#then their faith in byler would literally be unshakeable 😭

[paintingformike]

i think a big reason why there’s always this back and forth debate on which is the better relationship between byler and mileven is because the arguments are always based on who mike treats better, who he cares more about and how el or will benefits from their relationship with mike. like it’s always just about who mike was more dedicated to and the arguments never end because mike has had instances where he has treated both el and will badly and people make use of those moments to prove their point. but all of these points are just one side of the relationship, and people rarely ever stop to think and consider that...what about the love and support mike receives in either relationship? what about the person mike feels the most comfortable with? instead of just considering how mike makes the both of them feel, what about how will makes mike feel vs how el makes mike feel? this is what i always try to emphasize in my analyses because i don’t see enough people actually talk about this factor and people don’t realize how much it actually supports byler endgame more so than they think. i do see more bylers on tumblr that talk about how much mike receives more love and support from will than el but barely any bylers on twt, people there are always fighting over who mike cares more about (because they’re also either just bylers who only care about will’s happiness and hate on mike or mlevens that mostly gravitate to el and don’t care about mike’s development as much as they claim to lmfao) and they just keep going in circles that it’s sad and pathetic to watch tbvh...

because evidently if we look at the show and actually think about it in this context, then it’s obvious who he’s meant to end up with, it’s literally a no brainer. we get little to no moments of mike receiving emotional support and comfort from el but we get a whole season’s worth of will making mike feel loved, heard and important. mike has expressed that he feels insecure and unneeded with el, but will made him feel like he isn’t just some random loser, that people look to him for guidance and inspiration and that he acts as a leader and protector. this is why i get so annoyed when the only takeaway people have from their storyline in s4 is that will was “used” purely to give mike relationship advice, because you missed the whole point. s4 was literally them showing how much will had all the love and support mike needed and wanted in a relationship, and that he was the one person who made mike feel better about himself, not el. he was able to get to mike and understood him in ways el was never able to. also, let’s face it...there’s countless shows where the person who seemingly harbors unrequited feelings for the other, actually ends up getting rewarded and has their feelings reciprocated precisely because of how much they selflessly tried to push the person they love to someone else.

tbh i can tell that this bitterness from self proclaimed bylers who only care about will’s happiness while simultaneously hating on mike, are a lot less confident in byler endgame because...they only ever consider will’s feelings in the equation but not mike’s lmfao. like if you want to understand why byler endgame is literally inevitable you HAVE to care about mike’s arc and which relationship makes him feel happier and loved too, you can’t just ignore his feelings because he’s one half of the relationship and you have to acknowledge how they’ve also been setting up the right person for him, the one who understands him better than anyone else, and not just the right person for will, if you actually had mike’s sake in mind then you’d undoubtly see this while watching byler scenes. as much as they did contrast who mike handled his issues with better and how he made both el and will feel about themselves, they also highlighted who was able to make mike feel better and who supports his character more, and with this perspective in mind the outcome of this love triangle is a lot clearer and evident.