wheat is wheat

types of monsters

@greenfiend

Thanks for the tag! I reblogged this yesterday but it deserves another reblog.

Love how it conveys the true Demogorgon (deep father) as an upside down reflection of itself while surrounded by water and oak trees (love the symbolism here!). Plus as someone brilliantly mentioned, the gun is not present in the reflection, just a defence-less child confronted with his own father.

I'm really touched by you noticing the small details I added 🥺 I took inspo from your theories and analysis posts so it means so much to hear this from you!

I think people are warming towards it because of how adorable the situation is but. A lot of people have been skeptical over giving such a big part of the plot to Holly and the rest of these kids being taken in by the military for some kind of experimentation. What you need to understand is that these are more or less plot devices to explore trauma the party faced in Season 1, especially Will and El. And to explore the larger theme of childhood in the show.

Holly is a manifestation of Will’s younger self. Imaginative, sensitive to the supernatural, naive, helpless. She is personally sought out by Henry - just like Will was. Will wants to protect her not just because she’s an innocent child and Mike’s sister, but also as an allegory for him attempting to comfort and soothe the traumatized child within. And protect someone else from what he has been through. Giving her DND character the title of Cleric and creating a callback with ‘The Vanishing of Holly Wheeler’ deepens this connection.

The new kids by large are reminders of how young the party, now teens, were when they started the show. HNL is back ‘nabbing kids and using them for experiments. El and Hopper eventually pick a kid up in their humvee, Robin and Mike go through the tunnels to rescue some more kids from the barracks. This one is more personal to El, given she spent her entire childhood in captivity. In recusing the kids she is rescuing her young self.

Even with Henry. My current belief is that he wants to destroy, then reshape, the world into his ideal utopia (with only children). Cue the multiple Peter Pan references. A Neverland where everyone is a child eternally forever. There are deep cuts too from his life, which I’m sure we’ll explore further. Something he missed out on in childhood and wants to get back. Probably the disruption trauma can bring to a childhood, and the impossibility of giving that time 🕰️ and innocence back.

The entire show also serves as a callback to the (intended) audience’s childhood. An 80s romp that makes every reference it can to something nostalgic.

Will (in my opinion / theory) freezing Upside Down Hawkins permanently in 1983!

The end of the show coincides with the end of the nostalgic escape it brings. The message being: childhood is precious and we should hold onto it in memory, but you have to grow up eventually. You have to accept change. You can’t turn back the clock.

I completely forgot to add!!!

The Black Games Trilogy - Mrs Pettyfer

this is probably my favourite zutara au fic, period. I don't think this will ever be topped... the Hunger Games universe just goes perfectly with ATLA. Also, this is an actual piece of fandom history that was uploaded on ff.net before the other books were even produced. I could actually talk about this forever!

The Hawkins Tinies (with apologies to Edward Gorey)

this came to me in a dream once