The argument that Mike and Will ending up together is unrealistic completely misses the point of the show

I've seen so many people say that the Duffer Brothers are portraying a classic story for a young gay boy in the 80's. The argument usually goes "it's a realistic and common experience for a gay teenager to fall in love with his straight best friend especially in the 80's and be rejected."

My brother in christ have you not watched the show? Every single character is a subversion of the stereotype they are supposed to feed into in the 80's. This show does not follow the classic and common experiences.

Nancy - Supposed to be the "normal" suburban popular girl who ends up with the popular guy, but is more competent at detective work and shooting a gun than her male counterparts. She also ends up with "the creep".

Steve - Popular "normal" guy who then redeems himself after getting the shit beat out of him by the "creep". Becomes close friends with a bunch of nerds and is a great babysitter lol.

Will - Seen as weak because he is a gay, sensitive boy but he's actually really strong. He survived the upside down and the monsters multiple times. He can shoot a gun. Likes punk rock and playing DnD with the guys rather than hanging with the girls.

Joyce - A single mum who is seen as crazy and a bad mum. She's amazingly observant, smart, determined and strong and probably has the closest relationship with her kids.

These are just a few examples but you see my point? All of these characters are introduced as stereotypes but the Duffer Brothers turn them on their heads because actually in the real world, there is no normal. People are complex. Society tries to force them into a box but there has always been people who don't fit the mould. They are seen as outliers but these outliers are actually your neighbours and your friends. They are everywhere.

People are saying it would be weird for Mike Wheeler to come out as gay when he has presented as straight and in love with a girl for 4 seasons. They say that Will's storyline of rejection from Mike is a common one many have experienced. Yes, if we stick to the stereotype of the typical straight 80's man a d typical queer person in the 80's then sure, but we know the Duffer Brothers don't write their characters to be typical. Why would they suddenly keep a character in line with their stereotype?

Forget about what you think is realistic. Name a stronger subversion of a stereotype than a typical "straight" guy falling in love with his gay best friend. Because that situation did happen in the 80's, more often than people realise. Queer people are everywhere, because there is no "normal" type of queer person. You're not going to see the signs that Mike is gay or bi because you're looking for the stereotypical signs.

This is why I love Stranger Things. I have great pattern recognition and can often predict how shows will end because I look for the classic signs. The Duffer Brothers constantly surprise me with the plot because they do the opposite of classic.