an analysis of clothes in st (part i) - the meaning of yellow within the party
so, this analysis is one that has been in the making since before s4 came out - i literally had to dig through old discord messages to look for what i was talking about two years ago. i'm hoping to make this into a series because i loved analyzing the outfits back then and i wanted to share what i thought about them! the costume designers put so much thought and effort into all the clothes and i'd love to try to understand why they chose what they did for specific moments.
heads up! - this analysis series will mainly cover the party members. outfits are important within the entire context of the show as well, so i may include other group members from time to time. however, my primary focus on st has always been the party members, so i'm gonna be giving them the main focus in all of the posts.
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let's start with my favorite meaning for the clothes: yellow.
when party members wear yellow, they tend to be in situations where they are trying to fit in or act normal, typically when regarding relationships, but could also be within society, a situation, or in general.
i have four examples of yellow being used as a signal that these characters are put in situations where they're trying to fit in / act normal - one of max, one of the entire party, and two of mike. let's start with max!
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example one: in s2e3, we watch max trying her best to fit in with the boys when dustin is showing them dart. despite her attitude when they first meet her, she obviously does want to be friends with these guys regardless.
in this episode, max wears a yellow hoodie while all the boys wear variants of the same neutral grays/whites, dark blues and reds, showing the difference between max and the other party members. she has not "earned" her keep yet, and she's trying to fit in but she is not yet in the know of the upside down.
even el is wearing similar colors to the rest of the boys, another clear sign that she is "in" the party too, despite being away from them. they did something similar in the previous episode as well, where the boys + el wore matching costumes (boys were ghostbusters and el was a ghost), while max wore a costume that didn't have her fit in (michael myers).
all of the current party members have the colors gray, red and/or blue that tie them all together in that scene, so max's yellow hoodie makes her stick out like a sore thumb. a side note is that mike and will are the only members to have all three colors on them, and matching color outfits between couples tend to be common in the show.
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example two: in s3e1, the opposite happens. everyone in the party except dustin is wearing a combination of blue and/or yellow. dustin is wearing primarily green, which i will explain the meaning of in another post. all i'll say about it now is that the color green most likely has to do with being comfortable or confident in your own identity.
will, however, is a special case, because he was actually not wearing yellow in that scene, only blue and a stripe of red. personally, i thought it was to set up how will's growth that season wasn't completely about societal expectations regarding romantic relationships like the rest of his season group. his character arc was much more about having to grow up and understand change when he doesn't want to because of the trauma he'd experienced the previous seasons.
this is actually also reflected in his clothes - will is the only one that season to not wear any new colors (he only wears the three primary colors -> red, blue and yellow) while the rest of the party got to wear both secondary and primary colors (mike wore teal, el and max wore many different colors, lucas wore purple, and dustin wore green + orange).
back to the party - in that scene, the couples also match each others outfits. mike and el's have the same color scheme, being mainly blues with a small hint of yellow, and lumax having the perfect blend of yellow and blue together. this may be a stretch, but its a possible hint to show that lumax fit together, while mike and el don't.
the party members that were dating each other wearing yellow that season was to show their attempts to act normal via relationships. season 3 was also the one that the duffers kept referencing as the summer of love, despite all the couples that season being dysfunctional.
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examples three and four: now, we're at the section of mike wheeler, my favorite closet case. he is the main reason as to why i noticed that there was a small pattern with the color yellow being used in the party's wardrobe.
i think we've all noticed that mike has a tendency to act very... straight when he's wearing the color yellow as his main color. this can be seen in both s3 and s4, especially during the episodes where mike is hyperfocused on his relationship with el.
when mike was wearing the first outfit in s3, he was searching for a way to make it up to el because he lied to her. though he was trying to act normal or learn to be normal for their relationship, he wasn't doing a great job of it. during that entire section, mike was going through the motions of learning how a straight man is supposed to act, with lucas by his side giving constant straight man advice. he was also not getting it.
now, onto what is possibly my favorite outfit in the entire series - mike's s4e2 outfit. first of all, he's wearing a yellow shirt over a purple undershirt, presumably for el because that's her favorite colors apparently. obviously, mike is not himself in this outfit, but he's trying to fit into this california tourist look for his girlfriend.
in this outfit, mike was trying extremely hard to only focus on being el's boyfriend and not will's best friend. we know how that went, and this outfit helped us realize how badly mike was doing trying to follow that mindset.
before s4, we were never given any indication that mike's style would be like this. michael wheeler should not be wearing an outfit that has a yellow hawaiian shirt, the color purple, a visor and sunglasses, and flip flops to top it all off. it doesn't fit his normal style that he's normally been shown wearing throughout the show, being button ups, polos, and for that season, black jeans and chuck taylors.
he was intentionally put in an outfit that did not follow his true identity. the shirt, thus the outfit and the het identity that mike was attempting to fit into, was literally called a "shitty knockoff" by argyle.
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i'm positive there are way more examples that can be used, but these are the ones that stuck out to me the most. i'll leave off with some ending thoughts:
we as bylers have always considered will's main color to be yellow, but from what i've noticed in each season, the majority of his outfits have blue, same as mike (matching couple's colors)! in fact, s4 was the first time where the majority of the season had will wearing yellow, probably because of how he was dealing with his crush on mike at the time. i'd like to point out that the main colors that lucas and max wear are also the same, being red.
i'd love to do another one of these, the next one probably being about the color green because i think i have a grasp on the reasoning behind that color. other than that, i still really need to analyze the colors of their outfits again because i think the party's clothes specifically are most indicative of their behavior. since they are the youngest group, they are the ones who are the most volatile and it's reflected in everything, especially their clothes!
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Raph Is A Great Strategist
Numerous times in the show Raph has shown to have a preference for straightforwardly punching his problems away rather than think up a more complex solution. Like how his immediate fix to getting Mayhem out of the mirror in Mystic Library was to punch everything in the bathroom but the mirror. However, when Raph understands the situation requires more in depth strategy, he’s shown to be an incredibly capable tactician.
(long post ahead!)
In nearly all the plot heavy episodes like Shadow of Evil, Many Unhappy Returns, and the season finales, Raph gets moments where he’s highlighted for his strategic thinking. In Insane in the Mama Train, he’s the one who figures out which eyeball-button goes to the front car with the dark armor, because “‘it was the only button [the Foot Clan] didn’t want me to press!’” [21:05]. He’s also the one who came up with the scheme to defeat all the (known) combatants in the train, with Leo specifically attributing Raph as the deviser during their mind meld [19:46]. In Many Unhappy Returns, after spending a single night waylaying the Shredder, Raph formulated a plan using all the tricks the team learned, seamlessly transitioning the mystic collar Leo acquired into it [19:53], to defeating the Shredder. Additionally, he’s repeatedly called for a retreat during fights, like in Shadow of Evil, Shreddy or Not (Finale pt 2), and the movie, when he can tactically recognize that a battle couldn’t be won. Each time, the show/movie implied that that was the right call, for the family to lose the fight but win the war.
And it’s not just that Raph is good at strategy when he’s pushed to be more serious; the show characterizes him as passionate about creating plans, he enjoys doing it. Literally in the first episode, Mystic Mayhem, after the turtles’ initial plan failed of getting Splinter out of the living room to touch his Do-Not-Touch Cabinet, Raph immediately started devising a new plan that involved “ten chickens [and] a gallon of rubber cement” [9:35]. It was convoluted, sure, and they didn’t end up using it, but it was inventive and the opposite of reluctant. This is also shown in Bug Busters, where Raph planned out dousing Mikey in honey to attract the oozequitoes [2:52]; Snow Day, with the idea to freeze Ghost Bear like in Jupiter Jim Pluto Vacation 4; and Raph’s Ride-Along (and also Bad Hair Day), where Mind Raph created multiple schemes to get the criminals arrested. The show wouldn’t have made Raph be so creative with his plans if they were trying to characterize him as someone who didn’t like strategizing.
So does why Raph do stupid shit sometimes where he doesn’t think things through at all? Well, even though Raph is good at strategy and enjoys doing it, it’s clear his immediate impulse is still “punch the problem in the face”. In fact, all the turtle boys contain the fascinating dichotomy of being incredibly smart in some areas, and the dumbest teenagers alive in others. Just look at Donnie. It’s also how Raph is a loving protective older brother, and the guy who shoved Leo into a wall so hard he disappeared in one frame for shits and giggles (The Mutant Menace x). None of this means that Raph is bad at strategy though.
tldr: Yeah, Raph has a lot of dumb and, frankly, insane moments in the show, but he’s still an incredible tactician who’s plans consistently saved his family and sometimes the world. He's a great strategist.
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Does fae!König get upset that Ghost and Love grew the baby that could have been his and liebling's? Does Love tell Liebling that Little Cabbage came from the thrown out seed? Canon or not, the baby is cute
I was already thinking about this. This is Liebling's nightmare scenario. Which means it's her POV.
You don't think you've ever seen Ghost enter the shop not looking like he's here for your immortal soul. Similarly you've never seen Love look so put together. You have also, and this is the most important part, never seen that baby before.
The little one asleep in the carrier strapped to Ghost's chest, a little pink scrunchy hat and hello kitty sunglasses on its tiny head as it snoozes. You're almost too distracted by the fact Ghost has the baby to notice Love's shirt proudly proclaiming in hot pink, "Baby Thief." Ghost grabs the back of her shirt collar before she can launch herself at you.
"Behave," He tells her in a firm voice, letting her go when she drops her arms from their grabbing position. "I'm going to talk to König, ask your question nicely."
"I'm always nice." Love tells him, Ghost hums like he doesn't believe her and wanders off further into the store. Love turns the full force of her attention on you.
"Who's baby?" You ask, eyeing her shirt.
"Mine." Somehow you don't believe her.
"You weren't pregnant. You would've told me." You remind her, gently as you can. She hums in the same tone Ghost did, nodding her head slightly.
"Funny story. You remember that weird seed you said you'd never plant in a million years because it could Audrey two your ass?" You nod, half listening as you watch König bend down to wiggle his fingers at the baby on Ghost's chest. You can see Ghost's mask moving, he must be saying something, his large hands holding up the baby's to point towards Love. "Well I figured I'd plant it since you didn't want it," No, not pointing at Love, at you, "and it grew a baby."
König's head snaps to look at you so fast you don't have time to process what Love just said before all your blood drains out through your feet. His eyes bore holes through you, cold fury radiating off of him almost visible in the way shadows seem to collect around his form. His limbs are all wrong, body wrong, eyes so red you think they might have invented to color. His teeth bare through his obscura. He takes a step towards you and you shove your hand in the small bowl of Iron rings on the counter faster than you can think. Unable to move and break his gaze, but at least able to make him think twice about coming after you right this second.
Ghost grabs König's arm, his grip as unflinching as the metal you slide onto your fingers, holding König steadfast as he speaks. Your breathing feels far too quick and uneven as you boyfriend takes a careful step back into his previous conversation(into his human form) and breaks your gaze. Love's grip on your arm comes into focus over the ringing in your ears, the tight warmth of her hand, you pull your attention back to her. The look of concern on her face is one you haven't seen before.
"I'm fine," You shrug off her hand. Your body too hot and too cold, darkness fuzzing the edges of your vision.
"Sit down," You sit heavy on your stool behind the counter, you hate when she does that, and shake off the tether she burned, "looked like you were about to faint. Listen I didn't come to give the kid back, she's-" Love looks over her shoulder at Ghost and the baby, you've never seen that look either, she shakes her head and looks back at you, "I came because I wanted to ask if you'd be her godmother."
"Is Ghost asking König to be godfather?" You ask, trying to process whatever the hell is happening in your life before you have a panic attack.
"God no," Love snorts, "Soap's the godfather." You have no idea who that is. "No, Simon's just showing off."
You both watch the specter of death lift the baby from her harness and snuggle her against the crook of his arm so König can see her. For all the softness, you can tell how watchful Ghost's eyes are, how closely Love watches as well. Almost on edge when König's fingers shake the baby's tiny hand. It makes you uneasy. What do they think he'll do? What were you afraid he'd do?
"Why are you asking me to be godmother?" You try to quiet your anxiety, bring Love's attention back to you. It works well enough.
"Because you're my friend?" She really only knows how to raise more questions in your life. You stare at her.
"We're friends?"
"Bitch." She snorts, you blink, not sure what's funny. She pulls out her phone and taps a few things with a shake of her head. When she turns it to face you it's your text conversation. "We text all the time every day, I come to hang out with you at least once a week, the fact that I can steal shit out of your house? Come on."
You're not sure what her sticky fingers have to do with your friendship, but she raises some valid points besides that.
"As long as you're not trying to give it back."
"Not on your life." Love grins, you do your best to smile back.
"Then sure, I'd love to be godmother." Well, maybe love is a strong word, but you're flattered and she's right you don't think you have a closer friend.
A tiny wail bounces through the store, Love's gaze snaps to Ghost where he's bouncing the baby. König has his hands up like he's afraid to touch it, or is attempting to maintain his innocence in the new tears. Ghost waves him off and makes his way back over to you and Love. Handing the fussy bundle to Love's waiting arms.
"Pourquoi pleures-tu mon petit chou?" She coos down at the baby, tucking it against her shoulder to bounce gently. You gotta admit it's a pretty cute little thing, still you're glad it's not yours. You grip your fist tightly, feeling the dig of metal against your palm as König hovers nearby.
"Wir werden später reden," He promises, low and dangerous, just for you to hear. You can feel his desire to touch you, held just at bay by the iron jewelry.
"I didn't know you spoke French," You smile at Love, anything to keep her around longer and delay the inevitable.
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it’s also baffling to me that tumblr, home of the ‘why are white men Still being cast as the doctor’ for So many years now (For you know, like over a decade.) is somehow not appalled that they hired a white dude to be the next Doctor because look okay it’s okay if it’s This white man.
I mean, I do not consent to acknowledge that they’ve shoved him in there under any circumstance, but my Only need for the casting of the next person was that it was Not a white man, otherwise i didn’t care who it was, so when they “announced” Gatwa I was satisfied (i am hesitant to say they announced it bc it was more like a tiny footnote than an announcement, oh the disrespect) and it took a whole seven days (it was literally seven days. Yes i counted. it was easy since it was only seven days) it was ‘actually sorry no it’s this white dude we’ve already had before did we forget to mention that???’ and it’s steadily gotten worse and worse.
That This site of all places is not up in arms about both the situation and how it specifically played out is depressing, but also massively and darkly hilarious.
Especially since i Also remember nobody on this site thought casting Whittaker was good enough but literally going backward to a previous white man is?? This is not even a metaphor about diversity getting worse, they literally looked backwards.
But, yeah, tenn/ant with the ‘what the future looks like’ headline is uh... Good???? Not super worrying and ominous?
I feel like i’ve been dumped in some weird parallel universe by reactions to all of this on here like??? the whole way this was done was appalling, the situation is appalling, but i guess the bbc/disney should get a rousing round of applause for accurately judging that nobody would care about their poor actions if the specific white guy they cast was popular enough that next to nobody would care.
( and to the ‘it’s an anniversary ep’ thing, they legit could have just set a couple of eps in the past. i don’t mean they travel to the past. i mean just say ‘hey this ep is set during s4!’ and nobody would care. this show does weirder stuff than this every second episode. and it would still be bad, but how they did it is so much Worse.)
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