Jane Hopper and Will Byers' dynamic in Stranger Things
El and Will's dynamic should've been explored way more. We truly could've had something so special.
In season 1, El escapes Hawkins lab and she somehow recognizes Will in the picture in Mike's room.
Her storyline in season 1 is to help find Will because her knowledge of the upside down is a vital piece of the puzzle.
El takes on the responsibility of finding Will. And I think this is shown really well when they find Will's "body", and she is truly devastated.
But she never gives up. And thanks to her, they're able to save Will.
The fact that her first interaction with him was to save his LIFE could've built the grounds for such a deep and meaningful relationship.
In season 1 & 2, Will and Eleven parallel each other frequently.
Millie Bobby Brown even said that the only characters who can TRULY understand Eleven are Kali and Will.
The reasons for Kali being obvious...
But Will is the only character that was not raised in a lab that can understand the feeling of your entire childhood being taken away from you. He's been abused his entire life and treated as different.
El and Will's independence and sense of self was taken away from them at a young age. El—since birth, and Will—since he was taken by Vecna.
And both have been used as puppets by Brenner & by the mind flayer/Vecna.
Season 4 gave them the perfect opportunity to explore their dynamic but of course they fumbled it.
We did see some great sibling chemistry between them. I just wish they had shown us more.
They genuinely look like biological siblings here.
And Will being there for her and encouraging her during her presentation ☹️
Also, when the Byers + El move away at the end of season 3, it's clear that El is quickly considered family. Will truly sees her as a sister to him.
And not to mention the fact that they're both in love with Mike, but they still love each other deeply.
This parallel between season 1 and 5 was definitely one of the best moments of season 5. El used her powers to save Will just like she did all those years ago.
Will and El most often see each other at their most vulnerable and are there for each other.
And because they are so tethered, by their connection to the upside down and their trauma, I wish they could've dived deeper into that. Explored their shared understanding and willingness to be vulnerable around each other.
It could've added so much to their characters and to their relationship. If we'd been able to see them confide in each other, have moments of mutual understanding and vulnerable conversations.
In season 5, they could've explored this even further with their shared rivalry against Henry AND Will discovering his powers.
But we never even got to see El's reaction to Will's powers. In fact, we barely saw ANY Will and El interactions in season 5.
Their relationship could've been so much more meaningful and the wasted potential honestly breaks my heart.
This scene alone was so devastating. Will just lost his SISTER.
Also, if they had further developed El and Will's relationship, Will could've been that last person she talked to in the void. (Whether or not that scene was real or Mike's imagination)
In my opinion, this would've been so much more meaningful and would've definitely hit harder.
Similar to Kali, El could've talked to the person who understands her the most, the person who she is closest to—her brother.
It would've made more sense because Mike does not understand her, not really. Not the same way Will and Kali do.
