#aren't i? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

fuckmeupjackson · 2 years

Text

I Think S3 Jancy's Goodbye Scene Tells Us How Mike Feels About Will

Buckle up girlies and get your yoga pants on cause this might be a stretch. But if it's actually right, I think it's really cool! ***LONG POST*** bc i cant stop being detailed. ***excuse the messy explanations****

---------

Here's the TL;DR:

Jancy's emotional goodbye scene reveals Mike's inner thoughts for Will by using several parallels, including double lights and a reference to the "crazy together" scene. It's pretty basic, it just shows that Mike essentially deeply longs for and misses Will and that's what motivates his emotions.

--------

Here's a link to a clip of the Jancy scene if you want to watch it at any point: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBVa0rOLITo&t=54s

Byler Scene + 1st Parallel

Okay, so to start off, we're looking at the characters' goodbye scenes as the Byers family moves out of their house at the end of season 3. In case you forgot, Mike and Will's very brief conversation goes like this:

M: "Dude, that's the donation box."

W: "I know. I was thinking I could just use yours when I come back. If we still wanna play.'

M: "But what if you wanna join another party?"

W: "Not possible"

That's it. Will walks off happily to the left of the screen, then it immediately cues to Jonathan walking left into the frame of the next scene. This is the first thing that tells us that maybe we should be comparing Will and Jonathan together throughout these two scenes, as well as the fact that they are both the ones who are moving out of the house (and that they're brothers, of course). Jonathan approaches his doorway and leans on the frame. What I would like to point out are the double lights behind him.

As he positions himself on the doorframe to the left, he moves to be directly in front of these lights. Double lights, from what I have seen, have come up in two more significant times throughout the show:

The fact that the double lights come up in both these scenes is initially what made me start to pay attention to them. They're especially significant because they're the lights that flash when Will says "see you tomorrow" to Mike -- the day he gets kidnapped into the upside down. Of course double lights on garages is common, but it's not as common indoors, especially in a house. They're definitely intentional.

And ,then in the second scene (s4) they're right behind Vecna (who has been paralleled with Will Byers) in a scene with Nancy (earlier in that scene, Nancy also has a moment where she's positioned in front of those double lights.). So now we know that, if I'm not being delusional, there's a connection between Will, Jonathan, Nancy, Mike, and Vecna/the upside down throughout these three scenes.

I AM GOING TO BE FOCUSING ON THE FIRST SCENE, WHERE WILL LEAVES MIKE AND THE LIGHTS FLICKER.

Let's briefly talk about that flickering lights scene. It's the very first sign that Will is in trouble, and it marks the very beginning of his relationship with the upside down. It's where all the pain started for Will, and therefore for Mike as well. My theory is that this symbol between the Season 3 Jancy scene and the Season 1 Byler scene means Jonathan and Nancy's dialogue here represents what Mike has been wishing he could say/have said to Will since that day he went missing. Ever since that one moment at the garage that started it all. Or better yet just the day he realized Will went missing /or/ thought Will was dead. Sounds confusing but it'll make sense soon. But it especially makes sense since, you know, this moving out scene is ALSO another moment where Mike and Will get physically separated for the second time since will's initial disappearance. It's just like a re-do of Byler's first garage/"it got me" scene. (And there's also the scene a few minutes later after this of Mike hugging his mom, which parallels and further establishes the connection to season 1 Mike when he does the same after he thinks Will is dead.). That may be a stretch, and if it is, I still believe that this Jancy scene is meant to reveal Mike and Will's feelings for each other at least in this moment, as they are separated and begin to move away physically.

----------

Mike's Inner Thoughts + 2nd BIG Parallel

So, in order to check this theory, let's take a look at Jancy's actual dialogue here. Nancy follows Jonathan into the frame and asks

"Is that everything?" I absolutely have convinced myself that this is significant here. This is the first thing that is said. It's DIRECTLY after Will walks away from his convo with Mike that I wrote out above. Let me remind you that Will and Mike's goodbye scene was the shortest out of any of the friend groups/relationships'. It was very brief and didn't really have a sense of closure. Mike didn't even respond to Will, he just gave him a mysterious smile as Will walked away. So I think Nancy saying this here is narratively an effort to open up a deeper part of the conversation, that should have been an extension from Byler's conversation. "Is that everything you wanted to say?" --and then Jancy says what was on Byler's minds for them-- is what role her line plays here.

(I recommend video of the J*ncy scene here, it would help to watch it when reading the dialogue out because it really emphasizes the emotions lol: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBVa0rOLITo&t=54s)

-------

DIALOGUE

From here on, I just want you to imagine Nancy's dialogue as Mike's thoughts and Jonathan's dialogue as Will's thoughts, especially in the context of what Mike has constantly been feeling towards Will throughout his arc:

Jonathan: "I guess so. 17 years of my life, packed up in one day." --(a nod to leaving his childhood behind - just as Will's dnd book is - and possibly referencing how Will's childhood was taken away when kidnapped by the demogorgon)--

Nancy: *goes up behind J to hug him* "What if I just... don't let you go?"

Jonathan: "I think... the new owners might kick us out."

Nancy: "You could stay in our basement." Jonathan: "Your dad would love that."

--------

Analysis: There's the theme of Nancy/Mike not wanting to let Will/Jonathan go here. It's so heart-wrenching. This just makes me really emotional, cause it's so emotional to begin with, but to imagine it as Mike's inner feelings to Will too... UGH. I'm just gonna say it, I lowkey CRIED AND THREW A FIT WHEN I FIRST IMAGINED IT. BUT SILENTLY CAUSE SOMEONE WAS SLEEPING IN THE OTHER ROOM XD. But...

There are a few similarities here: The basement is where Mike and Will felt like they could be themselves. The father would disapprove of their relationship. It's all the same.

"The new owners may kick us out" could mean several things, but I think it most likely means that if Mike didn't want to let Will go, meaning he wanted to stay close to him forever, society would see them together and judge and isolate them ("kick them out"). Or it could mean that Mike wishes he could have saved Will, maybe by not letting him leave (here goes another garage scene parallel in season 3 - "Will, come on, don't leave, it's raining" - Mike just wants to keep Will "home" because it's safe for him). But Will's capture was inevitable, the monsters would get him anyway, just as his pain and trauma getting a hold of him was inevitable, and society would make him feel like a mistake at some point in his life anyway, no matter what his best friend could do for him.

All of this just reiterates Mike's desire to keep Will in his life and his fear of letting him go, even if he doesn't show it right away.

--------

DIALOGUE CONT'D

Nancy: "We could hide you in a tent. Like El."

*Nancy begins to Cry. *

------------

At this point, it's not really so much about showing what's on Mike/Will's minds, but more so an explanation of their arc together.

It would be quite easy to say that, keeping in mind that Nancy parallels Mike here, this reflects Mike's feelings about El, but I have a completely different theory. Throughout the show, El represents Hope. Hope, sometimes, to the point of delusion. She also tends to fill people's empty hearts. We can see here that Nancy is being overly wishful, trying to provide the clearly unrealistic, bordering on childish, solution of keeping him in her basement in order to lessen the pain of losing the boy she's in love with. Sound familiar? I think this whole time, that's how Mike has felt about El and Will. He clung to El because of the hope she provided to him. She did the impossible for him. She helped bring his friend back and defeat the evil monsters (which represent pain/trauma/being in the closet.). But ultimately... his attachment to her is driven by the love he has for his best friend, and the desire to run away from the pain it causes him. That's a post for another time though lol, let's take a look at an EVEN BETTER part. BECAUSE IT'S AN ACTUAL SCENE PARALLELED WITH BYLER.

------------

This next part is the most TELLING ONE:

Jonathan: "Hey. it's okay."

*JONATHAN TAKES NANCY'S HAND AND TRACES IT WITH HIS THUMB*

Jonathan - "As a wise man once said, we've got shared trauma." (perhaps a nod to Will the wise, even tho he's talking about Murray lolz).

*cuts to their faces then cuts back to their hands again*

Nancy: "So what's a little more, right?"

Jonathan: *kisses her hand* "What's a little more."

They then kiss and hug in front of the window and it zooms out.

---------------

This has probably been mentioned before and I haven't seen it bc I'm fairly new on tumblr, but this is literally like the crazy together scene you guys. There are so many similarities here. There's also the hand holding that actually parallels the scene where Mike says "we won't. we won't" to Will in season 2. But especially regarding the Crazy Together scene, there are two similarities here: the shared trauma/going crazy together, and then there's the fact that both the scenes mark the beginning of the two characters spiraling in different directions but, somehow, becoming closer as a result of it. (Nancy and Jonathan are moving farther apart physically, but somehow that's shared trauma? That's because them moving apart makes their two hearts ache in the same way, a way that nobody else seems to understand, which will ultimately be what connects them together despite the long distance. Then for Mike and Will in the Crazy Together scene, they are talking about going crazy for two slightly different, but similar reasons, reasons that in the future will split them apart, but somehow this drives them closer together, showing that no matter what causes them pain, they know that they can ultimately rely on being understood by one another, more so than by anybody else. Ugh and the fact that the Crazy Together scene happens directly after another Jancy scene where Jonathan puts Nancy in her bed?! And both those scenes are about one character taking the other character home so they can feel safe?! And Byler is in the basement which is mentioned by Nancy here?! And Mike took Will there after saying "let's take you home"?! And this scene is all about home?! It's happening. I'm believing everything I'm saying, and that's dangerous XD.)

The last thing I'd like to say is the soundtrack here is the tiniest bit reminiscent of "You're The Heart." (@ 2:30 and somewhat at the beginning) And it's called "You're a fighter." Take what you want from that. That could be pro m*leven if you want, unless you're like me and you think that Mike's monologue to El w/ You're the Heart playing in the BG was actually a reveal of his feelings for Will, esp given that, you know, the title of the score is named after what Will said to Mike to inspire him.

Also, as a disclaimer, I didn't want to diminish Jancy's relationship here, I love this scene on its own and what it means to Jancy, so sorry if it came across like I thought they were only important in relation to Byler, not my intention!

OKay guys BYEEEEEEEEEEE

if you read this whole thing I'm sorry for putting you through the torture that is my stream of consciousness but thank you for reading haha

**FEEL FREE TO CORRECT ME ON ANYTHING OR ADD ON**

#im delusional #aren't i?#oh well #i love it #it's emotional #byler #analysis #stranger things theory #stranger things #byler analysis #will byers #mike wheeler #parallels #stranger things parallels #parallel #upside down

40 notes · View notes