#st theory

[stranger-theory]

okay im actually gonna riot if one more Mileven tells me that i'm looking too deeply into the show because i have "bias".

MY BROTHER IN CHRIST, ARE YOU SERIOUSLY GONNA DENY THIS OBVIOUS FORESHADOWING?

And then THIS just happening to be behind Will's neck. the one place where he gets his Vecna tingles.

COME OONNNNNN😭😭😭😭😭😭

these are so obvious but only because this stuff is confirmed. Max DID indeed meet her fate in the Creel house. Will IS indeed affected by Vecna in that specific spot on his body. but me theorizing about possible foreshadowing is not okay? that suddenly i'm reaching? reaching, when this show has time and time again told me to remember every detail? that it's crucial information?

no. no, i don't think so.

[henry-fox-biggest-stan]

Being “crazy”, pastors and priests, Pennhurst, aunts, and powers.

(credits to @aemiron-main)

Let’s see what we have.

Becky has a “crazy” aunt.

Joyce has a “crazy” aunt. (Credits to @pinkeoni for finding it)

Becky’s aunt says the house is “haunted” (it’s not, it’s simply that Terry has powers)

Victor believes the house is inhabited by a demon (it’s not, it’s simply that Henry has powers)

Lonnie doesn’t believe Joyce, and mentions a preacher somehow helping her if she talks to him (because Joyce saw Will in the wall)

None of them known Terry/Henry has powers

Everyone thinks Joyce is crazy (crazy people go to Pennhurst)

Pennhurst has been mentioned before in s1 (so it’s important). It’s mentioned in relation to El, who has powers and isn’t crazy.

Victor is in Pennhurst because he’s “crazy”.

Lonnie tells Joyce to go talk to a pastor (which relates to Will. Joyce sees Will in the wall, which is “crazy”, so she should find someone to talk to, like a pastor)

The creels talked with a preacher and performed an exorcism (which relates to Henry, since he was the “demon” they wanted to get rid of with the preacher)

Joyce and Victor are paralleled and neither are believed nor taken seriously

Victor has a son with powers

Joyce has a…

[gayofthefae]

Even more that there's something up about the library. Will kept there, it being the central point of all the gates, but what's more, on the first shot we see the Creel House in the upside down in 4x03, we don't immediately cut to it. We follow a demobat flying to it. The first shot, in fact, of the upside down is of front and center - you guessed it

The library.

This is the first shot we get of the upside down.

[miwiromantics]

wait wait waittt...

nancy brought purple and yellow flowers when she went to visit mrs. driscoll in season 3. in this scene, she was pretending to be someone she wasn't.

mike brings purple and yellow flowers for el when he visited california in season 4. ????

[love-byers]

DM-GATE (a st/byler theory)

if you saw this last night, strap in. because this post is about that

so me and @reo-bylerwagon were talking about how weird mike's dialogue is in s4, specifically in his monologue. it's so....corny. his monologue just doesn't sound like stranger things. mike just doesn't talk like that ever. characters who are overly dramatic and corny are made fun of by other characters. the show just doesn't train you to accept something as corny as mike's monologue, especially from MIKE. mike just isn't that kind of character.

we also pointed this dramatic dialogue between mike and will in the van. will's monologue to mike is very sweet but the dialogue is kind of corny too. will compares mike to a knight in shining armor, leading and inspiring as the heart of the party.

and i, in a moment of completely oblivious genius, said "honestly in the monologue he uses the same voice he does when he's dm"

if you don't know what dm is, it means dungeon master. the dungeon master is the one in dnd who leads the adventure, the organizer.

this is the role mike has in season 1 when they're playing dnd. will is also dm in s3 when they briefly play, right before the byler rain fight. eddie is the only other character we see be dm.

dms have to be eccentric, they have to act. they have to be convincing. they have to lead and guide.

in the painting will gives mike, the party are depicted as their dnd characters. so no one can even say this isn't connected to dnd.

"See how you're leading us? You're guiding the whole party, inspiring us. That's what you do.

See your coat of arms here? It's a heart. I know it's sort of on the nose, but that's what holds this whole party together. Heart. Because, I mean, without heart, we'd all fall apart."

in the monologue when will calls back to their conversation in the van, this is symbolic of mike reverting back to his role as dungeon master, as leader. if mike has to lie in the monologue, of course he would pull from a role he's played where he makes things up and sounds convincing.

@reo-bylerwagon gave the best line ever, "he's being the mike in the painting"

and the craziest part is that's CANON. mike is inspired by what will says, he takes it to heart. he feels more confident. he tries to be the mike in the painting. it should be easy, to speak from his heart to el, but it's not, because he's not in love with her. in the monologue, mike is doing the same thing he does when he's dm. he's performing. he's trying to be convincing. he's trying to guide, to inspire.

also, @reo-bylerwagon said that will pushing mike to giving the monologue is giving "MIKE YOUR ACTION!!" WHICH IS SO FUCKING TRUE😭😭

after this realization i went back and watched the scenes where mike is dming. the VERY FIRST LINE OF DIALOGUE we hear in the show is mike dming. "Something is coming, something hungry for blood." and the second line?

i could never put a finger on why mikes language in the monologue seemed so weird. it's because he's talking like a dm. he's using the dramatic language dms use during a dnd session.

@reo-bylerwagon also pointed out that mike and will are piggybacking off of dnd to save el. everyone in the final fight was piggybacking.

will set the stage, mike executed. 

also, i mentioned the only other character see be dm besides mike and will is eddie.

and what is eddie's big moment in s4?

Master of Puppets.

MASTER. OF PUPPETS. DUNGEON MASTER. DUDE.

and another thing

we've all seen this, but it's not only that mike and will's characters are on the book.

it's a dungeon masters guide.

with mike and will's characters on it.

mike and will. the only party members we've seen be dungeon masters.

COME THE FUCK ON.

AND ANOTHER THING

"Dude, that's the donation box."

"I know, I'll just use yours when I come back. I mean...if we still wanna play."

"Well yeah but...what if you want to join another party?"

"Not possible."

this is a dm i got like 2 years ago that changed my brain chemistry:

this is NOT a reach. everything in st is compared to dnd. the duffers are massive dnd nerds. it is not unbelievable that they'd connect this to dnd as well.

[sapphicslut777]

this scene in st1 when karen is saying to mike “i want you to feel like you can talk to me, you don’t have to hide anything from me” she had no idea about the el plot line at this point… she was letting him know it’s safe to talk to her

suspiciously like this scene from st4 when jonathan is hinting to will that he knows he’s gay and is comforting him and telling him he loves him no matter what and he’s “here to talk, now more than ever” ❤️❤️❤️

[eeriesilkworm]

Something something Stranger Things continually hinting to time manipulation and time travel. (“We are all time travellers if you think about it.”)

Something something season 1 Will Byers dressed like Marty McFly.

Something something Vecna’s powers being tied to hatred and thus thematically requiring a counterforce of love to defeat him. (Which Mike and El were unable to do in season 4).

Something something Will Byers defeating Vecna with the power of love and “The Power of Love” being on the Back to The Future Soundtrack…

I don’t know, really. Thoughts being thunk.

[cypherheartnokey]

Mike & Will are more aware of their (own & each other's) feelings than people think.

Regarding this reblog by @ven0moir:

In my opinion most of the Byler fandom is underestimating Will’s & Mike’s level of awareness of the situation. Which is leading to some equivocated beliefs about these characters, their relationships & their possible s5 arcs.

1 — WILL’S IDEA OF MILEVEN

First things first...

Will cares about Eleven. But deep down, he knows her & Mike’s relationship is not actually real or genuine... & considers it kind of a joke, even. This is highlighted by his frequent sassy mocking remarks & facial expressions towards Mileven. He thinks it’s unserious. Will definitely suspects (but obviously can’t be sure) Mike might feel the same for him. And as far as I understand it, despite Will obviously not saying it out loud, he does deep-down know that El is a farce/façade/beard Mike is hiding behind to avoid confronting the truth.

It’s kinda like how everyone close to the Wheelers looks at Ted & Karen’s “relationship”. They, including Karen herself, know this “marriage” is a joke. But obviously, no one says anything out loud, as it’s a sensitive/taboo topic. They know that if they were to actually say or do something about it, it would disrupt the comfortable familiarity & start an irreversible chain of events.

The only reasons Will tries to keep Mileven together is because (1) he cares about Eleven, (2) he cares about what Mike seems to want/need at the moment & (3) Will has self-sabotaging traits: he’s too afraid himself of what a romantic relationship with Mike would actually mean.

If you pay attention, when Will is trying to “fix” Mileven, he never once states or implies that Mike loves her. The only thing he states is the reverse: that Eleven needs Mike, & therefore she deserves him. “But she’s sad, mommy!”.

This was never about Will thinking “Mike truly loves Eleven”. It just means that right now, he knows being with Eleven is what Mike seems to need (for other reasons other than love) & being with Mike is what Eleven seems to need too.

2 — WILL’S ROMANTIC MOVES

I believe Will was sending hints intentionally too, you know, “just in case”. In the remote possibility Mike would ever want this with him. Even though Will isn’t sure this could be possible, he still tries in a low-key way, which is a testament to his (thin but resilient) remaining thread of hope.

I think that he also sent an intentional hint through the red heart in the painting. Words don’t come easy.

Will’s trying to subtly tell Mike that underneath his (apparent) friendly gestures, there is a romantic undertone & an invitation to maybe start something deeper & “serious” between them.

And he’s hoping that Mike takes the hint, understands it & gives some type of *sign* back—makes a move—without Will having to spell it out for him in an obvious way.

3 — MIKE’S PERSPECTIVE

Like @ven0moir, I’ve always wondered if Mike’s behavior in these conversations (Rink-o-Mania for example) is actually him “testing the waters” & trying to get SOMETHING out of Will. Like, pushing the emotionality up in hopes that something ends up “spilling” out. So that he can be “sure”.

The problem is, he's adopting the cowardly, toxic & therefore wrong, approach. From a character standpoint, Mike needs to be the one who makes the unambiguous (sincere) first move. Why? Because he naturally & inherently craves being the masculine, protective, proactive, BRAVE energy in his relationships.

But in this particular case with Will, he’s still too terrified of doing that, because of multiple factors. He’s not prepared, yet.

He hasn’t grown enough to (1) learn that this is what he must do, & (2) decide that this is what he WILL do—despite the fear & everything else. Hence his hero journey, set to happen throughout s5.

4 — THE MUCH-FEARED TURNING POINT

I think they’re both aware that *something* is going on between them. But they’re both afraid of making the “first move”.

Because they know—they just KNOW—that the very moment it happens in an unambiguous way…

…there is no going back. It changes everything. Forever.

And they know that, from that very moment, they will have to deal with the real consequences that come after.

Pay attention to their nervous gulping while making eye contact during their tension-filled heart-to-heart (s4 scene in Will's bedroom).

This is completely uncharted territory for Mike & Will. They are so scared.

“Our relationship is going to change permanently”. “I might lose him forever as a friend.” “What comes next?” “How will we act with each other from now on?” “Even though I want this, it still feels weird & unbearably shameful.” “What does the future hold for us?” “What if others find out?” “How will people react? Our friends? Our family?” “Is this even a morally good option?” (Religious/cultural guilt) “We will put ourselves in danger” (stigma, ostracization, loss of opportunities, hate crimes, health risks, AIDS) “What will happen to Eleven? How will she feel? How will she react?” “What if I’m just imagining things?” “What if he freaks out?”

The questions are endless. All of these thoughts, beliefs & doubts, even if unconscious, would be tormenting two queer teen boys from 1980s rural Indiana. Like an impenetrable wall or obstacle made of uncertainty, fear, hurt, shame, guilt, hopelessness.

5 — HOMOSEXUALITY IN THE 1980s

I think many people in the Stranger Things & Byler fandoms—probably because they’re still so young or just sheltered—heavily underestimate or straight-up dismiss the overwhelming impact of the above factors.

For teen boys, it’s incredibly difficult (from a social & emotional standpoint) to act upon queer feelings even today. In 1980s Midwest America… being homosexual & engaging in homosexual behaviors was one of the worst possible TABOOS you could be involved in.

I mean, let's be clear: on a literal wide scale (unlike today), gay men were associated with the worst of the worst: weakness, shame, ostracization, mental illness, moral corruption, filthiness, disgust, disease, pedophilia, death... the list goes on.

The only contexts where "the lifestyle" was more-or-less tolerated were in very specific environments in very specific big cities—still accompanied by many risks & stigma nevertheless.

By s4, Will & Mike are 15 years old. They know homosexual men exist, somewhere. TV, movies, books, music, people—all of them talk about it, even if rarely, subtextually or in a neutral or negative light. They've gone through puberty: they know what they themselves feel. They know what they crave & desire, emotionally & sexually. Mike knows Will is an effeminate boy & about the rumors of Will being gay. And they are also aware of how they act with each other & of how their relationship is not like their other friendships: which means they very likely have at least suspicions about each other's feelings.

What they don't know, though, is IF it will ever be possible to actually fulfill those needs, & fulfill them with any semblance of safety, peace or happiness. And by consequence, they don't yet know HOW to proceed exactly—which decisions & choices to make.

This is why they are behaving in such subtle, careful, guarded, defensive, angsty, roundabout ways despite correctly suspecting what is going on.

Mike knows what he's feeling... he's just too stubborn, insecure & fearful (at least for now) to be able to accept & come to terms with its real-world implications—let alone act on it properly.

6 — BYCHANCE & MIKE

The only thing Mike cares about right now is mending his friendship with Will, keeping him close & selfishly/possessively making sure Will isn't pursuing anyone else.

Which is, of course, unfair to Will (& to Eleven as well obviously).

This, I believe, is what is going to lead to s5 Will "taking a chance" on someone else who acts sooner than Mike.

Because, even if he suspects Mike reciprocates his feelings, that's still (understandably) not enough! The way Will functions romantically requires that Mike be the one to "bravely" pursue him & make the first move. This push-pull dynamic is even demonstrated in the lyrics of Should I Stay or Should I Go. Romantically, Will is not in the pursuer role. Mike is.

And as we know, Mike is avoiding. Stalling. Procrastinating. Getting late. Postponing the issues he needs to face. Which is another recurrent motif/pattern consistently foreshadowed & associated to Mike throughout the show.

7 — CONCLUSION

So, for those in this fandom who are still very young, let me end this post with a very important lesson on romance:

Will isn't wrong for getting involved with someone else. He can't wait forever. He has already made his moves, sent his hints to Mike.

This is on Mike now. He needs to grow. And if he truly wants Will for himself only, he needs to act!

🗝⸮₎₎⁾⁾⸝⁺⋆｡ﾟ⋆⸜﹒⋯﹒

To see more of my Bychance posts, click here -> BYCHANCE MASTERPOST.

[everbyers]

We could be getting something on Will's birthday

This is just a theory, and I don't have any proper evidence for it, just pure speculation!!

Even though all the dates stuff are announced are random (expect st day), I think that a possibility of getting something like the teaser/trailer or even announcement dates is very possible on Will's birthday. Hear me out:

It's gonna set birthdaygate in stone even further.

Since It's an important announcement, the GA will have the date memorised and will be like "wait, this date is familiar"

It would make sense between the gap of the release and the dates announcement. The days between the dates announcements and releases are around 100-200 days. So, I calculated it.

If I'm right, the earliest release is June 30th and the latest is October 8th.

I personally believe that we are getting the teaser very soon and that we didn't get it because of the elections on st day. Possibly around December/Christmas?

[stranger-theory]

"whether or not Mike's gay, theyre fucking with us when it comes to subtext and symbolism and they know it."

once again, mom's dropping bars

[henry-fox-biggest-stan]

Will got put a soteria on his neck in season 1, likely.

Will is awake. This is important. This is explicitly shown to us.

Joyce is (rightfully) freaking out because Will isn’t breathing until he finally does, and not only does he breath, but he also wakes up with a gasp and sits up. Eyes open, coughing. He’s not just alive and breathing, he’s also awake and moving.

The next scene with him, however, he’s sleep/passed out.

He quickly wakes up and asks where he was (so it’s possible he passed out before they got out of the ud into the hospital, or he doesn’t remember the journey towards there). It’s such a small thing, a stupid thing, there’s so many things going on with his body and mind rn, how is he gonna remember?

But it’s funny how waking up is immediately associated with no memory.

It was on purpose. It was a medically-induced sleep.

See it here, they showed they were able to medically-induce someone into passing out/sleeping in s2. And they did it. On Will.

And we know they most likely also did the same thing to Henry

Why? Good question.

I think it was for two reasons. One, maybe to erase some of Will’s memories of the ud (he was dangerous, he could go around talking about it), and two, to put a soteria on him (cause they knew he had powers).

Whatever it is he feels on his neck, that didn’t appear with the possession, he feels it since the start of s2 and it continues even after the possession (however, it’s not a side effect of it. He feels it BEFORE being possessed)

So if it’s a soteria (and it is) then when did they put it on him?

Well, isn’t just after the upside down ideal? Many things going on, Will almost dying and needing medical care, they just needed to take him away to check on him and just like they put the catheter on his nose they could have as easily put the soteria on his neck.

(I don’t buy that Will was in the hospital at the end of s1. You think the lab let him? He needed medical care because of the ud, no normal hospital can take care of that. After all, the lab refused to let him into a normal hospital in s2. The doctors would be suspicious, things wouldn’t make sense. I don’t believe it, he likely was in the lab’s hands before he arrived to the actual hospital)

[gayofthefae]

Oh- yup...putting those silhouettes side by side now

Which is 4x04 and which is 1x01?

That fog rolling in around Will's house just like the fog in the graveyard for Max. The phone call Will made that was identical to the one Joyce received at the end of that episode. I'm even more a believer now that Will was kidnapped in a Vecna vision. The Demogorgon may not have even physically been there.

So if that's not the demogorgon...Henry had nothing else to possess to get through, he could not get through himself he had to be in the demogorgon's body, meaning if his real body were visible to Will...He wasn't really there.

[miwiromantics]

So… we moved on too quickly from this cuz

that’s Joyce’s alphabet wall in season 1. The only place where that wall still exist is in the upside down (right?)

Finn saying ‘I don’t think I’ll be out there in a different dimension, trying to save my friend’ in regard to Mike.

And Mike and Will sitting on an upside down couch at the end of season 4

So, officially, byler stuck in the upside down confirmed.

[robin-buck1ey]

Nancy wheeler, the woman that you are

[luv-byers]

Soooo, i’ve seen people talk about how mike and will are looking at each other here but has anyone noticed this?

It’ s important enough to add it to the poster but NEITHER OF THEM has used a bike for the hole season…

Foreshadowing season 5 huh, interesting……

[lemonycranberries]

you guys do realize that official accounts posted happy birthday to will today. YOU DO REALIZE THIS MEANS WILL’S BIRTHDAY IS IN FACT CANONICALLY MARCH 22 AND THERE’S GOTTA BE AN EXPLANATION FOR HIS FRIENDS AND FAMILY IGNORING IT