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Churchgate Master Post Tonight, Buckle In
Churchgate master post tonight, buckle in š
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More Posts from Conflictofthemind

i cant believe this is real
Will already has powersā¦
And I think I figured out exactly what they are.

This is a long theory post. Get some popcorn, get comfortable and be prepared to have some common fandom perspectives get flipped upside down. Nothing is as it seems.
(Trigger warning for some serious subject matters such as: homophobia, SI, m*rder, and CSA.)
Before we begin, let me remind you of whatās seen behind our boy in the photo above.

This post will, indeed, open that curtain. As Murray states, revealing whatās behind the curtain will cause some to feel unease. The unease may be caused by distaste of the theory overall or discomfort of the serious subject matters. So proceed with cautionā¦
To begin, who is Will Byers?

A young boy who doesnāt fit in with the 1980s norms. A boy who escapes through fantasy.
In fantasy heās a wizard⦠a clericā¦
Outside of fantasy heās an artist⦠a creatorā¦
Heās a boy whoās different. He stands out from the rest, yet he manages to remain hidden for the most part. Heās āgood at hidingā.

He is a part of a small loving family of three. His mother Joyce and his older brother Jonathan. His biological dad is estranged (more on him later).
Will has a few friends when we begin the show: Lucas, Dustin, and Mike. Mike and Will have a bond thatās different from the others (more on them later).
Will is a young boy who has experienced a lot of trauma, from bullying peers and an abusive parent to being victimized by supernatural forces. Thereās a lot going on for him both internally and externally. These also happen to correlate with each other quite frequently. Suspiciously frequently in fact. Which leads me to this conclusion:


Willās powers involve shaping the world around him based on his warped views of himself, his sexuality, and his mental health. Heās literally āreshaping the [external] worldā to match his internal world; āremake it however [he] sees fit.ā
Wow okay slow down there, you may be thinking. Youāre really saying he has God like abilities? Well, sort of- but he lacks the insight or control over his own abilities at this point. Just bare with me here and keep an open mind as things will get strangerā¦
Moving away from the deeper aspects of his character, letās look at something superficial: his name.
William āWillā Byers
The name William means āDeterminedā or āResolute Protectorā or āStrong Helmetā. Okay.
Byers means someone who lives by a cattle-shed. Hm. Okay.
But wait⦠letās go back. What does the name āWillā mean?

Well⦠thereās multiple meanings but letās focus on the highlighted one.
āMental powersā you say? A name that literally means the ability to make others do things or make things occur? To bend things to oneās willā¦
When did he get these powers?
Iām not confident in the answer to this but I think he may have always had the powers. Just like his sexuality, he was born this way.
Itās very likely that he was specifically targeted back in the first episode because of this, then was possessed afterwards for the same reason.
I mean⦠for a villain who wants to āreshape the worldā- why wouldnāt he want the powers of a boy with this ability?
As I believe his powers are intertwined with his sexuality, they began manifesting much more once puberty hit. Will likely has used his powers in seasons 1 and 2 but very subtly. In season 3, they become more obvious but still in the shadows (and unbeknownst to himā¦he suppresses it). They emerge in correlation with his blooming sexuality.
Season 3 is associated with possession, and the concept of free will is a frequent theme. The characters discuss how to look out for people acting out of the ordinary, out of character if you will. Any characters that come to mind?

Hopper was noticeably different this season. Coincidentally, the same season Will desperately held onto his childhood innocence, Hopper acted suspiciously immature.

Will wants El and Mike to break up. Hopper wants El and Mike to break up.
Mike explains to Lucas that Hopper āthreatenedā him while we immediately cut to Will. Whatās Will doing here? He is moving DnD characters on a board. He is manipulating the characters here⦠playing dollhouse⦠being a puppet master. This little guy was so jealous of Mike and El that he influenced Hopper to try and break them up!

We are shown other little incidences of Hopper acting Will-like too. He suddenly buys a shirt thatās different than his usual wardrobe- āthatās a lot of color chefā. Will is known for wearing colourful clothes, thatās highlighted as a reason he is seen as ādifferentā and is bullied for it. Hopper has trouble pronouncing an alcoholic beverage, saying ācheeantiā when he is well acquainted with alcohol. While Will is dressed up as Will the Wise, Lucas asks Will for permission to shower- then we cut to Hopper showering. Hopper acts very immature in his jealousy, just as Will does. Both Hopper and Will have big fights with Joyce and Mike in episode 3 of season 3. When El asks āhow do we know when someoneās a host?ā the scene immediately ends and we are shown Hopper. Will is using Hopper as a host! Thereās even more evidence than this but we shall move on from here.
So wait, Will possessed Hopper? Well, not exactly. Hopper was under the influence of Will. Remember what Will said about the mindflayer: āHe likes to hide. He only used me when he needed me.ā
There was another character acting out of the ordinary this seasonā¦

Thatās right! Mike.
Iāll come back to him more later but in the meantime, let me offer you this theory:

The rain scene. Now what if I said that Will was the one projecting onto Mike? What I mean is: Willās internal thoughts āitās not his fault I donāt like girls!ā becoming a reality. Mike never meant to say this- it was all Willās doing. His internalized homophobia became externalized. Itās oddly fitting too that in the episode with Willās emotional breakdown, itās raining.
The devastating depth of Willās trauma


Within the show, we know our boy has experienced a lot of suffering, but subtext tells us itās much worse than we see on the surface.
Willās father is a homophobic and abusive asshole yes, but heās more than that.
Thereās an alarming amount of evidence that this man was not only emotionally and physically abusive but also sexually abusive to both Will and his older brother.
He likely was especially homophobic towards Will because he projected his actual perverse sexuality unto him. He likely dealt with his shame by blaming his innocent young son.

This leads us to: November 6th, 1983. Originally, I do believe that Will died by the hands of his own cruel father. His father likely picked him up from his bike ride home (his bike left behind), ended his life by strangulation, put him in the back of his trunk, and dumped him into Sattlers Quarry (where his fake body was found).
I believe somehow someone was able to reverse this (more on this later). The clock turned back and a new timeline was created. Will was then abducted and brought to the upside down. Instead of heaven or hell, he was in purgatory. Time came to an abrupt halt in the upside down⦠the exact same time his life ended in the original timeline. This is where timelines diverge.

Now Willās purgatory is also his internal world, his own mind. The upside down manifests itself as this. Itās dark, cold, scary, lonely, and unsettling. Heās trapped in his own head, where he relives some of his most traumatic memories. We see him being victimized by the Demogorgon (an alternate title for Demogorgon is āThe Deep Fatherā x ) and we also see him being assaulted (in a sexual manner) by vines.
By the time Will is rescued, he is struggling with suicidal thoughts (the song āWhen Itās Cold Iād Like to Dieā tells us this). Poor boy has been in a deep dark depressive state. In season 2, his possession is a real manifestation of his PTSD.
The monsters represent how he views himself- heās a monster. Iād argue his internalized homophobia is a lot worse than we actually think. Itās not just the homophobic environment around him, itās also the ongoing rhetoric that the victim will inevitably become a perpetrator. As we see the common occurrence of toxic cycles continuing: he fears he has no agency and will become his own father.

Jonathan can relate, but because heās solely attracted to women and thus more ānormalā, itās not as bad for him. But Steve really pushed his buttons when he implied that Jonathan is a creep like his father.
So yes, Will sees himself as a monster because of his attraction to men. Thus, he manifests the monsters in the monster show.
Speaking of his attraction to menā¦
Mike
Will loves Mike, heās hopelessly devoted to him. Mike feels the exact same way. In the original timeline, Mike ultimately decides to jump into Sattlers Quarry to reunite with his love in death.

Will ājumpsā, Mike jumps too. Luckily, a new timeline was created, giving both of them a second chance at life and love.
In the alternate timeline (the show), season 1 sees Mike leave no stones unturned in his search for his best friend. In season 2, we see how Mike normally is with Will. Heās so devoted! Heās always by Willās side throughout everything. Itās beautiful! This is the authentic Mike.
So. What happened in season 3? Mikeās internalized homophobia?
Well partially Iām sure, but in this post Iām offering an alternate theory: Mikeās behavior is explained by Willās internalized homophobia.
What do I mean by this?

Well as I said, Will reshapes the external world in the image of his internal world. He doesnāt believe he deserves Mikeās love. Heās scared. Heās been āinventing thingsā so he can push Mike away.

He obviously wants nothing more than to be with Mike, but due to his insecure attachment style and his internalized homophobia, heās been the one pushing him away this entire time with his powers.

How has he been pushing Mike away exactly?
Heās been pushing Mike towards El.
Wait, didnāt he help break them up through Hopper?

Well, yes, but the sweet sensitive boy that he is likely felt bad, he regretted his actions after their rain fight fallout and wanted to give his āolive branchā and make amends.
Will believes the best way to do so is to push Mike and El back together. Like Lucas, Will gives Mike guidance by, essentially, being the master to his puppet.

(Above is actually Willās apology to Mike.)
In Willās mind, Mike is straight. He would never reciprocate Willās feelings. So, Will believes that Mike should be happy with El then.

Will literally is putting words in Mikeās mouth here. Look how focused Will is in this scene, and how often Mike turns to him. Itās as though Will is mouthing to Mike exactly what words he (thinks) he should say.

Here Will is at it again! But Mike is resisting. The words arenāt able to come out. Willās signal is poor, Mike couldnāt fully understand him.
So Will, as misguided but well intended as he is, attempts to bring Mike and El back together.
No wonder Mike couldnāt exactly remember his wordsā¦

Heās genuinely confused here!
This leads me toā¦


This foreshadowing shot tells us that Will is the director here. He fed Mike the script he had to read. So yes, Iām saying that Will did not just push Mike to say those words to El, he forced him to. Mike did not have any agency here.
Now, like me, you may be concerned about this. Will is bending Mike to his will? Wonāt the audience then assume Will forced Mike to be gay with him? Pushing that toxic homophobic narrative?
Well thatās the thing- Will is not forcing a straight man to be gay. Will is trying to make a gay man straight! Ahhh trope subversion.
El
So Iām not going to delve too much into El in this post, because El and Will deserve their own post. But I do strongly believe they are much more connected than we think.
Vecna

Where does Vecna fit into this theory? Well for starters, I donāt believe Vecna himself is Will, he is definitely a separate entity. The major difference between Will and Vecna is that Will will no longer be restrained by his shadow, he will be able to differentiate himself from his shadow. Vecna has chosen to become one with the shadow.
Also, like Mike, Vecna is heavily associated with time. Vecna takes time away from others but Mike gives time. I do agree with the Wheeler and Creel being connected theories.
Time
Time is a major theme within the show. As I mentioned previously, Will possesses powers where he can manipulate his environment, his space. Will is space, but he is lacking the 4th dimension.
The upside down is frozen in time, essentially lacking time. It needs time, and it always will! Thatās right- Mike is time.
That boy is frequently associated with it. Running late at the beginning of each season, mentions of āturning back the clockā, etc.
Mike āturned back the clockā and saved Will from his original fate. Similar to the scene where Mike jumps off the cliff and is saved by El, Mike reverses his fall by rewinding time. He went all the way back to the night of November 6th, 1983. Preventing the original timeline from occurring.
Mike gave Will the greatest gift of all- time.
Remember time heals all wounds. Wounds being the gates.
Together, Mike and Will are spacetime. Which is beautiful because not only does this mean they are equals in every way but they can literally create their own fantasy world together.
Conclusion
This show has a lot of layers. I tried to really dig deep but still I feel like I just scratched the surface. I will say this though: I am utterly confident that everything leads back to Will. He is the center of the entire show, like it or not. Without Will, there is no Stranger Things. Now of course this is not āthe Byler showā but their relationship is incredibly important. Mikeās unconditional love and devotion to Will is a key aspect of the solution to the conflict. He makes Will āfeel better for being differentā. His love, along with his other friends and family, will inevitably lead to the upside down (Willās mind) becoming a beautiful place. Instead of rot and decay, there will be blooming flowers and sunlight.
If youād like to discuss any aspect of these theories with me, feel free! Like I said, Iām only scratching the surface here. Let me know your thoughts.
If anyoneās wondering how this person was able to be confirmed, their source gave them information about scenes involving the Linda Hamilton and kids plot that matched with information already known by paparazzi and a few other minor sources.
Also, this is the full extent of everything this person knows because Dani and I have been talking to them personally now. It might get reported by other people with slightly different wording but they are all talking about this.
So I'll put the leaks together to make things clearer-ish (?)
the leaks we have are only until episode 4 so keep that in mind, plus the person leaking may have their own interpretation of the scenes/not have seen all the scenes/not understand queer subtext
The source said that Mlv did not break up, has not filmed a break up scene (honestly I doubt they are still together but ok)
Will and Mike get on very well together
They don't think there's "any indication" of Mike and Will getting together for now
Will and Mike's relationship is extremely important
Mike has a lot of screentime and many of the storylines revolve around him ( From Hellfire, Will, El, Holly, Nancy )
Will is going to have a guy, that we've seen before in previous seasons, interested in him - we don't know who it is but speculated about him being Chance (one of Jason's friends from S4)
Will does NOT like him back
Mike & Will have many scenes together and during one of these scenes Finn and Noah cried for some reason
This guy MAY be the guy, it's not confirmed

Steve has "the most epic scene"
Tagged by @will80sbyers
10 GIFS from 10 Favourite Shows (no order and non-exhaustive list)
Stranger Things

The X-Files

Derry Girls

Madoka Magica

Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Avatar The Last Airbender

The Boys

Over The Garden Wall

Parks and Recreation

Hannibal

I tag: Anyone who wants to make their own post! I am a little too shy to tag anyone.
Iām done talking about leaks stuff for now so donāt send me messages on it please, thank you. ļæ¼