#but lonnie didn't want will and joyce does

[throttlegainwell]

Have I mentioned how much it haunts me that that guy calls Will "Lonnie's boy" when Lonnie has been gone for four years, has a shitty reputation, and the town obviously has at least some awareness of what went on in that house (though zero compassion for it)? MEANWHILE Joyce has been there all along working her ass off and as involved in Will's life as she's able to be (which, granted, isn't as much as she'd like, but is obviously way more than Lonnie ever was). It's Joyce in Hawkins, distraught and losing her mind with worry and desperate to find him. They probably see Joyce reasonably frequently, when they pop into Melvald's or when she goes on an errand; they probably haven't seen Lonnie in years.

But that's Lonnie's boy.

[soniclion92]

People gotta understand that the whole 'slow motion break up' thing from s4 isn't Jonathan saying he doesn't love Nancy anymore, it's him admitting that he's terrified that he's going to drive Nancy into hating him the way Joyce hates Lonnie. He's depressed and doom spiralling! He literally starts off the season by proclaiming how much he loves her (at the same time as Nancy ranting abt how much she loves him) !! That boy LOVES Nancy so much he really doesn't want to lose her but has convinced himself that he will! Also, this is the first thing he does upon seeing Nancy again, if he didn't love her, would he really have greeted her like this:

Jonathan Byers loves Nancy Wheeler and Nancy Wheeler loves Jonathan Byers, your honour. I rest my case.

[tirednerd2012]

Jonathan Byers genuinely loves his little brother so much and I think I relate to him a lot because I'm also the oldest sibling. I'm probably going to be posting A LOT about Jonathan for a bit. Just a fair warning, I'm back on a Stranger Things kick and I have a lot of opinions.

When he and Steve got in the fight, Jonathan tried to walk away. He even managed to get Nancy to walk away from it, but then Steve brought Joyce up. Jonathan got more pissed off, but he walked away. He brought up Lonnie, still got mad but kept walking. The moment Will got brought up, Jonathan stops and he is beyond livid and that is when he fights back. I may get some backlash for this one, but Peg was right in some sesne when she told Nancy only love makes you that stupid and crazy, but it wasn't Jonathan's love for Nancy but rather his love for Will that drove him in that fight. I'm not saying Jonathan doesn't absolutely adore Nancy, because he does, but he was going to walk away until Will got brought up. Jonathan would walk through hellfire for Will, and resort to violence for his sake even though Jonathan despises violence.

Jonathan also wanted to go to the Upside Down to find Will. He didn't care about his safety in the matter, he wanted Will back and that was his only thought. He snapped at Hopper and told him that Will was his brother when Hop told him he couldn't go. So what does Jonathan decide to do? He decides he is going to lure the killer monster to his house to face him (and Nancy, later Steve) to give his mom a better chance at finding Will. Also I think it goes to show you how much Will also loves Jonathan by his excited, relieved "Jonathan" the moment he wakes up at the hospital AND THEN HE ASKS HIM ABOUT HIS HAND. Will had just been through absolute hell and the first thing he does is ask Jonathan if he's okay.

In season 2, there's this moment after Will was possessed that he is laying on the couch unconscious and Jonathan is kneeling beside him, guarding over him while playing with his hair and apologizing and telling Will that he should have been there for him. There's also the moments where Jonathan carried Will so carefully and tried to be gentle with him.

Also, Jonathan's reaction to Will's exorcisim. The sight of his little brother in pain brings Jonathan to tears and he wants to stop it. Nancy and Joyce both have to stop him from ending the entire thing.

Another moment I feel like isn't talked about enough is Jonathan after the hospital fight in season 3. He had the shit beat out of him, and honestly how he was able to walk was beyond me. But even in his injured state, he throws himself in front of Will at the first sign of danger and literally uses himself as Will's shield.

A lot more posts to be made centered around Jonathan Byers.

[avengers-rule103]

"Jon would rather ruin his own happiness and breakup with Nancy so she can go to the college she wants and get the job she wants" - Jonathan isn't giving up his own happiness by breaking up with Nancy, he's choosing his own happiness. he even talks about wanting to stop chasing a dream that isn't his. in the future he imagines for them they are sad and angry and resent each other (funny how that's possible even without kids in the picture, huh?) , he doesn't want that future, he knows Nancy doesn't want that future either. "Lonnie is an asshole who chose alcohol over his family, controlled what Joyce did and never cared about his family" - Jonathan doesn't want to have Nancy give up on her dreams for him as mentioned previously, and giving up his family is exactly what he would be doing if he stayed with Nancy, his whole point of not wanting to go to the same college as Nancy is so that he can stay with Joyce and Will. He's choosing his family like his father never did. And oh my god Nancy HAS NEVER FUCKING SAID SHE DOES NOT WANT KIDS. EVER. Steve, didn't propose working for his dad's buisness in season 2 as some cruel scheme to lock Nancy into the same fate her mum and dad ended up in, he offered it out of love, because he knew that he wasn't good at school, that she was, that she does have a bright future and career ahead of her and wants to do everything in his power to support her even if it means working for someone who, while we may never see - hear enough about to know he's not winning any father of the year points any time soon. And that's what he would continue to do if (*cough cough* when) they do get back together. Y'all are purposefully mischaracterising Steve just to make him seem like such a horrible controlling person, when he has absolutely never acted that way towards anyone, least of all Nancy. When he fucked up he admitted to it, apologised for it, and tried to make up for it, cleaned the board from the cinema, even went so far as to apologise to Jonathan, both without telling Nancy (because he wasn't doing it to win her back, to keep her in a relationship she didn't want) doing it because it was the right thing to do. Steve has been called "The Babysitter" for the entire show, always looking after the kids, always doing his best to keep them from danger, leading the pack when Dustin and the gang want to explore the Upside Down tunnels because if anyone tries to hurt them they're gonna have to go through him first, and you still believe that Steve would be the one to get a job and make Nancy stay at home with any amount of kids? For the love of god, make it make sense. Y'all gotta remember that just like how Steve and Nancy "chose" each other in the early seasons while they were still in high school, so did Nancy and Jonathan, and surprise surprise once again, the decisions made in high school can change. Your life doesn't end after high school. Or after college. You can choose a person, choose a career, choose this that and the other and then you can also choose differently later down the line. and that's okay. Also last time i checked, the future that Steve imagines, is filled with support and love and happiness. so.... there's that too.

[honeysuckleharringtons]

Part Seven: "Pour Over" ~ S. Harrington

Summary: (Then) Between postpartum blues and her baby's needy coos, Reader's having a hard time adjusting to her new life. But she quickly learns that sometimes you get by with a little help from your friends. — (Now) After dealing with her fussy child all night, the last thing Reader wants is a complicated day at work. Luckily for her, a certain nurse knows just how to make her day a little easier.

Pairing: Nurse!Steve Harrington x Fem!Byers!Reader

Word Count: 1,640

Content Warning: postpartum talk, anxiety talk, mentions of vomit (nothing in detail though), very mild swearing, mild hospital talk, mentions of food, lmk if i missed anything!

Extra Notes: yall i am so so so sorry that this took me so long to finish, more on this later but rn all i have to say is the world's biggest apology 😭

Originally Written: 01/06/2024 through 01/23/2024 (i'm so sorry)

honeysuckleharringtons main masterlist can be found here!

'brew and me' series masterlist can be found here!

[ Then, February of 1988 ]

At this point, you weren't sure how you hadn't died from sleep deprivation.

It had been a whole two weeks since the baby was born, and you were pretty sure you hadn't slept a wink since. One sleepless night had turned into two, and well… now you couldn't remember the last time you had slept.

The clock on the wall told you it was nearing three in the morning, the blackness outside the windows further proving that fact. The baby was once again crying, and no amount of midnight feedings or diaper changes or rocking her in the rocking chair had done the trick. You were warned about colic, but nothing could've prepared you for what it would be like in real time.

Another new nightly ritual was a tired Joyce stumbling into your bedroom, eyes heavy and feet shuffling. You knew exactly what she had in mind, but your Byers genes were far too stubborn to accept her offer.

“Mom, we're fine,” you insisted from your spot in the rocking chair. But even you knew that to the naked eye, you surely didn't look fine. Unwashed hair, blanket tossed messily over your lap, purple spots nearly black underneath your eyes.

Joyce just sighed from her spot in the doorway. “Honey, you are clearly not fine. Don't take this the wrong way but you're a mess.” The comment almost hurt you, though you supposed you appreciated your mother's honesty.

“I'll be okay,” you insisted. “It's not my first sleepless night.”

She moved to sit on the edge of your bed, across from the newly placed rocking chair and crib. “That's the problem, honey. You need sleep. You can't properly be there for her if you-”

“I can't leave her.”

“Don't get enough sleep and-”

“Mom, I can't-”

“You need to eat something too, honey. I mean, when was the last time you-”

“Mom!” you raised your voice this time, effectively cutting her off. “I cannot leave this baby.”

Joyce let out a long sigh, running a hand through her already messy hair. “If you don't take proper care of yourself, exhaustion is gonna hit you like a freight train. Then what?”

You supposed she might be right. But still, her comments couldn't make you see past your postpartum anxiety, worst case scenarios running rampant through your mind.

“What if something happens to her while I'm asleep?” you asked, voice weak. “Or what if she thinks I left her, just like…” you couldn't finish the statement before tears began to prick your eyes.

“Y/N, you know that me and Will would never let anything happen to this baby.” You could tell by her tone that she was being genuine, though both of you knew her words were useless when it came to your anxiety. “We love both of you. We would never let anything happen to her.”

Tears pricked your eyes as your panicked thoughts ran rampant. “What about Dad?”

She nearly fell off the bed after hearing your question. “Dad? What does Lonnie have to do with-”

“I keep having this weird feeling in my gut that Dad is gonna try something with her,” you explained, tears fully soaking your cheeks now. “Like he's going to try and take her from me.”

“I would never let that happen.” Joyce's words weren't a suggestion. She said them with such finality that you were tempted to believe her. “Lonnie walked out of here seven years ago. He hasn't gotten in here yet and I will make damn sure he doesn't get in now.”

Your heart was racing a million beats a minute. You weren't really sure why—other than postpartum anxiety—that Lonnie had been on your mind. But just the thought of him sent shivers up your spine and tears down your face.

Clinging harder to the bundle in your arms, careful not to hurt her but still holding her closer, you rocked gently in the chair in hopes of calming both yourself and the baby. Her cries had yet to subside, if anything they'd just grown louder.

“Mom, I'm so scared,” you finally broke. Even you could hear the weakness, the brokenness, the defeat in your voice. “What if I'm doing this all wrong?”

Joyce stood again, with that same finality as her words from earlier. “I'm not here to tell you how to raise your baby. You're the mother now and you know what's best for you and her,” she started, the words stern but gentle. “But I am here to give you advice as a mother myself. Babies can sense things. Maybe she's upset because you're upset.”

And with that, Joyce was stepping toward the door, reaching for knob, and then-

“Okay.” The word came out as defeated as you felt. “I'll let you have her just long enough for me to shower and eat something.”

She turned to face you with a small smile, not one of smugness or one of someone proving a point, but one that showed you that she was simply just glad to help you out. She left a soft kiss on your forehead as she took the baby from your arms, quickly taking your place in the rocking chair as you headed over to your dresser.

“Mom?”

Her smile went a little sideways as she looked up from the baby to you. “Yeah?”

“I love you. Don't ever forget that, okay?”

With a small nod, Joyce replied, “I won't. Don't you forget that I ditto.” A phrase that had been around since you were little. You weren't sure who started it, but in this moment you were thankful for it, five letters meaning the absolute world to you.

You walked over, leaving a peck to the prickly hairs you'd been seeing so much of these days, warmth filling the entire expanse of your body. “I love you, bub.”

“I'm sure she dittos you too, honey.”

[ Now, January of 1992 ]

A loud yawn sounded from the other side of the counter, breaking you from your own mess of sleepy thoughts. “Me too,” you chuckled as you looked up, a yawn slipping between your own lips. Dark hair and round glasses met you, purple spots thick underneath his eyes. “You look about as tired as I feel.”

Steve chuckled, shaking his head. “I wouldn't have known it if you hadn't mentioned it,” he said. A crease formed between your brows as you wondered what he meant. “You look as nice as you always do.”

He set a new record for how quickly he'd ever made butterflies go off inside you. “Careful, Doc, or I'll think you're flirting with me,” you said through the crimson blush that had started to appear on your cheeks.

“Sorry,” he said sarcastically, “Must be the sleep deprivation from the double I just pulled.”

You cringed at his words, knowing all too well what that felt like. “I know the feeling. I might as well have pulled my own double after staying up all night with my dau-”

The word got caught in your throat as you realized what you were about to say. “Dog,” you covered quickly, hoping your lie flew over Steve's head.

On the outside, you were hoping to appear calm and cool. On the inside, you were face palming. You'd been sleep deprived many times before, considering you once had a baby on your hands who had colic from the day she was born. Not to mention being a mother made you miss sleep in many ways of its own. But you couldn't recall a time where you'd been so sleep deprived that you almost spilled your biggest secret to a practical stranger, much less a practical stranger who you were actively avoiding telling the secret to.

“I didn't know you had a dog,” Steve said with furrowed brows, his voice bringing you back to reality.

Even though you hated to lie to him, you were thankful that your job had given you the ability to think fast. “Yeah, she must've eaten something she wasn't supposed to. She was up all night throwing up.” The real story was that Mandy had snuck into the kitchen to eat the rest of her leftover Christmas candy after you told her not to, but Steve didn't have to know that.

“Plain rice helps.”

His reaction caught you off guard. “Huh?”

“Plain rice can help a dog's upset stomach,” he explained. “If it keeps happening though, you should definitely take her to a vet.”

Steve's suggestion was oddly sweet, and honestly tugged at your heartstrings a little bit. “Thank you for the tip. Out of curiosity though, how do you know about caring for a sick dog?”

His broad shoulders shrugged, and you tried not to drool at the sight of them. “I almost went to vet school. Boy, would that have made my dad mad. Not that med school has made him any less angry.” As if realizing he was rambling, an awkward chuckle slipped between his lips and he turned his attention to the menu. “You didn't ask. Anyway, what do you recommend?”

“Nice try,” you answered, rolling your eyes. “But for you, I recommend going home and getting some sleep.”

Steve chuckled, and the sound went straight to your belly. “Hey, you don't have to tell me twice. I just pulled a double and I have to be back on campus for classes in about five hours.”

Part of you wanted to tell him to just take the night off and get some rest. Another part of you wanted to drive him home yourself and tuck him in. “I do not envy you,” you giggled. “To answer your original question though, how does a strawberry smoothie sound?”

He met you with a closed-lip smile, one that had started to feel so comforting and oh so familiar these days. “That sounds perfect.”

So this is about a month late...

I want to apologize for being gone with no announcement or explanation. Lots of things have happened in the past couple weeks that have taken a severe toll on my mental health and I just haven't really had the time to write, much less the energy.

I am feeling a little better and I have talked to my boss about my hours so I'm hoping that'll help somewhat. I really miss giving you guys content and I miss interacting with you guys.

Anyway, I hope you're all doing well! ❤️

-> taglist: @dungeons-are-too-cold @ducky-died-inside @awkotaco24 @liberhoe @princesseddie @corrodedseraphine @manuosorioh @esoltis280 @hazydespair @frostandflamesfanfic

[chirpsythismorning]

Lonnie's last appearance in The First Shadow [source]:

"It wasn't me. I didn't do it!"

Lonnie's first mention in the series (1x01)

Which reminded me...

Kate Trefry talking about The First Shadow [source]:

We always try to go back to the original pilot and say, what more is there to learn about this moment?

Based on the leaks out there, there seems to be very few Lonnie scenes in the play, and yet it also sounds like he's gotta be the most consistently portrayed when compared to his character on the show, more than anyone else, even down to this very line, this concept of him having nothing to do with it. This tells me that with what little they were willing to give, there is a major significance to it and what it means for his character and for his role in the story overall.

So what is it? What does Lonnie have nothing to do with?

In s1, it's about Will and his disappearance. But clearly it's more than that because they made a point to have Joyce say it twice, to trust her on this.

If Lonnie has nothing to do with this, and that's a theme they want to carry out in this play in a way that quite literally juxtaposes his first mention on the show, taking us back to the very beginning, what does that mean?

Idk. Maybe it just means he has nothing to do with this. Maybe it means he has nothing to do with Will more than we realize...

It's giving

[ladyfromaspookyforest]

Jancy vs M11

Stranger Things 4 and the Long Distance Relationship

Trying to learn the art of brevity. Bullet points, lez go. Jancy Mildew

Jonathan has a photo of him and Nancy on his dresser. El has a shrine to Mike. Note that Jonathan's photo is of both of them and El's photos are mostly just of Mike.

Jonathan is not being honest with Nancy about college. El is not being honest with Mike about high school. Both of these come in the form of letters: one withheld and one sent. One is a secret, one is a lie.

Jonathan: "No, because if I told her the truth, then she'd just throw her dreams out the window to come out here and be with me." Mike: "But what if after all this is over, she doesn't need me anymore?" Jonathan is worried Nancy will sacrifice her own happiness for him because she loves him. Mike is worried El is going to leave him behind. Opposite ends of the spectrum.

Jonathan: "Before you know it, we're just like my mom and dad. We're divorced, my kids hate me--" Mike: "Maybe I should have said something and if I'd said that thing, then maybe she'd want me there with her." Jonathan is stating that the consequence of conforming to what one party in the relationship thinks the other wants is a one-way ticket to the Joyce and Lonnie Show. Mike is talking about doing exactly that so he won't be alone.

Jonathan: openly discusses his specific lie to Nancy with Argyle. Mike: dances around what he didn't say to El while talking to Will.

Jonathan and Argyle discussing relationship problems: stoner comedy and farting. Mike and Will discussing relationship problems: [Tender, emotional music]

Jonathan: "[She's] incredibly ambitious and she's never done a single thing halfway in her life...That's why I love her." Nancy: "He's caring and compassionate. He's so protective over the people that he loves and he'll never back down from what's right...no matter the pressure, no matter the personal cost. That's why I love him." Mike: "I love you for exactly who you are. You're my superhero."

Jonathan: "Nancy, I'm sorry I wasn't here...Are we okay?" Will: "Does she talk to you at all?" Mike: "Not much. I mean, a little bit." Despite the fact that Jonathan's secret has still not been revealed, he makes sure he and Nancy are okay. Despite having supposedly given El what she wanted, Mike and El aren't really speaking.

Nancy: "Your application letter. Did it ever come?" Jonathan: "No, um, not yet." Jonathan's secret is still looming over them as they head into season 5, a conflict that will require later resolution. Mike's inability to tell El he loves her has been resolved. Will's lie to Mike about the painting, on the other hand, is still looming and waiting to come out (ha) in season 5. Dishonesty is a theme for both Jancy and Melvin, but one of them has been "resolved." Note that Jonathan's secret has evolved into a lie.

While I am biased, I'm trying not to lean TOO hard on my Byler brain here because that's not really the point of the post. It's about the parallels between Jancy and Mildred. So let's say Mike's telling the truth. His whole monologue was honest. The conflict between the two has STILL NOT BEEN RESOLVED. What is the reason for this? Even if we choose to interpret Mike not telling Eleven he loves her as his secret like Jonathan not telling Nancy about college is his, Jonathan is keeping this secret to protect Nancy while Mike is keeping his to protect himself. This still reveals the unhealthy mentality of Miller Light's relationship. Additionally, Mike's "secret" has come out, so there should be no conflict. Jonathan's hasn't yet, so conflict logically remains.

And if we choose to look at the speech as dishonest, this is Mike's act of shaping himself to his partner's desires. AKA his act of conformity that Jonathan spoke about earlier leading to them ending up just like his parents. Jonathan expressed that resentment would grow and we can already see that El is not satisfied with the outcome of this "confession."

Lastly, for the sake of fairness, I can't tell if there's a photo of Jonathan on here.

And there's no evidence of El in Mike's room. Mike and Nancy are the two characters in the love triangles and neither has immediately apparent evidence of their SO in their room.

EDIT: It has been brought to my attention that Nancy has a poster that used to be Jonathan's, but what I find a lot more interesting is the suggestion that the photos Nancy has on her walls and not on the corkboard are Jonathan's. That actually makes a lot of sense as we know he is a photographer and they look similar to some of the photos he has in his room. Additionally, I went back to season 1 to look at Nancy's bedroom prior to Jonathan and there are no photos like this present.

And while I had every intention of keeping this as focused on Mlvn/Jancy as I could and not Byler/Jancy, I simply cannot ignore the fact that Nancy and Mike have both posted Jonathan and Will's art on their walls. While the camera never focuses on these details like it does the photos of Jonathan and Nancy at the Byers house or the Mike Box in El's room, like Will's drawings on Mike's walls, the photos are background details that show how much the Wheelers' respective Byers has integrated into their lives. Moving on.

El spends the season getting to know herself. Nancy spends it getting to reknow Steve. This could hint at Mike and El breaking up for El to be on her own and Nancy and Jonathan breaking up to get Stancy back together.

However, I think there are two major indicators that this is not what will happen.

The scene when Nancy and Jonathan talked about why they love each other, providing genuine reasons.

A large part of S4 focused on the Mike/El relationship and concluded with a "resolution" of the supposed problem. A large part of S4 focused on the Nancy/Steve relationship, involving Steve laying out his desires for the future. In both situations, all cards are on the table (unless, you know, gay). There isn't a lot left to drive the dynamic in the following season (in a positive direction), while Jonathan's letter and Will's painting are still lies waiting to instigate conflict and subsequent resolution.

So once again, for the sake of fairness, Jonathan's lie blowing up in his face after their seemingly happy reunion could parallel El's lie blowing up in her face after Milkvan's seemingly happy reunion. However, timing really is key and Will's lie is still in play. It's really impossible to parallel Jancy and Marvin without also paralleling Byler. (I keep trying)

Anyway, that's that. Two lying long distance relationships on the verge of potential collapse. FTR I have no stakes in Jancy versus Stancy, I just THINK it will be Jancy. I am clearly biased towards Byler. That being said, even if Byler does not happen, Moldeven appears to be heading in the direction of break-up while Jancy seems recoverable, based primarily on the extent of the lies, the intent (once again, I have to tie Byler back in because Will and Jonathan both lied in an attempt to make Mike and Nancy happy while Mike and El lied to one another to protect themselves), and the timing.

LOL remember I said I was going to try to be brief this time?

[henrysglock]

Stranger Things: Exposing Vulnerabilities via Mirrors and Music

Part 2: Music

In the first part, I detailed why the emotional components of flaying and Vecna visions, and people subsequently being freed of them, works so well with Henry's mirror-weapon.

This time, I want to discuss the musical component of these events, because each of them is tied to a specific song.

Let's start with the songs:

Will/Should I Stay or Should I Go: This song was one that Jonathan first played for Will when Joyce and Lonnie were fighting, and Lonnie left not long after. This song's emotional value is derived from both love and trauma: Jonathan loves Will and wants to comfort him while Joyce simultaneously displays her love for Will by fighting against Lonnie. There's so much love tied up in this song.

Max/Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God): This song is one that Max listens to to cope with Billy's death and her guilt around the situation. The emotional value of this song is also derived from both love and trauma. Billy turned for the better before he died, saving Max and El in a final act of goodness/love. However, he...died. This was massively traumatizing for Max, and she feels guilty for being relieved at his absence because he was her brother, and on some level she loved him too. Love inspires the guilt that Henry preys upon.

Victor/Dream A Little Dream of Me: Now this one is still in the works, so...not yet. I'm not even 100% sure what the situation was regarding that series of events. There's something there, though. Someone played that music in an act of love and desperation, whether it was just to save Victor, or if it was a last-ditch effort by Alice to help Henry by waking Victor...I'm not sure. Either way, it's tied to both love and trauma. That night was the most traumatic night of Victor's life. He said himself that it was his worst nightmare, but someone played that damn music, and the only plausible reason is that it was an act of love by someone.

Disclaimer: This is why I didn't include Victor in the previous part. The mirror pattern is only solid in times past 1983, since there's still a lot of fuckery with the Creel massacre. I wanted to include Victor here for later possible reference, but he will not be analyzed further within this particular piece.

What does this have to do with anything?

When Nancy and Robin go to Pennhurst, Dr. Hatch tells them that music can reach parts of the mind that words can't.

That is where this all ties together.

In order to escape Henry's trances, his vulnerabilities have to be exposed. His vulnerabilities, which are linked to trauma and a distinct lack of love in his life. It's clear that words don't cut it...but neither does just any kind of song.

The pattern requires a song tied to trauma and love.

Let's look at evidence:

S4: Max is freed by the effects of her love/guilt on Henry.

S2: Will is freed by the effects of his family/friend's love on Henry.

and now here's a really fun bit:

Season One. Will, playing and singing his love/trauma song.

Now...why the fuck would he do that?

He's a smart kid. Lonnie clearly taught him about hunting, since he's competent with a rifle. He's canonically good at hiding. He knows that making noise is going to attract attention.

So why would he be singing?

Because it's a defense mechanism, and he knows it.

Now, The Vanishing of Will Byers is @aemiron-main's baby, and he has...so much more evidence to support the idea that Will was tranced during his vanishing.

Here, I just want to talk about the music.

Will, scared and kidnapped, likely trapped in some kind of hellish nightmare within Henry's mind-scape, starts singing the song that made him feel safe in a traumatic time. It's a comforting song, and it breaks him out of the trance.

This opens his eyes to the real UD, and makes him realize that it was the singing that freed him somehow. I'm pretty sure he doesn't know the logistics of it, and I'm pretty sure he discovered it inadvertently.

Either way, it fits the pattern.

S1: Will is freed by the effects of his family's love on Henry...through his song?

So why does music work, why is it necessary, and why are the circumstances surrounding the particular song important?

Music works because, well, Dr. Hatch was right. It reaches parts of the brain that other stimuli just can't. This wouldn't be a laozuspo analysis if I didn't bring some science into it. Music affects mood by increasing blood flow to particular parts of the brain. Specifically, it affects the parts of the brain that control emotion and memory (x). It can alter moods for the better, and it's been shown to bring out memories/make one's memory better.

And well, emotion and memory are the key elements in Henry's abilities.

Emotion dictates how powerful Henry is. He says it himself, that the powers are based in memories that make you both sad and angry. We've also seen that fear can trigger extreme displays of powers (i.e. the gates in 1983 and in 1979). Henry feeds on it: the fear, anger, and sadness that traumatizes us, that rips a hole in our mind's defenses. Trauma makes the mind vulnerable, susceptible. That's the reason why it's Henry's main path into the mind.

The thing Henry seems to miss is that...he's not the only thing that can open up someone's mind.

Music can also open up the mind by physically altering it.T hat's why the songs work. The songs open that vulnerability up by physically penetrating the walls we build to protect ourselves. The more we relate to the song, the more emotion we have attached to it, the deeper it penetrates.

Specifically, though, these songs have to be linked to trauma, because that's what Henry's feeding on.

Henry chooses trauma that is similar to his own so he can mirror it and feed off the negative emotions without having to look too closely at himself. This kind of attack is double jeopardy for him, though. He's choosing people who have trauma just like his, but that means when they have love linked to the trauma by a song, it backfires on him.

In essence: Reaching someone is the first step. Music opens the door, but in order for it to be freeing it has to hit Henry where it hurts: Right in the trauma.

This is where the second half comes in: Love.

The effects of the love linked to each song varies in manifestation. For Will, it manifests as strength and desire to fight on because it reminds him that he's loved. For Max, the love is a weakness, but as I said before, the weakness is her saving grace. Through weakness, the love becomes strength. Love, in all situations, is the hero's weapon.

Love inspires us to fight on, fight back, free ourselves and others, protect ourselves and others...Love is the driving force of life. Love is the weapon we use to fight back against fear, anger, sadness, and trauma. Love is what our heroes use to fight Henry.

All this to say:

Music opens the door, love pushes us through it. Also, Henry's habit of feeding on trauma that mirrors his own is a terrible high-risk/high-reward strategy, but it's the exact reason why the songs require a trauma link.

Parts: Mirrors, Music, Exceptions That Prove the Rule

[starlightshadowsworld]

I love the idea of the monster hunting trio becoming best friends.

Because look at them.

You've got Jonathan, the social outcast who's just trying to protect and look out for his little brother.

Steve, the former prom king who's had his whole world turned upside down. And despite everything steps in and helps Jonathan out.

The same guy who's camera broke and had a fight with.

Nancy who's the idolised girl next door who's mourning her best friend. The one who brings both Steve and Jonathan together.

And they have reasons for not liking the others.

Nancy dumped Steve and said their whole relationship was bullshit.

Everything Steve did to Jonathan.

Jonathan not liking Nancy because of Steve.

And maybe they all want to forget it.

Forget each other.

But they can't.

Because Nancy helped Jonathan.

Because Steve came to apologise.

Because Nancy threatened Steve with a gun to get him to leave.

Because Steve jumped in anyway because he couldn't leave them behind.

Because Jonathan grabs Steve and Nancy's hands to get them out of harms way.

This is their troll in the dungeon moment.

All of them alone.

Steve falls from the social ladder to rock bottom.

Nancy lost the person she loved the most.

Jonathan has always been alone. He has his brother back and his mum but he can't talk to them.

Will's suffered enough and Jonathan has always been Joyce's pillar of strength not the other way around.

And finds himself with 2 people who are as drawn to him as he is now drawn to them.

It suprised them all, even himself when he made the first move.

Sitting beside Steve at lunch.

Steve who was poking at his lunch in the corner alone. Startled looking up at Jonathan, who asks if he can sit.

Steve nods, baffled.

Jonathan puts his tray down, they both eat in silence for a bit before.

"I forgive you."

Steve blinks, but Jonathan stared down a demogorgan so he's not put off at all.

"You said you came to my house to apologise, right?"

Steve nods.

Jonathan looks at him, really looks at him. He doesn't see King Steve, just... Steve.

"So, I forgive you."

Steve blinks, processes it before chuckling. Shaking his head as he does so. "... You are definitely something Byers."

He frowns "and I'm sorry for... Everything."

Jonathan smiles "I forgive you. And I'm sorry for... Everything too."

Steve smiles, "I forgive you."

That's when Nancy walks up to them.

She barely gets a word out before Steve's getting up and both walk away to talk in private.

Jonathan hums to himself, eating his lunch abd not long later both return.

There's tear tracks on both of their cheeks that have been brushed away.

But, as Steve re-takes his seat with Nancy sitting beside Jonathan.

The tension is gone.

They both look lighter and happier.

"So... Did you do the essay for Mrs Clicks class?" Asked Jonathan.

And the world continues on.

It's werid because they all fit like they've always been together.

Jonathan is very aware Steve got him his new camera.

He's suprised when he doesn't feel embarrassed for getting a newer model that definitely didn't cost much for Steve.

Instead it's, thankfulness.

Steve seems happier than he does when Jonathan goes out and about with it, snapping shots here and there.

Even asking about it and while Steve looks much like Jonathan does when Will is on a D&D rant, he listens intently.

Steve starts taking up drawing, he mentiond off handedly he used to but his dad thinks it's for girls.

Jonathan, mentally putting Mr Harrington in the same category of men as Lonnie, offhandedly mentions how Will loves art.

And if he leaves an unused sketchbook at Steve's house one time that he sees him carrying with him everywhere now.

Than that's his buisness.

It's not until one day where they both somehow end up in a conversation about lighting, that Steve thanks him.

Jonathan merely shrugs and says he really just got him it to get free doodles.

Steve bumps shoulders with him and snorts "in your dreams, Jonathan."

And where there is Jonathan and Steve, their is Nancy.

She's always got a point and sometimes Jonathan likes to throw out random scenarios just to see the cogs in her brain work.

She's endlessly passionate and was halfway through ranting about the school system before she realised and fondly swatted his shoulder.

Nancy doesn't fancy herself artsy like them but she adores her books.

She writes little notes in the margins, dog ears pages and even hallowed out an old textbook to store snacks.

They both attend Steve's basketball and swim events abd despite no longer dating Nancy wears his letterman.

Steve jokes that she staked her claim on it.

Neither of them have any idea what's going on but cheer loud and obnoxiously whenever Steve gets a point.

Steve's given up explaining sports to them but he doesn't care because their his best cheerleaders.

Jonathan actually had to hold Nancy back from throwing hands when the referee when a certain blonde pushed Steve over.

Speaking off... Things aren't always so great.

Jonathan ends up taking Steve's offer to stay over more often than not.

He gets uneasy being in his house for too long.

Nancy comes over, at first twice a week when she lied to her mother about sleepovers.

To just sneaking out and staying over when the nightmares are bad.

She and Steve both drained his pool.

Steve is relieved with their company because he hates being alone.

More so now than ever.

They all end up with walkies with their own channel, checking up on each other whenever they are apart.

Signing off before bed in the rare times they're all in their own.

Most of the time they're at Steve's, crashing in his room.

Sometimes on sleeping bags or a blanket nest but at this point they just curl up in a pile on his bed.

Steve is absolutely touch starved.

Nancy is also but not as bad and they both end up clinging to Jonathan who's a hugger.

They all know the sound of each others screams at 3am.

Nancy cries out in her sleep.

Steve is near silent but his whole body freezes up.

Jonathan wakes up with a horrified gasp.

Billy refuses to leave Steve alone and so he comes back with bruises and minor injuries that Jonathan takes care of.

Steve sleeps with the nailed bat in reach.

Nancy has a gun nearby.

Jonathan has a knife.

They all patrol at night and in random hours of the morning when they can't sleep.

They hold each other through fear and nightmares like their the only things that feel real.

All 3 of them are parentified and all bond over feeling like they are in their mid thirties rather than teenagers.

Everyone's failed them and they only have each other.

[throttlegainwell]

Just a hypothetical I've been mulling over regarding a couple of the central themes of pdwm. Under a cut for non-graphic discussion of sexual assault (and length).

So one of the really big things in this 'verse is the disclosure of the sexual assault that takes place in when there's fire on the ground, orchestrated by Lonnie. It happens a few times--never really the whole story to any one person, and it leaks out in bits over time while he's coming to terms with it--and the people to whom he discloses are significant. He tells his mother because she kind of forces his hand, but it was a conversation that needed to happen. He tells his partner (and she's also the person with whom he first tests the waters, in think i'm crossing wires, though he doesn't really say it and she doesn't quite let herself make the connection). And he tells Argyle, his first friendship uncomplicated by Hawkins and someone to whom he bares his soul and from whom he seeks support in the show. These conversations all happen across a significant span of time, here and there. Jonathan telling people in his own time, in his own way and on his own terms, is really important. (Disclosure of sensitive information, particularly but not limited to trauma, is something that really interests me, particularly how it intersects with autonomy and power, you know? But it also had to do with his self-acceptance and recovery and showing him at different stages of this journey.)

These are all people it makes sense that he'd tell, for different reasons and within the context of different relationship dynamics, and they serve different purposes (narratively but also emotionally for him). He feels very differently about each of these conversations.

The thing that I've never wavered on from the beginning is that Will, who has his own arc in the series, never finds out about the rape. What he does discover is that his suspicions about the nature of Jonathan's relationship with Lonnie were correct, though he doesn't learn the extent of the abuse and I can't think of any reason he would particularly need to know, aside from especially masturbatory hurt/comfort purposes (which I'm not knocking, of course--that's a very cathartic aspect of the genre for me--but that's not the direction this series leans).

Will's arc is actually kind of different, relative to what everyone else has going on. He stands apart a bit in his role in this series, distinct from and not quite so entangled with everyone else's in some ways. It was more important that he stand up to Lonnie and work through his own stuff than it was that he learn about Jonathan's abuse (because I didn't want his personal arc to be all about Jonathan's trauma), but that was certainly a catalyst for him. And it made sense that it would come up, given the context. But it's still a fact that Will is the only major character in the series who doesn't know about this major theme by the end.

To be clear, I'm still not planning to have Will learn about the assault. The only way he would find out would ultimately be non-consensual and really violating for Jonathan, since unless it was somehow extremely relevant, this is just not something that Jonathan is telling his little brother about, for a host of reasons. Will isn't going to suss this out like Joyce, and Jonathan isn't going to offer it up like with Nancy, and he's not going to seek support over it like with Argyle. So it would either have to be someone sharing this information behind his back (which his three confidants would not do) or a truth whammy or something (and that would just be way out of left field here and also very painful and angsty in the extreme). Lonnie isn't going to show up again, and he has no reason to share it if he did. Linda's not going to show up, also for several reasons. So there's no way for him to find out unless I make up some particularly contrived circumstances, and the payoff would just be a lot of pain and, frankly, negation of Jonathan's emotional arc in the series.

But here's what I've been turning over, these past couple days: I don't see any way Will finds out, BUT I also can't quite decide just what the hell the fallout of it would be if he somehow did. Obviously some of that is heavily dependent on the way he finds out (like whether Jonathan tells him or someone else does), whether Jonathan is aware that he knows/okay with him knowing, how much he learns (because there are a lot of particularly upsetting aspects to untangle regarding this and even holding a piece of it is hard--the shape of it is heavy and terrible and nauseating, let alone any of the particulars). I just can't really envision that conversation the way I did with Joyce, Nancy, and Argyle.

Like, obviously even the vaguest possible version still boils down to learning that his older brother was sexually victimized at some point. That's deeply upsetting information to learn about a loved one, but the specific dynamics of this relationship might make it difficult to really wrap his arms around the truth and implications of it. And, like, what does he do with that information then? Nothing, really. It would just be something he knows. Just... information to incorporate into his general schema and his understanding of his brother.

Then there's the Lonnie factor. Because it's devastating without learning that Lonnie was somehow involved, and significantly worse with this knowledge. In the abstract, that's upsetting for Nancy and Argyle, who love Jonathan, and for Joyce, who feels extreme guilt because she's his mother and responsible for him and she's the one who chose Lonnie, after all. But Will... that's his father, too. So it's one more evil his father is capable of, and part of him would have to feel sick at the implications of what that could have meant for him and how that might have affected his relationship with Jonathan. But also maybe guilty for thinking about himself, even though that's a perfectly understandable leap to make and no one could really fault him for considering it.

I dunno, there's just no real satisfying conclusion to this one because it absolutely would be significant but it also can't really go anywhere? Like, it would matter, but it's not really going to alter their relationship or catalyze any personal growth for either of them. It would just be this strange, uncomfortable, painful fact that Will has to live with now (and Jonathan, if he knows that Will knows, and depending on whether he's bothered by this).

So there'd be no reason for it, I think, and it wouldn't serve the goals of this particular series (and is kind of antithetical to some of them). I'm definitely not going in that direction, nor is it something I'm interested in actually writing. But like. These two. Hmm.

[mynameis-noe-body]

Okay so — time for Stranger Things' Headcanon: dad Jim Hopper edition.

James "Jim" Hopper was born around 1941/42, follow me on this. He went to school with Joyce, same year, right? And we know they are around 40 in Season 1 — it's 1981/82.

Let's say he left for Vietnam right out of high school, he's barely 18, just a boy. But he spends five of the worst years of his life fighting in a foreign country, breathing shit and stuff. He's 22 when he comes back — 1964.

Joyce gets married the same year, to Lonnie. They are definitely not going to be happy, and Jim knows that. They have been friends, good friends years before. So, he's not really surprised to find about his old friend unhappy marriage. They spend and awful lot of time talking about that, but there's nothing she can do, come on — she's a young woman, just married and even though she fights her husband every day she still believes there's something that may be saved. That's when she gets pregnant with Jonathan — 1966.

Jim is 24, he just started into Hawkins Police and damn, the uniform dresses him good. Chicks look at him, and he likes that, he can't deny. At the same time, things for Joyce keep getting harder.

Things go slowly and difficult, and even boring sometimes. Nothing really ever happens in Hawkins. And people talk — better saving the appreance, right?

It's 1967 when, one summer night, Joyce is exhausted. Lonnie hasn't come back yet, and she knows she won't see him before Monday night, that's just how her weekends usually go. She's lonely, and tired, Jonathan is finally sleeping and she need a break. Jim calls to check on her, just to say hi or something. She invites him over. "God, I need a beer and a cig, Jim. You don't know how tired I am."

He comes later, six cold beers and a pack of cigarettes. (Maybe even some weed, for old time sake.)

They drink, and smoke. And laugh. And smoke, and drink. They don't know exactly how it happens, but it happens. They wake up still half naked on the couch next morning and they swear it was just one night, and they'll forget about it. He leaves, and life goes on.

Lonnie comes back home, Jim meets his wife some time later. And when he gets married, they live on the other side of Hawkins for some time, before New York. It's not a big city, and somehow the two of them just slowly becomes... strangers. Up to the point she doesn't even know...

And surely he cannot imagine Joyce's pregnant.

She keeps telling herself the baby's Lonnie's. It cannot be another way around. In 1968, she has a girl.

Jim is 38 when he comes back to Hawkins — it's 1980. He hates to watch the happy family; he knows Joyce isn't happy at all, but that girl. Sarah would have been 9 and Joyce's girl is just a little older, a 12 years old spitfire. Funny little thing, she is. And she hates her father to the guts. Everytime she can, she leaves the house, running into the woods. Her older brother tries to keep her but it's just — she's wild. A little rebel.

When Jim finds her the first time, running all alone in the street, crying an ocean, he immediately recognizes her. Jim takes her to the Benny's Burger, gets her a hot dog and fries, and a coke. She keeps talking, and talking, and talking — about her family, school and all the things no one in her family seem to care about ("Lonnie's fighting with Johnny, and mom's fighting with Lonnie and no one ever see me. This is good, can you buy me more sometime?")

He feel in love that night. He didn't get to be a father to Sarah... but she desperately needs one. So he talks to Joyce and keeps telling her it's alright. "Listen, that's a mess, I can see that. But I'm glad to help. If your daughter needs a safe place... just, you know where to find me."

And she does find him. The girl spends half of her nights at Jim's, mostly when her father comes home drunk enough to take it out on her, too. Jonathan is tough — he really doesn't want to deal with an old Chief, nor to be saved from his own father. But she's just a child.

Jim buys a VHS player. And a second toothbrush. She is small enough to take the couch. He can't cook to save his life, but finds out he's willing to learn — she can't eat pizza every fucking night, for god's sake. He helps her with math homework. Teachers are used to him coming to pick her up at school.

She calls him dad at school, speaking to her classmates. They know her as the Chief's daughter. Joyce doesn't mind explaing, she's done with keeping the appearance. "Jim is my dearest friend" she says, buying grocieres at the store, her youngest running around the shop, showing her the last pack of coloring pencils he wants for his next birthday. "He's always been there for my girl, and she just loves him like a daughter would."

He calls her peach. She's fine with it. And she should be at that age where kids get embarrassed by their own parents, but she jump out of his Hawkins Police pick-up with such pride before entering school — he couldn't be happier about that.

He lectures her about that danger of drugs, and alcohol and boys at the beginning of her first high school year. Now she's embarrassed. "I'd rather talk with mom about that, if you don't mind..." he nods, silently. "But thanks anyway, I love you too, dad."

It's the first time she said that. Jim doesn't get any sleep that night. He hadn't realize just how much he cared about her — it wasn't a matter of blood anymore, she was his daughter. Not Sarah, not a sort of surrogate for his own loss — his kid. She was her own person and he loved her.

He teaches her to drive. But she definetly improves with Jonathan, he can't be really patient about it.

She loves her brothers, really — they are just different. Like, there is something, somewhere... she can't wrap her head around it, but it's there. They are family just not the same family, perhaps. There is Joyce in her eyes, and in her smiles, but nothing of Lonnie. Even though she can see his nose on Jonathan's face, and his lips on Will's. The way he used to walk, bouncing around just like Johnny does. And the way he used to hums rock music, sometimes — just like Will's habits. She does not. None of this. She's quiet, and loves old movies, and checkered shirts, and coffee. No coffee in the Byers house, but tons of it in Jim's trailer.

And it all comes around when she gets a fever. Appendicites. Joyce and Jonathan rushes her to the hospital, they call him from the public phone. "Peach's getting operated right now — please, can you come?"

He's never left the Police station faster. And the doctors say they need blood — "Type 0 is rare. We don't have any bags available at the moment, but she needs a transfusion to recover as quickly as possible" the doctor explains.

Thank god Jim's there because the next day, when she opens her eyes, she asks about him too. He's slept in the hospital room, Joyce says, in case she woke up. But then, the doctor delivers the complete blood tests. They made sure about blood type compatibility and everything else, even though it was predictable — after all, she is his daughter.

And that's where all the knots come home to roost. Jim turns pale. He and Joyce exchange an eloquent look. He swallows. "My daughter — sure, but you mean that I... that we..."

Everything goes back to that 1967 summer night, to those beers, a joint shared on the sofa. Life couldn't get any stranger, right?

[willel]

I mean there will be a reason why Joyce ultimately ends up with Lonnie. It could be a poor choice in itself, Lonnie was maybe a 'good person' outside and seemingly was a nice figure and Joyce believed that without realizing Lonnie's true face until it was too late and that they got married and then Jonathan was born... but I just wonder if their problems truly started to appear after the marriage, maybe possibly after Will was born?

Because if Lonnie was such a bad father, why didn't he leave the family right after Jonathan was born? Why did he only ever leave after Will's birth and after just deciding that there was no 'hope' for Will? We also have to realize that Lonnie actually tried to get Jonathan on his side in S1 when he said Jonathan should just leave the town.

Do not get me wrong I am not saying Lonnie wasn't a bad person. I am just saying it is rather *interesting* that he left only after Will was born but not after Jonathan was born. I mean, he clearly was staying in the family for years, but then he left after Will's birth. Maybe he believed Will had no hope to become 'normal' while he saw Jonathan as more of a valuable child.

Jonathan once said, "I don't think my parents ever loved each other" or something like that. I think that still rings true. Listen. My parents aren't AS BAD as Lonnie and Joyce (my dad was an absent father but he still isn't at Lonnie level scum and my mom is not is not the affectionate type like Joyce), but... let's just say, I understand why I was born. I was an oopsie. But my little brother???? I don't know how the hell HE was born. It's a goddamn mystery let me tell you.

Sometimes despite how incompatible two people are, they just.... end up together for a bit and create families. I'm always like "If the relationship was so bad leading up to me and everything after... WHY then, does my little brother exist? Ya'll are stupid." (yes, I call my parents stupid. They accept this.)

Until the news about the play came, I think most of us assumed Lonnie and Joyce stuck together because Lonnie baby trapped Joyce or something with Jonathan. That may still be true, but the timelines don't really add up.

Maybe it's the case that much like in season 1, Lonnie continuously pretended he's "changed" before inevitably screwing up and showing his true colors?

Maybe for years Joyce and Lonnie were on and off. I imagine since Joyce and Hopper weren't on speaking terms, maybe Lonnie did something to ruin their relationship at some point during all this.

Jonathan is born because again, Lonnie pretended to "turn a new leaf" and made his way back into Joyce's life. It immediately took a downturn I assumed. But once again, maybe he convinced Joyce he would be better and they had a second child to "fix it". But it only got worse?

I know you're like "No way Joyce is this gullible to fall for it over and over again". It's possible she did. Not because she's stupid, but I imagine her mental, emotional and financial health was not good for a long time. Here's some fun facts.

In the US, women weren't allowed to own their own bank accounts until the 1960's. That means most women relied on their fathers or husbands for finances.

It isn't until 1974 that women were allowed to have their own debit/credit cards without their husbands signing off on it. Literally.

You can see in a situation like that how throughout most of their relationship, Joyce would've been depending on Lonnie because of finances. And how with all this power over finances, Lonnie screwed his own family over with his debt and overspending.

Saying all that, I think we can say Joyce kept Lonnie around because:

She was dependent on him emotionally for a while even though he was the one making her mental health worse

She was dependent on him for finances even though he probably spent all their money and put them in debt

At one point, she probably didn't want to become a social pariah since being a single mother divorcing your husband was looked down upon

She somewhat wanted the kids to have a father even though he sucked ass (Lonnie left when Will 4-8 years old depending on the source you read)

I'd also like to say, I don't think Lonnie just left. I think over the years, Joyce has dumped Lonnie, kicked him out, and then took back on repeat.

I make this assumption based on season 1. He seems super bitter towards Joyce. When he finally comes back to town, he's once again playing up his "I'm better now" act to Joyce and Jonathan.

When Joyce discovers he's just there for the money, her reaction gives me the impression that he might've done something similar in the past. Weasel his way back into her life because of money.

She says, "I can't believe I feel for this!"

Then Lonnie goes into a spiel about how much she NEEDS him and she can't do anything right without him there.

Joyce has to threaten him to get him out of her house. Apparently he was at her door for hours, demanding to let him back in and take him back. She goes to the door with a hammer to threaten him some more.

All of this gives me the impression that it wasn't as simple as "Lonnie left". I think Joyce dumped his ass for the final time and he was forced to leave. Through his bitterness of getting dumped and removed from the home, he willingly became an absentee father and did nothing to support his family. No doubt over the years he's been waiting for a crisis to hit them which would give him an opportunity to enter their lives once more.

[wuffgang-ameowdeus-moozart]

Grown-Ups

-> Day 2: Roommates AU

Jonathan Byers became a parent before he became an adult. He loves his little brother above everything in the world, and to say that Joyce doesn't have it easy as an overworked single mother is an understatement. He is fully aware how incredibly lucky they are to have a parent who uses every last drag of energy she has left to make sure that he and Will are okay. That they know they are loved.

But still. Sometimes he will be tossing and turning in bed for what feels like hours and the sleep just won't come and then he will begin to have these thoughts. Ugly dark thoughts he doesn't want to have. Thoughts he is terrified are secretly true.

Resentment will clog his throat and anger will soar through his veins and he will bite down on his lower lip in order not to scream. (Mom has told him to stop many times before. It always ends up bleeding)

Because it's not fair. Kids will brag in class about watching the newest movies and going on dates and buying the newest games and he can barely afford the film for his camera. Because Will will go to the Wheelers and meet up with his friends every day while Jonathan makes sure everything in the house is fine for when his mother comes home with an exhausted smile on her face.

(He is glad that Lonnie is gone. Of course he is glad that Lonnie is gone. That man made the place that is supposed to be a safe haven a living hell. And he was awful to everyone, Will included, no matter how much he tried to protect him. It is good that Lonnie is gone, that is an indisputable fact.

But Jonathan didn't have an elder brother to protect him when he was Will's age and Lonnie got violent. Jonathan couldn't go play with his friends because mom was working and dad was drinking and there was nobody else to take care of the house. Jonathan didn't have that and it isn't fair. And sometimes....)

((Ugly intrusive thoughts that aren't true.))

Jonathan has been playing housewife for as long as he can remember. An outsider would maybe expect him to be organized as a consequence. Clean and neat and maybe a bit of a perfectionist.

Well, said outsider would be wrong. After sweeping the floors and doing the dishes from breakfast and lunch and taking out the trash and so and so on and so on, he does not have the energy to care for the state of his room. He grows to resent household chores, tries taking shortcuts. As long as it looks acceptable it'll be fine. It's not like his mom - who already feels so guilty for not being able to bear the weight of the world on her own - will force him to keep his room in order on top of everything else.

He grows to like it. Jonathan likes the way everything seems to be thrown together with no rhyme or reason, it reminds him of how his brain works. He loves looking at his chaos (his, only his) and seeing it through the eyes of a photographer, the way it allows him to romanticize the mundane. The mess means he doesn't have to be responsible. The mess means he can finally relax. When the door is closed and it is just him and the chaos he can pretend for a few minutes that he is the child he never got to be.

Steve Harrington became self-sufficient before he became an adult. He knows how lucky he is. He has a big house with a pool he can swim in whenever he wants. He always has the newest television and the newest sound system and the newest whatever the fuck his dad is fascinated with this month. He doesn't understand why, since his parents aren't exactly here enough to make use of said stuff, but he is certainly not going to complain. He has a spacious kitchen and a soft mattress and doesn't have to worry about any bills. He knows that so many people can only dream to have even a fraction of what he owns, that he is so so lucky to have been born without any material needs.

But still. Sometimes he will be tossing and turning in bed for what feels like hours and the sleep just won't come and then he will begin to have these thoughts. Ugly dark thoughts he doesn't want to have. Thoughts he is terrified are secretly true.

Guilt will clog his throat and spite will soar through his veins and he will bite down on his lower lip in order not to scream. (Nobody ever told him to stop. Nobody noticed the blood and after a while he trained himself out of it so this pathetic truth wouldn't be shoved into his face all the time)

Because it is not fair. Because kids will complain about how annoyingly overbearing their parents are while Steve would give anything for his father to hug him just once and mean it. Because after leaving the Harrington residence everyone will go home on their tiptoes in order not to wake their siblings or maybe even have a family dinner, and he can't do that. Because he is already in his house, and all he has are beer stains and the occasional broken Vase.

Steve has basically been living on his own for as long as he can remember. A teenager on his own in a big house without parental supervision? Most outsiders would expect the house to be in shambles. After all, why should Steve polish the floor every three months if his parents aren't there to force him? Why should be care for this house if nobody ever gave him a reason to? Why should he be diligent if no one ever taught him how?

That outsider would once again be dead wrong. Because Steve, you see, does not know a lot of things. He doesn't know when his parents will reappear on his doorstep. He doesn't know why reading seems to be so much harder for him when compared to his peers. He doesn't know why his parents never bring him along. He doesn't know how to get better grades, no matter how much he studies.

But here is what he does know: he knows how to sweep the floor.

He knows that he will take the physical ache of a job well done over the inexplicable black hole inside his soul any day. He knows that if he sweeps the floor, there will be physical evidence for a work well done. He knows that cleaning is not a waste of time. He knows that, when the house is organized and empty, it is easier for his thoughts to flow. And so he sweeps and cleans and organizes and feels accomplishment. He starts to throw parties just to have something to clean the following days.

Living together isn't always easy. Sometimes Steve will go home (he has a home now) after a long day and Jonathan will have haphazardly thrown everything on the floor and he won't be able to lay down until everything is in its place again. Other times Jonathan will look at the neatly folded clothes and feel something within him tense up, something that only leaves once he messes up the perfectly flat sheets and sprawls himself all over Steve's half of the bed.

But they always get to end their day in each other's arms. They get to teach themselves and each other how to share responsibilities. They get to build a home on their own. And that? That is worth everything.

@stonathanweek

[thegayhimbo]

Stranger Things Rewatch "The Vanishing of Will Byers" (Part 2 of 2)

Disclaimer: This is NOT a traditional review/analysis, but a collection of observations, brief commentary, favorite moments, and so on that I'm noting as I go through these episodes. All of these are just my opinions and/or theories, and can be subjected to change as the rewatch continues.

Observations:

I was under the assumption Brenner used food as a means of getting El to act the way he wanted her to, and would starve her as punishment if she dared to disobey him (hence Benny's comment here about El not being fed enough). This is the same guy who was willing to deprive Kali/Eight of sleep in Suspicious Minds when she refused to tell him something he wanted to know, so I wouldn't put anything past Brenner when it came to the abusive way he treated these kids.

It's hard to tell how much of El's behavior with Benny here is because she's having a hard time processing and understanding what's he's saying, if she's reluctant to trust him because he's the first person she's met outside of the lab, or if she's been conditioned so thoroughly by Brenner to not talk about who she is or what she does with other people who aren't him (or the Orderlies/Lab Staff) that she still can't overcome that mental block despite having escaped.

Also, major props to Benny for being the first adult to show El any kindness. I like to believe that when El killed Connie Frazier in the season finale, she was thinking of avenging Benny in that moment.

The idea of Lonnie dating girls who are underage (or that Joyce seems to think he would) is just.......🤢 🤮 As if this show didn't give enough reasons for why he's a loathsome creep. 😒

I'm curious if the dog was able to sense the presence of the Upside Down, or if it's continuing to bark at the shed because that was the last known location of Will and the Demogorgon. Or maybe he can sense that Will is there somehow, but not physically present, which is confusing him.

Canonically, from this conversation, this is the first time Mr. Clarke and Hopper introduce themselves to one another. They apparently had the same science teacher growing up (Ms. Ratliff), but never interacted with each other while going to school. Hopper explains his distaste for science that Mr. Clarke doesn't share. There's also the implication that social status during their school years played a part in why these two didn't interact prior to this point. Mr. Clarke would likely have been a nerd growing up, and dialogue indicates Hopper was a ladies man and likely popular during his heyday (similar to Steve).

Speaking of Steve.......

This entire interaction between Mike and Steve speaks for itself. 😂

RIP Benny Hammond. You deserved better! 😢

I've questioned the logic of Connie killing Benny, especially because of how it drew unwanted attention (especially from Hopper of all people) when that's likely the last thing Brenner and Hawkins Lab wanted. At this point, Benny was fully cooperating with Connie, and was about to give El to her since he believed Connie was from social services. There's nothing in his conversation with Connie prior to his death that would've made her suspicious that Benny saw something he shouldn't have, or that he believed there was something abnormal about El.

It's also notable that El doesn't run when she first sees Connie at the door with Benny. She runs AFTER Connie shoots Benny. That implies that Connie was someone El hadn't seen before, meaning Connie could have gotten El to come with her without fuss (and without arousing Benny's suspicions) and then later hand her over to Brenner before El realized what was happening. If Connie had been ordered to kill Benny just for seeing El and wanting to keep her existence a secret, then at the very least, she should have waited until after they had El in their custody so that she wouldn't be able to run away. Connie really screwed up here.

I love the song choice of "White Rabbit" by Jefferson Airplane for the scene where El escapes Benny's restaurant. The lyrics to the song were inspired by the book Alice in Wonderland, and the natural curiosity Alice has when she explores Wonderland (similar to El's curiosity about the world outside of the lab). However, it was also about the type of drug-induced "trips" you take when you get high on psychedelics. Grace Slick, frontwoman for Jefferson Airplane, argued Alice in Wonderland contained metaphorical drug references, like the catepillar on a psychedelic mushroom smoking opium, or Alice eating something that causes her to become "too big for the room." The song itself was written and released in the 60s when psychedelics like LSD were being used, and those same psychedelics were taken by El's mom, Terry Ives, during the experiments she did at Hawkins Lab while pregnant with El. This factored into El obtaining the abilities she has. Symbolically, the song does a great job describing El's situation and how she came to be.

Another song choice I liked was "Africa" by Toto for the Steve and Nancy scene. There's always been a debate about what the lyrics mean (and from what I've heard, the band meant for the song to actually be about the continent of Africa rather than as just a metaphor), but when I first heard the song years ago, I interpreted it as about a man being enamored by a woman, anticipating the moment when they get together, and wanting it to be a special moment. Given Steve's interest (and flirtation) with Nancy in this scene, as well as his insistence to her that he doesn't just see her as another notch under his belt and is truly invested in her, both he (and Nancy) want it to be a special moment as well.

For the people who complained in S4 about how OOC it was for Joyce not to notice that Jonathan was high, they establish from the first episode that Joyce can get distracted when she has other stuff on her mind. Whether it's working to provide for the family, or trying to come up with a convincing cover-story for her kids so she can go to Russia to rescue Hopper. It doesn't mean she doesn't care for Jonathan or Will (not that I should have to say this to anyone who's been paying attention to this show).

Finally, this iconic moment still stands out after all these years:

The moment Mike claims he fell in love with El. And the moment where El met the first people she could truly call her friends.

On an unrelated note, today it rained, similar to how it rains in this episode. That detail is irrelevant to this discussion, but I thought it was a nice coincidence! :)

Thank you for reading my thoughts on the rewatch! :)

Coming Soon: Stranger Things Rewatch "The Weirdo on Maple Street."

[chirpsythismorning]

wait you're not saying you think Jonathan might be Hoppers son too, right? hooking up Twice and having Two sets of kids with each other multiple years apart? sounds a bit too out there and something that would have Had to have come up before if they want it to be satisfying, because there'd be no way either of them could be in the dark about it

Hey, I get it! I was also skeptical myself (I still am)!

To be fair, when it comes to Jonathan, I'm still not 100% certain Hopper is his dad. But tbh, the fact that there is so much sufficient evidence he is Will and El's, along with some notable mentions pointing to the possibility he could be Jon's too, I'm intrigued. Like, they might as well go all out if they're going this route anyways?

No, I would not say it's explicit by any means, though I also wouldn't say with certainty that it's never come up at all either?

I also want to say that it took me a while to get here. I didn't just believe it all at once, it took going through different revelations and correcting theories based on things not adding up, while in contrast other things made a lot more sense for the overall story. And that is bound to continue happening regardless of what I think at this moment!

Initially, after stumbling across twelvegate, I wasn't even sure Will and El were twins? It wasn't until AGAIN rewatching certain scenes and seeing all this twin imagery that made it hard not to consider?

Though even so, at the time I was still pretty set on the assumption that they couldn't have the same mom, with Joyce obviously being Will's mom and Terry obviously being El's mom (right...). And so I thought maybe they could just be half-siblings? Sharing the same dad (Lonnie) and conceived around roughly the same time? Estranged siblings, only mere days/weeks apart? And so like, might as well be twins? I guess?

This was a pretty easy conclusion to come to because there was already a decent amount of evidence from s1 pointing to Lonnie potentially being a volunteer for MKUltra, alongside Terry.

I made a shit-post about this a while back. In case you want to see all the images related to this, feel free to check that out. I'll try to summarize it here quickly though, bc it's probably too vague there with the images alone:

When Hopper and Cal are at the Library in s1, we're shown quick snapshots of newspaper clippings related to Hawkins Lab, with one picture being the volunteers that participated in MKUltra. Though, the first time we see it, it's a negative image. So there was almost this anonymity to it, making you wonder if there was something that might have warranted them not wanting us to see it fully? At least not right away, for some reason? And I think this actually might have been because the effect made it appear like most of the participants were likely women, bc they all had long hair. But then, when we're finally shown the original picture near the end of the episode, right before they let us see it, Hopper says Forget about her (referring to Terry), only to reveal it was actually a man with long hair at the forefront, with Terry in the back to the right... And honestly, this guy in the middle does resemble Lonnie quite a bit. Like, if they had to cast someone to play a late 20's/early 30's Lonnie, this guy would fit the bill.

In that same scene, we also got an article that specifically mentioned individuals that were already addicts/alcoholics being chosen as participants for the experiments, and I do think Lonnie could arguably fit there.

Then there's the multiple comments about Lonnie dating women younger than him, and that might very well have aligned perfectly with Terry's sister saying she had joined MKUltra in college as a way to get extra cash (he would have still been roughly 10 years older than her, assuming she was in here early 20s at the oldest). It's also implied quite a bit that he's not exactly faithful, so this possibility of him cheating on Joyce with Terry while volunteering at the lab, could explain Will and El being practically the same age and with the same dad.

Basically this led me down a rabbit hole that had me genuinely considering the possibility that Will and El are blood related and that Lonnie could be their father, with El being born in the lab with Terry, while Will was born on the outside in Hawkins with Joyce. And I guess this could also fit the whole Will being the control group/El being the experiment group theory? Bc the lab probably found out about Will's existence after he was already born outside of the lab. Maybe they realized this would be a perfect opportunity to compare one kid in the lab vs. one out of the lab?

There are some other notable moments from s1 that read as potential evidence to me. My favorite though probably has to be this one, bc it just screams Willel twins:

This next one is so random, but here we have a transition between El in Mike's basement, followed directly by Lonnie taking a shower at the Byers...

Though, when it comes to Lonnie, he kind of falls off after s1? We get a few mentions of him here and there, but as time goes on, it's less and less. The story as a whole hasn't really prioritized him in the narrative, beyond the first two seasons (mostly the first), which would just make the revelation that he's been their father all along less impactful/satisfying if I'm being honest? Not saying he won't return in a vision or something, because I do think that's likely for s5. And yet arguably they've put more effort into connecting Terry to the overall story's narrative throughout the series than they have for Lonnie. And if you've read my previous posts about Terry, you know that's not saying much...

Which just makes you think, if they're putting all this time into prioritizing Hopper and Joyce, from the very beginning and even until now in s4, then that's probably for a reason? Remember this is a show that wants to encourage its viewers to rewatch it as an overall story once it's all finished. Emphasis on 'be kind, rewind'.

What I think makes this whole time trickery business interesting in regards to this 'crack' theory though, specifically within the context of Back to the Future, is that the plot of the movie was literally centered around Marty going to the past (1955), unintentionally preventing his parents from getting together, which in turn meant he was on track to cease to exist.

Although Marty thought he fixed it, Back to the Future Part II follows a similar storyline. Only this time, because of Marty's actions in the first film, another timeline has emerged that has lead to him, yes technically still existing in 1985 bc his parents still got together like they did in the original timeline, though unfortunately somewhere along the way, in the 70's George McFly died, which lead to a timeline contrasting the original 1985 timeline we were presented with in the first film, which looked like a literal nightmare, with Biff having taken the place of their father.

Which instantly reminds me of another certain show's incoming 1950's timeline, which is said to connect the overall story's s5 revelations with the origin story of Joyce and Hopper...

While I do agree, at a glance it's confusing to presume that not only Will and El are Hopper's kids but also Jonathan, I would argue it's just as confusing that somewhere along the way they got together, while Joyce was still married to Lonnie? If that was the case, I think the story would supplied a lot more evidence of Joyce herself knowing there is a big chance that Will could be his. But instead they behave as though they haven't talked since high school?

So... basically, regardless of time trickery or not, their memories are shot.

Which brings us to the most important piece of the puzzle:

Terrygate.

I am now 99.99% sure Terry is not El's 'Mama'... (Very strong evidence explored here and here)

And so that obviously begs to question, if Terry isn't El's mom? Then who is?

Joyce. It has to be Joyce.

And so that means that us just assuming Lonnie could be both of their dads, and with us now also assuming Joyce is their mom.. Then, maybe they are twins? Maybe all of that twin imagery connected to Will and El did count for something?

If you've read the posts about Terry not being El's mom, then you know that a lot of El's visions provided by Terry have resurfaced in different variations ever since she met her in 2x05, all the way up to now in 4x09. Not only that, but the references to 008 (Kali) in most of these flashbacks, including her flashbacks of the massacre (provided by Brenner), are incredibly suspicious. And the fact that we've got a woman doctor matching the nail polish of Terry in El's memory of her birth (one where you can hear two babies crying, I might add...) could very well be an indication that the memories she has, are tampered with...

You might be thinking NO! NO WAY! And I'm sorry but, Yes. Yes way.

Because this was in large part the main goal of MKUltra, from the very beginning. No, but like literally.

As I'm posting this, @erikiara80 posted this and... It makes so much fucking sense.

Just like El, Hopper has also been experiencing some PTSD like memory flashes throughout the series. We get the same like 10 snippets of memories. They keep reminding us with these snapshots that are super cryptic, only leaving us with more questions than answers.

Not only that, but David has said for YEARS that Sarah's death might not be what it seems, and basically alluded to the fact that she could have some sort of connection to the lab. Hopper literally experiences these flashbacks while trying to find Will in the UD, after discovering Will's tiger in Castle Byers at the end of s1 (the same stuffed animal Sarah, Will and El all have).

Not only that, but it's clear based on the setting of where Hopper is during the flashbacks with his daughter in the hospital, that he is quite literally at Hawkins lab... And so what the hell? He doesn't remember that? Why? Wouldn't that be an important detail for him to bring up and mention at some point? Wouldn't they want to inform us of his history at the lab, assuming he had one there? Wouldn't he be more skeptical about having Will go there if he had such a traumatic experience there? Unless he doesn't remember it being Hawkins lab? Unless those cheap ass memories are not the full truth in the first place??

I mean why else do these flashbacks read like forced memories more than actual reality?

Also, I find it interesting that Hopper left Hawkins right around the time before Will was born, to live in New York with his newborn and his wife (NYU is also Jon's dream school, since he was 6... Interesting).

And so what I think is going on here, is time trickery and false memories. An og timeline and a new one (or more...).

This means that Joyce, Jim, Jonathan, Will and El were probably a family at one point. But they've basically been ripped apart, losing each other (their memories of each other), leading them to believe that they are not family based on new memories in place, blocking the old memories.

The whole thing with Back to the Future is that those 3 kids can ONLY exist if their parents get together. This means that if Biff had somehow ended up preventing George and Lorraine from ever having kids like in the original timeline, then Marty and his siblings would cease to exist, as it wouldn't be possible for Biff and Lorraine to have the same kids as George and Lorraine ie. genetics.

And so this begs to question if perhaps Henry or the lab (assuming they successfully cracked time travel, which was one of the goals of MKUltra...), benefited much greater from Will and El and the entire family not knowing about their true relationship, and yet here they are experiencing the most intense bouts of deja vu I've ever seen.

This scene right here with Hopper? Still 99% unexplained. Why is this dude experiencing borderline dad deja vu, encased in a rainbow, witnessing the lights flicker firsthand (unlike Callahan, who upon arriving, the lights turn back on)? And we're all just nodding our heads like it's nothing, despite having no clue what is going on? This is the pilot? And we don't know what happened here??

Also I wanna remind ya'll that Hopper was seen mixing alcohol with Tuinal in s1, though he did stop after having suspicions he was being watched. And so presumably, since his 'daughters death' he has been highly medicated, mixing drugs/booze... not great for a persons memory... like at all (especially if it was intentionally being done to him by the lab to hide the truth from him).

This is obviously too iconic not to mention. But this basically supports the theory, that despite the this whole family being clueless about their true connection, we're still acknowledging the fact that Joyce and Hopper have indeed been intimate at some point. And here with Will's name being thrown in the middle, followed by That a yeah or? And so what's happening subtly is, Will's name being used as proof that yes. they have... aka Will existing is the proof.

Oh would you look here! Terry likes reading books on Bonsai trees? Wait, didn't Brenner open s4 as a Bonsai tree enthusiast? Also notice what Hopper at the end there? What did I tell you about that dad deja-vu It's almost like subconsciously he knows deep down that there is a connection to Terry and Brenner.

Seems like Terry knows something that someone doesn't want Joyce and Hopper (or the audience) to know... Almost like if she could actually respond to them, she would debunk/correct their assumptions. And so because she can't, the characters (and the audience) believe what is on the surface being told to us, while being forced to rewatch El's memories connected to her mother + Hopper's memories connected to his daughter, over and over in flashes... This is because despite what they're telling us, they're SHOWING us that there's obviously something we're still missing...

Hopper seeing Will's lion stuffed animal in castle byers and it triggering flashbacks of his daughter, n a gown that has clowns on it, matching the clowns in the baby nursery... Like, I don't?.. I just don't trust it? It reads as a mixture of true and false, just like El's flashbacks from Terry and the lab do.

And I'm sorry but, Owens? Oh, he knows something for sure... And there's that dad deja vu again. DUDE KNOWS SOMETHING IS OFF! HE KNOWS!

Also, I am a byler, and so I do agree in part with the byler implications fans have speculated over the years for El and Will's relationship being sort of pushed to obscurity, to represent Mike's struggle between his feelings for both of them...

But, lets really think about this for a second... Girl and boy, who are mirrored to each other for most of s1-2, don't even get properly introduced ever? Like it's just odd that it happens that way. It almost feels like they knew an introduction wouldn't have done them justice? It wouldn't have felt right for these characters, assuming we will all be going back and rewatching from a lens of them being twins and not knowing it? It also makes it a lot more interesting seeing them approach it in this way, where they're quite literally avoiding interactions between them at all costs, only for them to end up being siblings the moment they do start a real connection?

The 2 babies in between them... The keys... This has been a recurring theme since the first fucking episode ya'll, connecting all of these characters? Like, do I even have to say it..?

Will and John sitting in front of the Lucky Charms... Followed by El having deja vu, inspired by the Rainbow/Upside down horse shoe... Remind you of anyone?

Father of (micro)biology behind El, whose looking at Will, both with their matching wrist accessories (also matching Hopper's blue bracelet/watch being focused on for his introduction in the series pilot), and also with a literal Hopper diorama in front of her/between them...

Oh, and just this arguably unnecessary line, that barely even made sense in the context of the scene it was in...? Usually when this happens, it could be a hint that the whole reason it falls flat in the moment is because the true meaning lies somewhere else in a different moment, still yet to be revealed.

And then you know, there's this...

With all of that in mind, these tiny moments in particular, potentially connecting Jonathan's role in all of this, definitely have me side eying...

What part is he talking about? Part I or Part II? What timeline are we in again???!!

Is it explicit and in your face? No. Definitely not. BUT it's there and it arguably holds more weight consistently in terms of these characters all being tied together super intricately and also prioritized more than any of the other supposed parents, since the very beginning... and that seems like something that would make this revelation so fucking crazy, quite literally going full circle just like the Duffers and the actors have been saying the ending indeed accomplishes...

I am subject to be wrong about any and all of this! I am human! And I will be okay if I am wrong! Now, will you be okay with others theorizing? That is up to you my friend!

I do think that this theory does give off the vibe of the whole curtain metaphor in s2 though? How those willing to take a look behind the curtain aka consider byler for example, are going to be the same people that are going to be able to pick up on other things beyond that. Because if you're not willing to consider byler, that means you're going to have to subscribe to the claim that details don't matter, and therefore you're essentially blocking yourself from looking at anything deeper than surface level. Being willing to even look behind the curtain at all, would open the curtain behind that curtain. and the curtain behind that one, and I think behind byler, is Willel. It's like a plot twist within a plot twist. And same goes for Jopper being their biological parents.

Whether or not Jonathan is included in that, along with all of this theory as a whole, remains to be seen!

[heavencasteel420]

It's wild to me when people miss just how bad Lonnie Byers is. I didn't watch the first season too closely the first time around, but I distinctly remember being taken aback by his malevolence. I think I was familiar with Joyce's general situation as a struggling single mom going in, and, before I knew any details, I was sort of picturing her ex-husband as a messy, disappointing, absent father with substance abuse problems. Definitely the kind of guy who can wreak a lot of havoc on his family, but not necessarily cruel or ill-meaning. But, almost immediately, information was revealed that made me go "oh, this guy is just bad news and the rest of the family needs restraining orders yesterday." For example:

Joyce says that he called Will (a twelve-year-old who's never had a romantic relationship and may not even be fully aware of his sexuality) the f-slur. Even in the ranks of homophobic and toxic-masculinity-ridden parents, this is the nuclear option. Lonnie's not ignoring that his son could be gay, as many homophobic parents are content to do; he's picked up on it and he's decided to reject him right away. He's not stopping at calling him a girl or a sissy (which would still be hurtful and damaging); he's using the nastiest slur he can. This shows an astounding level of cruelty.

He doesn't return Joyce's calls about their missing tween son and, when Jonathan confronts him about it, he doesn't just claim not to have gotten them or make a weak excuse, like a dysfunctional but not deliberately mean parent might. Instead, he smirks and makes the ridiculous claim that he thought Joyce just forgot where Will was. Which, to me, suggests that he took some sadistic pleasure in making Joyce worry.

He's just so incredibly..."off" with Jonathan in the Indianapolis scenes. On some level, I think he's trying to be a "cool dad" and "win" the divorce: disparaging Joyce, saying that he wants to spend time with Jonathan, introducing Jonathan to Cynthia in a sort of proud way, showing off his car. This would be lousy in any context, but it's downright disturbing that he thinks he can do this when Jonathan is (a) frantically searching for Will (for whom Lonnie shows no concern) and (b) obviously angry at and wary (if not outright scared) of Lonnie. He's standing there looking amused seconds after Jonathan, in clear distress, shoves him off. There's just no recognition of what Jonathan is going through.

The whole Cynthia thing is weird, right? She goes from being pissed/alarmed that Jonathan (a stranger to her) has entered the house for unknown reasons, to looking kind of horrified/sad when she realizes that Jonathan is Lonnie's son, to joking with Lonnie that she might trade him in for the "younger model." Which kind of makes it seem like she thinks Lonnie will like this joke about how she, an adult woman, wants to have sex with his sixteen-year-old son. Like it'll appeal to his vanity or something, because he sees Jonathan as an extension of himself. Now, I think there are plenty of situations where well-meaning parents might not see an issue with other adults complimenting their child's appearance; it's pretty normalized in many circles to say "he's gonna be a heartbreaker" or "I bet you have to beat the boys off with a stick" or whatever. But usually it isn't on the level of "I'd do him."

Lonnie acts so different when he comes to Hawkins for the funeral, and, having seen him in Indianapolis, it comes across as extremely insincere from the beginning. He's going to play the authoritarian father and tell Jonathan to take down his Evil Dead poster after his weird-ass "cool dad" performance? Gross.

I think the number that Lonnie does on Joyce and Jonathan to keep them from communicating is, in a quiet way, the most upsetting thing that happens in the entire show. It's the show's equivalent of the door-close scene in The Godfather. This is the closest that Joyce ever comes to giving up on finding Will; the fake body and the US government can't make her doubt herself as completely as Lonnie can, with a bottle of vodka and some phony kindness. Meanwhile, Lonnie knows exactly where to hit Jonathan to make him keep his mouth shut. He doesn't have Jonathan's love or respect, and Jonathan's not too afraid to confront him directly, but telling him that he'll hurt his mom and make her crazy if he says anything does the trick. It's chilling because you can easily imagine that this has happened many times in the Byers family ("Of course I didn't cheat on you/gamble away your paycheck/hit the kids, Joyce! I'm really worried about you--you're imagining things that aren't there" or "Don't go telling your mother about this--you know how upset she gets. You don't want to do that to her, right? You're going to make her sick").

So it's pretty galling when fans (and, honestly, sometimes the show) minimizes how rancid he is.