the missing piece in the puzzle was will's coming out
or why I think byler is endgame.
Okay! Let's do it one last time
I'm not gonna put all the screenshots, but remember how that scene where Mike looked at the puzzle was framed like the one where Will found out about Robin and Vickie?
Like Lucas said, I don't believe in coincidences anymore. And Mike reiterated this in the same sequence, btw.
Will's arc this season is about accepting himself, especially his queerness, but he's also yearning for romance. And he's still in love with Mike. So we can say, he's longing to date Mike. But for that to happen, Mike has to solve the puzzle, and Will has to come out.
Robin is a mentor to Will in his journey. And yes, their conversations help him to accept himself and unleash his powers, especially the one in the tunnels. But two of these conversations are about dating advice.
The first one is in Episode 3, where the famous snowball-to-avalanche occurs. I don't think he was asking with Mike in mind, but when he stopped to ponder her words, something resonated with him. Some moments with Mike that we, as the audience, have seen as well. Especially the shared looks. That was a setup for the avalanche that we haven't seen yet.
The second one is in Episode 5, when Will asks Robin if she is ready to date Vicky after her epiphany about Tammy, and she answers that it isn't enough to accept yourself; you also have to be ready to share that part with others. In that moment, I knew they were setting up his coming-out scene.
So practically for Will to get his romance, he has to follow two steps before that: 1. accept yourself (that was the ending of Sorcerer), 2. come out (ending of episode 7).
Well, now this relationship is about two characters, of course. So what about Mike? He has been more confident in himself this season. We can see this in how he's leading the team, and in how he has embraced his nerdy side and geeked out a lot about D&D.
He has been brave to face the supernatural threats, but what about his inner conflict? He has to face these fears, too. But for that, he has to learn the truth about Will first.
Not only did Mike have to hear that Will doesn't like girls, but the whole come out scene is full of references to his speech in the van when he gave him the painting. So with that, Mike finally understood Will's feelings for him. That was the missing piece to complete the puzzle.
There's a reason this scene ends with Mike and Will looking at each other: both are ready to not be afraid of what they are and what they feel.
When I finished the episode, I thought they had given us the perfect set-up for them to talk about the painting and finally be honest with each other about how they felt.
We have yet to see: the avalanche, Will getting his romance, and the payoff of the painting lie. And to me, it's pretty clear this is all related to Byler getting together.
I understand why people doubted when they heard Will call Mike his Tammy, and referred to him as just a crush. But I didn't think they were recotnning his feelings, so it would be easier for him to move on. In that case, that would be awful writing. I wasn't worried. I assumed he wouldn't be completely honest in front of everyone about his feelings, because it's a detail that they didn't need to know. And when he referred to Mike as his Tammy, he explained what he meant: his self-acceptance and self-love didn't depend on whether Mike loved him (and that's exactly the lesson the duffers have been preaching in their interviews)
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