#like I was excited for nancy and robins friendship this season and in the end I just wasn't feeling it

[share-the-damn-bed]

ST4 vol I | every jancy (or jancy related) scene

[galexystern]

island of love masterlist;

a steve harrington/reader love island au. (completed)

pairing; steve harrington/reader, eddie munson/chrissy cunningham, robin buckley/nancy wheeler; eddie munson & reader, chrissy cunningham & reader

rating; T

warnings; Fluff, Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Swearing, Alternate Universe, Cuddling & Snuggling, Modern Era, Everyone Is Alive, Falling In Love, Friendship, Friends to Lovers, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Getting Together, Happy Ending, Humor, Banter, Flirting, Jealousy, Betrayal, Kissing, Hugging, Reality TV, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, Pining, Mutual Pining, Romance, Parenthood, Slow Burn, ish, No Smut, Implied Smut, minor use of y/n, girls supporting girls, Heartbreak, Heartache, Plot Twists

word count; 35k

desc; "So, Steve, what brings you here?"

"An SUV," he responds, deadpan, and you laugh again. "Oh, you meant the villa?" He asks exaggeratedly. "The usual: love."

"I guess that is a basic question," you concede. "It is called Island of Love."

"Not everyone comes for love," Steve protests. "But I doubt they'd tell you that."

You narrow your eyes. "Then you could be lying."

"Nah, I'm as honest as they come." It's obviously something a liar would say, but there's something in his eyes that makes you believe him. Maybe it's the hope. Maybe it's the excitement. Maybe it's the way he's looking at you. One of those. "And I'm honest when I say I like you." Maybe it's that.

~aka the love island au nobody asked for~

a/n; 

i've been working on this for a long time and i'm really proud of it! i hope you like it :)

love island is a british/uk reality dating game show where couples compete to win £50,000. wiki here

there are us and au versions as well. this story is set in the us but it's pretty vague on location.

recouplings, challenges, dumpings, etc. are all tests for the couples and entertainment for the audience. casa amor comes halfway through a season and splits the boys and girls to test their loyalty in their couples by putting them with new islanders of the opposite gender.

none of the drinks contain alcohol, as that is a show rule.

raunchy races; snog, marry, pie; baby day; the general format of challenges, recouplings, and dumpings; and the live finale are all taken from the show. specific themes and actions are mine.

there would definitely be producers onsite during filming and no secret conversations would be allowed in real life, but i needed them for the plot so take that with a grain of salt lol.

y/n is only used at the end of part two, during an outside pov (you'll know what i mean).

the show usually lasts like six weeks but this is obviously less than that because i said so.

naomi is not a real person but based off the hosts of the show.

i definitely implied the audience is way dumber than they are. don't sell yourself short as a love island fan!

read on ao3

part one (17k) part two (18k)

[katlandry]

In honour of Noah getting the first 3 scripts for Season 5, this is my Season 5 bucket list (I may be very early so this is my early one) I’ll try to make it as realistic as possible 😭

- Nancy survives.

This is the number one thing I need to happen, I will not be able to handle it if she dies

- I’m also very much on the side of I want everyone to survive.

Stranger Things is very much about the relationships between all of the characters, and it might not be the main part of the show but it is an important one and it’s what makes Stranger Things so great. I think it would massively suck if they were to kill any of the Hopper-Byers family after everything they’ve been through and Hopper losing anyone would just confirm his theory that he’s a “curse”.

- Ronance hug.

I need this like I need air. Nancy Wheeler needs a hug and I need Robin to be the one to give it to her.

- More Ronance scenes.

I mean obviously I ship Ronance so of course I want more scenes of them together, BUT I also really love their friendship. After Nancy lost Barb, Robin is the first girl she’s befriended that didn’t have romantic intentions and I think their friendship is really something special.

- Nancy to finally get closure with Barb and realise it wasn’t her fault

I realise she kind of got closure in S2, but I don’t think she really did. She clearly still blames herself, and what happened shaped her into who she is today. And we know she never really spoke to anyone about what happened because when she tried to talk to Steve he brushed her off. So I think she needs someone to tell her it wasn’t her fault.

- Nancy/Robin/Jonathan/Steve/Argyle team up.

This would be the team up of the CENTURY.

- Nancy/El scenes

I’ve needed this since S1. I think they’re quite similar in some ways and it’d be so nice to see them have some scenes together

- Jargyle scenes

I mean… they’re literally hilarious together. Imagine Nancy, Robin and Steve having to put up with high Jargyle 😭

- Not St*ncy endgame

Okay. Don’t hate me, and I’m sure this is pretty well known by now but I’m very much anti St*ncy and I’m not even sorry about it. Those two getting back together would feel like ten steps backwards and a dishonour to both of their characters. Steve’s character for the past two seasons has revolved around finding a girlfriend and I think he needs to realise that he doesn’t need a girlfriend and it’s okay to be on your own. It would also be a very misogynistic ending for Nancy. I could talk about this forever but I’ll just leave it at that. 😭

- JOPPER DATE!

Pretty sure David Harbour already confirmed this but I’m so excited to see Jopper in a relationship!!

- Mike being a complete menace to society and Robin getting to experience it

I mean, Robin hasn’t spent much time with Mike yet and I just think him being the little shit he is would be so funny for Robin to witness. I can just imagine her turning to Nancy and saying “You’re related to him?”

- Will/Robin scenes

This is an obvious one, but I think talking to Robin would help Will a LOT. I don’t know how likely it is to happen but I think it’d be really nice for Will to know he’s not on his own.

- LUMAX DATE!

I NEED IT. They arranged it last season and Max DIED so it’s only right they get their date in Season 5!!

- More Erica

Not much to say about this, we all need more Erica.

- More Hopper-Byers family

El finally has a family and somewhere she belongs, Hopper just came back from the dead. I need this family to be happy more than anything.

- If not Byler endgame, I need to see Will accept himself (at least somewhat) and finally be happy.

I like both Mileven and Byler, and honestly my opinion on who should be endgame changes on a daily basis based on the fans lmao. It would be awesome to see Byler endgame, but I would like to see Will accept himself and maybe come out to his mom??

- Nancy & Mike hug.

This has to happen. It has to. And not right before one of them dies either. Give me more Wheeler siblings. Perhaps a parallel to S1 when Nancy rushes out of the Byers to hug Mike but this time Mike rushes to hug Nancy??

[uglypastels]

hello ! okay, i'm falling deep for joseph quinn and and eddie munson. And i really LOVE what you did with my ask. I don't know if you get many many asks but i'm here asking for more. So here it is : being friends with Nancy, Steve and Robin (same age), flirting with Eddie, loving his "D&D master" dom side, but melt really fast when he's soft and cute and when he smiles. Being there for him when murder assumptions fell, help him and maybe finally dating him during Vecna hunt

Ok, so I wasn't sure what to do with this ask because it is pretty broad, but eventually thought that a headcanon could be the best :))  (i say this... knowing fully well i don´t know how to write headcanons lol. but we´re having a great time.

no explicit warnings. Content Spoilers for season 4 (vol. 1), swearing.

Eddie Munson requests open!!// taglist sig up// support with reblog and comment!!

Maybe you met everyone through Robin. You were also in band and so go to know her through then, and then very quickly met Nancy and Steve. 

But with Eddie, it was a bit different. 

Because you cannot tell me that Robin doesn't smoke. So, she needs a dealer. And one day she manages to convince you to come with her to deal. Even though it wasn't anything dangerous and, in reality, Eddie is a super nice guy, Robin being Robin played it out to be some dangerous drug deal. 

'You always need to bring someone with you to stuff like this, in case things go wrong, you might need a witness.' Which is usually the exact opposite of how a drug deal is supposed to go, but you didn't want to leave your friend behind when she was going into the woods with some guy??

 But of course, as soon as you heard Eddie speak, you realised Robin was just leading you on. He was actually so funny and charming. You couldn't stop laughing, or at least smiling, when you were around him. 

And then, you know how when you learn something new and suddenly you start noticing it everywhere? That's kind of what happened with you and Eddie. Suddenly you saw him everywhere around the school. You'd see him walking in the hallway, hear his antics in the cafeteria, you'd catch him smoking outside the gym hall between classes and… had he always been in your history class? Had you really completely missed him sitting there for the past few weeks? Perhaps because he always sat in the back and you preferred to be a bit more upfront in the room (not the first row, though. Absolutely not). 

All these spottings had made you gain quite an interest in Eddie. He was just so… different from everyone else you knew and grew up with. And every other thing he did just added to that. You really couldn't place him in any box or type. He was just Eddie and that very much intrigued you. So when you were paired up together for a history project… you couldn't be more excited to get to know him. 

What ended up with a very solid B- group paper, became the start of a glorious friendship. Eddie was very talkative, so very quickly you learned about most of his interests, in-depth, and in particular about Hellfire Club. He told you everything about the game; the rules, the lore, the history, and his role as Dungeon Master. 

One time he let you sit in on a game, mostly as a sub, and he had given you a small role in the campaign so you could ease into it a bit, and as much fun as you had, nothing compared to seeing the pure bliss that evoked from Eddie being completely in his element. 

That was, perhaps, the moment you realised you might have a small crush on him. 

And it didn't help that your relationship with Eddie always consisted of a bit of… flirtatious undertones. 

You were both very touchy with each other. Nothing inappropriate, of course. There would always just be a lot of hugging and playing with each other's hair, even holding hands, just small things like that that made everyone think you had already been going out with each other for months. 

The number of times you had to tell Steve that you were "just friends" with Eddie was actually ridiculous. But he didn't buy any of it. 

'No, you two are definitely… something else.' 

'That might just be the stupidest thing I've ever heard, Steve,' you rolled your eyes at him. The main reason why you were so argumentative and against this idea, is that you were scared. Because you have liked Eddie, for a while now, but there was no way he could like you like that, right? And you couldn't just go up to him and ask him out. It would just make things awkward. 

But then shit hit the fan worse than anyone had ever imagined. 

The night of the Championship game. Everyone from school was there, except the Hellfire Club, of course. You knew they had the final session of their campaign planned for that evening. Afterwards, when people were going home, you even saw Eddie, walked over to him, and ask to exchange experiences of the night. 

'Wanna go back to my place? My parents aren't home and we could watch a movie or something?'

'Oh, actually, I got this thing with Chrissy I got to take care of, but I'll come around tomorrow.' He seemed genuinely excited to come over the next day, but your enthusiasm had slightly deflated. Chrissy? As in the headcheerleader Chrrisy Cunningham? What was Eddie up to with her? 

And then the next day Eddie didn't show up at your house, and when you turned on the tv every channel was showing the exact same thing. Cops, right outside of Eddie's trailer. Panic rushed over you, at first thinking that the dead Hawkins High student the police were talking about was Eddie, but then you remembered Chrissy… 

With no way of reaching him, and being all alone, you went to the one place where you knew someone would be that you could talk to. But before you even got to reach for your car keys, the phone rang. 

'Hello?' you answered the phone to hear a very stressed-out Dustin Henderson. 

'y/n! Thank god. Do you know where Eddie is?' 

'No. I was just about to- why?' you were scared to say anything. Did Dustin think Eddie could have possibly done something to Chrissy? 

'We think he's in danger and are trying to find him before the cops do.' 

'In danger? What do you mean? And who's we?' 

'y/n,' Robin had taken over the phone, 'get your ass to the video store. Right now.' And so you drove as fast as you could. But as you did, you realised that you might actually know where Eddie was hiding. Well, not exactly where, but you had an idea. So, when you reached the store, the first thing you told your friends was about Reefer Rick. It wasn't much to go off of, as you didn't even know where this Reefer Rick lived, but Eddie had told you how he crashed there sometimes, and since Reefer was who he was, it must have been a secluded location. Thankfully, to the cataloguing system of the store, and the lack of care Robin and Steve had for their customer privacy, you found the address quickly enough.

At first, Steve didn't want you to go but you shut him down quickly.

'You're not going to stop me from seeing him, Harrington, I swear to god.' And with that, you got into your car. 

At Reefer Rick's house, the place looked like a dump, but from the food that had been lying out on the table and countertop, you could tell it had been Eddie who was stress eating. 

'He was here, definitely.' And then you saw the light in front of the boathouse through the window. 

Eddie was an absolute mess, and that is excluding the attack on Steves's throat with a shattered bottle. He was shaking, fidgety, looking as if he had at least ten cups of coffee and had most definitely not slept. 

'Eddie, we're here for you, ok?' You slowly sat down next to him and it hurt you to see him flinch away. But you placed your hand on his arm, pulling him close to you, and then he fully gave into your embrace. 'It's gonna be ok.'

But then the rest told the both of you how come they believed that Eddie wasn't the killer (something you hadn't even thought to think about). And suddenly your whole world turned upside down. Eddie listened to what they were talking about, answered their questions, but then turned to you as you had been very quiet. 

'Did you know about this?'

'No, I had no idea.' 

Then the group had to leave, but you offered to stay behind with him. You just couldn't let him be alone now. He needed someone around him.

'How come you didn't think I did it? If you didn't even know about all that monster shit Henderson talked about.' Eddie asked after a while. You had cosied up in the boat, not really having any other place to sit comfortably. You used the life vests as pillows and Eddie had been eating some cereal he smuggled out of the house. 

'Call me naive, but I just couldn't believe you would do something like that. I know you and… what they were saying on the news… that is most definitely not you. That is not my Eddie.' 

'Oh, so suddenly I'm yours?' 

'Shut up, you know what I mean.' you laughed and for the first time, that day so did Eddie. It was just the tiniest of grins, the dimple in his cheek barely visible, but it was enough for now. 

'You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to,' you said carefully, 'but… why was Chrissy even there? At your trailer, I mean.' 

'She wanted to buy some Special K.' He grabbed another handful of cereal and stuffed it into his mouth. 

'Oh.' She just wanted to buy drugs. That was it? The relief escaped your shoulders and Eddie must have seen it because he raised an eyebrow. 

'Why what did you think?' 

'No nothing.' you shrugged, 'I mean, I guess I thought you were… I don't know.' 

'Wait… are you jealous?' Perhaps in a less stressful situation, he would have laughed and made fun of you, but now he just sat up and looked at you with those big brown eyes. 

'No! What? No. Of course I wasn't.' You tried to convince both him and yourself, but he wasn't buying it. 

'Why would you be jealous of Chrissy going over to my place?' 

'I wasn't jealous!'

'I would beg to differ.' The Eddie you knew and loved was slowly coming back, so for that, you could endure what he was doing to you. 'Do you like me?'

'Of course I like you, what a dumb question.' you laughed. 

'No but, do you like like me?' 

'How old are you, Munson?' 

'Answer the question… Please.' 

So you do. And you admit your feelings. And Eddie is, of course, taken aback. Not by your confession of having felt like you wanted to be more than friends for a long time now, but because he had thought the exact same thing but had just been too much of a coward to go for it and just ask you out and now that you have finally admitted it to each other, he is on the run from the police and being hunted down for murder. 

Not the most perfect beginning of a relationship but you could make it work. 

Eddie Munson requests open!!// taglist sig up// support with reblog and comment!!

masterlist is linked in bio and navigation post <3

taglist: @spiderrrling @hellfire-state-of-mind @theglitterymess @dorianelizabeth @theletterhart @niyahwhoreworld @chaitnoirfangirl1624 @fopdoodle1624 @pastel-abyss-x @ghoulsgraveyard

[nerdy-girlramblings]

My thoughts on Stranger Things S3 E7

The build up in the cabin before the Mind Flayer attacks was amazing. I knew what was going to happen, but the waiting in stillness for a few seconds was agony.

I absolutely love that Murray called out Joyce and Hop out on their romantic attraction like he did with Jonathan and Nancy

Lucas getting fireworks worried me. That didn't seem like a good combination

I was so happy that Mike apologized to El

My heart dropped when Erica and Dustin came back to the theater and Robin and Steve were gone

El's blood crawling and turning into that goo disturbed me

THAT SCENE IN THE BATHROOM!!! It was amazing. I loved how respectful Steve was when Robin said she didn't like him back and how she trusted Steve to come out to him. Also, I'm so glad they aren't going to be a couple because strong platonic friendships with the opposite sex are so rare in fiction and I'm so excited to see more of their friendship in season 4

I got so happy when Hop and Joyce held hands. I love them as a couple

Dear, sweet Alexei got shot! Why??

Hop was so aggressive in this episode when he fought the Russians in the hall of mirrors

El rescued everyone again in the mall with the car! She's so brave and selfless!

I was so glad that at the end of the episode, the crew was all together again!!

[reikunrei]

i know i’ve already talked about this half a dozen times but i’m really sooo so excited to see Steve and Jonathan interact more. like, it’s obviously been set up that at this point they have to be teamed up in some way, and i’m just chomping at the bit for that kind of interaction.

like, it’ll probably be against both of their wills in some way, or at the very least against Jonathan’s, and so now they’re stuck together and it’s awkward because neither of them really know each other. and they’ve saved each others lives like a dozen times at this point, and watched each other kick ass again and again, but like...

Steve probably still thinks about the fact that Jonathan took those sneaky photos in his back yard, and while Jonathan did apologize to Nancy for it, he and Steve never talked about it again. and Jonathan definitely still thinks about all the shit Steve said before they had their fist fight (how the Byers are a bunch of screw ups, how it’s not surprising that Will “died,” how they all deserved it, etc.) because of course he’d still hold a grudge over that! it was shitty!

and even if they’ve saved each others lives several times now, that doesn’t automatically negate the shitty things they’ve said or done to each other on a personal level. and the fact that Jonathan still defaulted to making a jab at Steve about him being unable to be “in charge” proves that he still thinks that, to some degree, Steve is still very much like he was in high school. like, he knows that, on some level, Steve has changed, having likely heard tons of praise from the younger kids... but how much of it does he really believe, you know? it’s a high stakes situation, of course Steve is gonna try to save people... but what about when they’re outside of a high stakes situation?

as the audience, we’ve seen Steve steadily improving across all seasons, and he really didn’t learn how to be a wholly “good person” until the very end of season 3, i think, and his friendship with Robin was just the beginning of that growth tbh, at least by way of changing the way he thinks about and views the world and his relationships with other people. but Jonathan has seen, like, basically none of it first hand. they don’t hang out, they don’t talk. hell, even after the season 1 fight with the demogorgon, we learn (in season 2) that Jonathan just “disappeared,” per Nancy’s words. Jonathan didn’t stick around, and we see that, when Steve appears, Jonathan slinks away. he and Steve do not have a relationship right now.

and i really truly think that some sort of forced team-up that results in a heart to heart between the two of them would do astronomically well by their individual character arcs.

something about how Steve is still in love with Nancy, and still hoping it’ll work out between them, but talking more with Jonathan and learning just why Nancy likes him so much, and how her and Steve aren’t quite compatible anymore, and maybe never were, because maybe even the true Nancy that Jonathan loves so much isn’t the Nancy that Steve knew and still fawns over. like, it would allow Steve to move on or come to terms with the fact that he doesn’t need to be in love with someone or be in a relationship in order to be whole. he might want Nancy, but he doesn’t need her.

and we’ve still never really seen Jonathan’s trust issues addressed on screen (i will forever be sad that we didn’t see Jonathan letting Argyle into his life), and having Steve poke that bear, to talk to him and make Jonathan second guess his feelings about Steve. like, words cannot describe how fucking badly i want Steve to finish his apology from season 1. like, as far as i can remember, it didn’t seem like Steve went to Nancy to apologize to her first. he went to the Byers house to apologize to Jonathan. only, he got interrupted by the plot he was totally unaware of. and i can bet that Jonathan forgot about that, but maybe Steve hasn’t. and once they’re alone together, air thick with awkward tension, he thinks, fuck, this dude hates me, and i know exactly why.

like, just imagine having that final link closed for the both of them. Steve finally getting to apologize for the asshole things he did to Jonathan, owning up to what he did and not hiding behind something like, “well, i saved your life, so you have to like me now.” like really owning up to everything he said and did to Jonathan. and Jonathan just gawks at him because, oh. fuck. and Steve would just have to keep talking, because Jonathan is stubborn and a little caught off guard. so Steve is saying stuff like, “I’m happy for you and Nancy, you make a great pair. i’m sorry i broke your camera, that was really fucked up. i’m glad that Will ended up okay. like, really glad.”

and then imagine Jonathan muttering out an apology, after way too much silence has passed, and Steve just kinda blinks at him. and Jonathan says it again, “I’m sorry, too. for, you know, the pictures and... and for... you know...” for being a dickhead to you all these years when everyone else was telling me you were a good guy. he can’t say that, though. to Steve Harrington?? that would be too vulnerable for Jonathan. at least right now.

i’m just so !!!! about them and the potential for more interactions between them!! like their relationship is still so fragmented, they’re the only two who have yet to reconcile and gotten to know each other on screen. and i honestly feel like if we don’t get just one little awkward team-up between them where they’re forced to talk about their feelings, the two of them will stall out and not be able to move forward in their arcs. because if they really want to lean into this love triangle with Nancy, Jonathan can’t keep going to Argyle for advice and Steve can’t keep going to Robin, and Nancy can’t be caught in the middle with her split attraction between the two of them. the two guys have to talk to each other, to learn who each person is, so that Steve can move on and accept Nancy’s feelings for Jonathan, and Jonathan can stop being a defensive prick around this guy who’s otherwise a perfectly lovely friend to Nancy and everyone else.

[anauro]

hey you watch stranger things?? what are your thoughts???? how did you like this new season so far? thoughts on potential byler? max? vecna?? (omg sdjfgh im sorry for being so obsessive)

also, this is a bit weird, but do you associate any of the stranger things characters with the marauders? e.g. steve harrington is a james potter variant, but are there any others you can see? personally, i reckon robin radiates sirius black vibes... thoughts?

<3

Hi possum babe 💖

I am very intrigued by the new season, but I think I preferred season 3.

Like, I found a lot of it predictable so far, although I don’t know how exactly they plan to tie, what, four or five different story lines together and I’m very excited for that. I’m also not the greatest fan of the Russian gulags storyline, because I got traumatized as a Polish teenager by being forced to read about some Polish dude surviving these camps and what he described was much worse than what the show has showed us.

But I love Max and I love the new Robin x Nancy friendship! Also Argyle, the comic relief so desperately needed and Murray “my fingers are arrows” ❤️

Also the finale battle between El and Vecna will be epic, I can just see it 🤤❤️‍🔥

When you say Byler, you mean Will x Mike? I’ve seen it on tik tok and the that scene where El says Will has been acting different and doing the drawing happened and yeah, kid is fruityyyy. I’m not sure if Mike will reciprocate, but then he hasn’t been saying love to El for a while, so maybe he has a sexuality crisis of sorts too? Would be interesting to see how this pans out.

Also honorary shout out to Suzie for, as always, saving the day and also the “Never ending story” scene is my absolute fave 💖💖💖. Not even the singing, but everyone’s reaction as they’re trying to save the World, but instead they have to listen to two kids being cute and in love 🥰

And YES, Marauders!!! I can’t watch anything or read anything without associating it with Marauders. So here are my thoughts:

Steve Harrington is James Potter confirmed, no arguing there whatsoever. He’s hot, he’s popular with chicks, he’s the ally and the babysitter friend. I have a feeling someone will die in the series and I really, really hope it’s not him.

Robin to me has Marlene vibes, but this could be just me loving Marlene a lot. But Steve and Robin “platonic with capital P” is just James and Marlene.

And….

That makes Nancy Wheeler Lily! And look, it would work perfectly cause her and Steve dated and, I know they will likely get together again, but Robin x Nancy would be an amazing ship imo. I know Lily x Mary is the popular ship, but I have to be edgy and I prefer Lily x Marlene or Mary x Marlene. Nancy x Robin works beautifully for me, although I know it won’t happen.

Dustin is Peter. I like the idea of Peter not being the idiot friend and also the way Dustin worships Steve, but also constantly mocks him is how I imagine (dass) James’ and Peter’s friendship.

Max has strong Regulus vibes with how closed off she is, but actually very vulnerable on the inside. Also, she outran Vecna and it’s a total Regulus parallel.

I think look wise, Eddie reminds me of Sirius and although I don’t love Sirius, I don’t think he’d be a coward. But the hair and the clothing is 💯 Sirius. Also that conversation between Eddie and Steve about Nancy, would totally be Sirius and James about Lily 🥰

As for the rest of the characters…. I’m not really sure tbh.

I guess Eleven gives off Regulus vibes too and Will reminds me of Remus, but neither is my favourite character and I think their involvement in season 4 has been quite minimal so far tbh. I guess El could be Sirius too.

Dr Brenner is a total Dumbledore tho. And I hate him sooo much.

[clarkgriffon]

Stranger Things Season 4 (Volume 1): Thoughts

Overall, I enjoyed ST Season 4. I wasn’t as excited for it as the other seasons and it’s the first time I didn’t actually go back and do a rewatch before watching the season, but I still found myself entertained by the content. 

My ranking of seasons before this was 1>3>2 and unless the final two episodes drastically change it, I imagine my ranking will be 1>3>4>2.

Where I think this season faltered was just... too many cooks in the kitchen. There were SO many plotlines. Here’s how I might have changed the plotlines:

Streamlined Eleven/Mike/Jonathan/Will’s plotline into one. I understand that this fundamentally changes El’s plotline as she needs to be alone for what they did, but honestly, I didn’t really vibe with the computer de-aged Eleven nightmare fuel simulation stuff. I would’ve much preferred combining her storyline with Mike, Jonathan, and Will’s because honestly? Mike, Jonathan, and Will felt useless this season. They had nothing to do with anything except that they were racing to save El- it felt like they were being sent off on sidequests (finding Suzie) because the writers didn’t know where to put them. Which is insane considering Mike is usually kind of the male lead of the show?

I would’ve just... changed Joyce and Hopper’s storyline. It was okay, I just found myself the most bored in both Joyce’s portions and Hopper’s concerning the Russian prison break. I love Joyce and I love Hopper, but that’s TWO extra storylines that again, seem separate from the main happenings of the season (Vecna). I’m not sure how this would’ve worked lore-wise and it also means David Harbour wouldn’t be seen until Episode 7, but I think it could’ve been really cool if Hopper was stuck in the Upside-Down and the teens stumbled upon him when they entered through the lake at the end of E6.

My favorite storyline was the Hawkins main plot, I thought the exploration of Robin/Nancy’s friendship was fun. I could’ve used a bit more of a real storyline for Dustin other than being like the main sleuth? Eddie was a welcome addition. Oh, also I would’ve axed the basketball team’s revenge storyline- it was simply an unnecessary take of screentime. I think the only thing we needed the basketball team for was Lucas’s initial struggle between hoping for conformity and being himself (which I loved).

The standouts of the season for me were Lucas and Max, particularly Max. I had never thought that much of her character before. I enjoyed her in S3, but she’s absolutely my favorite character now. The handling of her grief and complex emotions regarding Billy were *chef’s kiss* and definitely the reason Episode 4 was my favorite of the season. 

Other interpersonal dynamics- the good and the bad; Steve and Robin continue to be amazing. I didn’t really think about how Robin would have to continue to be in the closet for literally all the other main characters and I found it super interesting- Dustin going “??? Why aren’t they together” and Nancy getting the wrong impression. Nancy and Steve... I just don’t understand it. I don’t really care about Jancy, but having them be irrelevant and pushing Nancy & Steve just makes me feel like these writers don’t know how to write a “together” couple, because this is exactly what happened when Jancy got together and Steve and Nancy were dating the first time. Every season, I feel like they have no idea what they’re doing with Nancy and this is no exception. Their exploration of Will and Mike’s relationship and *heavy* implication about Will’s feelings for Mike was amazing. I don’t ship it, mostly because Will deserves a lot better and Mike seems exceptionally straight, but Will’s feelings I eat up. Mileven this season was just kind of... whatever? They didn’t seem to be the focus, unlike other seasons and it showed.

Plotwise, I found the 001 twist pretty good actually. The pieces fit together nicely and while I knew the nurse in the lab was important, I really didn’t get the full picture until they laid it out to me.

[marypsue]

REVERSE CURSE DAY!! Very underformed theory on what may happen: we’re gonna see more of what’s happening with billy leaving max alone and it’ll be ominous and concerning. Two, the eleven is heading off and I’m curious if she’ll still go alone this time. Jonathan is gonna be Not Handling the loss of powers, and also (this one more is out there) maybe he’s also possessed and to maintain spy qualities it was impossible for him to keep his powers and not immediately freak over will. Theory two, ?????idk maybe the mind slayer was so unknowable or unpleasant his mind shut itself down in defense????? Buuuuut it’s a good chance to Jonathan to learn to communicate/be with people sans comfort blanket (turns out I’m actually very bad at coming up with theories but I swear I also just woke up). Also I wonder what we’ll see now that Robin is no powers team confirmed(NANCY ILY BUT NOT EVERYONE THAT IS HIDING IS HIDING POWERS) . Even if she doesn’t show up it’s also very funny to me if Steve walks into scoops and she’s immediately like so you have powers huh. Buuuuut obviously Robin is iconic and I’m rooting for her joining the plot sooner ( Steve and Robin are shamelessly my favorite duo) (( but I do love curse reverse Jonathan and Steve energy! Also max and El friendship being well done and not the duffer’s favorite/only way to write female relationship which is stupid conflict and then miraculous bonding ) Also I love your season four observations, and the way the show would’ve been better in your hands!! No more Russia plot lines!! Also I think it would’ve been objectively very funny if Nancy and Jonathan both decided to do a last minute hurrah and fly out to Hawkins/Calif and they ended up both switching teams. Also imagine the insane opportunities of a will Joyce Mike Nancy and Argyle set up. Maybe Joyce isn’t there bc the show tries to respect it’s audience and has her present during El’s “““ arrest””” and she ends up accompanying her to the Nina Project. Then we still get to see Nancy the big sister which is a role that we don’t see often. Also I cannot believe they did an entire season badly trying to show our Hunt The Freaks and made up a new one instead dod using Jonathan. Who isn’t well liked, under mysterious circumstances got to bring his brother back to life, is always there when shit goes wrong, and also experiences class based ostracism. Because imagine the cool potential for a Steve and Jonathan dynamic and actual growth bc then they can finally go back to foils but with growth. Steve is kinda wierd now, Jonathan in some ways has things that Steve doesn’t, also they’re both the protectors of their respective band of kids and are both shown to have been distancing themselves from that role kinda. ANYWAY that’s not relevant but can’t wait fir the chapter tonight!!

Fic day!! And thank you so much for sharing your thoughts. Now I am ridiculously excited to share the next couple of chapters! (Steve and Robin are also my favourite duo. Shh, don't tell the others.)

I'm still only at the end of episode three, so I can't say much, but oh my god the hilarity of Nancy and Jonathan just missing each other? That would have been pure gold. And I never even thought of it, but you're right, it would have made so much sense to have Jonathan be the target of a witchhunt, and given so many good character opportunities for him and Steve. I just feel so bad for him, like, very clearly the Duffers are wishing they could just write him out and he deserves so much better. I did not expect to get this attached to him after my first watchthrough, but here we are.

(Tangentially related: the beautiful and talented @daddygrandpaandthebeaver is, as we speak, working on a season 4 AU rewrite where the timeskip between s3 and s4 is three years instead of nine months, and Dustin is the one who's running a drama I mean, D&D club and gets a murder unfairly pinned on him and the Party and assorted friends and relatives have to assemble to save him from the torches and pitchforks, and I am so hype for that fic that it's unbelievable.)

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Stranger Things Season 4 Review (spoilers)

Now that we’ve come to the end of our Stranger Things season 4 journey, I’d like to review the season as a whole. After 3 years of waiting, was this season worth the wait? I’d say yes. The visuals, acting, stakes, villain, and story were all phenomenal in my opinion. Obviously, it wasn’t perfect and I do have some problems but that by no means make this season bad. This is probably my second favorite season after season 2. Season 2 will always be my personal favorite but that’s a post for another day. I will break this review into what I enjoyed and what I didn’t enjoy. 

What I liked:

The visuals- everything from Vecna to the locations were very visually appealing and the effects were top-notch

The characters- as always, the characters were wonderfully acted and compelling. Murray, especially, was really funny. 

Nancy Wheeler- in season 3, I really lost interest with her as a character. However, I was rooting for her this season and I loved seeing her in action again

Steve Harrington- he was outstanding this season and I’m so happy that he’s finally figuring out what he wants. He deserves to be happy. Also, I loved his friendship with Robin

Max Mayfield- she really became one of my favorites this season. Her battle against Vecna was very compelling and moving

The new characters- all were very memorable and likable, especially Eddie, Chrissy, and Argyle

Lumax and ep. 4- what else can I say? Max and Lucas are soulmates

The stakes- I legitimately felt the stakes this season and worried for my faves. Plus, that cliffhanger ending really makes me wonder what’ll happen in season 5.

The twists- I honestly had no idea what was going to happen and was pleasantly surprised multiple times.

The demogorgon- definitely the scariest demogorgon in the whole show

Vecna- BEST. VILLAIN. EVER. Jamie Campbell Bower owned this role and was terrifying

What I disliked

While I enjoyed so many things about this season, I definitely think the Duffers don’t do a good job balancing out their characters. Team California felt left behind, particularly Will and Jonathan. I hope Will plays a bigger role in season 5 because he deserves it. Although, I did enjoy his convos with Mike. Jonathan though, he hasn’t been interesting since season 2. I hope he gets better in season 5 because man, he’s so dull.

I also thought the finale was underwhelming. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the lumax scenes, Nancy being a girlboss, and Vecna vs. Eleven. The acting and visual were great too. However, I do think the Duffers cut corners. I wanted to see the other character’s reactions to Eddie’s death and Max’s comatose state. I wanted more deaths. I wanted more action. Instead, we got a ton of monologuing on Vecna’s part. Also, the entire main cast is still alive. Why couldn’t they kill off Steve, Nancy, or Robin? I hope we get some real angst in season 5. Personally, I think Eddie should have lived. He died to save Dustin and prove that he wasn’t a coward. But, was it necessary? Probably not.

I think the finale was a tad rushed. I mean, Vecna won. He freaking tore Hawkins open and sent it into chaos. Why couldn’t we see the immediate aftermath? Why couldn’t we see Dustin being comforted by his friends? Why was there a 2 day time skip? 

I’m still very excited for season 5 and I wonder how they’re going to stop the literal Upside Down. I just hope the finale is done better. Overall, I give this season a 9/10 for great acting, visuals, villain, and characters.

[cecesxwickedxocsx]

So I stayed up until 4 am watching Stranger Things Season 4 Vol 1 and- I have thoughts. Please note that below the cut there are spoilers

I don’t want Steve and Nancy. I keep thinking about the people complaining that Erica was shoehorned in and like- no. she was fine, great, love Erica. What was being forced in was the ‘romantic’ tension between Steve and Nancy and I hated every moment of it. Also why does Eddie- the guy on the run for a murder he didn’t commit and currently trapped in the upside down, something he didn’t know existed until a day or two ago- giving a flying fuck about the romance between Steve Harrington and Nancy Wheeler- two people he didn’t seem to really know or even like?

Eddie Munson is baby. 

Erica is great, again, love her. I think she adds a level of humor that is hard to get from the other characters who are all actually traumatized children. 

Dustin is great 10/10 no notes. 

Why do they keep having Lucas be like- the one who abandons the friendship? Like??? In his defense, Mike and Dustin definitely weren’t there for his big moment because scheduling conflict but him so quickly lying about D&D and the hellfire club and then watching as the weird jocks beat the hell out of the other guys in the group like??? Other than that Lucas is amazing and I love him. 

Max is a queen. Her taste in music is flawless. Also in the trailers it showed Billy’s grave reading Billy Hargrove and later reading William and I know some people had theories about that but in the actual show (so far) it only showed William so was that an editing error or like- I guess we’ll see in July. 

Mike kind of sucks. idk what to tell you. Nothing on Finn, Mike is just kind of shit. 

Robin’s gay panic is relatable. Her sudden added ‘quirkiness’ is- something. 

I would like more Will. I feel like there wasn’t much of him in the season so far other than being angry at Mike- apologizing to Mike (As well as accepting Mike’s apology) and the painting we keep hearing about- which I’m not totally clear on where it is right now? Will packed it but I think they left their packs behind when being gunned the fuck down?

Winona’s face is 10/10. No notes. 

The Hopper situation is a lot. Also I’m convinced the Russian guy is not making it to the end of the season. 

Murray continues to be great. I would let him and his black belt hold my drink in the bar.

I totally called Grindelwald being 1. I also called him having something to do with the kids dying. However I didn’t predict Jace Wayland actually being the son of Victor Creel. Though in retrospect I should have. fuck Caius. Cheers to them copy pasting and recoloring Red Skull for Vecna’s design tho

Suzie’s family is Mormon, right? I mean they could be quiverfull fundies but like??? They’re in Utah. so?

Fuck Brenner and Owens. 

all in all- I think this season just has way too much going on. I completely forgot about the satanic panic led by Preppy Billy and his band of merry hooligans up until I was writing this about Lucas. There was just so damn much to keep up with and while I’m sure it was all necessary to some degree I’m just like- not caring about certain parts of it and it’s a lot to keep track of. I’m excited for July 1st but damn. 

also Again. No Nancy and Steve. Jonathan still exists, He and Nancy are still technically dating Like??? Just let them be a throuple or at least have Nancy and Jonathan break up before you push Nancy and Steve in my face. 

[nothinggold13]

Stranger Things 4 thoughts coming at you over a week since I finished the season:

‘Bout to be more Controversial than pineapple on pizza, but... I don’t care for Eddie. I don’t hate him or anything, but he makes me uncomfy. His personality makes me anxious. Not a fan.

I do have deep feelings over the wasted potential that was him and Chrissy, though.

You just know in another world they would have discovered the music thing in time to save her, and he would have literally played her a song himself to break her free from Vecna. (:

Moving on.

ARGLYE THOUGH. THE REAL STAR OF THIS SEASON.

WHEN HE MAKES THE GOSH DARN HEADSTONE OUT OF A PIZZA BOX??? I DON’T CARE THAT EVERYONE CALLED IT DUMB OR THAT THE MOMENT WAS MOSTLY COMEDIC: THAT ACTION SHOWED ARGYLE’S FREAKING HEART, AND I LOVE HIM TO DEATH.

THEY BURIED A MAN AND ARGYLE SAT THERE AND THOUGHT, “BUT HE DESERVES TO BE REMEMBERED.”

THE. ABSOLUTE. STAR.

MY DARLING, DEAREST BOY.

Can’t believe how dirty they did Jancy this season!!!!!!

Ok, no, I actually have hated the way they’ve handled Jancy since the literal moment they got together in season 2, but now they’re just setting them up for failure!!!!

Fully expecting them to break up next season, (though I am holding on to the one singular shred of hope that is them ACTUALLY COMMUNICATING and becoming stronger for it in the end).

And, my goodness, if they break up Jancy just to make Nancy get back together with STEVE???

There will be RIOTING.

I love Steve!!! I love his growth!!!! I love him and Nancy developing a friendship!!!!

BUT WE HAVE LONG SINCE MOVED ON FROM THEM AS A ROMANTIC COUPLE NARRATIVELY AND I WOULD RATHER STEVE DIE THAN SEE HIM DATE NANCY AGAIN.

(That might be overdramatic. I haven’t decided yet.)

Nancy and her guns???? Love.

The show is actually about Kids on Bikes, and if you could SEE how excited I was during the bike scenes----

HOPPER WITH A SWORD

HOPPER WITH A SWORD AND NANCY WITH HER GUN AT THE SAME TIME

Literally why was the last episode 10 hours long? It literally could have been split into parts.

Okay I am actually OBSESSED with the Concept of the basketball boys. Like, I realize they are highkey villains (or, at the least, antagonists), but in another context, they would literally be the heroes and I love that for them.

“Oh, my girlfriend just got murdered! Guess we better solve her murder and battle an evil cult! GO TEAM!”

Honestly iconic.

This wasn’t their universe, but the PREMISE of them is!!! Fabulous!!

“YoU’rE tHe HeArT mIkE!!!” literally no

Also the end of episode 4 (I think?) had me highkey crying actually, like, that was CINEMA

The speech about good people wanting to help!!! Paired with Lucas escaping the Basketball Boys!!! All of that happening!!!! Goodness!!!

(Don’t actually remember the episode number but I think that was 3 or 4.)

I get that Max was relating that song to Billy but are you REALLY telling me there’s not a SINGLE OTHER SONG that is powerful enough to save her from Vecna??

I’m not saying that because I don’t like the song!! I have enjoyed it very much!!!

BUT MAX HAD TO LISTEN TO IT ESSENTIALLY ON REPEAT FOREVER, AND I’M LIKE??? REALLY GIRL??? YOU HAVE NO OTHER MEANINGFUL MUSIC???

I would like to just state for the record that I am one of potentially 6 people who can’t get over Steve/Robin as a ship, so they’re still kind of killing me a little.

Them having secret conversations across the room in a crowd. Steve saying he would date her, if circumstances were different. Robin saying his name first when she was getting attacked in the Upside Down. Help.

Don’t worry, I know it will never happen, but I just...

I’m a little hung up on them.

THEY DID THE THING IN SEASON 3 WHERE THEY GET SCARED AND ACCIDENTALLY HOLD HANDS, OK??? ALL THE ST SHIPS DO THAT, PRETTY MUCH.

I will try to control myself.

OH. A really fun thing is that the only major spoiler I saw before watching was that the orderly was 001 (and was also Vecna)

Like, I literally avoided spoilers so well that I didn’t know Max died for a freakin’ minute there!!

BUT knowing about Vecna made watching the season very exciting because, like, I knew he WOULD be evil... but I didn’t know if he had always been evil.

Like... every scene I was like... “Does he care about Eleven, or is he trying to manipulate her? He genuinely seems to feel for the other kids right here-- hmmmm. Is he actually helping her escape? Oh, no, she just offered her help; he’s definitely gonna manipulate her into killing some people. WAIT, NO, HE JUST WANTS THE THING REMOVED-- OH WAIT AGAIN!!!!”

(Obviously the answer is he was evil the whole time.)

(But it was fun trying to guess whether that was the case or whether something had made him evil between the time El knew him & he became Vecna.)

Oh, ok, the other spoiler I heard but avoided any details of was Eddie’s death

And I just gotta say

That it was absolutely STUPID

“I didn’t run this time” BUDDY

The decision he made to run?? To stay in the Upside Down, but to run away and buy everyone some time? THAT WAS HIM MAKING A HEROIC STAND

Him deciding to stop running and face the bat creatures head-on?

LITERALLY SO STUPID, AND FOR WHAT PURPOSE???

He made it sound like he was being a coward for running, when in that moment, running was literally the bravest and most helpful thing he could have done. He was buying them time! He was being a hero! He wasn’t running away from his problems; he was doing a job!

And then he stopped and was like “I’m not a Real Hero unless I Get Killed instead!”

Absolute buffoon

(He did sort of grow on me in the last episode. As a whole his personality was still icky to me, but he was a lot more subdued and I could appreciate him more. “Chrissy, this is for you,” was----- yeah.)

Side note: when are we going to talk about the fact that Dustin is literally the best one????

He is the best child. He can do no wrong. Angel baby. Love that boy.

(The REAL heart of the team, let’s be honest)

OKAY AND the one scene where they’re exploring the house and Steve’s trying to be all cool and knowledgeable or whatever and Dustin’s just basically laughing off everything he says???

10/10 most realistic depiction of being a Cool Older Kid when the younger kids who look up to you start growing up

(Had a 15 year old make fun of me for having never had a boyfriend)

(I’ve known her since she was, like, 4)

Oh. Also? JOYCE AND HOPPER

LOVE

......Is that all my thoughts?

Probably not.

OH WAIT THE PART WHERE DUSTIN TELLS EDDIE’S UNCLE THAT EDDIE “FOUGHT AND DIED TO PROTECT THIS TOWN”

BUDDY

PUBLICLY, THAT WAS AN EARTHQUAKE

YOU’RE TELLING HIS UNCLE THAT EDDIE FOUGHT AN EARTHQUAKE???

Love that, 10/10, not even trying

(No it was a real sweet moment but it was just so funny to me because of the public context of the entire incident.)

To be perfectly honest, the only thing I cared enough to watch this season for was actually El & Hopper’s reunion.

All the reunions, actually, were the best part of the entire thing

But El & Hop’s made me extra DKJSJLSJDLKDSK, you know??

Except I’m literally obsessed with the fact that everybody else literally watched them pull up, saw Hopper get out of the car (ALIVE), and had to NOT REACT so that he could sneak in and surprise El

My sister and I were joking about what that must have looked like

I loved it

ANYWAY

I may have had more thoughts, but I think I’m gonna call it

Those were some of the biggest feelings I had about Season 4

(I think I may have liked it better than season 3 which is encouraging because historically I have liked the show less and less with each passing season)

So yeah

If you read all of this, here’s a thousand Cool Points

[lucascsinclairs]

plumb and blue raspberry?

plumb: i think it's pretty likely that at least one of the new supporting characters for this season will probably die. like if we look at the new side characters last season (heather, the newspaper people, the mayor, old lady driscoll) quite many of them ended up dying so it will probably be the same this time around with all the new characters they've announced. out of all of them i'd say i think the most likely to die is chrissy the cheerleader. we don't know much about her but i'm just getting the feeling that she could end up like barb and heather before her; at a wrong place at a wrong time while supernatural evildoers are around.

blue raspberry: keeping in mind the groupings we will most likely see this season, the friendships and pairings I'm excited to see include el and jonathan, max and robin and lucas and nancy. we haven't really seen them interacting before but i have a feeling they could work as a duos! like max and robin are both witty and smart and don't take shit from anybody, nancy and lucas both radiate older sibling energy and are smart and resourceful and never willing to give up, and i would just really love to see a brother sister relationship with el and jonathan, i think it would be so sweet!

[stevesnailbat]

What do you want to see for Steve's storyline in S4?

okay wow! this is a great question thank you!

first and foremost. i want to see steve GROW. he’s had a great character arc so far but i feel like he has so much more room to develop and show his personality. going off of this:

i’d like to see him used for something other than some comedic relief! every season he’s just a punching bag, and it’s kinda overplayed now. i feel like i speak for a lot of people when i say that i would like to see him stay triumphant in the new season!

steve should interact with the teens his age more! i feel like there was such a GREAT dynamic that was created between steve, nancy and jonathan at the end of season one, and they really just let it flop. i think it’d be cool to see him and robin team up with nancy and jonathan on some parts! like i said, the scoops troop dynamic was wonderful! but i think they’re lacking development in the relationships with all of the older teens.

i’m excited to see where they take his friendship with robin!! i’d love to see him be a great ally to her and just watch them grow closer!!!

just because nancy is also a main character in the series does not mean they have to keep dragging along the lovesick, heartbroken teen scenario. steve doesn’t have to act mopey and sad every time he sees nancy.

i know i may seem all for steve finding love with the amount of fics i have! but, i do firmly believe that steve 100% does NOT NEED a significant other to be ultimately happy in the show. we saw him starting to be happy at the end of season 3 (with robin’s friendship and whatnot) and i think that just proves that he just needs assurance and people around him who will care and listen to him, since it’s obviously a rarity in his life. so for this: STEVE CAN BE HAPPY WITHOUT A PARTNER

hearing some more of his backstory/meeting his parents would be interesting! they’ve been mentioned so many times but never were shown? i’d like to see the man behind steve’s childhood trauma so we can all square up against him

more blonde highlights and glossy lips please

uh—more outfits? thank the costume department for giving us steve in those royal blue shorts and stupid sailor hat BUT i want to see him wearing some fashion-forward shit that robin picks out for him (just no more pastel polos for us please and thank you !)

and the bat! bring back the nail bat! BRING IT BACK!!!! i want to see him swing that thing again like he did in seasons one and two

[share-the-damn-bed]

I’m bored in quarantine so I’m gonna ask another question if you don’t mind. What do you think is in store for Jancy in S4?

Oh boy, this is going to be long and cover a lot of things you did not ask about but I’ll get there, I promise 😊. I’m going to be honest and say I haven’t given it much thought at all. Coming off of season 3 feels a lot different than coming off of season 2, in my experience. After season 2 I NEEDED season 3. I wanted to see Jonathan and Nancy in a relationship and see how every character arc progressed. I felt impatient, dying for any tid bit of information and leaked spoiler I could find. 

Now, I’m still excited, but I’m much more relaxed (I guess?) when it comes to season 4. The ending of season 3 satiated whatever need I felt after finishing season 2 and it’s almost like a save point for me in case the series completely falls apart or the characters get ruined beyond repair. Now I kind of just want to strap in and enjoy the ride and let whatever happens in season 4 happen. Which I’m genuinely excited to experience again.

Because, another thing, I regret reading/looking at all the spoilers before season 3 dropped and gifing (familiarizing myself with) the newest trailers because I felt like I knew too much while watching the new season (like this character will be fine because even though they’re in danger now, we’ve seen them in more outfits). Not to say I hated the new season, I didn’t at all, but it was very different than my season 2 viewing. Like, I wish I felt the danger more when Jonathan and Nancy were in the hospital (whether I thought they would die or be possessed or something) but based on what we could piece together from all the spoiler/trailer stuff, I knew they were going to be fine. 

This is a long roundabout way of me saying that I will not be posting about any season 4 interview, spoiler, still frame, or related materials. I also am begging everyone to please avoid sending me spoilers because I’m trying to avoid learning as much about the new season as possible. I’ve already unintentionally learned a few things from untagged tumblr posts and my own lack of self control and I really don’t want to know any more details. This doesn’t mean I won’t theorize though, because that can still be enjoyable, but if any spoiler/interview/trailer/what-have-you contradict the following thoughts, please do not let me know. 

So here are my very general and basic thoughts on what is in store for Jonathan, Nancy, and Jancy in ST4:

I think (I hope) they spend most of the season apart. No, I’m not a monster, but I think the characters need this and we, as fans, need this. Jonathan has been Nancy’s side kick for 2 seasons, despite even his best moments, he mostly seemed like a sounding board for Nancy’s thoughts. I’m genuinely excited to see what he’ll do without Nancy and for the love of god I want to see him interact with his family and specifically El. My two major dreams for this season are 1) Byers family moments and 2) Jonathan and El sibling dynamics. Now if Jonathan becomes a side kick to any of his family members or new characters like he was for Nancy I will officially give up all hope that they’ll do anything with his character ever again. 

For Nancy, the one spoiler I’ve gathered (unintentionally) is that it looks like she’ll be teaming up with Robin and Steve (again, please don’t comment on the validity of this). If this is the case, I am 100% in support. Steve and Nancy are my brOTP and I’ve been dying for their friendship. Also, seeing Nancy interact with another girl her age will be great (not to mention I love Robin) and I think this group will have an awesome dynamic. 

So yeah, I see most of the season Jancy being separated and doing their own thing and there will be tension and pining and they’ll frequently allude to their relationship, but it will all be worth it once they’re reunited. Probably in the second to last, or last episode. Which that reunion, ooofffff, should be good. 

But for the most part, I don’t know what’s going to happen at all. This season should be very interesting and I, personally, am very excited.

In case you’re interested, here’re my season 3 predictions from Feb 15, 2019 which is just as equally vague as the one’s I’m making for season 4. 

Thank you so much for the ask!!!!!! I too am very bored during quarantine.

[kaypeace21]

The Duffers use of music proves byler is endgame (music-analysis)

The Duffers in an interview said that they choose songs for the show very deliberately -sometimes spending weeks on Spotify to find just the right song to convey an emotion/context of a scene. Songs in all seasons (but especially in s3) were used to show how characters are feeling- or just an action they’re about to commit.

For instance, Karen when she’s about to meet Billy at the motel-  feels apprehensive and wants to get out of it (since it would hurt her family) and she was just flirting with Billy as a way to escape her own issues, about her life. She never flirted with Billy for the end-goal of “getting him.”

They even use “cat’s in the cradle’ which could be shown as a way to illustrate the inappropriate age disparity between Billy/Karen.

Other examples-

Right before the boys run away from the lingerie store- the lyrics are literally “I just walk away” XD

Jim when he looks at Joyce- the lyrics are “she’s got you.” ( cause he’s in love with her).

-And Jim after getting Mike to not come over to see El, (by yelling at him) sings…

Joyce after she sees Bob’s drawing fall to the ground and then crouches to pick it up.

And songs also illustrates how Nancy feels about her job (with her sexist co-workers). As the morose lyrics of “I’ll be working here forever” play as it zooms in on Hawkins post -as Nancy rushes inside.

As well as  her excitement -about investigating a new case. As Jancy leaves and the very on the nose song  of “get up and go” begins -as they get into the car.

Billy when he pulls out chloroform (from a perfume bottle).

El after dumping Mike (and smiling about it) XD

So all the byler stuff I’m about to mention proves byler is endgame.

So yes, the fact that the very first lyrics that play when we see mileven kiss for the first time  is “Just a little uncertainty can bring you down”- reflects that (just like the others, the song reflects Mike’s true feelings). The song is from the album “boy in the box (cough closet)”.

And we know this is how Mike (not El) feels about their relationship because he begins to sing the song right after this lyric. It mirrors how when Will danced with a girl (who owned a rainbow hair clip) the lyrics were “every smile you fake.”

Mike continues “And nobody wants to know you now. And nobody wants to show you how.So if you’re lost and on your own. You can never surrender.” He fears that if he isn’t straight everyone he cares about will abandon him, and that he’d be lost and the only one ‘like this’ -all alone.But he can’t ‘surrender’ the false-idea of being in love with El (out of fear).  El even says to “stop” and tries to cover his mouth to prevent him from singing and Mike asks “What you don’t like it?” and El just says “No!”.

Which may be a purposeful juxtaposition to how Robin came out- and instead both Robin and Steve sang off-tune happily together- while El covers Mike’s mouth and tells him to stop singing. When Mileven kiss at the end of the season the song ‘the first i love you’ plays. The same song that plays when Robin comes out to steve (to illustrate the juxtaposition).

What’s interesting is ( right before the mileven kiss) we see a zoom in shot of a picture of Will and a rainbow . Like that’s Will! He has light brown hair (not black) and Will is the only one associated with fire and has drawn himself with fire in the past.

And since El has Mike related-stuff all over her room, and barely knows Will. Mike probably lied saying it was supposed to be him- which is why it’s above her bed.And we also see that based on it’s placement Mike is facing the Will drawing so he can see it  (cause we see El in front of the poster and Mike sitting opposite of her during the 1st kiss) . 

And during this transition the lyrics read “cause just a little more time could open closing doors” Which could be hinting at byler becoming a thing later - when (after some ‘time’) they both become ready to actually admit their feelings/sexuality - despite the other probably doubting the other has feelings for them.

I mean we even see an illustration of Will & the text of the name ‘Mike’ written out next to a rainbow-heart. And 2 other drawings next to the rainbow heart drawing (that are covered in red hearts). XD

(*for those who can’t see Mike written out in the transitioned will/mike pic)

However, what’s interesting though is the one other things he took down from his wall. In S1 Mike (before he even met El)  has a heart sign, with a red heart being propelled by a rainbow. Then in s3 it's gone from his wall when he dates El (cause he's trying to repress the fact he's gay). Why El has a drawing that says Mike (with a heart also propelled by a rainbow.) He can't use El to escape the truth. His rainbow follows him everywhere even when he tries to hide it (from his basement wall and himself) -  and when kissing El!Aka he tries to take it down (like he pretends to be straight). However, in the first ep of s3 when Mike is making-out with El (trying to project his feelings for Will on to her by looking at the Will drawing while kissing) we see a emergence of the heart being propelled by a rainbow (in El’s room) as a drawing.  signifying Mike participating in compulsory-heterosexuality,  and the fact no matter how hard he tries- he’s not straight!

Also El’s reaction to the song - hints that this isn’t actually her mixtape. But one that Mike made for her. or Will made for Mike (since jon makes mixtapes and prob taught him how- Will in s3 gave a mixtape to Dustin so it would not surprise me if he gave one to Mike).

So similar to the drawing, the mixtape hints at byler’s feelings

  ‘I can’t fight this feeling’ (which mileven makes out to later). Actually indicates Mike fighting his feelings for Will. And how he’s been trying to fight his feelings for Will, all season.

Besides the lyrics themselves- the singer literally went on record about the song’s meaning . Which is about a boy being in love/pinning over his friend of many years and never thinking he had a chance at being with them (and being afraid he’d ruin the relationship if he confessed)- but slowly thinking he could  be with them (and that they might feel the same way about him) . And in the song the 2 people AREN’T even together yet!

“Oh, I can’t fight this feeling any longer. And yet I’m still afraid to let it flow. What started out this friendship has grown stronger, I only wish I had the strength to let it show. I tell myself that I can’t hold out forever .I said there is no reason for my fear ‘Cause I feel so secure when we’re together ‘.You give my life direction. You make everything so clear. And even as I wander I’m keeping you in sight. You’re a candle in the window on a cold, dark winter’s night. And I’m getting closer than I ever thought I might”

This makes no sense for mileven who kissed after knowing each other for a week and who didn’t have a long established friendship, beforehand. And who also are already together (and not afraid to express their ‘romantic feelings’ for each other).

Then in s2, mileven dance to ‘every breath you take’ a break up song about a stalker ex. The writer of the song also has said many times “it’s NOT a love song.” The duffers obviously knew that. Lumax also danced to it and Lucas was called a ‘stalker’. El also stalked Mike in s2 (all that stuff milevens found romantic- El watching him without him knowing. Mike says he was not ok with it in s3). And in s3 he said not to do that and she just says ‘i make my own rules’. Not to mention Nancy teaching Dustin how to dance is a direct parallel to Mike teaching El. 

Mike also tries to act like Dustin, and  forces Will to dance with a girl (who’s wearing a rainbow hair clip). Trying to be a good sport like Dustin is about lumax. And right after this we see Dustin look sad about Max/Lucas dancing and Mike (next to Dustin) look sadly at Will/girl dancing in the same exact frame as Max/Lucas. As they switch between these 2 shots to emphasize their sadness/jealousy.Then they both sit down (mirroring each other) on the verge of tears before Nancy and El show up to comfort them and distract them.  As El once again (presumably) wears Nancy dress. Mike “you cant go with your sister… i mean you can but it’d be really weird.”

Also in regards to Will- when I heard they were going to have the song ‘Never ending story’ I wondered if they were going to re-contextualize one line in particular to be a hint at Will’s queerness. And shock- they did it! XD

The lyric is “ Rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold behind the clouds and there upon a rainbow Is the answer to a never ending story. ”

And of course Will is the one with a secret- that is ‘rainbow’ related. And they pan to him during the “secrets” line. I think Will is less in the denial phase than Mike is and already knows he’s gay and in love with him.

And this wasn’t a coincidence because when Lumax makes fun of Dustin they sing the lyrics incorrectly as  “The mirror of your dreams. Rhymes that keep their secrets…” And it pans to Will AGAIN!

We see Will obscured in shadows to represent he’s “hiding”.

And then he appears in the light, looking sadly at D&D as the lyrics , “rhymes that keep their secrets” is sang (again).

And we see he’s specifically looking at the d&d game sadly and about to give it away- since they zoom in on the game title (before he places it in the “donation” box). 

Because the d&d game is used to reflect his desires (like a “mirror”) . It’s the ‘mirror of his dreams’- to be with Mike. Cue Mike saying “ what did you think,really? That we were never gonna get girlfriends? We were just gonna sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives?” And poor Will  just responding with “Yeah, I guess I did. I really did.”

This lyric about the mirror is NOT in the original song. It was used once again to establish D&D as a romantic symbol for byler. Just like how they zoomed in on d&d right before the romantic “crazy together” speech.

Mike in s3 says “Blank makes you crazy… y’know like the word (love).” Flo in s1 says “ Only love makes you that crazy and that stupid.” Cue Will calling himself “stupid” 4 times (after Mike says they won’t be together playing games for the rest of their lives-and ripping up the Halloween pic , out of heart-break).

(x)

So again right after we see the zoom-in of the game (another romantically coded scene happens after). Will puts the game in the ‘donation’ pile - and Mike isn’t happy about it.

Mike: “WHOA, dude, that’s the donation box.”

Will: “ I know, I’ll just use yours,  when I come back. (pause) if WE still want to play?”

( translation: “I love and want to be with you but I’m not going to pursue you and get my heart broken again. Because even if I feel like you love me… I can’t trust my own instincts about how you truly feel anymore. If you want to play this ‘game of love’  with me you have to initiate/participate in the game properly.” Mike when fixated on El even says it was a cool campaign but  “we just weren’t in the mood right now.” and  also says to Will “c’mon, let’s play for real”  but Will storms off (not thinking that what Mike said was genuine).  

Mike : “Yeah, but what if you want to join another party?”

(*cough, the other ‘species’/girls, or just someone else: girl, guy or otherwise)

Will: “Not possible.”

(Will will always love Mike, and  admits he wants to be with him for the rest of his life).

(x)

And we actually see the Hopper’s Monologue (where Mike is shown)- reflects what Mike said to Will earlier. Mike does want to love Will but he’s just scared of changing their relationship into something romantic- and even though a part of him doesn’t want things to change, he’s still afraid that Will will move on from him as they both get older. “I’ve been feeling distant from you. Like you’re pulling away from me or something” (Will does this both figuratively/literally). I miss playing board games every night (d &d)”. “But I know you’re getting older, growing, changing. And I guess, if I’m being really honest, that’s what scares me. I don’t want things to change.”

Also the lyric “ Rhymes that keep their secrets will unfold behind the clouds and there upon a rainbow- is the answer to a never ending story. ”

One way or another Will’s secret (of being queer and/or being in love with Mike) will eventually come out. And that’s the answer to this “never ending story” between Will & Mike. Their love story. I mean who else is associated with Will’s story and has loads of rainbow symbolism - and has rainbow symbolism that  specifically connects them to Will?

*Lol don’t even get me started  on analyzing how in s1 when Mike thinks Will is dead- Mike hugs his mom and the lyrics are “and we kiss as though nothing could fall. And the shame.” Which is queer coded and written by David Bowie- and during the s2 “freak” speech- Will even says he’d rather be friends with Bowie than Kenny Roggers.

People need to realize no one is a bigger shipper of byler- than the Duffer brothers themselves! XD