So do the whales have the ability to dump us into a bear market on their own?
They would be able to buy cheap Bitcoin but if we're in a bear market they can't sell for huge profits (and then rinse and repeat) until the next bull run. Or is Bitcoin accumulation the be all end all for them?
Generally things like technical analysis seem to work much better in the times we're in a bull run so I doubt the whales can move much price wise and are probably trading based on technicals or not trading at all.
They may have the power to move the price somewhat but I don't think it's worth the risk to them or the effort unless they spot something in the order book that looks manipulatable (for example the drops that occur on weekends).