byers family enthusiast

She/her way too emotionally attached to fiction

[iennoganan-aha]

I thought I was done being disappointed in stranger things. Falling out of love with a hyperfixation that brought me so much joy already sucked, but the whole Noah Shnapp shit really ruined it for me. I wasn't planning on watching or supporting season 5 anyways, but finding out Argyle won't be in s5 has really stripped away any want still buried deep in my brain man, like I'm not even slightly interested in watching illegally now. (I wasn't planning on it but curiosity is strong sometimes)

Jonathan was my favorite character, and Argyle is SO important for his character. Like putting aside how important Argyle was to the plot of s4, his importance to Jonathan was reason enough for him being there since Jonathan NEEDED him.

Argyle was the ONLY relationship he had that didn't have expectations. He could be free and loose and himself around Argyle. This isn't hate towards Will or Joyce or Nancy because he loves them and the story likes to ignore it but those relationships all come with expectations that the story has hinted at being hard for Jonathan to manage.

He loves his brother and his mom but the role he was forced into so young has really damaged him and how he views himself. The expectation to be a fatherly figure, an authority figure, a protector. I know Jonathan doesn't mind doing it because he loves his family but it's a lot of pressure and if s4 told us anything (again, even if the story likes to gloss over it for some reason) that pressure was too much for him.

And I LOVE Jancy, I love Nancy, but again s4 told us directly that in some way he feels a lot of pressure with her. He feels the need to give up on his dreams in one way or another, because it's either he goes to college with Nancy doing something he doesn't exactly wanna do, or he doesn't and he loses his girlfriend. He fears communication with her because she might get upset, at the end of s4 you can see that while he trusts Nancy and doesn't think anything is going on with Steve because he also trusts Steve, we can't deny the writers might do some lame ass love triangle bullshit this next season which will put even more pressure on Jonathan because now he might lose his girlfriend to his previous bully 🧍‍♀️

Argyle was SO healthy for Jonathan's character! He helped get Jonathan out of his comfort zone in some ways, in all 4 seasons with Argyle Jonathan was the most free and silly and acted like a teenager! He could just be a teenager with Argyle. He wasn't a supportive big brother or boyfriend or oldest son or any of the stigmatizations from his home town with Argyle, he was just Jonathan. Instead of worrying about taking care of Will, or getting a job to help pay bills or (at the time) fighting monsters, he was playing golf in the middle of a car dump with his best friend, getting high in their pizza van and having fun. I dunno, I just think it's a shame we're taking away his only friend that he isn't dating or related to.

I also fear that the did it for a reason of pushing the love triangle because let's be real if Argyle was there Jancy would just communicate. Argyle wouldn't stand for them dancing around each other and Steve being an issue he'd be like 'talk it out 👏🏼👏🏼'

Again this isn't even MENTIONING how important he is to the plot of s4 in general? Some people say he was just the comic relief and while he definitely played that role, he also is the reason half the main cast are alive?? Without Argyle; will, Mike and Jonathan would be dead! They would have no escape from the government SHOOTING THEIR HOUSE AND TRYING TO KILL THEM. they would have no transportation to find El, they'd have never even found El! They'd never have found a place to make a bathtub so El could save max, they'd never have made it back to Hawkins! He is an important character not just to Jonathan (because while I adore their friendship and this post may make it seem that way) HE IS NOT AN ACCESSORY TO JONATHAN! He was a fun character, a relavent character!

They could have done so much with him, imagine how he could have interacted with other characters? Character pair ups that could have been awesome? Steve and Argyle would be SO FUNNY! Argyle and Dustin, Argyle and Lucas bonding over neither being fucking white, Argyle and Robin being a comedy duo, Argyle and fucking Nancy having a conversation as Jonathan best friend and girlfriend respectively, or Argyle finally just meeting the girl he's heard about for a year- i dunno the possibilities are endless and the duffers are lame for not doing ANYTHING with the potential of these characters.

Oh well, I lost respect for Stranger Things a while ago, but a part of me is still passionate about the story being told and it really is a shame for Jonathan's character. But I shouldn't be surprised the writers have always kind of hated Jonathan. Those stonathan moments better be great I guess, I dunno I won't be watching it 🤷🏽‍♀️🤷🏽‍♀️

[i-am-autistic]

I love when people come into the Jonathan tag to complain about fan behavior that they just vaguely gesture towards and can't actually provide specific examples or even elaborate on what they are saying because it is most likely a response to one specific user or a behavior that is just not present. People be writing several paragraphs to call you dumb for enjoying the character in the [wrong way] except the [wrong way] never gets defined at any point. Well usually ig it means you are ignoring canon parts of the character or are moving too far away from canon parts of the character. Also it turns out that this part of the character the show focuses on multiple times is not actually relevant. Like seriously? A post trying to convince people that the Byers family is not tied to privelege and class and that Steve was in a similar position to Jonathan in s4 because his rich dad cut him off and Jonathan didn't have a job.

People be talking about fandom departing canon being evil as if the most popular s4 ship(steddie) is not a couple that had interactions that can be counted on one hand and that one half of that relationship is dead.

Anyways what I'm saying is you know that the character is good when every piece of anti-Jonathan literature requires huge leaps of logic and poor analysis to build it's case.

[madbyer]

Thank you!

I get that certain fan behaviour warrants a conversation - but people will immediately criticises a character analysis JUST by making it about stans and getting mad for the sake of it. which is such a downfall to good media literacy.

[madbyer]

Steve getting a summer job at 18 bc his dad made him vs Jonathan working since he was really young to support his family. Steve having all of his needs met vs Jonathan having to help pay bills. Steve not going to college bc he didn’t get in vs Jonathan not going bc of his guilt and anxiety about leaving his family. Steve smoking weed for fun vs Jonathan smoking it to cope. Steve ‘babysitting’ Dustin vs Jonathan parenting Will. Steve’s ‘asshole’ Dad vs Jonathan‘s abusive Dad. Steve being excited about his future kids vs Jonathan‘s fear of turning into his Dad. Steve idealising Nancy as his wife vs Jonathan being terrified of holding her back. Steve getting to be a teenager while Jonathan had to be an adult. The audience forgiving Steve but not Jonathan. Steve running from the cops vs Jonathan getting arrested. The audience loving Steve but hating or ignoring Jonathan.

[gayboysteve]

i think it's not only a disingenuous take on stonathan but on privilege in general to bring up these comparisons when half are more fanon??? than actual canon? also when a show has canonical black and disabled characters but you're hand wringing over two straight cis white men its's just a bad look. you also sound kinda disgusting when you talk about comparing the "reasons" jonathan and steve both might partake in drugs as though we its canon why either of them smoke weed. you're just projecting half of this stuff lmao and sound like a dumb child that's whining because your fave doesn't get enough attention. i love both steve and jonathan for who they actually are in canon and not things that i make up in my head and pretend are real

[madbyer]

Hi my love, I’m still new to posting to tumblr so I haven’t quiteeee felt the need to call someone a ‘dumb child’ yet, but I’m so happy to expand. Your point about not knowing why Steve smokes is valid, you’re right - we don’t know. I was basing that around how he joked about smoking weed in s3 compared to Jonathan’s substance abuse in s4 (which, tbf is also played off as a joke, but that’s an entirely different conversation).

But other than that, I am a lil confused about your fanon vs canon point? a lot of my comparisons I can link to certain scenes that stuck out to me (Jonathan talking about College with Argyle, his and Nancy’s fight in S3, his relationship to Joyce post s1, his parentification etc) it’s not fanon to discuss how he is very much disadvantaged economically and comes from a broken home. Which are disadvantages also explored in characters like Joyce, Will, Billy, Max and Robin. Yes, 100%, there are other examples of privilege and oppression in ST but that’s not what my post was about. It’s okay to give space to discuss different issues (just like how Lucas and Dustin are middle-class, but also disadvantaged).

My original point is that Jonathan and Steve are set up as foils. Noticing the way Steve talks about college/work/family compared to Jonathan is really fascinating to me - and a massive part of that links to class differences between them. I also find it interesting to compare GA reactions to both of these characters, adoring Steve but finding Jonathan boring (again, GA, not just the fandom). I love both characters as ‘they actually are’ too, and I really didn’t mean to come off as ‘whiny’ by comparing them. I’m really interested in how their dynamic will be handled in S5, and I hope we get some scenes showing their differences more clearly - in a way that gives justice to both of them.

(@echoing-oursong <- tagging you bc I feel like this is a better expansion, happy to expand more specifically too)

[madbyer]

Steve getting a summer job at 18 bc his dad made him vs Jonathan working since he was really young to support his family. Steve having all of his needs met vs Jonathan having to help pay bills. Steve not going to college bc he didn’t get in vs Jonathan not going bc of his guilt and anxiety about leaving his family. Steve smoking weed for fun vs Jonathan smoking it to cope. Steve ‘babysitting’ Dustin vs Jonathan parenting Will. Steve’s ‘asshole’ Dad vs Jonathan‘s abusive Dad. Steve being excited about his future kids vs Jonathan‘s fear of turning into his Dad. Steve idealising Nancy as his wife vs Jonathan being terrified of holding her back. Steve getting to be a teenager while Jonathan had to be an adult. The audience forgiving Steve but not Jonathan. Steve running from the cops vs Jonathan getting arrested. The audience loving Steve but hating or ignoring Jonathan.

[madbyer]

Jonathan: Hawkins isn’t that small

Argyle: Your girlfriend’s brother is your brother’s boyfriend, and also your sister’s ex.

[jonathanbyersphd]

Hi hello

Joyce saying that the stick figure drawing isn't good and can't be Will's vs. Joyce commending how good Jonathan's photos are and saying she had no idea

[madbyer]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

[madbyer]

Currently thinking about how in s1 Lonnie would have eventually noticed that Jonathan stole his gun, and he did nothing about it.

[kjxlll]

something about will and jonathan byers being forced to learn how to shoot at a young age, then growing up and choosing to create rather than destroy

[clippedtoned]

me if we get a scene where jonathan or will makes a joke about how both of them ended up falling for a wheeler

[byersfanclub]

did the GA forget that will actually died in s1…? hopper had to perform cpr on him..? did ppl just collectively forget that will LITERALLY died and came back to life and has been being tormented the past couple of seasons? but oh, he’s just a big baby and he’s not important to the story… ok

[princessdave]

I’m really surprised that at no point so far has a character mixed up “upside down” with “down under” and accidentally led another character to think that they were talking about Australia the whole time. And by another character I mean Argyle.

Jonathan: it’s full of monsters with hundreds of teeth

Argyle: yeah, everyone knows that

Jonathan: and there’s really dangerous plants

Argyle: I’ve heard that too

Will: and there’s this giant spider made of smoke that can mind control you

Argyle: I didn’t know that, but it’s not surprising based on everything else I’ve heard about Australia

Will: ….

Jonathan: ….

Jonathan: what?

[jonathanbyersphd]

Happy Father's Day to him!

[henrysglock]

OH MY FUCKING???? WAIT A MINUTE????

HENRY JEKYLL AND EDWARD HYDE

HENRY CREEL AND EDWARD CREEL

FROM THE PAPERS IN THE LIBRARY SCENE????

OH IM CHEWING ON IT

[sourwolf]

do you ever want to just shield your favorite characters from certain people because they just don’t get them and therefore shouldn’t even be allowed to look at them let alone talk about them