I love that I can see how canon Mike becomes HTDC Mike in his early 30s. Of course, a lot more years of repression and trying to fit in shoes that don’t quite fit (while also not understanding how romantic sexual love is supposed to feel when wired for it) has changed him a bit.
He goes from nerding out to self deprecation to spiraling due to repression and internalized homophobia to a corny (but hot) horndog so fast it makes your head spin. I am waiting to see more of leader Mike and brave Mike, but his aged characterization is very in line with how the Duffers left him at the end of S5.
I love that one minute he’s talking sweetly or nerding-out or spiraling, and the next minute he’s like, “Ha, that’s funny, Will, now take off your clothes.” And Will just giggles and eats that shit up. I adore HTDC Mike and Will, and to me, Will is even closer to true characterization. I can believe that is who they become by their early 30s with some room left for artistic interpretation and fun.
I know we want Will to be a saint—and he sort of is —even in this work where he is complicit in Mike’s awful, morally wrong choices. Based on what happened in S5, I could see it happening. Mike is Will’s moral kryptonite, it’s ok if even selfless, self-flagellating Will has moral ambiguity surrounding certain things. I think it makes sense that Mike is his Achilles heel. I can see him going dark to save anyone he loves, but especially Mike.
Anyways, now that our boys have left the bus to Hell and are now on the train to Hell, let’s see how quickly it all escalates and implodes. At least they’re going crazy together.
So well said. HTDC does feel incredibly accurate to their characters, and I agree that Will probably understands that if this is truly what Mike needs in order to finally self-actualize and find happiness, then he will do whatever he has to do to help him in that, even if they end up on the hell train together without seat belts and sex raccoon hanging out of the window.
