It was not Steve's fault at all that st*ncy ended. Him trying to get her not to tell barbs parents was literally him trying not to break an NDA that could've gotten her and other people killed. Him trying to get her to go to the party was an attempt to get her to loosen up and stop worrying about it, so that she would break the NDA and get people killed. Steve was not a shitty boyfriend.

Confession #70

Before I answer this, y'all don't have to like...censor ship names with the * on my blog LOL it's okay to type them out.

Okay so...personal opinion...neither Steve nor Nancy were solely responsible for the break up. I don't believe it's fair to place a break up on one person's shoulders. These are two teenagers, who tried to navigate a relationship, while also being exposed to supernatural forces, death, trauma, etc. The blame for their relationship ending is not placed on just one person's shoulders. They're just kids.

Diagnostically, Nancy has PTSD. She meets the criteria for it. This 16 year old was traumatized by her friend's death, and wanting to investigate, to find answers, is quite literally how she attempted to cope with Barb's death. We can make the argument that she had tunnel vision, and the only thing she was focused on was getting justice for Barb, even if that meant breaking the NDA. And sure...maybe she wasn't totally thinking about how breaking the NDA could potentially harm other people...but Nancy knew something was up with the government and Barb's death. Nancy Wheeler, in her own way, wants to make the world a better place, and that includes getting justice no matter the cost.

Steve was exposed to these things, too. Maybe not to the extent Nancy was, but still. The way he copes is by using distraction techniques. This isn't something that can work for Nancy because she is, by nature, a very investigative and answer driven person. She cannot afford to use distraction techniques, like a Halloween party, to cope with her friend's death. This is Steve's coping skill, and that's not a bad thing. They had been working on their costumes, so clearly they were both at one point excited to attend the party, so Steve talking about the party wasn't out of malice, and it wasn't him trying to be dismissive of Nancy even if it could have come across that way. It was him trying to get Nancy to use his coping skill, not knowing that she needed something different. She wanted him to take action with her.

Steve and Nancy, not purposely and not maliciously, hurt each other. There is no 'one is more wrong than the other'. Steve and Nancy got together at a time in their lives where they, unfortunately, could not give the other person what they needed. Nancy could not give Steve the reassurance he needed, and Steve could not give Nancy the action she needed. That is so heartbreaking to think about, given what they've gone through. Steve and Nancy deserve grace and compassion, not blame. If all of us were in their position, we wouldn't want people to blame us. We'd want compassion and understanding.

All in all, they both needed to understand each other more. They both needed to grow, respectively. The one thing I love about season 4 is how you can see their growth. The audience can see Steve becoming more emotionally vulnerable, wanting to take part in the action that Nancy needed in the first place (volunteering to go with Nancy to the library, being the first one to jump in the lake). I believe in season 5 we will see Nancy start to come to terms with her trauma, and realize that it wasn't Steve's fault, or her's, for Barb's death. And there's where the reassurance piece comes into play, with Nancy reassuring Steve that neither one of them were to blame.

I'm curious to see where the Duffers take them in season 5. I'm curious to see the...what did Robin call it? "The rekindling of two flames who never should have been snuffed out." Maybe Steve and Nancy's flames needed to be snuffed out in the beginning, only to be relit and burn brighter in the end.

The absolutely fascinating thing about the current uptick in shaming cosplayers and to a lesser extent fic authors in the Stranger Things fandom on tiktok and twitter is that this is directly following a season where a large amount of the plot early on is about bullying. And it isn’t just “oh bullying is bad” like in a lot of other media, it’s “people will often bully and ostracize those who are very obviously neurodivergent. people who are drawn to weird hobbies or who dress and act funny or who are developmentally delayed but are hurting literally no one. and that’s bad”. A lot of media with a focus on bullying doesn’t actually have characters that would get such treatment and it tends to feel a little corny and forced, but Stranger Things isn’t like that. We’ve got a whole squad of kids playing dnd and a super senior who’s a metal head during the satanic panic. We have a girl who’s speech and grammar skills are severely delayed who’s been dropped into standard classes where people look at her like she’s a freak. I could go on and on about how these are people who not only would have gotten shit in the 80′s but still could have gotten a certain amount of shit now.

I’m not kidding when I say season 4 is incredibly hand hold-y and upfront about why participating in the classic public school tradition of “find and hunt the autistic” is needlessly cruel. The two biggest perpetrators of the bullying in season 4 are basically 2-dimensional caricatures of what the status quo at the time was and they do nothing but attack the freak characters after all. But the show is so big that we have a bunch of normie casual fans who are encountering fandom culture and the kinds of people who participate in it for the first time. And they are not able to connect the dots between the kinds of people they are bullying and the kinds of kids the show is about because they aren’t able to empathize with ostracized neurodivergent people without the fucking sneak peak into their personal lives that you would get if they were a fictional character in their favorite children's mystery horror show on Netlfix.

Stranger Things Hot Take

Me: That car scene between Mike and Will was such a beautiful representation of being gay in a time when it wasn't always acceptable. It showed how difficult it can be to tell the person who matters to you more than anything else in this world just how much you love them when you don't know how they'll react to who you really are, especially when you already know they'll never feel the same way and therefore may never truly understand you. The fragility and vulnerability that comes with that was so heartbreaking and beautiful and emotional and I was sobbing my eyes out. Then, on top of that, we got all of the emotion that came with Robin's heartbreak over seeing Vickie with a guy (and Steve's protective best friend instinct continuing to be bothered by it despite Robin's insistence that other things were more important) only for them to connect on an emotional level all over again. But she could never really be sure if it would work unless she outed herself, which, in that time and in her situation, would've been near impossible due to fear of what others would say or think. 10/10 on the LGBTQ+ representation from the Duffer Brothers. They are telling that story so well and I absolutely adore it.

The Rest of Tumblr: F*CK THE DUFFER BROTHERS! BYLER AND RONANCE AND STEDDIE DIDN'T GO CANON! MIKE CONFESSED HIS LOVE FOR ELEVEN! THEY HATE GAY PEOPLE!!

Me: ...??? Did we...did we watch the same show???

The discourse surrounding how it won't be realistic if they're happy and accepted for being queer because it's 80s is annoying not only because this is a Sci-Fi show and nothing is "realistic" but because literally everyone had to accept the mere possibility that Will Byers was hate-crimed in season one. Joyce believed it when she went to Hopper, Hopper had to believe it just in case it was right, Jonathan believed it whenever he went to their own father's home to look for his brother's body in the trunk of his car, the boys were mocked over and over about that, even Mike's father mentioned it. Anyone close to Will Byers has already considered that possibility and it didn't change what they were willing to do in order to find even just his body and even continue searching after his "body" was found. Additionally, they took in a girl who was raised in captivity, one who could kill them with her mind and has killed dozens of people in front of them. Will has killed people to under the possession of Vecna. And that includes trying to kill everyone in the immediate friend group.

People think him being gay is going to matter? People think that's where they're like done with him? And if someone else happened to be queer, it wouldn't really matter. They've all been through so much trauma that they're just happy that everyone is still alive.

Hot take people aren't ready for:

In season 1, Steve was a major asshole, even going as far as to publicly shame Nancy with the movie theater graffiti for the whole town to see and gawk at, among other acts of shitbaggery, and now he stopped doing that and everyone loves him and moves past his bad behavior, seemingly acting like it never happened and is no big deal.

Jonathan takes one picture he wasn't supposed to, acknowledges his wrongdoing and apologizes, never does anything weird or creepy like that again, and yet he's still shat on regularly by the fandom for it six years and 4 seasons later. I still see jokes on tiktok, etc about him acting like a pervert and shit. He's been through enough, cut the guy a break.

Wonder why that is, though. 👀

Karen Wheeler was hitting on an 18 year old character, but Dacre was 22 at the time of filming. He had an adult physique.

Wanna know what a real 18 year old looks like? Wanna know how young Billy really was?

This is my brother. He is 18 years old. He is an accurate example of the type of boy Karen Wheeler, a fully grown adult woman in her 40's, regularly flirted with and hit on at the PUBLIC pool (cause it was very clearly a pattern of continuous behavior judging by how comfortable he felt being so close to her in the open in S3E1).

He's goofy, he's athletic, and every time we talk on the phone or in person he wants advice about girls or dating or sex. Because he's 18, and that's what it's like going through the final stages of physical development.

So yeah. I don't wanna hear shit from the antis about how "grown up" Billy was or how he "seduced" Karen away from her family.

That woman had a fully formed prefrontal cortex. That woman had 3 kids and a husband. That woman groomed a teenage boy from her daughter's graduating class into a viable sex partner because she was bored and unsatisfied with Ted.

Billy is not the perpetrator of some great homewrecking plot. He's a lonely, horny, emotionally vulnerable teenager who's desperate for some kind - probably any kind - of positive attention.

Fuck the Duffer Brothers for writing that scene and fuck groomers in general. Thanks and goodbye.

It sucks that most of the ‘Chrissy Cunningham x reader content’ on this site involves her being this inexperienced, shy, submissive little dove… Chrissy’s a lovely little dove, don’t get me wrong, but she’s also (probably):

Experienced: Chrissy has a boyfriend that she’s implied to have been dating for a while, and I definitely didn’t see purity rings on either of their ring fingers.

Shy, but also able to be assertive when necessary: Chrissy is canonically implied/shown to be able to hold her own and be a little bit bitchy when she needs to be (to protect herself, mostly), which means she’s likely shy but also able to be assertive when necessary. That’s not only implied by her being in such a powerful position in the Hawkins High social hierarchy but also proven in her interaction with Max in the bathrooms.

Not significantly uncomfortable in positions of power: Chrissy is the literal fucking cheer captain (right?? is that not canon??) and HBIC at Hawkins. I don’t think you could hold either of those roles for an extended period if you were excessively uncomfortable with being in a position of authority.

Stop doing my girl Chrissy dirty and let her take control!! She may be all cute and tiny, but she’s a bad bitch to her core, let her live up to her dom potential!!! Chrissy Cunningham is a switch; she’s kind and soft and a lil shy, but she can and will take the lead when needed/when she fucking feels like it!! SO LET HER BE A GODDAMN SWITCH, YOU COWARDS!!

I mean-

*ahem*

Please consider making Chrissy more assertive and confident in your writing. She has insecurities, sure, but you must be at least a little confident to effectively maintain such an influential role in the twisted high school social hierarchy. Chrissy may have been especially shy and reserved in her interactions with Eddie (at least at the start), but that’s probably more so because:

Eddie had a bad reputation, and Chrissy had little reason to believe it wasn’t warranted: Eddie objectively wore that reputation like a badge of honor at school as a defense mechanism

That interaction was one-on-one with someone Chrissy was unfamiliar with: Those kinds of interactions are usually a lot more anxiety-inducing for people who are used to putting on a show or playing a part in order to maintain their reputation (something both she and Eddie do)

Chrissy probably does tend to be a little more timid and soft-spoken: This is likely due to her history of being verbally abused by her mother. However, Chrissy’s tendency to be reserved and soft-spoken and even a bit unsure of herself does not mean she lacks the capacity to be confident and assertive and to exercise control over a situation. If it did, then she probably wouldn’t have her spot as the resident Queen of Hawkins High because she never would’ve had the courage, confidence, or determination to take it.

Chrissy’s a complex character, so write her that way!!! Pleaseeeee!! I beg!!

I love Steve Harrington, I really really do. But goddamn, Stranger Things is Will Byer's story! Everything started because of him, and by extension because of Joyce and Mike refusing to believe he was dead and fighting to get him back. There's no narrative reason Steve should have had more screentime in seasons 3 and 4 than Will did.

Begging pleading needing people to let Billy Hargrove exist without Max Mayfield. Write it on my grave header. Tattoo it on my forehead.

Not everything in context of Billy has to be about, revolve around or relate to Max.

He's his own person. Neil Hargrove forcibly made Billy's life revolve around and to a degree be controlled by Max. I'm literally begging you to stop carrying that trend into fandom and how you interact with fandom content. There's nothing wrong with creating a better, healthier relationship between them but I'm dog-sick of seeing people acting like Billy's entire existence relies on Max. Like there's no feasible value in Billy surviving and thriving unless he's still shackled to Max and to the idea of being her responsible, doting brother.

He was an abused teen shoved into a replacement family that was weaponised against him. Whatever responsibilities you think Billy has to Max I can assure you don't exist.

You know what I don't understand???

Why anyone is hating on ANY single ST characters bc every one of them brings something so important and interesting and complex to the entire storyline and development of every plot line and person.

No hate on Nancy. She is literally just a teenage girl experiencing severe trauma and trying to figure herself and the world out at the same time.

No hate on Steve. He is someone getting his ass kicked by life, learning the hard lessons, and living out a wonderful character arc of redemption.

No hate on Billy. He was an abused child who grew into an adult who didn't know how to manage or express his emotions, and he showed clear want to grow and change during his end decisions.

No hate on Jonathan. He basically had to grow up at the ripe age of 15 or less, and all he knows is to keep on pushing even though he has no idea what his needs are.

They're all just people, and it's okay to love all of them bc they are multidimensional just like everyone else is. Everyone makes mistakes and does things they aren't proud of and need to learn from, and we don't need to immortalize them in those shitboxes. Feel free to add to this list. kthx.

i think the most chronically online thing //some// steddie shippers keep regurgitating is the idea that shipping eddissy instead of steddie is homophobic

those are probably the same people who think you’re faking your bisexuality if you’re dating the opposite gender

like at this point you’re not just annoying you’re harmful and you’re accussing real living people of being homophobic when at least part of the eddissy community does not identify as straight

all because they’re not shipping the same ship as you 

like please grow up and learn to enjoy characters and media in ways that do not actively harm other people 

It genuinely pisses me off as a Robin fan when I see people say she would be best friends with Jonathan…like no she wouldn’t. Steve is her best friend. Steve. Not Jonathan, not Eddie, not Nancy. Steve.

Confession #54

I have a feeling like I would like Billy a lot more as a character if he was written in BoJack Horseman style of writing, as in, we see all the shit he's gone through, but we are still made to acknowledge he's a bad person and that his shitty past does not justify his shitty behaviour.

Most of my dislike for this character doesn't even come from him as a character, like yeah ok the guy's an abusive racist, the show is set in the 80's, we were bound to have a character like Billy.

My main dislike comes from the fact that we're supposed to look at his backstory 5 minutes before he dies and feel as though he's been misunderstood all this time and he's actually a nice, noble person...

That's not how you write those morally grey characters, it's just not. You can show character's traumatic past without justifying his actions, but nope, guess we're stuck with this :/

sometimes i see posts of steve and max where they call steve "the brother max deserves" and it always irks me a little because billy was the brother max deserved, they just killed him before he could properly show it. 🤦🏻‍♀️

she had a brother, they (the writers) just didnt use him very well. clearly by s3, billy and max were on good enough terms for her to mourn him all the way into s4. her grief and survivor's guilt and the trauma not just from his death but from living in an abusive home and being part of that abusive cycle are the reasons she gets targeted by vecna, and there's an entire episode titled after the letter she writes to him and reads to his gravestone. the last words he ever says are an apology to her.

calling steve the brother she deserves like billy isnt an integral part of her character, like billy isnt worth considering or looking at or like he doesnt exist, like he's somehow a villain that was cast upon max, a punishment she didnt deserve... that aint it. it takes away from their character backgrounds and the nuances held within them imo.

i love steve but the brother max deserves is a living billy, shuttling her around in his camaro and calling her "shitbird" and being like a real brother and sister, the way she wishes for in her letter. i have no doubt that had billy survived starcourt, they would have gotten there. they just chose to let him die instead. :/

I'm not engaging with the disabled!Max discourse making rounds right now (especially as a disabled person tired of non-disabled people talking over us), I think both sides are being a bit stupid and strong with what they're saying but I will say this: Stop ignoring Dustin. Disability has many forms and while it would be wonderful to see more than one disabled character in a franchise, especially if the characters have different disabilities, I've seen a lot of people treating this as if Stranger Things has no disabled characters already. Which just isn't true. Dustin is disabled, Gaten Matarazzo is disabled, just because they don't bring it up every 5 seconds doesn't mean it doesn't exist. It's always been part of his character and always will be, but he's still a multi-faceted person. I really appreciate how there's little hints of it but they just show him doing normal person stuff. Because that's what actual disability is like!! That's it, thanks for listening.

I'll elaborate on this if need be, but Billy Hargrove's situation is far too complex and nuanced to make sweeping generalizations about

You don't have to like him, and you can absolutely criticize his actions..

.. but verbally attacking / harassing Billy fans, or implying that his fans are bad people just for liking him is fucking gross. Cut it out.