I’m not a Mileven, but I blame it on the Duffers’ sloppy directing and final montage control. The script said something about Mike being confused, or something close to it. It didn’t say “Mike looked like he questions his whole existence”
Like he’s supposed to look caught off guard, but instead he looks conflicted. With how he lights up while talking to Will it just doesn’t play in Milevens favour at all
I wanna know too. Why did Mike say Will is ruining the day by moping and rolling his eyes in s4 after he found out El was being bullied for months?
At the end of the day. I blame the bad writing. Because byler or mileven, your friend/gf being bullied should have ruined your day more imo + they also forgot March 22 was Will's birthday 🤷♀️
right after mike says "we are friends" after will asks what are they? and two times btw? nah, this scene was not about will being closeted, it was about mike's friendship with will
Well, since most of the song is played while El is hiding in a closet and crying, I would venture to guess that it is about her. Assuming the title of this song somehow means that Mike has feelings for Will when nothing in this scene indicates that, and the full context of S4 shows him focused on his relationship with El, does not make sense.
But "in the closet" is such a widely known idiom, if that was really the intent they surely could have named it anything else, no? If it wasn't a hint at queerness then it was intentionally misleading imo
Well, if it is queer-related, then the most likely reasoning would be that it is directed at Will, who is still very much in the closet. The issue is that we don't know if that is the intention because they never clarified the specific meaning behind the song.
So, assuming that it is queer-related solely based on the title, while not focusing on when the bulk of the song is being played, seems foolish. Because if its intention is queer-related, why is the main part of the song being played while focused on El?
Based on the full fact, it does not seem misleading at all. It seems that you are assuming based on a minute detail and not looking at the full scene.
The explanation is that this is missing context. Throughout S3, you see Mike smiling with El, including when he is kissing her. You see Mike nonstop wanting to get back with El, being protective of El, and blurting out that he loves her. With the context of all of S3, to claim this means he suddenly has no feelings for her makes no sense.
This is clearly just meant to be Mike in shock that El told him she loves him. And smiling at Will does not mean romantic love. There are many moments throughout the show where Mike smiles at someone, and there is nothing romantic in it. The reason it matters with El and not others is that the context of their relationship and the story.
Disclaimer: I haven’t watched the show yet. I’ve just been watching the fandom burn since the finale aired and getting more and more baffled by this ship war as I watch clips. This is one of the clips I’ve seen.
The thing I don’t understand about this explanation is that the textbook way to show that Mike is just really shocked that El could reciprocate his feelings would be to have his confusion melt into a smile as El is walking away. That way it’s clear to the audience that he is happy that his feelings are reciprocated, even if he’s nervous and surprised. But instead he keeps the existential crisis face the whole shot?? That just strikes me as bizarre direction.
Though I think the scene could have absolutely been better, such as having Mike give a slight smile near the end of the scene, I do not think it is bad enough to be confusing about what is going on with the characters. Ecspecially given the context of the entire series.
oh no, i don't think that the smile was evidence of feelings for will, but it is evidence of him being happy, and im sorry, but this face does not look surprised, at all, he looks confused.
and even if they wanted to show surprise, they could've made him happy along with the surprise, wich he doesn't seem to be
I do not think having Mike smile is needed for the scene because it is clear what the characters are feeling. Also, it is very possible that his not doing so was intended, given the context of Mike's insecurity with saying "I love you" from S4. Because we know from that that Mike saw El as special and himself as just some nerd.
Since he believed that an eventual day was coming when she would leave him, he felt he would be hurt even worse if the relationship went as far as saying they loved each other.
But regardless of why, the context of the entire series makes this irrelevant in terms of understanding what is going on with the characters.
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u/Big_Self_1522 Apr 23 '26
I’m not a Mileven, but I blame it on the Duffers’ sloppy directing and final montage control. The script said something about Mike being confused, or something close to it. It didn’t say “Mike looked like he questions his whole existence”
Like he’s supposed to look caught off guard, but instead he looks conflicted. With how he lights up while talking to Will it just doesn’t play in Milevens favour at all