☆ meat 🫀 juice ☆

The Symbolism:

The fear of water symbolizes Truman's confinement and his inability to face the unknown outside world. 

His eventual conquest of this fear, when he sails away, signifies his rebirth and the death of his old, controlled self, allowing him to break free.

Something something water being the most prevalent symbolism in all of Stranger Things

(which is saying something for a show chock full of it) Jane has to be in her bath to see the truth. Water in the void but not the Upside Down. When Mike lies to El and the vines tighten around her (because she knows he’s lying) it’s after they remove her physical body from the tub and put her on the counter. She comes back from all this through the power of her love for Max, not Mikes words. (Some of which I do believe are true I think he feels genuine love for her just not the kind they’ve both been pretending it is.)

Mikes inability to be honest affects more than just himself. He causes pain to several people around him, not the least of which are Jane and Will. And he’s incidentally keeping them all stuck on the island with him. We know Will comes to terms with himself early on and his struggle is more a matter of hiding, something that S5 opener shows us he is VERY good at. He’s been hiding his whole life so surely of all the kids he’d survive the longest in the UD. BUT he doesn’t lie to himself. He has his (rainbow) ship and has had it for a long time.

Will knows himself and needs the world around him to accept him.

Mike refuses to know himself so that the world around him will accept him.

‘be kind, rewind’ has been frequently used in st and it’s promotions. i then found this movie - featuring a literal MOCKUMENTARY!! and AN ELECTRICAL SUBSTATION

with a mc called MIKE😭bffr

not only that, we get licensed authentic stranger things merch with the same thing. ‘be kind, rewind’ & ‘insert this side into the recorder’.

we have to “go back and get it” !!

the silhouettes alone should’ve ended the conversation. will’s soft, rounded, emotionally exposed outline versus mike’s rigid, angular, defensive one, that’s not “just how the clothes fit.” that’s intentional character design. that’s two visual energies built to interlock the second they share a frame. they complete each other’s negative space with such precision it borders on a confession. you don’t stumble into that. you build it. you don’t get that by coincidence. you get that because a designer built them as a visual pair.

and the colours? engineered. their palettes are engineered to resonate. not match, resonate. mike’s deeper, earth anchored tones stabilise will’s cooler, gentler hues. that’s colour theory being deployed with the kind of precision you learn in first year film modules. the frame literally settles when they stand next to each other. your eye relaxes. your brain goes, “yes, this belongs.” that’s not coincidence, that’s not vibes. that’s craft. that’s a department doing their job so well people assume it’s natural.

textures? again: deliberate. will’s fabrics tend to be softer, more tactile, more vulnerable. mike’s are structured, slightly rougher, more angular. when they share a frame, those textures play off each other: softness against structure, warmth against coolness. it creates a subtle visual tension that mirrors their emotional dynamic, the push pull, the longing, the miscommunication, the connection they can’t quite articulate. will’s fabrics absorb light, soft, tactile, vulnerable. mike’s catch light at the seams, structured, guarded, withholding. put them together and you get a visual metaphor for their entire emotional arc. softness pressed against rigidity. longing brushing up against fear. the clothes are telling the story even when the dialogue refuses to.

and here’s the part that might go over some people’s heads, but i’m making it my job to spell it out for this amazing fandom: this stuff matters. it’s not decorative. it’s not random. it’s part of the queer baiting machinery that made byler feel so narratively inevitable and then refused to follow through. when a show builds this level of visual cohesion between two characters, silhouettes that harmonise, colours that resolve, textures that converse, it’s signalling connection. it’s setting up payoff. it’s laying groundwork for a relationship arc.

and then… nothing. all that visual storytelling, all that coded intimacy, all that design work that screams “these two are meant to converge,” and the narrative just swerves away. that’s why people call it queerbaiting. because the craft is doing the heavy lifting the script won’t commit to.

what really infuriates me is that this isn’t subtle if you’ve ever taken a single class on visual composition. costume design is built in conversation with blocking, lighting, framing, the entire image pipeline. when will and mike share a shot, the costuming is designed to harmonise with the camera’s composition. the lines of their shirts guide your eye between them. their silhouettes interlock. their colours balance. the frame clicks into place like a puzzle piece snapping home.

so yes, they “look right together”. and the reason it “looks right” is because when they’re in the same shot, the designers engineered that effect. the human eye is drawn to balance, to contrast that resolves rather than clashes. when will and mike stand side by side, the palette settles. the frame stabilises. the composition feels complete. that’s not an accident, that’s a visual cue that these two characters are narratively intertwined. a team of trained professionals made damn sure they would. because the visual language of the show is screaming connection even when the narrative refuses to honour it.

it’s not accidental. it’s not incidental. it’s not “just the 80s.”

listen. i love this show. i do. i have spent years of my life thinking about children riding bikes and fighting interdimensional monsters. but if we’re being honest — and we are being honest — seasons 1 and 2 were the soul of stranger things. everything after that was… a brand.

and no, that is not me being nostalgic. that is me having EYES.

⸻

what stranger things was supposed to be

at its core, stranger things was about:

• weird kids

• outcasts

• small-town horror

• quiet dread

• government secrets

• and something deeply, deeply wrong under the surface

it was eerie.

it was slow.

it was mysterious.

it trusted the audience to think.

season 1 was basically:

what if your friend disappeared and nobody believed you but you knew something was wrong

season 2 was:

what if the kid who came back, came back wrong.

that is GOOD SHIT.

⸻

why the general audience loves season 3

ask a random netflix viewer what their favorite season is and they will say season 3 with their whole chest.

why?

because season 3 is:

• colorful

• neon

• funny

• nostalgic

• full of montages

• full of jokes

• full of action

• and El is back to main character era

it is the most “easy to watch” season.

and here’s the thing no one wants to admit:

season 3 barely matters.

you could skip it and miss, like, three plot points and a russian subplot that goes nowhere emotionally.

the cast themselves have said it’s basically filler.

but it’s filler that feels good.

because capitalism doesn’t care about story — it cares about money.

⸻

season 2 scared people because it “wasn’t fun”

season 2 is actually one of the best-written seasons.

it has:

• horror

• mystery

• possession

• emotional fallout

• real consequences

and it centers… Will.

and that’s why people hated it.

because Will is:

• quiet

• traumatized

• queer-coded

• not funny

• not powerful ( yet )

• not flashy

and the general audience hates that.

they wanted Eleven in her girlboss era.

they wanted cool outfits.

they wanted power fantasy.

instead they got:

a fragile boy crying and being possessed by an eldritch horror.

and people went:

ew. boring. crybaby.

meanwhile Eleven cries CONSTANTLY and nobody calls her annoying.

why?

because:

• she’s a girl

• girls are “allowed” to cry

• boys who cry are “cringe”

it’s literally gender stereotypes dressed up as fandom opinions.

⸻

superfans vs casual viewers

this is where it gets juicy.

superfans loved season 2 because:

• it was scary

• it had lore

• it had mystery

• it built the world

they hate season 3 because:

• nothing changes

• nothing matters

• it plays it safe

the general audience is the opposite:

they hate season 2 because it’s “too slow”

they love season 3 because it’s “fun”

guess who netflix listens to?

the people with popcorn.

⸻

Capitalism killed the show

season 1 and 2 were weird.

they didn’t explain everything.

they trusted you to sit in the discomfort. after that i slept with a candle stick under my pillow! iykyk😉

season 3 and onward were:

here is a monster

here is a Steve

here is a joke

here are some Russians to hate

please don’t think too hard

because complicated storytelling doesn’t sell as well as:

bright colors + action + nostalgia.

the show stopped being about:

“what is happening in hawkins?”

Why are the demogorgons on a jet 2 holiday during the final battle?

and became:

“how can we make this look cool in a trailer?”

⸻

we didn’t start watching this for marvel energy

we started watching because:

• it was creepy

• it was sad

• it was about outsiders

• it felt real

now it’s a theme park ride.

Season 3 is so colorful and loud I half expect the Demogorgon to start doing the cha‑cha behind the mall.

and yeah, it’s entertaining.

but it’s not what it was.

⸻

in conclusion

stranger things didn’t get worse because the creators got dumber.

it got worse because:

capitalism hates subtlety.

it hates:

• slow burns

• queer sadness

• mystery

• emotional complexity

it loves:

• action

• nostalgia

• easy heroes

• simple stories that hints lmbtq because of ✨money✨.

and somewhere between season 2 and season 3, stranger things stopped being a story

and started being a product.

anyway.

i’m right.

reblog if you agree.

Here is a little take on MWTFDYDGate @queerxqueen and I conjured up!

Really had to drop everything after V1 dropped and get this out to you all.

not in a “it was all terrible” way.

but in a “how did we fumble THIS many narrative balls in the FINAL season of a billion-dollar show” way.

and it all starts with:

⸻

THE HOLLY WHEELER PROBLEM

i said it.

i meant it.

i’ll say it again louder for the people in the upside down.

the holly plotline was useless.

not “bad.”

not “poorly acted.”

just… narratively unnecessary.

she had more screen time than half of the original cast.

HALF.

characters we’ve known since season 1 were standing in the corner like forgotten coats while holly and her little stranger squad were running around having their own side quest.

and for what?

what did it actually change?

remove the holly plotline and you still get:

• vecna

• the final fight

• the upside down

• the world ending

but suddenly you also get:

• more time for mike

• more time for will

• more time for joyce

• more time for literally anyone who mattered

they said they were “circling back to the core themes.”

FRIENDSHIP AND LOVE PREVAILS MY ASS.

this season was:

doom

gloom

crying

death

suffering for no actually reason

apocalypse

action packed bullshit

⸻

HOPPER SHOULD HAVE STAYED DEAD

i love hopper.

he is a king.

he is a dad.

he is a real life hero.

but.

HE. SHOULD. HAVE. STAYED. DEAD.

bob’s death in season 2 hit because it told us something:

no one is safe.

that’s what makes horror work.

that’s what makes you hold your breath.

now?

steve falls off a TOWER in season 5 and i don’t even blink.

i was like:

“he’s fine.”

because he is.

everyone is.

they have so much plot armor they could walk into the sun and come back with a mild tan.

when everyone is guaranteed to survive, nothing feels dangerous.

and when nothing feels dangerous, nothing feels important. Or real!

hopper staying dead would have:

• raised the stakes

• fixed the fear

• and forced eleven to grow on her own

which brings me to—

⸻

LET ELEVEN BE A PERSON, NOT A PET

this is not about ships.

do not come in here with that energy.

jane needed independence.

she needed to exist outside of:

hopper

mike

the government

netflix’s marketing department

kali should have lived.

period.

eleven could have escaped.

built a life.

been a person.

instead we got:

more suffering

more trauma

more reset-to-factory-settings arcs

girl has been through ENOUGH.

⸻

THE WILL BYERS SITUATION

they should not have dragged will being in love with mike this long.

there were two options:

1. follow through

2. shut it down early and give will a new love interest

they did neither.

they just let him suffer in the narrative corner for five seasons.

and that robin pep talk?

wasted time.

led nowhere.

gave him false hope.

then did nothing with it.

you know what that time could have been?

what were all those clues? those glances? the touches? the tension?

all these for a big Nothing Burger!

THE FINAL FIGHT.

people are not wrong when they say the final battle was barely longer than will’s coming out scene.

priorities were in hell.

⸻

CONFORMITYGATE AND THE MARKETING MACHINE

netflix knew this was controversial.

they fed it.

they promoted it.

they tweeted about it.

because controversy = clicks

clicks = engagement

engagement = money

we are not viewers.

we are metrics.

we are little corporate pawns in netflix’s chess game.

and they’re playing 4D chess with our feelings.

⸻

BACK TO HOLLY (BECAUSE I’M NOT DONE)

they aged her up.

ignored her canonical age.

made her important.

why?

new kids = new audience.

but what was their actual purpose?

“to merge the worlds.”

okay.

why.

how.

to what end.

no answers.

Pure aesthetic, zero explanation.

we didn’t need 12 new characters in the FINAL season.

we needed:

the kids we started with.

that’s it.

⸻

IN CONCLUSION

the choices this season were… interesting.

that’s the nicest thing i can say.

this could have been a beautiful, focused, emotional ending.

instead we got:

corporate storytelling

safe decisions

marketable drama

and a finale that felt like it was trying to please everyone and satisfied no one.

anyway.

i’m going to go lie on my bed and stare at the ceiling now.

reblog if you agree.

reblog if you’re mad.

•No patty newby mention

•why was the UD stuck on the day of Will's disappearance

•vecna gets slimed in like 10 minutes

•The mindflayer gets slimed in 2 minutes

•Byler, mileven, stancy, jancy, rovickie and somehow steddie fucking bones

•Will is only part of the hivemind when it's convenient for the plot

•we just?forgot will has powers? He used them like twice the entire season

•el fucking killed herself

•the entire ending is ambiguous as hell (are they showing the characters' futures? Or is it all Mike's imagination? Is El even alive?)

•melvald's sells milkshakes now apparently, they're next to the Christmas lights

•painting unaddressed

•did will go missing at 11 or 12?

•henry just so happens to have the same bday as will for no fucking reason

•vickie is just GONE (and implied broken up with robin? Wtf why can't gay people win you assholes)

•Dick jokes and butthole surfers jokes for shits and giggles

•el telling Mike that he's the only person who has ever understood her, which is factually not true lmao y'all didn't even talk

•mike doesn't even say ily back even though she's literally DYING

•artist will found dead in a ditch

•no deaths, stakes were never lower

•only death was KALI who WASN'T EVEN AT FAULT FOR ANYTHING

•We got Holly x Derek before any actual Mike wheeler character arc

•Only way to end the cycle of abuse is by KILLING YOURSELF GUYS!!! GREAT MESSAGE!!!

•Will is mlvn romance counselor again cause that's what gay people are for ig

•Hopper loses another daughter

•joyce has like three lines in the entire finale

•They don't recognize Henry?? The lead in their senior play? Bitch?

•where are the demobats. They're just? Gone?

•Will loves getting lost in the woods, it's his favourite activity

•Mike still doesn't know Will is(/was?) in love with him

•The pregnant women? Did we just kill them?

•Brenner and project rainbow rever mentioned

•the town is fine with hellfire now? Don't they still think it was a satanic cult?

•ripping the vines out of the kids' mouths like it's nothing when in s1 they had to keep pulling it out and will needed cpr afterwards

•max is not surprised hop's alive, even though last time she saw him he was super dead

•actually no one in this town cares he's alive, he's back to chief of police

•creelby parallels leading to absolutely nothing

•el going in the void when the sirens were blaring so she wouldn't be able to

•no rovickie at Enzo's fuck u

•the UD tank being filled with water even though there's no water in the ud

•why is the UD a mirror of hawkins

•why did Henry need 12 kids

Oh, so now you wanna be realistic with your little shit show? Now? At the very end? Fine, let's be realistic.

nancy would never be able to properly wield a military-level rifle, as the recoil would throw her to the ground;

A gay boy in the 80s wouldn't come out to a group of +15 people. Why is Will coming out to Kali?! To Mr. Clarke?! To creep-o murray?!

15 year olds aren't smarter than military troops and actual scientists;

Hopper wouldn't survive the explosion of Starcourt Mall in Season 3;

Monsters aren't real;

Neither are telephatic powers;

The kids' parents wouldn't let their kids spend all night away from home while their town is under military occupation—you don't actually expect me to believe Claudia, Sue, Charles, Karen, and Ted are all okay with their kids being away from home every night, do you?

Two teens and a kid wouldn't be able to infiltrate a USSR top-secret base;

Steve wouldn't be able to tackle a fully-trained soviet soldier;

Robin wouldn't know russian—it's the cold war, why would someone from the US, and someone from a tiny town in Indiana, on top of that, know Russian??

And even if she did, I doubt she would be able to decode a top-secret military code;

All of those kids/main characters would be charged for high treason for attacking US soldiers, and nancy (who somehow is totally fine with killing people now) would be sentenced to death, as Indiana has the death penalty;

Jonathan would either resent or deeply loathe Joyce for her neglecting him and her obvious favoritism of Will;

Vecna would have snapped Joyce's neck when she came running at him at MAC-Z. He just killed 40 people with ease, why would he spare Joyce?

Lucas wouldn't be strong enough to kick a Demodog—those creatures just tackled fully grown men, but a 16-year-old can beat them?

Ted and Karen would be dead due to bloodloss by the time an ambulance got to their home;

Karen wouldn't be able to walk with those injuries—it's been, what? Two days since the attack? Nah, she would be weak as hell;

Jonathan wouldn't waste his money buying a ring just to dump his girlfriend—who does that?!

Jonathan, a poor kid, wouldn't throw away his girlfriend's clothes;

Joyce would never be able to infiltrate a USSR top-secret prison, rescue Hopper, and get out.

- why the upside down is stuck on november 6 1983

- who opened the lock on the door in s1 ep 1 since we know demogorgons dont have telekenetic abilities

- why vecna kidnapped will specifically

- Will suddenly not being connected to the hive mind and having no reaction to the mind flayer being hurt or burned.

- how did will communicate through alphabet wall if time is stuck on the day will went missing in the upside down and the alphabet wall was painted by joyce after will went missing. He shouldn’t have been able to see the letters

- where the pregnant woman are in the upside down. did they get them out, did they blow them up alongside the upside down?

- painting gate. I thought they said it would pay of in the end?

- noah saying hes had the most scenes with finn.

- kali using her powers to make el invisble when its been established that distance was a problem for her. Mind you she got shot before the final mind flayer fight so i dont even know how she was still alive when el supposedly sacrifised herself

- Apparently vickie and robin broke up? Since in the epilouge robin mentions overbearing partners

This isn't even about byler anymore. The writing is shit, it was predictable as fuck and they didn't adress any of the glaring plotholes i just mentioned.