#billy is bad at acting

[rad-batson]

Headcanon that Billy is not only immune to the magical lightning that helps him transform, but he’s also immune to normal lightning and all other forms of electricity.

At first, the realization is super cool. Billy doesn’t get hurt by static electricity anymore. He’s immune to Freddy’s hand buzzer pranks. He even gets 200 bucks from some big shot teenagers that dared him to touch an electric fence.

The problem comes when he tries to catch the bus in the rain one day and gets struck by REAL lightning. In front of dozens of people. Who are not supposed to know he’s immune to lightning. And Billy is very bad at improv.

Billy: *gets struck by lightning*

Billy: WHAT THE F—

Everyone: O_O

Billy: Oooo ouchh

Billy: I am in so much pain

[ickypuppi3]

steve being the one with internalised homophobia is something i need to talk about more

[pixielle-hrrngrv]

Y'all wanna talk about the concept of consuming problematic fiction being cathartic for people who have gone through trauma?

My older brother wasn't much of a reader as a teenager, but for a considerable phase he really only read VC Andrews' books. Which I, being almost a decade younger, didn't really understand why that was odd or made the connection back in the day, I just thought they were spooky, maybe mysteries based on the covers. Nope. Darkness. Depravity. Family Drama of the (literal and all) Darkest Kind.

(Basically, fictional "thought crimes" that would make the average Billy anti shrivel up into a raisin and die. Keep in mind, this author's bibliography is in the top 100 best selling authors of all time from how incredibly popular they were. Gen X and elder Millennials particularly were raised on these books.)

It's all so Billy coded. I know a lot of us see Billy as a voracious reader so imagine Billy reading those books as a teenager as they originally came out in the 80s to cope and him being like, "well. at least we're not that shitty of a family...", fskldflas

[sketchy-scribs-n-doods]

the way i wish there could be more good faith analysis and fic about billy having adopted racial prejudice from his dad and then learning to properly recognize it and grow past it in order become a better person. i wish there was more posts and fics that tackle the bullshit lucas has had to deal with as a black kid in small town indiana because the duffers never even considered it. but the sheer puritan black and white thinking and performative activism or moral virtue signaling or whatever the fuck that is so pervasive in this fandom means that even the few posts and fics that dare to try and actually tackle racism tend turn it into either a punishment narrative, are depressingly shallow about it, make it about hating and liking the 'right characters', or miss the mark entirely

like i get it, homophobia/transphobia is easier to explore and talk about for most fans. it's complex and multi-layered just like other types of oppression, but so much of fandom is queer and dedicated to shipping and labels that yeah, i can see how talking about it is just. easier for a lot of ppl. also a lot of fandom is white. and lots of white gays get weird about discussing racism in their spaces. y'know the deal, but i digress. from what i can see, very few ppl want to explore how racism affects our favorite characters and the stories they live in. i know some ppl are probably afraid of getting it wrong, or they don't know anything about it and don't feel like they should. it's like, my blorbo is queer and so am i, so why wouldn't i talk all day about that? i get it. but it honestly just means a lot when someone tries earnestly. i have read beautiful fics about trans love through hardship by cis authors and such genuine fics about connection in the face of racism's poison by white authors.

there is just SO much untapped potential in exploring lucas and max and billy and patrick and argyle and all the other characters directly and indirectly affected by bigotry and racism within the narrative that never got the acknowledgement it deserved. plus it's super weird being used as a 'gotcha!' by white fans that hate billy (as if poc fans of billy aren't capable of seeing it for the bullshit it is) or seeing lucas' treatment in the show get brushed aside like it's nothing or how argyle gets sidelined an awful lot in the fandom (and don't even get me started on how messy the classism in this fandom can be, the borderline erasure of eddie's poverty and its effects on who he is as a person in fic is insane sometimes)

anyway. idk if any of this makes sense, but i can count like maybe 3 good fics and maybe a dozen good posts about billy that actually address this in good faith and only maybe a dozen more for every other character i mentioned. and i desperately want more. i am brown and queer and i want healing and love for all of these characters and i am going to have to start churning out more of it myself at this rate.

[mothocean]

I think Alice's "it's okay freddy baby, we're figuring it out cutie <3" might be my favorite moment in the entire podcast

[deathbind]

Writing up this BG3 storyline overview and just ruminating on how Serot is stuck in the worst group call known to man

[atlabeth]

i cannot believe there are people on this website making excuses for billy “racist abuser” hargrove and one of their reasons is that he was still a teenager with room to grow, meanwhile mike “will jump off a cliff for his friends” wheeler being an asshole sometimes makes him the worst person alive. but he is younger and has three seasons of being a pretty good guy under his belt so idk. make it make sense because it doesn’t to me!

[sherlock-is-ace]

just the name, the day and the time (of the doc) left to go and i finally get to my KING! my precious, my beautiful grumpy 12 :')

i'm going to miss 11 tho. fantastic doctor, wonderful regeneration, the most ace of them all (12 being a close second) and so much of matt smith's wonderful acting was wasted in bad plots and not great companions... :/ but i love him, i really do :')

[thelostsisters]

001 is such a great villain i think not just because of how naunced and complex of a character he is, but because the narrative draws a very clear line between his ‘tragic’ backstory and his own unjustifiable wrongdoings. he is specially punished for being evil; el banishes him to the upside down because of him murdering the children at the lab as well as his dangerous intentions to unleash his powers upon the world. and while we’re shown that he is an abuse victim himself, this isn’t presented as something that makes up for his actions. it’s instead a part of his character that exemplifies how awful the overarching main villain of the show is: dr. brenner and the hawkins laboratory.

his past abuse doesn’t make his actions justifiable, and his evil characteristics and actions don’t make the abuse he suffered justifiable either. his backstory simply exists, and shows us that brenner is the antagonist of stranger things; he is a monster despite his lack of supernatural abilities or grotesque appearance, and everything bad that has gone down in hawkins because of the upside down can be traced back to him, to his greed and desire for control and power. he had the opportunity to attempt to help henry when he took him in (and henry was objectively bad even as a child, yes; however that does not take away from the fact that brenner is an abuser and that child abuse itself is inhumane regardless of the morality of the victim), but he decided to exploit his abilities and imprison him in an unhealthy, cruel environment for the rest of his life (until his banishment ofc). so brenner in that sense bares some of the responsibility for the creation of vecna, just as he’s responsible for el opening the gate and will getting taken to the upside down. it all comes back to him, and his main characteristic, one that the show doesn’t shy away from showcasing, is that he is a selfish, inhumane abuser

tlqdr; 001 is a villain himself, yet his past relationship with brenner does not make up for his evil nature but rather further demonstrates how much a villain brenner also is.

[skyjynxart]

a huge favour: obviously nobody HAS to do this, or anything else, especially bc one rando on the internet asked, but I’ve been seeing a lot of outright ship war shenanigans(derogatory) going on.

I’m really not about that life and I really don’t believe in the whole taking an eye for an eye thing, even if the ‘other side’ has done atrocious things. I think the best thing we can do is follow ye olde internet motto of block and move on.

BUT since I know that some people feel really strongly and really want to participate in this stuff... Can you throw a ‘discourse’ or ‘ship wars’ tag up on the posts or something? I’m old and tired and I don’t wanna unfollow people but I do wanna just enjoy my blorbos in peace.

also please do NOT come into my asks or DMs to request I participate in a ship war. that is the opposite of rad.

[memes-saved-me]

The fact people see Karen as a girl boss

[loubetcha]

WHY DO PEOPLE NOT LIKE SEASON THREE IT MAKES ME THROUGHLY CONFUSED??? i could go on a whole tangent but just.

[ickypuppi3]

Asshole Steve idea: the first time Steve sees Billy's scars and bruises are when they are alone in his room. Steve is super tender and caring towards Billy, doing everything he can to treat them and asking if he's okay and how he got them. It's the first time Billy has ever gotten this kind of affection before and now he finally believes he has found someone who will truly care for him and give him the love he deserves.

The next time Neil has a go at him, his first instinct is to go straight to Steve's house. But this time it's different. Tommy and Carol are their, drinking and partying in the other room. Billy asks he can stay over for a while but Steve denies him, he tells him that now isn't a good time. Steve has always had this habit of separating his romantic relationships from his other relationships.

But Billy is so desperate, he nearly in tears, begging Steve to let him in. He doesn't even to tend to his wounds he just wants to be near Steve. Billy believes that just being in Steve's presence is enough to give him some sort of comfort. Steve becomes so enraged by Billy's pestering that he finally snaps, "OKAY SHUT UP! DON'T YOU KNOW WHEN TO BACK OFF?! I said now wasn't a good time, I don't care where you go or who you go cry to, you can't be here. I don't want you here!!!"

Steve's dismissive tone is so reminiscent of Neil's that it makes Billy turn back into the scared child demeanor he gets when Neil snaps at him. He even holds his hands in a military stance similar to when he gets scolded. He apologizes in a monotone voice and has to hold back saying the word "sir" like he's talking to his father. Steve slams the door on him and Billy walks back to his car emotionlessly.

After another beating from Neil days later, Steve actually does tend to Billy's wounds while they are alone. Billy recognizes his place now, what he means to Steve, he understands that this is the dynamic of their relationship. Alone, Steve Will make Billy feel like he's the only boy in the world that truly matters, but in public he won't even bother giving him the time of day. This is not a healthy relationship and Billy knows this, however, if this is the only chance Billy gets to having some comfort and support in his life, then he's willing to go with it.

@every-dayiwakeup @officialjoekeery

[m-a-d-e-l-e-i-n-e]

Year-end list season! Wooo!!! :)

Here are my favorite albums of 2022 (as if anyone asked). Lots of great music this year, though I guess you can say this for every year. The top 10 are my actual top 10 favorites of the year, but the rest aren't really in order so I'm not saying the bottom 15 aren't good or something.

The Overload by Yard Act

Blue Rev by Alvvays

Asphalt Meadows by Death Cab for Cutie

Asha's Awakening by Raveena

Shadowglow by flipturn

Karma vs. the Invisible Man by Billy Cobb

And in the Darkness, Hearts Aglow by Weyes Blood

11:11 by Pinegrove

Being Funny in a Foreign Language by The 1975

Waiting to Spill by The Backseat Lovers

Hellfire by black midi

Ants From Up There by Black Country, New Road

Apocalypse Whenever by Bad Suns

the awful things we've done by Peregrine

Once Twice Melody by Beach House

INTO THE BLUE by Broken Bells

How to Let Go by Sigrid

Boundary by Mono Moon

Hold the Girl by Rina Sawayama

Dance Fever by Florence + the Machine

Change the Show by Miles Kane

Heroine by Thornhill

five seconds flat by Lizzy McAlpine

Keep On Smiling by Two Door Cinema Club

Uncanny Valley by COIN

(Edit: and now that I think about it I would probably put flipturn higher lol)

(And I forgot Bad Omens rip consider them interchangeable with COIN or TDCC)

[the-06]

Well, now we know why Ermac wasn’t in MK11.

He’s been too busy living rent-free in the Briggs household.

[navree]

“billy was hate crimed by his own father” where. literally where. and i’m talking canonically not the shit people make up in their heads. canonically, within the text and product of the television show stranger things and all official supplementary material, what marginalized group does billy exist in that motivates his father to commit a prejudiced crime against him explicitly? what social group or racial demographic is william “billy” hargrove CANONICALLY a part of that makes him a target for his father to commit a hate crime against him?

or did y’all forget that words have definitions, especially loaded words about things that happen to real people and not just a hot recurring white boy character on a fucking netflix show.