the brainrot is so bad that i'm sitting here trying to watch the godfather just thinking to myself "damn..... how can i make a byIer au outta dis... 🤔📝"

Mike Wheeler + devotion (parallels)

It's no secret that Mike is the most head-strong and stubborn member of the original party. He refuses to apologize (unless it's to Will, but I digress), he hates adding new people to his friend group, and he will stop at nothing to get what he wants. Who and what he's truly devoted to sheds a lot of light on his true feelings-- which we haven't seen explicitly since the now-edited 3x08 script ("what the hell just happened here?"). Let's look at a parallel of Mike's portrayal of devotion to his loved ones in S1 and S2, looking at Will vs. El.

In S1, Will is missing. His body turns up, but Mike is the only character on the show (besides Joyce, Will's mother) to refuse to accept that Will could be dead. The narrative focuses heavily on how Will's disappearance and "death" impacts Mike-- much more so than the other members of the party. Mike and Will clearly have a special relationship that transcends a platonic friendship.

In 1x01, Mike (and the rest of the party) are told by Hopper that they're not allowed to go searching for Will. Obviously, Mike is not happy about this. He decides to go look for Will anyways though, because Mike is rebellious, couldn't care less what the government thinks (good for him!), and is unable to sit around while Will could be in danger. Mike physically puts himself in what could be harm's way-- while defying the police-- to find Will.

In 1x03, Mike sees what seems to be Will's body get pulled out of the quarry and completely snaps. He yells at and hits El, he bikes home without waiting for his friends, and he sobs into his mother's arms. Yet the next morning, he hears a muffled voice on the walkie for 0.002 seconds and immediately knows it's Will. He literally saw Will's body, but refuses to believe he's actually dead-- even though the rest of the party has accepted this fact. When Lucas asks Mike how he knows Will is still alive, Mike doesn't even have a reason. He just knows. He believes it because without Will, he's lost. He'll do reckless things like jump into the quarry without a second thought.

In S2, we have an eerily similar situation, but this time, El is missing and presumed dead. It's also important to note that the scene below actually takes place the same night El "dies" and Will comes back from the Upside Down.

After seeing Will at the hospital (I'm presuming it was after, but it could've been before I guess), agents show up at the Wheeler's to question Mike. He looks through the window and sees El. Now, he had just seen her die, sacrificing herself to get rid of the demogorgan. Mike has every reason to believe she's dead-- just like when he saw Will's body in S1. When he sees her in the window, he doesn't even try to go after her. You think maybe they'd include a scene (after the agents leave) of Mike calling for El outside his house or trying to look for her the next day.

But they didn't. Mike sees El and decides he's not going to do anything about it. Where's that same devotion he had towards getting Will back only a few days prior? Because that Mike Wheeler would've been scoping out the lab, investigating the gate, and defying the agents to find El again-- if he was truly in love with her, like he stated in the infamous monologue.

Mike clearly did not have the same devotion towards getting El back that he did for Will. In fact, if Mike really was in love with El from the first moment he met her, he should be trying even harder to find El than he did for Will. But instead, he just moves on.

In 2x02 it's revealed that Mike has tried reaching El through the walkie for nearly a whole year. Milkvans use this as proof that Mike has been in love with El this whole time. However, I think it's just an attribute of his personality. Mike is loyal, stubborn, and devoted. El is a new friend of his, helped save Will, and sacrificed her own life for him and the rest of the party. Of course Mike's trying to reach her! This is the same Mike who was so devoted to saving Dustin's life he nearly committed suicide. Mike would be calling any member of the party every day if they sacrificed themself and went missing in the process. It's just who he is.

When Mike attempts to reach El on the radio, he mentions that they all wish she was there. This is clearly a platonic moment, showcasing the closeness of the party and their shared guilt over El's sacrifice.

El even contacts Mike! He has clear proof that she is in fact alive and out there. Yet does he do anything about it? No, he does not.

Upon hearing (or seeing her? I'm still confused by this moment honestly) El, Mike shakes his head, shuts off the walkie and leaves the basement. He doesn't try to contact her further, ask any of the other party members if they've had similar happenings, or investigate her whereabouts. Instead, Mike spends the rest of the season at Will's side, which stops his nightly calls to El-- even though this is the first time he's gotten a hint she's alive since seeing her outside his window nearly a year ago.

To recap, Mike saw concrete evidence both Will and El were dead. He saw Will's body with his own eyes and went to his funeral. He saw El disappear in front of him, taking the demogorgan with her. After that? He hears Will (faintly for 0.002 seconds) but doesn't see him again until after he's been rescued. He physically sees El the same night she "died." That should be more than enough for him to launch a town-wide search for her. If that wasn't enough, he also heard her speak his name! But he ignored that too.

These parallels make it clear Mike was not in love with El from the first moment he met her. He's always held Will as his first priority, and you can tell by looking at how devoted he is to Will vs. El. It's always been Will for Mike-- Hawkins isn't the same without him (Hawkins is the same without El though). He will go to the ends of the earth to make sure Will is safe and by his side. <3

i imagine that mike was feeling the same way (anxious) about seeing e/ before 4x1 as he was in 4x8 upon rescuing her. like I think this is not discussed enough, like mike explicitly says he should not be feeling that way, as so many other important things are going on - but it’s more than that. his gf has been in trouble and they are saving her, they don’t even know she is ok? but he is worried about how he’ll approach her, about how he’ll resolve things with her. he says he is scared of her not needing him but - she literally already went off on her own, concluding on her own she doesn’t need him, kind of? (which is another thing we need to discuss more often) and I just think it’s so particular to be thinking about that, to not be more relieved at seeing her after her being in danger, like (!) is saving her here not proving that she does still need mike? like it’s just such a weird thing. and like his behavior at the airport with her is also so weird - he does not seem as excited as she does, he seems districted and un-genuine. like there are weird vibes before they even fight. everyone noticed and called it ‘bad acting.’ like i truly think that this relationship gives him so much anxiety at this point.

he has to pretend to be something he is not; even if just in the perspective of being a “nerd” like why does this /trope/ completely disappear with mike in season 3 and 4? sure he can still be goofy and a dork but the person he is in season 1/2/4x1 is different than who he is with el, and he even says “she is going to find out I’m just some nerd!!” like, we literally see him using metaphors of D&D/references to the party with everyone except el? and it’s different than lumax like lucas may try to be cool in front of max but he doesn’t hide his interests/try to be someone he is not with knock-off clothing

it’s funny because i never rly noticed mike’s lack of nerd/ness with el before but it’s so obvious to me after he pointed it out.

but him hiding being a nerd is just foreshadowing that he is hiding part of himself. the bigger picture… him being queer.

season 3, when el comes around, we see a lot less of mike, mike as his own character and the camera trying to catch his thoughts without others around. in season 3, I’m not sure if we get more than a handful of scenes in which mike is main focus of the scene.

both in a story-telling perspective, visual, wardrobe, verbal and behavioral way we get hints of mike pretending to be someone he is not and hiding parts of himself from those around him. it is clear in both of these seasons that mike has taken a step back on the metaphorical stage lol.

which is just !! so interesting. i really wish argyle didn’t interrupt the scene at the pizza place. because it’s weird that will needed to remind him that he was the heart/encourage to keep going with el if he was ready to tell her he loves her in the pizza place. if he was ready to tell her, then wouldn’t he have immediately said it to el himself? wouldn’t he not need that push or reminder? wouldn’t it be more urgent to him to make sure that she knows he loves her?

despite their physical affection in 4x8/4x9, honestly it all seemed platonic. el saying she missed him sounded platonic. their reunion felt platonic. i don’t think we see it but i think el realizes - like how she realized with brenner - that she doesn’t need mike to call her a superhero or hero. she is going back to hawkins because of her friends there - that’s what drives her. max is what drives her during that monologue.

there are distinct parallels between mike and brenner and hopper. maybe eleven realizes this as she came to her understanding of her relationship with brenner. she loves mike, but maybe she understands how now, and seriously just not to mention, she literally calls him a brother before he kisses her smh. like is it so hard to believe she comes to more than just one realization about her relationships than just brenner?

i think it’s also fair to note that even tho her and will didn’t leave off on the greatest terms either because of the squabble about her lying to mike, she is so relieved and happy to see him, too (and vice versa) but is it hard to believe that she maybe realizes he was right?

idk. i just think they are so great as friends but rly bring each other down as a couple and i want both to be happy and I’m sick of people accusing Byler shippers of not caring about el

it is so so so crazy how mike barely does anything when el gets bullied at the rink, and even when he himself is subjected to bullying in s1 but he stood up against troy for calling will names, and will wasn't even there. also, there weren't even indications of him worrying about el possibly liking someone else when she moves away w the byers but is so scared to lose will bc what if he joins another party? :-( he is so passive when it comes to el

Yeah, I agree with you. I've been thinking about the difference in how Mike was when looking for Will vs. when he was looking for El this season as well, and I always felt more of a certain level of giving up and passiveness from him when looking for El that wasn't present when he was searching for Will in season 1 too, and I can't really figure out why that is either. Something just felt.. removed. Off. Maybe that's just me, I don't know.. but to me, he seemed more obsessive about finding Will than he was about finding El (I mean, before the military shootout, he was even fine with not finding her and just going straight to Hawkins, until Unknown Hero Agent Man tells them as he's dying that El is in danger). It's similar to the difference in that Mike never stopped looking for Will in season 1, basically going to the ends of the Earth to find him, and being so easily convinced he was still alive after just hearing his voice once over the walkie talkie, meanwhile with El in season 2 in stark contrast, he assumed she was dead (see the quote when he's talking to Max in episode 8, "Yeah, she was (awesome). Until that thing took her, just like it took Bob.") but thought he was going crazy because he kept seeing her and hearing her voice (I believe he kept calling her out of hope that she would be alive even if he didn't fully believe it because he was going through survivor's guilt much like Nancy with Barb and was having a really hard time processing it, because he was the one who weaponized her, quote, "She's a weapon! Do you seriously want to fight the Demogorgon with your wrist rocket? That's like R2D2 going to fight Darth Vader! We're no use to Will if we're dead", and then when he later tried to stop her from fighting the Demogorgon like he had originally wanted after growing closer with her, she wouldn't let him and sacrificed herself). So, accepting that Will isn't dead after hearing his voice only once vs. assumption El is dead no matter what he sees or hears until everyone else sees her, too. Again, a certain level of giving up that just isn't present with Will. I thought it was interesting how he reacted to El being bullied vs. Will being bullied when he wasn't even present, too. With El, he just tells the DJ to turn the music off and only tries to get to her at the last minute after the damage has already been done, but gets lost in the crowd while she runs off and hides to cry. But with Will, he stood up to Troy in front of the whole gymnasium and pushed him down in front of them, and Will wasn't even there to witness it. So it's not like he's afraid to take a stand for the people he loves.. or.. person he loves, it seems. So the fact he doesn't rush onto the rink immediately for El is interesting. The end of season 3 also kind of foreshadowed Mike feeling he's losing Will with the voiceover of Hopper's letter reading "but lately, I've been feeling.. distant from you, like you're pulling away from me or something" as Mike is watching the cars and moving truck leaving, and then he sadly gazes back at the Byers house before riding away for the last time on his bike. We could also infer then that it was Will he was most upset about losing since it's paralleled to the couple times in season 2 where he watches with concern and sadness as Will leaves school with his mom, the first time for a check-up at the lab in episode 1 and the second time after his possession on the field in episode 4. And this prediction/theory that he felt he was losing Will was confirmed in season 4 when Mike tells him, "maybe I feel like I.. lost you or something" and tells Will that Hawkins isn't the same without him. For Mike.. it was and has always been Will that he's most afraid of losing. And it's Will that he'll give his all for.

Mike Wheeler and his Will-coded interactions during Season 1

Season 1 introduces us to Mike, Will, Lucas, Dustin and Eleven, our beloved young heroes. Season 2 introduces Max, and here we get to see the relationships develop. Season 2 was definitely a pivotal season for Byler, it showed Mike and Will's strong, special relationship. Season 3 introduces Mike's internal conflict to the audience through subtext. 2 and 3 have been analysed the hell out of, however I feel that season 1 has been avoided due to it's lack of, well, Will.

Physically there, that is. We can tell he's on many of the character's minds, motivating them to find him. At the beginning, Mike is blatantly worried about Will's disappearance. When El comes along, it almost seems as if it's diminished slightly. I don't think that's the case, though.

Considering his actions through the lens that he is worried about Will shows that he cares for him very much, and that Will is on the forefront of his mind for majority of season 1.

Episode 1

We may as well start at the very beginning, looking at Mike and Will's first private interaction (might I mention it's the first private interaction we see between Party members).

It's obviously foreshadowing Will's 'kidnapping', from

"The Demogorgon, it got me"

It also establishes Will and Mike's special connection, and how Will can't lie to Mike.

The Party seem indifferent to Will's absence until Hopper arrives, sitting them down to discuss it. They bicker until Hopper asks Mike to speak, and he tells him Will takes Mirkwood (which initiates more bickering). However, Mike is desperate to help look as soon as Hopper even suggests it.

Hopper quickly turns them down, and Dustin shakes his head and Lucas raises his hand in defeat. Their body language shows that they've already given up. Mike, however, keeps looking at him, leaning forwards as if the argument is still going. Not only does this show that Mike's a stubborn lil bitch, but also that he's prepared to ignore a cop just to save Will.

Dustin and Lucas, unfazed, proceed to bicker. Mike sits, wordless, in between them. It seems as if the realisation that Will is missing is dawning on him, and the concept that he may not be able to help.

he also looks pissed at lucas and dustin- i would be running

Then, we have the scene of the Wheeler dinner table. There's much tension in the air, as Nancy's worrying over Steve, Mike's stressed about Will, and the parents are oblivious.

The scene opens with this:

Not only is Mike trying to persuade Karen to let him look for Will, but he's not eating. This is a major sign of distress. After Karen shuts it down, Nancy begins arguing with her. Mike stays quiet until Will is brought into the conversation:

Mike immediately interrupts her to stand up for Will, and eventually storms off because he believes that no one else cares about Will (suggesting that he cares about Will more than anyone else).

Next time we see Mike, he's calling Lucas. He's going against what both his Mom and the Police Chief have told him to do, because, in his view, none of them care about Will.

"My point is...he could have played it safe. But he didn't. He put himself in danger last night to help the party."

In Mike's opinion, he needs to save Will, even if that means putting himself in danger.

There's another scene after this that didn't get on screen either.

It reminds me a lot of the scene in episode 8, where Mike and Nancy talk about their relationships with Eleven and Steve. Interesting parallel...

They then go out into the forest, in the pouring rain, to look for Will.

They find El.

Episode 2

So you know how cute it is when Mike finds El in the middle of the woods and makes a plan to look after her for one night but then get rid of her as soon as possible the next morning? Isn't that so cute? Isn't that couple goals?

His behaviour around El continues to be nothing more than friendly. He's excited to show her his toys, and seems completely preoccupied with them in her presence. Up until she recognises Will's photo, he is fairly dismissive of her, just "happy that a girl isn't totally grossed out" by him.

Later, after dinner, in Mike's basement, El shows them 'where' Will is. Mike's shift in attention is quite dramatic during this scene.

He understands almost immediately, prying to find out what's wrong with Will.

Episode 3

Mike, similar to Joyce, is very confident when it comes to finding Will. He insists that El knows where he is, and that going into the woods to find him is the right thing to do.

Mike isn't embarrassed when Lucas does this, rather confused and, simply, annoyed. He quite obviously hadn't thought about a romantic relationship with El at all, and now Lucas is suggesting that he wants to marry her. This probably fuelled the platonic, caring feeling he already had for her. [Notice how Mike looks to Lucas for advice multiple times in season 3, when he is actually in a relationship with El].

When the bullies come and tease that Will is queer and probably dead, Mike is the one they target.

When El takes them back to Will's house, Lucas and Dustin are disgruntled, but Mike is still hopeful. And I don't think it was because he had faith in El. He's so obssessed with Will (like Joyce) that he can't believe anything other than Will is okay.

Though, as soon as he hears the police cars, Mike knows something happened to Will, proving that he was thinking about him, and that he didn't have faith in El, had had faith in Will.

He flips out on El entirely once he sees Will's body. It shows us that what little faith he had in El was fuelled merely by the desire to find Will. He is the only Party member we see grieving Will, because it has affected him the most out of all of them.

So, this has established a few things:

Mike and Will have a connection unlike the ones with their other friends

Mike is determined to find Will, so much so that he would ignore his mother and the chief of police

Mike isn't eating because he is nervous about Will

Mike will stand up for Will

Mike feels that he cares about Will more than anyone else, and that nobody else understands their connection

He is prepared to put himself in danger to save Will

Mike is insistent that he will find Will, similar to Joyce

Mike is grieving over Will's death more than his other friends

Mind you, this is only the first 3 episodes. Mike and Will are shown to have a unique bond, and this is only developed throughout the seasons.

--

I said I would do it, so I did it lol. I think the most stuff was in ep.1, and from memory there's quite a bit more stuff in ep.4. idk, I just remember watching ti and thinking "wow that's so gay", so I thought I'd write about it. I also maxed out on images, so i had to end it here. i will post the next part soon-ish lmao. but for now, do with this what you please.

Anti-Byler Argument Refuttals

Although I discussed all of this in my Byler Proof master slides post, I wanted to do a separate post specifically just refutting the most common anti-byler arguments.

1. "Mike and El's relationship is too developed" and "They have been through too much together to break up now!"

This is probably the thing I hear the most when people argue that Byler will never happen. The weirdest part of this argument is that people assume that they will never drift apart, and that they will never ever break up, as if we didn't just see them drift apart, break up, and not officially get back together in S3? Yes, they have both been through a significant amount of trauma, but their relationship is not as developed as people think it is, they barely even know each other really. They spent a week together in S1, then El was gone for a year. Mike and El don't reunite until the very end of S2, probably a few days after halloween. If we work out the timeline between Halloween of 1984 and July 4th of 1985 in S3, that's 246 days, so it's actually less than a full year they have spent together, getting to know each other.

The “development” people argue that Mike and El have just doesn't stand up. Mike and El do not have intimate conversations, their conversations are incredibly awkward, and they just kiss frequently in the beginning of S3 before they break up. That's not development. Hopper even refers to their constant kissing as "not normal and not healthy." Mike couldn't tell El he loves her to her face, which is a parallel to the failed relationship of Stancy where Nancy couldn't tell Steve she loved him, and we later find out it's because she doesn't, which all happens during the blank makes you crazy scene that is extremely similar to Robin's coming out scene. And yes, Mike and El have endured a lot of trauma together, but so has the rest of the group and people don't seem to use this argument the same way with the other couples, or between the friendships. History doesn't determine the future if there's no feelings involved, things can always change. This is idea of staying in a relationship where there is no real love but there is history/benefits is hinted at in S3 when Mike dresses almost identically to both of his parents.

2. "Look at how much Mike cares for El! They're in love!"

No, they're not, and how they treat each other proves that they're not. I firmly believe neither Mike nor El is seriously, romantically in love with each other.

If Mike was really deeply, romantically in love with El, why did he treat her like he did in S3? If he really cares about her that much, why did he wait for Lucas to guide him at all times in matters regarding his relationship with El, instead of just taking initiative, but he does take initiative with Will? Why can't her apologize to her? Why wasn't Mike more upset about El dumping him? Why couldn't he tell El he loves her to her face? Why did he consistently lie to her throughout the whole show? Why did he stop calling her in S2? Why did he give up and say she was dead, but never gave up on Will? Why did he scream in her face in S1? And no - it isn't because he's just shy or awkward. Mike doesn't act like he is truly in love with El because he isn't. He is projecting his feelings for Will onto El, and he is deeply in denial about his sexuality due to his internalized homophobia and hasn't fully processed how he feels about Will throughout the series (up until the ending of S3). And why does Mike have such an odd reaction to El saying she loves him if he does love her? If he loves her that should be exactly what he wants to hear, so why does he look so confused and scared? And why doesn't he just say it back right then?

El isn't seriously, romantically in love with Mike. They meet in S1, and he immediately takes her in, saving her life. He looks out for her, and actually cares if she is okay, and no one has ever done that for her before. El was abused her whole childhood until Mike lets her live in his basement. He was the first person to treat her like a human being, and show her compassion, which she has never experienced before. It makes total sense that she would cling to their relationship like a security blanket. Mike is an emotional attachment for El. He makes her feel safe, because of how he saved her life previously. El has very limited knowledge of love, life, friendship, relationships, and social behaviors since she was locked in a lab for over a decade of her life, she was never truly exposed to these concepts like the other kids in the party were. Everything El thinks she knows about love she learns from watching soap opera's alone in Hopper's cabin. Of course her perception of what romantic love is, is warped. If El was seriously romantically in love with Mike, why was their break-up no big deal to her? Why was she smiling, laughing and looking at pictures of boys with Max right after she supposedly dumped the love of her life? Why did she not seem even the slightest bit upset about it the entire season?

If they're both seriously in love, then why are their interactions so awkward to watch and why does it feel so unnatural and forced? Why don’t Mileven’s interactions feel romantic? The official released scripts on 8flix describe several Mileven scenes as "awkward". It's no coincidence that detail was included in the script.

3. "But they already have Robin"

I mean this comment basically means that sense the show already has one confirmed lgbtq+ character, there can't possibly be any others. What?! There isn't a "one gay character limit per TV show". This comment really bothers me because it reeks of homophobia. If you don't ship Byler that's fine, but refusing to even explore the possibility there could be more than one lgtbq+ character in a TV show just because one already exists? Yeah no. Queer people existed in the 80's, definitely more than just one, so capping out the amount of queer characters in the show is just icky.

Also, Robin was not originally written to be a gay character. It was decided during the filming process that Robin should be a lesbian, because Maya Hawke and Joe Keery were not getting romantic vibes between their characters. Just because the show introduced a new gay character in S3, it does not mean the queercoding of Will and Mike is erased to make room for Robin, and keep Mileven together. Making Robin a lesbian, does not cancel out Mike and Will being gay/liking each other, and the show's future plans for byler.

4. "Mike's not gay."

Does this seem straight to you?

Giving your girlfriend a drawing of your male best friend, that was drawn by him, but telling her it's your drawing so she'll hang it up on the wall you coincidentally face while you make out with her, to remind you of him.

Taking your girlfriends hands off of you while you're making out with her, and keeping your hands folded in your lap away from her.

Only being able to apologize to said male best friend and being more emotionally invested in that relationship than your relationship with your girlfriend.

Mike is the only other person besides Will pictured in close up shots with rainbow and fruit imagery.

Even the die-hard Mileven fans have to admit that's more than a little coincidental, and if we know anything about the Duffer brothers, it's that they love incorporating intricate details in their show to reveal things about the characters/plot.

If you want more examples, some images, or just a more in-depth analysis of byler throughout the series, I suggest you check out my Byler Proof master slides :)

Analyzing the 5 plays in this drama club poster .From the bts pics of stranger things 4.

So... some of ya’ll know I'm going through the st s4 films given to us by the official st twitter + the films reffed in the show itself or mentioned by the Duffers in interviews .

So I decided to look at the plays mentioned here. Because even if we don't see the monologues in the show directly - the Duffers wouldn't name drop anything unless it inspired them in some way. Similar to films name dropped in the show. Tw : for some dark themes .

This is just a quick little analysis I decided to do since we probably won't get any new st content today (3/22). Nothing too deep. Just mentioning things that caught my interest especially cause these plays have a lot of narrative connections to the st s4 movies I've been watching.

Invitation to a march (Authur laurents)

Reminds me of the stancy/jancy love triangle. "A young woman is having second thoughts about doing the right thing and marrying a respectable , rich, kind, young man with good prospects.By way of a prewedding diversion, this woman becomes interested in the passionate but poor and entirely unsuitable son of a local landlord.Basically, the plot concerns the efforts of Norma Brown to choose between a conventional fiance who "puts her to sleep" but is wealthy (like what her own mother did) or go for this new-poor guy. The play is principally interested in how this youthful love triangle affects the three mothers involved (whether the kids like it or not)

12th night (Shakespeare)

 - viola (el) wrongly assumes a family member (hopper) is dead. She dresses up as a man named 'cesario'. A girl named Olivia falls for 'cesario' (violet dressed as a man). "Finally, when 'Cesario' and Sebastian (violet's twin brother: assumed to have drowned - Will) appear in the presence of Olivia there is more wonder and confusion at their physical similarity. Taking Sebastian for 'Cesario', Olivia asks him to marry her, and they are secretly married in a church. Cough if Olivia is 'straight' cause she fell for Viola (as a doppleganger dressed like her twin brother).Mike being into el who multiple characters in s1 said looked like a boy and specifically like Will is...suspish and a hint he's not straight lol. just like Olivia they're both into guys . plus, this play just has a butt load of love triangles (ugh i hated that aspect). There was also romantically coded letters (which was in the s4 films) . One character is also thrown into an insane asylum and framed as 'insane'.'Pretending that Malvolio is insane, they lock him up in a dark chamber. Feste visits him to mock his insanity'. We all know the psych hospital will be narratively important- talked about it more here.

The seagull (Anton Chekhov-russian)

similar to how I believed s4 will show m*#even already broken up since the months between s3-4 : act 3 (s3) ends with Nina begging for one last chance to be with Trigorin before he leaves/moves away. They kiss and make plans to meet again in Moscow.And in act 4 there's a timeskip where it shows they've been broken up for a long time between acts- and its established they never actually loved eachother. Do i even have to spell out why this parallels the m*#even ending in s3? There is also a play within the play (this is common in a lot of the st films- they have plays- or a story within a story- which illustrate certain themes or emotions of the characters within said film : blackswan, children of paradise, highschool musical, Rushmore, book of Henry, welcome to marwen, never ending story, romancing the stone, wet hot American summer, etc).The play is Konstantin's latest attempt at creating a dense symbolist work. There is also alot of love triangles in the seagull. TW!: for se#ual ab*se/su*cidal thoughts/ inc*st (here and in other play segments). The seagull motif reminds me a lot of Jonathan's rabbit story.Konstantin romantically into Nina shows up to give her a gull that he has shot. Nina is confused and horrified . Trigorin sees the gull that Konstantin has shot and muses to Nina on how he could use it as a subject for a short story: "The plot for the short story: a young girl lives all her life on the shore of a lake. She loves the lake, like a gull, and she's happy and free, like a gull. But a man arrives by chance, and when he sees her, he destroys her, out of sheer boredom. Like this gull."  This immediately reminded me of jon's rabbit story and some of the movies on the s4 list . Like in forrest gump- Jenny (who is poor) was se*ually ab*sed as a very young girl by her father. As a child she runs away into a field-away from her alcoholic father yelling at her -there she prays that she can "be a bird so I can fly far far away" .

Jenny as an adult struggles with this unresolved trauma- being with ab*sive partners, doing dr*gs, and having su*cidal thoughts . She as an adult when contemplating su*icide, jokes 'you think i can fly like a bird ?' while looking down at a bridge.God-i'm worried about jonathan (Jenny was also a musician sort of like jon). In another s4 movie example ' mystic river ' :(in the 80s) a preteen baseball playing boy is r*ped by men in the woods. He later says he wishes he could become an undead monster to not feel the pain of that experience - cause quote " if I'm not human anymore maybe the pain will stop" (Will) . slightly off topic but he also has another personality, imagines a alternate word that dissappears when he turns his head. And as a less direct animal parallel to the play - the boy from the film also imagined his perpetrators as monsters and wolves to cope.In 'getout' the photographer character sees a dead deer in the woods and it represents a parent/his own childhood tra*ma relating to his past. similarly in 'prince of tides' the 2 siblings as kids were ra*ed by men. The older brother remembered it and the younger sibling developed DID (so didn't remember but she would draw wolves- as the perpetrators/villains in her picture stories she created . In the film they also had an ab*sive dad and were very poor. She also tried k*ling herself multiple times-but started to get better after remembering the source of her pain and trauma.  There is also the theme of multiple attempted su*cides in the play- and the play ends with yet another attempt- and the audience is left unaware of the artist's fate at the end of the play.

The tempest (Shakespeare)

Prospereo - (the perceived antagonist) is a wizard with monstrous looks, storm powers , and ability to create monster-dogs

He wants revenge on a man who tried ra*ing his family member & revenge on his other family member who wronged him years ago. I mean... pretty much my did theory.But in the end.Prospero decides to show his enemies the mercy that they did not show him twelve years earlier. He tells Ariel to bring the men to him, he will restore their sanity and then renounce magic forever.Prospero breaks the spell that the men are under .

Diary of a scoundrel (Alexander Ostrovsky-Russian)

-  I suppose this could loosely relate to Jonathan? Glumov, is a young man from an impoverished family lacking status seeking entrance into society's pampered class. A 19th-century Russian scoundrel must scheme his way out of his meager life in a small apartment -whatever it takes.He has a quick mind and some talent for seeing through the hypocrisies of people around him ( Jonathan does make a lot of social critiques about society). That gives him some advantages. A tale of one man's mission to finagle his way into upper-class society and find a cushy job. Set in 1874, this social comedy follows Glumov, a Russian youth who begins his ambitious ascent to social esteem. He progresses by wit, guile and rhetoric. Pitting one stupid person against another, he soon gains his ends. To reach these goals, Glumov will lie, flatter, and cater to the vanities of the wealthy. Unable to contain his disgust with his victims, Glumov decides to relieve his unvoiced satirical comments by recording his schemes in a diary. But he is tripped up by his uncle's wife, to whom he has made passionate love on his way to success. At the end of the play, his diary is stolen and his duplicity exposed, but he can nevertheless suceeds. The author is much more critical about the high society itself than about the main character, so the play keeps attracting generations of directors by opening possibilities for political criticism while also avoiding naming names of the current rulers.The play's aim was to overthrow bourgeois tradition and establish a class-conscious art called eccentricism giving a deliberately comic portrayal of reality.

I suppose I notice some possible commonalities-  besides s3 critiquing the wealthy/capitalism in comedic ways . jonathan since s1 has worried about his family's finances / had some resentment toward the rich . In some of the s4 movies ‘orphan’ & ‘ girl interrupted’ someone reads their diary out loud to get at them (in girl interrupted the winona character’s diary even had critiques of her new friends).  Alot of movies also have someone (usually a teen/young adult) making a documentary about their life -which could narratively replace said diary? A few movies have a poor guy adjusting to snobby rich social circles (or being poor and then getting money)- titanic, kingsmen, karate kid, the craft , godfather,  wardogs,into the spiderverse,flashdance, and many others . And movies like wardogs has a poor-young-character do shady things to finacially support his family . There’s also that whole uncle’s wife thing- which makes me uncomfortable for obvious reasons (but I’m just thinking of Lonnie’s creepy gf who was into him). A few movies had the guy’s step mom innappropriately hit on him- orange county & you got mail. And him trying to avoid her advances. Or...not to mention ... it may be a problematic coincidence /trope. But in enter the void -the guy who needs to finacially support his sibling/ does dr*gs -hooks up with his dr*g dealing friend’s married mom (who would give him money).  Or in gilbert grape- the poor teen-who has to finacially support his siblings/single mom-has his endgame relationship be a girl his own age. But before that he h*oked up with a married woman -who would give him money. Don’s plum -young film guy-propositioned by older female film director (for dream job). Not even mentioning the other films that have the guy hooking up with toxic older women (like ‘the graduate’). Or analyze this-where the therapist accuses him of having an Oedipus complex (not touching that one... but the guy in ‘enter the void’ a 100% had one). It’s possible those movies were just- inspo for s3?  A coincidence? Or s3 was foreshadowing for this in s4- but unlike s3 it will accurately be played as wrong  and a sign of Jonathan recreating past tra*ma caused by Lonnie (cough like the photos) /being desperate for money. And not played ‘comedically’ like how it mostly was in s3. But shown as self destructive  (for Jon) and immoral on the Woman’s end. Like... Billy and Jon are character foils. Both are older siblings into rock music, with ab*sive dads who shoved them into walls. Both lose it (and beat steve to a pulp when Steve accidentally triggers their daddy issues). In s3 it’s established womanizer Billy has mommy issues, than he tries ho*king up with someone his mom’s age, and the characters ref ‘back to the future ‘ and Steve incorrectly says it’s about “alex p keaton trying to bang his mom.” This could illustrate his subconscious issues with parental figures/adults cause of Lonnie’s  possible past se*ual ab*se . One film the friend even says to the guy “you don’t have friends!” guy b: i have friends! him:  no you have acquaintances! ADMIT IT! YOU’RE AFRAID OF MEN!I mean-Jonathan liked Nancy- but he initially hooked up with her cause he wanted to prove he didn’t have ‘trust issues’ from his dad. Also it’s prob a bit of a reach (and maybe a coincidence)- but the fact Murray in the same breath compares Steve (Nancy’s then bf) and Lonnie  ... uh... if you think too long about it ... it’s very sinister .  Especially because in s3: muray tells Joyce  that despite her wanting to be with a nice guy, she’s curious about “the brute” Hopper despite him reminding her of a past “bad relationship”(aka Lonnie). Like- yeah connect some dots.  Quite a few films (other than forrest gump) also have the character who (as a kid) was  r*ped by their dad/parent-  begin to do dr*gs/be pr*miscuous as adults since they never learned to properly cope with their trauma (’girl with the dragon tattoo’,  ‘black swan’, and ‘magnolia’). Unfortunately the whole relative doing such things to kid-relatives is in at least 30+ movies. 

Personally, i would be MUCH happier if Jon had a age appropriate romance- and had not a single creepy adult near him. A few movies actually imply Lonnie gets yet another ‘new model’  replacing his gf in her 20s with a new gf- who is ‘barely l*gal” and just turned 18. so there’s that possibility as well- that she’s jonathan’s age.I just want Jonathan-happy &safe. GOD. IS THAT TOO MUCH TO ASK?

Back from the Dead

Steve Harrington x Reader

Part 3

September 1, 1984

The cold night air bit into my wet skin as I looked back at the tree I had just crawled out of. The bark was already moving back into place, covering the small rift that allowed me to find my way back to Hawkins. I didn’t wait for it to fully close, rather I turned and began walking toward the road a few yards away in hopes of finding my way back into town. As my feet treaded lightly through the fallen leaves, I attempted to wipe as much of the slime off my body as I could, but it proved to be no use. 

I stepped out onto the concrete and looked around where I stood at the corner of Cornwallis and Kerley. The chainlink fence that belonged to Hawkins Lab was in view and I turned to walk the other way, back into town. The wind seemed fiercer as I walked on the road and I found myself debating on walking between the trees for some shelter from the cold, though I remembered the horrors I had faced in the woods of the place I had just crawled out of and decided against it. 

My ears suddenly picked up on the faint sound of a car engine and I immediately perked up at the thought of a warm car. Headlights came around the bend and I squinted as the bright lights beamed into my eyes. The last time my eyes had been graced with any form of light was the day I was taken by the demogorgon. How long had that been? I had easily lost track in the Upside Down, as Jonathan had called it. No sun meant I was unable to count the days.  

The car came to a screeching stop and my eyes glanced the words along the side before I looked into the eyes of Chief Hopper. He was looking at me as if he had seen a ghost. I opened my mouth to explain my appearance and my reason for walking so late at night, but I found myself unable to form a coherent sentence. 

Hopper quickly opened the door and took off his jacket before wrapping it around me. He placed his hands on my shoulders as he guided me around the hood of the car to the passenger seat. I clutched the warm jacket closer as I climbed into the car and immediately reached to turn the heat to full blast. Hopper got back in and I was glad he didn’t try to turn down the warmth I so desperately needed.

“(Y/N), right?” Hopper finally broke the silence as he shifted the gear of car to drive.

“Yes,” I answered, but I barely recognized my voice. “How long?”

“Excuse me?” The Chief asked, and even though I knew he understood, I reworded my question.

“How long have I been in… have I been gone?”

“Have you really been in there since you and the others tried to kill the demogorgon?” He asked and I nodded. “Jesus, kid. It’s been eight months.”

Eight months. I knew it had been a long time, but eight months? I wonder what my father thought, though he hadn’t bothered much with me to begin with. I doubted he had missed my presence much being that he had rarely graced me with his. And what about school? I had missed the entire second semester of my junior year. Would I have to repeat? I was suppose to be starting senior year. How would I explain my disappearance?

“Hey, kid,” Hopper’s voice broke through my thoughts as I turned my watery eyes to look at him. “It’s going to be alright, yeah? We’ll figure this all out.”

I nodded as I turned to look out the window at the passing town. Seeing everything without decay was a comforting sight. As we drove on, I realized I didn’t know where Hopper was taking me.

“Where are we going?” 

“Well, I can’t take you home,” Hopper answered before quickly continuing. "Or anyone else for that matter looking like I just pulled you from a swamp. You can stay at my place for the night and we’ll figure this all out in the morning.” 

“Why can’t anyone see me like this?” I questioned. 

Hopper looked over at me with furrowed eyebrows before asking, “How much do you know?”

“All I know is I went to the Byers place to stop what I thought was going to be a fight between Jonathan and Steve Harrington, but instead ended up being attack by some... some creature,” I said.

“The demogorgon,” Hopper supplied the name.

“Yeah, the demogorgon,” I nodded. “I somehow ended up in this weird place that was Hawkins, but... it wasn’t Hawkins.”

“It’s called the Upside Down,” Hopper said. “It’s a parallel universe. A tear was created that connected the two worlds allowing the demogorgon to come into ours.”

“I’m sorry, what?” I asked disbelief.

Hopper glanced over at me before sighing and putting his eyes back on the road as he said, “I’m not suppose to talk about anything that happened last November, but I think you are deserving enough of the full explanation.”

On the way to wherever we were headed, Hopper explained everything he had learnt about the Demogorgon, the Upside Down, and a girl named Eleven. He told me everything from the true story behind Will Byers’ disappearance to Eleven defeating the demogorgon.

“So it’s gone?” I asked and Hopper nodded. 

“It can’t hurt you anymore,” he said and a moment of silence passed before he glanced in my direction.“How did you…” 

“Stay alive?” I finished for him when he trailed off. “When the demogorgon took me, I at least had a bat with me, one with nails. I hide mostly, but when one of the creatures found me I had to just… fight my way out and find a new place to slay low.”

“Creatures?” Hopper asked, glancing at me with an alarmed look.

“They weren’t demogorgons, at least I don’t think they were,” I furrowed my eyebrows. “Either way, there was no hunting them when they were hunting me.”  

The rest of the drive was filled with silence. The car eventually came to a stop and Hopper climbed out, but as I looked around I didn’t see a house. I cautiously stepped out into the wooded area, scanning my surroundings. A hand grasped my shoulder and I jumped as I turned to see it was only Hopper.

“It’s okay, kid. You’re safe here. You’re safe with me, alright?” 

I nodded before he turned and motioned for me to follow. Slowly I trudged behind him as I pulled his jacket tighter around my shaking body. We walked in silence for a few minutes and just before I asked how much further, a small cabin came into view. He stepped over something I couldn’t see, and he told me to watch my step over the trip wire. My eyebrows furrowed at the thought of Hopper setting traps around this place. I stayed close to him as we stepped up onto the porch and he used his keys to unlock the three deadbolts on the door.

“Come on,” he said as he pushed me in first. “Just try to be quiet, alright? El is probably already sleeping. You can meet her in the morning.”

“El?” I asked.  

“Eleven,” Hopper confirmed. “I need you to make me a promise.”

“Anything,” I replied.

“You can’t tell anyone that you’ve seen her or that she’s here. She needs to be kept a secret.”

“Does anyone know?” I asked with wide eyes. 

“No one, and we have to keep it that way.”

“Why?”

“There are still some bad people out there looking for her. It’s too soon to let her out in public. Someone might recognize her. As for the others, knowing she’s here can only put them at risk as well. If the bad people were to find out they know something, they as well as their families could be in a whole lot of danger.”

“Why would you tell me about her?” I asked confused, and Hopper sighed. “I’m not going home, am I?”

“You’re father left town about a month after you were gone and he didn’t say where he was headed,” Hopper said without meeting my eyes. “We all thought you weren’t coming back. Even if we did, none of us could’ve told him what had happened. Everyone involved had to sign a contract saying we wouldn’t tell anyone about what we saw and experienced.”

“I don’t think he would have cared much, anyway,” I shrugged. 

“What makes you say that?” Hopper’s tone was laced with concern.

“After my mom died, he kind of just… stopped caring. About his job, about me, about everything. He’s always wanted moved to California. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up there.”

“I can try to track him down for you,” Hopper offered.

“He’ll just make me move with him,” I shook my head. “I don’t want to go to California.” 

“Even after everything that’s happened?” Hopper furrowed his eyebrows. 

“This town is the only home I’ve ever known,” I shrugged. “Plus, I have some loose ends that need tying up”

Hopper nodded in understanding before saying, “Go get washed up and then get some sleep. We have some places to go in the morning.”

“What about my clothes?” I asked as I looked down at my nearly destroyed outfit. 

“I’ll find something,” Hopper said as he pushed me toward the bathroom. “It’s either going to be too big or too small, but our first stop tomorrow will be to get you some new stuff.”

“Thank you, Hopper,” I smiled softly in appreciation.

“No need to thank me,” Hopper mused before he gave one final nudge. “Go on, now.”

I love season 2 but one thing that really bugs me is the Duffers said during an episode of beyond stranger things that Mike was trying to move on from El after she “died” and he needed someone to protect and that’s why he was by Will’s side the whole season. It doesn’t really make sense to me considering Mike tried everything to find Will when he was missing then with El he just called her everyday and nothing else. It just doesn’t sit right with me that the Duffers basically say Mike is kind of projecting his feelings for El onto Will. It kinda makes all the Byler moments feel less real to me. I just wanted to know what you think of this cause I need some reassurance lol

Ooh interesting! I don't remember this part of Beyond ST, so I'll have to go back and look for the exact quote. If anyone knows the context or remembers the episode it's discussed in, please lmk! Ok, my response might get kind of long, so just a warning before we dive in, lol.

Was Mike trying to "move on from El?" That depends on how you interpret the words "move on." Is he moving on in a romantic sense-- like did he just lose the love of his life (because he totally knew he loved her from the moment he met her... not)? Or is he moving on in a "this cool girl i just met a few days ago with super powers just helped me find Will and saved me from certain death, killing herself in the process" sense? I'm inclined to believe the latter.

I won't go too in-depth on this, but I don't think Mike had any real romantic feelings for El in S1. He is paralleled heavily to both Hopper and Papa throughout the seasons, and he and El are shown to have a sibling-like relationship. Mike shows absolutely no inkling of a romantic interest in El until Lucas suggests that Mike wants to marry her because "he loves her so much." Mike immediately replies with "what are you talking about?" and doesn't indicate that he does in fact have a crush on El. He acts pretty similar with her as he would a little sister or a friend. Nothing becomes romantic until their kiss in 1x08, after Nancy asks Mike if he likes El (to which he responds, "ew, gross!"). Arguably, this kiss isn't romantic either, because Mike was talking about them being like siblings a few seconds earlier. He feels pressured to kiss her (what he views to be romantic) because the party and his sister have made it seem like it's weird if Mike doesn't like her. But enough on S1, you asked about S2!

In S2, Mike is definitely in the "protector" role, mainly in regards to Will and his possession. He's constantly checking in with him: "Will, are you ok?" "I couldn't find you!" "He won't [spy back]. We won't let him." "Are you hurting again?" Mike is the only one in S2 that's really there for Will. Yes, Joyce is there too, but she doesn't really understand or know how to comfort him. Mike does!

I think it's important to compare the context of S1 vs. S2. Mike knew El for less than a week before she "died." Right after meeting El, Will "died" (Mike saw his body)-- and Mike had known Will for 7 years at that point. It's clear that Will's "death" had a much greater impact on Mike when looking at it through that lens. However, the fact that El sacrificed herself to save Mike's life probably left him with some insane levels of survivor's guilt. He probably blamed himself for her death. He's a super loyal friend. He's the paladin-- the heart-- of the party! He described a friend as "someone you'd do anything for" in 1x02! Of course he called her every night to see if she was out there and all right! He would have done that for any member of the party imo.

As far as Mike "projecting his feelings for El" onto Will goes, that makes no sense to me honestly when you look at his interactions with Will. Mike and El were never really romantic at all during their brief time together in S1. Sure, he kissed her, but El hardly even knew what a friend was at that point. There's no way she'd understand the implications of being someone's "girlfriend." Mike wasn't even able to explain what a girlfriend was to El because he doesn't even know! He's never thought about it because he's not interested in girls.

All of Mike's interactions with Will are genuine and true to their friendship. Mike isn't inventing things in regards to Will in order for it to fit his "El projection." If you're doubting this, just look at the monologue in the shed. Those are Mike's real emotions, down to the single tear he sheds while talking to Will. He's not pretending Will is El, missing El, or anything else El-related in that scene. That is about Mike and Will only. The way the scene is shot even cuts out Joyce/Jonathan/Hopper until the end of the monologue (despite them being less than a foot away from Mike) to reinforce the fact that this moment is only about Mike and Will.

I also just wanted to add in the fact that once Will gets possessed (and Mike takes up residence on his floor), Mike stops trying to reach El on the walkie. He called her every single day since she went missing, yet he stopped the minute Will really needed him. He could've easily brought the walkie with him to the Byers' house, but he didn't. He literally forgot about El so he could focus all of his energy and attention on Will-- which is how it's been for Mike since kindergarten anyways, lol.

If the writers really wanted to play up the romantic plot between Mike and El during S2, they could've included walkie calls from Mike during the second half of the season. Instead, Mike is solely focused on getting Will back (again) and El is focused on gaining independence (by finding her mom and her sister)-- good for her!

Even though Mike's narrative has always been intertwined with both Will and El, season after season, he puts Will first. S1: find Will no matter what. S2: save Will (even if Mike has to put himself in danger). S3: get Will back after pushing him away due to societal normativity (rain fight vs. mall breakup in setting/mood/exposition). S4: reinforce how important Will is while coming to term with hard personal truths.

Hey it’s me again the anon with the mileven scenes ! 💖 (I hope I don’t annoy lol ) I decided to make a hopefully short part 3 of mileven scenes that make me doubt byler is endgame because I really like your answers to it ( thank you for answering btw )

Ok first scene is the scene in season 2 episode 9 ( I guess ) when El is driving away to the lab with hopper . I don’t really remember but I think Mike said something like „I can’t lose you again“ and El says „ you won’t lose me“ and then they nearly kiss .

Next is the Elmax sleepover scene when they are in El’s room after the mileven break up . Max was asking El if mike is a good kisser El says she doesn’t know and that he is her first boyfriend Max then responds „ Ex-boyfriend“ and El looks sad after Max said that

Next and last scene is the „ blank makes you crazy “ scene.I mean mike is basically trying to explain El he loves her he’s just to embarrassed telling it her face to face

That’s it . I hope you’re doing well and I wish you a nice day ! ♥️

hi again anon! I'm always happy to answer these! It's been really fun :)

1. When El is leaving to close the gate at the lab

The "I can't lose you again" conversation:

Mike: "Just be careful, alright? I can't lose you again"

Obviously he doesn't want her to die, they are friends, share a special bond, and he felt an enormous amount of guilt of what he previously thought was her death, because she "died" saving him. And he desperately wants to be straight here, he wants to like her, so her leaving again will prevent him from being able to do that, and he blames Hopper for El being hidden once he finds out she is alive, and that stirring up his romantic feelings for Will. (Mike's breakdown explanation here)

The almost kiss:

It's VERYYY interesting here how ONLY Eleven is the one who leans in for the kiss. Mike never moves, he is completely frozen. A girl, who he knows he should and wants to like, is telling him she wants to kiss him, and he. does. nothing. Like we see in s3, all of Mike & El's physicality is initiated by Eleven. He very slightly tilts his head right before they almost kiss, almost like he is reluctant to kiss her....Interesting.

2. The Elmax sleepover 💜

So this is after the breakup, and El does not seem at all concerned or upset she just broke up with Mike. She's flipping through teen magazines, looking at boys. The actual script of this scene:

If you just supposedly lost the love of your life, I would expect you to be heartbroken, and El is not in this scene. She's happy, she's having fun, and the music is upbeat. Nothing in this scene points to how much she romantically loves Mike and is devastated by the breakup, which is entirely purposeful. They show her looking through magazines at boys and listening ti upbeat pop music, to emphasize for the audience, that she isn't madly, deeply, romantically in love with him. We never once see her shed a tear, or even express how she wants Mike back or anything like that. She even calls Mike her first boyfriend. She doesn't say anything about how he's the only guy for her and she could never think of anyone else that way, she says first boyfriend, indicating she thinks there might be more in the future. She looks down when Max says "Ex-boyfriend",

but she moves on immediately, with a new fun game idea for them to play, the spin the bottle spy on a person game, nothing to do with missing Mike, or being upset.

3. Blank makes you crazy"

We all know the blank is love. And if Mike's really trying to tell Eleven he "loves" her, then why is this scene paralleled to Robin's coming out? Why does Mike say to her when trying to describe how he loves her, “It’s like a feeling, old people say it to each other."

Because he doesn't romantically love her.

The entire premise of this scene "blank makes you crazy" is built off of the "crazy together" scene, all in the context of the phrase "only love makes you that crazy sweetheart"

thanks for the ask! Hope you're well! xx