SIT DOWN AND LISTEN!!!!!! BYLER ENDGAMEEEEE

so what is byler anyway?

i'm GLAD YOU ASKED!!!!!!!!! byler/miwi/cleradin/wiseheart is the ship between will byers and mike wheeler from stranger things. yes i know the majority of people dislike stranger things for being mainstream or because the fans are annoying or whatever, i am aware, i personally think it's a good show for the most part. no i don't really care for eddie or steve. whatever okay back to byler.

byler is an incredibly popular ship for reasons that i hope this shrine will make clear. so, will is who i would consider to be one of the three main characters, and he's overall my favorite. he goes through a lot of horrible things in this show, the main ones being that he literally spends a week in a hellish dimension and that he gets possessed by a massive shadow monster. he also has an abusive father who, thank god, is not around in his life anymore, however he's also constantly bullied at school and there's an implication that even the adults in the town talk badly about him. he is very specifically bullied for being gay, so much so that when he goes missing, many people believe that it was a hate crime. as the seasons go on, it becomes very clear that yes, he is actually gay, and in love with one of his best friends. i LOVE will, he's an extremely tragic character who perserveres and survives anyway, and even when he himself is suffering he worries about others. he is disliked by a lot of the general audience for being a 'crybaby', 'weak', and other things of that nature, but he really isn't any of those things. he's honestly strangely overlooked for someone who has so many things happen to him throughout the story, and he deserves the world.
mike, on the other hand, is who i would consider to be another one of the three main characters. he's incredibly loyal to his friends, was incredibly dedicated to finding will in season 1, stood by his side throughout his possession, and seems to have a deeper relationship with him, even though it's somewhat stated in one episode that if he had one best friend, it would be lucas. "now, z, isn't mike the one who's dating that girl with the superpowers, el? why would the writers make him break up with her when she's so important? why would he even end up being with a boy if he's only ever been in a relationship with a girl??" okay so bisexual people exist and also! great point but not really. el and mike's relationship is honestly.... not that great? and the show constantly reinforces this. not only are their scenes typically kind of... childish, corny, boring, cringey, annoying, etc etc, generally hard to watch, but i genuinely think that the only way that the story can go is for them to break up.

okay, for the sake of keeping at least some sort of order, i'll separate my reasoning by the seasons that events take place in, and mention other details (interviews, promotional content, etc) at the end. i also think i should say that since we already have will to be confirmed as gay and in love with mike, i'll be focusing more on showing why i think mike is also queer and in love with will.