okay, wow...um...not even going to lie, that hit me in the heart a bit. i'm not sure if it's because i already went into the video with dread, i went in expecting it to be bad based on what i've heard from tumblr and instagram and i already had preconceived notions about this. so maybe i was hit so easily because i went in with a subconsciously negative attitude. but...um. idk i just...
Jensen: i think 'romantic'--
Jared: i think the point is--
Jensen: i think the term 'romantic' is being used because there isn't a term that necessarily--
Jared: he's 'junkless', you know?
Jensen: uh, yeah...(indiscernible) i don't think lust is--is involved with the romanticism
Jared: i don't think it's the point that they both have...pause...uh...human male bodies, seemingly...and...want to...sleep with each other, i think the point is that, like, you could love anything.
Jared then goes on to discuss two scenarios where the phrase "I love you" was used very flippantly and without and romantic connotation or meaning behind it. it was used in a way of acquaintances, similarly to the context it's used in for the phrase "love your neighbor as yourself". in this sense, it seems like Jared's definition of love is being used to mean "I will not/do not hate you" for the first one, and "a strong emotion conveying gratitude" for the second. he then said he says it to his friends and to Jensen all the time, and that in none of these cases does it mean "i wanna take you to a hotel room".
then he goes on to say that the "point" of deancas "story-wise" is that Cas loved Dean in just the same way Jared explained above. not romantically, but platonically. similarly to how Sam and Dean love each other, how the actors love their friends.
but okay, Jar, if that's the case, then why wasn't Sam present for the confession? If there was nothing romantic about Cas's confession, and he was just platonically stating that he loved Dean like family, then why doesn't the same apply for Sam? like how it was in Stuck in the Middle (With You), when Cas blatantly said the words "I love you" to all of them, no tears in his eyes, no speech about Dean specifically changing him and teaching him how to love. which is another thing...
you mean to tell me that the whole speech Castiel gave to Dean was merely nothing but a platonic/familial declaration of love? Cas poured his heart out and bore his soul to Dean in those words. that would be a stretch for the whole scenario to be "no homo, bro"
and back to Cas being "junkless"...the topic was posed of when Dean realized Cas loved him and it was discussed in a romantic sense. Cas doesn't NEED "junk" to be in deep romantic love with Dean. nobody needs any type of "junk" to experience romantic love. romance doesn't have anything to do with the fact that they "both have human male bodies, seemingly" because romantic love depends entirely on personality. somebody's body, looks and/or physical attributes and attractiveness fall under aesthetic, sensual or physical attraction, not romantic. as somebody on the asexual spectrum, this hit me in the heart. maybe i'm just being overly analytical and overly emotional, but is this man that i've (non-romantically, since we should specify) loved and admired for years insinuating that there is no difference between romantic and sexual love/attraction? that romantic love can not exist without the existence or use of one's "junk"? or am i being too sensitive?
Jared compared Cas's love for Dean to Sam and Dean's love for each other, and backed up that statement by saying "it's not a show about incest", essentially drawing a line between the two types of love and saying they're the same. when that just doesn't seem true for us.
and he said it's "not a show about heterosexuality or nonbinary." it's a show about being able to choose to live your life with love. that this doesn't mean "hey, they wanna make out". and then goes on to say his love for his son or daughter doesn't mean he wants to "do stuff" to them...like....okay?? and that the point is simply being free to love and loving who you want.
but then my mans goes on to say that you can be hetero and love whoever you want, you can be queer and love whoever you want, anybody in the LGBTQIA+ community can love "whoever the fxck they want".....so then....why can't....Cas....love Dean....romantically?? why is this being taken away from us? why are we being told this isn't the way it is when Misha essentially said "haha yes I'm going to do a gay". we all know Misha carries Cas on his shoulders and in his heart. Misha is Cas. they can write Cas however they want, but ultimately, it's up to Misha on how he plays it. if it made sense to Misha, who has played Cas for 10 years, to say that he loved Dean in a gay way, then that's as close to canon as it can get imo. if Misha can fit the entirety of Cas's persona and all his interactions with Dean and wrap it up with the bow of a romantic "I love you", then it cannot be taken away from him or us. Misha could have been playing Cas like that from day one. he could have decided somewhere down the line that Cas fell for Dean. it wouldn't change the way he played him and it wouldn't need to be said, because we know Cas couldn't say it. so maybe Misha didn't either. we'll never know what Misha's thoughts behind that was. and it is not our place (nor anyone else in the cast) to determine what Cas meant by his confession.
why would Cas's true happiness be something he has already said? when Cas got stabbed by the prince of hell, he looked them all in the eyes and told them he loved them, all the same way. he said "i love you" straight to dean, but clarified "i love you all". maybe that was a first attempt at trying to get his truth out, but it didn't go right. so he had years to find the right words to tell his truth in his way. and he knew that the ball was in his court, and he could hold off until he was ready. but just saying "i love you" as a no homo bro thing....he has done that already. it's been done. why would he need to do it again? this would have to be something dean didn't know...something he never saw
Cas is a character who has brought so many people, including myself, hope and love in dark times. we have found comfort in him, solace and strength in him. some of us have found ourselves in him, or seen him as a protector or a mentor. now Misha has given us him as a queer icon as well. and the way it was revealed directly at the end of his life may have been cheesy and cliche, but it also doesn’t undermine or change a single thing about his character or the decisions he made or who he was. Cas is still Cas. him being in love with Dean was just written into the story, woven in along the way. It was a part of him and a part of who he was. Dean didn’t have to love him back. Cas just knew his own truth. please don’t take this away from us or him. let him have his identity out in the light for the first time, now that he’s finally comfortable to do so.
like the Greek words for love, there are many types and definitions that we have tried to fit into the one word "love". Cas says in his speech that Dean essentially taught him agape, pragma and philia (love of everyone, longstanding love and deep friendship.)
Misha himself confirmed that Cas also meant something mixing between ludus and eros depending on your understanding of each. for some, ludus or playful, lovely love, is flirtatious and easygoing love, or puppy love, while eros or passionate love, can mean anything from romance to sexual love. Jared is saying the only kind of love Cas had for Dean was philia or storge (family love) which directly contradicts what Misha has told us and how Misha played the role and delivered the lines.
i don't know. i really don't. long, long story short is that i'm hurt, as are many of us. i'm hurt because to me, it seems like Jared directly contradicted what Misha said and the way he intended for Cas's words to be interpreted. to me, i felt hurt by Jared comparing Cas and Dean's romantic love to inc3st or p3dophilia. to me i felt like the "junkless" comment could be interpreted in a way that was invalidating towards asexuals and a-spec people such as myself. i really don't know. just as i said earlier, just as none of us can say for sure what Misha truly thought, felt and intended behind Cas and his words, none of us can say for sure what Jared truly thought, felt and intended through this speech either. all i know is I would like more clarification, because seeing and hearing all of this, as well as input from many people in the fandom, has left a bruise on my adoration and happiness for this man. and that genuinely hurts my heart. i don't know what to think. i have loved him for years (again, non-romantically, just to clear it up) and he has inspired me to stay strong and Always Keep Fighting. he has indirectly saved my life and helped me get through some of my darkest times. but i'm scared i may be led to question 7 years of deep connection to somebody because if they do not approve of and accept those with my identity...my connection is meaningless and hypocritical. and when it all boils down to it, over the last few years, i don't know who i am without SPN or without my connection to Jared Padalecki.
