[rylandsgrace]

Does it fucking kill you too? Not anymore.

Hollanov + season 1 timeline

[kidovna]

hug shaped boyfriends

[kidovna]

manifested mileven at the snowball in 2016, so now I’m manifesting byler at senior prom🪻🌻

[kidovna]

The one where they bring senior prom home (part 2 to this)

[kidovna]

We can be Heroes, just for one day (part 2)

[kidovna]

more senior prom byler because I think about them at least once a fortnight

[kidovna]

the full senior promic!🍀

bonus:

[denaturalx]

"Eu tava com SAUDADES desse jogo"

[d4jamso]

STRANGER THINGS SEASON 5 EPISODE 4 SPOILERS!!!

"Time slowed down."

"And (s)he was like, perfect."

[daniartonline]

The Party ⚔️✨

[eeriesilkworm]

do u consider the first 5 minutes/all of henry's weird behavior toward will as a metaphor for sa? ive seen some takes abt that, curious what ur thoughts are

CW: discussion of child abuse and exploitation, suicide.

Thanks for this, anon. I've been meaning to discuss this topic further, outside of just pointing out visual storytelling and subtext.

Well, I'll start by stating it's both figurative and literal in my opinion.

The vine isn't metaphorical because it was not like assault, it was assault. Prior to that scene, we didn't understand how exactly Will ended up with the vine inside him, so it was a matter of interpretation. The imagery was all we had to go off, but now we have the context, and it's about as obvious as the Alien facehuggers.

What could be allegorical is the idea that Will had previously suffered from a similar kind of abuse from a living person (namely Lonnie). This is plausible, because amplifying the triumphant story of a male abuse victim seems to be the kind of thing a show about outcasts in a conservative 1980s society would do. It's one thing to be gay in the 1980s, and another thing to be gay and a survivor of abuse — especially with the added context of the AIDs crisis (the framing of gay men as diseased predators), and the belief that childhood abuse "turned" boys gay.

Rant incoming, because I find this topic very fascinating, and I think a lot of people misunderstand or simplify the meaning behind why Stranger Things focusses on "outcasts" in the 1980s.

I mentioned it very briefly in my analysis here but I think it's important to consider just how many "sex scandals" gripped and shocked America in the 1980s. The 80's saw the rise of "purity culture" which framed teen sexuality as something dangerous. On the other hand, child exploitation was still rampant in both the church and Hollywood — I think the Brooke Shields biopic explained it really well, especially with how this may have been conservative "pushback" to the sexual liberation movement (60s and 70s). This frames 1980s cultural conservatism as a double-edged sword: Something which both admonished, and upheld child exploitation. It was a confusing time for young people.

Couple this with societal pressure to maintain the image of the "perfect" family life (something which keeps victims silent out of shame) and Gen X's complicated relationship with substance abuse and mental health (indicating unresolved issues)... It paints a much clearer picture of what Stranger Things is really about: It's not just about people who are outcasts because they are deemed "weird" — a bit uninspiring if that were the case. It's about children of the 80s who are outcasts because their suffering highlights the problem with a conservative, purity-based, post-sex lib America which wishes not to examine itself. Their pain, differences, and experiences are dismissed because America refuses to acknowledge how cultural conservatism both enabled and hid their exploitation.

tldr: Conservative 1980s attitudes regarding sex, sexual identity, gender, and politics was really F*cked Up™ and "sex scandals" framed sexual violence and exploitation as entertainment and media fodder, which F*cked Up™ the kids aka Gen X who are still dealing with the trauma to this day, hence why they're the cohort most likely to have substance abuse issues or commit suicide.

This is why our two leading characters are both surviors of child abuse and exploitation, with one being a girl who plays a non-traditionally feminine role (El Hopper), and a boy who is queer (Will Byers).

Rant over — the point of that was to clarify why Will being portrayed as a potential survivor of CSA is not a "reach" and is actually extremely relevant to the context.

So, yes, I do think there is an ongoing allegory in this show which explores this theme. Will is possibly representing a survivor of CSA, whereas El likely represents a different kind of exploitation — that of child soldiers. Not surprising when we consider the writer's very apparent fascination with military history and WWII.

And the thing is, you don't really make these kinds of inferences unless it's supposed to lead to some kind of explanation or catharsis. In Alien there was catharsis because the sole survivor was the female protagonist, aboard a ship of men. The commentary was largely concerning the intentional eroticism of women's pain and sufferring in the horror genre. (Half-dressed women moaning in agony from the first person POV in a slasher film, for example).

There needs to be a similar kind of catharsis in Stranger Things, and I believe (and hope) this will be done by elevating Will's story from the subtext to the text. I think the same may be done for Henry, and his relationship to Dr. Brenner or the Mind Flayer.

And if we're getting technical, everything that has been done to Will has been done by Vecna and/ or the Mind Flayer, not Henry to be exact. I do see them as two separate entities, even moreso since s5 as it appears that Henry is unable to enter the "cave" or "hub" whereas Vecna likely can, if that's indeed the same place where he's keeping the children. (I believe it's the same space due to the imagery of the wall and the infinity symbol shape).

(I ramble about it a bit here, and I think I'll keep thinking on what this cave represents in the coming weeks until we get Volume II).

But basically, I want to clarify that although I think Vecna, the Mind Flayer/ shadow monster, and possibly even the demogorgons all play a role in this allegory, I do not think Henry is a paedophile.

Not that you implied this anon, because you didn't, but it is a take I see around here. I understand why people interpret it this way, but intention behind abuse does matter in this context, as does the subtle separation between Henry and Vecna.

To me, Henry is a perpetual child who is frozen in time (ghost-like) because he not ready to confront his darkness, his trauma — almost like a traumatized spirit who cannot cross over to the other side. Vecna is his undead shadow (In D&D he is a lich, which is an undead wizard) that has consumed what was left of the shell of Henry.

Vecna is the child abuser here, as is the Mind Flayer that influences him. And the behviour of the Mind Flayer? It seems to resemble that of a domineering father or patriarch: controlling, manipulative, bigger and more powerful than the children it exploits.

The "real" villain here is the Father or Patriarch — "Papa" and Lonnie.

The Mind Flayer's motivations are to dominate, possess, control, and spread. (At least, as far as we're aware). This lines up with the D&D lore and The Illithid Empire, as well as the motivation behind an abusive patriarch who wishes to control his children and family — particularly within the context of 1980s conservatism discussed above ^

So, there are no motivations regarding attraction or sexual fixation of any kind here. Therefore, if this allegory is about Lonnie, we must ask ourselves what Lonnie could have possibly been trying to control or conserve within the Byers family.

Lonnie wanted to conserve a traditional, heterosexual, masculine ideal in both Will and Jonathan.

His attempts to "butch" them up involved sports such as hunting and baseball. Jonathan eventually met these expectations — at least to some extent — which could explain why Lonnie seemed proud when Jonathan shoved him back, and noted that he was "stronger."

Heck, he even follows this reunion up by suggesting Jonathan move to the city so he can see him more. Lonnie may be a deadbeat abuser, but he genuinely likes the "improved" Jonathan he sees before him because he's now become a "man."

Will was a more difficult case for Lonnie, because he was likely more effeminate, and possibly already began showing signs of attraction to other boys. I mean, Will gifted Mike his drawings for who knows how many years, and that definitely seems like the kind of thing a kid with a crush would do.

This is likely why Lonnie's visitations with Will continued after he left, whereas it appears he never had visitations with Jonathan. Lonnie felt his "job" was unfinished with Will — this is why I think the baseball field was a site of trauma for him. (Hence it being the site of his possession, and a site of Billy's trauma as shown in s3).

So, Lonnie's abuse was motivated by a desire to punish Will for being effeminate, in the hopes that it would put him on a "straighter path", and have him associate queerness with pain.

Luckily, Will seems to have realized that queer romance and queer joy exists through his friendship with Robin. His powers reveal accompanied his self-acceptance — particularly the love and acceptance of his uninhibited childhood self. This was the version of Will who was unapologetically himself, before Lonnie (and society at large) told him who he was is wrong.

So, I'm interested to see where Will goes in Volume II, and if there will be any exploration of his relationship with Lonnie. Noah's repeated mentions of Will's "abusive father" make me believe this will be the case. I think confronting his childhood trauma might be the final frontier in his character arc.

He's almost there!

[eeriesilkworm]

Oh?

I already theorized here that the fleshy wall represented Will's brain (because it's very brain-esque), but in this case, I think it must represent a collective brain — a collective consiousness.

(Another Jungian concept, what do you know?)

The "cave" or "brain" stores traumatic memories that have been repressed and holed away. Max has confronted her traumatic memories, not forgotten them, so she has no problem going inside (?).

[eeriesilkworm]

The cave is a "trauma dump" of sorts?

By the way, this probably means that the traumatic memories of every one of Vecna's victims are likely stored there too, along with his own, somehow. It's like a collective trauma dump — literally.

We know that Vecna chooses his victims by identifying people who are vulnerable through trauma and abuse. In s4, he filters through multiple traumatic memories of Hawkins citizens, and it's edited much like how Billy's traumatic memories appeared to El in s3: red and hazy.

This is how he chose Patrick, so it's also how he chose all the others: Max, Billy, Fred, Chrissy, and even Will.

He sees the trauma first, and the person second. He picks his victims based off these memories, and how they make the person feel about themselves (low self-esteem seems to be a part of the puzzle, here).

We don't just hear echoes of abuse in these memories (e.g. Patrick's father yelling, "Look at me! You're an embarassment to this family!"), but also the victims' internal thoughts — self-destructive thoughts.

Example: "Can I say no? I can't say no. He'll leave me." -> A teenage girl being coerced into sex before she is ready to consent.

The entire reason why Henry chose Will as his first conduit could be extremely simple: Will's trauma was similar to his own. When Vecna "scanned" the area, Will's memories appealed to him most, and Will's internal thoughts reminded him of how he looks at himself.

Obviously, I've already considered this, as have many others. It's not rocket science. But I think I gaslit myself into thinking the "real" reason Will was chosen must be much more complex. In this instance, I think s5 is telling us that sometimes, less is more.

Henry's relationship with his father was certainly tumultuous, but we don't know all the details. Dr. Brenner was also like a father figure, and was certainly abusive. Similarly, we understand that Lonnie and Will's father-son dynamic must be very complex, though we've never seen them interact.

Basically, Henry likely has major Daddy Issues™ and so he chose the kid with father-related trauma because it resonated with him.

Perhaps Will's comment about Billy being the "new me" in s3 was more literal than I initially thought: He was not just the "new Will" because he was possessed, but because he accidentally replaced him. Maybe the hivemind was searching for it's original host, aiming to reclaim Will. Instead, it found a William Hargrove, with similar memories of an abusive father and a baseball field. It became confused — and this confusion could be a side-effect of Vecna being cut-off from the hivemind for so long between s2 and s3, and perhaps a part of the reason why he needed to capture El and drain her powers for himself.

Speaking of traumatic memories of fathers and baseball fields...

Wasn't there a leak about Millie and Finn filming at a middle school baseball game? A lot of people were confused about why on Earth they might be there.

My best guess at this point is that it's Will's memory which they are (somehow) both accessing. Baseball is not only associated to Billy and Neil, but to a middle school aged Will and Lonnie.

I think it's very likely that Will has a repressed traumatic memory of playing baseball with Lonnie

Will sounds exactly how a traumatized child would in this scene: He's vague and dismissive to Jonathan's line of questioning, he struggles to make eye contact, he can't definitively answer whether he likes baseball or not. Lonnie's baseball visitations are only fun "sometimes" meaning that other times, they're really, really, not. This is a realistic depiction of child abuse — it means Lonnies treats him well from time to time (grooming), and in the instances he does not, it leaves Will confused. What Will really wants is his father's approval — this mindset is also realistic, because Will was likely groomed into believing that the abuse was his own fault. In his mind, Will thinks he still has a chance to make Lonnie love him and treat him better. Instead, Lonnie appears to stop visitations with Will altogether leading up to the events of s1 — probably because Will was getting older and wisening up.

The baseball field scene likely takes place after this cabin scene:

And it probably looks something like this, but much worse:

I think El is going to piggyback off Will because he is intimately connected to the hivemind and Vecna.

She can't enter Vecna's mind, and she can't find Max's because she's already made it to Camazotz. But she can probably use Will's mind by finding him remotely.

(And it's possible that at this point, Will is either passed out due to exhaustion, or fully unconscious himself — Vecna was playing chess when he left Will at the end of ep 4, knowing Will would awaken his powers. It's possible that Will's power activation ends up being some kind of trap).

Alternatively, if Will's mind is also locked away, she may even piggyback off Mike, using one of Mike's memories of Will to essentially "double piggypack" to Will — this may be how "astral Mike" is able to accompany her.

Either way, El must figure out how she can bring Mike with her into the void, possibly due to Mike's own insistence. This could even be why she gives Mike the very serious, "This isn't like one of your campaigns" talk — she's warning Mike that it's dangerous before she lets him tag along.

Piggybacking into Will's traumatic memories may even be the key to getting past the wall and into Camazotz, especially if that's where they are all stored. Heck, El and Mike might even witness Henry's childhood memories in this sequence too, noticing the similarities between himself and Will.

Why is Henry afraid of the cave?

Henry and Vecna are, definitionally, two separate entities — Henry is "dead" and non-corporeal, almost like a ghost, whereas Vecna is alive and exists in the flesh.

Vecna is a version of Henry that is overcome and possessed by his Shadow (thanks Jung). Henry is more or less a very fucked up, wounded child stuck in limbo (except he's technically like, in his thirties).

Whereas Vecna is defined by his darkness, Henry is not yet ready to confront the darkness within him and enter the cave (do shadow work).

When he has the choice to disguise himself and manipulate how he appears to others, Henry chooses to present as his younger self, not the disfigured "monster" that is Vecna. He either dresses himself in classic vintage garb which likely reminds him of how men dressed in his own youth (Mr Whatsit), or his orderly uniform (One) — both are remnants of the past. This, alongside the fact that he is obsessed with time (shown to turn the clock hands counter-clockwise in s4), and chooses children to build his reshaped world precisely because they are children (very Peter Pan-like), tells me that Henry's psyche ultimately wishes to go back in time, to an earlier version of himself — to return to innocence.

Henry is "stuck" in the past and must be brought into the present by confronting his own childhood trauma — THIS is our Back to The Future reference!

Everyone has been fussed about time travel, but ever since the NINA plotline in s4, the writers have made it pretty clear how they intend to deal with the concept of time: through memory.

Whether this results in any kind of redemption arc is beyond me, but I think we need to better understand what redemption truly means, because it doesn't mean "suddenly becoming a good guy" despite the way people may use it:

It means to be saved or to regain something.

This is why Billy Hargrove DID have a redemption arc, whether you feel his actions were permissible or not (they weren't by the way, lol):

Billy was saved from the Mind Flayer's possession, regaining his autonomy.

Vecna will likely have to be defeated by being killed, but Henry is technically another entity altogether, though he is no longer corporeal. Like Billy, Henry might be "saved" from his shadow through regaining his autonomy over the Mind Flayer — allowing him to finally "rest" and die peacefully.

[claiireluv]

will feeling comfortable enough with robin to ASK the questions he’s thought about and DISCUSS those queer topics he believed to be negative and EXPLORE his own queerness through her experiences is GENUINELY SO IMPORTANT TO ME

and robin being the reason will is able to begin to accept himself for who he and on top of that being the source of encouragement to INITIATE and TEST THE WATERS between him and mike

will’s confidence to entertain mike’s subtle flirting with his OWN playful glances and touches is something ROBIN was able to influence

up until then, will was almost afraid to make these kinds of moves, and seeing his development is truly beautiful writing

[ladybl4ckbird]

Much has been said about Robin's speech and how she helps Will accept who he really is, to no longer be afraid of himself and his feelings, and to reconnect with the absolute courage of his inner child. But I hardly see anyone talking about why she did it.

Let's look at the sequence below:

First she sees the dynamic between Mike and Will and then Robin notices how they interact with each other immediately.

I mean, they're literally flirting here, and Will is relaxed and smiling and happy with Mike.

But the moment Mike leaves, Will literally panics. And, through Robin's POV, we see how terrified, nervous, anxious, and probably wondering if he is doing the right thing or ruining everything with the boy he LOVES ABOVE ALL ELSE. It's Robin who sees the FEAR in Will, fear of being himself, fear of loving, fear of opening up to someone like that.

And here we see her RECOGNIZING HERSELF in the face of this fear. She sees her past self reflected in Will. She literally swallows hard, probably remembering how difficult it was for her to deal with her issues and acceptance alone. Then she decides to try to help him overcome this fear, to accept that it's beautiful who Will is.

Robin gave the speech to Will not because she saw Mike's rejection, but because she saw Will's FEAR about himself. She saw herself in Will and said exactly what she would have liked to hear when she realized she was in love with Thammy. The scene was never about Robin acknowledging the non-existence of any possible relationship between Will and Mike, but rather about her perceiving the FEAR that Will feels/felt for being who he was.

And that's beautiful.

[fruitcuppp]

“I was looking for answers in somebody else..”

“but I had all the answers.”

“I just needed to stop being so goddamn scared.”

“Scared of who I really was.”

[usergif]

STRANGER THINGS 5 Volume 1 + Ending Shots

[eeriesilkworm]

Season 2 Mike definitely saw Max as a love rival for Will

Another Byler from Mike Wheeler's POV analysis—(Unrequited love trope edition).

Walk with me.

Sometimes I think about how when the party went trick-or-treating Mike specifically told Will that he, "should have checked with him" first before letting Max join them.

It's just a very peculiar moment. Why Will?

Even Will was confused by this, lol.

We know that Mike doesn't like Max in season 2 (for reasons we'll look into more), but why did he make this Will's problem/ responsibility? Especially after only knowing of her existence for 2 days at this point.

He wasn't angry at Lucas or Dustin—or at least, he didn't expect them to come to him for permission—otherwise he would have said something to them, too.

It was Will who he felt betrayed by and upset with.

Heck, go ahead and take a second look at the first screenshot provided above.

Does Mike look angry to you?

No—he looks forlorn.

Let me break it down for you:

I'll start by saying when the party learned of MADMAX the screename, they were all equally interested in knowing who it was.

But when Max is introduced to us as a character (and revealed to be a girl), we get markedly different reactions between the boys.

In the first frame, they have no idea who she is or what her name is. All they see is a new girl. (Played by Sadie Sink mind you, who is very pretty).

Look at Mike's face: he already looks sulky.

The second frame is after they learn her name is Max. Once again, all four boys show some level of interest, but Mike remains sulky.

Then we have the recess scene in which the boys are watching Max, which is very interesting.

Consider the blocking and body language in this frame:

Look at Will here: he's just as interested in Max as Lucas and Dustin are (even if his interest is not based on attraction). In fact, he's the main focus of this frame for some reason.

Mike is the only one who hangs back, and his body language is completely different from the other three (hands in pockets, meaning he is distanced). He has no interest whatsoever and his facial expression appears agitated.

Mike feels like the odd one out here.

Will fits in.

When they "lose the target" Will is the one who spots her and reinitiates the "watching." Once again, Will is the main focus of this shot and even seems to be showing the most interest; his expression is bright and engaged.

He runs with Lucas and Dustin to the wastebin while Mike trails behind begrudgingly, not wanting to be left behind.

It begs the question: why is Will the focal point among the four boys in a scene about looking at a girl, if he was never intended to be a love interest?

I argue it's because we're seeing this interaction from a very specific perspective—the perspective of Mike Wheeler, who is standing back and observing.

It's also worth noting that Will's change in demeanor and energy here is extremely apparent.

He is noticeably withdrawn and low in spirits this season due to his PTSD (both literal and metaphorical if you count the MF as a metaphor for trauma).

And Mike notices. He’s the one who points out that Will had been "quiet today"—a detail the others miss because they don’t watch Will the way he does.

Notice that Will is disengaged during the science lesson (before Max arrives), while the other three are nerding out. Will previously participated in the science fair—it typically interests him—but his mood is very low.

Then compare that with his immediate engagement when Max walks into the classroom, and the level of interest he showed during recess. Mike would certainly observe this shift, paying as much attention to Will as he does.

In fact, once the distraction of Max has passed and the principal comes to collect him, Will's body language retreats again; shoulders hunched, eyes downcast.

What conclusion do you think Mike would come to based off these few short interactions?

(And these are the only interactions Mike sees between Will and Max before trick-or-treating together the next day. Mike hasn't even spoken to her yet).

From Will's perspective, this girl is just a novelty: a light-hearted distraction from everything else going on, offering a spot of normalcy.

But from Mike's perspective, this is a pretty new girl showing up out of nowhere and immediately raising Will's spirits: something he felt like he failed to do.

And so it brings us to the trick-or-treating scene, in which Will (apparently) joins Dustin and Lucas in their enthusiasm for Max joining the party, while Mike hangs back and then begrudgingly follows, not wanting to be left behind.

Are we noticing the pattern?

Then we have Mike's confrontation with Will (this happens after Will is seen filming Max, btw). He tells Will he should have checked with him about Max joining them and that Max is, "ruining the best night of the year."

Uh... what? What did she do?

He then storms off: inentionally leaving Will behind this time.

(He wants him to know how that feels).

Following this interaction, Will has a big scare with the MF—and of course, it’s Mike who finds him first. Despite his mood, Mike is still attentive and protective.

Mike behaves possessively when he finds Will, not wanting the others to get involved. He takes Will “home” (his home) so they can be alone.

What follows is a scene that, put simply, is about reciprocation.

Interestingly, Mike’s attitude toward Max shifts after this scene with Will—he doesn’t have anything to say about Max joining the party in the AV room to look at Dustin’s pollywog.

This is the girl who apparently ruined Halloween.

You’d think he’d still be unhappy to see her.

But after that conversation with Will in his basement, Mike feels more secure and reassured about the state of their relationship.

He's no longer jealous.

So now, it's apparently fine for Max to be in the party.

Well, that changes again.

The next notable interaction is after Mike realises the pollywog is from the UD. Mike immediately goes into protective mode. It’s not Will who storms into the classroom to grab the trap—it’s Mike.

It’s also (presumably) Mike who locks Max outside of the AV room when they discuss this, yelling at her that she can’t come inside.

When she opens the door anyway, the pollywog escapes—and (of course) Mike blames her. No one else points fingers.

Now, the boys were hesitant to reveal any information about the UD for obvious reasons, but here we see the recurring theme in the Mike/Will/Max triangle: Mike’s protectiveness (and slight possessiveness) of Will.

So, a recap of Mike’s perspective so far:

First gripe: You’re hogging Will’s attention (possessive) Second gripe: You’ve compromised Will’s safety (protective)

Then we finally have the confrontation between Mike and Max:

It literally starts with Mike telling Max to leave because she's in the boys' room. (Similar to his "boys only" comment in season 3).

Let's not get it twisted: When Max finally asks Mike why he's been treating her the way he has been, he deflects.

Mike, who always has a ready opinion and is not afraid of confrontation, is not comfortable sharing the real reason why.

It’s commonly believed that Mike simply didn’t like Max because her presence reminded him of El’s absence—and I see it—but after a closer look, I no longer agree.

Firstly, I don’t think it’s fair to assume that Max would remind Mike of El (or rub salt in the wound of her absence) just because they’re both girls. Max and El couldn’t be more different—physically or otherwise—and that distinction feels intentional.

Mike would never compare Max to El, because to him, El is incomparable—a superhero who saved his (and Will’s) life.

Also, in Mike’s mind, El is still in the party—he lists her name off with the other members.

Max wouldn’t be a replacement.

He literally just stated that she would be an addition.

Secondly, Mike never actually makes this connection himself. He simply offhandedly mentions El when he’s trying to convince Max she’s not needed.

So why does he want her to stay away?

And when El is finally introduced (both through conversation and literally) to this dynamic, what happens?

Mike and Max begin to get along.

They share a smile.

If Mike’s issue with Max had anything to do with El, the scene wouldn’t have played out this way.

It’s classic misdirection.

The misdirection is so obvious they lean into it—even having El herself misinterpret Mike and Max’s relationship, becoming jealous.

She mistakenly assumes Mike is interested in Max, just like Mike mistakenly assumed Will was interested in her, too.

They’re giving the audience a warped perspective, urging us to look behind the curtain.

Mike’s behaviour towards Max fits perfectly into Byler’s shared arc in Season 2: Mike is attentive, protective, and possessive over Will, while Will—consumed by the MF—can’t fully reciprocate that attention.

The “crazy together” scene is the only time Mike receives the same energy back from Will the entire season.

I feel like people forget that when they talk about how cute Season 2 was for Byler. Cute from Will’s perspective, maybe (supernatural plot aside)—but for Mike?

We get multiple shots of Mike staring at Will or noticing his absence (Mike staring at Will’s empty desk being the most obvious example).

That’s called pining.

Will does not invite Mike to his house or show up uninvited—Mike does that. Will does not hold Mike’s hand—Mike does that. Will does not watch Mike closely or check in on him constantly—Mike does that. Will does not become possessive of Mike’s attention—Mike does that.

In fact, they play into this unreciprocated affection trope pretty blatantly—when Mike bares his heart to Will, tearfully recounting their first meeting, Will quite literally cannot respond because he’s possessed—even if he wants to.

Not to mention—Mike’s recount of their first meeting is also (thematically) about reciprocation:

“I asked if you wanted to be my friend. And you said yes. You said yes.”

Mike puts emphasis on the fact that Will said yes: the fact that Will reciprocated his feelings.

That is what he wants.

He wants validation that Will feels the same.

That Will won't leave him behind.

And what happens at the end of Season 2?

From a Byler perspective, this season is about Mike’s (seemingly) unrequited love for Will—and it directly influences Mike’s (very different) behaviour in Season 3.

So yeah.

Mike didn’t like Max because he was jealous, and coping with feelings for Will he feared were one-sided—and in his mind that was confirmed as true.

Why wouldn’t he be relieved to see El at the snowball dance?

Why wouldn’t he kiss her?

Why wouldn’t he immediately start dating her and pushing Will away?