinkling and heat!

I never felt that. This is probably intimately entwined with him calling him "brother" all the time. That's a bucket of cold water that I have tried to use myself.

If Dean was sexually into men, he'd boast about his conquests. Sam would hear about him scoring a Mariner or a Navy Seal or whatever.

What gender were the Doublemint twins? I have no reason to assume (and reason to assume the obverse) that bisexual people approach both genders identically, but I bet that everyone assumes he's just been talking about women because he's straight, and he's straight becauase he's only talking about women.

In the meanwhile he checks guys out and gets blushy and gets intense about what might make one sexy, and does what the writers call demonstrating romcom potential at a sweet straightforward gay come-on.

Now, I'm not arguing that he's bi. But I'm certainly not going to say all that evidence is solid in just one way. His orientation is as the Word of God decide, and when they want to set it in concrete they'll make Jensen stop making those choices, and remove ambiguity from the script.

Meanwhile--did anyone see fandom react to Dean's mention of it being a mess up his ass as a reference to previous anal trauma which could be rape in Hell? (Despite the re-hymenation, I'm finding more and more stories leaving that out...it's not like the show didn't forget the fucking handprint)

a Mariner

Not an ancient one, I hope.

On this show, you never know...

What gender were the Doublemint twins?

Didn't we see two women's silhouettes on the shade frolicking with Dean while Sam chilled in the car? It's been forever since I rewatched any of Season 3 other than "Time Is on My Side," but that was the impression I was left with back when.

Didn't we see two women's silhouettes on the shade frolicking with Dean while Sam chilled in the car?

One.

One day when I'm really bored maybe I'll peruse the scripts to see if every mentioned conquest has a gender to it, but even if it did, that would be more convincing coming from Sam (who has managed to convince me of the opportunity for no more than one dalliance with a boy) than from what we've seen of Dean. In reality, it's not like only having slept with women would make Dean straight, so only having talked about it certainly wouldn't--but sheer potential isn't the reason I discuss the topic, since this is fiction with a choice of elements--it is more wondering about why they've included other stuff they include.

Dean increasingly reads as coded as bi, or at least bicurious, but with some internalized homophobia that leads to him just not talking about it. See also, overcompensating.

What Plei said. I thought he seemed pretty proud of the way he handled his "gay thing" with Aaron (was that his name?), as well as the fact that he had a gay thing at all.

I think a Dean who routinely rent-boyed for grocery money would be a little more jaded about the whole thing.

I think a Dean who routinely rent-boyed for grocery money would be a little more jaded about the whole thing.

How about a Dean who routinely rent-boyed while either a) identifying as straight or b) keeping even the hedonistic pleasures he gets from no-string hookups out of it, who's now had a long term intimate relationship?

Just saying--if the writers wanted to go in directions, they could retcon in all sorts of ways. The wiggle room is there.