Mike Wheeler was just made unambiguously, orâin practical termsâcanonically queer.
I just found a brilliant thread on Twitter by @stachaser about the Jack Kerouac poster visible in epilogue Mikeâs college bedroom (written in Portuguese but I included the full translation under this embedded link).
Hereâs the translation:
They can do whatever they want, but nothing will change the fact that Mike is implicitly queer.
Heâs the only characterâalong with Robin and Willâwho has queer references inside the series.
In fact, he has even more references than Robin and Will, who are canonically part of the community.
He knew community terms back in the 80s.
He defended a queer punk rock band [Butthole Surfers] that used queer references both in its name and in its lyrics.
He has a Jack Kerouac poster in his damn bedroomâa bisexual writer.
If he likes Jack Kerouac, then he likes Allen Ginsberg too, who was openly gay and Jackâs best friend.
He knows the Beat movement, which was against conservatism and conformity.
In his works, Jack talked about attraction and passion for other menâand not only that, but also about the religious guilt of feeling it, which could very well be a sign of Mikeâs own internalized homophobia.
Mike, canonically, likes works, music, and literature that go against the norms and standards of society at the time.
He canonically likes songs that make fun of fragile masculinity.
The band he likes so much has an explicitly queer name, and its songs do too.
He appreciates Jackâs works, which talk about desire for other men.
None of that is there by accident. Those elements are carefully chosen to fit together and make sense with the characterâs personality.
Mike is a writer who is against conformity, likes works that mock it, defends freedom, and rejects imposed standards.
I donât know which old bald white guy prevented him from being officially gay in the show, but all the references to Mikeâs sexuality are in the show itselfâimplicitlyâeven in his last scenes.
I donât care if you disagree or come insult me. Iâm not going to see it because my notifications are turned off. So you can cry and seethe in my comments or in the quotesâI donât give a damn.
Nothing is going to change the fact that Mike is, yes, implicitly queer.
Mike was never made official as a straight character, so considering him straight is also a headcanon.
He never rejected Willâhe never even knew about Willâs feelings.
The Byler ending was left totally open to the audienceâs interpretation, as was Mikeâs sexuality.
And itâs not just his personal tastes that are queer-codedâhis clothes in S4 were, too, yes, deliberately thought through. All the charactersâ outfits have details with meanings.
And if youâve never studied the Beat Generation or donât know Allen and Jack, I recommend looking them up and reading their works!
Thereâs also the movie Kill Your Darlings, which talks about the start of Allenâs career, his friendships, his SEXUALITY, and the beginning of the Beat Generation.
You canât talk about Jack without talking about Allen, and you canât avoid talking about the Beat Generation.
They were its pillars, and that movement opened the way for freedom of sexual expression.
Allen defended that openly.
They were important figures who challenged the norms.
Mike having him in his room means more than many people think.
