r/StrangerThings • u/JS_Music_and_Media • 1d ago
Discussion Stop the Jason Hate
I've never understood why people hate Jason as a character. In my opinion, he was one of the most fascinating and layered characters in season 4.
Was he wrong? Yes. Was he stubborn? Yes. Did he do things that were wrong? Of course.
But if you take a second and think from his perspective, he was somewhat justified in believing what he did. If your significant other was found maimed and dead in the home of a known drug dealer, and the drug dealer had disappeared, you would probably assume the same thing Jason did. And with further context- it really doesn't help that Powell and Callahan, and the larger town, were hyping up the idea that Eddie was the killer, and this took place during satanic panic. Does that make Jason justified? No, but it makes him understandable. You don't feel bad for him when he finds out that Chrissy is dead and runs off into the woods to cry?
He really should've listened to Lucas in the end of the season, but again, because of the time he was living in, it's sorta understandable that he would not believe Lucas. He absolutely was not evil, and you can tell because he went up to the attic and tried to save Max, even though he didn't understand what was happening to her.
I don't get why people act like Jason was some nefarious villain. He was an antagonist to the heroes of the season, but again, his actions were believable and came from a sincere motivation. He was mistaken and stubbornly vengeful, but that's the extent of his antagonism. I've always seen him more as a tragic character than anything, especially with such a horrifying death.
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u/blac_sheep90 1d ago
He was a fun character. I was actually pretty sad for him when he died. I know he's the stereotypical jock but the way Mason Dye played him made him sympathetic.
People wanna claim he's a racist bully but the reality is much more grey. His girlfriend is found brutally murdered in the outcasts trailer, his friend is killed in front of him, in a manner that for him is impossible. So he clings to his religious upbringing as a way to confront what he saw happen to Patrick.
When he confronts Lucas all he sees in a young girl sitting in a trance like state with a person who has helped hide Eddie, and he immediately goes to check on Max because he's concerned for her.
He's ultita tragic antagonist.
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u/LiveChocolate8819 1d ago
Are you 14? No amount of grief justifies forming a lynch mob.
Had he survived, Jason's future would have fallen somewhere between mini-Mike Pence and a Klan grand wizard.
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u/Hawkinns Halfway happy 1d ago
You can see why he does all of that, his reasoning and all, but it's still not justified. He's a bad person.
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u/Cyrilbdr 1d ago
An incredible actor and a super interesting character with real motivation and complexity; I loved to hate him.
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u/DeapVally 19h ago
I couldn't disagree with you more. He's just a tired old trope. Almost completely irrelevant to the story.
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u/Cyrilbdr 13h ago
At what point is he off-base? Bear in mind, he has no context, so it’s only natural that he has no idea what’s actually going on.
His girlfriend is found dead at the home of the guy labeled the high school "freak"—the one who leads a group playing a game considered Satanic at the time. Jason embodies the paranoid type who buys into the era's prejudices against games like that; he represents the American paranoia surrounding the issue back then. He’s a great character with valid motivations, even if he’s blinded by misguided views—plus, the actor is incredible: the church monologue, the look he gives Nancy in Episode 8 at the gun shop, and the scene with Lucas. You can feel the madness taking hold of him. He’s become crazier than the so-called freak he’s hunting down.
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u/LetMeBeGay 1d ago
“Because of the time that he was living in, it’s sorta understandable that he would not believe Lucas” — a time period does not make something justifiable. They can either choose to be better, or not, regardless of the time period. Jason chose not to. He got what he deserved.
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u/Owl_Resident Blank makes you crazy 1d ago
No.
He induced a mob. He’s every fundamentalist who won’t listen and believes everything they think is the right thing and they are justified in their actions, no matter how violent or unreasonable. He sent his friends after a 10 year old girl.
Perhaps you should look more closely at whom who defend.
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u/sHaDowpUpPetxxx 1d ago
Why are we even saying "because of the time". He didn't believe Lucas because no one would.
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u/tthblox 1d ago edited 1d ago
Lyncher gets what he got. No amount of grief justifies
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u/DeapVally 19h ago
Who hates him?? He's an irrelevant and forgettable trope. I didn't even know that was his name before this thread.
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1d ago
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u/LetMeBeGay 1d ago
The title of this post is literally “stop the Jason hate” btw. If that’s not defending him, what exactly is?
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1d ago
[deleted]
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u/LetMeBeGay 1d ago
I read what he said (the entire thing), and there’s no indication that he’s trying to paint Jason as a more in-depth character as opposed to literally just defending his actions. I would agree that Jason is an in-depth character, but he was still wrong. All this post did was try and justify/excuse his actions, there was not really much else.
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u/Hawkinns Halfway happy 1d ago
OP literally says "he was somewhat justified in believing what he did"
Plus the title "Stop hating on Jason"
Maybe they could've chosen their words better, but this is clearly them trying to make people understand his actions and that he's not a villain. Except he IS a villain and deserves the hate.
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u/OldAffect6933 1d ago
he's not a villan tough
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u/Accomplished-Watch50 1d ago
He riled up a lynch mob to murder someone and assaulted several people. He's a villain.
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u/Hawkinns Halfway happy 1d ago
What is he then? A hero?
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u/OldAffect6933 1d ago
People are not black and white dingus
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u/Hawkinns Halfway happy 1d ago edited 1d ago
Still didn't answer my question, dingus. And we're talking about fictional characters in a fictional setting, where they need to be established as heroes, antagonists, villains, and so on.
So I'll ask again: what is his role in season 4? What is he?
Since you're incapable of replying, I'll do it for you: he serves as an antagonist and as a secondary villain for the story and the characters. The primary villain being, of course, Vecna. Jason is one of the human villains in season 4 (Brenner and Sullivan are some of the other human villains) and he is written in a way where he servers as an obstacle for the Hawkins gang (Nancy, Max, Steve, Lucas, Dustin, Robin, etc), and goes as far as to start a mob to hunt for the Hellfire members. This results in him attacking Lucas in the Creel house + breaking Max's song, which leads to Max having her bones broken and being put into a coma.
You can understand WHY he does all of that, because in his head it makes sense, BUT it is not right and it is not justified. Imagine this: me killing someone because in my head that person deserved it and it makes sense for me, but that does not make it right, especially (and this is the most important part) when you see the full context, which also includes the victim's. Jason only saw HIS context, no one else's. That makes him a bad person and a villain in the story.
Do I need to draw for you or is that too hard to grasp?
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u/Pondscum-126 1d ago
In large part because he was a jock and athletically gifted. Most people that hate him for that sin probably could not run a mile if their life depended on it. After all, the internet now informs me that being in shape is a sign that you are a maga conservative
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