#make-up artist eleven hopper

[normal-is-a-raging-psychopath]

I have a brain worm that refuses to leave. So

st modern college au.

no one met each other yet/ they're all kinda split.

so platonic madwheeler have they're own apartment, splitting rent because they're broke college students. Mike's an English major (no surprise there) and max. Max is a photography major. (is there like a proper term for it? does it come under media or something?)

Anyway, the point of this? her most frequent human subject is none other than - drumroll please - own very own Mike Wheeler.

He's been the reluctantly willing model of most of her for fun photoshoots. And he likes it. It's fun. Also genderqueer mike here because

Anyway, the reason I created this backstory is because one concept rooted itself in my brain and wouldnt let go.

Mike in a corset. that's it.

Anyway Onto the outfit:

this blouse.

and on top goes.

this. it's not exactly what i imagined, but it was the closest i could find in shape and design.

for pants (honestly i wasnt really sure what would fit)

would these go?? I dont know. Pretend it the same color/or a darker shade of the blouse.

Also:

Mike Wheeler in this outfit (or an approximation of it has been bouncing around my head for the past week.

In the au I've made for this, Max has an insta or something dedicated solely for the products of these photoshoots.

Sometimes it's landscapes, or views or maybe random moments captured, but most of it is mike.

Will in this is majoring in fashion (because designer x model trope) and El/Jane is majoring in cosmetology (? that's the name for it right?)

WIll is slightly obsessed with aforementioned social and more specifically, a certain model. When el asks, he says it's because of the clothes but the flush on his cheeks always gives him away.

In my head, will, max and el all go to one college focused specifically on fashion and related fields (cosmetology and photography included)

mike goes to another, non-specialized college nearby. His friends on campus are dustin our resident astro-physics major (because I fell in love with nasa dustin) and lucas who is studying to become a therapist and also coaches the local high school basketball team in his spare time.

Max is already friends w/ dustin and lucas but none of the four have met will and el yet.

So the way I see this happening, for the final term exam at willelmax college, instead of an actual exam, they've clubed the majors together and have to put together a fashion show. kinda. In each group there is one photographer, one make-up artist, one designer and one model. see where this is going?

Of course, willelmax are grouped together and there are obviously some odd numbers. One group doesnt have a photographer and another doesnt have a make-up student. While annoying it's not a huge problem, except the model that was supposed to be assigned to their group, left college due to a family emergency out of state.

Enter mike.

he wont' be graded (duh) but he's dedicated. (the gorgeous hazel-eyed designer hs nothing to do with it, no matter what max says. besides, he seen her ogle at the el though she'd probably stab him if he said it out loud)

Obviously, will has a little (tiny, minuscule really) crush. Max and el and over being third wheels and maybe there's something going on there too.

So they have like two months to put together their final project (that is individualized based on their major) and there a lot of light hearted fun and banter and maybe tension (of the good kind).

Also before I forget, maybe the theme is like royalty or fantasy or something so cleradin sneaks it way in.

Anyway, brainworm out of my head, I now regretfully have to go back to my studies which i have been neglectingin order to scribble this down.

Conclusion?

Mike Wheeler in a corset. Thank you for listening.

[murderbot-fanimation-project]

SPOTLIGHT ON:

Murderbot Fanimation Project Backgrounds!

(Part 1 of 3) (Jump to parts [2] [3])

They may be the literal background of the finished product, but the backgrounds done for the Murderbot Diaries Fanimation Project deserve their time in the spotlight!

Part of what makes the Fanimation stand out as much as it does is the love, care, and attention to detail that the artists poured into the backgrounds. The team stuck closely to the source texts when designing the spaces, producing some beautiful pieces of art that deserve appreciation on their own.

You can watch the Murderbot Diaries Fanimation Project here.

(IDs are in alt text)

Scanners - Initial sketch and layout by Jude, finalised and coloured by @chimaerakitten

"I had to hack an ID-screening system and some weapon-scanning drones on the level above..."

ASR Pit - by Lue

"This assessment zone was a barren stretch of coastal island, with low, flat hills rising and falling and thick greenish-black grass up to my ankles [...] The coast was dotted with big bare craters, one of which Bharadwaj and Volescu were taking samples in. The planet had a ring, which from our current position dominated the horizon when you looked out to sea."

AC Food Court - by Vanessa

"The location for the meeting was a food service place in the main mall area. [...] There were multiple open levels inside, with tables and chairs, and it was 40 percent full of humans and augmented humans."

Deltfall - by @chimaerakitten with bodies by @theash0

"There were eleven messily dead humans in the hub, sprawled on the floor, in chairs, the monitoring stations and projection surfaces behind them showing impact damage from projectile and energy weapon fire."

ASR Hopper - by @broken-risk-assessment-module

"It was a series of rocky hills in a thick tropical jungle, heavily occupied by a large range of fauna."

PresAux Hub - by Cephei

"There were mugs and empty meal packets on some of the consoles. I’m not cleaning that up unless I’m given a direct order."

AC Hotel - Layout and lineart by Vanessa, colour by Cephei

"The lobby was built on various platforms overlooking a holo sculpture of an open chasm filled with a giant crystalline structure growing out of the walls. [...] My clients were on the same platform as the check-in area, near the railing around the sculpture’s artificial chasm, sitting on a round backless couch thing that looked more like a decorative object than furniture."

Medbay - by @sometimesihaveideas

"I opened my security feed and found a camera for Medical. I was lying on the procedure table, my armor gone, just wearing what was left of my suit skin, the humans gathered around."

[jaymari-lyn]

Okay so we've established that all ships have that one artist whose songs are perfectly made for them

So here are my favorite ships and their artist:

Narlie (Nick Nelson + Charlie Spring): One Direction, and I know this one seems like kind of a stretch but hear me out. "Perfect", "What Makes You Beautiful", "Night Changes", and "They Don't Know About Us" fit their relationship so much. Or even like just Harry Styles, because "Late Night Talking" is literally these two wonderful idiots.

Wolfstar (Sirius Black + Remus Lupin): Conan Gray. You can't tell me that "Family Line", "Heather", and "Astronomy" are all not Sirius Black just singing to his werewolf boyfriend. Or that "Best Friend" and "Wish You Were Sober" aren't Remus Lupin coded?!

Byler (Will Byers + Mike Wheeler): My girl, my queen, Olivia Rodrigo. "Happier"? "Good 4 U"? "Traitor"? "Jealousy, Jealousy"? "Lacy"? "Drivers Lisense"? Want to know what all of these songs have in common? They were all written, sung, and produced by William J. Byers.

Steddie (Steve Harrington + Eddie Munson): Taylor Swift, of course! "Wildest Dreams", "Style", "Midnight Rain" "You Belong With Me", "Blank Space", and "Love Story" are all just songs that Taylor wrote specifically for Eddie and Steve.

Jegulus/Starchaser (James Potter + Regulus Black): She is such an icon that she is on this list twice, but once again Taylor Swift. If you try and convince me that James is not in fact the physical embodiment of the whole Lover album, or that Reggie isn't just Reputation in a trench coat, fedora, and sunglasses, then you are just plain wrong.

Ronance (Robin Buckley + Nancy Wheeler): Girl In Red. Do I even need to explain?

Elmax (Eleven Hopper + Max Mayfield): For them I would have to say Katy Perry. "Dark Horse", "Teenage Dream", "Last Friday Night", "I Kissed A Girl", "California Gurls", and "E.T" all scream Elmax to me.

Drarry (Draco Malfoy + Harry Potter): Definetly Ariana Grande. You just know that Draco knows every single word to "7 Rings" and will jump onto a table and belt it out if it comes on at a party. Let's also not forget "Into You", "POV", "34+35", "Positions", "Side to Side", and "Break Up With Your Girlfriend" are all just so Drarry coded.

[artaxlivs]

Excerpt:

He died. He fucking died. Finally, Eddie Munson - lifelong coward, lifelong runner away from all things scary - did the brave thing, took the stand against evil and what the fuck is his reward? Death.

This is just fucking great.

“Eeeeddie.” An eerie voice creeps from inside the darkness of oblivion that Eddie has found himself in. “Eddie Munson. I want to make a deal with you. For your life.”

Eddie’s not an idiot. He knows how this goes, he’s been playing Dungeons and Dragons since its creation. He knows exactly what happens when a disembodied voice promises you things while you’re in the fugue state of death.

“Thanks, but no thanks!” He tries to shout, but it doesn’t come out any louder than his regular voice, and gets swallowed up by the darkness almost immediately.

“Oh, Eddie. Are you sure?” He can almost feel the voice curling around him, cloying but empty like cigarette smoke. “I can promise you vengeance against those who’ve wronged you. I can make you powerful. Unstoppable- unkillable, even. I can give you a second chance at life. All you have to do is pledge your allegiance to me.”

Usually Eddie sleeps through his history classes, but even he knows that pledging allegiance blindly is how genocide happens, who the fuck does Vecna think he’s fooling?

“Fuck that, man!” He attempts to yell into the void again. “Eddie Munson is no champion for the evil bad guy. No, thank you!”

An echoing voice breaks through the mist in answer. It sounds like two voices layered on top of each other, one hopeful, the other weary, but both resolute. “We can offer another choice. We can put you back. You can save everyone, but you’ll have to start at the beginning. It will not be easy, but you can stop him. Do you accept?”

Well. Fuck.

* * * * *

Read the whole fic on Ao3: End of The Beginning

Relationships: Will Byers & Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson

Characters: Eleven, Mike Wheeler, Nancy Wheeler, Barbara "Barb" Holland, Jonathan Byers, Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair, Joyce Byers, Jim "Chief" Hopper

Additional Tags: Canon Compliant(kind of), Everybody Lives, Alternate Universe (but also the same), Stranger Things Reverse Big Bang 2023-2024, Inspired by Art, Time Loop (but not really)

Word count: 12,440

Rated M but just for language and themes (no smut, sorry my dudes)

No archive warnings

Artist: @alduade-art

Betas: Ash (who’s not on tumblr) and @alduade-art

Thanks to the mods @strangerthingsreversebigbang for being totally easy to work with and on top of everything all the time! This event was great!

[erikiara80]

Will is paralleled to the god-like turtle of The Dark Tower and IT. Maturin, symbol of creation, light and protection

In the Byers' house there's a little detail, a turtle and a red flower, that might be a big reference to those stories, and a huge hint at Twelvegate and Will's creation powers.

(El and Shardik, the cyborg Bear)

@lilitblaukatz @chirpsythismorning @shippingfangirl013 I think you'll like this.

In The Dark Tower series the Rose symbolizes the Tower and a higher being. The Tower holds the multiverse together and protects it. In fact, in the darkness there are primordial, god-like monsters which will destroy everything, should the the Tower fall. But there are also benevolent god-like beings who protect the Tower and the multiverse. One of the most powerful is Maturin.

(From Stephen King's IT Wiki and VS Battles Wiki)

Maturin the Turtle A kind, wise, and compassionate cosmic being with god-like powers. He is said to be constantly withdrawn into his shell, but one of the occasions that he did come out of it was when he had a stomachache which caused him to vomit out the mainstream universe, (something that occured as he was belching up some sort of "egg") after which he promptly retreated back into his shell. He's one of the twelve Guardians of the six Beams that hold up the Dark Tower and ensure the survival of existence as a whole. He is light and kindness, and its nemesis is IT (Pennywise) who takes the shape of a clown and a giant spider. In the novel IT the member of the Losers Club who speaks to Maturin is Bill (William) Denbrough.

The parallels with Will are incredible! But there are two guardians for each Beam. In Stranger Things, two keys, Will and Eleven.

Maturin vomited the universe. IT laid eggs. In Vecna's mindspace there are eggs and little spiders. Will throws up Dart.

And near Castle Byers Hopper and Joyce find a egg, that is also a reference to Alien. Will's character has many feminine traits and is the one associated with birth and creation.

Nancy in S4: It's like the Christmas lights. When Will was in the UD lights came to life. Steve, in 3x01, when the gate opens: Let there be light.

But Vecna/One is using him, he wants to corrupt him. And I think that Henry was kinda like Will, and he was the first one who was corrupted (by R. Brenner and the particles?)

Will is Bastian, the artist who creates and build things. He built Castle Byers with Jon just the way he drew it. This is the first time someone mentions building something in the show, before the Mind Flayer tells Billy (William) that he wants him to build what he sees, and One asks El to help him re-shape the world. It's interesting that she refuses and also destroys Twelve's tower (I'll make a post about that too)

Speaking of Twelve. Maturin is one of the twelve guardians of the Beams that hold up the Dark Tower, and Will has been associated with the number 12 many times since S1. So, Twelve represents him. And we see him build a tower.

They focus on the tower because it's important, a hint at Will's powers. In the poster in his room there's a red building.

Maturin is a protector, but tends to withdrawn into his shell. Will is kind and quiet. Always quiet, Lucas says.

But he's Will the Wise, a Cleric, a healer (the poster of The Cure) In his very first scene Dustin tells him to cast protection, and in S2 he tells the others how they can defeat the Mind Flayer.

The UD is "stuck" on the day he went missing, his name is on the grandfather clock, and he was given the Forever Clock. So he is connected to time itself. And (SPOILERS ON THE DARK TOWER) in that series there's a multiverse and a time loop. So maybe ST is about many timelines in a time loop?

IT, Maturin's nemesis, can take the shape of a giant spider and represents chaos, destruction and darkness.

Will's enemy is the Mind Flayer/Vecna, a man (or two?) who merged with a cosmic being and wants to destroy the world.

But maybe there's also another parallel with The Dark Tower. The red storm of the Mind Flayer and the red tower that Twelve builds remind me of the Crimson King.

This is so epic!

I know this post is long, but there's another thing. I think it's interesting that the two scenes in the show where we see the I forgot your birthday card are the one in 2x04, when Will is possessed by Vecna/Mind Flayer, and the one in 1x02, when Will is in the UD and we see the turtle, and the light gets very bright, just like when Vecna uses his powers.

[steddie-fanfic-recs]

A Tattoo Is Worth A Thousand Words

by writersagainstwritersblock

Rating: Mature Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationship: Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson Characters: Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington, Wayne Munson, Dustin Henderson, Maxine "Max" Mayfield, Lucas Sinclair, Mike Wheeler, Gareth (Stranger Things), Jeff (Stranger Things), Unnamed Freak (Stranger Things), Robin Buckley, Nancy Wheeler, Jonathan Byers, Argyle (Stranger Things), Eleven | Jane Hopper, Will Byers, Jim "Chief" Hopper, Joyce Byers Additional Tags: Eddie Munson Lives, Eddie Munson Has a Crush on Steve Harrington, Gay Eddie Munson, Bisexual Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington Are Best Friends, Tattoo Artist Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington Has Bad Parents, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Good Babysitter Steve Harrington, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, (except the enemies part is brief and one sided), Steve Harrington is a Sweetheart, Charming Steve Harrington, Confident Eddie Munson, Dom/sub Undertones, Eddie Munson Calls Steve Harrington Pet Names, Eddie Munson Calls Steve Harrington "Princess", Steve Harrington Has PTSD Words: 40,478 Chapters: 18/18

Summary

“Ambidextrous, princess, it’s what makes me so good with my hands.” Eddie wiggled his fingers. “You mean for guitar?” Steve asked, completely missing the innuendo, and also nearly knocking Eddie flat at the thought that Steve Harrington knew he played guitar. “You stalking me or something?” Eddie asked. Steve frowned. “Uh, no, but your band played in the middle school talent show, it’s pretty hard to forget a thirteen year old screaming death metal before his voice dropped.” Eddie almost laughed at that. Almost. “You saying I’m unforgettable, princess?” “If that’s how you want to take it, Munson." Eddie realized this was turning towards something far more dangerous than taunting a boy known for getting into fights, like flirting with a very, very straight boy known for getting into fights. OR After the events of season three Steve shows up on Eddie's doorstep asking for a tattoo... and then keeps showing up much to the dismay of Eddie's traitorous heart.

[steddiebang]

Love, Drift & Monsters | Explicit | 40k

Author: corrodedbisexual Artist: mcdadarts Beta Reader: lihhelsing Beta Reader: badcaseofcasey 

Ranger Steven Harrington, a novice Jaeger pilot at the PPDC base in LA, has yet to be paired up with a co-pilot. Ranger Edward Munson, just recently transferred, has already seen his fair share of combat at the other side of the Pacific.

Despite starting off on the wrong foot, Eddie and Steve turn out to be Drift compatible. With the memory of recently losing his previous co-pilot and best friend still fresh in his mind, Eddie is far from the easiest person to establish a stable Drift with. However, Steve is determined to make it work, remaining patient and helpful with overcoming Eddie’s earlier trauma. Day after day, mission after mission, one shared memory after another, they grow closer, eventually developing feelings for each other that are becoming impossible to deny, or hide from one another; for in the Drift, there is no space for secrets.

Meanwhile, just a few floors below, in the restricted area of the base, a plan is being conceived. One that involves a young girl who can do the impossible, and might just be the only hope for humanity’s salvation… 

Fic link | Art link

Relationships: Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington & Eddie Munson & The Party, Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington Characters: Steve Harrington, Eddie Munson, Robin Buckley, Nancy Wheeler, Barbara “Barb” Holland, Jonathan Byers, Argyle, Jim “Chief” Hopper, Eleven | Jane Hopper, Sam Owens, The Party Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Pacific Rim Fusion, Action/Adventure, Action & Romance, Slow Romance, Light Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Eventual Happy Ending, Slow Burn, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Dorks in Love, Drift Compatibility (Pacific Rim), POV Alternating, Bisexual Steve Harrington, Bisexual Eddie Munson Trigger Warnings: Minor Character Death (prior to fic events), Trauma, Grief/Mourning, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – PTSD, Scars, Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Recreational Drug Use (marijuana)

[aemiron-main]

that godforsaken green lighting

Something that makes me insane is the colour grading in the “eleven, are you listening?” trailer.

Look at how green it is.

It’s completely different from the lab lighting during NINA.

This difference in lighting and colour grading between the trailer and the NINA sequences could almost be written off as an artistic choice if it wasnt for the fact that the green colour grading/lighting also appears during El’s S1 lab flashbacks/memories.

A very similar sort of green lighting is also used in Chrissy’s bathroom scene- and I think it’s used because Henry’s memories and trauma are informing the way that he traumatizes others/the visions he shows them. He’s seen that green fluorescent lighting before, in the lab, and as such, production chose to use it again.

Hell, it’s not just me making this up- the production team has already talked about how this green lighting in Chrissy’s scene was an intentional choice (source).

But the fact that Henry’s likely seen that lighting in the lab before and that El’s S1 lab memories have that sort of lighting is fascinating considering that it’s not present during NINA. Almost like NINA isn’t the full story. Almost like the teaser trailer scenes (which are scenes that AREN’T in the show) are El’s actual memories, just like how the S1 flashbacks are her actual memories. 

And to really drive this home, take a look at Kali’s lab memories. It’s got that green tinge again. 

And take a look at the S1 scenes of Hopper in the lab and how we continue to see that green tint/greenish colour grading associated with the lab. It’s stronger in some scenes than others, but still present. 

Hell, look at a comparison of the beige tiles behind Hopper’s head vs the beige tiles on the bathroom floor with Chrissy- not only is it a production choice to have such similar tiles, adding another visual tie between Chrissy’s scene and the lab, but the lighting on the tiles/their colour in the light is basically the exact same, indicating that the lighting in both scenes is the same. Which is a conscious choice. They’ve chosen to light and colour grade Chrissy’s scene the same way as a lab scene.

It’s not just a green tint that’s applied to memories, otherwise, we wouldn’t be seeing it with scenes such as Hopper’s lab scenes, and even if it was just used to indicate memories, then it should be present during NINA, but it’s not. The NINA sequences are the outlier here. That green tint/lighting is constantly associated with the lab and is consistent with the reality of the lab, and yet, is absent during NINA scenes. The green tint is literally inescapable in the lab in all scenes except for NINA. It’s more subtle in some scenes, but still there. With the NINA lab scenes though, it’s gone entirely.

Take a look at these scenes:

The green is more subtle, especially in the first two shots, but it’s absolutely still there. During NINA, we get much more blue-grey toned shots. It’s more sterile than sickly, the greenish yellow tinge is gone. Even in the NINA scenes that come the closest to being green, they’re still not green, they’re still blue.

And look at the flickering fluorescent during NINA vs the flickering fluorescent in Chrissy’s bathroom scene. Chrissy’s fluorescent turns blue sometimes, but also straight up turns green. The fluorescent in NINA, on the other hand, remains blue. There’s blue tones present in the green-toned S1 lab and Chrissy shots, but there’s also these sickly green/yellow tones that are absent from NINA. Even the mildest green in the S1 lab scenes are greener than the strongest closest-to-green scenes during NINA.

As well, the green is ALSO consistent with Terry’s memories of the lab. Again, the NINA scenes are the outlier here. 

This is something I’m working on diving into in the electrocution scene analysis, but I think the teaser trailer gives us some very important insight into what actually happened the day of the massacre. Especially because as Brenner said himself, El still hasn’t seen the truth. And neither has the audience. Brenner wanted to continue to do NINA work with El- what was he going to show her? What is the truth? What truth does Brenner think El is going to see? 

[ronancecats]

Nancy, Max and Eleven Headcanons <3

They're literally sisters to me bro.

-Nancy gave a bunch of her clothes to Eleven and some to Max once she got out of the hospital since her trailer was destroyed. (Max wasn't happy about all the pink and purple but was grateful because it's better than having none.)

-Nancy braids eleven's hair and teaches her how to do it since she is literally the best French braider in Hawkins. (This is canon to me)

-The three of them bond over survivors guilt.

-Max wrote Nancy a letter and Nancy sobbed when she read it. (Duffers I'm coming for you since you won't make this happen)

-While they were in California Eleven always called Nancy for advice when Joyce was too busy to answer her questions.

-Max begs Nancy to learn how to shoot a gun but Nancy refuses to teach her until she's older.

-Max had a tiny crush on Nancy. (Again this is 100% canon to me)

-They always do girls day and sometimes Robin and or Erica join them.

-When Nancy gets her own apartment, Max always stays the night to get away from her mom when it gets too much, or just to hang out.

-Nancy felt extremely guilty for what happened to Max. She felt that if she would have made a better plan, things would have worked out differently. Max doesn't blame her at all though.

-Nancy and Max always introduce Eleven to new artists and music. El's favorites so far are Madonna, Kate Bush, and Prince.

-Whenever Max gets in a fight with her mom, she calls Nancy so they can just drive around for a bit and get slushies.

-While Hopper's cabin was being fixed up, El stayed at the Wheeler's and Nancy let her borrow her sleeping bag. (The one Jonathan 'used')

-Since Nancy's really smart, El would ask her for help, especially with English because, "Nancy writes good."

-Friendship bracelets were passed around 😌

that's all for now friends.

[luckybyler]

I made two song charts based on ST characters' music tastes, as per their playlists. How did I do?

The first one is based on songs from up to 1989, and the second one on songs from 1990 to the present.

The songs in red are the ones that define each character's musical taste. The ones from the first chart are the first songs in each of their playlists, except in Max's case, which is Running Up That Hill for obvious reasons. For the characters that have no playlists, Eddie's and Argyle's are the songs that identified them, and in Robin's, Erica's, and Murray's cases, I had to take a wild guess. I went from that and extrapolated it in order to make both charts.

The songs in black are the intersections between the characters' musical tastes. Basically, if two characters were in a car and this song came up on the radio, both of them would enjoy it. Here's a summary of how I viewed each character:

El: She's pure pop, bubblegum, euphoria, and joy to explore the world. She provides a little magical flair to other people's music. It's Eleven, bitch!

Will: I thought it would be hard because his music taste stems from Jonathan's, but his style actually seems pretty defined. He looks like he will grow into a hipster style. He probably listened to your favorite band before it was cool.

Mike: I had a rule for him: No US artists, only the rest of the world. He watches the FIFA World Cup, has an opinion on the Gallagher feud and uses the metric system. And judging by his playlist, he's also severely depressed (oopsie!). Anyway, here's Wonderwall.

Dustin: He likes to party, and he likes technology. He's not averse to feeling, but prefers it wrapped up in a sick beat. Work hard, play hard.

Lucas: He's funky, but also nerdy. His heart broke when Kanye went off the deep end. He's the fratboy of an academic-minded college, he's the book-smartest of his basketball team.

Max: She's all about ska, skater culture, and California, although she has a more poppy, feminine side as well.

Erica: I can't shake the idea of her as a little girl, even though realistically she'd be in her late 40s right now. So she brings out a fun, childlike vibe to our matrix.

Nancy: She's a powerful woman, and her music reflects that. Her taste is more eclectic, and a little grown-up.

Jonathan: Whereas Will grows into hipster rock, somehow Jonathan was grunge since 1983, and remains so to this day. Rock is not dead.

Steve: He likes to move it, move it. He tried to recreate Tom Cruise's dance scene from Risky Business and openly flirts with his wife, even decades after getting married. He's sexy and he knows it.

Robin: Lilith Fair-core. She's proud and loud (as much as she can be, anyway).

Eddie: Surprisingly (or not?) the hardest to match. Metalheads tend to be purists, and I had to make him influenced by the others, who have way different tastes from him. This is a pretty open-minded version of him (death has a way of doing that to you).

Argyle: I was gonna write a description of him, but then I got high.

Joyce: A total mom, but she tries to keep up with the times. She loves a good ballad, but definitely knows how to have fun as well.

Hopper: He's all country and Grandpa rock. He's weathered and rough, and that's reflected in his music taste.

Murray: Shame is a word that doesn't exist in his vocabulary. He likes what he likes and does what he needs to do, to hell with societal expectations. He's a master at revealing the truth, and that extends to music.

[stbb-summaries]

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Main Characters

argyle

gareth

robin buckley

jonathan byers

will byers

henry creel / vecna

chrissy cunningham

eleven

billy hargrove

steve harrington

dustin henderson

max mayfield

eddie munson

wayne munson

the party

carol perkins

lucas sinclair

vecna

mike wheeler

nancy wheeler

original character

Main Pairing/Ships

x = romantic/sexual relationship & = platonic or familial relationship

argyle x jonathan byers

argyle & jonathan byers

argyle x steve harrington

argyle x jonathan byers x steve harrington x nancy wheeler

argyle x robin buckley x jonathan byers x steve harrington x eddie munson x nancy wheeler

robin buckley x chrissy cunningham

robin buckley & steve harrington

robin buckley x carol perkins

robin buckley x nancy wheeler

jonathan byers x billy hargrove

jonathan byers x steve harrington

jonathan byers x nancy wheeler

jonathan byers x steve harrington x nancy wheeler

joyce byers x jim hopper

will byers x mike wheeler

henry creel x eddie munson

chrissy cunningham & billy hargrove

chrissy cunningham x billy hargrove x steve harrington x eddie munson

chrissy cunningham x eddie munson

chrissy cunningham & eddie munson

eleven x dustin henderson

eleven x max mayfield

eleven & max mayfield

eleven & kali prasad

billy hargrove x steve harrington

billy hargrove x max mayfield

billy hargrove x eddie munson

billy hargrove x steve harrington x eddie munson

billy hargrove x original female character

steve harrington & dustin henderson

steve harrington x eddie munson

steve harrington x eddie munson x gareth

steve harrington x eddie munson x nancy wheeler

steve harrington & wayne munson

steve harrington & the party

steve harrington x carol perkins

steve harrington x reader

steve harrington x vecna

steve harrington x nancy wheeler

eddie munson x gareth

eddie munson & the party

eddie munson x carol perkins

eddie munson & wayne munson

max mayfield x lucas sinclair

max mayfield & lucas sinclair

the party

Rating

T (includes adult themes, nothing graphic or explicit)

M (shows adult themes, nothing explicit)

E (explicit adult content)

Current Length

5-10k

10-25k

25-50k

Completeness

1/10 to 3/10

4/10 to 6/10

7/10 to 9/10

10 - complete

[that-dinopunk-guy]

Massive Gondolend concept sketch dump

Hey look, it's my only artistic output that ever gets more than one or two notes: drawings of dinosaurs (and other animals)!

The whale-sized filter-feeding pliosaur Pelagititan melvillei (labeled here Aquatitan because I changed the name after I drew this), and the orca-sized mosasaur Zallingeria orak. These were drawn way back in 2002, before we had a better idea of what their tails were supposed to look like.

An updated orak that I started in 2016 and never got very far with because I hated it.

Deinonychus antirrhopus.

Yurgovuchia doellingi, which made an appearance in my short stories "The Hunter" and "The Prey."

Assultornis pteronyx, also known as the drop bird. This is a fictional dromaeosaurine found throughout the Democratic Republic of Samaraland that hunts by dropping down onto prey from above and then dragging its kill up into a tree to avoid getting it stolen by something bigger and meaner. One of these guys appears in my novella The Beasts of Kulig County, which barring any fuckups on my part I should start serializing online again in...November.

The wooly rinic, Cryonyx borealis, a fictional species of baryonychine originally native to Gondolend's frigid northern polar region, but which I have since retconned to be a southern polar animal instead. (I'll have to change that species name if I ever decide to do anything more with Gondolend beyond my current revisions.) While this drawing is relatively recent this is the first fake dinosaur I ever came up with for this project, and as you can see I went full Rule of Cool with the teeth. Which then led to...

...The horrormouth, Cryonyx phoboris. It took me years to actually draw this guy in the flesh; for the longest time it only existed as skull and skeletal reconstructions, which someone eventually tried to pass off as real on some random dinosaur battle forum.

The elma'cho, Elmachosuchus gayi. This was a land-croc that I made as a reference to a gloriously stupid website that a friend of mine made and which is now gone.

I forget the scientific name for this guy, but it's commonly known as a crested dragon. It's a meter-long drepanosaur found in the Cassowary Valley, and makes an appearance in my novella Eleven Days in the Valley, which I'll be serializing on my website starting in September.

Domnosuchus, a giant land-croc native to the island of Yulan. This was the largest known species of land-croc, but it was quickly driven into extinction once humans settled the island.

A giant water bug the size of your hand. The Isani consider them a delicacy.

The gartum, a softball-sized dung beetle that cleans up sauropod shits on the Samara. Yes, its name is a reference to the garthim from The Dark Crystal.

The giant hopper, Macropodotherium. This highly derived and infamously belligerent species of hypsilophodont is native to the island of Vona, but a feral population has become established in the Democratic Republic of Samaraland. These also show up in The Beasts of Kulig County. I also hate how this picture turned out and I can't fathom how I thought eschewing outlines was a good idea.

Two pterosaurs that appear in The Beasts of Kulig County, the tai (Istiodactylus) and the turu (Dsungaripterus). The tai is a full-time scavenger and generally non-aggressive, while the turu is a part-time scavenger and doesn't give a single fuck.

Giraffatitan, known in Samaraland as the twiga. One of these also appears in The Beasts of Kulig County.

Isisaurus, which in ancient times was used by the armies of Garacania as mobile battle platforms with archers (and, later, musketeers and then riflemen) on top.

Zuniceratops, known in Garacania as the gergedat, was a popular cavalry mount. Famously, the legendary Garacani princess Denika Agares I led a gergedat cavalry into battle on many campaigns. (She also appears riding one in my short story "The Messenger.")

Nigersaurus was used as a beast of burden throughout Garacania (and presumably other neighboring areas), and domesticated specimens often had their tails docked at a young age to avoid them getting in the way and whapping people in crowded urban environments. The first two concepts in the second picture were serious, and the others...progressively less so.

A very quick and dirty sketch of a scene in the Garacani territory of Ulaan Bok, showing several local Hahn Gar (an ethnic group inspired mainly by the Hmong) passing by as a Rubeosaurus grazes in the foreground.

An Isani boat, as seen in Eleven Days in the Valley.

A pachycephalosaur.

I forget what I called this guy; it's a giant relative of the alligator snapping turtle native to the Cassowary Valley, where it spends most of its time on the riverbed waiting for prey to swim into its mouth. You can't see it here, but it has a very long neck.

A rough concept for a condor-sized alpine scansoriopterygid that never really went anywhere before I put my Gondolend project on indefinite hiatus.

...And that's it for now. Yeah, there's more. See you in part two, dickheads!

[ghostflowerdreams]

Books Similar to Stranger Things

The most obvious starting point is to check out the officially authorized novels that further expand the canonical Stranger Things world, such as Suspicious Minds by Gwenda Bond. It's a prequel novel that follows Eleven's mother and her time as a test subject in the MKUltra program. Then there's Darkness on the Edge of Town by Adam Christopher, which is about Chief Jim Hopper's old life as a police detective in New York City.

There's more novels that delve into the past of a few of the show’s characters like Runaway Max by Brenna Yovanoff, which explores Max's past--the good and the bad--as well as how she came to find her newfound sense of home in Hawkins, Indiana.

However, if that still isn't enough the next best thing is to find books that are similar to Stranger Things or give off the same feels via plot, the friendship, theme and aspects of it. I know I'm not the only one on the search and so while scouring the web I've compiled a list of the most common book recommendations I've seen people suggest.

I like making lists like these as this is how I also usually form my 'To Be Read' list. Oh, and this isn't any particular order either.

Paper Girls Vol. #1 by Brian K. Vaughan (Writer), Cliff Chiang (Artist) & Matt Wilson (Colorist) — is a graphic novel that follows a group of 12-year-old newspaper delivery girls in the early hours after Halloween of 1988, who uncover the most important story of all time. [1]

My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix — The year is 1988. High school sophomores Abby and Gretchen have been best friends since fourth grade. After an evening of skinny-dipping Gretchen disappears in the woods but returns a few hours later, naked and…different. She’s moody. She’s irritable. And bizarre incidents keep happening whenever she’s nearby.

Abby’s investigation leads her to some startling discoveries—and by the time their story reaches its terrifying conclusion, the fate of Abby and Gretchen will be determined by a single question: Is their friendship powerful enough to beat the devil?

Ghoul by Brian Keene — There is something in the local cemetery that comes out at night. Something that is unearthing corpses and killing people. It’s the summer of 1984 and Timmy and his friends are looking forward to no school, comic books, and adventure. But instead they will be fighting for their lives. 

The ghoul has smelled their blood and it is after them. But that’s not the only monster they will face this summer...

The Saturday Night Ghost Club by Craig Davidson — Growing up in 1980s Niagara Falls--a seedy but magical, slightly haunted place--Jake Baker spends most of his time with his uncle Calvin, a kind but eccentric enthusiast of occult artifacts and conspiracy theories.

The summer Jake turns twelve, he befriends a pair of siblings new to town, and so Calvin decides to initiate them all into the "Saturday Night Ghost Club." But as the summer goes on, what begins as a seemingly lighthearted project may ultimately uncover more than any of its members had imagined.

Summer of Night (Seasons of Horror #1) by Dan Simmons — It's the summer of 1960 in Elm Haven, Illinois, and five 12-year old boys are forming the bonds that a lifetime of changes will never erase. But then a dark cloud threatens the bright promise of summer vacation: on the last day of school, their classmate Tubby Cooke vanishes.

Soon, the group discovers stories of other children who once disappeared from Elm Haven. And there are other strange things happening in town: unexplained holes in the ground, a stranger dressed as a World War I soldier, and a rendering-plant truck that seems to be following the five boys. The friends realize that there is a terrible evil lurking in Elm Haven...and they must be the ones to stop it.

Haven by Tom Deady — In 1961, the small town of Haven thought they'd gotten rid of their monster.

After a series of child killings, Paul Greymore was caught carrying a wounded girl. His face, disfigured from a childhood accident, seemed to confirm he was the monster the community hoped to banish. With Paul in prison, the killings stopped.

For seventeen years, Haven was peaceful again. But Paul served his time and has now returned to Haven--the town where he grew up, and the scene of his alleged crimes. Paul insists he didn't commit those crimes, and several townspeople believe him including the local priest, a young boy named Denny, and his best friend Billy.

Trouble is, now that Paul is back home, the bizarre killings have started again--and the patterns match the deaths from Haven's past. If Paul isn't the killer, who is?

Or WHAT is? An unlikely band of adventurers attempts to uncover the truth, delving into long-hidden tunnels that might actually be inhabited by a strange, predatory creature.

One Word Kill (Impossible Times #1) by Mark Lawrence — In January 1986, fifteen-year-old boy-genius Nick Hayes discovers he’s dying. And it isn’t even the strangest thing to happen to him that week.

Nick and his Dungeons & Dragons-playing friends are used to living in their imaginations. But when a new girl, Mia, joins the group and reality becomes weirder than the fantasy world they visit in their weekly games, none of them are prepared for what comes next. A strange—yet curiously familiar—man is following Nick, with abilities that just shouldn’t exist. And this man bears a cryptic message: Mia’s in grave danger, though she doesn’t know it yet. She needs Nick’s help—now.

He finds himself in a race against time to unravel an impossible mystery and save the girl. And all that stands in his way is a probably terminal disease, a knife-wielding maniac and the laws of physics.

Starr Creek by Nathan Carson — Set in 1986 rural Oregon, Starr Creek features Heavy Metal teens, Christian biker gangs, and hopped up kids on 3-wheeled ATVs. They all collide when strange occurrences unveil an alien world inhabiting the Oregon woods.

Inside by D. M. Siciliano — Set in 1987. Reid is a bully, but he’s still Alex’s best friend. When Reid pushes Alex and their friends into invading a historically haunted Massachusetts house, Alex knows it’s a terrible idea, but indulges his friend. What could go wrong?

Inside, a mysterious Shadow looms in the darkness. The door to the house vanishes, leaving them trapped. The group flees through the tiny, one-roomed house that defies logic, constantly shifting, presenting them with new doors, hallways, and rooms that seem to be plucked from their memories and fears. One by one, the Shadow hunts them, intent on burning them all from within.

Is there any way to escape? Or will they be burned from the inside out?

The Lost Causes of Bleak Creek by Link Neal & Rhett James McLaughlin — It’s 1992 in Bleak Creek, North Carolina—a sleepy little place with all the trappings of an ordinary Southern town: two Baptist churches, friendly smiles coupled with silent judgments, and an unquenchable appetite for pork products. Beneath the town’s cheerful façade, however, Bleak Creek teens live in constant fear of being sent to the Whitewood School, a local reformatory with a history of putting unruly youths back on the straight and narrow—a record so impeccable that almost everyone is willing to ignore the suspicious deaths that have occurred there over the past decade.

At first, high school freshmen Rex McClendon and Leif Nelson believe what they’ve been told: that the students’ strange demises were all just tragic accidents, the unfortunate consequence of succumbing to vices like Marlboro Lights and Nirvana. But when the shoot for their low-budget horror masterpiece, PolterDog, goes horribly awry—and their best friend, Alicia Boykins, is sent to Whitewood as punishment—Rex and Leif are forced to question everything they know about their unassuming hometown and its cherished school for delinquents.

Eager to rescue their friend, Rex and Leif pair up with recent NYU film school graduate Janine Blitstein to begin piecing together the unsettling truth of the school and its mysterious founder, Wayne Whitewood. What they find will leave them battling an evil beyond their wildest imaginations—one that will shake Bleak Creek to its core.

Dead Flip by Sara Farizan — Growing up, Cori, Maz, and Sam were inseparable best friends, sharing their love for Halloween, arcade games, and one another. Now it’s 1992, Sam has been missing for five years, and Cori and Maz aren’t speaking anymore. How could they be, when Cori is sure Sam is dead and Maz thinks he may have been kidnapped by a supernatural pinball machine?   These days, all Maz wants to do is party, buy CDs at Sam Goody, and run away from his past. Meanwhile, Cori is a homecoming queen, hiding her abiding love of horror movies and her queer self under the bubblegum veneer of a high school queen bee. But when Sam returns—still twelve years old while his best friends are now seventeen—Maz and Cori are thrown back together to solve the mystery of what really happened to Sam the night he went missing. Beneath the surface of that mystery lurk secrets the friends never told one another, then and now. And Sam’s is the darkest of all...

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman — Sussex, England. A middle-aged man returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. Although the house he lived in is long gone, he is drawn to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he encountered a most remarkable girl, Lettie Hempstock, and her mother and grandmother. He hasn't thought of Lettie in decades, and yet as he sits by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed was an ocean) behind the ramshackle old farmhouse, the unremembered past comes flooding back. And it is a past too strange, too frightening, too dangerous to have happened to anyone, let alone a small boy.

Forty years earlier, a man committed suicide in a stolen car at this farm at the end of the road. Like a fuse on a firework, his death lit a touchpaper and resonated in unimaginable ways. The darkness was unleashed, something scary and thoroughly incomprehensible to a little boy. And Lettie—magical, comforting, wise beyond her years—promised to protect him, no matter what.

Whispering Pines (Whispering Pines #1) by Heidi Lang & Kati Bartkowski — Rae’s father vanished without a trace—and Rae knows what happened to him. But no one believes her when she says that her father didn’t run off, that he was actually taken. Now, a year of therapy later, Rae’s mother decides they need a fresh start, and so they move to a new town in the hope that life can return to normal.

The problem is, there is nothing normal about the town of Whispering Pines.

No one knows this better than Caden. He’s lived in Whispering Pines his entire life, and he’s seen more than his fair share of weird—starting with his own family, as the town is the perfect home base for his mother’s ghost hunting business.

When several kids go missing and then show up like zombies with their eyes removed, many locals brush it off. Just another day in Whispering Pines. But Caden has a dark secret, one that may explain why someone is stealing eyes. And Rae, who knows how it feels to not be believed, may be just the person Caden needs to help him put things right.

Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand — On the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires.

Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight… until now.

Three teenage girls who come together to face an ancient evil.

Marion: the new girl. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find.

Zoey: the pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken—or maybe everyone else is.

Val: the queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives, a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies.

The Devouring Gray (The Devouring Gray #1) by C.L. Herman — On the edge of town a beast haunts the woods, trapped in the Gray, its bonds loosening…

Uprooted from the city, Violet Saunders doesn’t have much hope of fitting in at her new school in Four Paths, a town almost buried in the woodlands of rural New York. The fact that she’s descended from one of the town’s founders doesn’t help much, either—her new neighbours treat her with distant respect, and something very like fear. When she meets Justin, May, Isaac, and Harper, all children of founder families, and sees the otherworldly destruction they can wreak, she starts to wonder if the townsfolk are right to be afraid.

When bodies start to appear in the woods, the locals become downright hostile. Can the teenagers solve the mystery of Four Paths, and their own part in it, before another calamity strikes?

House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland — Seventeen-year-old Iris Hollow has always been strange. Something happened to her and her two older sisters when they were children, something they can’t quite remember but that left each of them with an identical half-moon scar at the base of their throats.

Iris has spent most of her teenage years trying to avoid the weirdness that sticks to her like tar. But when her eldest sister, Grey, goes missing under suspicious circumstances, Iris learns just how weird her life can get: horned men start shadowing her, a corpse falls out of her sister’s ceiling, and ugly, impossible memories start to twist their way to the forefront of her mind.

As Iris retraces Grey’s last known footsteps and follows the increasingly bizarre trail of breadcrumbs she left behind, it becomes apparent that the only way to save her sister is to decipher the mystery of what happened to them as children.

The closer Iris gets to the truth, the closer she comes to understanding that the answer is dark and dangerous – and that Grey has been keeping a terrible secret from her for years.

It by Stephen King — is about seven adults who return to their hometown to confront a nightmare they had first stumbled on as teenagers…an evil without a name: It.

Welcome to Derry, Main. It’s a small city, a place as hauntingly familiar as your own hometown. Only in Derry the haunting is real...

They were seven teenagers when they first stumbled upon the horror. Now they are grown-up men and women who have gone out into the big world to gain success and happiness. But the promise they made twenty-eight years ago calls them reunite in the same place where, as teenagers, they battled an evil creature that preyed on the city’s children.

Now, children are being murdered again and their repressed memories of that terrifying summer return as they prepare to once again battle the monster lurking in Derry’s sewers. [2]

Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero — It takes place in a small mining town in Oregon, first in 1977 where a group of kids who call themselves the Blyton Summer Detective Club have uncovered the truth behind a creature called the Sleepy Lake monster and a supposedly haunted mansion.

Years later, in 1990, the meddling kids are all grown up but are called back to that small town when the mystery resurfaces, apparently not as resolved as they had once all thought.

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury — is a dark fantasy about two 13-year-old best friends, Jim Nightshade and William Halloway, and their nightmarish experience with a traveling carnival called 'Cooger & Dark’s Pandemonium Show' that comes to their Midwestern home, Green Town, Illinois, on October 24th.

Whisper (Whispers 1) by Lynette Noni — “Lengard is a secret government facility for extraordinary people,” they told me. I believed them. That was my mistake. There isn’t anyone else in the world like me. I’m different. I’m an anomaly. I’m a monster.

For two years, six months, fourteen days, eleven hours and sixteen minutes, Subject Six-Eight-Four — ‘Jane Doe’ — has been locked away and experimented on, without uttering a single word.

As Jane’s resolve begins to crack under the influence of her new — and unexpectedly kind — evaluator, she uncovers the truth about Lengard’s mysterious ‘program’, discovering that her own secret is at the heart of a sinister plot … and one wrong move, one wrong word, could change the world.

The Lightning Tree (The NI Revolution Trilogy #1) by Lene Fogelberg — Nature finally rises against humanity.

Flora Reed discovers a lifeless body in her front yard the morning after the last day of her junior year of high school. Matters get worse when more people from her small town are found dead under mysterious circumstances and police take an interest in the boy next door, Carl.

Flora is convinced that Carl is innocent, suspecting that the deaths are somehow connected to her younger sister Fauna's tragic accident a year earlier. What she learns changes everything, and she has to race against time to prevent the killings from spreading. Flora and a small group of friends soon find themselves at the onset of an apocalyptic battle between man and nature, with no one believing their story.

The Call by Peadar Ó Guilín — is set in a unique future of Ireland—or what once was Ireland. Everyday children from as young as 10, fear the day they will get “The Call” – a point in which they are sent the Grey Lands, where they must survive being hunted by the Sidhe for twenty-four hours. Some come back alive, some dead, and some come back…different.

The story focuses mainly on Nessa, a fourteen-year-old girl with twisted legs thanks to polio. While not immune to the taunts and whispers she receives about her disability, she trains hard and is determined to prove to everyone that she can not only survive The Call, but that she deserves to be there.

All Our Hidden Gifts (The Gifts #1) by Caroline O’Donoghue — is set in an Irish town where the church’s tight hold has loosened and new freedoms are trying to take root.

It follows sixteen-year-old Maeve after she finds a deck of tarot cards while cleaning out an old closet in her Catholic school. She quickly becomes the most sought-after diviner at school.

But when Maeve’s ex–best friend, Lily, draws an unsettling card called The Housekeeper that Maeve has never seen before, the session devolves into a heated argument that ends with Maeve wishing aloud that Lily would disappear. When Lily isn’t at school the next Monday, Maeve learns her ex-friend has vanished without a trace.

The Door to December by Dean Koontz — Little Melanie had been kidnapped when she was only three. She was nine when she was found wandering the L.A. streets, with blank eyes. What had become of her in all those years of darkness... and what was the terrible secret, clutching at her soul, that she dared not even whisper?

Her loving mother and the police desperately hunted for the answer. They needed Melanie to help get to the bottom of the most savage scene of carnage the city had ever seen. And they would do anything to save her from whatever dreadful force or thing had invaded her young life. But first, they would have to save themselves from a rising tide of terror... and from an icy evil howling through The Door to December.

Infinity's Doorway by David Wind — Arren Blaine is a cop, he doesn't believe in the paranormal. He knows there is no such things as Werewolves or Shifters, until...

"Find me..." The words uttered by the mysterious woman he'd swerved off the road to miss, echo continually in Dallas policeman Arren Blaine's head as he fights to get back into the world of the living, after the almost fatal car crash.

"Find me..." So begins an odyssey of discovery that takes him far from the Dallas P.D. forensic labs and into the frightening world of the supernatural in his search for the woman who had saved his life. A woman he is destined to share eternity with, if he can find her... If he can save her...if she is even human...

Notes:

[1] — There's actually a live-action adaptation of Paper Girls on Amazon Prime. So, if you really like it you can also check it out. This is recommended a lot because there's plenty of striking similarities between Paper Girls and Stranger Things. Both feature a group of young heroes; ordinary kids who grew up in the '80s and are plunged into a series of adventures. 

However, Paper Girls is it's own thing and is not an Stranger Things imitation as some people going into it expected it to be. It actually has a different tone, message and concept.

[2] — Stranger Things has many tropes inspired by Stephen King's works such as Carrie, Firestarter, It, The Mist and The Talisman (with a bit of The Body thrown in). This is why whenever someone asks for recommendations his books are always suggested.

[hyperfixationgoddess]

The Music Challenge

Recently, my sibling and I had a conversation where we said what Imagine Dragons songs applied to which Stranger Things character. I'll give my take on it here, and then I challenge you to do the same. It doesn't have to be Imagine Dragons, of course, just an artist that you love. Reblog this if you think it'd be fun! Can't wait to see your response!

Steve Harrington: In a non-romantic context, West Coast. He is absolutely the kids' rock. He drops everything for them, even for the little things. (I'm convinced that he went to the game to support Lucas, and had the date to keep up appearances.)

Nancy Wheeler: Rise Up. She is always reaching, trying to move up in the world.

Eddie Munson: Machine. I love how he's so unique, and he doesn't try to hide it. He takes pride in it, and doesn't let anyone tell him who to be.

Murray Bauman: Sharks. That man is absolutely ruthless.

Will Byers: Trouble. I say that because, as the song says, he wants no trouble. That kid needs a break.

Billy Hargrove: Shots. I feel like this one just fits him really well.

Mike Wheeler: Whatever It Takes. I know we all like to hate on Mike, cause he can be a real dick, but I can't deny that he will do whatever it takes for those he cares about.

Dustin Henderson: Zero. Especially during s3, but I think that it really applies to Dustin, always feeling different because of his interests and intelligence.

Chief Hopper: I'll Make It Up To You. He wants to be better for the people he loves.

Jonathan Byers: Walking The Wire. He stays with everyone, no matter how hard things get, even if it feels like they're going to get thrown off the wire.

Joyce Byers: Follow You. She supports everyone, no matter what. Will, Jonathan, everyone.

Lucas Sinclair: Boomerang. How many times, over the course of the show, has some kind of chasm formed between Lucas and the others? But it doesn't matter if it's a disagreement about a girl, or new interest in basketball. He always comes back to his friends, just like a boomerang.

Max Mayfield: Hear Me. Max Mayfield doesn't take anybody's shit. She doesn't let anybody drown her out. She makes sure that she is heard by the people that matter.

Eleven: Enemy. With the exception of Max, everyone thinks the worst of El from the beginning. Even the og party thought she'd been an escapee from penhurst. But she proved them all wrong.

Robin Buckley: Amsterdam. It hasn't happened yet, but Robin is getting out of Hawkins. And when she does, she will thrive, and she'll make sure that Steve thrives, too, because she will definitely drag her platonic soulmate out with her.

Erica Sinclair: On Top Of The World. Maybe this song seems a little cheerful for Erica, but after seeing her roll a 20 at Hellfire, I think that she was on top of the world in that moment.

Argyle: No Time For Toxic People. For Argyle, it's good vibes only.

The Party: Warriors. They might not have built this town, but they protect it better than anyone.

Ok, I think I covered everybody important. If you think I missed anyone, go ahead and let me know. I can't wait to see what you guys come up with!

[dexi-green]

God, I loved the season finale for stranger things... but (rant incoming) I really need to stop trying to engage in the community for shows like this. Your fave dying isn't bad writing. I've been seeing people call Eddie's death a cheap or low shot, or a shitty way to tie up his story. Have you ever written a story before? You know why everyone knew he was gonna die? Because his character arc was literally written for that end. A good character arc means evolution. The "coward" to the hero. Eddie was a self described coward, MULTIPLE TIMES he says that he's not the hero (honestly if any writing was bad it was how much that hammered that point home to make his end obvious) and by the end of the season died a hero. Yes he died for a town that hated him, that's the POINT. He was a hero. He died not for the glory, not for the praise, but because it was the right thing to do. Not every story needs to subvert expectations or have a twist, especially with max *maybe* getting to make it out alive, the Hopper fake out from the end of s3, Eleven and Brenner's fakeout at the end of s1, the Steve fake out death this season. There are no stakes if every death is a fake out, if every sacrifice can just be reversed. What's the point in ever caring for these characters or being fearful or worried if we know they're gonna all be okay in the end?

I get your fave comfort character dying is a fucking blow. I literally just finished watching it and my eyes still sting from my tears from Eddie's death, which was the first time I cried during the finale and I had to pause it to gather myself as soon as I realized what was happening. But to say it's bad writing is taking it too far. Hell, the writers wrote the rest of the character that you fell in love with, that writing wasn't bad was it? Stop insulting and dragging the people who provide us with the content we enjoy. The artists behind these shows, actors, writers, crew, everyone, work together to create these beautiful pieces and to go on Twitter immediately after and bash it because you didn't get your fanfiction ending? Come on now. There is plenty of content that will give you that and you think that the *checks notes* horror series that rips from every big horror movie of the 70s/80s, is gonna give you happy endings for everyone?

Eddie is beautifully written, and a big part of that beauty is the journey he went on to get the death that he did. Yeah we saw no one but his Uncle and Dustin honor him, but those were his closest relationships, seeing them honor him means the most. Seeing his Uncle be told that Eddie died a Hero, means so much more from a writing standpoint then seeing Eddie wake up in a hospital where, what? He would probably be handcuffed to the bed and still take the fall for all the murders as cover-up/assumption, because how in the hell do you expect anyone to convince an entire town, that's already convinced its the metal head D&D player during the height of the Satanic Panic in the 80s, that oh.. actually a gas leak or bear killed all your kids and mangled their corpses 🙈 Occams razor, a very VERY common tool in writing, a philosophical rule, "the best/most likely answer is usually the simplest one". Eddie being the killer is the simplest and fastest answer, especially when the majority already believes it.

I don't know why I'm going so hard on this... just... just because it didn't turn out the way you wanted, does not mean it's bad writing. I think a big geoup of these people aren't horror fans, stranger things kind of is an anamoly of horror to such a big mainstream scale, in pop culture in a way where non-horror fans enjoy it, to the point where I've literally seen people surprised at the gore and threaten to stop watching. I'm not saying horror isnt mainstream, definitely not, just that usually when people dont like horror they dont engage, but somehow people still do with this. I watched this show, the first season, the day it dropped, and didn't think anyone was gonna watch it and it'd sadly be canceled after season 1. But these people who don't watch or engage with horror watch it and expect something completely different. I definitely love that it's so mainstream and has so many fans because we wouldn't have gotten this much if it didn't but some of yall must've tripped and fell into this for the 80s aesthetic or just watched it for the hype cause you're not watching it for what it is, a big giant ass kiss to classic horror. Classic Horror where there is a final girl, not group, singular girl. Where she runs the final girl Gambit, seeing the dead bodies of all her friends along the way. Screaming her head off, pulling her hair out, covered in blood, fighting for her life, and just barely stumbling away from a killer who watches her the entire time. Watches her disappear with her sanity barely intact, planning their next move. Halloween, Chainsaw, Nightmare, Alien. Yes a good mix of The Goonies, ET, Breakfast Club, and those family friend 80s romps are all paid homage too, but horror is a BIG chunk.

Ultimately people can say whatever shit they want, and if they genuinely believe that a character who was literally introduced to meet this end shouldn't have died and that ruined this season for them, then sure, whatever, live your truth. I will however defend this choice. I loved this season, I absolutely adored Eddie, and I loved this end for him. I can't imagine a better way for him to go out in a horror series where life is not guaranteed (maybe aside from Eleven, Dustin, Lucas, Mike, and Will (barring s5)). I totally get being critical. I didn't like everything this season. I could've done with so much less of the military/Russian plot lines. I didn't like how some characters developed. But that doesn't mean the writing is overall bad, and that I need to go to Twitter and all socials and be sure the writers see hoards of unconstructive hate before any praise. Like at the very least (especially if you somehow got through reading all this and feel the need to argue with me) explain why it was bad AND offer the solution. If I saw anyone saying, oh it would've been better if Eddie would've done this or that, or if this could've happened, and it would've made since, then that'd be something else. But all I've seen is people poo-pooing it because "Eddie didn't deserve that"... of course he didn't! Its greta that you have empathy But boy is also fictional, and the artists behind this series, who do indeed go online to see reactions, are real people who will be affected by you calling them bad because they didn't read every fans mind and write them a personalized finale. God... every copy of stranger things is personalized.

Honestly some of yall are probably just those same toxic star wars fans and j need to stop giving you my energy. This isn't good for me 😮‍💨 but I want to rant too. Maybe I'll make another rant post about all the stuff I absolutely loved like NOAH SCHNAPP'S ACTING OMG THAT BOY CAN CRRRRYYYYY! GIVE HIM HIS FLOWERS 💐 💐💐

[ao3feed-byler2]

The Lost Romantics

by fruitloooop

Mike Wheeler, Dustin Henderson and Lucas Sinclair, the band members of The Lost Romantics are thrown into a journey dealing with the sudden entrance of fame, popularity and fandoms into their lives. Blowing up on the internet after releasing their fifth single leads them into living the life that they dreamed of, a life filled with music and the ability to help themselves and other people through it. But with fame comes the ugly truths about people. Dealing with these external ugly truths while fighting inner conflicts has led Mike Wheeler to spiral down.

But in the place where Mike considers to be the pits of hell is where he stumbles upon Will Byers, the struggling art student, living a life in a tiny apartment in New York, slogging away at a low wage paying job to make ends meet. Something about Will pulls Mike in towards him and leads him to slowly open up about his struggles.

Contemplation about a life in the spotlight and the difficulties that come with being different follow him into this journey where he has to make difficult choices to achieve what he wants from life.

Words: 2804, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M, M/M

Characters: Will Byers, Mike Wheeler, Lucas Sinclair, Dustin Henderson, Maxine "Max" Mayfield, Eleven | Jane Hopper, Erica Sinclair

Relationships: Will Byers/Mike Wheeler

Additional Tags: Minor Maxine "Max" Mayfield/Lucas Sinclair, platonic wheelclair, Will Byers/Mike Wheeler in Love, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Erica Sinclair Is An Artist, Platonic Wheelerson, Platonic Henderclair

from AO3 works tagged 'Will Byers/Mike Wheeler' https://ift.tt/UqBfhvT