When I Say "wasted Potential"..

Tried out digital art on an iPad for the first time. It turned out pretty good ngl. Anyways just some more byler because I can’t wait for Vol. 2.

My mom had stuff to say about the volume 2 ending:

"What was that? Will just told Mike what to say to El!"

"Why did Eddie die? He could have just left. He doesn't even know Crissy that well."

"How did El save Max with her telekinesis powers?"

"Did Mike just say his life began when Will went missing? Even I know this is too much."

I completely agree with her lol

"I'm a top" "I'm a bottom" okay??? I am an arms dealer???? fitting you with weapons in the form of words?????

the desert was always gay

The desert is gay now. I don't make the rules.

let’s talk about

michael’s airport outfit

and how different it is from the rest of his clothes

as we all know, the people involved in making this show go above and beyond to make everything mean something. almost nothing is a coincidence. you can see it from the way some characters talk and react, to the way they’re placed in a scene, maybe from a small detail in the background, or the music that’s playing during, but most importantly: through their clothing

for the most part, mike’s style has always been the same, collared shirts and jeans, maybe shorts (which he only ever wears on season 3 and on his first day in lenora in season 4)

the airport outfit is just so out of character, and i don’t think it’s a coincidence

when argyle first meets mike he checks out his shirt and calls it a “shitty knockoff” and while they’re making it up to seem as if he’s talking about the brand, he’s talking about mike

how airport mike is the shitty knockoff of hawkins mike, real mike

mike is pretending to be someone he is not

he’s trying to please el, dressing how he thinks she’d like, trying to prove that he likes her (despite the fact that no one doubts this), trying to convince himself that he likes her

this weird, knockoff version of mike wouldn’t even hug his best friend after 6 months (give or take) of not seeing him, i wonder why?

6 months really is a long time to reflect about your feelings and come to new realizations

this outfit, this attitude, they’re a representation of mike trying to hide who he really is, how he really feels. it’s him trying to be someone he is not to please other people but also to erase himself, to try to change who he is because he doesn’t accept himself

more frank iero cuz hes js all i want and more idk if i wanna be him or be with him

Bucky really went from a cranky scowling old man who never smiles to that Cool (gay) uncle who pulls up 2 hours late to the family cookout with sunglasses, cake and level 100 swagger

Now that's character development

I love this movie <🧼3

been thinking about a couple of screencaps that @will80sbyers posted of what looks heavily implied to be h*omosexual activity at rink-o-mania not in the closet:

and it's got me thinking: throughout all of s4, we really don't get any introspection into how much personal growth Will has undergone during his year away from Hawkins

we of course know he's torn up about his relationship with mike and is hurting watching his half-sister be bullied at school, but we don't know much about what HE is going through.

what we know contextually:

the fictional town of lenora hills is somewhere roughly between bakersfield and LA metro. even in the 80s when california was overall more right-leaning than it is now, it still would have been leagues more progressive than hawkins, indiana at this time

2) Will clearly feels comfortable enough in his new environment to do research projects and presentations on openly gay individuals in history

3. Will feels empowered enough to paint a very emotional gift for a girl he likes Mike.

4. (admittedly minor) king has a little shop of horrors poster in his room, literally flooded with queer subtext. considering the film had JUST come out, too, this was something he was eagerly anticipating, not hopping onto the cult-classic bandwagon for after the fact

(unrelated note: if you haven't heard m.j. rodriguez, a BIPOC+ trans actress, sing suddenly seymour, you should do that now).

all of these things together indicate: Will has been put in a position that's allowed himself to slowly begin coming to terms with his sexuality in his time away from Hawkins. He may not be vocalizing it yet, but his actions indicate he's probably seen couples like the ones at rink-o-mania already this year. Something that very possibly could have given him the courage to approach Mike about it over Spring Break.

of course, this goes in the trash as all of Will's insecurities hit him full-force the moment Mike steps off the plane in Cali. The rest of s4 depicts this breakdown very well, but it takes understanding just how far Will has come to appreciate how heartbreaking his emotional deterioration is.

We can also support this by considering Jonathan's POV in the van and pizza cooler. Traditionally a loner who has the same kind of reserved life as Will, he also wouldn't have had a lot of exposure to queer people just existing prior to moving to California. He's evidently experienced enough to be able to pick up on Will's (admittedly obvious) subtext and deduce that his brother may be hiding something.

why would the duffers go through the effort of so subtly building up Will's growth arc to not have the payoff be one that completes the hero's journey?

not to get bogged down in mythology: the hero's journey is a very common framework found in thousands of works. it has three main sections: 1) when the hero has to leave home and venture into the world, 2) the ordeals the hero undergoes to realize their full potential, and 3) the hero's return home with whatever they've gained from their trial in order to complete their adventure.

to me, this suggests heavily that Will's journey of self-actualization and facing his inner-demons (both extra-dimensional and homosexual) is going to conclude in Hawkins as he enters the final third of his journey.

notably, a section of this Journey Will hasn't gone through yet:

RESURRECTION) One final test is required for the purification and rebirth of the hero. Alternatively, it may be a miraculous transformation.

all i'm saying is that transformation better involve him getting Mike to shut up and admit how he feels about his best friend.

Steve: *meets Eddie*

Eddie: *flirts with Steve*

Steve:

Steve: Holy shit was i in love with Billy???