#Mike and Robin create the 'we bully Steve' club

[soursquare68]

I'm writing a new fic for Stranger Things (Byler + The Fruity Four), and it lead me to thinking about the dynamics between all of those characters... so I made a chart... Here it is! (these are all based on my specific fic, so they may not be how you think of the characters! Please take it with a grain of salt!) (I've also written it in a way where I'm not repeating relationship dynamics. Ex. I have Will and Mike under Will's relationships but not under Mike's, so that's why the lists get shorter!)

Self-Conceptions:

Will himself: He’s started seeing himself as a burden to the party because he’s been at the center of all the Upside Down shit since it began. He also is so self-conscious of his feelings for Mike and thinks they’ll never be realized

Mike himself: Mike wants so badly to be the leader of their party, a person for people to look up to, but he thinks that he’s actually quite useless to everyone else. This is why he plays a paladin so that he can feel like he’s got some sort of use as a leader. He’s partially unaware of his feelings for Will, but once he realized he likes guys, it’s over for this bitch.

Robin herself: Robin sees herself as somewhat of an anxious wreck, she’s a little self-deprecating sometimes, especially when it comes to her love life, but she definitely tries to laugh herself off most of the time. Nancy will end up having a problem with this.

Steve himself: Steve doesn’t particularly think highly of himself; he’s got mommy and daddy issues, and he thinks himself only good as a meat shield pretty much (great paladin moment). He starts seeing himself in Mike which makes him understand himself better when he looks at Mike’s behaviors. His friends are there to help him back up when he’s pushing himself down.

Eddie himself: Eddie has a decent self-concept, he has a lot of confidence but he still wants validation from others even though he pretends he doesn’t. He likes being acknowledged for his hard work, and sometimes what people say about him does get to him, but he doesn’t show it; he knows he’s weird and he’s totally fine with it, but he also knows that means he’s gonna get less credit where it’s due. He’s also nosy as fuck.

Nancy herself: Nancy is incredibly confident in herself in most areas except for socially. She’s headstrong and incredibly independent but that leads her to biting off more than she can chew, and she has a hard time asking for help. She’s quite uptight but learns to relax a little, especially with the help of Eddie and Robin. She likes being looked up to by the younger kids.

Will's Relationships:

Will and Mike: Romantic as fuck, best friends, went through a rough patch but they’re working it out. There’s still some tension left over from Mike joining another party and playing DND without Will, so that’s why Mike’s trying to make it up to him here.

Will and Robin: Bond over their queerness with each other but subtly in the group. Robin kinda becomes a mentor for Will.

Will and Steve: Will respects Steve, but is very closed off with him. Throughout the campaign Will shows off his personality and Steve and him become acquaintances through it.

Will and Eddie: Kinda rough start because of Mike joining Hellfire, but Eddie really wants Will to like him and for his DMing to be really good for Will. They start to bond over the campaign, and that’s how they become friends.

Will and Nancy: Best relationship Will has with any of the older kids, (decides Jonathan). He’s known her for years, she’s Mike’s sister, and she used to date Jonathan. She’s the person Will would go to if he needed help with homework

Mike's Relationships:

Mike and Robin: They start the ‘we bully Steve’ club. Their snarky personalities might at first get crossed with each other, but eventually they realize they see eye to eye on a lot of things.

Mike and Steve: Mike can’t fucking stand Steve for no reason, he still views Steve as a little bit of a douche. Steve just wants Mike to respect him a little bit, they learn they’re not so different as they’re both leaders of their respective parties and would put their lives on the line for the people they love and care about.

Mike and Eddie: Mike’s gay awakening kind of (Will’s a little jealous). They have a very mentor and mentee relationship, hence Mike’s wardrobe in season 4. Mike looks up to Eddie a lot and has been having mixed feelings lately with Will being wary of him.

Mike and Nancy: They’re siblings, but Nancy feels like she really hasn’t been much of a big sister to Mike lately. They have some really sweet bonding moments because of the campaign and they end up closer than ever.

Robin's Relationships:

Robin and Steve: They are just fully best friends. They make fun of each other, but are also constantly there for each other no matter what. They are basically the poster child of best friends.

Robin and Eddie: Chaos is the only word to describe them when they’re together. Although, Eddie is the ‘straight man’ of this duo and Robins chaotic nature here is her true personality

Robin and Nancy: They kind of get on each other's nerves with how different they are at first, mostly Nancy is annoyed with Robin. Robin is chaotic with Nancy as well, but rather than being chaotic because she's comfortable, she’s chaotic because of her anxious nerves.

Steve's Relationships:

Steve and Eddie: They are a married couple. They are the designated parents of the kids (Steve the motherly figure, Eddie the fatherly figure). They love each other and support each other but they also are at each other’s throats all the fucking time. They are extremely flirty as well.

Steve and Nancy: They learn to become very good friends and to be there for each other without awkward romantic tension!! They end up being one of each other's biggest supporters and their friendship is close to being on the level of Robin and Steve.

Eddie's Relationships:

Eddie and Nancy: Surprisingly good friends, Eddie lets Nancy relax a little whereas Nancy stops Eddie from doing dumb shit all the time. They’re there for each other and while Eddie is similar to Robin, the reason why they work out at the beginning better is because Eddie knows when to tone himself down and he’s not a nervous wreck around Nancy.

[kaypeace21]

Rebel Robin podcast (ep 3 &4 analysis)

For those who haven’t read them yet. Here’s the analysis for podcast ep 1&2. Analysis of Rebel Robin book-here. And eastereggs from rebel robin novel- here.

So the main things I noticed in ep 3 was how Robin spying was shown as a huge NEGATIVE-and Mr Hauser got upset over her doing so. Robin listens to mr. Hauser’s phone call (like Karen with Mike in s3/ us gov spying on calls in s1) & on a different occasion Robin also eavesdrops on a private convo he is having with someone else in his classroom ( like El spying on Mike talking to Lucas in s3). And when he finds out about this he tells her how wrong it was to spy on other people like that. In the past, I also talked about how the theme of spying is shown for many other st characters ( in the show) and how it  isn’t romanticized like people think it is- here .

Anyways , Ep 3 ends with a call from a h*mophobic teen( Dash) telling Robin to “stay away” from Mr. Hauser cause he’s “dangerous”. Why he thinks he’s dangerous is solely for the fact he’s gay.I think this theme may come into play in s4 Hawkins (in relation to the satanic panic). In ep 4 Robin jokes to (gay) Mr. Hauser  : “ So what are you into... satanism?” (Sadly most queer people have been told over and over we’re going to hell for being gay/lgbt+. it’s sadly an almost universal experience.) For those unaware- the ‘satanic panic’ was a right wing christian movement in the 80′s that WRONGLY associated certain things with supposed satanism.  Just some of the many things they demonized : rock music , stephen king , wearing black,  horror/fantasy media, and of course queer people and d&d (hellfire club - the name is a a xmen ref but in the show it’s probably an inside joke about the satanic panic and people being scared of d&d). We see foreshadowing of the satanic panic hinted in s3 (in relation to d&d)- on tv the narrator asks if “satanism” (pans to d&d set) is to blame for the odd occurrances in Hawkins. And given how the s4 el-trailer had the clock say 3:00am for the “witching hour” also called “the devil’s hour” since it’s supposed to be a subversion of jesus dy*ing at 3:00 pm. And the possibility s4 may take place around Easter.  I think we’ll see that religious (Christian) extre*sm  causes many people in Hawkins to interpret the supernatural as ‘satanic’. And no , I’m obviously not talking poorly about all religious/christian people).

After this Mr. Hauser jokes how Hawkins is like “lord of the flies” and how he “worries” what would happen if teens were left to their own devices-like in the book. The themes in the book mostly focus on the dangers of ‘mob mentality’ and how human beings can become v*olent and turn on each other- if the safety of civilization disappears...

This I believe is foreshadowing - i mentioned in a post a while back (here). How movies on the s4 list had the theme of :  a supernatural event indirectly causing towns people to act irrationally and turn on eachother v*olently. Despite literal monsters attacking them from outside (they chose to turn on eachother instead). In the end some townspeople become the real monsters via mob mentality/v*oence/false witch hunts (the mist, the birds, etc). In ‘the birds’ (while people are hidding in a store)- they wrongly  blame certain characters for the supernatural chaos. Similarly, in ‘the mist’ (crowd of townspeople are trapped in a store) and some  start interpreting the monsters as being sent as punishment by god- some town’s people start quoting the bible and saying the only way to stop the punishment is to start “sacrificing the s*nners and nonbelievers”. BIG YIKES.ST references mapple street (where the wheelers and sinclairs live). It’s based on the twilight zone ep of the same name “The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street” .The ‘monsters’ of that episode -were the townspeople turning on eachother because they incorrectly think their own neighbors are part of an invading supernatural army. The enemy was actually the paranoia/mob mentality-not the supernatural force they feared.  And yes i do think this concept is linked with 80s satanic panic and will cause some town division/obstacles for our heroes to deal with . **I also think the s4 bts of the Hawkins blood clinic-may be used to show h*mophobia (linked to satanic panic) in the town. Like in one s4 movie “paradise lost”the punk rock boys who were into black clothes, rock music , horror/stephen king books- were accused by the town’s people of being gay AND have demonic powers that are k*lling fellow town’s people.

Mr Hauser says he thinks steve Harrington is Ralph from lord of the flies. And Robin disagrees saying he’s Jack. Personally- since this was when Robin didn’t know/hated Steve. I think Mr hauser is right that Steve is Ralph (one of the oldest boys) who’s “commitment to civilization and morality is strong”. But Jack  (perhaps the popular s4 kid Jake?) and his savage crew take control of the group and start trying to attack Ralph and his friends (steve’s crew- over satanic panic?). How this begins is -

 Jack, torments Ralph and others. And some kids begin to develop savage personalities, after someone claims to have seen a Beast (demongorgan?) in the woods. This creates fear among the boys, which allows Jack to access more power.Ralph gets into an argument with Jack, who splits from the tribe. Many of the other boys follow Jack, who uses fear to manipulate the boys into leaving Ralph. And Jack’s crew begin attacking Ralph and his friends.

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

Ok, next topic of ep 4- the sentimental part of my brain got emotional when hearing how upset Robin was. And than Mr Hauser-telling her she’s wrong and she’s not “broken” or “rotten” and “nothing about her needs to be fixed’” (got me right in the feels) . As a queer person- I feel like every lgbt+ kid/teen needs to hear what Mr. Hauser said to Robin. 

However,  the analytical part of my brain -did notice some easterggs/ series parallels.

The convo starts with them talking about music Mr hauser likes (such as Bowie). And transitions to Mr Haauser asking about things she likes, whether she’s being bullied, and he later tells her “ DON’T let other people’s small mindedness make you fell bad about yourself. you don’t need to change yourself-no matter what anyone else says” . And Mr Hauser than says him calling her the “weirdest girl in Hawkins” was a compliment (not an insult-like she initially assumed). 

This is remarkably similar to certain scenes in s1/2. In s1, Jonathan mentions musicians he likes such as Bowie, asks Will about what he likes,  and tells Will “don't like things cause people tell you you’re supposed to-especially not him (their dad who called him h*mophobic names)” . In s2, Jonathan tries to cheer Will up after asking if he's being being bullied. And calls Will  “a freak” (and says it’s a good thing) and he should be content with being a “freak “ and compares Will to Bowie ( who was openly queer since the 70s) . 

In ep 4, Robin also mentions how sad she is that her parents won’t let her ride her bike anymore cause their paranoid about her safety  (like what happened to Will in s2).

Robin (before Mr. Hauser comforts her) says she feels like she has a “rot” inside her  . This is a s2 eastergg that could be linked to either Will or El. Will says his now-memories are “growing”, spreading”, and killing.” Later Kali says the emotional pain caused by her father  caused a “wound” to “spread”. Later allusion-Brenner tells El she has a “terrible wound “ (“a rot”) that Will “grow, spread, and kill.”

The reason Robin rants about feeling like she has a “rot” inside her is because she’s being bullied, and  lost all her Hawkins friends and says  “maybe I’m broken maybe there is just something about me that drives people away? I’m the only common denominator-there’s something wrong with me! There’s something inside of me that’s just rotten and there’s nothing i can do to fix it”. Which 1)-poor Robin. 2) I feel like could easily be How Will feels in s4(who will be the same age as Robin is here in the podcast)- his dad abandoned him, all his hawkins friends are gone , the st s4 movies have h*mophobic bullying in them (and he was bullied in the past). In a interview Noah said Will in s4 “doesn’t really get along with people-it’s just him and Mike.”  I think it fits more so with Will than El . But they may feel similar:  it’s implied in s4 audition tapes she’ll be bullied too,  she moved away from her friends,  and her father (Hopper) fake “passed away.” It could easily be how both Will and El feel in s4- that there is  something “broken”/ “rotten” about them . In fact, in the rebel Robin novel there is even a character named Sheena. Sheena reminds me a bit of a mix between Will and el . She is very quiet, queercoded, and is often bullied. And she finds mean notes and other things stuffed  in her locker- placed there by bullies. A bit like how Will found the zombie-boy note in his locker. A teacher doesn’t stop her bullying just blames her and says “ This wouldn’t happen if you made it just a smidgen easier for PEOPLE to understand you.”(sort of reminding me of that Noah quote about s4 Will not getting along with most people/Jonathan saying not to change himself cause “people” say to). But sheena can be another name for Jane (there was also a 80s show character named Sheena who was psychic) so ...maybe foreshadowing of el/jane being bullied in highschool? Along with Will?

*It’s not a eastergg/parallel...just speculation. Unlike the rebel robin book... in the podcast (in multiple episodes) almost every time she opens up to Mr Hauser about her problems she says it’s ok for him to do the same and she’ll be supportive and listen. However, Mr Hauser (so far) always rejects her offer-much to her hurt/frustration. In ep 4, she asks if he has someone his “own age” he can talk to about his problems-which he says he does. Now... since in ep 4 Mr hauser is paralleled to Jonathan maybe Jonathan will have someone his own age to talk to about his problems (maybe his new friend Argyle?) We see similar to Mr Hauser giving advice/pep talks to (gay) Robin. Jonathan is always giving advice/peptalks to our (gay-coded) Will. But so far- Jonathan has no one he really emotionally leaned on in the same way (Will does with Jonathan). I also wonder if Will in s4 starts gets tired of how he always confides in Jonathan (but Jonathan never does the same with Will  in return)? Like Robin with Mr. Hauser?