The hit television show Stranger Things just came to an end with its season finale, releasing on New Year’s Eve, and has left fans feeling unresolved. For those of you who haven’t watched the ending yet or somehow avoided having it spoiled on TikTok, consider this your warning. If you are still here, then get ready to either have your mind blown or feel so validated you won’t know what to do with yourself.
Here’s the thing. Everyone talks about Will being in love with Mike, which, yes, that part is canon. But what people aren’t discussing nearly enough is the other half of the equation. The part where Will’s feelings aren’t nearly as one-sided as the mainstream fandom has been led to believe. When it comes down to it, with the subtext, cinematography, and Mike’s character arc, a very different picture starts to form.
Will’s Side of the Story
From the very beginning of the series, Will’s sexuality has been something the show has hinted at. Joyce mentions in season one that kids at school call him a slur, and by season three, Mike, in the heat of an argument, snaps that it isn’t his fault Will doesn’t like girls. Together, these moments make it clear that Will being gay wasn’t some last-minute twist from the writers. It’s something that has been a part of the story this whole time.
As for Will’s feelings for Mike, I could write an entire article on that alone, but that is not why we’re here today. So instead, I’m going to highlight the key moments. All you really need to know is that in season five, when Will saves Mike from the Demogorgon, he reflects on the day they first met. After Will comes out, the two of them finally have a conversation that makes it clear to the audience that Mike understands how Will once had a crush on him.
And this is where many fans stop, only considering Will’s feelings. But if you look closely, the show has been leaving clues about how Mike feels this entire time.
Mike’s Side of the Story
First and foremost, an important thing to address is Mike’s relationship with El. They met when they were young, and when you’re a child, feelings are messy, and you don’t always know what those feelings are or mean. What matters for this discussion is what happens later on. By season four, when they’re supposed to be in a more serious relationship, Mike struggles to say “I love you” and seems increasingly uncomfortable, as if he no longer wants to be in the relationship at all.
Now, that alone says a lot. However, the fact that during one of the most emotional moments in Stranger Things, Mike doesn’t cry. In the season one finale, when everyone believes Eleven has died after defeating the Demogorgon, Mike is sad, but he doesn’t shed a single tear. And you might be wondering what this has to do with Mike’s feelings for Will. Don’t worry, the connection becomes clear in just a moment.
Parallel Memories within Stranger Things
In the show, Will goes through it, from being stuck in the Upside Down in season one to being possessed by the Mind Flayer at the end of season two. When the group is desperately trying to figure out how much of Will is still there, they realize they’re losing him, fast. The possession gets stronger, the pain intensifies, and the situation begins to feel hopeless. At that moment, Mike breaks down. Terrified of losing Will again, he starts talking directly to him, hoping to reach whatever part of him is listening.
Season 2, Chapter Eight: “The Mind Flayer”
Mike says, “Do you remember the first night that we met? It was–it was the first day of kindergarten. I knew nobody. I had no friends. I just felt so alone. I saw you on the swings, and you were alone, too. I just walked up to you, and I asked—I asked if you wanted to be my friend, you said yes. It was the best thing I’ve ever done.”
What makes this moment so important is that Mike reaches for the same memory Will reaches for years later. When Mike thinks he’s losing Will, the first thing he holds onto is the day they met, the moment that shaped everything between them. Both of them returning to the beginning when they’re terrified of losing each other tells you everything you need to know about where their hearts actually are: with each other.
Cinematography and Subtext: The Rain Fight
In season three, when Mike and Will fight in the rain, the scene is shot with the exact emotional framing you’d expect from a coming-of-age gay film.
Season 3, Chapter Three: “The Case of the Missing Lifeguard”
Will storms out into the rain, furious that their friendship is slipping away. Mike chases after him, trying to explain himself, but every attempt only makes things worse. Will finally breaks, admitting he really did think they’d stay the same forever. Mike calls after him again and again as Will walks away, the rain pouring down between them.
The way this moment is framed mirrors the visual language used in coming-of-age films in general, whether or not they are queer. The writers did not accidentally put this into their show; they are using cinematography to tell us that this isn’t just a random argument, but a breakup scene.
And Stranger Things doesn’t just rely on emotion to make that clear; it uses visual language that mirrors scenes from queer dramas. The rain fight is framed almost identically to breakup-coded moments in shows like Eyewitness, where two boys stand in silhouette in front of a car, facing each other in a tense emotional standoff. From the blocking, lighting, and pacing to the way one walks away while the other calls after him. It’s the same cinematic grammar.
So Was It Ever One-Sided?
When you put all of this together, the idea that Will’s feelings were ever one-sided just doesn’t hold up. The show has been telling a story about two boys whose lives have been connected from the moment they met. Will’s feelings may be the ones the show says out loud, but Mike’s are the ones it shows us again and again, in the moments where it matters most.
Stranger Things doesn’t frame scenes like breakup moments by accident, and it doesn’t give two characters the same defining memory unless it matters. Once you start paying attention to that, the story shifts. This was never just about unrequited love. It’s about two people who keep choosing each other, even before they understand what that choice means.