#- reimerging trauma because of Fred and Vecna

[strangerwheelerthings]

I don't know if it's because it's been too long since I last watched Stranger Things, but I genuinely don't remember a happy Nancy scene post Barb...

This is such an interesting thing to think about because it's not as if Nancy looks miserable in most scenes of the show. In fact, she often looks determined and occasionally excited even. She has smiled before, but excitement about progress in a case, something she's passionate about because of Barb, isn't necessarily happiness. So this is something you have to look beyond face value for.

Nancy suffers quite plainly with survivors guilt and with a lot of trauma. She isn't healed from what happened in Season One, and I don't think she even let herself really start until after season three. Not with so much unresolved. She also hasn't had the help she really needs either. However, Nancy has experienced happiness since Barb's death. There are moments she forgets. It’s only healthy that she's not so obessively mired in her misery that she can't have moments to breathe.

It's been a while since I've watched the show, too, so I can't say if there's a Jancy scene where she's just happy. Their get-together scene was very in the middle of Barb trauma, the wake up together scene is very stressed and rushed. Jonathan has been good to her, but all their scenes are a very mixed bag of emotions with happiness not really being the predominant one.

There are three small scenes from season four that come to mind. The first is Lucas's game. Nancy is quite genuinely proud and happy for Lucas in that moment of success. It's such a small shot, but it's one of a few scenes that show us that Nancy cares a whole lot more about Mike’s friends than she ever says.

The second is the scene with the dog, right before the plot plummets Nancy right back into her guilt complex. She's starting to live, and she lets herself be, for just a second, when she steps away from a murder investigation to just play with a dog. This is the first real evidence that her passion for her work is not just about Barb anymore.

The last scene is the officially friends scene with Robin. It's simply a moment of establishing connection, and both girls are just so warm in that moment. It's another sign of Nancy starting to actually heal. She's happy to have a new girl friend, not scared or guilty like she would have been before.

#yeah I gotta be honest I dont know if she had any really happy scenes in season 3 #i know season 2 is sorely lacking #as much as I love exploring Nancy’s trauma she is so much more complex than that #she does see the good in her life even if it's sometimes hard for her to accept #you're right though in that the show doesn't really let her be happy the way i wish she could be #thinking of some scenes took a second as i tried to determine when she even could have been during the seasons #the source of Nancy’s worst pain is also the source of her moments of joy #care for other people #Nancy sees the good in the world and she wants to protect it but she doesn't always feel worthy of taking it for herself #she experiences genuine happiness when other people are happy #and she has moments of pride and determination in season three #but season four really feels like the start of her taking some of that for herself #in the form of keeping robin close by #of stopping to talk to a dog #Robin is especially significant because she keeps her grounded in a moment where she very easily could have been pulled under with - #- reimerging trauma because of Fred and Vecna #nancy wheeler #robin buckley #jancy #ronance #stranger things