#queer eye s5

[gammija]

iiii dont think im gonna post much amagaday about this arc, because i don't enjoy the interpretation that jon was completely innocent in taking live statements, nor do i think basira or especially melanie were irrationally upset at him, and i know a significant amount of posts at least read as if people vehemently disagree

#look it wasn't completely his fault either but i think tma is fundamentally ABOUT this question of control #over your own actions and participation in perpetuating harm #but it's so juicy that Jon didn't tell anyone. that's a choice he made. was it a fair one? maybe if he'd told them immediately after #the first or even second they wouldn't have reacted as poorly or could've prevented 3 4 and 5 #but its also fair that he was scared to tell them. with how vehemently Basira was fighting monsters. dealing in intel. not people #but he did do it. #he didnt say 'help Basira hold me back! I'm being taken over by the Eye to take Floyd's here statement!' #also i cannot believe it took me seeing that fanart i reblogged to consciously consider the lens of #3 women confronting their friend/coworker/fellow hostage about a complaint from a woman that he harassed her #not that thats the only lens it can or even should be viewed through but #just felt like. oh. duh #also why I've been kinda dreading s5. since thats the one i was actively in the fandom i also actively remember #The Discourse #[dun dun duuun] #funniest post was the one that called tma fake queer representation a full 10 episodes after jon had said 'i love you' to martin #joos yaps #(and also finally... hot jon rights) #(i have a lot of thoughts but i dont want to get too worked up and portray things unfairly so this is all yallre getting today)

[nowmemoriees]

netflix & st writers hints about byler in social media: a short compilation

- because tumblr does not let me add more than 10 pics.

THEY LIKED THE COMMENT.

This comment "But it takes up to 5 business days" (hinting that byler could happen in s5) was even BEFORE season 4 was released. They know things.

netflixlat know that's the truth.

romantic couples quotes day, st writers?

byler next to the canon requited couple vs melvin next to the half-queer friendship👍

(the two pictures are from the same post, but I couldn't find identical screenshots)

this is like... INSANE. because WHY ON EARTH DID THEY PUT THAT PIC IN THE EXACT MOMENT MIKE AND WILL MEET EYES IN THE AIRPORT????

nothing else to add.

stranger things acc hinting Mike's sexuality, maybe?

they were so unhinged for this one. Like. too much.

part 2 here

part 3 :)

#stranger things #byler #st4 #mike wheeler i know what you are #byler tumblr #media hints

[extasiswings]

Okay but I’m fascinated by muay thai as a metaphor for queerness here. Eddie and Tommy both know how, and can practice together, but Tommy is on another level—he has a whole setup in his garage, his home, it’s an integrated part of his life. Buck, on the other hand, is on the outside. He doesn’t do muay thai with Eddie, he doesn’t know how. But Tommy says he can teach him, when the overall conversation and ultimate outcome (Tommy kissing Buck and opening his eyes to the fact that he’s into men) is a big signal that the real thing Tommy is here for is to be Buck’s guide through this queer journey of self-discovery.

Eddie is in between. He knows how, but it’s not an integrated part of his life the way it is for Tommy. Which tracks—Eddie in general is a master of compartmentalization. He keeps all the little pieces of him carefully siloed, never shall they cross. His queerness is no exception—he allows himself to embrace that piece of himself in specific ways, with specific people (the rituals are so very intricate, they really are), but the rest of the time he locks it away. Like coming back home after a quick trip to the gym.

I’ve been going back and forth since the shooting on the question of whether Eddie is aware of his feelings for Buck, because Eddie’s S5 arc especially was very queercoded. And I was thinking of that question as coextensive with “does Eddie know he’s queer?” But I think now that’s the wrong analysis—they are separate questions with separate answers—and after 7x04 (and the tease of 7x05) I think a) yes, Eddie absolutely knows he’s queer and is fine with it but tries to keep it separate from all the other pieces of him/the rest of his life, and b) he has not allowed himself to consider what if anything that means re: Buck. Eddie is all about control, and that’s what has enabled him to compartmentalize so well, but it’s like the guy from the call in the promo—you can’t control all of yourself all the time, you can’t keep yourself locked down that way, separated into smaller and smaller pieces, not allowing yourself to be your full self—eventually that separation will hurt you.

Buck is at step 1 of his journey. He’s just learning, Tommy is “teaching” him. And he’s about to drop a bomb in the middle of Eddie’s very carefully ordered life. Because if Buck is straight, it’s easy for Eddie to avoid ever having to examine his own queerness in connection with Buck. But if Buck is queer? If something is suddenly Possible in a way he assumed it wasn’t before? Then everything is different.

#chapel for ts #911 spoilers #yes I know I sound insane but it was an INCREDIBLY SPECIFIC activity that they kept bringing up in connection with the three of them

[jaegerisim]

Vent post y'all are gonna hate me for.

I viscerally hate how the Duffers treat most of their non white or queer characters and I hate even more viscerally, how y'all big byler blogs in your circle jerk of other 5 big byler blogs casually like to ignore many red flags the show has.

Y'all like to say: "tHe DufFeRs ArE gReAt WrIteRs" and it's like girl, who are you lying to??? They aren't top shit writers at all. The Duffers are pretty mid imo. Yeah, they run a good show that's fun to watch and theorize abt , but that doesn't mean they're good writers cuz they're not.

1. they completely side lined Will during s3 for the sake of their straight romances: lumax, jancy, mlvn, duzie and partly stobin (even if stobin wasn't endgame, thankfully, Steve's intentions were clearly wanting to date Robin and they gave it a lot of screen time). Will was sidelined bc he didn't fit the straight romance plotline bc they planned to make him gay or whatever. Now in s4 Will and his feelings have been used as mlvn toilet paper. Yes, we like to say this is build up for byler but canonically, Will's feelings have been used to clean the shit mlvn leaves behind.

2. Billy was sympathized a lot during the last 2 seasons. They gave him the sad backstoryTM in order for ppl to feel sorry for him. Billy's backstory is literally Jonathan's but whatever.

3. El's anger issues are constantly girlboss-ified. They down play her bullying situation and literally just use it for El to be a ''girlboss" without realizing how triggering that is. As someone who has lived bullying, seeing it be ignored by canon and fanon is super sad. The whole Rink-O' Mania experience must have been so traumatizing for her yet, everyone absolutely forgets abt it 🤷🏻‍♀️

4. Robin, Erica and Argyle are stereotypical characters. Robin is the quirky lesbian with social anxiety, Erica is the badass black woman and Argyle is the Latino stoner that sells weed to white kids and works as a pizza delivery guy.

5. Altho Argyle and Eddie both do drugs, (Eddie actually sells K-12 to a minor and nobody batted an eye. He has a huge fan base). Eddie is held in a pedestal bc "poor thing 🥺 he lives in a trailer with his uncle 🥺". Tell me a single fact you know abt Argyle that isn't "he smokes weed", "he is Jonathan's only friend", "drives a van" and "he works at a pizzeria". Exactly, Eddie is given a useless backstory and Argyle isn't.

6. Dustin stopped being important to the plot sometime around s2 and s3. He is only there to curse and be mildly funny. My guy needs to hangout with ppl his age cuz he only hangs out with seniors.

7. El needs to stop having so much "I'M THAT BITCH" screentime like I need in s5 for El's arc to not just be her becoming more powerful and falling in love with Mike. I need the Duffers to explore her trauma and problems.

8. Angela should have been run over by the van.

9. Patrick should have been given a backstory that isn't the basic "strict black parents that hit their kids cuz they are a disgrace". Patrick's backstory is actually racist af, fight w the wall.

10. As Lex already said, they didn't trigger tag the ep where Jason and his friends assault Lucas and Erica. Like wtf? Why was that necessary? Why did I have to see a black boy being held at gunpoint by some white guy?? Was it relevant to the plot?? I don't think so. And then I've got to see ppl online be like "Jason wasn't that bad. He was just mourning" like bitch you can stfu. This is what happens when you make the racist assholes conventionally attractive.

Also the fact that Lucas's arc is fulfilled by him fist-fighting Jason and "embracing his weirdness" aka accepting he is black. His arc was not fulfilled at all cuz that ending spoke so loud to me. It showed how little empathy ppl have towards the struggles poc ppl living in the Midwest have. Y'all circle jerks can only see racism when it's super obvious.

Furthermore, parents complained when ST showed "an excessive amount of smoking" yet nobody batted an eye when Billy tried to run over Lucas, when Erica (an 11 y.o ffs) was chased by white kids or when Lucas was held at gunpoint by Jason.

All of this happened while they focused on Max's guilt and mourning that, yeah, are important but certainly not less important than racism!!!

11. In s3, they gave us that whole Nancy vs The Bigots arc that was honestly just triggering and useless. It didn't help Nancy's character at all, quite the opposite it put unnecessary angst.

12. Lonnie being presented as an abuser just for him to never be spoken of again. Can we please get to explore the trauma he left the Byers's with?

13. The fact that both queer relationships are considered "sloppy seconds" is extremely sad. Both Vickie and Mike are rebounding from their failed relationship with Robin and Will. These 2 ships have caused more commotion than Jancy and Jopper together! (These last ships are technically sloppy seconds too but everybody forgets that. Shocker!!)

14. Last but not least, ppl blame Argyle for being the one to get Jonathan into smoking weed as if Jonathan probably wasn't the one looking for it. Let me tell you, that you only find weed if you look for it.

#P.S: I'm gonna pay attention to how many ppl send me hate bc of this or block me #stranger things #lucas sinclair #st vickie #robin buckley #jason stranger things #will byers #dustin henderson #eddie munson #argyle #jonathan byers #erica sinclair #byler #← target audience #byler target audience

[thefirstlioveyou]

no cause even though it’d be brutal to watch, i don’t think mike and will getting attacked by homophobic bullies is far off the table for a couple of reasons

- caleb did say the season is more mature and possibly r-rated now that the cast has grown up.. so i’m expecting a little more explicit violence with the kids

- homophobic bullying have already occured several times, mike getting pushed down in one scene and mike pushing troy in the other after he called will a slur.

- will has a black eye and brusies in the s5 leak. that’s not a type of mark anyone in the show has ever gotten when facing the supernatural, so it’s definitely from another human

- they’re in high school now; people are stronger and can be more violent and ruthless. mike most likely won’t walk away with just a scab on his chin this time

- it’s pretty obvious mike is gonna be hip to hip with will with all the foreshadowing in s4 and the leaks. will is already bullied for being queer. mike has a terrible reputation right now in hawkins for being a part of a club that is now seen as a satanic cult by the whole town. a queer and a possible satanist together in a small town… yeah they’re both fucked

i can imagine they manage to get away and run off somewhere, or maybe the fight gets stopped by police like with jonathan and steve. i’d like them to run away together though… foreshadowing for when they leave that stupid town in the future to california :))

#yes they are going to california sorry i dont make the rules #byler #mike wheeler #will byers

[spicybylerpolls]

It's a shame how guarded the fandom is regarding sex. First and foremost because sex, and specifically shame around sex, is heavily, heavily tied to Mike and Will's story.

If Lucas can have a 69 sign above his head while he's sleeping, why is it so hard to believe Mike and Will are having sexual dreams about each other? Especially if you ship them and acknowledge the 69 sign was obviously signaling a sexual dream?

If Lucas can have a reference to dirty magazines under his bed, why is it so hard to believe Mike and Will also have dirty magazines hidden around their bedroom?

If Dustin can have a reference to masturbation, why is it so hard to believe Mike and Will are also interested in masturbation as well?

They specifically put these references in the other, ORIGINAL, party members, who are the same age as Mike and Will, while also including references for them too (that people just can't accept), signaling all these boys are starting to think about sex. The difference is, Lucas and Dustin don't have any shame surrounding who they're attracted to.

I don't know about you (however I imagine this is a common experience for many queer people) but before I accepted that I was attracted to the same sex, I'd constantly find myself watching the women in porn and consciously trying to focus on the man. I'd tell myself things like "oh - you're just interested in how your body will look when you're older" or "oh - it's normal when you watch porn" etc - basically anything to reaffirm that I wasn't gay. And this is all between ages 13-16.

This is exactly how I see Mike, specifically. Starting to notice his attraction to men but consciously repressing it, telling himself he's normal and it doesn't mean anything. And I think people forget (or maybe just feel uncomfortable talking about) this part - that the sexual attraction, the shame in the sexual attraction, is a huge, huge part of realizing you're queer and coming-of-age as a queer person.

And that's why Mike doesn't want to hug Will at the airport (or a big part of it). It feels awkward, even if he doesn't know why. It feels awkward because he feels ashamed for liking Will. I mean the first shot we get of Mike setting eyes on Will in Season 4 is of him looking at Will's chest and then quickly averting his eyes. This tells us everything we need to know - Mike is attracted to Will, feels ashamed about it and doesn't want anyone to know (or likely doesn't even fully understand it himself, but at the very least, knows it's not "right").

Point being, his shame surrounding specifically his sexual attraction to men is one of his biggest issues and failing to talk about it is a HUGE DISSERVICE to his character!

It also does a huge disservice to Will's character, too. The repercussions of this shame, a lot of the time, is Will's situation - not having your first kiss, all of your friends growing up before you, hating yourself because you have a crush on your best friend. All because he's romantically AND sexually attracted to men. This is what Will's thinking. If he wasn't such a freak, if he didn't want to kiss boys, if he wasn't starting to feel sexually attracted to men, then everything would be so much easier. He wouldn't feel like such a mistake.

This is why I think they'll absolutely have a sex scene in S5 and also why I think it will be explicit. I previously thought it'd likely be implied and that that'd be enough but I don't see it the same anymore. Now, I don't think this means it has to be racy, obviously, but just that the audience would see some of it. Quite frankly, doing an implied sex scene, while I wouldn't be dissatisfied, is a disservice to the story.

See, with Jancy, the implied sex scene works. The tension between these two characters has been building for a season and a half and we know they want to have sex. We don't have to see it, we just need to know that they do.

But with Mike and Will? That's not the case at all.

First of all, the tension has been building for 5 seasons, which is the entire series. An implied sex scene would ultimately be a tame ending to this storyline.

Second, Mike and Will specifically feel shame about this act, Jonathan and Nancy don't. We don't need to see their reaction but we need to see Mike and Will's reactions because it completes their characters. Because they have felt shame about this specific thing, not showing them feeling comfortable doing this, with each other, would be incomplete.

Third, think about Steve and Nancy's sex scene - we're shown it specifically because Nancy feels uncomfortable.

Ultimately, there's no need to show Jonathan and Nancy having sex because there's nothing left unresolved. That's what the Duffers actually get right - only showing a sex scene when it's important for the narrative and for the characters. Even Hopper and Joyce point to this, despite them being the oldest characters and the most suitable to have an explicit sex scene, opposed to Steve and Nancy. That's because there's nothing else to tell us about Joyce and Hopper through this sex scene - we know they love each other. I don't see why the Duffers would break this pattern now.

And well, even if you don't want the scene, I don't see how you could argue that the moment Mike and Will decide to have sex isn't extremely important for their characters and would tell us A LOT about how they both feel, especially Mike seeing as we don't get his perspective.

You could argue the kiss would suffice but... does it? A kiss isn't really... sexual. And Romantic, sure. But this wouldn't address the shame they specifically feel about sex. Mike starting to cry while having sex with Will tells us so much more about his character than him crying while kissing Will.

Kissing is also a thing children do. Ending a 5 season, 9 year long coming-of-age project, with two characters who have fought inter-dimensional monsters that quite literally represent their shame, simply kissing? Something we've already seen one of these characters do, multiple, multiple times?

Okay, I guess.

Anyway, I know a lot of these points have already been made, and that this was really long, but I just wanted to say them again because it upsets me so much, especially during rewatch when I see all the themes right in front of me. And I know it upsets other people, other young adults, too. Seeing this experience represented so accurately - one that you might even still feel shame about, one that you went through not too long ago - and not even being able to discuss it openly in the fandom, is sad. Being called a freak or a pedophile for simply suggesting that sex is important here and the Duffers are telling us so. Sex... the thing that literally created us all. And that almost everyone starts thinking about between the ages of 13-14.

Sigh. At least we have this blog. Thank you for that. 🫶🏼

#byler #spicy byler #mike wheeler #will byers #no poll

[lordystrange]

10 best byler proofs by me

10. The cast, especially David (who knows the ending) and Finn (who might know something), are always so happy talking about Byler. They wouldn’t be if Will ended up dying alone as a sad gay. Also no one likes milkvan except maybe Millie unless she’s acting… Caleb even said ”Lucas and Max’s love is real unlike Milkvan’s”.

9. Mike has been queercoded throughout the whole series. Especially with queer colors, he spent s4 dressed as a gay pride flag. Also bi and pan colors are associated with him. Also Ted’s ”our son with a girl?” and everything Eddie said about forced conformity etc

8. Byler parallelling other romantic ships like Jancy, Jopper and Lumax. I’m not listing examples because there are SO MANY! (Also Milkvan parallelling all the platonic/dead ships)

7. Mileven being bones. We have nothing that shows their actual, deep love they’re ”supposed to have”. We don’t know what Mike loves about El and what El loves about Mike. We don’t know what makes them a compatible match romantically. We only know things that don’t make them compatible: El feeling the need to lie to Mike, Mike feeling embarrassed of his nerdy self with El, El feeling unloved by Mike, Mike feeling inferior to El…

6. The desert scenes. The triple take ofc, but also the car roof top convo with Will (jancy parallell). Will is talking about how it’s scary to say how you really feel because what if they don’t like the truth. And Mike NODS. If the truth was that he loved El exactly like El wanted, El would like that truth. So what is the truth Mike is worried that El doesn’t like…?

5. Mike’s monologue. He had to be pushed by Will to open his mouth. He lied about him loving her at first sight. He copied the t-shirt part from Eddie. He kept saying she’s his superhero which El doesn’t wanna be. He didn’t include anything personal about El and their relationship after the t-shirt thing… Also El didn’t seem to like what she heard and their love didn’t save the world. And they didn’t even talk after it. And while filming it they didn’t focus on just the couple (like they did with byler in s2 shed scene) and they let Finn improvise as if it wasn’t that important (as important as the van scene…)

4. Mike would be so poorly written if he wasn’t into Will and I don’t think the Duffers would just ignore his character. Also all the lip glances and heart eyes wouldn’t make sense.

3. Byler/Milkvan contrast. When Will was gone and they found his ”body”, Mike heard Will breathing in a radio channel and believed he was alive. He didn’t rest for a second, he did everything he could to find him. When he thought El was dead, he didn’t go looking for her, even tho a couple times he actually saw her. Also in s3 when Milkvan had a fight, Max said Mike will be crawling back to her begging for forgiveness in no time. Instead Mike laid on a sofa and ate and complained. When Byler had a fight… well we all know what Mike did then.

2. Mike and Will’s relationship has always been different from other friendships. They’ve said it themselves (”pls don’t tell the others, they wouldn’t understand”, ”Hawkins is not the same without you”, ”you make her me feel better for being different”). Also their scenes together have always been a big deal (van scene took an entire day to film, crazy together was written before s1 was even filmed) and they are shot in a really romantic way (music, lighting…)

1. In the beginning of s3, Will said to Joyce that he’s not gonna fall in love. That made his arc about romance. We know now that he already fell in love, but he doesn’t believe it’s requited. If s5 goes from ”i don’t think he loves me back” to ”he doesn’t love me back” we get literally nowhere and the entire storyline (since s1) would be useless and waste of time and money. They wouldn’t make Will suffer 4 seasons and then suffer some more. So believe me when I say it goes ”I don’t think he loves me back” to ”He does love me back!”

I wish you all a very merry byler endgame in s5! 💚

#byler #byler proof #byler evidence #byler s5 #stranger things #van scene #will byers #mike wheeler #mike x will #miwi #byler analysis #stranger things analysis #byler endgame #byler canon #anti milkvan #anti m*leven #anti midleven #mike wheeler i know what you are #gay mike wheeler #bi mike wheeler #unlabeled mike wheeler

[kaypeace21]

Alot of the plots were good - but some aspects just really made the season overall awful . How dare they do that to Max. I'm livid about that. You really had venca's curse represent su*cidal thoughts- which we see Max overcoming in part 1 . Then part 2: bam vecna k*lls max- the girl who str*ggled with ab*se, a horrible home life ,and throughout the season overcame her su*cidal thoughts but got an awful ending . And while dying she says over and over she doesn't want to d*e. It's cruel. Even if she does wake up from the coma - is she blind and or paralyzed and never able to skate again? Play videogames watch movies ?And for what- vecna is alive , and hawkins was still destroyed. Her sacrifice wasn't worth it. And Eddie's death was not only cruel but pointless too. He didn't even save anyone during the scene. And he literally mentioned how he did not want to become like his criminal dad . They kill him and the whole town thinks he's a worse criminal than his father. And he never graduated - it was "not his year". Aka part of his last words.The erica and lucas scenes of being attacked- honestly deserves it's own post. Also the romance is still low key one of the worst cringe parts of an otherwise great show.

I'm sorry m*leven is still so sus to me. Like besides all their relationship issues, it's weird s1-s4 parallels m*leven to family members. Like seriously side eyeing the Duffers just for those weird family parallels- if m*leven is romantic endgame. I mean ...nancy called herself "ruth" and el was in "Ruth, nevada" (and that's like 1 of 20 examples). Just to name one of many of those weird family parallels. Like why do that?? And yeah if it's an actual romantic declaration - you'd think they'd kiss like they did in the beginning of s4 . Not even getting into retcons like mike saying meeting Will at age 5 was "the best thing I've ever done". But now he says his "life started" at age 12 when he met el- cause "love at first sight" bs trope. Love at first sight isn't real. And mike literally the day they found her was suggesting ways to send her away so they could go back to looking for Will, and when he thought el lied ( about seeing Will alive) he slapped her hand and yelled "what is wrong with you?"2x then later said lucas was right to not trust her. Ummm... love at first sight? That?! Ok?And wow glad Will could hear mike's confession about how the 1st day he was reported missing- mike's " life began". Mike be like : "I knew Will for 7 years , before I met el . And all my friendships prior to meeting el- meant nothing to me- because my life only began when I fell in love with El instantly and rushed into a relationship after 1 week of knowing her (and when we finally Date- we just fight for 2 seasons straight). True love. "

Honestly they parallel robin/vickie/her bf to will/mike/El - which is also sus. Given how (supposedly straight) Vickie and her bf breakup- and Vickie seems into Robin at the end of s4.

But regardless I'm so sick of just getting "crumbs" whether byler is a queer bait or s5 makes byler canon. I'm just tired- especially after how the socials /cast and crew constantly pumped up byler during pride month- before part 2.

Not to mention the fact we have to just see Will lie to mike to help m*leven. Even though he hates lying to mike. Like no that was Will's painting -el thought it was for a crush of Will's (she didn't commission it for Mike at all)! He was just trying to be a good friend and brother by trying to fix m*leven (and lying to mike to fix m*leven's failing romantic relationship).like think about it- mike literally thinks that d&d painting /"heart" metaphor was El's creative idea and something el made as a gift for him . When it was all Will!!! That "heart" line Will says to mike is used again later by Will- to encourage mike to confess he loves El. Will literally uses his own romantic words for mike- to encourage mike to confess to el instead. Gross. If m*leven is endgame- could they do it in a less awful way to Will? Not to mention mike finally says he loves el-partially because he's moved by Will's painting (he thinks is from el). Which is also messy for m*leven endgame. All those words in the car to mike were Will's confession (he literally just replaced his pronouns for "El" and "she/her" ). Even jonathan saw it that way. Will to mike: " you're guiding- inspiring . That's what you do. you're the heart, without the heart (i'd) fall apart. These past few months (i've) been lost without you.(cough mike said the "lost " line to Will first) .When you're different from other people ... when you're different ... sometimes you feel like a mistake. But you make (me) feel like (I'm) not a mistake at all. And that gives (me ) courage to fight on. If (I) seemed like (I) was pushing you away. It's because (I'm)scared of losing you. "

And the fact we're just left with Will sulking in the corner - and being a trope of "sad gay character in love with his (supposedly straight) best friend". And have Will low key fix that the dysfunction het couple - who have trivial convoluted drama/dysfunction every season they date. But never actually resolve any of their fundamental issues - lying, spying, neglecting all their friends for eachother ,etc. Because you know the trope: gays always have to step aside and sacrifice the romantic love they have for a friend -so that same friend can instead live " happily ever after" (in a het relationship). Even if that het couple is dysfunctional and poorly written. I'm gay ... and just so tired of this type of stuff , repeated over and over and over again in media. Do writers not realize bad-rep is much worse than no-rep?Like if byler isn't canon these scenes right here are literally just rubbing salt in the wounds of Will and other gay/queer fans who empathize or relate to him.

It's like i've mentioned in the past a lot of straight writers LOVE the 'sad gay - trope' . Alot of those straight writers don't empathize with us as people, they infact "romanticize our pain" and find it "beautiful" . And just find our suffering "dramatic and angsty" decoration to their story- where they can also add bragging points of being "inclusive". They don't actually care about how problematic the queer rep is -and how it negatively affects us.

Even Will said he'd rather "pull the bandaid off" in regards to romance drama between him and mike. But duffers didn't do that- or give any closure for Will. Nah they forgot his bday and did this instead. Heck, no romantic closure for Will or even the whole st*ncy/j*ncy drama. Which is a whole other can of worms in itself (i'm saying this as someone who doesnt ship either st*ncy or j*ncy). Regardless of what could happen in s5. I'm just tired of how poorly some (frankly most) of the romance is handled in the series.

If m*leven is endgame they did it in the most reductive , stereotypical, predictable, and also hurtful way possible to lgbt fans. Without actually fixing m*leven's real issues to make us like them together as a couple. Heck (not only do they have problems that were never fixed ) : like lying /spying/ mike still hero worshiping her - which were never fixed ). They're now just a cliche ("love at first sight couple", who ever since they started dating have artifical convoluted drama every season ). Literally s3 and 4 are the same: m*leven neglect their friends for eachother, lie to eachother , fight with eachother, then say they're in love. There's no change , no progess they just repeat the same problematic pattern. Forget mike saying in part 1 this was a fight the pairing "couldn't get past" or mike nodding to Will saying maybe he's afraid to tell el the truth, cause she may not like it. Ummm - part 2 doesn't connect to that, why would El not like his confession? Not to mention mike only can say he loves her in s3 and 4 when her life is in danger (and in s4 when Will encourages him to keep talking)- not sus at all. The whole season Mike shares dialogue with brenner - even in the love confession (ick). And lol after his love confession- el won't talk to him. (purposeful hinting it won't work out ? or just horrible writing for an awful romantic pair who always have had poor communication?) Straight-mike narratively just makes mike a sh*t friend too- going from a great , considerate,and observant friend in s1 and 2. But , then the second he starts dating El in s3 :he neglects his friends for 2 straight seasons in favor of El (all while being a not good bf to her for 95% of their relationship). And also he literally said his life didn't begin until el (this is literally insulting to all his prior friendships which were established long before meeting el ). Straight-mike isn' t the "heart" of any party as Will claimed - not anymore (he straight up says his other relationships don't matter. Will, lucas, dustin- pfft his" life didn't even begin " until el ). Some of the worst days of Will's life - pfft mike, his bff, doesn't care about Will's tra*ma cause it gave him the chance to meet el. And he'll say it -right infront of Will. Iike mike could have said he's grateful to have met el in so many ways - but bringing up the day itself like that. Ugh. But in the end, both seasons his friends are the ones who have to help mike retain this supposed perfect romance. And let's get real they have no chemistry as a pairing- Mike just doesn't seem genuine in his love . And the confession incorporating mike's desire to be "needed" and having mike call her a "hero" and "superman'.yeah- hero worship from mike and dependence from el (winning romantic combo) . Also yeah , weird how El's "hero' is her dad and mike's is El. Given again all the family parallels. Heck terry(mom)/ mike saying "I love you" to El- is what gets her to defeat vecna.

And If byler is endgame in s5 - the duffers are overestimating how much bs they can put queer fans through- before they give us a happy ending . Like wow thanks for ending the season with mike & Will standing together, in between 2 other romantic pairings. After you made Will suffer through a bunch of problematic queer tropes (that you may subvert in s5- in like... 4 years). I'd say that framing at the end is a hint of byler- but they did the same framing in s3 only to do this in s4. So they may just leave those hints in the show to string and queer bait us longer. But honestly even if byler is canon in s5 (i actually think it has a decent chance of being endgame ): the Duffers sabotaged themselves. Becuse now bylers are less engaged in wanting to watch s5, and in s5 you'd piss off the m*levens . Cause mike would have lied to El and led her on (or just said it cause he didn't want her to d*e/ he meant he loved her in a non romantic way). But also when mike did his romance speech to El- he said the most messed up stuff right infront of Will ( aka the day Will was k*dnapped is when mike finally felt alive- cause he met El) . THAT'S SO MESSED UP. most bylers probably won't even bother to watch s5 - assuming the worst again too.

So my point is - regardless of whether mike is straight, gay or bi (they wrote themselves into a corner where mike looks bad either way). And his relationships with both of them are messy af.

#byler #will byers #mike wheeler #max mayfield #eddie munson

[emblazons]

I'm gonna keep it 300: Once I realized that byler v mlvn (at least in canon) was never a competition of "ships" or even heteronormativity versus queer rep but a conversation about thematic points being made by the duffers, I ceased feeling any real doubt about the outcome of this segment of the intertwined character narratives.

Why? Because The Duffers (while notoriously mum about their plotlines and twists) are vocal as hell about what they value & what "lessons" they're trying to drive home.

With The Duffers (unlike a lot of TV writers today) its "find the thematic line and you find the endgame plot." That's literally it. And tbh, even if I was someone who couldn't stand byler for whatever reason, from a narrative theme perspective, its pretty clear that

"15 year old boy who both longs for and fears the consequences of nonconformity finds the bravery to get out of a relationship that fuels those insecurities while leaning into his relationship with his fellow-nonconforming best friend"

tracks more with The Duffers value system than

"boy and his superhero love interest spend their 5th consecutive season barely seeing eye to eye on interests and problem-solving while relying on other people who know them better than they know each other to fix their relationship before dramatically separating and coming back in a melodramatic flourish."

Like. I don't even need to do more mental work than that to understand whats happening with this part of the story, because after 7 entire years of watching the rest of the show, its clear they'e written Mike and El into the same corner that's broken up every other dysfunctional relationship in Stranger Things, from Stncy to Joyce and Bob: a lack of common interest and a lack of common goals.

When you look at that, and combine it w/ any knowledge of the—

"What's wrong with playing DnD as an adult" "we are nerds and children at heart" "we hated HS & did other people's assignments to stay relevant" "one of us married a fellow horror fan who shares our interests (Ross) and the other has decided not to officially partner (Matt)"

—Duffer Brothers? lmao.

The only snag I ever hit trying to understand that was the S3 tone shift...and even they admit that was their narrative "play" season, which (however you feel about that as a writing decision) says every single thing about what's gonna happen when things get "more serious" (while moving back to S1 energy) in S5. 🤷🏽‍♀️

#byler #anti mlvn #I am a generalist not a specifist when it comes to analysis and it's saved me a lot of detail-oriented heartache here lmao #like at this point I don't feel doubt or even a desire to 'analyze' byler sans showing how the little pieces connect to the main theme #its become so straightforward in my head I don't know how else it might be otherwise resolved LMAO #my st commentary #stranger things

[chirpsythismorning]

Crack Theory: Will Byers is Twelve (012) - Part 4

Before we even get into the nitty gritty of Henry's monologue, I just wanna try to brush through this as quickly as possible.

While a lot of the things Henry says here could definitely apply to Will, this has already been theorized a lot on a basic level. Parts of his speech feel very queer-coded. To what extent exactly, we don't know.

We do know Will is going to play a big role in s5 (confirmed) and it's in large part because the details of his disappearance are still unknown, as well as what exactly Henry wants from him still being unknown, and with their confrontation being highly anticipated.

And so for the sake of this theory, I'm going to jump ahead a little bit.

4x07: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab (cont.)

They then proceed to fight some more, back and forth for a bit...

Believe it or not, you haven't seen the most damning shit yet, something that might prove a lot of these details were intentional...

4x08: Papa

Ready??

They're finally going to show us the mysterious subject under the mirror/window, who I predict is likely Twelve AND--

Okay nvm. I guess they're still not going to let us see this subject fully.

They literally have him facing the opposite way, so the audience conveniently can't see the state of his eyes???? Not only that, but arguably, he looks equal to, if not more alive than El does... Don't see any broken bones, or anything resembling what the other kids experienced.

And for the umpteenth time, they felt this unnecessary need to have, again, who I believe to be Twelve, in the frame with El, again!? Only this time, he's taking up an equal amount of the frame as her, and in a shot that's purpose is to close off the final scene of this lab flashback storyline?

WHAT. THE. ACTUAL. FUCK!?!?!?!

That's all for now! Hopefully part 5 tomorrow!

I just need to sleep and process all of this.

Part 1, 2, 3, 4

#stranger things #will byers #byler #stranger things 5 #twelvegate #twelve #rainbowshipgate #birthdaygate #stranger things theory #stranger things meta #st5 headcanon #st5 theory

[castleclerics]

mike going blind in s5 theory

i've had this this very weird gut feeling since s4 came out that mike is going to go blind to some extent in s5......

mike and blindness is mentioned a couple of times (but not too many for ga to notice) and idk why but i can really see mike becoming physically disabled in some way by the end of the show. maybe that's because i'm projecting but idk i can't let go of the idea for some reason it just feels right to me???

not only does lucas tell him that he's blind but he needs to "wake up" and if you take it in a literal sense it sounds so vecna’s curse-y

it's interesting that he's also literally blinding himself in s4 but in s3 lucas blinds him

(gif credit to emblazons)

literally why is it always lucas. even the “did mike see it? then it doesn’t count.”

and in s2 after will gets possessed lucas asks the party “do you think it’s true sight?” and later in the same episode mike brings up will having true sight in the av room.

also in s1 lucas has his wristrocket and says “the demogorgon’s not real. but if there’s something out there i’ll shoot it in the eye and blind it.”

maybe it’s lucas’ bridge to max and mike, them both having dealt with blindness to some extent ? and mike is super paralleled to max and max couldn't see anything after getting vecnaed. and he's obviously screwed next season with henry so i could see them healing max and making you relieved she's ok then throw you for a loop and pass the concept of her being blind onto mike.

eddie also says vecna is "missing" his left arm and eye but our vecna isn't missing an eye, it's just blindness. and it’s also the wrong eye.

and it just reminds me of “oh no lucas my arm lucas look my armmmm” and mike is grabbing the opposite arm that vecna is missing/is his claw hand... mike wheeler blind in left eye s5 real i'm calling it

(and i know these mentions of blindness are probably all a metaphor for mike's deal with his sexuality and being blinded by internalized homophobia but they usually never stop with just one meaning, these writers love their double and triple meanings/foreshadowings and making them literal lmao)

this part is just me rambling but thinking about how this could relate the queer aspect of mike wheeler; will being gay but also having his supernatural problems add so many layers to his character. so mike being queer and blind possibly because of the supernatural forces would be so interesting and add a similar level of depth to his character like will being tied to other planes of existence and henry do. and since the supernatural things in this show are literally a metaphor for forced conformity, mike and will's issues outside of their sexualities are both caused by this metaphor for forced conforming that they will accept and understand how to live with once they accept their queerness.

the forced conforming is seen in every character on this show and by the end of s5 i believe they'll be released from those societal expectations, and for mike that means sexuality-wise like will. his possible blindness could be the visual and physical representation of the damage of that conforming.

also just one last fun thing: there's a really small band called mike wheeler band that have these songs (the first one reminding me of "only love makes you that crazy") but look at the other one :O

#i have brain fog thsi took so long im sorry if theres typos or things i missed that sou d weird enjoy #mike wheeler #mike wheeler theory #mike wheeler analysis #madwheeler #stranger things theory #stranger things #vecna/henry/001 #vecna #st season 5 #stranger things s5 #jay theories #byler #mike wheeler i know what you are #blind mike wheeler

[andiwriteordie]

try to walk away (but i come back to the start) | part 1/5: spring 1986 / being back here

“Are you happy to be back home?” Mike asks, something quiet and vulnerable in his voice.

Will doesn’t know why he hesitates. Yes, is the first thought that comes to mind, except that’s not exactly true. It’s hard being happy back in Hawkins when the Upside Down is so close. It’s even harder being happy back in Hawkins when Will really doesn’t feel like he has a place here anymore.

And yet, when he looks to his right and takes in everything about Mike—the splatter of freckles like a constellation on his face, the familiar softness in his eyes that’s joined now by a hesitancy and uncertainty, the bright red tint of his lips from tearing the lid off Will’s cherry slurpee and finishing it without a straw—the answer is so very simple.

Yes, Will thinks again. I am happy to be home.

Then:

I’m just happy to be with you again.

Or:

The seasons change, and Will… he’s changing too.

But maybe that’s not such a bad thing.

—

(A study on Will's life from spring 1986 to spring 1987.)

// 

new fic! the beginning of a character study that i like to think of a little queer coming of age movie for will, set between s4 and s5. this one was a lot of fun to write, and if you wanna see me talk about themes of childhood nostalgia and home and also Slurpees, then check this out :)

#byler #byler fic #byler fanfic #andi writes not dies #andi writes but i come back to the start

[erikiara80]

March 22nd and all the birthday references in ST

Will's birthday has always been important.

A birthday mug in episode 1

Same mug in Mike's basement. We see it in scenes with El in S1 and Will in S2. Yeah, I think birthdaygate could be about her, too. Will is the only character whose birthday was used to literally save him and the whole town. And we've seen El's birth and birth certificate, but we still don't know when she was born? Strange

The I forgot your birthday card in Will's room in S1

But in S2 we only see it when Joyce looks at the Will the Wise drawing. In all the other shots the card is not there, and the drawing is on another wall. This could be a hint at different timelines (of a timeloop?) More screenshots here

Basically, I have two theories about Will's birthday: either people really forgot it in S4, or the Will who was born on March 22 is the brown-eyed Will in the Missing poster, in the timeline we see in the shed scene, and not the hazel-eyed Will we see in the rest of the show. Maybe they hid the truth in plain sight, they let people believe that his eyes were different because he was possessed. But then in S3 they show that Billy's eye color never changes (here) Can't wait to see what this means

No birthday card in these shots

Lesbianmindflayer found a video posted on the official IG account in August 2017. At the time, they had already filmed S2, they knew there was an important scene about Will's birthday, so why posting the wrong date? Is it actually a mistake, or that's really his birthday in another timeline? We'll see!

The amazing shed scene. One of my favorite! Joyce talks about Will's 8th birthday. That was in 1979, the year of the massacre. She also mentions his rainbowship, a hint at his queerness, but also a reference to the lab. And I think there's a connection to the "rainbow rocket" near Creel House, and the ship of Brenner's father, who was involved with Project Rainbow, and the first man to wind up in Dimension X. This scene is so important!

Will drawing a spaceship could also be a parallel to Olivia Dunham (Fringe), who drew what she saw in another universe. A Zeppelin

Olivia's drawing (Byler-Polivia parallel and Subject 13)

3x03. Happy Birthday and '76 on the poster. The lifeguard is talking to El and Max here. My theory about what this could mean and what might have happened in 1976 here and here

The original title of episode 3x06 was The Birthday. There is no birthday in that episode, but after the intro, the song that plays is Stand up and Meet your brother, and then El meets the Mind Flayer/Vecna (as a lab kid, Henry is kinda her brother), who is possessing a boy named William. A surfer boy.

Episode 3x08, posters of Firestarter and Sixteen Candles. Will is associated with fire, and in Sixteen Candles a girl hopeful thar her 16th birthday is the beginning of a great year, is shocked when her family forgets it because her sister is getting married the next day.

Sixteen Candles and a boy's 16th birthday are also mentioned in S4, and it is likely that S5 is set in 1987, after the time-jump, when Will is 16.

S4. There are so many mentions of birthdays in this season, it's crazy to think that the writers forgot Will's birthday.

Mentions of birthday and stolen thoughts in the opening scene.

Birthday party at Rink-o-mania. I could be wrong, but it looks like a party for two people, to me. And there's a hidden reference to the massacre. The game Asteroids was released in 1979 (here)

The scene that made many people believe that the writers forgot Will's birthday.

March 22. The Rink-o-mania scene is a parallel to the lab scenes, Asteroids was released in 1979, and the day of the massacre El remembered her birth. Maybe a hint that her birthday is also on March 22?

They call her little baby, and two of the bullies are twins.

Murray says that a one-year-old won't remember their birthday

Also, the wallpaper reminds me of these birds we see in his house, when Alexei explains how the two keys open a gate

Murray says that his "son" is almost 16

Mention of Sixteen Candles

Mike's Happy Birthday mug

At Suzie's, Will mentions Dustin's birthday

Yeah, I think something will happen to Will in 1987, when he's 16. And it won't be funny, lol. But he'll get his happy ending.

Happy birthday, Will!

#birthdaygate #will byers #march 22 #el hopper #mike wheeler #the first shadow spoilers #st analysis #st theory #timeloop theory #stranger things

[aemiron-main]

btw I think that Steve should get to actually properly meet Will in s5/have an Actual Conversation with him, especially with Robin present, so that he has to feel the full force of his guilt for what he said to Jonathan in s1 about how “I’m not even surprised what happened to your brother.” and calling Jonathan a queer. like not a a Steve-Will heart to heart but just more of a “Steve actually has a conversation with him just a casual one with other people there” thing.

make steve harrington look into the eyes of will byers suffering and struggling with his connection with henry and reflect on the fact that he was mocking will’s disappearance. make steve look at will and how kind and fun and loving he is and reflect on what he said!!!!!!! especially with Steve’s comments about Jonathan being like lonnie in s1? Steve meeting lonnie/seeing him in s5 (staring at all the clues that we’re gonna get lonnie content in s5) and realizing just How Much of a dick move it was to compare Jonathan to him, especially since Jonathan talks in s4 about how he’s afraid of ending up like his father.

not in a “make the lonnie moment about Steve” way but in a “steve never actually apologized to Jonathan for that shit and tbh I think he deserves to feel guilty about it and should apologize” way. like Jonathan taking the pictures of Nancy was wrong but Nancy and Jonathan sorted it out and Jonathan apologized but not only did steve Not apologize to Jonathan, the alley fight wasn’t about the pictures, it was about Steve’s jealousy and possessiveness over Nancy. He wasn’t trying to defend Nancy’s privacy or reputation, he was literally writing on buildings about her being a slut. Steve overstepped in the alley fight SO fucking much for NO fucking reason other than his own misogyny and bigotry and jealousy and never even apologized to Jonathan. i think that Steve should get to feel more guilt about this in s5 & actually see lonnie and how he acts and how much of a piece of shit he is & see how good of a brother Jonathan is to will and how he’s NOTHING like lonnie and also should be forced to look at Will’s sad puppy dog eyes and reflect on the fact that he made fun of Will’s abduction and assault AND his abusive home dynamic AND tried to smear the reputations of one of the few people who ever tried to protect will (jonathan) by calling him a pervert. LOOK INTO HIS BIG SAD EYES, STEVE!!!!! LOOK AT HIS MISERY AND THINK ABOUT HOW YOUVE MOCKED IT!!!

This isn’t me just blindly hating on steve bc I Do like him, but he was SO out of line in that alley scene and Jonathan deserves an apology!!!! like so what if jonathan threw the first punch, steve was not only slut shaming Nancy, but also comparing jonathan to his abusive father and mocking Will’s disappearance. Steve deserved that fucking punch and technically STEVE started the physical fighting too because he was the one physically pushing Jonathan.

#stranger things #byler #st analysis #Steve harrington #will byers #st5 #st5 scenarios

[thefirstlioveyou]

What will Mike and Will's S5 Fight Be About?

Shawn Levy basically confirme/implied another angsty Byler fight for S5.

But, what will it be about? Some think it'll be about the painting, but personally, I don't think so at all. I believe the fight will be about Mike's internalized homophobia; Mike will be afraid to romantically be with Will and it hurts Will.

First off, I don't think Mike would be mad for him hiding his feelings or lying about the painting. The sole purpose of the painting lie is to open a gate way to Mike knowing how Will feels about him. It's a set up. Why would he be mad that it was Will who thought those amazing things about him? He's in love with Will.

Now, let's see the common traits that all Byler fights have:

miscommunication, but they both want the same thing

is about their relationship

mike projecting

happens pretty early on, episodes 3-4

triggered by a shift in their relationship/mike doing something

they are alone

It's pretty predictable that S5 will focus on Mike's feelings for Will and be in Will's position this time. He's gonna be a yearning, gay mess! However, it doesn't make sense to copy every little thing as that wouldn't bring anything new to the table. It would quite frankly feel lazy and boring.

I actually believe they will be honest about how they feel episodes 3-4 (after Mike discovers the truth about the painting, what would be the shift in their relationship), and it will be a very angsty scene rather than a happily-ever-after moment (for now). Here's how I picture it: Will wants a relationship with Mike, Mike wants one too, but he's reluctant to because of the shame and bit of denial still lingering.

As understanding as one can be in this situation, it's also hurtful to hear on the receiving end. I can imagine it makes Will very upset. After so long of waiting for Mike, waiting to see if his feelings could be reciprocated, he finally gets it but doesn't get to keep it because of the shame Mike feels. Will does indeed feel like a mistake for his sexuality but, as he also states, Mike makes him feel otherwise. So, if he heard the same person that makes him feel better for who he is, say he's wrong for being the same thing he is.... that would HURT Will terribly. In Will's eyes, he will truthfully believe Mike doesn't want him, even if in Mike's POV, he wants nothing more than Will. This is where the miscommunication comes in play.

This is a real thing that happens in many Queer relationships even to today, when one is ready and the other is not yet. There is no bad guy (unless cheating, abuse, etc is involved of course) in these type of situations. You can sympathize with both sides... Which makes this a perfect fight to watch as the audience; it wouldn't make you hate either of the characters.

Some people say Mike’s accepted his sexuality by the end of S4, but I feel like if he did, it wouldn’t really be a good set up for him to be Vecna’d in S5. His struggle with who he is and his relationship with El is crucial to S5. If we keep Mike struggling with his sexuality and his trauma regarding El, this gives a purpose for him to be Vecna'd, which is the perfect way to explain a lot of his character the past seasons. Similar to how Max escaped Vecna the first time, Mike would do something similar (with the help of others, of course). He will have to accept the mistakes he's made, accept past events that were out of his control and accept who he is, or let himself die. Rather than focus so much on saving others or being needed to others, he must save himself now, for himself. He has to finally believe he is the heart. Finally confronting and accepting what he can't change will bring his character and his relationships to a full circle. It would explain his dynamic with El and Will the whole series. He will finally have the self-confidence he lost.

As much as people want Byler to have an established relationship in S5, I don't think that's likely. With a fight already implied to happen again (most likely early on), it wouldn't make much sense? They're a slow burn on top of that... The season is building up to them being together, it's not them already together (at least I don't think so).

The writers can obviously find a different route, but I feel like this would work and fit well. It would save Mike's character perfectly and it connects with the Mike being vecna'd, or at least in danger, theories; It gives it more purpose.

I just can't really imagine what else the fight would be about. It has to be about their relationship and it has to be about it changing in some way. Mike's weird behavior still needs to be explained... so I would think the fight has to be connected to the reason for that behavior. The fight would then be about his internalized homophobia. And if it is, it has to be explicitly about it, not just subtext like S3 fight.

Rather than “It’s not my fault you don’t like girls” and insulting Will, Mike straight up will have to be like, “I’m scared, what if this is wrong? I don’t know how to do this.” “This isn’t right.” This time Mike will be direct how he feels about HIMSELF, but Will would still be hurt because this is the same guy that made him feel better for being Gay…

If this is how the fight plays out, lord hold me because I won’t survive it😭😭😭

#writing this in one go with no revision #byler #mike wheeler #will byers #stranger things

[jujujun-s]

i just can't get over how s6 made no sense like im so mad

starting w/ nyxly bc wth??? kara is such an empathic person, she has a huge heart but in the end they just sent her back to the phantom zone w/ lex???? i mean,, nyxly definitely was a good person, she was just so hurt and she deserved a second chance,,, kara and nyxly feeling the other emotions definitely hinted that yeah redemption arc but no they just threw it all away

and don't even get me started on lena. yk i started watching this show bc i love Katie Mcgrath, and one thing about her is that she really understand her characters and in an interview she said smth like: not everyone is a superhero and that's where lena stands, doing what she thinks is right being surrounded by superheros,,, w/ wtv knowledge she has she's just doing the best she can. and w/ s6 being about ppl empowering themselves bc they don't need superheros to protect them,, the character that illustrated this the best was just given powers (⁠눈⁠‸⁠눈⁠) like be so fr pls she didn't need that,, and ik someone said that its to give lena a queer narrative and give supercorp queer subtext but it still doesn't make any sense for her character????

yk what let's talk about supercorp while we're at it. kara and lena did not spend 3 seasons devouring each other w/ their eyes and then break up arc (s5) for wtv is happening on s6. i am genuinely mad over this bc s5 gave us perfect context for a romance,, like kara spent 3y lying to her best friend and then they have this huge fight abt it and right when they make up kara ends up alone in a terrifying place. it's so freaking easy for romance to bloom here ????? like i honestly think that supercorp should've been the core of s6 bc even as friends kara and lena are each other's most important person and they both went through pretty traumatic events and i think they should've been supporting each other on a much deeper level idk im just so mad

#lena luthor #supergirl #kara danvers #supercorp #kara x lena #nyxly #supergirl cw #katie mcgrath #melissa benoist #s6 sucks #make it make sense #we deserve better #at least they were pretty asf #i loved brainy tho #anyway #thanks for coming to my ted talk #see ya