People Are Having Fun Online With This ‘Stranger Things’ Season 5 Vol. 2 Scene
For more than nine years, Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) survived interdimensional kidnapping, psychic possession, and a bowl cut that haunted him well into his teenage years.
But nothing, and I mean absolutely nothing, could prepare him for the moment he finally decided to bare his soul in Stranger Things Season 5 Volume 2, and the response has been, for lack of a better word, cosmically unserious and utterly merciless.
The Christmas Day episodes, comprising the final season’s second volume, ended with Will’s long-anticipated coming out scene. Yes, our Will Byers — formerly a passionate D&D player, currently a sorcerer with the ability to teach Vecna a lesson or two about humility — finally confirmed what most of us had suspected since those early seasons.
And you’d think the internet would respond with the solemnity and restraint it’s so famously known for. That people would wipe a tear, sit with the moment, maybe draft a thoughtful thread or two.
Well, no. The memes arrived before most people had finished their eggnog. Noah Schnapp’s tearful confession in the final moments of episode 7 has been sliced, edited, and remixed into every meme format imaginable.
Did Will really have to gather everyone for this confession? The timing has drawn particular attention, given the fact that our protagonist chose to unburden his heart as a supervillain with the power to slam an entire alien world into our own and bring about a twisted Upside Down-y apocalypse was, uh, actively in the middle of doing just that.
Not everyone finds the scene or the way it played out hilarious. Some fans are of the opinion that queer people deserve love, not just acceptance. The Duffers could’ve at least tried to write a more impactful scene. Or better yet, place it somewhere that actually resonates with audiences, instead of a last-minute press conference before the trip to the Upside Down.
The internet is certainly having its fun with the scene. And honestly? Fair enough. This is what fandoms do. They chew on big moments and spit out something that feels like collective ownership, for better or for worse. As long as we skip past the crowd parroting ‘woke mind virus’ every time a character so much as expresses a controversial opinion onscreen, all because a billionaire who treats tax evasion like a competitive sport told them to be upset.
The Stranger Things series finale, titled “Chapter Eight: The Rightside Up,” is hitting Netflix on New Year’s Eve at 5 pm PT and 8 pm ET.
(featured image: Netflix)
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