I think the fandom switch from top!Dean to bottom!Dean happened around S3 and S4, where Dean was very psychologically vulnerable, and Sam was increasingly BAMF in trying to first save and then avenge him. Plus, Jared grew into his height around S3--he stopped being "gawky kid" and started being "Greek god." And a lot of people associate topping with size and muscularity.
I don't care who physically tops/bottoms in fic, but it bothers me when it's treated as a characterization rather than a matter of sexual taste. The thinking seems to be: being penetrated = being a girl = being weak, which is messed up at every step. Plus, fandom blurs the lines between bottoming and subbing in a way I find problematic. The vast majority of people who enjoy being penetrated aren't sexually submissive, and not all sexual submissives enjoy penetration, but in fandom "bottom" is often assumed to encompass both. I love fics where sexual roles are negotiated, like you said, and I wish that happened more often. I'm a sucker for fic where people talk about sex in a believable, non "Very Special Episode" kind of way. And it's cool that all the big pairings in SPN fandom have at least some variety in who tops.
On a selfish level, I wish there was more non-penetrative sex where top/bottom isn't an issue. I mean, I enjoy lots of fics with anal, and have written several, but I wish there were more where handjobs/oral/intercrural/whatever was the main course instead of just foreplay.
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I don't care who physically tops/bottoms in fic, but it bothers me when it's treated as a characterization rather than a matter of sexual taste. The thinking seems to be: being penetrated = being a girl = being weak, which is messed up at every step. Plus, fandom blurs the lines between bottoming and subbing in a way I find problematic. The vast majority of people who enjoy being penetrated aren't sexually submissive, and not all sexual submissives enjoy penetration, but in fandom "bottom" is often assumed to encompass both. I love fics where sexual roles are negotiated, like you said, and I wish that happened more often. I'm a sucker for fic where people talk about sex in a believable, non "Very Special Episode" kind of way. And it's cool that all the big pairings in SPN fandom have at least some variety in who tops.
On a selfish level, I wish there was more non-penetrative sex where top/bottom isn't an issue. I mean, I enjoy lots of fics with anal, and have written several, but I wish there were more where handjobs/oral/intercrural/whatever was the main course instead of just foreplay.