Roni Drakaina

To them the ending was in true 80s Style as they said.

It wasn't just Byler, I felt like it didn't do anything new. Sure killed a big monster and ended with a boring adult life epilogue (that left out Vicky).

But maybe they weren't aiming for something new. Maybe, like the parallels between Eleven's and Jane's outfits to real 80s movies and their inclusion of actual 80s stars like Winona Ryder and Linda Hamilton... Maybe that points to the fact that they were aiming for an 80s ending. (It was just a fever dream trope?)

And the general dissonance surrounding it is because we the fans & shippers from gen alpha, Z, Millenials etc. are viewing the stories as set in 80s but with our psychological and global understanding of stuff from 2025.

While the finale was written 80s style with the limited psychology view of the 80s.

If you want a better version of the radio tower scene - with a jealous oblivious Mike... Go read "It's Always been You" by RoniDrakaina on Ao3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/76951311