Mike is the reason the Upsidedown is frozen on November 6.
AND I HAVE PROOF
(This theory of mine (#Labyrinthgate) has gone semi viral on tiktok--its at almost a million views, SO JUST TRUST ME WHEN I SAY IVE CRACKED THE CODE, AND READ THIS TO THE END. YOUR MIND WILL BE BLOWN!)
The answer to all of the show's mysteries was set up in the opening of the very first episode:
EVERYTHING about the party's first D&D game was and will be a case of extreme foreshadowing:
Including the fact that Mike was Dungeon Master.
The Upsidedown is something Mike accidentally created on November 6, and it mirrors the very same D&D game he was telling that night.
Believe it or not, his would line up perfectly with the timeline we've been given in the show. In s4 we find out that in 1979, the mindflayer was first formed (before that, it was just dark matter). Mike would have been born by then. ALSO! We are shown that Dimension X didn't yet look like Hawkins. So if MIKE is the reason for these specific changes, It would explain why:
The upsidedown looks like hawkins, not a hellscape
why its frozen on November 6
The Mindflayer's true origin.
Here's a chart to help you understand what i'm trying to say:
I also think it’s possible that Eleven actually accidentally reached to Mike's mind in s1 when she opened the "mothergate". Everything we thought we knew about the upsidedown is wrong— It's all literally Mike. This is just one idea I had which would explain my theory, but another explanation is probably possible.
(JUST CONTINUE TO HEAR ME OUT, BECAUSE I ACTUALLY FOUND A LOT MORE EVIDENCE)
I think that this twist was set up in the first 8 minutes of the show:
In the Opening of episode one, Mike is playing D&D around the same time Eleven opens the Mothergate.
Karen makes him end the D&D game early at 8:15 (this will also important), and Mike is upset.
Mike begs her for 20 more minutes, but she refuses.
Mike then turns to Ted who is fiddling with his TV in the background. It's loosing signal and I think this is going to be much more meaningful then we realize:
There are a couple options here:
--we know that Tvs do the same thing when 11 reaches into someones mind, so maybe in s5 eleven is in the upside down (in the past) reaching into Mike’s mind.
I also think it’s possible that Eleven actually accidentally reached to Mike's mind in s1 when she opened the "mothergate". Which would mean everything we thought we knew about the upsidedown is wrong— It's all literally Mike. That a just one was to explain how this entire theory is possible.
--The TV is loosing signal because in this moment Mike is unknowingly changing the flow of time in the upsidedown because of the breach 11 made. After all, he is LITERALLY begging Ted for MORE TIME in this exact moment.
specifically 20 minutes. (remember this for later)
ANYWAYS as Mike was begging for more time, in background the boys are still scrambling to find the dice to see what Will's roll was.
When Will find's it, this is what Lucas says:
This line from Lucas wasn't throw away dialogue-- it sets a rule.
The roll REALLY DOES only "count" once Mike knows about it.
BECAUSE AFTER MIKE HEARS THIS, IN THE VERY NEXT SCENE THE DEMOGORGAN GETS WILL.
Specifically, after Will says "see you tomorrow" the garage light behind Mike FLICKERS
We are SUPPOSED to assume that this is just a coincidence, but it's not. This is the moment Mike accidentally sent the demogorgan after Will, and maybe even when he changed dimension X to be a mirror of Hawkins FROZEN ON NOVEMBER 6.
TIME IS FROZEN ON NOVEMBER 6 ALL BECAUSE MIKE WANTED TO KEEP PLAYING D&D WITH WILL.
(Which means: all of this is happening because Karen didn't let Mike have 20 more minutes to finish his D&D game. But 20 also the winning roll of their latest D&D game which could mean nothing.)
IN HENRY'S ORIGIN STORY, WE ARE SHOWN THE EXACT SAME THING. We are specifically shown a light flickering behind him to allude to the fact that he has powers.
WE ARE ALSO SHOWN LIGHTS FLICKERING BEHIND MIKE WHEN WILL BECOMES A SORCERER:
This is not a coincidence:
Mike is LITERALLY the HEART!!
exactly 20 minutes into s3 e8, the duffers cut to a TV which says:
"tune in at 8pm for horror in the heartland"
(Okay I know this one might be a stretch, but HEAR ME OUT! If Mike is truly the one making the rules, creating a new reality from the matter/energy in Dimension X , his HEART is where the show's HORRORS are all coming from!)
In other words, The Upside-down and the Mind-Flayer are both physical embodiments of Mike's internalized homophobia, and the pressure he feels to conform by rejecting his nerdy/childish interests in order to become a "normal" adult.
Same with THIS WALL we were shown in season 5 (part 1)
It exists in the upside-down as another physical representation of Mike's internalized homophobia.
His Shame.
I believe that this Poster framed behind Mike foreshadows this. It's for a Pink Floyd movie called "The Wall"
More on this theory HERE ^ (ill add a link later)(yes i also wrote #flickergate)
If all of this is true, how can Vecna be defeated?
In the stage play, it was revealed that the Mindflayer is influencing Vecna, not the other way around...
Well if MIKE is connected to the Mindflayer, Vecna can only be "defeated" once Mike takes control of his power when he realizes the TRUTH, thus ending the mindflayer's influence over Henry.
I believe that THIS TWIST is what's being foreshadowed by the ONE WAY sign pointing directly into Mike's closet (and mirror)
because coming out of the closet is the only way for Mike to fully access his power. The ONE WAY to put an end to the upside down (which is also a MIRROR of himself/hawkins) is for Mike to fully accept himself.
The most important clue leading me to this interpretation is the poster of MC ESCHER'S "Relativity" hanging directly underneath the ONE WAY sign.
I think it was specifically hung up to refrence the same poster hanging in Sarah's room in the 80's movie Labyrinth:
It's how I initially figured out this entire twist 3 years ago. You can read those posts HERE
But ESSENTIALLY:
-back then, I noticed TONS of visual and thematic parallels between Stranger Things and Labyrinth, the most obvious being the jumpscare grandfather clock, which (in my opinion) is CLEARLY an homage to the one from Labyrinth.
And how closely Mike and Sarah's character arcs (potentially) mirror eachother:
ALONG WITH THIS!!!
Back to their shared "Relativity" poster though. It foreshadows the film's climax, when Sarah finally breaks free from her self imposed fantasy.
If this is where Season 5 is going… Then the climactic twist isn't Eleven defeating Vecna. It's: Mike realizing the TRUTH about the upsidedown + admitting he loves Will → he takes control of his powers → time resumes in the upside down → Upside Down collapses → Mind Flayer evaporates → Vecna is free of the mindflayer The story becomes: A queer love so strong it rewrites reality instead of freezing it.
ALSO READ THIS, I think the season one opening tells us how Byler will happen, and the flicker of this garage light was extremely symbolic.
