Steve Harrington's Babysitter Club

Best of 2022: Characters feature spoilers for various shows. Please be advised if there’s something you don’t want to know.

2022 has been one of the strongest years for character journeys and TV shows. We thought we were in peak TV season last year, but by the time December hit, we were swamped with too many to choose from and needed more time to write about them all. (Four more hours in the day would do wonders, wouldn’t it?) Therefore, this year, we chose the characters we thought about the most—the ones we cried most about and adored through everything.

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We’ve talked about how Steve Harrington gives the love he’s never received, but now we need to talk in length about what his vision for the future represents and what it shows about his character. Steve Harrington is many things, but beyond his luscious, uber-cool (ridiculous) persona is a boy whose dreams of a simple life showcase what he’s missing. Steve doesn’t know how not to give, and he doesn’t know how to step back even when his life is at risk. “I still have hope,” he tells Robin later in the episode—hope for a future, survival, and for something greater than the circumstances at this very moment.

He has hope for a “full brood of Harringtons…like five/six kids. […] Yeah. Six little nuggets.” He has hopes to “just see the country” and to “learn how to surf or something.” But it’s that or something I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since Stranger Things Season 4, Episode 8 “Papa” aired. Because “or something” implies that there’s still plenty in him he’s bursting to talk to someone about. It’s so easy to share this moment with Nancy, not because he’s still pining after her, but because during this quiet drive, it’s the one thing genuinely consuming him—the hope for something bigger. This moment, strangely, reminds me of Taylor Swift’s “august.”

Continue Reading

We’ve talked about how Steve Harrington gives the love he’s never received, but now we need to talk in length about what his vision for the future represents and what it shows about his character. Steve Harrington is many things, but beyond his luscious, uber-cool (ridiculous) persona is a boy whose dreams of a simple life showcase what he’s missing. Steve doesn’t know how not to give, and he doesn’t know how to step back even when his life is at risk. “I still have hope,” he tells Robin later in the episode—hope for a future, survival, and for something greater than the circumstances at this very moment.

He has hope for a “full brood of Harringtons…like five/six kids. […] Yeah. Six little nuggets.” He has hopes to “just see the country” and to “learn how to surf or something.” But it’s that or something I haven’t been able to stop thinking about since Stranger Things Season 4, Episode 8 “Papa” aired. Because “or something” implies that there’s still plenty in him he’s bursting to talk to someone about. It’s so easy to share this moment with Nancy, not because he’s still pining after her, but because during this quiet drive, it’s the one thing genuinely consuming him—the hope for something bigger. This moment, strangely, reminds me of Taylor Swift’s “august.”

Continue Reading

There’s a plethora concerning Stranger Things’ Steve Harrington’s past that we still don’t know about, but one thing’s been reaching the shore since day one—the amount of love he’s capable of giving. Where does that immense compassion come from, and how much of it do some people truly deserve? There are reasons he’s been the fan-favorite character throughout the show’s run, and a lot boils down to the sense of safety his character’s presence evokes even while we’re all tirelessly on edge while fearing for his fictional life.

In examining his desires to love, it’s imperative to look into the moment in Season 1 when he goes over to help remove the cruel words written on the theater marquee. There’s something about Joe Keery‘s line delivery here that hits like a ton of bricks while showing us that though Steve doesn’t really know how to be of use, he just wants to help. He wants to do something that’ll benefit someone else. He wants to make lives more accessible, especially for those he’s hurt in his selfishness. Now, while we don’t know concrete details about his parents other than that his father is a “grade-A asshole,” we can be sure that there’s a significant amount of love lacking in Steve’s life. We see this rather evidently in the first season based on his behavior and approach to everything, but especially in how his growth later leads to exhibiting the parental-like adoration that’s inherently missing in his life.

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Like the rest of the world, I binged Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 of Stranger Things 4 separately in a single afternoon. Stranger Things 4 was worth the wait and then some, providing standout performances and excellent reveals that raise the stakes for the fifth and final season. Not to mention, as a shipper, there were some peak moments for couples such as Joyce and Hopper, Mike and Eleven, Will and Mike, and even Steve and Nancy. While I may still be holding on to the mere minutes we had of Jonathan and Nancy this season, there’s one couple that never got to take off, but their brief scenes together have stayed with me for weeks. Of course, I’m talking about Eddie Munson and Chrissy Cunningham.

Some ships are like certain relationships — some that you connect with instantly, others a slow burn. Some ships don’t land until a single moment that changes everything, such as it was for me when it came to Eddie and Chrissy. Don’t get me wrong — the chemistry between Joseph Quinn and Grace Van Dien was definitely there in that scene in the woods (I’ll circle back to it, I promise!). However, the nature of Stranger Things made it hard for me to latch onto them because, in the back of my mind, I knew Chrissy was doomed from the start. In the words of Taylor Swift, I’ve seen this film before. From the moment she was seen holding herself as she walked away from Dr. Kelly’s office, it felt inevitable that she would be one of the first victims of whatever creature was being introduced from the Upside Down this season. Not to mention, at the time, she was in a relationship with the basketball captain, Jason Carver. As it turns out, she was indeed Vecna’s first victim — she didn’t even make it past the season premiere.

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Some fans have been rooting for Stranger Things’ Joyce Byers and Jim Hopper (Jopper) to get together from the first season, and others saw the appeal later. Both of which are entirely justified, and the beauty in the relationship comes from various angles. Taylor Swift must’ve written “This Love” for them because this love is alive back from the dead; these hands had to let it go free; this love came back to me. But that’s a winding way of saying that establishing a solid partnership in the face of all hell breaking loose and taking on everything as a team makes Jopper the beacon of hope everyone in Hawkins could look towards. 

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+ the one time he actually was stealthy like a ninja

Stranger Things’ Season 4 finale, “The Piggyback,” is an emotionally packed episode for many reasons, but particularly for how it portrays the fears and heartaches that follow grief. “I kept it open. I kept the door open three inches,” Eleven says, crying in the hands of the father she didn’t expect to see ever again.

It’s heartfelt and poignant, allowing Millie Bobby Brown to bring some of her best performances to our screens, but it’s also what it exhibits for those of us who’ve lost someone. I imagine that those who’ve lost have similar things they’d like to say to their loved ones who’ve passed. Whether they’ve told us to do something specific or, like me, your father inspired you to be the writer that you are, we all hope for reunions in Heaven, don’t we? Or, perhaps it’s a simple yet achingly profound “I miss you”—or even an “I love you.” Whatever those words, they’re personal and matter tremendously just as much as Eleven’s does.

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There’s a plethora concerning Stranger Things’ Steve Harrington’s past that we still don’t know about, but one thing’s been reaching the shore since day one—the amount of love he’s capable of giving. Where does that immense compassion come from, and how much of it do some people truly deserve? There are reasons he’s been the fan-favorite character throughout the show’s run, and a lot boils down to the sense of safety his character’s presence evokes even while we’re all tirelessly on edge while fearing for his fictional life.

In examining his desires to love, it’s imperative to look into the moment in Season 1 when he goes over to help remove the cruel words written on the theater marquee. There’s something about Joe Keery‘s line delivery here that hits like a ton of bricks while showing us that though Steve doesn’t really know how to be of use, he just wants to help. He wants to do something that’ll benefit someone else. He wants to make lives more accessible, especially for those he’s hurt in his selfishness. Now, while we don’t know concrete details about his parents other than that his father is a “grade-A asshole,” we can be sure that there’s a significant amount of love lacking in Steve’s life. We see this rather evidently in the first season based on his behavior and approach to everything, but especially in how his growth later leads to exhibiting the parental-like adoration that’s inherently missing in his life.

Continue Reading

The guest stars on Stranger Things leave an impact I’ve not seen on any other show. It’s not often that the death of a character you’ve only known for about five minutes ends up being a slogan for every piece of merchandise or the trending topic on Twitter for what feels like ages. But Joseph Quinn’s Eddie Munson is different, and it’s why his death hurts the most.

We don’t know much about Eddie, not in the traditional sense, at least. Still, Eddie Munson feels like a character anyone could be friends with, no matter who they are or what they stand for. His innate kindness glistens through any chance he’s given to be his most authentic, and his compassion is rooted in his own unique excitement for all that he loves. Outside of his friendship with Dustin and everyone else, it’s how seamlessly he fits in with the core group that creates something unique. Eddie is on the same wavelength or whatever imperfections they all live through, allowing his own flaws to be a part of the grand mosaic.

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Stranger Things Season 4, split into two parts, is a monstrosity of a return and full of faults, but it’s a thoughtful and thrilling penultimate, nevertheless. In the show’s fourth season, the Duffer Brothers put the characters through one wringer after another, bringing answers to our screens through lengthy excavations that at times feel overbearing. Still, while I won’t be rewatching the entirety of the season from the beginning solely because of the length, there’s no denying that the foundation of this season explores some of the show’s strongest arcs. With just one more season left to conclude this particular descend into the upside-down, the stakes are higher than ever, but the series’ heart continues to beat within the friendships.

The penultimate season indeed has a gripping plot, but this detail is far from its strength. Instead, that strength lies in the characters, and in a season that saw more separations than ever before along with mixtures of various storylines interweaving as best as they could, it’s in the love that the characters share where we could find the most intriguing layers. In more ways than one, the entire series is a love letter to friendships, and Season 4 is principally a gratifying ode to the relationships that shape us—the pieces of ourselves that ground us when we’re lost.

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Steve Harrington aka protective older brother and/or mama bear ↳ requested by anonymous + bonus

Stranger Things Season 4 is a wild, unexplainable ride in more ways than one, but friendships are still the crux of the series, especially in Chapter 4: “Dear Billy,” where Sadie Sink shines brilliantly. Where victims of Vecna aren’t able to avoid their death, Max Mayfield comes close to succumbing but survives by virtue of her favorite song, Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill,” and the friends pushing through for her.

Sadie Sink is the season’s top performer, and this episode showcases all the reasons why. In truth, Billy shouldn’t be canonized, and his father shouldn’t be sympathized with, but Max does so through a series of letters—for no one, ultimately, but herself. If she believes she’s going to die, then she has an advantage no other victim of Vecna’s did—the chance to say goodbye. Except that’s not thankfully not in the cards for her, and the friendships she’s fortified since moving to Hawkins (along with music) prove that there’s strength in the things we choose to love.

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every stranger things just starts with joyce having a theory and no one believing her, despite her being correct. maybe it’s time y’all start trusting this woman smh