This post is more akin to an article built upon a great deal of time and research. If you are not one who cares for reading, don’t! I do not wish for comments such as “Way to long, ha ha ha,” or “I started to read this, then got bored!” Such comments are shallow, tactless, and improper in this fandom. Mike and the others conducted ten plus hour campaigns; do you have the ability to read for a number of minutes?
At the conclusion of S2:E1:C1 “MAD MAX” Hopper knocked on the cabin door (.. — ...) “Us” so that El would know that he was home. Thank you to our fellow fans at reddit and elsewhere.
During S2:E8:C8 “The Mind Flayer” as Will was undergoing the interrogation/remembrance session in the altered shed from Season One Hopper realized that Will was tapping out Morse code rather like POWs did in the prisons of North Vietnam. The first code tapped as Hopper’s eyes widened seemed to be (.... — —) ‘HM.’
The next code was (.... . .—. .) ‘HERE,’ written shortly after on an envelope.
The last code was (—.—. .—.. — — — ... . — —. . — — .) ‘CLOSEGATE.’ That code moved Season Two’s plot forward to El’s awesome display of power and lovely, beautiful respite while attending the HMS Snow Ball.
However, there is a ciphered message in Will’s code that begins to reveal the greater story arc of Stranger Things.
First ‘CLOSEGATE’ must be written backwards, ‘ETAGESOLC.’ Next, one now must employ a Vigenere cipher variant that runs a key above the cipher text. The Morse code messages from Season Two provide the key, though they must be adjusted slightly. The key will begin with ‘HM,’ the first code tapped by Will. Next, a homophone of ‘HERE,’ HEAR’ will be added. Next, the code ‘US’ tapped out by Hopper will be added, though in reverse as ‘SU.’ At this point the key is ‘HMHEARSU.’ The key is one letter short of the cipher text, but thanks to stranger writers and the presence of Latin American hint drops the knowledge that in a number of Spanish speaking countries a child may bear the surname of both their mother and father.

A great deal of attention is given to the name MAD MAX beginning in Season Two and continuing through Season Three (M&Ms, different species, etc.). I do not state any possible implications of this aspect of the key at this time. Yet, though the pattern is slightly altered what about Maxine Hargrove Mayfield? By adding an ‘M’ to the front of the key the proper length of nine letters is achieved. The next step is to use a tabula recta (alphabet table, akin to Lewis Carol’s) to decipher the cipher text into plain text by looking to the left side of the alphabet table to locate the first letter of the key ‘M’ and proceed right along the row until the first letter of the cipher text is located, at which time one moves up to the letter at the top of the column thereby revealing the plain text ‘s.’ Continue this process.
MHMHEARSU - Key
ETAGESOLC - Cipher text
smogasxit - Plain text
When separated by word and reversed in position the resulting plain text may be read as “xit as smog.” The use of ‘X’ was established in Season One in regard to Joyce’s lights.
It seems as if the Mind Flayer communicated a message to the portion of its presence in Will as we perceived that Will communicated CLOSEGATE to his family and friends.
By placing the plain text in a slightly altered position one may read ‘itsmogasx,’ or “Its smog, gas, sx.” I will avoid the myriad interpretations of the phrase’s meaning save for one. Sx. If S is interpreted as the symbol for Sulfur then the x in lower position may be viewed as a portion of a specific type of Lower sulfur oxide. These oxides may be generated in a number of ways, though volcanism is a well known cause. This may be a reason why the boys’ Science Fair project was a heavily used theme so often seen in film and television.
“The lower sulfur oxides are a group of inorganic compounds with the formula SmOn, where m > 2n. These species are often unstable and thus rarely encountered in everyday life. They are significant intermediates in the combustion of elemental sulfur.[1] Some well characterized examples include sulfur monoxide (SO), its dimer S2O2, and a series of cyclic sulfur oxides, SnOx (x = 1, 2), based on cyclic Sn rings.” - Wikipedia
The structure SnOx as a variable sulfur oxide is visually similar to the spelling of Snow.
Sulfur dioxide is very problematic. According to the USGS “When SO2 is injected into the atmosphere, it quickly forms potentially hazardous sulfate areosols. They can cause respiratory problems to people downwind of a volcanic plume (e.g VOG—volcanic smog). If injected into the upper atmosphere (stratosphere), they can cool the climate for years by reflecting incident sunlight back to space.”
The younger cast of our beloved Series attended the Snow Ball indeed. Perhaps the entire cast is in such a position. Many references are made to ghosts, breathing, dreaming, perception, and all the other topics you know so well as fans. Consider these ideas for yourself. Perhaps by employing different skill sets we may perceive the TEMPEST as Eleven did in Season Three and take advantage on the three inch opening of the door.
There is more to come. I’ve been working with my son to build a skill set that will allow for more substance upon which to build theories.
If you care to initiate a meaningful discussion please comment, pose questions, or offer aid below.
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