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salamandergoo · 3 months

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STWG Prompt: Chocolate Covered Strawberries

CW for discussion of period-typical homophobia

The floorboards in the doorway of the kitchen squeaked, they had since the Byers family had moved into the house and it had gotten on Jonathan's frayed nerves the first hundred times he'd heard it. By now, though, it was just a background noise in the usually subdued home. When he heard it while leaning over the stove, he already knew who it was. "Hi El."

"Hello." He could picture her path across the tiled floor, could hear her near-silent steps. "What are you doing?"

"Making chocolate covered strawberries." His tongue poked out in concentration as he twisted the strawberry skewered on toothpicks, doing his best not to drip melted chocolate everywhere.

"Why?" She reached out to stick her finger in the chocolate, but he easily batted her hand away before she could touch it. Will had tried the same thing before getting banished from the kitchen.

"Tomorrow is Valentine's Day. I thought it might be nice to make some for uh... for a friend." He set it down on the parchment paper he'd laid on the counter and picked up one that had already cooled off. "Here, you can have this one."

She grinned at him and took an eager bite of it. "Your friend Argyle?"

"Yeah, uh... you know, now that Nance and I aren't seeing each other, Argyle and I are both single, so I thought... yeah, that it would be nice." He felt his face turning pink and turned his focus to skewering another strawberry. If nothing else, it would be a nice snack while they got high in the van..

"Do you like him?"

"Do I- of course I like him." Jonathan glanced at El. "He's my best friend."

"Do you like him the same way you liked Nancy, though?" Her eyes were curious, he didn't think she had any ill intent, but he pulled his shoulders in like he needed to protect himself.

He fidgeted with another strawberry and thought for a moment. "...is mom home?" He didn't even know if she like, knew anything about queer people. That they were-

They were what? Jonathan glanced over at El, who had an innocent look of puzzlement on her face. Shit. Maybe that lab hadn't taught her to hate queers, maybe she'd managed to stay unexposed this long. But it couldn't be his responsibility, right?

"She left with Will after you made him leave the kitchen. He needs a new sweatshirt." El reached for a strawberry and he let her take it.

"Um. Right. Okay." He could do this, he could totally do this. "So you know how you like Mike?"

Her nose scrunched up. "I guess."

"Good enough." He had a feeling that relationship wouldn't last much longer. "That's... we get told that girls are supposed to like boys and boys are supposed to like girls. And that's fine, that's usually how it shakes out anyway." He held his breath for a moment. "But sometimes, um, sometimes boys like... they don't like girls. They like other boys. Or they like boys and girls. And it's the same way for girls. And were told it's not supposed to work like that, but it does anyway, no matter how hard you try, you just... can't make it go away. How hard other people try..." He shook his head, trying to shake away the thoughts about his father with it. "It's not wrong, though. Even if a lot of people think it is, it just... it just is, you know?"

"...so you do like Argyle?"

Jonathan's shoulders slumped a little. "Yeah. Yeah, I like Argyle. A lot."

"He is very pretty." El smiled and patted his arm.

"Yeah, he really is." Jonathan let out a breathy little laugh. "But- but you can't tell anyone, okay? Because some people think it's wrong and they could... they could hurt us."

"Okay." El nodded, expression turned serious. "I will not tell anyone." She wrapped her arms around his waist and he stiffened, still getting used to her occasional bouts of touchiness, and then she was leaving the kitchen with a chocolate covered strawberry in hand.

It turned out that chocolate and strawberry was one of Argyle's favorite flavor combinations, right next to pineapple and pizza. After tasting it on his lips, Jonathan thought it might be one of his favorites too.

#stwgdailyprompt #stranger things #jonathan byers #el hopper #Jargyle #In the background but shhh

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ecoamerica · 2 months

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zenon-karr · 3 months

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I’m just prepping the byler tag just incase the duffers don’t use labels or text to define why Mike likes Will back and he just does. It doesn’t mean Mike is just a love interest either way. One of my favorite things about byler is that they are actually mire than just the representation they are. They are a good love story. The story itself is beautiful it’s the same as the straight ones to me they will probably demonstrate Mike struggles with liking Will coz he is a guy and scared he doesn’t like him back. And that he didn’t realize it till the Byers moved away. So then comphet regardless if he is bi or gay or unlabeled queer whatever is a part of s4 because he’s pretending he doesn’t like Will after he’s realized that he did. This can be true regardless of his label or non label. For me one thing media I don’t see is queer romances that are written outside of ticking off representation boxes. Queer audiences been saying it but it’s something the naysayers about woke media say too. Having queer romances that are written the same and they exist separately as characters and writing byler the same as the straight romances can also be written in a way ANYONE to relate to it. Anyone to the feeling you like your friend but didn’t know if they like you too and you don’t want to ruin it. Written In a way they don’t exist for tokenism or representation. Mike isn’t just a love interest that’s why I love byler! It’s how I feel about it whether he says the words I’m bi or I’m gay whatever! I love byler as a whole love sorry.

Byler to me is the love story so if it doesn’t say Mike is whatever sexuality label and has him just talk about how he is scared about liking Will becuase he is a guy for me it still doesn’t mean he’s only a love interest. That is how he feels in M/leven bc he’s the non super powered one. But to Will Mike is his hero - Mike is a knight in shining armor. I feel like part of his plot is he is losing himself in his relationship with Eleven. He doesn’t contribute anything to the relationship he’s just El’s boyfriend her first boyfriend. In byler Mike is his own person and that is why I ship this ship. DND is part of who Mike is and he lost it in correlation to his relationship to El. I mean I know they will discuss and cover Mike’s inner struggles but I’m not sure if they will do it in a way that says his sexuality label and I’m hoping people don’t think it’s not good enough or something. Sorry just musing. And wanted to express how byler is to me and that Mike is more than just a love interest and I don’t think if they don’t say a sexuality label that it’ll deter and make him only w love interest. I think they already have but we just have been losing Mike as his own person bc of M*leven and I just have a feeling they will do this in a way that is about him loving Will and repressing that and saying it that way and not with a label. I had to make a more positive byler post than my last. Sorry for the last one. I want to contribute positivity ✨💚

#byler

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lemonheadhatchet · 2 years

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Stranger Things Season 4 Mileven Analysis and Season 5 Theory: Mike and El breakup and Byler Possibility.

Stranger Things spoilers ahead!! Also, grab some popcorn because this is a long one.

So, one of my friends said I should post my thoughts and opinions about Byler and since I absolutely LIVE for queer representation in media, especially for a mainstream show like Stranger Things, I decided I would. Being apart of the LGBTQ+ community myself, I also felt like I'd be insulting my community in a way. I will not be attacking Mike and Eleven shippers. Also, I'm not going to be discussing too much Byler evidence as I am Mike and Eleven breaking up evidence because explaining why I believe they will break up is vital to exploring what I believe might happen in season 5. Having to explain all of that and then also all of the Byler evidence would just be an extra 3 extra hours of writing that I don't have the energy for. So, if you want more, literally go to any Byler related hashtag.

As for my thoughts on Byler, I absolutely adore the ship. Anybody who knows me, knows I absolutely love Will Byers and his entire storyline and Mike Wheeler... well, he's Mike Wheeler. As for my thoughts on the stance of their possible relationship, believe it or not, I don't think we're in that bad of a place, possibility wise. Let me explain.

Let me start off with the big love confession scene between Mike and El. First of all, I will admit, there was definitely something wrong with that monolog, but not because it was bad writing or bad acting (as Finn Wolfhard has proven multiple times that he is an incredible actor), but because from the moment it started, I instantly thought: "Wait... that doesn't make sense." Mainly when Mike told El that he loved her the day he found her in the woods. First of all, I felt like the wording was a bit odd for a moment that was supposed to be emotional. Him saying "found her" kind of made it sound like he's talking to a dog (which is oddly an example the Duffer Brothers used to describe Mike and El's relationship). Second, it doesn't make sense storyline-wise. Let's remember, their whole relationship started because Mike was dead set on finding Will. That night, Mike didn't go into the woods to find El, but when he did find her, the first thing he plans to do is get rid of her. However, his mood changes when he realizes she could be of some help to find Will. I'm sorry, but you don't just plan to get rid of someone you "love"! That's literally not a thing that happens. Even after that, he continuously asks her "what's wrong with you" in a very harsh tone (When they "found Will's body" and when she uses the force and sends Lucas flying into a wall). Again, not necessarily something you say to someone you love.

Also, the way he only references her powers is a bit weird to me. There is so much more to El than just her powers. She's brave, she's kind, she's beautiful. He could've literally said that he likes that she's different from other people, which is something that she's canonically insecure about. But, he only talks about her powers, in fact, he lists powers she doesn't even have such as flying and moving mountains. But, do you know who does? SUPERMAN, someone he's compared her too before. Maybe these are just expressions, but I just find it odd that he talked about her powers, especially after her whole arch of volume 1 is learning that she's more than just her powers.

When we cut back to El in Vecna's mind lair, we can see that it isn't working for El. The vine around her neck are tightening and you can see it on her face that she didn't seem to believe him. However, we don't see her break free and find her strength to fight until she looks over and sees that Max, her best friend that taught her about other strong, powerful women like her and inspired her to become something and someone of her own, is dying in front of her eyes. That's when she gains her strength.

Then, once Steve, Nancy, and Robin go flambé on Vecna's ass, we see Lucas and El watch Max die a tragic, horrible death in front of their very eyes. That's when El brings her back to life and Max ends up in a coma. I believe this moment is supposed to tell us that El either can't or doesn't want to live a life without Max in it and absolutely refused to let her best friend die a terrible death too soon.

This leads me to two days later. Mike, Will, El, Jonathan, Nancy, and Argyle all end up back at Hopper's cabin, cleaning it up in order to to hide El. While Jonathan, Nancy, and Argyle are outside, we see Will, Mike, and El are all inside (the perfect set up for something to happen). Mike and Will are sweeping as El goes into her old room and only keeps the door open three inches. Once the two are alone, we get our last Byler heart-to-heart scene of the season.

Prompting this conversation to begin, Will asks Mike is she's talked to him at all and Mike reveals that she's a only spoken to him little bit. A little bit. It had been 2 days. Remember, this is a couple that were glued together in season 3 and wrote letters to each other frequently while they were apart. You'd think that after watching her best friend die and having to bring her back to life, El would be really leaning on Mike, especially after him telling her he love her (which was complete and utter bull but thats a post for another day). But she hasn't, and clearly still isn't.

I believe that this scene was meant to tell us that El is starting to realize that she doesn't need Mike as much as she thought. Remember, the Duffers wanted our heros to feel what it's like to lose in such a big way. After it happens, it makes you realize who you are and what you need. El realized that she didn't need her love for Mike to help her stay strong, she needed the love she has for her family: Hopper and Max, and maybe she didn't realize it in the moment, but most definitely afterwards.

Keep in mind, the loss of her dad and the loss of Max has all occurred within 8 months of each other, that's a lot for anyone,, especially El. We also see that El is still not over Hopper's death in the beginning of season 4, then mix all that with not being able to save Hawkins, this all feels like the biggest loss of her life (because it kind of is). She also realizes that she didn't need to lean on Mike to cope, she needed to do that by herself. I think she's finally starting to realize that she's more that just Mike's girlfriend, but she's also Max's best friend and Hopper's daughter.

Also, think about what's happening during her bedroom scene where she's clearly mourning Max. Mike and Will have a very emotional moment on Hopper's old couch which really parallels their 'crazy together' moment during season 2. The way they filmed this scene is absolutely beautiful and it ends with Mike gripping Will's shoulder tightly. Some people believe that this is visual representation of Mike fear of losing Will again, I don't know if that's what they were going for, but I think it's a fun idea to play with. These scenes are happening at the same time for a reason. They are showing big, emotional moments for the three characters.

And then, the last shot of the scene, we see Eleven stand in front of half of Hawkins torn apart by the man she couldn't defeat, giving her more strength to fight that ever before. Remember, despite her awful history in the town, she still considers it home. Its where her friends are, where her boyfriend is, where she met Hopper and was taken in by him. Behind her, we see Nancy and Jonathan standing together, Joyce and Hopper standing together, and... guess who else... WILL AND MIKE STANDING TOGETHER!! Many believe this shot is a visual representation or foreshadowing how season 5 will end. Eleven will be single, Joyce and Hopper will be together, Nancy and Jonathan will be together, Mike and Will will be together.

Now, here's my take on the set up of Byler:

I think Byler could be a genuine possibility, but only if it's done correctly. Not too rushed, but not pushed until the end because saving a queer relationship between two main characters until the end of a VERY LONG SERIES is honestly just annoying and we're tired of being forced to call it "representation". This shouldn't be a case of "you get what you get". So, I'm going to create a theory (if that's what you can even call this) using the information already given to us through the Duffer Brothers.

So, I think Mike should start to have his realization in episode one. Maybe a new problem could arise that may threaten Will's safety or even life (we already know he's going to have a huge significance to the storyline in season 5) and Mike realizes that the possibility of losing Will permanently scares the absolute shit out of him (obviously), but it's different than anything he's ever felt about losing Eleven. Then something could happen with Max's coma storyline (possibly a way to wake her up) so that makes El realize she needs to bring her best friend back more than anything. Then, in episode two, they have a clean, loving breakup, and everything will begin falling into place for Will's storyline, Mike's storyline, Byler's storyline, and El's storyline. Then, maybe in the middle of the episode/towards the end, we get an emotional moment between Byler, another emotional moment between El and Max, maybe even a moment between El and Lucas, before Joyce, Hopper, Jonathan, Will, and El all haul back off to California. The rest of the episode is everyone reflecting and realizing things about themselves they had never known before and this goodbye feels even sadder and more bittersweet than the first.

I can tell you right now with complete and utter confidence, if this is how they start season 5, they will set their time skip up for success in terms of story telling, writing, and time management for building up each and every storyline.

Anyways, what do you guys think? I just spend 4 hours on this and I have work in the morning so please be kind.

#byler #mike wheeler #stranger things #stranger things season 5 #will byers #lgbtq characters #stranger things season 4 #byler rights #byler is real #stranger things theory #sorry if this is all over the place im very high rn #mike wheeler is gay #will byers is gay #will byers deserves better #will byers is the heart #stranger things season 5 theory #stranger things spoilers #lgbtq #queer representation

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tastytoecheese · 2 years

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Does anyone else think stranger things is a metaphor for being different/gay? The show centers around a gay boy and a socially disconnected girl, they are both the opposite of what people "needed" to be at the time.

👾sorry for spelling or grammar mistakes I'm dyslexic and wrote this very fast👾

In season one we see Will disappear. This is when he was eleven at was probably realising the fact he likes boys, more specifically his best friend, him getting lost in the upside-down was him loosing himself and in turn the people around him loosing him too. Eleven hadn't known how different she was until she met the party-not really fully grasping this until later-but she uses her difference to find Will. Because she didn't realise how other she was she didn't realise how other Will was either allowing her to help him (find part of himself again).

Season 2 is honestly the biggest metaphor for being gay I've seen in the show. We have the shadow monster (Wills internalised homophobia) he trys to fight it but it doesn't work and instead he ends up possessed (depressed and disconnected). The leak/opened gate represents Wills homosexualty. When this starts to effect him (coughing up dart) he trys to hide it and pretend everythings "normal" again. It's a physical presence that Will and the others can see and interact with and ,most importantly, judge him for because he brought dart here despite that being out of his control. Eventually this becomes to much for Will and he needs help, Joyce is the one who's the most determined to get the shadow monster (self hatered/homophobia) out of Will. But the thing that stuck out to me the most is "zombie boy", he's being bullied for something that he can't control, didn't ask for, trys to hide, is seen as scary and could potentially spread(the zombie virus) sounds familiar to a certain disease that was picking up traction and that time and was blamed on gay men, aids.

In season 3 we have a bit less to work with (Will wise I mean) but it leads in well to season 4s metaphor! Season 3 shows us every else getting into relationships, even his mum has something going on with hopper, but Will doesn't. He's once again the odd one out. The main problem comes from the monster of the season, the meat mindflayer, aka the physical embodiment of pupity. We see in this season the more physical reaction Will has to his crush Mike, we see him physically trying get close to him, blushing for no apparent reason, stealing glances at him ect... This is also when we get one of my favourite scenes! Will is in the mall with his friends looking for a gift for El when they come across an underwear shop and Will is visibly starteld looking at the (slightly raunchy) dressed female mannequins. For what I'm about to say next we need background and context so just stick with me! We know Lonnie tried to force Will to like something he didn't like-baseball-we also know Lonnie referred to Will as a queer and a fag, baseball may have been an attempt to "man up" Will. Baseball is heteronormativeity. Jonathan instead tells Will he should like what he likes because he likes it and not because he's told he's supposed to, it's also established Jon helped Will build castle byers. Castle byers represents freedom to be who he is and and like what he likes, it's the only truly safe place he has. After the byler fight and the Infamous "its not my fault you don't like girls!" Line Will destroys castle byers with the baseball bat Lonnie gave him while repeating the word 'stupid'. Will see his feelings for Mike and men as stupid and uses heteronormativeity to destroy his self comfort, an attempt to repres who he is. After the byers move both Will and Mike pull away from eachother. Will also leaves his DnD set, the physical representation of the young love he had for Mike, and him and Mike have a rather flirty extange.

I'm planning to write about season 4 separately as there's no way we can talk about gay metaphors in this season with talking about Mike and El too!

#stranger things #byler #byler is endgame #mike wheeler is gay #will byers supremacy #i love will byers #will byers #byler better be canon #will byers deserves better #will deserves better #gay will byers #stranger things 3 #stranger things 4 #stranger things 5 #stranger things 2 #autistic el hopper #el hopper #joyce byers

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bylerforall · 1 year

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SUPERACHE AS WILL

will byers from the hit show stranger things

MOVIES — this song is purely about wanting a romance like cliché movies. you love someone who doesn’t love you back and everything you thought was real was actually all just in your head. will and mike had the strongest connection but as they grew older, mike started to distance himself which left will realising that nothing will ever be the same as it used to be.

PEOPLE WATCHING — will is definitely a person who wonders what it’s like to be deeply in love with someone who reciprocates the feelings. he’s never dated anyone in his life, so he has probably spent so many years watching perfect couples sit in cafes and share coffee, or for example watching el and mike always running off together. he can’t help but fantasize about what it must be like to feel that emotion.

DISASTER — i personally think will feels that typical fear when you are not sure if your friendship going to work or not, specifically with mike since he is in love with him. he is full of doubts, he wishes he could just let himself go easily, without worrying too much about it, but the truth is that he doesn’t want to risk his feelings getting found out and for the friendship to be over, with the pain that it could bring.

BEST FRIEND — straightforward, mike and will are best friends. they love and care about each other very much. even if mike doesn’t reciprocate wills feelings (he definitely does) he would still support him in everything because that’s his fucking best friend.

ASTRONOMY — this song is about that slow, painful, often denial inducing process of growing apart from somebody, like how mike and will have drifted from each other. that particular moment when all of a sudden will looks at mike who he has loved for years and realise he no longer knows him, same the other way around too. that they exist on two different worlds now. no blowout fight and slamming doors and showing up on doorsteps while it’s raining, just a gradual decaying of love with nothing left to do to stop it from slipping away. there’s no explanation, nobody to blame.

YOURS — listening to the song, it’s pretty much self explanatory. will is in love and those feelings are ‘unrequited’ on mike’s half. he thinks he has absolutely zero chance with mike because it’s the 80’s and mike is ‘straight’.

JIGSAW — this song is about changing yourself to fit someone else’s expectations. will his entire life has been known as the ‘queer kid’ or ‘f*g’. even though he hates baseball, he still wanted to go to spend time with lonnie. when he moves to california, nobody knows him and he’s actually never picked on but he’s still not happy because now his sister is the one that’s getting bullied. he doesn’t try to stop them because what can he do? he’s obviously frozen in fear from the trauma of past bullying and abuse.

FAMILY LINE — lonnie was an awful father to will, most likely an alcoholic from what we saw in season 1 and definitely picked actual physical fights with jonathan. he called will ‘queer’ and ‘f*g’ which is probably traumatising for a young child, especially when that person is supposed to love and care for you. i feel like he still hasn’t healed from the trauma and hasn’t really had time to with all of the upside down shit turning his life literally upside down.

SUMMER CHILD — will has a tendency to hold his true feelings inside, as if he cannot express joy. He needs to open up his heart and dedicate more energy to his own happiness instead of focusing on other people.

FOOTNOTE — what we are actually met with here, most simply premised, is a case of ‘unreciprocated’ love. the song is actually about how conan gray is in a relationship but the partner does not take him seriously because it’s more of a sexual relationship which would definitely not be the case for will and mike.. for obvious reasons.

MEMORIES — will is so in love but he wants to distance himself from mike because he doesn’t want to ruin their friendship because of his feelings. he is still giving him advice with el. he wants to stay away as there’s ‘no reason’ to give hope that they’ll be able to be together. mike and will’s relationship is so on and off that he’s just worn out and wants to seperate from mike for a while to try and move on and make sure mike doesn’t stick the band-aid back on.

THE EXIT — the person will is in love with has found another girl (obvious). the lyrics do read as if conan is taking on the role of a female, i.e. upset because his romantic interest, is “staring at a girl who is not (him)”. in other words, as illustrated in the first verse, just recently everything was all amazing between the two of them but then it’s as if mike suddenly lost interest or more specifically became more smitten with someone else (el).

i really enjoyed making this as i’m a massive conan gray fan and will byers kinnie. this also took me forever to write and i hope it was accurate enough 😭

#conan gray #will byers #byler #superache #superache is will byers coded #i love conan gray and will byers #stranger things #mike wheeler

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ecoamerica · 1 month

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lesbicosmos · 2 years

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Music In Stranger Things

and how it is used to queer-code Mike and Will

Music is integral to what makes the show so great and both the soundtrack and original score is used throughout every season to sometimes parallel scenes or imply things about the characters or plot

OST

The First I love You

This piece first plays in season 3 episode 7, during the scene in the bathroom where Steve confesses his feelings for Robin and she turns him down and comes out to him as a lesbian (it doesn't start til after the coming out scene, when Steve starts joking around and making fun of Tammy)

The same piece plays again in the final episode of the season, when the Byers and El are leaving Hawkins to move to California and El talks to Mike, saying she loves him and kissing him. Mike says nothing in response and stands still, eyes open the whole time and has a confused expression on his face afterwards.

This could imply a parallel between the two scenes; that Mike, like Robin, is gay and can’t love El back the way she wants him to. This is even represented in the title, with ‘love’ being the only word not capitalised to show that it is a different type of love.

In the closet (at Rink O Mania)

I don’t think much more evidence is necessary after this piece, it's literally titled ‘In the closet’. This piece plays during the scene where Will and Mike argue in Rink-O-Mania, after El gets bullied on the rink and Mike is annoyed at Will for not telling him El was being bullied.

While the piece does play into the next scene and the title is literally referring to El hiding from Angela and her friends in a storage closet, it begins during the Mike and Will scene, specifically starting as Mike is talking, implying the double meaning – that Mike is closeted and hiding from his own feelings.

Being Different & You’re The Heart

The piece that plays in the van scene is called ‘Being Different’ (referencing Will’s line about how when you’re different, sometimes you feel like a mistake).

‘You’re the Heart’ plays in the scene with Mike’s monologue to El in the final episode. I find it interesting that this specific piece is titled ‘You’re the Heart’, a Will line, rather than something Mike says to El in the scene, like ‘I Love You’ or ‘You’re My Superhero’. This kind of leads us to think Mike wasn’t being entirely honest with El and is actually just repeating a lot of what Will said the episode prior to cover up the truth.

What’s interesting about these two pieces is they both feel like they’re missing something, much like how the scenes themselves aren’t entirely what they seem (Will talking about himself but not saying it and instead lying that it’s about El, and Mike talking about how much he loves El, covering up the fact he feels their relationship is falling apart and that his feelings may not be genuine).

I first found this next part on tiktok (@causeineedu) and I think it’s such an interesting detail. If you play both tracks, and scenes, so that they end at the same time, the music actually completes itself and is really beautiful. It would be really cool if both pieces together was a new piece in s5 used in a significant byler scene. The scenes the tracks are used in also parallel to show the truth of Mike’s feelings when synced up, the tiktok linked goes into a lot more detail on that and it's really cool so go check it out (also that whole account is amazing)

Soundtrack

Heroes – David Bowie (cover by Peter Gabriel)

Probably one of the most recognised songs used in the show, Heroes is a song about two lovers who are under constant fear of death dreaming that they are free, and is very queercoded.

The Peter Gabriel cover has been used twice throughout the show in pivotal moments:

1. Will’s fake body is found in the quarry at the end of 1x03 – this scene is primarily from Mike’s POV and the song is inherently romantic, especially the lyrics that play when he gets home after biking back in tears and hugs his mom:

“And the guns

Shot above our heads

And we kissed

As though nothing could fall

And the shame”

"And the guns shot above our heads” could reference the bullying they face for being gay (Troy and James do mostly bully Will but they also direct it at Mike more than Dustin or Lucas, as if taunting him as well).

“And we kissed as though nothing could fall” could reference the strength of their relationship before Will went missing; they were inseparable, and even if they never kissed beforehand, this line would still represent that.

"And the shame” references both Mike’s internalised homophobia and the stigma around being queer in the 80s, and how neither Mike nor Will would be comfortable admitting their feelings for fear of attack.

2. The second time the song is used it in the final scene of season 3 as El and the Byers move away, after El reads Hoppers letter.

The song is reused to parallel to the first scene, mostly to hint that while everyone believes Hopper is dead, he survived, much like how everyone thought Will was dead in 1x03

While the song doesn't play over the exact scene, Hoppers letter does, the repeated use of the song also brings the direct parallel of Mike returning home and hugging his mom, but he doesn’t cry or let out much emotion this time. I think this is the moment he truly realised how much he loves Will and the internalised homophobia really started to hit and he doesn’t think he can be emotional about Will leaving without 'being caught'.

The lines of Hoppers letter that do play over the hug scene do also reflect how Mike is feeling:

"I don't want things to change. So maybe that's why I came in here - to try to maybe stop that change. To turn back the clock. To make things go back to how they were."

Mike wants to go back to when he didn't know about his feelings for Will, because that would have been a lot easier. He doesn't want their friendship to change.

The next bit isn't exactly in the show but...

Mike’s Spotify Playlist

Mike's official playlist, Mike's Bassment Beats, contains a lot of musical hints that Mike might be queer, even from the very first song.

The first song on the playlist is Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat, which was described as a ‘cry for gay liberation’ when it was released in 1984 and was about how many queer men had to flee small towns due to the intolerance and homophobia.

Season 2 of the show was set in 1984 and I think this is when Mike developed a crush on Will, even if he didn’t fully realise it then. He was a lot more protective of him that season, rightfully so after season one, but he was always there right by his side, somewhat separated from people like Dustin and Lucas when it came to Will, implying their relationship was different.

The lyrics:

“Pushed around and kicked

Around, always a lonely boy

You were the one that they’d

Talk about around town as they

Put you down

And as hard as they would try,

They’d hurt to make you cry

But you never cried to them”

These lyrics can actually apply to both Mike and Will quite easily.

“Pushed around and kicked around” represents the bullying they face, mostly Will, from kids at school like Troy and James, and even his own father Lonnie.

"Always a lonely boy" represents them both, they've always been the outcasts, the loners. Mike specifically mentions he was all alone before he met Will in kindergarten.

“You never cried to them” is a very Mike line, representing how after season 2, he started to realise his actual feelings and pushed them down, suppressing his emotions until they got too much and were forced out, like during the rain breakup in 3x03 where he absolutely projects onto will with the "it's not my fault you don't like girls" line.

The 11th song on the playlist is Don’t You Want Me by The Human League and was originally on the playlist with a cover from a ‘Celebrate Gay Pride’ album (Steve also has this song on his playlist but the original album cover so this was very likely intentional). Since, however, it has been changed to the original, perhaps to be more subtle.

One song on the playlist is Are ‘Friends’ Electric?’ by Tubeway Army. The lyrics themselves aren't intentionally queercoded but the title and in the context of Mike's character they are. Electricity is mentioned a couple of times in season 2 to allude to a romantic relationship; Steve tells Dustin that once you feel the electricity you know something is going on between two people, and Dustin then tells Lucas he can feel the electricity between him and Max (one of the main couples that have always paralleled Mike and Will).

Some songs on the playlist could link to hiding in the closet, such as Cars by Gary Numan:

“Here in my car

I feel safest of all

I can lock all my doors

It’s the only way to live in cars”

The car represents the closet and how Mike is hiding from his own self and who he really is behind his ‘straight boy’ cover act - the closet is safe for him as it hides him from the reaction of the real world.

Many other songs on the playlist are about running away:

I Ran (So Far Away) by A Flock of Seagulls

Running in the Night by FM-84 + Ollie Wride

Destination Unknown by Missing Persons

Run Away by International Music System

These could all be metaphors for Mike running away from his own feelings and identity out of fear, or even running from his parents and their reactions, specifically his dad's - Ted has made a couple of homophobic micro-aggressions throughout the seasons, mostly in season 1.

Mike's playlist overall is really interesting as so many of the songs could be linked to his feelings about his sexuality and running away from himself.

The next point is also not entirely in the show itself, but links to a set piece.

Will’s Vecna Song – Theory

Although Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash has been a song associated with him since season 1, I don’t think it would be the song that would save him from Vecna. He probably has a lot of trauma from it as it is what he kept singing when he was stuck in the Upside Down. While it is linked to happy memories and Jonathan distracting him from his parents’ fighting, it has always also been linked to the negativity and trauma in Will’s life.

Instead, I think Will’s Vecna song would be Boys Don’t Cry by The Cure.

For starters, he has a poster for the song on his bedroom wall in season 4 (visible in the first scene he’s in when he’s painting in 4x01) so we know he at least likes it.

He would probably like the song so much as he'd relate to it a lot:

“I try to laugh about it

Cover it all up with lies

I try to laugh about it

Hiding the tears in my eyes

‘Cause boys don’t cry

Boys don’t cry”

These lyrics would specifically fit one particular scene that is key to Will and Mike’s relationship in season 4 – when he admits his feelings to Mike in the back of the van but uses El’s name (“cover it all up with lies”), to help Mike in his struggle with his and El’s relationship. He turns and looks out of the window so Mike can’t see him crying (“hiding the tears in my eyes ‘cause boys don’t cry”)

The song could also link very clearly to Mike’s character too. He is also “covering it all up with lies” as his whole relationship with El is covering up his true feelings for Will, and he also pushes down all his emotions so he doesn’t have to open up to anyone.

Another reason I think this would be the song that would save Will from Vecna is the lyrics have similar ties to his trauma as the lyrics of Running Up that Hill have to Max's. Max relates to Running Up that Hill as she feels guilty about Billy's death and wishes she could go back and rewrite that day. It's the thing that makes her hate herself. The thing that makes Will hate himself the most is his sexuality and his feelings for Mike, which the lyrics would reflect; him knowing he can't open up about how he really feels out of fear of both rejection and being attacked, as well as the thought of truly losing Mike, even as his friend.

There are so many more examples of music being used to queercode these two characters and I'll add onto this if I find any more but this post is really long anyway so ill stop 😭

#well that took a while #gonna turn this blog into an analysis blog aswell #i keep rambling about stuff #and i think my family are starting to get annoyed #byler #byler analysis #stranger things #stranger things analysis #stranger things music #stranger things music analysis #stranger things score #mike wheeler is gay #mike wheeler i know what you are #byler endgame #mike wheeler #will byers #heroes by david bowie #boys don't cry by the cure

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sortagaysortahigh · 2 years

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lex i wanna know your take on byler and will coming out bcs i’ve seen a lot of different takes like the duffer bros are homophobic for not making him come out this season or that it’s the 80’s so it’s harder

I think byler and will being closeted are literally an essential part of his character, ppl saying the duffer brothers are homophobic ar eliterally dense and im gonna talk ab robin too for a sec because with robins character it was different in the sense that she came out to steve-a guy she’d known for one summer that fell in love w her, a guy whos friendship she valued and a guy she knew was still in love w his ex and essentially using rob as a way to fill that void. When she came out to steve it was unspoken and he immediately understood what she meant and he accepted her as she was because truthfully thats A. A part of steves character and B. Emphasized their relationship as friends moving forward which served as the future plotpoints of steve wanting her to be happy but also of the whole rekindling an old flame with nancy bc steve had to accept snd realize that ol boy wasnt over his ex. Plus it made Robin an integral member of “the party” and Steve’s life as his best friend. Lets also keep in mind that robin has only ever come out to Steve and its a prevalent point that shes not coming out to anyone else bc “ill be the town pariah” ie homophobia and hate, not to mention the fetishization of lesbian women was still prominent in the 80s cornography industry like it is to this day, which from a consumerism perspective means that robin being “openly out of the closet” is easier to accept from a viewer perspective bc shes a woman-harsh truth but its a reality in most media.

With Byler and Will it’s different. Not to mention that Will being a gay male in the 80s (historical context: the aids epidemic + a DRASTIC rise in being outwardly hateful/homophobia) makes him feel like a mistake bc of everything around him telling him he is one. Him being closeted is almost an essential part of his character growth and development and his singular story arc as well, this is the kid who was known as ‘zombie boy’ and bullied his entire childhood-he already felt left out and left behind by his friends and his other peers. In season 3 when mike yells its not my fault you dont like girls its a direct reference to will being “behind” in terms of relationships but also its a read between the lines moment where the duffer brothers are telling you will byers is gay. He has that moment with jonathan in the pizza play and jonathan KNOWS his speech in the car about “el” was really about himself, his brother KNOWS he’s gay and he doesnt force him out of the closet or make him say it outloud (i think its almost a parallel to robin and steve w her coming out moment), instead he says that he loves him and nothing would ever change that.

I think theyve set it up for will to be in love with mike from the beginning of the series, mike was constantly there for will and constantly checking in/there when all the bad shit went down-it sets up will having a crush on mike rlly well honestly. Its the age ol classic gay trope of having a crush on your straight best friend. Which is genuinely realistic because it’s happened to so many gay ppl that its almost expected for a lot of baby gays (ie ppl who are starting to understand their sexualities past heteronormativity) to end up falling for someone whos straight-and in wills case its his best friend. Will also saved El, inherently by him telling Mike he was the heart and projecting his feelings for Mike through El, Mike was literally able to find the words to tell that bitch he believed in her and he loved her and he needed her-which is a harsh reality that a lot of young queer people face.

I feel like a lot of younger ppl (like those under 18) dont really have an understanding of/or the same coming out experience as the older side of gen z and previous generstions bc right now (minus the whole scotus hates gays) being gay is societably acceptable, sure homophobia and bigots still exist-but in a lot of westernized societies its okay to be openly gay snd coming out isnt as difficult as it used to be-given that the show is set in Indiana-coming out in the 80s in a small town in the same state that the Kkk was created in??? Yeah no, not happening, so sorry but context is NECESSARY to understand will being closeted. As a society we’ve been slowly progressing to being more open and accepting towards anyone who isnt cisgendered and heterosexual. Like bitch for some context sb modern day America: i got outed when i was in highschool and that was like 5 years ago, people were okay with using the F slur in shows and media until literslly like 2018, gay marriage has only been legal for like 7 years, coming out today is WAYYY easier than it was in the 80s so Will being closeted and never admitting it fits his storyline. Him being in love w his bestfriend whos straight and loves a girl, fits his storyline and its clear that this is gonna reflect in season 5 somehow.

Personally i think byler is cute, but the way the show is set up-Mike Wheeler is straight, hes not gonna fall for Will snd thats going to slowly break wills heart, but like i said-that normal for young queer people-its an almost universal experience for a lot of us. I think we also need to genuinely take a step back from toxic ship culture in fandoms bc not every gay ship is gonna fuckin happen 90% of the time they don’t happen-we all know this and ive seen ppl say they were queerbaited w byler but genuinely they werent, mike wheeler isnt gay, he isnt bisexual, and thats OKAY, i think wills closeted experience is honestly well done, like yea he bitches a lot and hes kind of a pussy but eh the kid was traumatized so he has the right to be a pussy. His closeted experience reflects a general experience that he has to go through in order to eventually accept himself and embrace who he is. If he wouldve come out this season his character development wouldve been rushed and odds are his friendship w mike and the moment from the van or in the pizza shop wouldnt have happened.

#askies #izz bizz <3 #stranger things spoilers

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paladinsbrainrot · 3 years

Text

All Season One Byler References

Hey! I'm going to be starting a bit of a series where I combine all of the Byler references from each season. I have also made in depth analysis' on certain scenes so make sure to check those out as well.

Today I will be going over all of the season one Byler references. These will not be in chronological order.

Season one doesn't contain the most Byler proof, but it definitely has something. We don't see much of Will in the first season, but there are so many pieces of proof that can help us see if Mike likes Will.

In my opinion season one Byler is super underrated, but there isn't much to cover so it's understandable.

Without further ado, let's begin the analysis.

˰ Season One Chapter One : The Vanishing of Will Byers

The very first scene of Will and Mike together, we have Will telling Mike that he supposedly 'died' in Dungeons and Dragons. Why is this important? This is important because Will can't lie to Mike, even when told not to, for example in this scene;

Will is encouraged by Lucas to lie to Mike, but doesn't end up doing it. He can't lie to him. This isn't that much of evidence, but it does show that Will is willing to be honest with Mike, which is really important for relationships.

Moving on, next scene;

˰ Season One Chapter Four : The Body x Season One Chapter Six : The Monster

The fairy reference is used between Mike and Will. I'll be making a separate analysis on this, but here's a quick summary;

Troy states that Will is in 'fairyland' now, and is a 'fairy'. In episode six, when Mike jumps off the quarry to save Dustin, El saves him by making him fly, just like a fairy. In the statement Troy says, he also mentions Will is gay. This could also mean Mike is gay as well. This could be the Duffers hinting that.

Next piece of evidence;

Just look at the way Will looks at Mike, and Mike looks at Will. I've never seen Mike look this way for any other person, not even El who is suppobly his 'love interest'. This might prove they have a stronger connection than El and Mike.

I don't have much to say, but they give each other heart eyes all of the scenes they have together. I think it's really sweet.

Next;

˰ Season One Chapter Four : The Body

Many people think Byler is one-sided and that Will is the only one who likes Mike. But actually, the majority of the proof is on Mike's side. For example. Mike has a huge collection of every drawing Will has given him.

In fact, he has an entire binder full of them, and has hung up all of the drawings Will has given him onto the basement walls. The drawings are still there in season three, but this is just for season one so I won't get into too much detail.

This must mean Mike would ask for Will to give him drawings or something, or Will gives them to Mike.

Not to mention, the lyrics after Will's 'death' are heavily queer coded, take a look at this;

Pretty interesting if I do say so myself. The lyrics only appear for Mike, and Mike only. We are also not given any close up shots of Lucas or Dustin crying or going home and hugging their parents after Will 'died'. This means that Mike and Will have a special relationship that the rest of the party doesn't have.

If they wanted us to believe that Will and Mike's relationship was just a friendship, they would have included Dustin and Lucas being upset as well. Showing just Mike shows that Mike has had feelings for Will that he's never felt with any other person before.

Now we also have this;

˰ Season One Chapter Eight : The Upside Down

Mike is seen eagerly waiting in the hospital, the only one of his friends who is kept awake. Lucas and Dustin are sleeping, Mike is the only member of the party who is awake. Keep in mind, despite the fact that he just lost El (who he suppobly 'loves'), he is still waiting for Will and the opportunity to see him.

When Jonathan comes into the room, Mike's face lights up with shock and joy and quickly wakes up the rest of the party. He is also seen running out of the hospital room, super anxious to see Will.

In the next scene, Mike and Will's face just says it all.

Look how happy they are to see each other. If that doesn't say something I don't know what does.

Mike just lost El and he is still smiling the whole way 'round. Mike is also the first one to hug Will, yell his name, and it's just a really sweet and heartwarming scene for me.

Nevertheless, that's all I have to say for today's analysis. Thank you for coming to my ted talk and let me know if you'd like for me to continue this series. There wasn't much Byler proof from season one, but I might add onto this depending on what I find rewatching the show.

#byler #byeler #byler proof #byler analysis #byler theory #byler is real #byler is endgame #byler is canon #byler rights #byler obsessed #byler depression #mike and will #will and mike #mike x will

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kaypeace21 · 3 years

Note

can you maybe stop telling people what they ship and what they don’t ship.. i swear you’re so fucking stubborn. and if you wanna defend mike so damn much then do it cause i bet more then half your followers hate him. it’s the way you clearly don’t see how many bylers hate mike and love will do you SEE the problem here??

This is the 5th anon message (in 1 day) you sent me.and you’re not stubborn? I’m not the one who has sent 5 anon messages in a row? Why don’t you just chill out and ignore me. You’re this pissed cause I said your hate to Max was unjustified. I kindly pointed out max didn’t make El spy on Mike - like you claimed . El spied on mike in s2 - before she even met Max. Then you got infuriated that I pointed out that all the flaws you claimed were about the elmax friendship were actually just flaws with mileven. Some of you hate on Max just cause you saw her as a hindrance to Mileven. Then in the second message you got pissed and brought up byler (which I didn’t even bring up in the first post!) Cause you just ... wanted to fight about byler despite totally being a byler shipper? Specifically said if mike was actually gay and dated el before he realized he’d be “an ass”. And if el and mike were confused about thinking they loved eachother when they didn’t “they’d be the worst characters ever.” Then brought up Will being bad cause he called El stupid (which was projection cause right after that he called himself stupid 4x). 3rd message went on a tangent about how much better and nicer mileven shippers are and that you ship both byler and mileven. And 4th message just go on about how Will was horrible to El, and max did horrible things in s3 , and that bylers hate on mike all the time , and elmax sucks. And now this. Yes you totally ship byler and aren’t just a mileven who got pissed that my 1st comment criticized your ship . So then in the second message brought up byler randomly to try and critique it. And just got pissy when called out as pretending to be a byler shipper and not getting the answers you wanted 😂 you can ship mileven. I’m not stopping you .

Also , I’ve constantly defended mike. And called out bylers for the hating him in the past. I literally defended mike when you claimed him being gay and dating el before hand would make him “awful”. You clearly don’t follow me and probably just believe all the lies mileven shippers say about me on twitter 🙄 . I’ve even told other bylers that the way Mike treated El was worse than Will. At least mike apologized to Will. Mike never apologized for lying- to El. And I still said that mike hate is unjustified countless times (cause he’s a kid)! Kids make mistakes! And especially cause I explained Mike saying (In the garage) “ it’s not my fault you don’t like girls “ was projecting his own gay feelings on to Will. Similar to how Will (in the garage) saying El was “stupid” was projecting his own feelings - why Will called himself “stupid” (4x at castle byers) after their fight in the garage and this comment about El. But you get angry at the concept of byler / projection so... that won’t help.

Past comments:

Part 1 (their first Max message/my response ) part 2 (second message/ my response ) part 3 (comments 3-4) . In this annoying ass saga 😂

Now please - move on . I only didn’t block you to prove how unhinged milevens get when you don’t block them . Look how angry you’ve gotten . This bylers is why you have block milevens -they just don’t give up and get angrier and angrier 😅

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Update: 6th message

I said for you to leave me alone. Not mike. How was that not clear? Also he’s a fictional character- what are you talking about?Oh my god .😅 You can do whatever you want on your own blog-just stop spamming me.

Mileven fan base (who are predominantly straight) use homophobic talking points and slurs to discredit byler / queer st fans . Many of us have gotten messages calling us the f and d word. Then milevens constantly private message bylers ,minding their own business, and call bylers “stupid” or “delusional “ ( or straight up sending de*th t#reats) . ( When these bylers are in their own tags -minding their own business- and don’t cross tag mileven at all ) . Bylers rarely go on to mileven posts that gush about mileven and then make jokes about how horrible the ship is and how delusional it’s shippers are (in said mileven post). Milevens do that all the time - they’ll go to a random byler post , only tagged byler , and make such comments about the byler ship/shippers . They also personally insult people for shipping byler and not mileven. Like me. Many mileven anons sent me messages making fun of my autism cause I shipped byler and said I’m not allowed to talk about byler /analyze the show cause I’m autistic and incapable of providing anything meaningful to the fandom because of my autism(all while hypocrically saying it’s ableist for anyone to think El isn’t ready to date yet). And bylers have the audacity... to in turn!!! Not like your ship and critique the issues with the (fictional) pairing using canon evidence in the show . And rarely send any direct messages/personal attacks to people who ship mileven . We criticize a ship - milevens directly message and attack the opposing shippers . There’s a difference between saying In the byler tag “mileven (the ship) is bad” or even an offensive blanket statement like “mileven shippers are blank” vs a person directly messaging a random individual who ships mileven and saying “you’re stupid for shipping mileven.bla bla.” A lot of the mileven fandom doesn’t seem to know the obvious difference when playing the victim. 🙄

And now you say byler is shipped just cause it’s “2 hot boys.” Which is yet another anti byler/pro mileven talking point. You don’t ship byler (you’re just a mileven troll -move on) . Also-Ew - they’re kids. I’m an adult lesbian who actually likes well developed relationships - especially if lgbt. That’s all. And I’ve already criticized other bylers for some of their questionable heteronormative behavior and creepy fetishistic behavior of the characters/actors. Also Bylers usually like El -more than milevens like Will. We don’t like mileven cause we see it’s bad for El’s character development and mental health. We care about El and think getting to know the real world and herself is better than rushing into a relationship (before she’s actually ready). But, y’all hate Will over a few comments he’s made. And I’ve seen milevens say they want Will d*ad or even say they wish he never came back from the upsidedown. And that’s just cause you’re threatened he’ll ruin mileven. Ya’ll are projecting . YOU EVEN SAID bylers make you not like Will as much- in a diff message. But go off. (And leaaaave me alone ). Blocked you cause you have no self control to do it yourself .😂

#byler #byeler #mike wheeler #max mayfield

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mayabruhbruh · 4 years

Text

Stranger Things 4 Analysis and Theory

I don’t know if anyone else has done posts on this stuff yet (it’s really likely, but i’d not want to take the credit if i’m not the only one who’s thought of this)

I know @kaypeace21 has made tons of posts on the s4 movies from Video Store Friday, and many others have theories and analyses, but back in July I took it upon myself to research more into the very last few scenes of s3. Specifically the three months later time stamp, where Steve and Robin are in search for a new job.

My main focus was the four movies that they mentioned for Keith at the counter. “Animal House”, “The Hidden Fortress”, “Children Of Paradise”, and “The Apartment”.

(reminder that if you read this, it could be spoilers for the final cut of the actual show if i end up being correct about some of this, so read at your own risk)

My first theory, which I’ve already discussed in a separate reblog, is about The Hellfire Club. But i’ll say it here too.

Basically,

(sorry for the sucky quality)

Animal House is about two awkward freshmen going into college and joining a fraternity of rejects. It matches Mike, Dustin and the Hellfire Club perfectly! Personally, my lowkey theory is that they’re going to have to go though an entirety of initiation activities (possibly drugs too, if what we’ve heard is correct) and Lucas and Max will be in their own storylines up until the supernatural threat brings them back together again. This could be wayy off, but still its my idea.

As for Max and Lucas...

I’m not sure about the entirety of the plot of this movie, but the last line sounds a lot like something that would happen between Lumax. Lucas is a basketball jock now, I think that’s crystal clear now seeing from the Pep Rally poster, and how he’s always been the one in the group to be able to mask his nerdy side. For Dustin and Mike, I know it’s much harder for them. Anyways, Max, I’m pretty positive by now, is going to be extremely distant and defensive from everyone just like she was in the beginning of s2, since she just had a big change happening in her life. It’s the same now, except with the grief and loss of Billy. My guess, from the hints of this movie and other stuff, is that Lucas is going to come face to face with his reputation as a popular kid, and his love for Max. Like the summary says, he must decide between the advancement of his career or the girl that he loves. Real hard hitting stuff.

Onto the next one. MIKE WHEELER. (or will byers)

I watched an analysis video on this movie, because I haven’t seen it yet, but again the very last line is what I’d like to focus on.

My. Jaw. Dropped.

I’ve read many analyses of Mike Wheeler being gay (courtesy of @kaypeace21 @hawkinsschoolcounselor and MANY others), but I dunno, I was always just so skeptical no matter how much it made sense. But when I saw this WHAT THE HELL?!?’);/&? It’s stupid of me to not have believed it sooner, but I hope this is the movie that foreshadows Mike’s storyline this season. I’m assuming Mike will have to “prove his expertise in battle”, or perhaps prove he can go through with all of the initiation shit for The Hellfire Club, while hiding his growing revelation that he might be gay/bisexual.

BUT a possibly more likely scenario would be that this movie connects with Will Byers’ storyline this season instead. Perhaps the hardships of a new school and a new town has Will shaken up, and he also has his sexuality awakening that he has to hide from new people. I say that it’s more likely for him, because Will has always been more heavily queer-coded (not exactly heavier, but just extremely much more apparent and obvious opposed to Mikes queercoded subtext that we really had to dig for).

I also didn’t mention this in my reblog from earlier, but I want to address my opinions on the apparent cheerleader that meets Mike and befriends one another. One of my friends on twitter said Chrissy (her name, or so we think lmao) might be a key component to Mike being able to discover and come to terms with his sexuality. But then again, a different friend of mine thinks that the amount of content were getting is oddly suspicious, and that the Duffers are feeding us all the wrong information to lead us to all the wrong conclusions. But, at this point, why not both. At the moment, everyone thinks that Chrissy is Mikes new love interest, but what if she really isn’t, and they’re pulling a Robin on us (i call it a robin because it was technically straight-baiting in s3 LMFAO). I’m not saying that she might be a lesbian (although 👀 it says on her character info that she’s 18 (robins got some game to work with now ahaha)) but it could be a straight-bait up until she helps Mike realize his sexuality (i would have said realizes his love for Will😍😍 but recently ive been trying not to input byler into everything i fucking say, so theres how that’s going). Anyways. Last movie!

Now, I’m currently not super concrete on this one to be completely honest. I have a few in mind...

Okay, so don’t attack me, but this could possibly be a mileven storyline. It sort of fits. They have an undeniable connection, but “their fortunes shift considerably and they’re pushed apart” aka the misfortune of the mindflayer and hawkins not being safe for them leads them to moving away and literally being pushed apart. I don’t know about the pursuing other relationships, but we still have no idea what’s going on with El Hopper tbh, i havent a single clue what’s going to be happening with her storyline atm. But either way, that could be it.

ORRRR the MUCH more likely scenario, Jancy :)

Bloggers on here have already predicted that they wouldn’t be endgame, and I was only slightly skeptical because although their relationship was built on shared trauma, a very unstable foundation to have for a ship tbh, i still hung onto the fact that they cared for eachother a lot :,( But the entirety of their season 3 bickering and this summary kind of sealed the deal.

Just like Mike and El, Nancy and Jonathan have been pushed apart aswell. It was already seen in season three that they’d be better of leading separate lives, aka Jonathan was doing fine at the internship, whereas Nancy could have been somewhere better for herself. I doubt they broke up at the end of season 3, but there’s bound to be new relationships for them seperately. It sucks bc I love Jancy, but s3 showed how badly they snap at one another when there isn’t a life threatening event at hand. Jopper on the other hand, I thought their bickering was adorable, but i’m getting off track, sorry lmfaoo.

Once again, I probably am not the first to talk about these, but jsyk if you steal this from me specifically i will track you down and end you. I’ve been speculating about these things since April and July, which is pretty weak tbh, but that was when i had nothing better to do LMFAO. i hope i got at least something right, but i haven’t seen many of the video store friday’s movies, which sucks bc those could really help. But whatever.

(i wrote this really late at night, and it’s poorly edited bc my eyesight sucks lmfao, but i hope you get what i mean)

And that’s it! I hope you like it, or had some sort of impact from it idk, just sharing my thoughts tbh. Anygays, if you have any questions/added ideas/thoughts of any kind, my inbox is always here, you can private message me, and comment if you want!! i love y’all sm lmfao, so excited for the upcoming content were about to get soon, byee!

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strangertheory · 4 years

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A “perfect” ending?

Thank you for Asking, @strangerbylerss ! I was a Tumblr amateur once again, and I accidentally tried to save your Ask as a Draft and it disappeared. Thankfully, I’ve started taking screenshots of all Asks so I don’t lose track of them so I’m replying in a post like this.

What do I envision as a “perfect ending” that the public would say is not forced that involves Mike and Will falling in love and becoming a couple? Well. As you probably have noticed, I already see Mike and Will’s strong bond as canon and as an essential part of the very structure of the entire series. I personally believe that any other ending would feel forced and as though the writers had diverged from their original plans that they foreshadowed in seasons 1, 2, and 3. But! I respect that my opinion on that topic is controversial in the context of the popular fandom understanding of the series thus far, and I am happy to describe my thoughts on the direction that the series might take next, how that might involve Mike and Will’s relationship, and what I would personally like to see addressed in the story by the end of season 5.

It is, of course, important for the writers to explore Mike and Will’s relationship from this point forward in a way that continues to be consistent with the established Stranger Things universe and any canon details that we have been given so far in the first three seasons. I think Mike and Will have quite a lot of hurdles to get through, but that those hurdles are an intrinsic part of the story and that they will be addressed in the final seasons. Whether they face their challenges together earlier on, or whether those challenges need to be dealt with before they feel comfortable admitting their feelings for each other, remains to be seen. I have a hunch, however, that the mysterious events and odd happenings with the Mindflayer are directly connected to what Will is struggling with in the story, and as such it only makes sense that in the process of confronting the Mindflayer and conquering the personal issues that Will is dealing with that he will also inevitably confront his feelings for Mike.

I trust the Duffer Brothers and the writing team behind Stranger Things to continue telling a great story just as they have been thus far. Season 4 and 5 will undoubtedly feature more monsters and strange happenings around Hawkins, the Upside Down, and now wherever Hopper is (presumably Russia) and wherever the Byers Family has moved to. I am wary of hypothesizing too far into plot-related specifics since I think that's entirely dependent on the writers' creative decisions and something that could take many different paths, but I'm happy to share a very general idea of one route that I could envision the story taking that I think could be very satisfying.

Hints and clues in the series so far suggest that Will is dealing with a lot of trauma, and I believe that there is evidence that Will is also dealing with a significant amount of internalized homophobia. Canonically, the Mindflayer is implied to be connected to Will's emotional state in some way or at the very least heavily influences it. Will is pulled into the Upside Down in season 2 when he is afraid: first while trick-or-treating when startled by the bullies in masks, and again when at school and frightened by Dart in the bathroom. Will senses the Mindflayer in season 3 while watching Mike and El holding hands on the hill as they walk home, and he senses the Mindflayer while at the movies alone with Mike. I hypothesize that these season 3 moments in which Will senses the Mindflayer are specifically triggered by Will’s intense fear and anxiety over his repressed feelings for Mike. I believe that by the end of the series Will has to confront many of his fears in order to effectively deal with the Mindflayer, and his internalized homophobia is a significant source of fear and anxiety for him. I theorize that he will have to face his feelings for Mike eventually, and that it is actually a critical part of the logical resolution of the story.

Mike, meanwhile, has his own challenges. We are led to understand that Mike has a lot of deep insecurities and wants to be loved and accepted by other people, and also very much cares about doing the “right” thing. As rebellious as Mike can sometimes act, you can tell that he values the respect of his friends and he also might feel like he needs to live up to his strict and orderly parents’ expectations in order to be loved. I might be projecting a bit here, but while growing up in a household that was very strict and had lots of rules, I often felt like if I broke a rule or if I didn’t live up to my parents’ expectations that their love might actually be revealed to be entirely conditional someday.

For Mike and Will to end up together in a way that I would consider narratively consistent with the themes in Stranger Things so far, I believe that season 4 and season 5 need to address:

Will’s trauma

Will’s severe internalized homophobia

Mike’s insecurities and his desire for love and approval

their separation now that the Byers Family moved out of Hawkins

The perfect ending, for me, would involve Will finally starting to confront his trauma and any parts of his past that are haunting him in the present, and working through his internalized homophobia and the ghost of his father’s abuse. I would hope to see Mike recognizing that even if people don’t approve of what he wants to do with his life that he will ultimately be much happier when he is honest with himself and with others about his feelings and who he is regardless of what society expects. I think that Karen Wheeler will be particularly happy that her son is able to understand this in a way that she struggled to when she was younger.

If I were to predict the chronology of certain plot-points: I might guess that in season 4 we will follow Mike figuring out his feelings for Will while in Hawkins, and that Will would be working through his trauma and dealing with the Mindflayer with El and Joyce and Jonathan wherever they’ve relocated to. Will, in all likelihood, is probably still under the heartbreaking impression that Mike does not return his feelings, that being queer means that he will never have the chance to be happy like his friends, and that he is alone and unworthy of romantic love. We might see a rather angsty contrast between Mike realizing his feelings for Will while in Hawkins and becoming more passionately confident about it, while Will is off on his own facing horrible things and convinced that Mike will never return his feelings. (The drama!) At some point, the adventures in Hawkins will probably collide with the adventures with the Mindflayer once again, and the cast will be reunited through various twists of fate. When reunited, Mike might be prepared to confess his feelings for Will but plans could be thrown awry as sinister plots unfold and antagonists gain the upper hand in the season’s latest conflict. Since it is the penultimate season, I wouldn't be shocked if they leave us with a grittier cliffhanger than even season 3 and Hopper's (incorrectly) presumed death.

I think there’s any number of ways that the writers could address the main conflict in the series while also addressing the emotional conflicts of the story and offer us a very satisfying conclusion to both over the course of season 4 and season 5. I’ve given you a peek into one of many different hypothetical scenarios that I’ve imagined might take place and that could work, but I trust that whatever route the Duffer Brothers decide to take with the story that it will be excellent.

In conclusion: the perfect ending for Stranger Things, for me, would involve Hopper, Will, El, and Mike (and everyone else!) being safe and healthy and happy and confronting their fears, their traumas, and their feelings while being honest with their loved ones and themselves about what matters most to them. And I do think this will involve Mike falling in love with his friend that went missing in November 1983, and them living a very happy life together for the rest of their days.

Thank you for your Ask!

*Edit: I realize that I should briefly address Mike and El’s former dating relationship since oftentimes fans see their rom-com drama in season 3 as the largest hurdle between Mike and Will becoming a couple by the end of the series. I see Mike and El’s dynamic, and El and Will’s eerie connections to one another, as being an intrinsic part of the emotional journey of self-discovery and self-love that Mike and Will are going through. I believe that El and Will's stories are intertwined and that they are not entirely independent from each other. I won’t elaborate in this post, but you can read some of my thoughts on Will and El’s connection to each other here and you can read my opinion of Mike and El’s current dynamic here. In short: I don’t see Mike and El’s relationship as being in direct conflict with Mike and Will becoming a couple, I actually see Mike and El’s dynamics as frequently directly supporting the theory that Mike has feelings for Will. @kaypeace21 also has an excellent write-up on the way that El and Mike’s break-up in season 3 directly parallels Will and Mike’s fight, and the way that the tone of those scenes reveal Mike’s feelings. You can read that here.

#byler #stranger things theory #stranger things #stranger things 4 #will byers #mike wheeler #byler is real #byeler #byler is canon #stranger things analysis

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anxiously-introverted · 4 years

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Can you write a a scene about Will first activating his powers and losing control and El and Mike ( Mike is there cuz it’s the holidays so they’re all visiting eatchother) and maybe Joyce idk and they have to snap him outta it and calm him down? What others powers/other stuff can he do with his electricity?

On top of being able to manipulate electricity, I also like the idea of Will having telepathic powers like El’s. However, instead of being able to enter the minds of people, Will is able to enter, and even control, the minds of the creatures from the Upside Down (such as the Demogorgon).

Here’s the scene I was picturing! Please be aware, Lonnie is a jerk with homophobic views in this and the kids like to swear. Hope you enjoy!

“Why is it that every time something seems to go wrong here nowadays, it’s because of you?” Lonnie snarled, hand twisted into the fabric of Will’s shirt as he cornered his son against the brick wall of the local convenience store. It was cold, wind nipping harshly at Will’s skin as he stared up at his father with wide eyes.

The past few days had been going so well for him. The Party had already had several hangouts and movie nights, trying to spend as much time as possible together before Will and El had to return to their new home in New Mexico. So far, it almost felt as if things hadn’t really changed. Sure, Will still felt that particular pang of hurt when he saw Mike and El showing each other affection. Yeah, there came a certain sting when he heard about how some kid at their school was so great at Dungeons and Dragons, yet the group never wanted to play when Will had been suggesting it. Maybe he did still feel left out when everyone talked relationships while he knew he could never discuss the feelings he had without the others being disgusted.

Perhaps there was still a lot of pains that still rattled him, but the small flashes of happiness with his best friends that made up for it. For the most part, at least.

Yesterday, though, there was a sudden change in the mood. Lonnie Byers had blown into town like a glowering tumbleweed, the news of what happened during the summer making its way back to him after a long delay.

His unstable son, after going in and out of a lab that was eventually shut down permanently, had also been involved in a huge incident at the mall which resulted in it being destroyed. There was gossip of Russians and the disappearance of the chief of police.

He insisted that he would’ve come sooner to see Will, if only Joyce had given him their new address. He told Will he’d been so worried, that he didn’t know what to think when he’d gotten random bills from the lab and the hospital. He assured that had he’d known everything that had been happening, he would’ve been here. But, he said, he was here now.

He said he wanted to know what was going on.

He said he wanted to help.

Will felt like a fool for believing him.

“It wasn’t bad enough that you had to be a dirty little queer,” Lonnie said with curled lips, as if the taste of bile came up with the word. “But now I’ve got people around here sayin’ my kid was moved to a looney bin outta state, locked up with the other bleeding hearts and crazies. You have any idea how goddamn humiliating it is to have the town freak as my son?”

Tears stung at Will’s eyes, though he refused to let them fall. He tried blinking them away, hazel eyes clearing up the blur minimally as he tried to retort, “Why do you care? You don’t even live here anymore! I don’t even live here anymore!” He was shaking, he was struggling. He felt like he was in a cage with a lock that was on the verge of breaking.

“Oh, so it’s fine to turn your family into a fucking joke?!” Lonnie snapped. “Not to mention all the damn bills that keep flooding in from the hospital. You have any idea how much money-“

“All you care about is money!” Will cut in angrily, fear and frustration coming out in a rage that had been smothered and repressed for as long as he could remember. His chest felt like it was burning, his head feeling weightless and as if a boulder rested on it all at once. The building resentment paced in his mind like a tiger in an enclosure two sizes too small. “I know about how you tried to sue Sattler after the funeral! I know you only cared about making some quick money before ditching mom and Jonathan all over again!”

For a brief instant, there was shock on Lonnie’s face. He had never heard his son, embarrassingly weak and shamefully reserved Will, speak to him with such venom. If he weren’t so pissed, he may have felt proud. Instead, Lonnie hatefully shot back, “That money would’ve done us a hell of a lot more good than what you’ve been doing! Meltdown after meltdown, disaster after disaster, not once have you ever dealt with any of this like a man! That money wouldn’t have ruined this family’s reputation, and it wouldn’t have dragged us to the brink of debt!”

Hotter, hotter, hotter, there may as well have been lava in his veins. Will felt more and more tears gathering in his eyes, hatred for himself and the man in front of him strangling his heart with barbed wire. There were so many things he wanted to scream. It wasn’t his fault the Demogorgon came after him; it wasn’t his fault the Mind Flayer haunted him every day until eventually robbing him of his autonomy; it wasn’t his fault Billy and the others were possessed, nor were the deaths or the destruction of StarCourt his fault. He didn’t want any of it to happened, he didn’t mean for any of it to happen. All he wanted was to forget, to move on, to start a new chapter-

“It would’ve been better for everyone if you just stayed dead!”

A tear broke free, gliding down his cheek. The lock on the cage broke and Will raged.

In the Wheeler’s basement, Mike looked at the clock hanging on the wall for the fifth time within the hour. His worry and agitation was palpable, setting the other Party members on edge. El rested a gentle hand on the other’s arm, commenting, “I’m sure he’s alright, Mike.”

“They should’ve come back by now,” the teen insisted, his brown eyes flicking worriedly to hers. “Something must have happened.”

“He’s just out with his dad, Mike. What could happen?” Max asked, looking up with a raised brow from where she was playing cards with Dustin and Lucas.

Mike shook his head, “You don’t know his dad, Max. He’s… He’s a major asshole. He’s been a dick to Will since elementary school.”

“He’s right,” Lucas said, his lips twisting into a frown as memories came to mind. “He would yell at him, call him all sorts of names. And that was just what he did in front of us.”

El’s face pinched into a look of concern at the information. She knew Lonnie was a sore subject for the Byers family, but she thought perhaps it was just the bitter aftertaste of a bad fight or the awkward hurt that had settled after the divorce. Asking questions wasn’t really an option, she felt as though it wasn’t her place to go digging into old wounds. Not to mention that Will had seemed off for what seemed like days, perhaps even weeks, now.

She now wishes she had learned more about her new family.

Mike stood with a hardened expression and said, “I’m going to go find him.”

“I’ll come with you,” El said, coming up from her spot on the couch as well.

“Do you need us to come with you?” Dustin asked, his head popping up from where he was laying on the floor.

“We should be fine. We’ll radio you if we need help, but stay here in case my mom asks where I am,” Mike said, putting one of the radios into his sweatshirt’s pocket. With that, he and El made their way up the stairs and out of the house.

The sky was overcast with flashes of blue.

No words would be sufficient to describe the way Mike felt as he took in the scene before him. Lonnie lay on the ground, clutching his upper arm as he stared with petrified eyes at Will. His skin looked burned, almost charred, as if struck with a bolt of unbridled energy.

And Will…

Screams of anguish, rage, heartbreak; the cries of one who’s been broken one too many times cut through the air like a razor. His eyes were alight with electric energy, his irises turned dark despite the flashes of neon blue crackling out of them and emanating from the rest of his body as if he were an overpowered battery. The very air around had turned to static, almost burning with the intensity.

One by one, shop windows began to rattle, crack, and break. Street lights flashed in bursts of blinding light, the hum of constant electricity humming through them like a chorus. The sky above them rumbled, almost gurgling on the blue energy being blasted into and out of it. Veins of blue and black danced along Will’s body, a sickening tango of power intermingled with overwhelming grief.

Lonnie screamed, “Fucking monster! He’s a fucking monster!”

Another bolt shot out at Lonnie, but he managed to roll out of the way just in time for it to strike and scorch the ground beside him. The man yelped as he accidentally put pressure onto his injury, his legs scrambling to get him up onto his feet.

El could relate all too well to the scene in front of her. The lack of control, the surge of emotions, feeling as though you had all the power in the world and yet none at all. She looked at Will screaming, sobbing, breaking, and saw herself. She could see the steady stream of crimson pouring from his nose, pouring like a faucet as his body poured his very soul into the outburst around him. It was so familiar, she could almost feel the blood on her own lip.

Willing her voice to be steady, she called out, “Will! It’s me! It’s Eleven!” Screaming broke into choppy outbursts before stopping, as if an old engine were struggling to stop. The scratch and catch in Will’s throat could be heard from where the pair stood. Mike snapped himself from his reverie, following El’s lead, “Will, it’s Mike! Listen, it’s-“

“Do not say it’s going to be okay!” Will rasped, heat and venom seeping through the hurt. “Nothing’s okay now and nothing’s ever going to be fucking okay!” There was a pulse of more intense energy, as if a second kick jolted within the brunette and poured out as even more strands of tangled lightning.

“Will, please, what’s going on? You can tell us. We want to help you!” El continued, brow furrowed as she watched the boy struggle. “But first, you have to calm down!”

“Calm down? Calm down?!” The enraged teen demanded, electricity crackling. “I’ve been told to calm down for the past three years! And it never. Fucking. Helps!” Two more bolts shot out, one striking the brick wall behind him, another striking a lamp post and shattering the bulb with the surge.

“Then tell us what will help!” Mike pleaded, taking a small step forward. “Tell us what you need, Will!”

“It-it,” Will struggled, gripping his hair tightly with white knuckles. “Why do you care? Just-Just stop pretending! Stop acting like I matter to you!”

El shifted toward Will, her hands lowered and body language open. “We’re not pretending! We care about you, Will. All we want is for you to be okay.”

“You want me dead!” Will screamed, though his energy was dipping. “You all wish I had died in that quarry! You all wish I never came back!”

“That’s not true!” Mike said, fire coming back to his voice. “We never wanted to give up on you! Seeing your body coming out of the water, the funeral… It killed us, Will! It killed me!” The crack in the dark haired teen’s voice seemed to dim the intensity of the light coming from Will. “When we found out you were still alive, when El was able to contact you, it meant the world to us. It was… Will, do you remember what I told you that day in the shed? Do you remember what the best decision I ever made was?”

Only the quiet crackling of electricity broke the silence.

“It was becoming your friend, Will,” Mike said, taking two more steps forward. “That decision changed my life for the better. You made my life better, Will. You make all of our lives better. Please, Will, believe me.”

El stepped forward as well, coming closer with small steps as she added, “You help us, Will. You helped me at school, with my homework. You took me to the movies, made us waffles, put up with shopping with me. You took care of me. Let us take care of you.”

With a shuddering breath and a heartbroken tremble, the lighting died away and Will fell forward, angry blue and black veins disappearing as he landed into the gentle and loving arms of his sister and the boy he’s loved in secret for years.

For the first time since 1983, Will Byers felt safe.

#stranger things #stranger things season 4 #will byers #byler #mike wheeler #eleven #el hopper

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conundrum-esoterica · 5 years

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why st3 ROBBED Will Byers

I pretty much loved the whole season even if it is the most controversional yet. So I’m not going to rant about how much i hated s3, because to be honest is probably my favorite one. BUT, i would enjoy it more if they didn’t freaking rob my boy Will.

So first of all, St always gave enough screen time to all of the mains. In s1 and in s2 they gave equal screen time to the party, El, and Jopper. Well, something they didn’t in s3 because Jopper was there ALL the time, El didn’t felt like the protagonist of the show, and Will?????? Where was Will??? You probably don’t remember anything about him in this season.

YEA RIGHT, BECAUSE HE JUST WASN’T THERE. I mean, he was there most of the times, but he didn’t do anything at all. He was just touching his neck, being terrified, suffering (again), mumbling ‘’he’sherehe’sbackhe’sthere’’ and what’s the point of that really???? Will suffered for TWO SEASONS STRAIGHT, was taken to an other dimension, infected by a monster, and he was fucking exorcised by his mother. Okay this all ended for him, so we expected that he will have some fucking happiness in his life right? The Duffers said NO to the AH to the NO NO NO

The only really important thing about Will this season was him wanting to stay a child and his friends refusing to, and also Mike pretty much confirming that Will is gay. I feel like the Duffers thought that ‘’Okay we will kind of confirm that he’s gay so the audience can forgive us that HE DID NOTHING FOR 8 EPISODES STRAIGHT but you know at least he’s gay! UWU’’

And btw if Will never fully comes out as gay, it’s fully queer-baiting thanks for coming to my Ted-Talk. Also, making him suffer all the time, (and in s3 for no reason, like why? he’s not the host any more) is a terrible way to handle one of your two lgbt characters.

And even though i’m glad that they confirmed it, it just fucking smashed Byler’s relationship and its development (you could see how much Will was hurt by Mike’s comment, it doesn’t matter if Mike said it because Will told him, or if he just wanted to hurt him, it’s just cruel) Last season they built a beautiful friendship between those two, only to destroy it in s3. Mike acted like a douche to Will, hurt him, insult him, NEVER PROPERLY APOLOGISED, so? We have to be okay with the fact that his best friend don’t gives a shit about him anymore? And that’s not about ‘’Mike being with El all the time’’ because if it was about that, they could use even ONE minute of the s3 to have Mike apologizing to Will, and let them actually interract.

You know, Will used to be as important as El. He was the reason all of this started in the first place, he is (or at least he was) a very good and interesting character (artsy, sensitive, ptsd, possibly gay) and he was also hinted to have powers like El....... and we never learned more about that??? Like never?????? In s3 where he did literally NOTHING for the entire of it, it was just a mess up of his character and his development. A lot of unessecary scenes (like the one with Alexey in the car and the damn slurpee) should had be given to Will instead. Because even if he’s an interesting character, having two seasons of him suffering and then one of him suffering again and doing nothing, is BAD WRITING. My point is that Will used to be an important character and literally EVERYONE of the mains had bigger roles than him. Even Lucas (who had smaller screen time than usual) had more moments than Will.

And i can’t really understand the point of it. It’s not because Noah is a bad actor, because last season he gave an award winning good performance. Seriously Mr, Schnapp was like 12 or 13 idk, and he nailed it to the fucking head playing a demonized boy, used just his body and NO special effects for the scene of the exorcism and PHYSICALLY HURT HIMSELF to portray it convincingly. So it’s not about Noah being a bad actor. What’s really about? I wanna know the point of this shit, because it was really unnecessary.

In conclusion, st3 robbed Will Byers. He had only few and unimportant scenes, they poorly treated his character, never gave him character development, destroyed Byler’s relationship...... And they just messed up everything about Will, who used to be one of the main characters and also my favorite so excuse me for being freaking upset with the Duffers, it just made me very angry and sad. I hope that they will do better on s4, let him actually interact with El (which they didn’t either lol), let him fix his relationship with Mike, let him have development and a coming of age story (possibly) exploring his sexuality and not being tortured all the time thanks. But the Byers moved to GOD KNOWS FUCKING WHERE, so idk.

Justice for Will Byers.

#will byers #stranger things #st3 #stranger things 3 #byler #mike x will #duffer brothers #stranger things season 3 #noah schnapp

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bylerforall · 2 years

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Bit of a long one today.

There are two possibilities of what could happen in season 5. The two famous ships Mileven and Byler. In my opinion the most understandable option that would make sense with the story is Byler.

Eleven only knew Mike for a week and they loved eachother. I guess it does kind of make sense but come on, she literally just escaped from a lab where she was abused and traumatised. She was definitely not ready for a relationship, she didn’t even know what a relationship was!

I feel like this love triangle (can I call it that? idk) is a tricky one to figure out, so let’s dive into the depths of the characters more.

1. Will

Will is a sweet and caring character who has been bullied a lot in his life, people even saying he’s queer or calling him the f-slur. After the upside down incident and the possession, Will changed. He was still kind and quiet, but something inside of him is different. Even Jonathan points it out when he’s talking to Nancy; “yeah, but he’s not the same.”

In season 3, we all know he had quite a big fight with Mike and Lucas (mostly Mike) and they were yelling at eachother in Mike’s garage before Will left with his bike in the pouring rain.

As soon as he got home he immediately went to Castle Byers, looking at all of his memories with his friends before ripping it all up and smashing down his childhood creation. The fight was obviously a massive impact on him, as Castle Byers took him forever to make with his brother but he never gave up on building it, even though he was very bad dealing with a hammer.

In season 4, his feelings for Mike are way more obvious. They do share quite a few moments in vol. 1 and they all had a lot of sentimental value. Hearing Mike say; “friends. best friends.” probably made his whole world.

In my opinion, they wouldn’t kill Will off Stranger Things. Not while he’s barely ever been happy once in the entire show. I feel like they would at least let him be happy before killing him. That would just be cruel. Will is stronger than most people think, and he’s smart too.

He needs his main character status back.

2. Mike

Now, Mike is a tricky one. There are lots of theories about his feelings towards Will and Eleven but the one that made the most sense to me was internalised homophobia.

It is quite clear how he avoided Will’s hug at the airport, and he acts totally different with Will when El’s around. When they’re alone together, it’s all heart eyes and smiles. I feel like Mike is struggling a lot but he’s just not showing it or telling anybody. He can’t even tell El that he loves her. He does struggle with expressing his feelings, but when it comes to Will he’s very open.

Even back in season 3 in the last episode where the Byers and El were packing for California. (I have made a post about this but I don’t care I’m saying it again). Mike and El shared a kiss but his eyes were open and he was unusually framed outside an open closet.

On the other hand with Will, they talk about him joining another party when he moves. Will replies with “not possible” with Mike smiling before walking off down the corridor. Once the car drives off, he looks back at the Byers house. Now, most Mileven shippers are probably like “oh it’s because he misses El and wants her back.” Honey, no. You got it all wrong. Why would he think that when looking back at Will’s house? The one that Will has literally lived in all of his life? That’s not coincidence. He’s obviously thinking about Will.

Mike in season 4 continuously reminds Will that they’re friends. “We’re friends. We’re friends.” Like boy, we know. Why are you reminding us? Will obviously knows that you’re friends too so why do you keep continuously saying it? It’s almost like he’s trying to convince himself more than Will, trying to keep up the perfect, straight boyfriend act for El. Don’t lie, Mike. We know what you are. You’ve made it pretty clear now.

3. Eleven

Now, Eleven. Eleven has struggled her entire life in a lab where she’s been experimented on, and only learnt like 5 words. She’s been traumatised, we know. She doesn’t really know anything about the outside world, she didn’t know what relationships were either. Yet, she got into one a week after she escaped. A literal week. Like bae, you’re moving too fast. Please slow down.

Eleven has made a lot of connections since she left, but Mike and Hopper were always her closest ones.

I feel like in season 4, she really accomplished a lot on her own. She manages to accomplish a lot on her own as well. Finding her mother, the lost sister episode in season 2, escaping the lab, closing the gate, and finally regaining her powers that she had lost, fighting Vecna without the help of Mike. She’s better when she’s doing things on her own. She’s more free, and she doesn’t have anybody relying on her or slowing her down.

With Mike, I feel like they’re just not meant to be together. I feel like they’re both better off with somebody else.

I hope we see more of Byler in s5. I’m really looking forward to it. If we don’t, well I guess it’s just bad luck. We can’t really change it and that’s okay. All we can do is hope.

#byler #stranger things #byler evidence #byler is real #byler s4 #byler tumblr #lgbtq #mike wheeler #will byers #mike wheeler is gay #stranger things 4 #byler theory #theory #eleven #mileven

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steveshair-robinshood · 5 years

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The Best and Worst Things About Season 3

Best

The Mileven trials. Showing that their relationship was still very rocky and they weren’t “serious”.

How Karen didn’t show up for the Motel 6 date.

Jancy!

Murray calling Jopper “children”.

Robin. Just everything about Robin.

ELMAX BITCHES!!!!!!

Confirmation of Will’s sexuality.

Dustin and Steve loving each other like an old married couple.

“You can’t spell ‘America’ without ‘Erica’”.

Karen and Nancy having a talk that should have happened two years ago.

Max standing up for herself and El against objectifications.

The Elmax shopping scene.

Proper use of the F word.

Max’s desire for the Mindflayer to have possessed someone other than Billy.

The raw portrayal of how much Billy really does mean to Max.

The lack of Joyce screaming “WILL!” for eight [+nine] episodes straight.

Joyce letting Will navigate his own way.

Steve and Robin on drugs. So. Fucking. Hilarious.

How Steve starts calling Dustin “Dad” when he's stoned.

The bathroom scene with Steve and Robin.

The boys’ cute little hug <3

Billy’s final moments with Max. That was awwww but terrible.

El comforting Max when Billy dies.

THE BILLY REDEMPTION ARC

Billy saving El.

Everything about Billy and El’s scenes together.

Steve looking like a fucking goddess.

Billy apologizing to Max.

Mileven and Dustin’s hug. It was very much needed and brought so much security.

“Neevvvveerrreeeenndddiingggg sttoooooooorryyyyyyy”

Worst

The fact that Barb was never mentioned. She was so important and then BOOM she doesn’t get a single name-drop.

Ummm WHERE WAS KALI?!? She never made an appearance. She was never mentioned. Sure, s2e7 sucked, but you can’t just throw it out of canon!!

Where were Lucas and Erica’s parents?? Their ten-year-old was missing for two days.

Alexei . . . no, I'm not ready to talk about it.

How Will’s homosexuality was touched on ( “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!’’ ), but never fully developed. It felt almost like queer-bating, except now that there’s a canonically gay character, that’s unneeded, so it’s point was. . . ?

Neil’s absence. Trust me, I fucking hate the man, but he wasn't in it except for the flashback thing. How did he react to Billy’s death? Did he give a shit? Probably not, but we needed to see that!

Mike and Lucas’ obsession with girls (at first) and ignoring Will.

The destruction of Castle Byers.

Dustin being away from the party. It just felt. . . different. In a bad way.

How the emotional impact of the deaths was glossed over by the Byers’ move.

Jonathan’s character devolpement. Because there wasn't really any. He felt second fiddle to Nancy.

Nancy’s rat investigation. It was soooooo dull and forgettable.

The lack of a scene with Nancy, Max, and El. The missed opportunity!

Hopper and Joyce’s constant bickering. *sighs*

Joyce immediately finding Will whenever she sees the kids, but ignoring Jonathan. This was a continuation of a problem I’ve seen since season 1. Although this time it was worse. Joyce and Jonathan barely interact at all.

Steve being abused by the Russians. That was - ugh!

Dustin being cut off from his friends at Starcourt during the battle.

How Steve and Billy’s tension was built up so much in season 2 but literally all they do in this one is crash cars.

Where the hell was Steve’s bat?!?

The . . . deaths . . .

I’ll add more as I think of them!

#stranger things #mileven #jancy #shook #stranger things season 3 #jopper #rip hopper #steve harrington #billy hargrove #stranger things spoilers

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