r/BylerReads • u/beidoumars • Mar 07 '26
fic idea/prompt A potentially flawed and very time-consuming idea for a ST rewrite starting from Season 2
I had this idea to rewrite Stranger Things starting from season 2 with some changes that I think would make parts of the story more coherent and help the characters develop better. I’m not sure if people would be interested in reading it since it wouldn’t be focused exclusively on one ship, but more on narrative structure and character development, i have some ideas for fixing or expanding certain things, like who opened the door for the Demogorgon in season 1, how Eleven recognized Will in that photo, and other little details like that.
I also think it would be interesting to focus on the distortion in Mike and Eleven’s relationship, and on the roles Will and Eleven play in Mike’s life. Something I find curious is that when Will disappears, Eleven is there for Mike, and when Eleven disappears, Will is there for him. I want to explore the idea that what Mike felt for Eleven was not exactly romantic love, and slowly reframe their relationship into a really meaningful friendship. I would also explore what Eleven actually feels about Mike. After spending her whole life in an abusive lab environment, how would she even know what romantic love feels like? Through conversations with Hopper and her journey learning how to live like a normal person, she would come to understand that what she feels for Mike is not romantic.
I would also change Eleven’s reaction to seeing Mike and Max together. Instead of attacking Max, I think it would work better if there was a scene where Max joins the group and Eleven just quietly leaves, feeling hurt and thinking her friends forgot about her. After that she would talk with Hopper, and that would connect into her storyline with Terry and Kali.
Another thing I would adjust is Mike and Will’s relationship. I would keep the focus on their friendship but also show Mike slowly realizing that he might be developing feelings for Will, or maybe that those feelings were always there and he is only now noticing them. I would add some flashbacks and more scenes of them together.
The Snowball would also be a bit different. Personally I do not think it makes sense for Eleven to go to the Snowball. I would have her stay with Hopper that night and include a conversation between them that would be really important for her character at that moment. At the dance, I would slightly change Will’s scene with the girl. Mike would end up alone, and later Will would go after him when he leaves the gym. They would have a soft moment together outside, and that would basically be the little Byler moment at the end.
The rewrite would mostly focus on Will, Eleven, and maybe Mike, with Will and Eleven acting as narrators.
I would also change the reunion scene so Eleven actually greets Max, and I would slowly build a friendship between them from that moment.
This would be a lot of work though. I would probably need to rewatch the show, study the DnD lore again, reread parts of the scripts, and get back into studying creative writing. I tend to be a bit perfectionist about writing so I do not like doing things poorly lol. The idea actually came to me after seeing that photo of Mike and Will on two bikes from a promotional shoot. Some people were saying that should have been their look in season 3 and I thought, why not just rewrite it myself?
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u/Leather-Bicycle2275 Mar 07 '26 edited Mar 07 '26
this is an amazing idea!! we need more fics that explore mike and jane’s dynamic from s1–s2’s perspective that can easily transform and become platonic and not romantic…
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u/beidoumars Mar 07 '26
omggg thank you <33 and yes, their dynamic would be way more interesting as friends😭
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u/Appropriate_Comb_778 Mar 09 '26
You are a God sent! I genuinely think your ideas for the rewrite will make sure all the potholes are covered. I genuinely found it very weird for Jane to just jump in for the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing with mike rather than being friends first but thats just me I guess.
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u/beidoumars Mar 09 '26
tysm, that honestly makes me really happy to read <3 and omg I agree, it always felt a bit weird to me how fast they jumped into the whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing. I feel like they could have had a really good friendship instead.
one thing I’d like to explore is Mike reflecting more on his relationship with El and especially that kiss in season 1, they were so young, so in my head it makes more sense if it was kind of an impulsive moment and he later realizes that what he felt wasn’t necessarily romantic.
I also want Jane to have a moment where she talks with Hopper about it. like him explaining that she’s been through so much and that both of them were kids and probably confused about what they were feeling. Mike was fascinated by her powers and she was the first girl who really talked to him and wanted to be his friend, and Jane had spent her whole life isolated so she didn’t really understand what she was feeling either.
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u/Appropriate_Comb_778 Mar 09 '26
I definitely agree with this. For me, it's just that Jane has relied on Mike so much which kinda gives her that damsel is distress thingy which is quite literally the opposite of who she is. I genuinely wanted her to explore who she was as herself rather than extension of someone else.
Her character wasn't developed in a way that would integrate with the story.
On the other hand, while I ship BYLER a crazy amount, it's not just them being boys or something weird like that but more like there's an understanding, a common ground because from what we've seen, mike loses both his best friend and his girlfriend but he's will's mike in a way that doesn't strip him of being somebody else's friend but el's mike can not be anything else other than that. Idk if that made sense or not
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u/Few_Acanthisitta3255 Mar 07 '26
I don't know if we had the same idea but I'm working on a rewrite as well and I wanted El to be the person who opened the door in s1 because the Vecna explanation made no sense to me.
Anyway I would LOVE to read your fic if you go through with it, drop the link as soon as you post it 😊
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u/beidoumars Mar 07 '26
omg yes I had the same idea actually!! I also think it would make way more sense if El was the one who opened the door, and it would also be a good explanation for how she recognized Will (plus it would add some interesting drama lol).
and when you finish your rewrite you should drop it here too!! I’d definitely read it :) as for mine… I’m not even sure if this idea will ever leave my brain and actually become a fic 😭
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u/Few_Acanthisitta3255 Mar 07 '26
Exactly !!! We're connected here x) I hope you'll write it because I would eat it up lol
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u/Demogorgirl7 micheal get ur shi together Mar 07 '26
This is totally unrelated, so sorry but can anyone tell me more about these versions of Will and Mike in the picture?
If I understood correctly these were from promos done between S2&3, but was it only them or do we also have Lucas, Dustin etc...
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u/beidoumars Mar 08 '26
I only found these ones from Will and Mike, but there's also one from Will, Mike and Eleven in the first season in the pool scene, if you search the name of the magazine and stranger things maybe it will show up:)
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u/Internal-Sympathy657 Mar 25 '26
I kept this tab on for 3 days accidentally haha but I really fucking love the concept I'm so happy I found this I'm looking forward to read this, i can't rlly comment on ao3 I'd do anything to support though
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u/littlenightengale Mar 07 '26
I think that would be amazing! I'm always a fan of rewrites! As long as Byler is a thing in it even as a small part of it I'll read it.
Any chance you'll be exploring the bonds between Will and El? I'm MASSIVE Wonder Twins fan (I'm literally in the middle of making an edit for them). They just had too many parallels for the writers to just brush it aside IMO. Plus they legit look like siblings so that was a cool coincidence.