#breakup theory

[cooloddball]

Hiya lovely, could you please give a link or masterpost about the breakup period? I've just recently got exposed to cockles and would love to read more about this! Thanks love X

Here you go

[farthngdr]

This whole Misha panel is fascinating because it’s not tightly regulated, and as a result the audience is anarchic. And so is Misha, because this is the breakup period. His attitude onstage during this time was dark, his humor bitter and especially raw, his language uncensored, and his self-esteem and general outlook at a low ebb. I’m not saying he doesn’t smile or laugh. And if you watched the panel without this context and didn’t know any better, you might come away thinking this is a guy who just likes to say bad words and talk dirty and bait his audience. But behind the smiles is an absence of hope, and the knowledge that you’ve lost one of your best friends and maybe even the great love of your life.

I found this sequence especially revealing, when a fan asks him about Destiel. I don’t know how to cue the clip to start and stop, so watch from 26:54 up to 31:05. 

“Just the tip.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o99NFABJz8s&t=397s

[castiel-left-his-mark-on-me]

What breakup theory is everyone talking about? What happened???

As in, a new breakup theory (I saw someone mention that on my last post just now) I honestly have no clue.

And I honestly never believed in the first breakup theory from several years ago. I feel like Jensen and Misha's relationship is definitely more solid now, more defined, but that's only been the case for the last few years. Prior to that, is was a much more free form thing, and it could not be outlined in any common way; so the idea of "breaking up" and getting back together couldn't exist in that space they created, because whatever was happening between them was so elastic and nebulous, that there was no way it could break. It could just thin out or clump together, or stretch and bend. They were working on making it all work with their families and their current lives. They looking for their shape together, and individually. They were seeking definition. Some things worked, some things didn't; but they didn't find fault or anger during the process. It was trial and error. It was pros and cons. I think they found a system that works for them now-- even if it means that they're not always together physically. That doesn't mean they're "broken up" it just means, they're not in the same room.

Remember, we only ever see tiny snippets of their story, but from the snippets we do see, all I ever see is love.

[green-blue-heller]

So... I’m watching the season 7 finale again...

This would have been filmed during the cockles breakup, or right after they got back together, depending on when they actually got back together... (idk the exact timeline of the breakup and rekindle)

And the scene where they’re talking about how Dick made more Dicks is hitting extra hard.

Dean calls Cas “shifty” and asks if he has anything to say on the topic of Dicks, and that Crowley was pretty sure that Cas could help.

Cas says he can’t help because he destroyed everything and he will destroy everything again.

Misha’s voice breaks. And the way they’re looking at each other, and then *not* looking at each other...

And then Dean gets mad and talks about how Cas let these things (leviathan) in so he doesn’t get to just not help. And that no one cares that Cas is broken, and to clean up his mess.

But this could also be Jensen talking about how Misha let these feelings in. And now they’re broken and don’t know how to fix it and get past it.

Seriously.

Kill me now...

[hoziernatural]

Wait what cockles breakup????????????????

im sorry this took so long, i had to read it again bc im trash and it broke my heart so i had to watch every jenmish panel to heal me lol, but you can read it here

[dimples-of-discontent]

In the post about cockles, what was the thing that Jensen got fed up about with Sera? Thanks!

Hey Nonnie,

I’m thinking you mean this post from the vault with a compilation of Cockles moments through around 2014? I was so happy to see these again because I had legitimately forgotten about some of them in light of more recent events. 

The gif from SDCC 2011 where Jensen is frustrated with Sera is from when the moderated asked her how much they could expect to see Castiel this season. Everyone at the table knows full well at that point that Cas dies, supposedly for good, in the first episode of the season. And they. are. pissed. It’s not just Jensen, though he’s a little more obvious about it. This ask actually sent me back to watching the full panel:

This is the link  and you can watch another version that’s lower in quality and focusing on the faces of 2 people at a time (mostly J2) in case you want facial reactions. The discussion of Cas starts with the second question–after they ask Jensen about directing his episode–and is about 3 minutes in. It’s painful. You can watch Misha try to figure out how to answer a question about playing a role that he no longer has and that (at this point) had no future on the show. He does an admirable job and even manages to seem somewhat upbeat. Not so J2. 

The way everyone is sitting at this table isolates Sera and the body language from Jared and Jensen is openly hostile. Jensen especially pushes himself as far away as possible, defensively crosses his arms, leans away, doesn’t make any eye contact. Jared is also pissed and is functionally shielding Misha with his body while he does the first Cas question. Both of them are very protective and Jensen is more than a little hostile. They also both keep egging the audience on in their love for Cas/Misha, as when Jensen shouts “YEAH!” in affirmation of audience shrieks about the character. They want to show Sera what a piss poor decision it was to take Misha away from the fans…and from them. Whatever else you see happening these are some amazing friends.  

The other end of the table is also deadly silent and still–nary a crack from Mark and Edlund’s body language has him screaming that he wishes he had no part in this…he practically puts his head in his hands. (Edlund did an incredible job of writing Cas and I can only imagine how much it hurt to see him being killed off after all that.) 

To answer your initial question, his response is to Sera saying fundamentally nothing about whether the audience can expect to see Cas this season. Here’s the whole thing:

Moderator: Sera, it’s a loaded question but I have to ask: how much might we see Castiel in this season? What is his role in the season going on

Sera: You guys don’t really want to know how much you see Castiel or how much you see Misha. Well, Eric, I’m glad you asked. You know, we’ve been getting this question more or less every minute of every day since people started to hear about the change in Castiel. And the reality of this is that we want to tell you everything we can tell you about Misha because we love Misha as much as you do. And we want to tell you everything we can tell you about Castiel because we adore the character, as you do. But, I mean, you saw the cliffhanger; it was very cliffhanger-y. So, we want you to tune in and be anticipatory and we can’t say past what you know–which is that he’s going to be in the first couple of episodes. So, watch those and then bug us about it again and we’ll tell you a little more.

Jensen: Wow, that was really informative. Thank you.

Sera: I’m not answering the question but I’m explaining why I’m not answering the question. Does that help a little?

What’s remarkable about this clip is that Jensen is usually extraordinarily controlled in an interview situations (and, especially early on, also at cons) because he’s a professional who knows how to do PR and knows how vital it is. SDCC is the biggest publicity event they do in terms of numbers and profile. This is fucking it. And he’s shifting around in his chair, rocking it back, chugging water, rubbing his throat, grimacing, shaking his head, flashing the Dimples of Discontent, and actually rolling his eyes at the very end when she responds to what he said. Just. WOW.

Say it’s Cockles or not but that’s a very angry Jensen. And, again, he’s not the only one. Everyone at that table is pissed as fuck at Sera and you can tell because they will not help her out, pick up any slack, make any jokes. And Mark! Let’s talk about Mark. He responds to the question about his role in S7 by saying “Oh! I’m in Season 7! Yes!…Sera, what am I going to be doing?” and she says he’s being disingenuous and that he does know. And then (oh God, I cringe) he says in faux-sincerity, “It’s been an awful lot of fun to see what’s happened thus far and I’m really looking forward to seeing what happens this year.” Yeah, sounds nice. Until you realize that he means, subtextually, “I’m really looking forward to watching you crash and burn without Misha.” You can tell he doesn’t mean it in a happy way because no one cheers or claps. 

The mood is somber. The whole panel is somber. The audience mood is dampened considerably from the start and the people on that panel aren’t having any fun with it. Jensen barely speaks at all and there’s almost none of the J2M2 clowning that usually goes into these things. And, remember, this is their biggest publicity event of the year. If it sets the tone then it’s little surprise that S7 almost got the show canceled.

I know that’s not your original ask, Nonnie, but I hope it’s ok that I took some time to delve into this. It’s far enough back that I wasn’t watching the show as it aired and that I haven’t reached into the archive for it. But actually in its weird, depressing way this whole panel is a love letter to Misha from everyone there who isn’t Sera. I tend also to focus on Jensen because he’s uncharacteristically, almost unprofessionally, upset but this time the group anger and protectiveness is what struck me. They are all united in hating this bad decision. And since we know it works out–Misha is back, Cas is back, the series continues now TWICE as long as when this panel happened–we can now marvel at it as a piece of fandom (and Cockles) history.

[notsolittlelight]

This is just kinda my weird brain speculating but I kinda just had an epiphany about the cockles breakup theory thing. With the recent rumor of the Ackles being swingers, everything kind of clicked into place.

If when they met, jensen is a swinger but Misha is polyamorous, it would explain Misha’s behavior during the season 7 debacle. Jensen is familiar with noncommittal sex with friends but Misha invests himself. When he is written off, both were invested but given Jensen’s experience and the ground rules of swinging, he didn’t do or say anything. Misha, in response to Jensen’s silence, was quiet as well.

This makes Misha breaking down on stage, Jensen’s outburst calling him a whore, all of it, make sense. I think when he came back, it took time for them to finally talk about it. Misha felt betrayed, jensen felt off kilter. But then they did talk and here we are.

[kazifatagar]

Is the “Forehead Kiss of Doom” Real? TikTok Thinks So 🤔

TikTok has once again turned something sweet into something suspicious — this time, the “forehead kiss of doom.” What was once seen as a tender act of love is now being called a breakup omen. In one viral clip with over 680,000 views, a user warned, “When he gave you the forehead kisses of doom, you’ve got a week left max.” @madstheresaa I personally like to refer to this as the forehead kiss of…

Is the “Forehead Kiss of Doom” Real? TikTok Thinks So 🤔