#stranger things s3 analysis

[nicxxx5]

mike did mix up platonic and romantic love with el.

at the beginning of s3 all mike and el did was kiss. it's heir first relationship and they're 13, tbh there's not much else they were going to do/knew to do. mike enjoyed kissing el physically. he liked doing it. he thought it was fun and what he was supposed to do in a relationship because kissing is considered romantic.

when mike said "i love her and i don't want to lose her" he did actually love el. he lost her before at the end of s1 and through s2 when he thought she was gone. he thought he would never see her again till she walked through the byers door. also he had taken care of her in s1 and helped her stay safe from the people at the lab while she helped him find will. mike does care for her enough to say that he loves her.

but at the end of s3 mike realizes he has mixed up those feelings when she kisses him. when el kisses him after saying she loves him, he realizes that the love for her isn't romantic. he realizes he enjoyed kissing her, but there was no romantic attachment to it. because mike has kissing associated with being something romantic couples do, he realizes that he doesn't love el in a romantic way. hearing her confession then kissing him right after put those romanticized feelings into perspective for him. he was explicitly faced with the idea that his love and el's love for each other are different. this is why he reacts the way he does. he didn't lie in s3 when he said he loves her, he just didn't know at the time it was a different type of love he was feeling.

[stfuhair]

not mike having yellow socks on a full blue outfit and will having dark blue socks on his yellow/red//blue outfit... i may be reaching but i THINK that this indicated like a little flame of his feeling yk? like mike is just a little, but is there, is the start, will is halfway through, he already knows who and what he likes and the feeling that is consuming him, is halfway through

also another thing, i've noticed but mostly, s3 byler + el outfits (or all of them i would have to rewatch s3 to make sure) has a interesting color combination.

while mike is predominantly, or 90% blue or 90% yellow, and one time his shirt is even blue, yellow and green

will seems to be always, blue yellow and red. sometimes just yellow and red, just blue and red, but never just blue and yellow. the only time that I RECALL he wears blue and yellow alone is in s4.

and el uses predominantly blue/cold tones

in conclusion, i think the outfits in s3 represents directly what they're feeling/thinking

so here i'll make a few specific points

el only uses anything beside blue when she is with max, she uses that icinic all colorful outfit, like her brain was full of energy

i feel lik everytime will thought abt mike he couldnt also think about el, he felt bad it, and the fit he uses that is yellow and red is maybe him thinking me and her like him, at the end of s3 hes wearing a red and blue shirt only, it was also the scene where el says she loves him too

the only other time i recall (i may be wrong) him wearing yellow and red is on the 1st ep of s4 where they already have the sibling relationship they have

will only uses blue+yellow or just blue, in s4, like he stopped feeling bad for eleven since he 'knew' nothing was going to happen and it wasnt a bad thing of him loving his bestfriend in a romantic way, like it was the first time he allowed himself to feel something FOR HIMSELF

mikes 'i dump your ass + rain fight' outfit in s3 is predominantly yellow BUT has red/orange stripes, like, who is he worried more? if its really orange and not yellow, is like hes thinking about will even when he is thinking about eleven, bc like yellow and red is orange and stuff ANYWAYS....

do what you guys want with those, AND if someone alr said that before, i apologize i didnt saw it

[love-byers]

mike literally would not give up at trying to get will to stay at his house in s3. he refused to accept that will was leaving all the way through. will barely said a word before the rain fight, it was almost entirely mike trying to make him feel better.

"Fine. You guys win. Congratulations."

"Will I was just messing around."

*will ignores him*

"Hey, let's finish for real. How much longer is the campaign?'

"Just forget it, Mike."

"No, we want to keep playing right?"

he literally says NO. will said let it go, forget about it. he doesn't even care anymore. and mike refuses that. it's just not acceptable. will being upset is not acceptable and he WILL make things right NOW. not in a little while, not tomorrow or the next day, not until will tries to reach out and talk about, right here, right now.

and he pushes lucas to agree with him, the same way he got lucas to lie about nana being sick to el so she wouldn't be mad at him.

"We'll just call the girls afterwards."

"I said forget it, Mike, okay?! I'm going home."

(lucas) "Come on, Will."

"Move!"

it REALLY seems like will wants to be left alone. like he doesn't want to be followed. lucas gives one small attempt at stopping him, but doesn't follow after him or call after him. mike, however, again just won't accept that. so he follows will outside, calling after him.

"Will come on."

*will ignores him*

"You can't leave it's raining."

*will ignores him*

"Listen, I said I was sorry, alright?"

*will ignores him*

"It's a cool campaign it's really cool! We're just not in the mood right now."

i will note that mike isn't saying these things all in one breath, one immediately after the other. there are gaps of silence where he waits for will to respond, and every time will doesn't, mike keeps going.

and even after their fight, where mike snaps at will and shows frustration towards him and calls his girlfriend stupid (will ate ngl), mike doesn't give up.

"Will. Will! Will come on!"

so to recap that, will doesn't say a goddamn word between "move" and "Yeah, mike!". its all mike trying to do damage control, while lucas just let will walk out after will brushed him off. that doesn't mean lucas is a bad friend, but clearly mike feels differently about will to the point he follows him outside to try and get him to stay while lucas doesn't try at all.

and mike didn't give up after that either. he got lucas to go with him to wills house so they both could apologize to will. he would not give up.

meanwhile, he didn't attempt to contact el to apologize until the opportunity presented itself. the idea that somewhere, el was mad at him didn't bother him. he still laughed and joked and was willing to put it off even longer to play dnd with will.

sorry but something fishy is going on here and i think the fish is gay

[thranduel]

[shinpikurage]

Many Mileven moments in s3 had Will in the background, but in s4, it's not only him in the background anymore

Every Mileven moment is focused on Will sadness and pain

[counting-stars-gayly]

They’re not going to rebuild Castle Byers because Will can’t rebuild his childhood, which is the reason he destroyed Castle Byers in the first place. He’d been trying to hold on to a level of carefree ignorance that no longer existed for him. The problems Castle Byers saved him from have been replaced by new problems that are bigger and stronger than a child’s fort. He needs to face them differently. Thank you and goodnight

[mystuffynose]

One of the most important pieces of Byler evidence for me is that Lucas wasn’t in the rain fight, when he was clearly a part of the arguement and he didn’t follow them, it was just mike and will at the fight, which is what we are used to but WHY THE HELL WOULDNT THEY WRITE LUCAS IN THE FIGHT TOO? I mean it would make sense if will was mad at him too, so why? They wanted it to feel personal to, another great reason to emphasise on the eyewitness parallel (which by the way ended in a kiss) so like… that was my yap

[byler-alarmist]

Will was so right to call Mike out in the rain fight for not knowing where Dustin was. Seriously, why is he only hanging out with Lucas and Will??

Mike's uneasy look that follows Will's question suggests that he hadn't even tried to call him in the first place. Why not??

If it was just to strategize about getting their girlfriends back, Lucas would've sufficed. Why is Will even there?

Otherwise, if they wanted outside perspectives, Dustin is certainly more qualified, as someone with a supposed girlfriend (though the boys may or may not have believed him).

Or if Mike just wanted to have bro time, why not invite all the original Party to hang out? It's not like Dustin was busy (that he knew of)! So why only invite Lucas and Will?!

I can't find the post, but someone said that Mike secretly just wanted to spend time with Will and invited Lucas so it would feel more justified as a "straight guy hanging out with his bros."

Which I could honestly see (lmao), but even so, why couldn't he also invite Dustin???

[emblazons]

…rewatching S3 after having dug SO HARD to understand the other seasons and make sense of connections I was struggling with most…GOD. Every single little detail is just as present in the other seasons, and even though I have liked it least for a LONG time....even I’m gonna have to admit I may have been too hasty in judging it over it’s aesthetic changes putting me off lol

For example:

The way Vecna/Henry/001 is present in the narrative even if we don't know it officially until the "reveal," in S04E07 and the parallels they present with Billy (his S3 target) are meant to jog your memory:

(I could literally do like. a 3000 word post on this alone but here are just a few)

The way that we can already see how Mike's true romantic arc is being set up in their wider exposition, as something that shows his affection for Will is romantic...and how he takes Lucas' romantic advice and does it easily...when it's for the boy he actually loves lol

Along with the way Jonathan Byers (like his mother) is honestly always right, the way we can deduce what was Vecna visions and what wasn't based on what happens with Billy...and even the fuller introduction of the theme of confomity across Hawkins.

Like...there's just so much, and I feel like the overall dislike of Billy as a character has made it...curiously undervalued as overall ST exposition lmao. (Basically: S3 is having a Mike Wheeler arc for me. Hating how different it seemed at first, only to look back with new context and realize what was happening was just a shift meant to cover something deeper going on 😭😂)

[lesbians4yoohyeon]

before max is in el's life, el wears dull blues and neutral dark colors. (blue because of her relationship with mike) (edit: i just realized el has a very faint bit of red on her flannel when she becomes max's friend and also in her first appearance in s3. interesting.)

but when max and el become friends, el's life brightens with color. max brings vibrance and brightness to el's life. (notice how el wears a lot of red's and rainbows... and she even wears a very slight purple in her flannel which could be signifying she's starting the journey of being and finding herself)

and when el moves away it's almost like she loses the color she recently found... (also notice max not wearing bright colors either here. her shirt being a kind of purple)

when el is shown in season 4 for the first time, she's wearing little to no color. the only color she is wearing is RED. (and which character is associated with the color red?)

when el sees max in a coma, seeing her for the first time in person after she moved, her color is once again... gone. back to the neutral dark hues and even the blue. (el wearing the hoodie to disguise and hide from anyone noticing her... putting on the blue to hide herself...)

[runninguplenorahills]

Since I’ve already posted something about Elmax today, here’s a quick for fun analysis on a screenshot of one of their scenes in s3

Butterflies

In the context of relationships butterflies often symbolize having a crush or falling in love due to the expression “butterflies in your stomach” and seeing two butterflies together is symbolic of both romantic and platonic love. Since both butterflies are next to their heads this can be interpreted as Max and El having both platonic as well as romantic thoughts about each other.

Butterflies are also representative of transformation and good luck within that transformation which can translate to Max being a lucky charm on El’s journey of transforming herself into the person she really is.

Rainbows and colors

Of course, the rainbow is a symbol for queer love and since it consists of a lot of different colors colorful imagery in general is used to hint at queer romance. I personally interpret the fact that Max is wearing the rainbows as Max being aware of her queerness and aware of her romantic feelings for El while the fact that El is wearing miscellaneous colorful shapes means that while she is aware of her romantic feelings for Max she simply doesn’t know that that makes her queer [because she isn’t familiar with the concept].

Rainbows also represent hope, positivity and harmony which can translate to Max having a positive influence on El and them sharing a harmonious friendship as well as the fact that El’s interactions with Max in s3 gave her new hope for a better life experience.

The Valentine’s cards

The fact that Mike’s Valentine’s cards are framed behind Max hints at the fact that not only is Max having romantic thoughts addressed to El in this scene but that El sees Max as a romantic love interest as well.

The Valentine’s cards are also visually supporting the fact that Max and El are talking about if Mike is a good kisser in this scene so they have multiple purposes.

The Mirror

Mirrors oftentimes represent the reflection of the truth meaning that the mirror in between Max and El reflects that the implied romantic feelings between those two do in fact exist. It’s true that they’re not only thinking of each other platonically but also in a romantic context.

Bonus

[chirpsythismorning]

Will Byers Analysis - Between S3 & 4

Something I always think about, is how Will probably didn't even know Mike and El were back together at the end of season 3.

When they had last spoke, part of Will probably thought Mike was talking about something else, which is understandable bc both him and Mike were speaking in code, whether they realized it or not (I didn’t say it/You didn’t have to).

At the very least, Will thought things could go back to how they used to between them; friends (best friends).

When the Byers arrived to Cali, I imagine within the first day, or within the first few days after they settled, it was most likely Jonathan who made the move to phone the Wheelers to talk to Nancy.

Then maybe Will decided he would call Mike once the phone was free or even asked Jonathan to have Nancy just hand the phone to Mike so they could catch up too.

But once Mike got on the phone, something was off. He sounded kind of distant and awkward and it left Will feeling confused.

Maybe Will tried to chock it up as them just needing to get used to living far away from each other, since this distance thing was indeed new for them. They'd been friends for the last decade and hadn't experienced being apart for longer than a week (the week of his disappearance). So, it was bound to be a little weird, for a little while. Right?

But honestly, just thinking about their fight in s3 and the events leading up to it, I wouldn't blame Will for being slightly worried.

Before the rain fight, Will was putting almost all of the time and effort into their relationship. He was fighting for it and Mike was leaving him behind. And that really hurt Will.

And that's what's honestly so incredible about Will's arc in s4, because he's not putting himself through that again.

Yes, he's growing up and he's matured, but he's also come to accept that, based on Mike's actions as of recent (despite what he might have sensed from Mike over the years), those romantic feelings he has for him will NEVER be reciprocated. If he's lucky, Mike will still want to be his friend, and he would be relieved to stay in his life in that way if it's something Mike still wants.

(Which also makes the GA's argument about how they think Will's arc in s5 is going to be about him accepting that Mike will never love him back, fall flat??? Because, Will's already realized that, sis. S4 ending the way it did was in part to make as clear as possible to Will (the unreliable narrator) that Mike cannot love him that way... And so why the hell would s5 confirm that for a second (3) time now? Where is the shock? Where is the value? What is satisfying about that? And why do that, while also holding off on Mike finding out about Will's feelings until the very end? Like... just let that simmer for a second and think about what that actually means in terms of the story going in a satisfying direction that also manages to surprise you... there is literally nothing satisfying about proving Will 'I'm not gonna fall in love' Byers, right...)

So, after about a week since they last spoke on the phone since arriving, a bunch of letters come in the mail: one for Jonathan, four for El, and three for Will (you can probably guess who from the party didn't send a letter to Will...).

And it's as if Will's worst fears are being (re)realized.

In his casual letter exchanges between the party, he talks about DnD and a new art class he's taking with Dustin, joining the basketball team with Lucas and how everything she'd told him about California was right with Max. Super casual catching up with some of his best friends. And yet still, nothing from Mike, arguably his best friend.

And so Will is understandably devastated.

He doesn't understand. Or maybe he does, he just didn't want to believe it.

And so, how Will chose to go about his contact with Mike over the next 'year' makes sense to me (and I support him fully tbh).

I think Will's arc in s4 is beautiful because he has some of the best development of anyone on the entire show. He's not the gay kid being used as a plot device for a heterosexual couple (stay tuned for s5). If anything, we're seeing this character who tried his best to mend his friendship with his best friend (also secret first love) after Mike presumably rejected him (ITS NOT MY FAULT YOU DON'T LIKE GIRLS!), and so, Will is not going to put himself through that again.

He's not going to let himself have hope that there could ever be something more between them, even if he thought so many times before there were moments or signs that Mike could feel the same (BC MIKE DID!!). He has already accepted it's not possible.

He's not going to 'stand in the way' anymore. If Mike wants to be with El, he's going to support them, even if it hurts him and his own feelings.

It's tragic, but it feels so in character for Will and his qualities as a person.

I know a lot of bylers argue that both Mike and Will were in the wrong when it came to them both not staying in touch, and I do agree, completely actually. Especially knowing Mike tried to call Will. HE TRIED. So it's not like he didn't. The miscommunication trope is doing it's magic. We just have to accept that.

And so, fittingly, when confronted, Mike doesn't tell Will he called (a lot). He lets Will think that he barely called and deflects and pushes it back on Will. But then almost instantly, he regrets it. Because it's in this moment he's only now realizing that Will did want to talk and missed him and is quite literally confused why they're not best friends any more. And suddenly it's all clicking. He knows deep down Will has every reason to be insecure, to not reach out to Mike after what happened last summer. It's just that he also thought Will had every right to move on because why wouldn't he, what's so great about Mike? Will could have anyone? Mike was so distracted by his own insecurities that Will had inevitably moved on, while also trying to hide his feelings, that he didn't realize Will actually did miss him. They've both got it all wrong.

As of now, we don’t know for sure if Will called at all, and so me assuming he called first, is just that, an assumption. But I’m giving Will the benefit of the doubt here. (It's also likely the Byers would have called the Wheeler's first because they know their number by heart most likely, while the Wheelers would've had to wait to get their new number).

Based on the story presented though (Will's unreliable narrator POV), he had a lot more reason to doubt Mike wanted anything to do with him. Will literally spent all of s3 fighting for their friendship, even if it meant coming off as slightly clingy and annoying and ‘childish’. And look how that turned out?

What else was Will to do in this situation? Just repeat all of his behavior in s4?

Was he just supposed to call Mike first, write him letters first, even though Mike was showing repeat signs of wanting to distance himself from him again?

And so, Will waits. He waits for Mike to make the next move, just in case his insecurities are right and that Mike doesn't want them to be best friends like they used to be.

One evening, about a month since the move, the phone rings and Will answers it. It's Mike.

Will is obviously surprised and thrilled. They talk for a bit, and yeah it's awkward. But still, it gives Will hope.

Now, it's still not enough to give Will the confidence to reach out first, fearing he'll come off too strong and scare Mike away again, and so he continues to give Mike space. But that doesn't stop this gesture from giving Will the inspiration to try one more thing, one last ditch effort to save their friendship; he's going to make Mike a painting.

So, all while watching El receive a new letter in the mail every few weeks or so, with him and Mike talking once (or if he's lucky maybe twice) a month over the phone, Will spends his time working on the painting, knowing that Mike used to appreciate his drawings when their friendship was at its strongest. And so, maybe this will be the thing that finally fixes things for them once and for all?

All too soon, it's Spring break and they're at the airport waiting for Mike to land.

In the months leading up to their reunion, Will made sure no one saw the painting he was working on, least of all El. Not even because he was scared she might figure out his feelings, but because he wanted it to be a surprise. We also know Will presumably had no problem with the others seeing the painting eventually because he literally brought it to the airport for Mike to open in front of all of them? And so... to him this was clearly an attempt at platonic reconciliation, even despite Will having romantic feelings for Mike. What he wanted was their friendship back.

But suddenly, Mike is standing before him and Will is so excited he can't hold back anymore. I mean, he's been holding back for MONTHS and he just wants to hug his best friend.

But then Mike is being awkward again, almost like he doesn't want to even touch Will at all, contrasting greatly from the last time they hugged during their goodbye only just a year ago (6 months they're so dramatic, i swear).

All this does is prove to Will that, despite them apparently ending on good terms, it seems Mike is just repeating last summer all over again.

Understandably, Will jumps to this conclusion fairly quickly, as his insecurities are being proven right in real time. Mike doesn't want the friendship they used to have. He doesn't want to hug, doesn't want to write to him, barely even called despite writing El a book worth of letters. He wants to talk to and focus on his girlfriend and Will is just an afterthought now.

There's no way he's gonna want this? A painting? Not a chance in hell.

So when Mike points to it and asks him about it nervously, Will panics and brushes it off.

How could he be so naive. Mike is making it SUPER clear he doesn't care about him, not like he used to. And still he's holding onto some misguided hope that maybe there's still a chance for them to be best friends.

How could he be so stupid.

[axquiva]

No I don't think you fully understand how hard this scene hit me.

Will never thought they'd never get girlfreinds because all they needed was each other. Will thought they'd always be together, just them. Will thought they'd never stop being so close. Now Will is realising he is so painfully wrong.

[crucifiedkiss]

◌ೆ୧　 ͢YOUR MAIL HAS BEEN DELIEVERED ♡

  ಲ ͏ㅤ ׅㅤㅤcw: byler (obv), requested by anon ♡, SPOLIERS FOR SEASONS/EPISODES, me obv yapping and being extra silly, long ahh post its just me yapping abt byler, mike wheeler x will byers (byler ...), me sorta reaching/making big assumptions (taking every last crumb), heavy queer-coding and stuff, byler analysis ++ more realistically, mention of elmax, me being a english teacher 😭, internalized homophobiaㅤ✿𝅼

( ｡>﹏<) "so excited omg im kissing u anon /p/silly im all over the place srry !! i, personally, find mike unlabeled (possibly bi-curious or gay), who is just stuck between two pretty siblings of opposite genders. i am not a mileven, but i do support and whtvr evidence mileven fans have of mileven im vry open to listen to since we all have different povs/perspectives ^_^ this is all my opinion and my view on byler/the hints at byler :)" ⏤ c.k.　と

　ㅤ، ׁ 　 ͢ANON SENT A LETTER ♡

ㅤㅤ❛ ⠀⠀B..Byler analysis.. I wanna see what u think...

𝜗୧ ּ݂⠀💌 me yapping about byler ﹗

　　　⏤　 s1, mike is inside the house with wills letters and art. he handles them with such care (this is not only shown in s1, of course seen in the other seasons aswell), while in later seasons, with his own girlfriends letters, he treats them rather with disrespectfully as if he doesnt care about them, casually tossing them away in garbage cans or just disregarding them completely. u would think that he would treat both with such love, or atleast caring more for els letters, but no. when he see mikes room in one scene, u can see many of wills drawings either hung around or somewhere just in his room (under his bed, on his desk, etc.). nothing is rlly in his room that could be from el which is odd. in els room, we can see literal photos of mike practically everywhere (on her desk, hung up, etc.) .. mike doesnt wanna reciprocate doing the same tho ?? just having letters and stuff just from will ??? im onto u mike. back to the scene of mikes room, he has a mirror on his closet door which could mean that he is in the closet himself and inside the closet there is a red-ish orange shirt/jacket/whtvr which could relate back to s1 will as on his jacket there was a rather similar color to it AND the light of the closet is on meaning that once more it could mean that he is in the closet, aswell having a sign pointing towards the closet saying one way, AGAIN meaning that he could be in the closet. anyways. if u stop at just the right time, still in mikes room, u see a blue owl. a blue owl can symbolize endless compassion towards others and this owl was last seen in s1 where mike and will were quite big characters (and still are) (this owl also could link to vecna but that is not what we r talking abt rn ...)

　　　⏤　 the beloved van scene. literally immediately, we see mike staring so obviously at wills lips and looking him up and down (keep this in mind cause im gonna tell u at the end of this paragraph how many times this has happened LOL). as will hands mike the painting, after asking if will had made it, light starts shining through the window a little more, insinuating he was happy that will painted smth for him. when will mentions that el had commissioned it, the lights becomes more faint and mike looks so much more disappointed after, obviously liking the idea of will making it just for him better than it being made cause of el asking it to be (he likes the idea that will was thinking of him, to put it more simply, but instead it was only made cause of el). as will points to the painting, u can see just barely how they touch, and as the camera points back at mike he is biting his bottom lip. ur getting a little to obvious mike😭 with will mentioning mike being the 'heart' of the party, it could be such a barely noticeable way to say 'im inlove with u' or smth along those lines. as will yaps abt that, mike literally has his breath hitch ??? just at will saying he is the heart and that he is holding everything together ?? the light begins to return meaning that mike became genuinely happy as will said that (sunlight is used as a way to describe a mood, and seeing how it is shining, it means its more lighthearted/friendly/happy ... whtvr. probably shouldve said this earlier ^_^). "when youre different, sometimes u feel like a mistake," will says, perhaps meaning that he feels wrong for liking mike, his male bestfriend, but this could be quickly disregarded as will says, "but u make me feel like im not a mistake at all," which could still mean smth similar to that tho if rlly thinking abt it. the sunlight comes back once more, again giving this lighthearted feel to whats around as that is being said/after being said. also, mike is gulping saliva SO MUCH😣 R U OK POOKIE ??? after a bit more yapping, will says, "el needs u mike, and she always will," with more light shining through. he mightve wanted to say, "i need u mike, and i always will." but idk. mike responds with, "yeah?" with a small smile, needing confirmation that will truly thinks this. will nods, of course confirming his words. as this happens, the light appears again a brighter than previously. if u look just close enough into mikes eye, a small heart is in the reflection of it (THIS IS KINDA A REACH BUT IDC TBH). after this heartfelt moment, mike looks down at the painting will had given him (taking one more quick glance at will with a smile) as will turns away, looking out the window, beginning to start crying—likely sad that mike has not realized his feelings and how much he loves him—which mike surprisingly doesnt notice, only giving a small look before going back to look at the painting. mike looked at wills lips/looked him up and down 7-8 times ... MIKE GET IT TOGETHER HELPPP. ALSO: with the painting that will gives mike, mike is aware that it was for a 'crush of his' or smth of wills, making mike possibly flustered in a way (<- mike had read the note, so he already knows the information abt it meaning to be for someone he likes).

　　　⏤　 s4, when mike is calling out to el, the vines around her neck only tighten, showing that she doesnt believe rlly anything he is saying. will has to practically pressure mike to say 'i love u', which even then mike still hesitates and stalls slightly before rlly saying it. when mike rlly does say it, his facial expression shows off that he is lying. when lying, u normally look away or smth like that, and before saying 'i love u', mike of course does this. as mike says this, the vines once more tighten. el does not believe mike truly does love her. mike says that he is srry for not saying ily enough and that it wasnt because he was afraid of her ... this same season he was literally afraid of her because she hit someone with a freaking rollerblade, so he is lying, and has said multiple occasions 'what is wrong with u' and been scared of her. a little after, mike literally recites what will says during the van scene, obviously not knowing what to say. notice, the vines r STILL tightening. mike also says, "i feel like my life started that day we found u in the woods," right infront of will knowing full-well that day was also the day when will ... vanished. he literally contradicts himself in multiple occasions with this sentence, his life obviously 'not starting' that day he saw her in the woods. mike calls el 'superhero' once more, just more of superhero idolization (is that what u call it), only ever praising/appreciating the quality of her powers. el wants love, not idolization. mike is so homosexually repressed that he cant even notice anything else about el besides her powers, as if thats all she is good for. more lightening strikes in els pov, showing that she KNOWS he is lying, vines STILLL tightening. mike is just saying stuff that he knows el wants to hear, pretty much. el only breaks when both seeing and hearing that max is in pain (guys do we like elmax on tumblr) and not her own bf spilling his love out for her (lying or not).

　　　⏤　 BODY LANGUAGE. MIKE WHEELER BODY LANGUAGE. when in wills room and mike is apologizing (woah), he lifts his brows. if u do research, an eyebrow flash is a usually unconscious social signal, a raising of the eyebrows for about a fifth of a second that communicates a wish to approach another whom the sender recognizes and is preparing for social contact. an eyebrow flash can be used to communicate a desire to approach someone and prepare for social contact, add emphasis to a message, similar to a facial exclamation point or question mark, be used as a form of flirtation, and be a reaction to fear, surprise, disbelief, or disapproval. in this case, it is likely a more flirty way, if using context clues (mike smiling, the voice lowering, holding eye contact, etc.). in this same scene, mike when he sits down literally CHECKS OUT WILL😓 anyways. a smile along with a eyebrow flash (or raise) could mean that u have an romantic interest in them. during the digging scene (dig dig dig guys), mike just looks at will. for no reason. will wasnt even talking and mike proceeded to look at him. when will goes to look at mike, making eye contact between the two, mike gets embarrassed in a way and looks away (or a panicked response), giving a triple take at will before beginning to dig genuinely. a triple take is more 'extreme' form of the double take. it usually happens when two people are trying to check each other out at the same time and keep making awkward eye contact, looking away but not without giving exactly three glances towards the person once more before finally looking away. during the same scene, mike proceeds to lick his lips. when youre attracted to someone, your mouth may produce more saliva. licking lips is a way for people to show interest in someone, adrenaline and norepinephrine can cause physical symptoms of stress, such as dry mouth, when youre around your crush, and thinking about saliva can cause you to create more saliva, which can lead to more thinking about saliva. mike licking his lips whilst looking at will shows more evidence of byler not being one-sided. back to the van scene, mike has his lips parted, hitched breath or sharp intakes of breath, and flared nostrils. these r more common signs of showing that u like someone or r interested in them in a more romantic than platonic aspect. he holds eye contact the entire time which is usually done when attracted to another. he also blinks alot during this scene which is a sign of thinking nervously or anything like such. quick blinking can be seen as a sign of flirting tho, but in this case im not sure it is and mike is just nervous with will. blinking can increase when excited (mentally) abt smth, and mike is likely excited at just the thought of will alone. once more, his brows r raised, but stay raised. raised brows can show interest in what is happening or being said (in this instance, its said). he has such a longing look as he stares at will aswell, occasionally glancing down at his lips which can show he desires to likely kiss will, but obviously not being able to do so. THERE R SO MANY MORE INSTANCES BUT TO MUCH TO WRITE ... hope u enjoyed this english lesson on words :3 (im literally a nerd help me)

　　　⏤　 during the s4 scene where mike and will r having a argument in the skating rink, mike begins to walk away. will calls out to him, saying, "but what about us," and u can see mike take it the wrong way. 'what about us' can mean many of things, and mike took it as a more romantic way, leaving him to stop and turn around, showing off his face. looking closely, he looks confused and possiblynervous. there wouldnt be any reason to be nervous at these words unless u took it the wrong way, which mike, again, did, and confusion would be more normal. if mike didnt like will, he wouldnt have thought anything of it, of course. he says, "what?", in a more different tone, aswell. also, this might be a stretch, but looking at the lighting on their faces u see yellow and blue, which r the colors the two r linked with. after the argument, going to see what el had done, the lights r blue and yellow, as expected. mike goes under two yellow lights before stopping to the left of el, under a blue light, whilst will goes under two blue lights before stopping to the right of el, under a yellow light. they were under eachother lights, before ultimately ending up back to their original colors they r 'assigned' to (this can be also called color-coding or simply just a color (scheme) those characters stick with or seen with the most). this could mean that they r running away from this feelings of some sorts. while mike usually sticks to blue and will usually sticks with yellow, sometimes they will exchange colors, and occasionally wear green which is a mix of the two. when mike visits will in the hospital, he wears green ,,, when mike thought that will had died, he wore green. they wear green when they want to remember eachother as its a mix of the two colors. ANOTHER BIG STRETCH but when mike gets socks they r GREEN. mike mightve been thinking of will whilst getting socks. also, prior to this at the airport scene, mike gets el YELLOW FLOWERS and wears a YELLOW JACKET and his hat has GREEN IN IT and is wearing GREEN PANTS and a BLUE SHIRT ,,,, am i exaggerating. guys i might be delulu but, like. also, BACK to the skating rink, mike says, "were friends. were friends," as if trying to push it both onto him and will, once more experiencing that internalized homophobia, insisting on the fact that they r just 'friends'. mike also feels bad for making will feel bad, just going back to the topic of finding el to subside the fact he just made his bestfriend probably sad. also, just stands at wills side and doesnt try to comfort el at all after el hits that goober in the face ??? nor does will ???

[shinpikurage]

You know, the ending of season 3 is so telling to me

We have Mike smiling because he and Will are talking again, and being happy that Will won't replace him in California (Like he replaced Will with El)

And the next moment, Mike denying that he loves El, telling her it was nothing, and the *kiss*, open eyes, no reciprocation. After, Mike doesn't look surprised or flustered in a good way, he looks confused, scared

For me, it feels like he had a realization, that he might not love El like he previously thought he did, he doesn't love him the way he should, the way she wants him too

And then Hoppers letter? Yeah he's talking about how much he misses his daughter, but it also feels like Wills feelings about Mike

Playing board games until it's late, Will and Mike haven't done that in months because he's busy with El

Eating junk food, typical friend stuff that Will doesn't get to do anymore

And that Hopper understands, because El is growing, maturing, but he misses her. Also goes back to how Will feels, he feels like everyone is maturing and he's being left behind because they are busy with their girlfriends, something he will never go through (plus him wanting to be a kid because that was taken away from him from his father, the UD and the Mind Flayer)

For me, this Hopper-Will/Eleven-Mike parallel is even more cool if we believe in the "Will is controlling Hopper" theory

Anyways, Season 3 was the season Will realized he would be left behind because of his trauma and Queerness, and the one Mike realized he might not love his girlfriend after all

[mystuffynose]

When people ask me what my favourite Byler season and/ or moment is

S1? will being the centre and Mike searching for him all the time, Mike crying when tehy found his body? Mike being the only one who cares about will? Mike putting his head on ill’s chest to her his heartbeat in the hospital? Him running to him and not being able to sleep? Will not being able to lie?

S2? Mike’s constant worrying over will? Crazy together scene? Mike sleeping next to him? Mike being with him all season? “He’s my friend, Mike”? Will screaming for Mike in his episodes? Mike breaking him out of the episodes almost always?

S3? THE FUCKING ANGST? The rain fight? Will breaking castle Byers? The double date at the start? The Milkvan breakup? The sauna test? THE WILL VOICE AT THE SAUNA? Will’s annoyance at milkvan ditching them? ITS NOT MY FAULT YOU DONT LIKE GIRLS? The hug at the end? (those boys did a fucking 360°), Mike hugging him mom after that? The Byler undertones in hopper’s letter? All those times they were seated together? All those lip glances

S4? Mikes jealousy at the start? The awkward airport hug? The whole airport scene? Mike being mad at will for not laughing at his joke? Mike actually paying too much attention to everything will did? The rink-o-mania fight? THAT FUCKING LIP GLANCE? Will comforting Mike even though he hasn’t apologised yet? MIKE’S APOLOGY? TEAM? THE ASS STARE? BEST FRIENDS? MIKES RIZZ THERE? the van scene? Will being in frame in the confession? Will low-key coming out to Jonathan? The convo at the end? EL BEING MAD AT MIKE? being together all season? THE FUCKING END PLACEMENT?

they’re all greta competitors…. It’s hard to choose