#but its not really elmax hate either

[sinclairstarz]

I’m not a huge elmaxer but I do think it’s fairly cute and whatever, but… if u ship elmax and dont ship lumax…..! idk there seems to be a trend of ignoring a well written, super cute and enjoyable mixed/poc m/f ship in favor of a bland, mega whatever they-touched-once white on white queer ship, under the pretense that you can just be like “oh i just dont like m/f ships theyre boring” :/ like. lumax is so much more interesting than elmax im sorry, elmax is cute and i think el probably had a crush on max at somepoint, but the lumax dynamic, “do you accept the risk”, “I like talking with you, stalker.”, “i disappeared / no you didnt, i just didn’t look hard enough”, “movie friday?”, just everything about them will always beat elmax?? its weird so many of you are so quick to ship el and max and put them alongside byler (ignoring the canon byler/lumax parallels and double date!) claiming that m/f ships are boring and queer ones are better, while ships like byclair or henclair are rarely talked about by the same crowd. it smells like racism!

[nothoughts-onlywomen]

Its so cool to have lumax as your main ship <3 what other st ships do u ship?

i do love them very much 😊 in my responses i have also linked to asks i've received on my other page about st ships and my (lengthy) answers!

canon st ships I enjoy other than lumax:

mileven

C'MON THEY'RE CUTE. don't crucify me over this, but I have always loved mileven as a ship. i want to make it clear that if byler becomes canon, i will support the narrative direction of the writers. but i do love mileven very much and i enjoy their arc. i think the evolution of mike loving el as she grows into her own independence is lovely.

rovickie

we haven't gotten to see them much yet, but i am absolutely chuffed at the prospect of more rovickie in s5. i have always wanted robin to finally kiss a girl and i'm so excited to see this become a reality. i think the biggest challenge for the duffers is going to be developing vickie as a separate character from robin. it will likely be tempting to make vickie a carbon copy of robin and she deserves better than that.

jancy

i think jonathan and nancy balance each other out very well. nancy is this tenacious, compassionate, bright flame that fights for what's right. jonathan is so much more mild-mannered and quiet but supportive and intelligent. i also love that they're best friends first.

jopper

i know not everyone likes hopper. i had a friend who hates him. but i think they're a good match because they're both tough and gritty, but vulnerable at the same time. also i think it's really positive that they're both divorcees, both had a rough time in life, and are finding love later in life. i think in popular media we're used to seeing romance with young and attractive people. not that they aren't attractive, but they aren't young or perfect. idk i just find their whole thing refreshing.

non-canon st ships i enjoy:

elmax

i don't think anything fruity will happen with elmax canonically since lumax seems to be the logical direction. but i ADORE their enemies-to-friends journey. they're so sweet together. max was really one of the first people to encourage el's independence and autonomy. max, who herself is less approachable, embraced el from day one and loved her wholly since. and it's clear by the end of s3 that el loves max too. i think s5 will see el and max reuniting and just hugging so hard.

ronance

since rovickie is in the chamber, i'm not sure ronance will happen canonically either. but i love the idea. before vickie came along, i kind of had my own little headcanon that if robin were to sacrifice herself for nancy, she would give her a single, meaningful kiss on the lips before doing so. i don't want robin to die or sacrifice her self, but in case it does happen, that's how i would want it to go.

thanks for the ask, message me again anytime! ❤️

[ivypool]

stranger things, wings of fire, the last of us (tv and game), and the 100

stranger things

favorite male character: lucas and steve

favorite female character: el and nancy

least favorite character: nobody hates billy more than i do

prettiest character: nancy or robin

funniest character: erica

favorite season: s3 probably, even though i really do love all the seasons s3 is just so comforting to me. i just love the aesthetic of s3 and the elmax scenes, it’s just a really fun season, and summer 2019 was a pretty good time in my life so i have a lot of good memories associated with s3. also that’s when we were introduced to robin for the first time :’)

favorite episode: dear billy or mall rats

favorite romantic ship: i am elmax's #1 fan, i loved them since s2. i do also really love ronance, and some honorable mentions are byler, henclair, jargyle, steddie, buckingham and stonathan. i pretty much ship everything that isn’t canon LOL

favorite family ship: willel + jonathan, and i headcanon max & steve, max & nancy, steve & robin as all being familial relationships so i love those too

favorite friendship: the fruity four, scoops troop, will & robin, max & robin, max & the party, steve & the party (just the whole party with each other in general tbh)

worst ship: h*rringrove, or really any ship with billy in it since i saw some people shipping him with eddie too…if anyone’s reading this and you ship billy with anybody stay the hell away from me thanks. m*leven also sucks just let them be platonic besties pls

wings of fire

favorite male character: starflight my beloved

favorite female character: carnelian…she’s literally just a background character who appeared in one book but i love her so much she had so much potential. and i really like tsunami and snowfall too

least favorite character: riptide he sucks, he’s not even remotely interesting

prettiest character: glory or blaze

funniest character: qibli or sunny

favorite season (arc): the first arc will always hold a special place in my heart

favorite episode (book): i loved a dangerous gift so much

favorite romantic ship: a tie between blacier and snowlynx

favorite family ship: the dragonets of destiny, tsunami & anemone & turtle, glory & deathbringer (i headcanon them as familial instead of romantic)

favorite friendship: the jade winglet

worst ship: ripnami, glorybringer, any of the DoD shipped with each other

the last of us

favorite male character: this is a basic answer but joel. i love him sm he’s my dad

favorite female character: riley :((

least favorite character: if abby has 1000 haters im still one of them. if she has 1 hater its me. if abby has 0 haters it means i have left this world. (david also is obviously awful but my first instinct was to say abby)

prettiest character: dina <3

funniest character: ellie

favorite season: the first game is the only game. tlou 2 who?

favorite episode: left behind

favorite romantic ship: rellie and dellie

favorite family ship: joel & ellie, ellie & dina & jj, i also love ellie & tommy and ellie & tess

favorite friendship: ellie & sam, ellie & jessie & dina

worst ship: ellie with any man, ellie x abby is also a terrible ship though

the 100

favorite male character: murphy

favorite female character: octavia and clarke

least favorite character: honestly fuck kane, finn, titus, cage, cadogan and pike i hate them all. i’m also not a fan of abby

prettiest character: octavia and raven <3

funniest character: murphy although octavia had some funny moments in the earlier seasons too

favorite season: 2, 5, 6

favorite episode: either eden (s5 ep1) or nevermind (s6 ep7)

favorite romantic ship: niytavia, clexa, and lunaven are so special to me. i also like bellarkecho as an ot3

favorite family ship: CLARKE AND MADI they’re seriously everything to me

favorite friendship: clarke & raven, octavia & madi, echo & madi, madi & murphy, clarke & murphy, raven & murphy

worst ship: i can’t ship bellamy and clarke without echo, so b*llarke ig. i also don’t really care for raven & murphy romantically, i think they work better as friends, and maybe i’m really biased towards loving niytavia but i just hated octavia and levitt

leave a series in my ask box

[thatonesongyouretryingtoremember]

Rating whatever ST ships I can think of bc it's night (post lemon) and I'm bored

Lumax- 10/10 so poetic and beautiful the show doesn't do them justice which is SAYING A LOT romo lumax and platonic lumax have my heart

Elmax- the first ST ship I started shipping before joining fandom! 10/10 incredible beautiful drop dead gorgeous romo and platonic elmax are perfect

Hopclair- 10/10 I may currently be running on a hopclair ANGST high, but as I've said and will not hesitate to repeat, these two NEED to team up and NEED more screentime together! Romo, platonic, and queerplatonic hopclair love in my brain

Henclair- recently found appreciation for them upon season two rewatch and reflecting join season two, cute enough for a maybe 6/10 as romo 15/10 platonic

Henderhop- I just can't picture it 0/10

Morallysus- idrk seems kinda morally sus to me :/ -10/10

Elmike 8/10 platonic and I will not elaborate

Byler- objectively 10/10 but they are not who I'm thinking about when I'm actually watching- that's when my elmax and platonic stobin brain turns on romo and platonic byler on their respective places in the timeline are literary impeccability

Byclair- adorable and I could totally see it, 7.5/10

Wheelclair- surprisingly cute but not my first instinct I do truly Get the cuteness but 6/10

Elumax- be it romo lumax romo elmax with pl hopclair, romo hopclair, or qp hopclair, still adorable to me and I actually understand them more than you do don't go near my children sorry guys blorbo is just for me actually 100/10

Stobin- 10/10 platonic and queerplatonic aromantic and lesbian solidarity!! But also their arc and how they support eachother!! Beautiful precious my precious you can't have it wow am i gatekeeping?

Rockie- unopinionated so 6/10 besties endgame material romo

Ronance- I can never stop thinking about Nancy comparing Barb and Robin to eachother but y'all's headcanons are cute 5/10

Stancy- you know me. I love Steve. I love Nancy. Which is exactly why I can't in good conscious dare ship them together! Nancy's whole thing of relating him to Barb's death (valid) is word on its own if you don't throw in the fact that Steve super cool dream directly contradicts everything Nancy wants in life! Neither of them should have to compromise their LIFE around accommodating the other! You can say what you want about "they still like eachother romantically" which isn't even really true imo but had it ever occurred to you that sometimes people can feel romantically and and decide that a friendship would do them more good? Which isn't to say they are super close friends either because honestly their friendship has gotten the least amount of attention by the writers. -20/10 romo and 7/10 potential friendship that we will never get to see on screen.

Jancy- I honestly could not care less whether they are endgame their unbreakable bond etc etc doesn't care whether they're friends or dating 6/10

Jargyle- 10/10 how does it feel to be the most perfect ship in the world? Pl, QP, romo, alterous, whatever it is these two mean the world to me

Stonathan- question why? I'm sure it's cute I just don't understand the origin of the hype. What's it ABOUT for y'all?

Stoncy- see above, both 5/10

Steddie- I actually like it as a ship kind of if it weren't for the fact I can't see Steve not being aromantic. Also while we're here thank you if you've stopped cross tagging because I'd I look up Erica Sinclair In not looking for Eddie x Reader fics 6.5/10 romo

Boyce- wait actually this might have been my first ST ship not elmax.. anyways they're adorable and I totally hated the way they did the love triangle thing. Hopper being annoying distracted me from Bob being the coolest guy in the world.

Jopper- I guess I'm cool with them now but I was so anti jopper in S2 not because I'm invested in the love triangle I fucking hate love triangles but because Hopper was insufferable in seasons two and three and Joyce had like no boundaries in season three that got weird because ofc the writers decided to build up their canon in the most annoying way possible. Maybe they could have been an 8/10 if ST writers had fucking tried at all before season four but now they're closer to a 4.5/10 for me tbh but go back to season one where their friendship was pretty cool and they've known eachother forever and all that- super fucking sweet 8/10 points taken off because I just generally find Hopper annoying (as a person not as a character I get how he's important to the story and blah blah)

Boycer- since the suffers never ruined it I mean wrote it and I can imagine them however I want- polyamorous Joyce with her two boyfriends is a 10/10

Edissy- I genuinely thought this was a joke 2/10 romo 7/10pl

Joyren- not to be a Karen hater but I kinda hate Karen 1/10

Kargyle- I love Kali with all my heart. I absolutely adore Argyle. But I don't get this ship. Like why. 5/10 romo 8/10 pl

Kalancy- yes let women kill people! I mean I'm the scenario I imagine they are def at Kali's home not Nancy's and it's def not a healthy mindset but let's not think about that.. honestly I don't think about them at all but I guess it could be cool. 8/10 romo 9/10 pl 9/10 qp

[huntingforsatisfaction]

My live reactions to season 4 episode 9 (part 1)

But they're slightly out of context and a complete unfiltered adhd mess

Also ofc spoilers

-will yuri ever give up on trying to trick them

-and I think he might legit be attracted to that helicopter

-are JOYCE AND HOPPER GONNA FUCK IN THAT CHURCH?!?!??

-AHUT UP

-shut up

-OMFG

-FINALLY

-not the us government cockblocking

-Robin making fun of Steve is my fav

-don’t like the foreshadowing of Steve telling Eddie and Dustin to abort the mission

-there’s so much foreshadowing for Eddie dying I can’t take it

-Eddie and his bandana is doing things to me

-also Dustin is so cute with his little outfit

-that boy is my son

-I really hope el’s plan works because it’s so cool

-so happy for Kate bush rn because she’s truly in her bag

-shit angry hick

-Joyce is the best mom, but I hate this plan

-not argyle making a pizza

-THIS US IT

-ITS HAPPENUNG

-Eddie’s hand…

-MY HEART IS RACING

-I think this scene will actually get me pregnant lol

-get this stancy off my screen, I want Eddie’s sexy ass playing Metallica to save the world!!!!!

-“you’re there” just let out the deepest sigh

-this is making it sound like I don’t like Steve or Nancy, I’d like to clarify that I absolutely love both of them, I just can’t stand stancy for so many reasons

-Enzo is either gonna die or double cross them calling it now

-jk on the double crossing, but homeboy is NOT surviving

-I’m so anxious I’m tempted to look on Twitter for spoilers so any deaths don’t hit as hard

-LUMAX LUMAX LUMAX

-max better survive to see that movie istfg if she doesn’t

-Jonathan best brother ever

-please make them explicitly say Will is gay by the end of the series

-yas the show setting it straight on how bad Billy was

-Catholic guilt max is so real

-fuck I have chills. I love max so much and I really just want her to actually be happy.

-shit vecna has her

-Caleb is acting his ass off in this scene

-starved for elmax content

-skater girl max truly has my heart

-IS THIS REALLY IT

-YES

-omfg Chrissy this is for you

-I just audibly screamed

-already knew it was gonna be master of puppets, but I’m still freaking out cuz I love this song

-DADDY DADDY DADDY

-stfu Dustin head banging is adorable

-this is already one of my top 10 fight scenes from any show/movie just because of the song choice

-I INWO THAT RAGEDY BITVH DIDNT JUST TACKLE ERICA

-Eddie nation how we doing?

-I will be rewatching that scene for the rest of the summer istg

-Max’s best memory being there snow ball<3

-Russian crew is so unbelievably fucked I’m horrified

-bro demaflayers?!?!?!?

-Steve’s hopping just gave me the ick

-ronance moment

-baby max<3<3<3

-lmao I forgot this was the song they used in the snow ball scene

-it’s 3:30 am and I’m so tired, but I’m only half way through and HAVE to watch on one sitting

-seriously the cinematography

-fuck Jason omfg

-IF HE HURTS LUCAS

-I hate this it’s so unnecessary

-I don’t wanna watch the Russian teams scenes because I’m so scared

-fuck hopper being the bait

-NO JOYCE GETTING FLASHBACKS

-still so scared for Eddie too

-ROBIN

-STEVE

-NANCY

-god Russia needs to come through rn with that hive mind theory

-if Eddie doesn’t get through

-BO NO NO NON NO NO

-pausing to accept that Eddie is about to die

-just caved and looked at spoilers and now I don’t wanna finish :(

-it’s honestly on me for falling in love with him

-just spoiled Max too so I can handle it

-I’m finishing this shit in the morning

-Eddie nation plz don’t stop posting fanfics because it’s all I have now

[steveharringtonirlsblog]

A byler angst story - with some elmax at the end

summary: Mike and Will get into a fight and Will gets Vecna'd... music doesn't work this time, so Mike figures out something that could save Will.

Nancy could hear Mike and Will fighting outside her house in the cold rain

"You never understand Mike! All day everyday I feel like IM the third party! You never hang out with me any more unless your stupid girlfriend is with us!" Will yelled, almost crying

Mike started to stutter

"See! Exactly Mike! You can't even make up an excuse!"

"Will! Listen to me! Me and El... We broke up" Mike looked at Will

"Oh-h..." Will started to feel sorry for yelling at Mike

"But why do you always get angry at me, Will? Not everything is my fault! Maybe if our friendship is important to you then you should be fixing it! Mike yelled at Will, annoyed

"Are.. Are you saying you don't care about our friendship?" Will started crying

"No! Of course I do!"

"Then why don't you care about me Mike...? Why don't you hang out with me anymore...?"

"It's not my fault! T-that you don't like gir-"

"NO! DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THAT EXCUSE! ITS SO FUCKING DUMB! I HATE IT! I'M NOT NORMAL, MIKE! AND YOURE THE PERSON WHO MADE ME REALIZE THAT! YEAH. I DONT LIKE GIRLS! I LIKE B-BOYS!" Will started sobbing before walking away

Mike stood there, surprised, mixed with emotions

"W-Wait! W-Will come back! Please! Im sorry! Please!"

Will walked away in the cold rain

"Shit. What do I do.. Fuck."

Mike walks into his house, almost crying, slowly falling asleep on his bed

TIME SKIP!

Nancy shakes Mike to wake him up

"Mike! Come on! Will is getting Vecna'd!"

"huh...? Wait what?"

Mike runs out his room, not wanting to see Will's body crumbled

"Where's Will? WHERE IS WILL?"

"Castle Byers!" Nancy replied, panicking

Mike runs out of his house, trying to get there as soon as possible

He finally arrives there, out of breath, still panicking

"Joyce! W-whats happening..?"

"My little boy! He won't wake up! We've tried everything! All his favorite music!" Joyce said, with deep worry, voice cracking.

"You've tried everything? Shit."

Mike looked at Wills hovering body, just about 3 feet off the ground

"Well... I guess there's only one thing left to try."

Mike slowly went up to Wills body, putting his hands on his cheeks.

"Mike...? What are you doing?" El asked, slightly confused

"This." Mike kissed will on the lips, hoping it would save Will

A couple of seconds later, Will's body fell on the ground

"Will! Come on! Wake up! Please! Im sorry! I love you!" Mike shook Wills body before hearing gasping sounds coming from him.

"Will! Oh my god! You're alive!" Tears started forming from Mike's eyes, hugging Will

"M-mike..? I love you too..." Will started crying, still shocked from what just happened to him, hugging Mike close to him

"Will... I'm so sorry for what I said earlier. The truth is.. is that I've loved you since the first day we met. But given where we are.. in this town, it's hard to express that.. that you love someone when it's not considered normal. I only dated El... to hide the fact I was in love with you."

"Wait..? Mike? You never loved me?" El said, not really mad... more actually happy?

"Yeah..."

"Well, to be honest, I never liked you either... I always liked Max... I love her..."

All the sudden there's sound from coming from the bushes, and everyone turned to look at where it was coming from.

"Hi guys! I came as soon as I could... and El..? Was what you said about you being in love with me too... were you telling the truth?" Max said, worried, looking at Mike and Will

El sighed. "Y-yes."

"Wait... you aren't joking? B-because I love you too..."

El smiled brightly and ran over to Max and hugged her, slowly pulling her into a long kiss

"So... I guess we're just forgetting that I'm here." Joyce said, laughing

the end <3

[alabasterswriting]

Hey, were so you stand on the whole fandom discourse thing? Like do you ship mileven or byeler or lumax or elmax? Was mike being an asshole or was Will being a bad friend? Was Mike right or was Max right? Do you like Lucas and Mike bromance or Mike and Will bromance/romance? Is Will gay or ace or just not in puberty yet? Srry for the questions but you’re like the most level headed person ive seen and i wanna know what u think?

Oh, oh this is going to be long. Warning! Long Post!

Okay, well, first let me just say that I hate discourse. I think it’s silly and stupid for fandoms to rip characters apart and fight over something like this when we should be bolstering each other up with our mutual love over a piece of media. However, the discourse after this season of Stranger Things is particularly upsetting because I think it all comes down to the fact that the character writing this season wasn’t very strong. They were paper-thin and the characters themselves didn’t get as much meaningful interaction as I think the story needed. It was so much action that a lot of the necessary quiet moments got lost.

But onto your questions.

So, the ships. I’ll be honest, I’m not a hardcore shipper of any of them. Except maybe Jopper, but that’s only because I really wanted El to have that mother figure in Joyce that she can’t get from Terry, and for Will and Jonathan to have that father figure in Hopper that they can’t get in Lonnie. Also, I really want Will and El to be siblings. But back to your question. I am an aromantic asexual. I also vacillate between liking romance to being completely put off by it, the latter of which tending to happen when it is thrown in my face. If you’re asking me if I like the ships this season, I would have to say no simply because I felt like they came at the expense of the friendships and bonds between the core characters. If you’re asking me if I like them in general, then yes. I think mileven is cute, and I think byler can be cute, and I think lumax is hilarious, and elmax would be wonderful.

Do I honestly think that Mike and Will will get together? No. It’s not going to happen. I can see Will maybe having a crush on Mike, and that being something he will struggle with, but Mike is 100% in love with El and that’s fine. That’s life. Will is a kid living in 1980s rural Indiana. The show has already shown that homophobia is a thing. He and Mike are friends, and I don’t think with all the work on Mike and El that it would make sense to suddenly flip it now. And Mike and El are cute, and I liked how this season they showed that puppy love stage is not all it’s cracked up to be. I liked how they showed growing pains in their relationship. I liked how Mike and El had to learn to balance their romantic relationship with their friends. I wish it had been handled better, but I liked how they were able to show that even though Mike and El aren’t a perfect relationship, they do have a special bond and I enjoyed that.

Does this mean I don’t enjoy byler fics and headcanons and edits and parallels? Hell no! I love that shit. I love it the same way I do mileven. And honestly, I could get behind milevill. I think El and Will would be more platonic, with Mike in the middle, but poly shipping is generally how I get around shipping wars. And I hate how characters get demonized when shipping goggles get put on, and these three are demonized to high heaven for it, to the point that shippers degrade their actual characters down to one aspect.

In regards to the characterization of Mike and Will this season, I see both sides. It’s been implied that Mike has been ditching his friends all summer to spend time with El in the cabin. He’s apparently been there everyday since she got back. And on the one hand, this makes sense. El isn’t allowed out and if Mike isn’t there then she’s alone. That sucks, especially because El has already been through far too much isolation in her life. It’s also sort of implied that they like spending time with just the two of them and that the rest of the party either doesn’t visit often or the only time the whole party is together is the rare occasion when El is allowed out. We can sort of see this by the fact that Max and El aren’t really friends, but El still feels comfortable enough to go to her for advice on Mike, and the way that Will calls her Eleven instead of El until about the middle of the season. Ergo, Mike has been ditching them to spend time with her every day, away from the party. And that’s got to be frustrating. Will doesn’t seem nearly as frustrated with Max and Lucas, which could be because they’re not as puppylove-ish, and because he has the opportunity to get to know Max. He knows her more as Lucas’ girlfriend, but he seems more comfortable in her presence. So we can guess that Lucas and Max spend more time with the group than Mike and El. And frankly, if I was Will and my best friend had been doing this every day for a month while I third-wheeled, I would have snapped too. And probably a lot earlier. Especially if the only thing I had asked of him was one day of his time to do something not related to romance. It wasn’t right what Mike was doing, even if it was understandable. But that was part of Mike’s arc - learning to balance his romantic relationship with his friendships.

As for Will, like I said above, it’s implied that Will has been third-wheeling for an entire summer. Mike has been ditching them for all this time and that’s a big change he has to deal with. All Will wants is to go back to how things were before he was completely traumatized. D&D is the only thing he has from before the Upside Down, so of course he would want to have a guys day and play it. Will is allowed to want something other than just being a support for his friends. Unfortunately, he does fail to read the room. Now, I can imagine that maybe he thought playing D&D would cheer Mike and Lucas up, but he could have been more understanding of the situation. Mike and El were going through a rough spot and Will could have done a better job of being there for him. Now, it’s possible that because of Lucas and Max’s constant breakups that he doesn’t think it’s that big of a deal, but considering Mike has been spending all his time with El, Will probably should have been able to realize now was not the time to insist on playing a game. I also don’t think that Will calling El a “stupid girl” was Will being mean or angry at El however. He was mad at Mike. He was placing the blame on Mike. His target was Mike and that Mike was breaking up the party. Not El. Max and El are his friends, though they’re not close, and Will was calling out the fact that that Mike was ditching them, rather than thinking El was actually a stupid girl. And he has a point. He even asks where Dustin is and questions the fact that Mike isn’t wondering. Dustin got back the day before after being gone a month. So, while Will definitely could have been more sensitive to Mike’s problems, he also had legitimate reasons to be angry. Just like Mike had legitimate reasons to be upset.

And I will say here that both Mike and Max are correct when it comes to El. Mike is monopolizing a lot of El’s time. It’s not a bad thing in itself, but El needs friends outside of him. It’s unhealthy not to. And Mike was also right to worry about her burning herself out with her powers. His concern was completely valid. But Max was also right. It wasn’t right of Mike to lie to El like that and then not apologize, especially after she caught him and called him out on it. The fact that Max was there to teach El how to be herself and make decisions for herself outside of Mike and Hopper was something she needed to grow as a person. And Max was also right when she told Mike that El knew how to work her powers better than he does. That it’s her decision on how far to go. Now, this does have its drawbacks because El might not actually know when to draw the line. She goes too far, and that’s where Mike’s concern is completely valid. Both of them have good points and are coming from a place of caring, but they’re also teenagers and don’t know how to handle all of these issues correctly.

As for Mike and Lucas vs Mike and Will, I think this is such a stupid thing to fight over. They’re all best friends. Mike and Lucas were stated to be best friends in season 1 because they live next door to each other, but Mike “calls bull” on that logic because he’s also best friends with Dustin and with Will. He and Will have been friends since kindergarten and we saw a lot of that in season 2, which was wonderful. This season both Mike and Lucas are in relationships and can relate to each other better than Mike and Will who are having a discourse in their relationship because they’re maturing at different rates. Mike and Lucas want to move forward because they have relationships blossoming that makes the future happier, where Will is stuck in the past because the past is where all his happiness is. Do I wish we had gotten a moment between Will and Mike where they actually talk about their fight and how everything has changed, or that we got a better goodbye from them at the end? Absolutely. Their friendship deserved that. But I also loved how Lucas was Mike’s wingman, and all around relationship guru. I also really liked how Lucas and Will worked together this season. Lucas reached out to Will, and even though it didn’t go far, I really liked all the little moments they had together. They are all best friends but even in friend groups there are people you go to for different things.

And is Will gay? Oh boy. Okay, so, personally, I think Will is gay. There’s been a lot of subtext and the show bible does seem to imply he’s on the spectrum somewhere. BUT. This is not canon. Things change all the time when writing and until it is explicitly stated by either the show runners or the show itself, then this is still just speculation. I can also totally see Will as ace. I knew I was ace before I even had a word for it and I was like 11 years old. Will could be ace. I don’t think he is simply because we never get representation, but it’s totally possible. It’s also possible that he’s both. You can be homoromantic asexual. You can also be aromantic homosexual. The two aren’t mutually exclusive and I kind of like the idea of him being homoromantic asexual. Or he might be completely gay and yet be so traumatized that sexual attraction is horrific. He’s been violated so violently in ways so similar to rape that I can easily imagine anything sexual as triggering. And yes, at 14 you are old enough to start thinking about sex. It’s normal. Even I thought about it at that age, even though I thought it weird that anyone would ever find it enjoyable. It is also completely possible that, due to that trauma, Will just isn’t there yet. Trauma does cause brain damage. He could very easily have regressed mentally to the point that he just hasn’t begun to mature yet.

Sorry for the long post, but there you go. Frankly, I think the characters this season were just very poorly written, and I think fandoms tend to not know what to do when characters behave differently than expected. But the thing is, these characters are growing up and changing. Smart people can be dumb. Kind people can get angry and lash out. Protective people can be selfish. A good person making the wrong choice doesn’t automatically make them bad. People are not so one-dimensional that “shy, quiet, artistic” doesn’t mean they can’t ever be “annoyed, moody, and angry”. “Loyal, charismatic, and smart” characters can also be “oblivious, tunnel-visioned, and dumb.” The problem with this season is that they didn’t allow the characters to really interact outside of their pairings. Dustin wasn’t with the party at all. Will and Mike never get meaningful resolution. Max and El never really talk about the problems in their relationships. Like Max and Lucas have broken up 5 times? Why? What is the story there? Will and El barely talk at all even though they have the most in common and end up living together by the end. And Lucas and Max don’t have much interaction at all. The romance sort of overshadowed the fact that these kids are all friends. And it should have been clearer that even though they’re all growing up and apart, they’re also all traumatized and understand each other on levels no one else can. It’s varying levels of trauma, but we don’t see them really band together to build each other up. And I think we needed that level of platonic love to really show that, yeah, we may not be focusing on these relationships as much this season, but they’re still there, rather than “Mike only cares about Eleven” and “Will and Mike apparently aren’t friends anymore.” The action overshadowed the heart this season, and I think that’s where some of the subtler character arcs got lost. 

I hope that answered your question and thank you!

[lovipop2049]

LOL you n me definitely have very similar opinions on things and I do appreciate having these convos in the fandom because at least i'm not the only one with these opinions loll 😭

YES EXACTLY. I used to hate Eddie, but rewatching some scenes with him in it I actually love him now. He's a very likeable character especially when talking to Chrissy. Jason is interesting too. I hated him, but I can appreciate him as a character because he added more stakes to the story and made it more interesting because we got to see the town's perspective on everything that happened in hawkins when they didn't know about the government.

But I agree with you exactly. "Because Jonathan" basically sums up my life at this point...

RIGHT. I have a serious problem too like he takes over my brain and I can't think of anything else really lol.

Yes I feel exactly the same. Elumax and Elmax are definitely my fav non-Jon ships. They're adorable and I've loved them since season 2.

Its just, I love the other ships, but it's hard for me to sit down and focus and think of fic ideas and headcanons for them. Like it's hard enough for me to focus on a Stonathan/Jargyle fanfic without thinking of a million new ideas so I don't think i'd be able to make content for other ships I like.

Yes, and I bet it sucks for them. Because they're an even smaller group of people than Stonathans. The hate for Jason is unreal. Like YES I 100% understand hating him, but also, I see it from another perspective. Theres been unexplained murders throughout the course of the years, the last dude your girl was seen with plays dnd, he possibly murdered her, dnd was seen as evil, boom connect the dots. That's reasonable for him to think. So it's understandable, but he is definitely hate-able. The thing that pisses me off the most, it's similar with angela too, is that they hate the actors for... acting? Like ST fans were harassing jason and angela's actors. Elodie is not some mean 80s bully in real life.. she's literally friends with Millie. And Mason isn't how he is in the show either, obviously. He isn't going around calling people satanists for playing a game. ANYWAYS BACK TO THE ORIGINAL COnVERSATION. Sorry I go on tangents a lot. But yes I feel for them too. Sadly yes I know my hyperfixation on Jonathan will end, I'll get burnt out, but I'm hoping it lasts for a while lol.

Yeah I don't care about Steddies anymore they really just piss me off. There are some that are truly nice but most of them clog tags and push their ship onto other people. Don't like jonathan? cool. Stop hating on us and talk about it with your jonathan anti friends and leave us in peace.

~~ATTENTION ST FANS~~

Jeddie = Jason [Carver] + Eddie

Eddithan = Eddie + Jonathan

I'm not complaining, just explaining because people keep tagging Eddithan as 'Jeddie' and it is hard to find Eddithan content because of the confusion.

[stranger-lex]

hey! can you do elmax with angst prompt #5? tysm!

“why didn’t you say h-how bad it was?” // after season three // thanks for the request!! i left it kinda vague bc i didn’t know if you wanted it as a romantic or platonic thing, so if you want it to be Gay lmk because i have an idea for a romantic elmax thing. hope you enjoy!!

Eleven had been counting down the minutes until she could see Max again. Mrs. Byers had agreed to let Will and El spend a month in Hawkins for their summer break. Will would be staying with Mike, and El would be staying with Max. The girls had talked a lot when El first moved away, but eventually, Max’s dad got mad at her when she used the phone for too long or when she used up too many stamps. El tried to understand, and she never blamed Max for the distance placed between them. She remembered what she saw in Billy’s head, and she knew the monster Neil really was. El tested herself everyday, twice a day, to see if her powers had returned. She was desperate to find a way to talk to Max without getting her in any trouble. Unfortunately, her powers had not returned. They wrote from time to time, and whenever Neil was out of town on business, they would talk on the phone. He left often, but not as often as either wanted.

The first week El was back in Hawkins, Neil was out of town. Max was the happiest she had been in a really long time. She was finally getting El back, and Neil was gone for at least a full seven days. Max could still feel the hole in her chest Billy’s absence left, but she knew seeing El would make her feel healed, at least temporarily.

Her mom was out for the day, and Max paced the living room, waiting for El to arrive. She opened the door as she heard the footsteps coming towards the door, a huge smile adorning her face. “El!” Eleven gasped, quickly returning Max’s smile and dropping her bags to run towards her. They held each other tightly, laughing and ignoring the tears that formed in their eyes. It had been far too long. “Come in, come in! Are you coming in, Mrs. Byers?”

“Oh, no. I should get back on the road. You two have fun. Try to call me from time to time, El. I’ll see you in a month.”

El walked back to her adopted mother and hugged her. “See you soon.” Mrs. Byers kissed the top of her head. El picked up her bags and followed Max inside. Max led them to her room, her chest aching as they walked by Billy’s closed door. Max had brought some of his things into her room―some band shirts, a poster of Queen, and his jean jacket. It was the last time she had entered his room, but she protected it with a ferocity that surprised even her. She never let Neil enter his room.

The girls began filling each other in with everything that had happened since they last saw each other. All too quickly, the topic turned to Hopper. El explained that she was certain he was still alive, even though Mrs. Byers had done everything she could to help El grieve and move on. “I feel him,” El explained. “I don’t know how to explain. He’s with me. I feel him here.” She touched her chest gently, just above her heart. “Once I get my powers back, I will look.”

Max nodded, looking away, towards the Queen poster on her wall. “I know the feeling.”

El touched Max’s arm, rubbing her thumb gently against her skin. Max let the small comfort wash over her. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” but her voice cracked. Max felt unwanted tears flood to her eyes. “No. We didn’t even have a funeral. It was like he never even existed. Neil tried to throw away all his things, but I fought with him. He hit me. My mom yelled at him, and he hasn’t tried to do it since, but he hates me, I can feel it. I brought some things from Billy’s room, because I miss him and it helps me feel a little closer to him. But sometimes I miss him so much I can’t breathe.” She was sobbing now. “I didn’t get to say goodbye. I didn’t get to be a better sister, a better friend to him. He could be a jerk but he was my brother, and I loved him. And now he’s gone and it’s like no one remembers. I’m the only one trying to keep his memory alive, but it hurts so much and sometimes I feel him slipping away. I don’t know how to do this on my own. I want him back more than anything. I don’t know how to―”

El’s eyes went wide as Max began to hyperventilate. She quickly pulled her towards her, and Max went easily, reveling in the feeling of El’s arms around her. Her hand found its way to Max’s hair, stroking it gently as she held her closely. Max choked as she tried to stop crying, but the tears continued to come. “Don’t fight,” El said quietly. “It’s okay to cry.” Max gave in entirely, clutching El’s arms as sobs ripped through her. After a few moments, El pressed her lips against the top of Max’s head. “Why didn’t you say h-how bad it was?”

“Because you lost Hopper,” Max gently pulled away, just enough to look at El. She kept her hold on her arms, and El readjusted to rub her thumbs against Max’s arms. “I know you’re hurting too, and I didn’t want you to feel like you had to lessen that for me.”

“But you lessened.” El watched as Max averted her eyes and nodded twice. “I am here for you. You lost Billy. I lost Hop. But you didn’t lose me.” Max hiccuped as she sobbed again. “I―I’m so sorry, Max.”

Max fell into El’s arms again. As she held her, El wanted more than anything for her powers to come back. She didn’t even know if she could contact the dead, but she wanted to give Max the chance to talk to Billy one more time, if she could. She promised herself she would try to find him that night, after Max was asleep. And she would continue to try, everyday, until her powers came back.