The Shire is burning. So Mordor it is.

Hullo! I'm Av. You're cool for looking at my blog. I'm not too active these days but it's pretty much all Harry Potter/Fantastic Beasts with a lot of The Dragon Prince, Game of Thrones, The Lord of the Rings, Downton Abbey, The Hunger Games, Girl Meets World, Avatar: The Last Airbender, The Legend of Korra and pretty much whatever else I feel like talking about.

[apiratecalledav]

I mentioned on Reddit that I wished that Steve and Jonathan bonded in season 5 over younger siblings struggling with grief and ptsd and someone called nycorix said if I ever got around to writing a fan fic about it, I’d have a reader. 🥹

This is a very abridged version, but you were so sweet, I really wanted to do something. I’ve had a lot of this dialogue floating around in my brain since November anyway. This one’s for you, nycorix!

Will and Won’t

Steve sighs as Dustin stalks off. The insults were barely above a dark mutter, yet somehow still manage to echo, long after he’s out of sight.

Steve avoids meeting the silent spectator’s eye and just says, “Did Will ever get— angry— like this? Or El?”

When Jonathan doesn’t answer, Steve sighs again and adds, “Forget it. It’s not the same thing; I know that. I’m sorry.”

But to his surprise, after a moment, Jonathan says, “Will? I guess, sometimes. Mostly at himself though. He never really shut us out, though. Not like this. That’s gotta—“ he breaks off. 

Guess Steve can’t blame him for not wasting words on the obvious. “And El?”

“Well, she hit a girl with a roller skate for talking shit about Hopper one too many times, so yeah, I think she was angry. It took a really long time for that to start breaking through, though. I’m not sure how much she trusted that we really were her family at first. And that we weren’t gonna, like, abandon her at a fire station the first time things got rough.”

“So… you’re saying that Henderson being a dickhead every five minutes is actually a good thing?”

“Well, deep down, he probably knows you’ll be here no matter what. So, yeah, that part is promising.” Jonathan swallows. “I was angry. At Hopper, y’know, for… ‘dying.’ Well, ‘angry’ is a mild way of putting it. It took all my self control not to drive out to his cabin in the middle of the night and scream at his ghost or whatever.” He drops his gaze, fiddling with the frayed hem of his sleeve. 

But Eddie is, like, the only one Dustin isn’t mad at. Where is this going?

Jonathan continues, “Because Bob— got killed. Lonnie was useless on his best days. But Hopper? Hopper was supposed to be the one I could count on to be there for my mom and Will, no matter what. No matter if it was Demogorgons, or booze, or pills, or whatever, I was so sure that none of that could ever stop him. And then there was El. This— this little girl who had already lost everything, over and over and over. How could he go and die on her? On all of them? I knew it was stupid and irrational  but I was just so pissed that he left them like that.” Jonathan lets out a bitter laugh, as the outrage over his family’s long suffering starts to flare up. “And that he left me, too. That’s the thing— there was also a little selfish and asshole-y part of me that was angry because I knew I wasn’t going to be able to go away for college anymore. I spent most of my life counting down to those four years when I could be away from my family’s crap but not actually have to deal with the misery of the real world yet. And then just like that, it was gone.”

Steve doesn’t know how to respond. He’s willing to bet a couple of major organs that Jonathan has never said any of this out loud before. Not even to Nancy. All he can say is, “That doesn’t make you an asshole. It means you’re… normal.”

“Wow, Steve Harrington just called me normal.” But there’s briefly amusement in Jonathan’s tone before it turns more serious. “Look, the point is, I think maybe, Dustin is dealing with something like that right now. Maybe there’s this little voice in his head telling him ‘at least it wasn’t Steve.’ And that’s the real reason he’s in such a rage.”

Holy fuckin’ Hell. Steve sits with that for a moment, not sure if he believes that, though. It wasn’t even that Eddie was into all the weird dragons and magic shit that Dustin loved so much. It’s that Eddie was the one who was there at school when Dustin was. He was the one who kept Dustin from getting pushed around too much… all while Steve was stuck in his pathetic, dead end job.

Steve tilts his head up, suddenly discovering that the ceiling is absolutely fascinating. Jonathan shared what might be his darkest secret… Steve’s conscience, which often sounds suspiciously like Robin, says that he should at least try to reciprocate. “I really am sorry, you know. For all that shit I said after Won’t’s funeral.”

“‘Won’t’s funeral?’”

“Oh. That’s, uh,” —Steve resigns himself to spending the rest of his stupid life looking up at this stupid ceiling—“what Robin calls the fake Will that Brenner had chucked in the quarry. You know, ‘will and won’t.’”

A puff of air escapes from Jonathan despite himself. Maybe it’s safe for Steve to look down again. 

“I wake up at two AM sometimes and think about what I’d do if someone said something like that about Dustin— or any of those kids, including Will— to me now and I hate myself all over again for being such a prick.”

A beat.

“Well, if you didn’t say that stuff, you wouldn’t have come over to my house to apologize and Nancy and I would have been Demo food. Even if we weren’t, we definitely would have gotten run over by flayed Billy in the parking lot of the mall that time, so… uh, yeah. We’re good, man.” 

A little bit of the weight in the back of Steve’s mind lifts. “Thanks.” 

[apiratecalledav]

The Duffers Ended Up Doing Exactly What They Tried So Hard to Avoid. And in the Worst Way

When I found out that Stranger Things was originally pitched as a mini series with the door left open for a sequel to revisit the characters again ten years later, soooo many of the issues in the last half of the show became clear:

The characters who’ve been sidelined and/or awkwardly stalled were obviously the ones with endgames the Duffers were heavily attached to and were afraid they’d develop too far away from. And sure enough, however awkwardly, characters like Joyce, Hopper, and Jonathan finally got where they’ve been needing to go for, like, ever in the final episode. Well, for the most part.

But Mike and especially El is where they went so terribly, terribly wrong. Both characters were in a rut of sorts for the last couple of seasons as well, but the thing is… the “damage” was already long done. The moment Hopper adopted El, the idea that she was simply a symbol of childhood magic was over.

To make things worse, they went on to have her and Mike become real boyfriend/girlfriend. For Max, Dustin, and Lucas to become her very best friends. For Will and Jonathan to be her brothers. For Joyce to be her mom. For half a damn decade. She has built her home with her parents, brothers, besties, and her boyfriend.

If she spent season 2 hiding out with Doc Owens before moving back home with Becky and Terry, then that idea could have worked. If she stayed someone who only sporadically came back to Hawkins when need was greatest, it could have felt more like the Pevensie children and Narnia. It’s not bittersweet to have “ET go home” when she has no other home. It just feels hollow and forced at best, downright cruel at worst.

For Hopper, obviously he was originally supposed to get a second chance at fatherhood with Joyce’s boys. And while they do manage to scrape that out a bit in the epilogue, it’s too little too late. He barely spent time with them after the first two seasons, so they almost feel like a consolation prize after losing El. 🤢

If you look at what’s been released of the Duffers’ original Montauk pitch, I think it’s likely the party would have grown up mostly okay, with their memories of El somewhat dimming as adulthood rationality and doubt crept in. Will, who already suffered a lot, would have been spared grieving her because they never met. Mike would have gained confidence and found a nice girl (Jennifer Hayes, since he was originally going to have a crush on her?) and go on to become a writer and immortalize El in his fiction. As it stands, there’s a huge wound that will never quite close for any of them. There isn’t any chance in hell their relationships with her become a wistful childhood memory. No nights staying up late to debate about how real or imaginary she really was. Just an empty chair at their table where she should have been.

I’m not that mad because it’s ridiculously easy enough to imagine how they all reunite with her in a couple of years. Not to mention I don’t give even the vaguest, slightest fuck what the Duffers say in interviews about the characters’ futures beyond what’s shown on screen. But still, so much of the middle seasons suffered because they tried so hard to keep certain characters in predestined boxes. So the fact that they just screwed up so spectacularly with arguably their two main characters is just... I don’t even have the words. It’d be almost funny if it wasn’t so frustrating and disappointing.

[apiratecalledav]

Um, excuse me, Netflix, but the after credits scene for Stranger Things where Doctor Owens drops by Jopper’s new house with a birth certificate/social security number for Joyce’s niece, Elle Maldonado, appears to be missing.

[apiratecalledav]

Stranger Things season 5 Volume II spoilers under the cut:

Ok. Disrespect only partially intended, but what the actual fuck. 

Jancy isn’t even my favorite ship for this series but I always loved and appreciated the way the characters were set up to compliment each other without feeling overly codependent: each was strong in areas the other was weak and they absolutely LOVED those qualities in each other. To the point where they literally spell that out to their friends in the first episode of season 4. Between that and “the Montauk Bible” (essentially the original first draft of season 1) where Jonathan’s and Nancy’s little character summaries are entirely their the backstories + how they fall in love instead of where they fit into the main plot, Jancy always screamed “Duffer Brothers’ OTP/their teenage wish fulfillment” to me. 

So I could tolerate the poorly written angst these past two seasons because I figured either Netflix demanded some Babysitter/Nancy scenes or because the Duffers were afraid of pulling a How I Met Your Mother and letting characters develop too far beyond what they wanted the endgame to be… I assumed that they’d knock it out of the park in the last half of the final season.

But this? Aside from executive meddling, I can’t understand why they’re going this route in the eleventh hour. Especially so… pretty… with both saying “I love you” and sharing a spinny embrace with a dang engagement ring in the shot, not to mention that romantic theme playing.

Seriously, why— WHY—  WhHHhYYyyYY have we had to sit through this painfully amateur and bullshitty love triangle just to get here?

If they did this at the end of season 3, we  could have seen Jonathan strive to do more things for himself without needing a push from Nancy while Nancy figured out how to deal with the real world without getting reality checks from Jonathan.

We could’ve seen Jonathan get some much needed parent time with both Joyce and Hopper and accept that his family will be okay without him, leaving him free to chase his dreams without guilt.

We could have seen Nancy have to parent her younger siblings while Ted and Karen recovered, and learn that life isn’t as simple as school, where all you need to do is work hard and show initiative. 

In season 4, we could have had Nancy and Babysitter have some curiosity about what a relationship would be like with these versions of themselves… only to realize it feels beyond wrong when they try to act on it… kinda like Damien and Janice in Mean Girls but less silly.

Then in season 5, we could have had Jonathan and Babysitter develop a real friendship. We could have even had Jonathan give some advice to Babysitter about how to handle your little brother’s PTSD.

Jonathan and Nancy’s near death experience could have led to reminiscing  that would establish a true friendship without any bitterness or awkwardness… and at least open the door to a reunion.

But no. Why build Jonathan and Nancy up as individuals when you can drag them down (along with Babysitter) and regress/majorly stall their character development??  Why carry out soooo many terrible writing decisions that would only be justifiable if they were desperately trying to avoid a breakup…if they’re going to break up?? Even if it’s just until the epilogue?

Like, they’re seriously going to frame this as “Jonathan and Nancy need to learn how to be independent” when all they’ve done the past two seasons is show how much worse off J and N are when they’re apart/out of sync?

Absolutely mystifying.

[apiratecalledav]

Me, thinking about how Nancy’s family would be a little less scandalized by the idea of her moving to a big city with Jonathan if they were at least engaged.

[apiratecalledav]

I gotta say, “Murray Bauman turning out to be Santa’s unhinged nephew” wasn’t on my season 5 bingo card.

[apiratecalledav]

Stranger Things AU where Ted and Karen have been clued in, so Ted has to fight every overtired dad instinct to tell Holly to run and turn the thermostat up as high as it will go, making the demogorgon slow and weak enough for him and Karen to shove into the oven.

[apiratecalledav]

I was having a perfectly near tolerable day and then I thought about Dustin waking up early every Saturday to see Uncle Wayne, the same way Nancy had weekly dinners with Barb’s family.

[apiratecalledav]

Me: Don’t go on tumblr.

Me to me: but a new season of Stranger Things is coming out and I kinda wanna see what people are saying?

Me: don’t say I didn’t warn you.

Stranger Things tags

(Ship names have been redacted to protect humanity in general)

[apiratecalledav]

Sunrise on the Reaping Reaction

File this one under “still hate this website since the garbage search system but this blog is the archive of my obsessions and this needs to be here.” Anyway.

Overall thoughts: First several pages were painful.  Like, I couldn’t help but picture an SNL skit where Jennifer Lawrence makes fun of Woody from Cheers. 

But then the first chapter ended on a plot twist/cliffhanger and it REALLY picked up from there. It had its issues but overall,  I loved it.

True reaction with all the spoilers under the cut:

The Good 

No bullshit love triangles. Hallelujah. 🥹

Haymitch chugging all the milk just so that he could tell Snow there wasn’t any. Absolute legend. 

This made a decent effort to help bridge The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and the original trilogy. A few elements in Ballad felt weird and disconnected—especially the Covey who seemed like they were abducted from an entirely different book that Collins couldn’t ever get around to writing— so it was nice to get hints at how certain things evolved over the decades. 

Ballad was basically anti-fan service. And while it was bold as hell, and I have a lot of respect for it… I just… couldn’t really care about Snow and Lucy G that much. I had fun reading the book, but I doubt I’ll ever pick it up again. Didn’t even bother with the movie. 

Meanwhile, Sunrise is fan service galore and honestly, I don’t even care. I absolutely love these characters and I was thrilled to see them again… for the most part. For some reason, I did think Effie was a little too far.  Maybe because she felt slightly more Elizabeth Banks than Suzanne Collins to me. But oh well. This book appealed to my heart in a way that Ballad didn’t/couldn’t/wouldn’t and it’s something I’ve needed for a very long time.

So much nostalgia. I was nineteen when I first read the original series. I’m almost 34 now! Holy crap. It truly took me back to when books were more likely to be magical instead of a mediocre chore. 

Collins continues to deliver high quality snark and deadpan sarcastic comments.

She also continues to find new ways to horrify me and destroy my emotions. Dang.

I truly am impressed with how fast paced and suspenseful it was, especially considering we largely knew how it ended. I thought Haymitch being illegally picked for the games was especially great. The stuff with Louella McCoy and Lou Lou broke both my brain and my heart.

Ugh, the other tributes. I loved them so much, even though I tried not to because I knew they were doomed. Maysilee is my queen. 🫡 I can’t talk about the others yet. 😭😭 Except I will say that I am totally that Charlie Day conspiracy meme trying to make it so that Ampert was smuggled out alive.

The Bad

Like The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Sunrise on the Reaping feels like a massive retcon.  It’s downright insulting to ask us to believe no one even vaguely referenced any of this to Katniss. Okay, most of them are traumatized to hell and would not want to ever speak about it. But what about Plutarch?? Effie?? Nothing about Haymitch EVER from Burdock or Asterid before he died and she shut down? Or even Katniss seeing some weird looks between Mom and Mentor? No comment from Caesar on Beetee having to be in the 3rd Quarter Quell when his son was in the second?? Katniss and Peeta watched all that old footage and never noticed? Justice for Ampert!

I also don’t believe for one second that Snow would have tolerated that level of fuckery from Haymitch. In Catching Fire, it felt like barely more than luck that Haymitch was able to turn a bug into a feature (Sunrise reinforced that), and Snow going on such a rampage about something borderline innocent is what made it so terrifying… the idea that Haymitch was secretly scheming with Beetee and Plutarch and trying to blow shit up (well, drown it) completely wrecked that.

…it also felt like Collins was trying too hard to recreate the vibe of Catching Fire/the 3rd Quarter Quell and it just wasn’t needed.

Beyond annoyed at Plutarch being a rebel from the start. Maybe it’d be too much like (movie) Effie if he managed a friendship with Haymitch and slowly had his eyes opened but it would have been way more believable. And interesting.

I can’t help but think this was a missed opportunity to be more of a grownup book, mostly focused on adult Haymitch dealing with Mentor life. It would have made the Quell less focal and minimized the retcon. Also, being able to space stuff out in flashbacks might have made deaths more impactful. Like, I pretty much got numbed to the horror, so the loss of his family and LD didn’t hit that hard. Probably wouldn’t have hit at all if their deaths weren’t so fucked up. 

The Ugly

I absolutely hated most of the new names from Ballad, and these weren’t much better. At least in the original, some unfortunate first names still paired well with their last names and had a nice ring to them. Covey names in particular are just cruel. I love the symbolism and all, but their names are so incredibly awkward to say and sound ridiculously, hilariously awful. I can’t take them seriously. 

I also kept misreading Ampert as Armpit 🥴  and Magno as Magneto. 🤣

Oh, great. Another teenage couple going on about how they don’t want to live without each other. Barf. She was a blah character (points for being less fan fic-y and way less cringy than LG) and their relationship was meh.

 I can appreciate Collins wanting LD to be more than just “a girlfriend” but it came at the expense of Haymitch’s character and it’s not like we didn’t have Mags, Wiress, Maysilee, Wellie, etc.

The Mixed Feelings

Katniss’ parents finally have names. Which is awesome, but I’ve imagined Arum (plant with arrow shaped leaves) and Rosemary (a symbol of remembrance and mourning) for so long, it’s hard to let go.

I am… equally impressed and annoyed by how loudly Collins said, “fuck your Haymitch ships” and set them on fire. As thrilled as I was to be free of terrible love triangles, it still seemed unnecessary and forced. I mean, I mostly like Haysilee in an AU way and I probably wouldn’t be Hayffie trash if it weren’t for the movies… but seriously? Haymitch calling Maysilee “Sis” and Effie being a full on adult and spending time with Haymitch when he’s only sixteen? Sure, I think the original series implied that sixteen is “age of consent” in Panem but still…

I can appreciate standing up to shippers, but it felt almost spiteful considering how much fan service there was.I might just be sensitive because Ballad felt like it took several shots at Everthrone just for funsies.

[apiratecalledav]

Okay, I wouldn’t have minded the “fake outs” if they didn’t do this shit. 

Their lives paralleled/connected from literally day one, despite being born on different continents. You can’t do that to those of us obsessed with names and etymology, okay? 🫠

[apiratecalledav]

Look, look! I’m Murray!

My dad, as I walk by him while he uses his blowtorch to take out a bunch of vines, weeds, and poison ivy.

[apiratecalledav]

Me: Casually starts Stranger Things playlist on shuffle.

Playlist: Hiii. First song is When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die. 🙃

Me: 

[apiratecalledav]

Quick note: I’m not back; I’ve got too much to deal with but I figured it’s only fair I post my thoughts about Stranger Things 4 volume II since I shared part one. I also might have a couple of jokes/shit posts to make if I can summon the energy in the next few days. 

Anyway—

Whew 😅 What a ride. Overall, an incredibly epic finale for a mostly spectacular season. But. Well…  shit happens, doesn’t it? And crappy, forced love triangles are the worst. Spoilers, obviously.

The Good

First of all: Eddie. Eddie. EDDIE.  

 I originally thought he was going to play a song to save Nancy from Vecna. But when the longer volume ii trailer made it clear that Nancy’s capture was only temporary, I thought for sure he’d play Master of Puppets aka the original title of episode nine. I was soo hyped. Then when the episode dropped and they changed the title, I thought there must have been a last minute issue with the rights or something and I was bummed. When it started playing, I nearly levitated with excitement. “This is for you, Chrissy.” 🥺 I also love that he and Dustin got to have a moment afterwards to just fanboy together. 

When he cut the sheets down and stayed in the Upside Down after Dustin was safe, I had Finnick flashbacks from The Hunger Games. Glad he got to have a proper fight scene and final words. I really would have lost it if he just got engulfed by monsters and vanished.

I knew he was gonna die but honestly, I thought they’d try to soften the blow/make it a little lighter by having Eddie sacrifice himself for Steve and crack a few self deprecating jokes along the way. But when he told Dustin to “never change” I said, “Oh, no” out loud. I knew then they weren’t going to show mercy so I did my best to prepare myself. It was beautifully done and I got teary eyed, especially when When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die started playing. But Dustin talking to Eddie’s uncle made me sob. I was not expecting any of that. Ugliest of ugly cries, okay?

Bonus points for a truly heartfelt, non-joking exchange of platonic “I love yous” between two young men. 

I definitely understand why some are angry that Eddie’s name wasn’t cleared but tragedy is part of his character… And there’s also a really powerful message— Eddie did things his way and he did them for himself and the people he loved. He found what made him happy and didn’t care what anyone else thought.  He never once succumbed to “might as well be bad since everyone already assumes it anyway.” He never stopped reaching out to lost sheep. Not to get all evangelical or anything, but Eddie was a true shepherd of the Lord; despite being branded as a devil, Eddie was more righteous than his “godly” neighbors, many of whom were more concerned about appearances than actual good. Eddie saved Dustin, did what he could to avenge Chrissy, and was metal AF until the end. That’s what was important to him, not what a bunch of strangers thought. I know that he and Chrissy are at their picnic table in the sky, living their best afterlives while they wait for Uncle Wayne and the rest of Hellfire. That’s what matters.

The world would be a better place if we were all a little more like Eddie Munson. And music would be better.

And if Hawkins is really getting introduced to Upside Down monsters and whatnot, there’s still hope for Eddie to get the recognition he deserves… fingers crossed. 

——

I was expecting the body count to be higher… thought Argyle might have to go to give Jonathan and Nancy some more shared trauma. Or Dmitri would die with his son thinking he was a traitor or maybe Murray would volunteer to be a decoy or something. But I’m glad they kept it lower. I think— especially in this show— it’s more effective to have only one really heartbreaking death at a time rather than a slew of moderately sad ones. 

———

Once again: Max. Lucas. Lumax. 😭 I’ve been trash for these two since day one but this season went above and beyond a billion times over. 

Lucas asking Max if he was in her happiest memory. And the season two throwback. “Presumptuous.”

Widdle Max at the skate park was too cute for words!

Max’s selfless bravery while Lucas tried so hard to come up with an alternative.

Passing notes. The movie date drawing.  The scene. You know what I’m talking about. All the awards for Sadie and Caleb. All. Of. Them.

The parallel to season 1 with Sarah dying and Hopper reviving Will with Eddie dying and El reviving  Max while When It’s Cold played. BRB once I salvage my heart after it went through this cheese grater.

Like with Joyce and Hopper, Lucas and Max have a date they need to get to. Surely a good sign.

—-—-

Music in general was especially great in these last two episodes. Separate Ways!  Erica, Lucas, and Max stepping off the RV with each “you” in the song was so good. The versions of Dream a Little Dream of Me at the Snow Ball will haunt me forever. Running Up That Hill was incredible once again. I love that it was originally Max centered but it extended to the rest of the characters. 

It’s a perfect foil to Vecna— his army is all one because they’re his puppets, while our heroes are one unit because they love each other and care about others.  

——

Steve 

Him wanting a big family to go on road trips with. 🥹  He’s really the only one without any siblings besides Dustin (who has a very loving mother plus several pets). I’ve long headcanoned Steve as a lonely-ish latchkey kid and finding out that he grew up wanting a bunch of little ones someday hit me right in the feels. 

His friendship with Robin has somehow reached new heights of adorable. The way he was just so happy for her and Vickie... Precious. 

Glad he’s rabies/infection free and his face was spared for once.

——

Robin’s character was a little wobbly for me this season but at the end of the day, I was happy. I loved her talk with Steve; I’d been missing their friendship after 4x02. Her hand on his back after Jonathan and Nancy reunited was subtle but so sweet. Robin and Vickie were very cute together. Plus, their ship name is Rockie (edited, eff you autocorrect). How awesome is that?? 

—-

A proper Will/Jonathan/Joyce hug. I always felt like there’s a rule somewhere that only two Byers are allowed to be emotional together at a time and it’s been a huge pet peeve of mine.

—-

Will!! I thought I heard somewhere that he filmed a scene with a harness so I was worried Vecna would try something. Glad he got a (at least supernatural) break this season.

His speech to Mike and the painting. Maybe a little cheesy but in a good, very ‘80s movie way. 

His love for El. That hug was exactly what I needed between the two of them. 

I know how badly this situation hurts him and I’m so proud of him for how he’s handling it. Plenty of grown-ass adults could learn a thing or two from Will. 

———

Jonathan back in Big Bro mode.  That scene was so sweet. I really like that Jonathan didn’t push Will to share or try to pry. Just said exactly what Will needed to hear. 

———

Speaking of siblings, Erica and Lucas were so adorable. The spear scene. The way she tried to save him from Jason even though she’s tiny and middle schooly. How she won’t leave his side at the hospital. 

———

Mike and El. My emotions. The pizza box goggles/ “try before you deny bit” was so cute. I had high expectations for his first “I love you” and damn, did they deliver. 

———-

El and Hopper reuniting. It really got to me. But my grandfather passed away almost a year ago, so when I watched it again with my mom, we both lost it ( but in a really good way)

———

Murray with that flamethrower was badass as fuck and kinda hilarious at the same time. I loved it.

———-

I think they did a great job balancing the darker stuff with comic relief in these last two episodes. Some of it felt forced earlier in the season to me. 

——

Joyce and Hopper finally kissed! 🎉 

Breadsticks and lasagna! 

—-

It wasn’t quite what I wanted, but overall, I’d say I like what they did with Brenner. They humanized him enough to make him interesting but they didn’t try to brush all his shit under the rug. It was a good mix of El caring about him— and in a way that said more about El than him— but not forgiving him or excusing him either. 

———-

Dmitri and Yuri’s scene was unexpected and really nice. I saw a few people saying it was too easy but c’mon. This wasn’t “hey, you remember what it’s like to be good. So stop being a dick.” It was “holy shit, literal monsters are going to literally EAT! US! ALL! This so not the time to be a douche.”

———-

Jason was… interesting. I guess I like that that he didn’t totally fall into the usual tropes. He was neither entirely “well meaning but misguided” or purely “he who hunts monsters...” When he went full asshole on Nancy, I thought he was totally over the edge. But then he seemed genuinely concerned for Max. I liked seeing that bit of humanity still there, even though he ultimately couldn’t reach into it enough to see the light. While horrific, I like the way his death symbolized the way he’d been torn apart by Upside Down-ness.  

His death made me realize I have an inner momma bear. I had felt very bad for him— his girlfriend and one of his besties died in such horrible, unholy ways. That’d mess anyone up. But once I got over the shock of how he died, I was just kinda like, “Yeah, let that be a lesson to anyone who lays a hand on my babies.” 

——-

I really liked having a brief break between episodes. I think Eddie struck more of a chord with me than Barb, Bob, and Alexei because I got to know him for longer than a day or two. 

———-

Doctor Owens. First of all: What a BAMF. Standing up to Brenner for El, trying to protect her from Sullivan. I really like that he strives to balance his teleological, “greater good” mindset with sensitivity and consideration.  He wants El to be his teammate rather than a mere means to an end— a lab rat or a weapon.

———

The Mind Flayer. Yessss. I got chills and said holy shit out loud when young Henry drew it.

———

Flambé. And Nancy blowing Vecna out the window. Epic.

———-

Sometimes, you gotta wholeheartedly embrace the tropes outright. And Hopper literally slaying the monster with a sword was fantastic.

———-

Karen telling Mike he couldn’t have any more vacations or go to college. Haha.

———-

Jonathan and Nancy’s reunion. Still not happy about all the messiness but “kiss on the forehead” is my favorite. 🥰

——-

Mike and Hopper being on good terms again. 

———

Are Hopper and Joyce and the kids just gonna live off the grid at the cabin? I’m super excited if that means they stay in Hawkins again. 

———

Shout out to Jamie Campbell Bower to his commitment to Vecna; spending hours getting covered in prosthetics and locating whatever depths of hell he pulled his Vecna voice out of. It adds so much to the character that we can see Henry/One in Vecna’s eyes and body language.

———

I don’t usually like when “all hell breaks loose” and the secret stuff gets out in the open. However, I think this show can pull it off… 

——-

I feel a little more confident that this show isn’t actually going to hurl itself down the fan service cliff. 😅

The Bad

This really isn’t anyone’s fault but one reason why I love Steve so much is because he reminds me sooo much of my brother. However, in the last couple of years, Joe Keery at certain angles (especially his eyes) has started to remind me of my husband. Steve’s battle clothes were a lot closer to my husband’s style than Steve’s usual outfits which REALLY amplified it.  So yeah, shit got distractingly weird for me a few times and I definitely could have lived the rest of my life without knowing what it’d look like if my husband and brother had a Freaky Friday thing. Haha.

———

I REALLY wanna know what the hell exactly has Mike told his parents about El. Is it some version of the “official” story? That Hopper had an affair when he was married and El is his daughter and she was visiting him in secret when Mike stumbled on her in the woods and fell hopelessly in love with her? Something else? Have his parents met El? Why is this curiosity door to potential comedic gold still closed? Picture El and Ted having a blank faced staring contest.

That reminds me… No cameo from Mr. Clark. 🙁

——-

Is Doctor Owens okay??? Is he still handcuffed to a pole in the desert?

———

Um, I don’t like how blatantly cliffhangery the ending is. There has always been an unsettling element to the endings but there was enough peace/closure that the hiatuses were more bearable. We’re looking at fall of ‘23 at the most outrageously optimistic earliest and I dunno… just feels a bit shitty. It’s not like they needed to fish for renewal…

———

Definitely sad we didn’t see a Hopper/Byers family group hug. I also wanted El to call Hopper “dad.”

———-

Eddie’s death did feel a little stand-in-ish for Steve. I don’t know if they were just piggybacking (see what I did there?) on his bond with Dustin or if they were just trolling, or if it’s a hint that maybe they did wanna kill him off and Netflix said no. Well, just in case, I’d like to thank all the millions of people who’ve canceled their Netflix subscriptions in the last couple of years. You might have saved Steve.

———-

I have a lot of feelings about the state Max is left in. I mean, I really, really don’t want this show to get too dark and given the way her journey has been a metaphor for depression, I feel like it’s extremely fucked up— borderline irresponsible— if she doesn’t come back from this. And I am fairly confident that she and Lucas will have their movie night. But I also feel like if they’re going to prolong the ambiguity of her fate in this way, there should be some kind of long term  consequences?   

——-

It felt kinda lazy not to have more downtime between the earthquake and the shit storm. A convenient way to avoid Nancy and Jonathan having a good talk and Max’s prognosis for sure. 

The Ugly The Absolute Shit-Hideous

Same song as part one but different verse:

Why, oh, why are they prolonging this bullshit love triangle? Yes, there was a recurring theme of mirroring season one and it could have been decent-ish. But this was just crap. Incredibly lazy, contrived crap. I’m torn between thinking they really do need to fix it next season and hoping that the (from what I can tell) generally negative reception will make them drop it.

Having Steve confess his feelings started to tip me into despair— he hadn’t really done anything “wrong” this season in that regard until that moment. But then just as quickly, I started seeing light at the end of the tunnel:

Robin interrupted S/N having a moment with “looks like we weren’t going the wrong way after all” 

Nancy donating yet more old things from her pre-Upside Down life… including Mr. Rabbit who’ll “be more loved in a new home.” My mom and I affectionately call Steve “harebrain” sometimes (both for “hair” and because Hare-rington) so that rabbity connection jumped out at us.

Then the way she looked at Jonathan when he reappeared. Like Steve didn’t even exist anymore. Which Steve definitely noticed and was pretty damn brutal. Are we really supposed to pretend that anyone thinks that kinda thing is shippable?   **Or that Nancy could be happy with a small army of children and most likely no career??? Or how clearly Steve wants someone to laugh at dumb muppet jokes with him (and Robin and Vickie.) I don’t see Nancy completing that adorkable foursome any more than I see her signing up for more than one or two babies. 

After Robin and Vickie had their moment, I kept waiting for one of Vickie’s friends to appear next to Steve and throw out there that she’s glad Vickie and Dan broke up because he always reminded her of Big Bird or something but nooo. Then they had to have Jonathan and Nancy once again avoid their problems.

All three of them traumatized as hell, plus we really only see them in life or death situations and that is the only reason I can give them a pass. In normal circumstances, they’d be kinda assholey.

I get that writing established couples sucks but there are so many more original paths to take. I also get that executive meddling is a thing and maybe they’re the ones pushing this crap. But in that case, you take pride in your work and respect your audience and your characters and you at least strive to make it understandable/believable. You do not do… this. 

The worst part about this whole storyline is that it doesn’t feel like they even care enough about it to waste even the slightest bit of brain power on it.

Like, why couldn’t Jonathan and Nancy have agreed at Christmas to “hit pause” and then reevaluate when they reunited at spring break? It would have made way more sense that Jonathan going MIA freaked her out so much. 

Or at the very least, couldn’t Steve and Nancy have a scene together before the trailer park so this shit didn’t feel so out of left field? She could have run into him while he was picking Robin up from school. Steve could have asked about Jonathan and Nancy could have admitted that things were rocky and Steve coulda told her how if she can help him learn to “crawl forward,” she can surely help Jonathan fly.  Or she could have opened up about how afraid she is to leave home next year.

Something.

Instead, they  just took advantage of the fact that Jonathan’s life was really painful even before/without monsters and hell dimensions, Nancy has a history of bottling things up until she bursts, and Steve has a fantastic “puppy that’s just been kicked” expression.

It also seemed like they knew it was kinda icky for Nancy to have all these moments with Steve so they tried too hard to make her perfect in every other way, and it frequently came at the expense of other characters (especially Robin becoming a “super klutz” after an entire season of playing it cool).

 Ah, fuck it, I’ll just come right out with it: Lucas should have been the one Vecna chose to deliver the message to El. For multiple reasons: revenge for taking Max back from the curse, he’s not only closer to El than Nancy is, it highlights how much their friendship has grown since the initial strained days in season one; it’s so fitting with Running Up that Hill and asking God to trade places with someone else in order to better understand them. 😭😭 

TL;DR

I mostly loved it. This is by far the most emotional experience I’ve had with Stranger Things, and in fact, any show in a good two or three years. There were a few surprises and most of them were pleasant ones. They’ve continued with their trend of taking familiar tropes and adding unique twists.  But I dislike how much they left unresolved before a very long hiatus. Also, love triangles are still garbage, especially when they crap all over multiple characters and eat up screen time that could have gone to more interesting possibilities.

[apiratecalledav]

what were you wrong about on tiu?

I was so sure the show was littered with subtext-y stuff about how Kevin and Madison where Miguel and Rebecca 2.0 while Randall and Beth were Jack and Rebecca 2.0.

And that Kevin and his ex-wife were too much of a horrible, toxic dumpster fire to ever have a shot at anything remotely happy or healthy.

And well… That’s not how it ended up. Haha. I haven’t been that taken aback by anything in well over a decade.

Keep in mind, I’m someone who watched Game of Thrones season 8 and while everyone was foaming at the mouth in rage, I was like, “Wow, this is actually kind of awesome. They’re handling, like, 75% of this waaaaay better than I thought they would.” 🤣

[apiratecalledav]

Same anon, all about Steve, no shame. What do you think was in Max’s letter to him?

Haha, nothing wrong with that.

Congrats. You’ve inspired me! 💜

————

Steve,

Just taking a few of my last minutes in this world to tell you thanks for all those times you snuck us into the movie theater last summer. I got to see a couple of R-rated movies and save some money so that was pretty cool.

Oh. Is it still too soon to joke?

In all seriousness, I do want to thank you. Thank you for standing up for us, which made me brave enough to stand up for myself. Sorry your face had to get pounded first, though. 

Thank you for coming to our rescue from creepy vines, demodogs, and giant human meat spiders. And I guess for being a pretty good getaway driver yesterday.

Thank you for letting me hide at Family Video when Mom and Neil fought. For letting me watch movies in peace there without ever bugging me about Sharing My Feelings. And thanks for driving me back from the arcade (when I still bothered going) when my mom forgot me or she couldn’t drive.

Thank you for going to Lucas’ games. I just can’t face it and I know what it means to him to have someone there who actually gives a shit about basketball.

And… I know it was you who started mowing the lawn and other stuff like that for us after I broke up with Lucas. I know it was you who helped my mom with all the heavy furniture when we moved. All of that, even though it meant you had to tell her it was because you were friends with Billy. Which… really must have sucked.

I won’t insult you by asking you to look after the boys. And El, if the Byers ever come back somehow. I know you will. But I was wondering… would you mind checking up on my mom from time to time? If she doesn’t flee this shithole, that is. I know it’s a lot to ask but I’m sure you get why Lucas, Dustin, or Mike aren’t an option. Even if it wasn’t too far on their bikes, I don’t want them to see my mom like that and she wouldn’t want them to see her, either. 

I’m not saying you still have to do yard work or have afternoon tea with her every Sunday. You can even just call a couple times a month to make sure she answers the phone or that Vecna isn’t after her next.

Just before my mom married Neil and I actually got to know Billy, I used to imagine what having a big brother would be like.  I’m sure you can guess that reality didn’t exactly match my expectations. At least, not until I met you. 

You’re a really good guy, Steve. I’m sorry I wasn’t ever able to say any of this to your face. But I really suck at this kind of thing. If I tried, I probably would have just ended up calling you an idiot or something. But I don’t think you’re an idiot. I actually think you’re a lot smarter than we tend to give you credit for. 

I know things have been weird for you for awhile, but I know you’re going to find your way.

—Max

PS: I’m counting on you to step up and fill the sarcastic void I will leave behind. Don’t let me down. I. Will. Be watching.  👻 

[apiratecalledav]

Thank you for giving me hope that my future might not include either Steve dying or st-ncy. Lol. I can’t stand either one.

You’re welcome. And same. After a second watch, I feel either one is even more unlikely.

However, I’ll admit I was recently spectacularly wrong about something in This is Us. Which is so, so rare for me that I’m still reeling. Haha. So my confidence is a bit shaken, which is the only reason I even have any doubt at all. But still.

The Duffers always say how they wanted all this super dark stuff to happen but then they changed their minds or whatever. Which either means they don’t actually have the heart to put their characters/audience through anything too fucked up or Netflix won’t allow it.  When it comes down to it, this is a show that’s preteen friendly, albeit following the Don Bluth “just make sure there’s a happy ending” way. Plus, it doubles as a comfort show for their Gen X parents.  It seems weird to change the formula now. This show is expensive as hell; I doubt they wanna gamble too much. I could see them having more freedom with the final season but even then, Netflix wouldn’t want too much risk to potential spin-offs/sequels, etc.

Plus, if Steve was gonna die, it’s more likely he’d be doing great in the Right Side Up— practically engaged to someone as adorable as Chrissy, about to get a job he really loved, like teaching kids’ swim classes or something. That’s how you pour salt in a wound and grind it in. They know that. See how happy Bob and Alexei were before they met their demises. 😭

2. This show’s best aspect is how much it makes you care about the characters and their relationships— romantic, platonic, or familial.

It’s why we love their “red shirts” like Barb, Bob, Alexei, and even one offs like Benny and Chrissy. And they’re a good trade to avoid having to kill off mains. 

They’ve done too good a job on romance in general on this show for me to buy S/N.

They’ve highlighted multiple times, multiple ways why Jancy>S/N. Not even getting into Nancy’s interaction with either guy… in season 2, Steve’s advice to Dustin backfired by alienating him from Max and then Stacy shot him down. Nancy, now with Jonathan aka finally accepting True Love, is the one who makes Dustin feel better. Plus, they used the first episode of this season to reiterate that even when they’re apart, Jonathan and Nancy are in sync. 

The “worst” (still far cry from outright bad) relationship on this show to me was Robin and Steve. As a romance, it felt very “we must tick this box for the fans” with too much tell and not enough show. However, on paper, Robin was perfect for him— someone weird/dorky that he wouldn’t have talked to a few years ago; a sort of offbeat type of pretty; more anchored than him but way more chill than Nancy, which would let him find his way at his own pace. Then, from a writing standpoint, having them turn out to just be friends was so blatantly pulled out of their asses it should’ve been embarrassing… but it played out so sweet and pure, even the Grinch woulda thought it was cute. 

The show sometimes fumbles intellectually and romantic Steve/Robin was one of the few times it missed the mark emotionally… but it has never, ever totally failed BOTH my brain and my heart the way S/N does.

I see people saying “it’s to make it sadder when Steve sacrifices himself to save her!” but why the hell would they chose her for that? Dustin is obviously where it would hurt the most. They’ve spent three seasons on the two of them over the course of half a decade…

If I were the betting type, I’d put my money on that they’re setting up

Eddie to learn the Power of Friendship/ True Love Isn’t Always Romantic and sacrifice himself for Steve. All the stuff about how he’d never save Steve’s ass and whatnot. I can already hear him saying, “Look, I’m a falsely accused serial killer, dude. I’m gonna spend my life banished… or imprisoned. You graduated high school the first time. You got a job that wouldn’t horrify Nancy Reagan. Henderson needs you. You’ve got true love (gag). And I canNOT let Robin walk through Mordor only to come back to the Shire to work at Family Video… alone. Can’t do it, man. It’s just too shitty. There’s more for you to live for and I’m tired of running.”  I will say though, if anyone is metal enough to survive for a year in the Upside Down Jumanji style, it’d be Eddie. 

Eddie has been a nice foil to Billy so far:

Similar taste in music and style but Billy kept it toned down and Eddie dialed it up to eleven (see what I did there?).

Similar hair but Billy’s was golden and Eddie’s is dark.

Billy was charming and manipulative and his pain made him a dick. Eddie is well meaning if off putting but it’s clear that his tough go of things has made him kinder.

Billy “looked out” for Max because his dad made him and possibly with a dash of some weird narcissistic type of loyalty. Eddie reached out to Dustin and Mike because he empathized with them.  

Billy basically needed superpowered intervention to find his humanity. So maybe Eddie will embrace selfless on his own. 

Plus there’s that thing Robin said about her and Steve needing to “combine” which I hope means he’ll talk to Vicki to see how she reacts to him— a guy—then  try to see how she feels about Robin. “What if the three of us go to the movies and I stand you two up? Would that… be weird? 😏”  

2. Steve and Nancy need final confirmation that they do not want to settle/play it safe. Getting back with Nancy means Steve gets the responsible but soul crushing job with his dad and Nancy freelances a few fluffy articles about “lady things” (if she’s lucky) for the local paper before becoming a stay at home mom.

Nancy needs to leave Hawkins/her family because her life is too comfortable, while Jonathan needs to leave because his home is strangling him. And yet, staying will ensure neither of them will ever reach their full potential. They’re two sides of the same coin. They’ve got the important things in common and their differences balance out. Leaving home together made it less scary. So I guess now they need to figure out that they must be at least willing to fly solo.

Steve could/will probably lead the comfy, unassuming suburban life, but he’s gotta go about it his way. 

Steve and Nancy reuniting is comforting on some level because they at least know what that future looks like and parts of it are even really nice. When combined with a big dose of “wouldn’t it be great to go back to the life where none of this crap existed?”, it’s not.. unreasonable… that these feelings are there. 

But the show just reminded us that Nancy has a super fucking traumatic thing associated with dating Steve. Hell, that diary entry from ‘83 proves that even if Barb lived, her dislike of Steve and the way Nancy acted around him was always going to be a shadow over their relationship. Feels very poisoning the well-ish. 

Even though their ~attraction~ (ew) is stemming from a similar place, it’s manifesting in each of them for polar opposite reasons. Nancy likes that Steve is physically present and can help her with things. But he’s not her partner in crime the way Jonathan is. And for Steve, he and Nancy have an emotional connection— they get along well plus the idea of kissing him doesn’t squick her out. But he’s not comfortable truly being himself around her the way he is with Robin. Nancy knows what a proper, fulling relationship is and Steve has at least finally had a really good preview. How could they be content when they know what it’s like to have something so much better?

They’ve implied a couple of times that Steve would be quite happy to be dating Robin. So I don’t think they’ve forgotten that she’s closer than Nancy to the type of girl who would be good for him. I’m guessing they just don’t wanna have to figure out how to write “happy Steve” or juggle another another established romance.

3. There might be an attempt at some allusion/subversion to King Kong? Ruth Rose (Nancy’s and Robin’s Pennhurst aliases)  rewrote the messy draft of King Kong written by a dude named James Ashmore CREELman into the classic that it became. That’s one hell of a coincidence if it was not intentional. So maybe they’ll do the whole “Action Hero Man saves Beautiful Girl from a monster” thing and then add, “… but wait, that doesn’t automatically mean they’d actually be a good couple!” Or the famous line in that movie is “it was beauty that killed the beast” so maybe it turns out Nancy ultimately somehow saves herself? Then again, it could have just been a little joke about Nancy finding sense in Creel’s nonsense… I don’t know.

TL;DR: This show doesn’t kill off lovable, long time main characters but if they were gonna kill Steve, I think it’d look very different: He’d have finally gotten his life on track and if he’s taking a monster bite for anyone, it would be Dustin. And I cannot believe that the team that has brought us absolute perfection this season with Lumax is gonna offer up S/N in the same breath. Especially in such a spectacularly poorly written shit show. Nope.