Stranger Things: Nancy's 5 Best Traits (& 5 Worst)

As one of the main characters of Netflix's hit show, Stranger Things, Nancy Wheeler goes through a lot. Take away the supernatural element of the series, and she's still dealing with a lot of the tumultuousness surrounding adolescence. In season 1, not only is she worried about her best friend's livelihood, but she's in a relationship she isn't sure she wants and is exploring friendships with different kinds of people.

As she goes on many adventures with the kids and investigates the circumstances surrounding Barb's death, Nancy's true character is revealed. She proves herself to be tenacious, loyal, caring, and persistent. But Nancy also has a darker side. She's often unsure of what she really believes in or what she should do, which likely stems from her self-consciousness.

10. BEST: Intuition

Nancy is one of the smartest students in her year, but even without textbooks and memorization, she's exceptionally clever and intuitive. She plays a huge part in solving the mystery of what happened to Barb, and in season 2, she leads the investigation into Hawkins Lab.

She continues playing detective in season 3, with Mrs. Driscoll and the rats. All in all, Nancy's intuition picks up on some important clues and helps her keep her loved ones safe.

9. WORST: Indecision

Nancy is still growing up and deciding what kind of person she wants to be, so it's natural for her to be indecisive and fickle at times. However, sometimes her indecisiveness hurts other people.

For instance, she can't choose between staying with Barb and being with Steve and later can't decide between Jonathan and Steve. In both instances, one or more people were hurt emotionally and physically. Nancy shouldn't bear all of the blame herself, but she's still responsible, in part.

8. BEST: Drive

From the first season, Nancy is highly independent and doesn't need other people to guide her. In fact, she prefers to work in solitude. She makes up her own mind to try and find Barb and decides for herself to look into the lab and the rats in later seasons.

Thanks to her quick thinking, she is able to help the others solve the mysteries in Hawkins much quicker. It's also the reason she doesn't do too well in a relationship with Steve and doesn't like friends like Tommy and Carol.

7. WORST: Dishonesty

Like many teenagers, Nancy doesn't tell the whole truth all of the time. She hides things from her family, especially her mother when she could be asking her for support. Karen only wants the best for her daughter, but instead, Nancy hides things from her and makes Karen feel bad about herself.

Nancy doesn't confide in anyone about her doubts about Steve, or how she feels about Jonathan, or even her suspicions about Barb. In all of these cases, Nancy could have found comfort and advice, and even improved her relationship with other people.

6. BEST: Ambition

One thing that Nancy is most known for her is her strong ambition. She will stop at nothing to achieve what she wants - and she wants a lot. She's just a girl from a small town who has big dreams.

Nancy's ambition is so strong, in fact, that she ends up roping other characters into her plans, mostly Jonathan. Even he doubts her sometimes, but she knows that what she's fighting for - justice for Barb, for instance - is worth it.

5. WORST: Self-Consciousness

Nancy may be an inspiring character who viewers look up to, but sometimes she doesn't have the best opinion of herself. She constantly brushes off compliments and praise, even when she deserves it.

She also doesn't seem to feel comfortable in her own body, at least in the first season, but she later seems to realize her self-worth as a person. In season 3, she even starts to believe what the men at the Post tell her, but as soon as she talks to her mom, she realizes how silly that notion is.

4. BEST: Tenacity

Not only does Nancy know exactly what she wants, but she will not stop until she gets it. Even when she takes a wrong turn in her investigations, Nancy finds a way to bounce back and try again.

Nancy is never one to give up, and for this reason, she never actually fails in what she sets out to do. Sometimes, her snooping takes longer than expected, but her determination and tenacity always get her the results she's after.

3. WORST: Self-Centeredness

Interestingly, Nancy can be quite self-centered a lot of the time. At the surface level, she seems to be very kind, considerate, and helpful - she is worried about Barb's safety and will risk her own to seek justice. She also displays concern about Jonathan when Will is missing.

However, in most cases, Nancy is really only operating for her own self-satisfaction. In going to see Barb's parents after her death, Nancy convinces herself that she's at least doing something that might make her feel less guilty. Nancy is so wrapped up in her own troubles that she often fails to notice what others are going through.

2. BEST: Courage

For such a timid person, Nancy has a lot of hidden courage. She acknowledges that she is afraid of a particular situation, but will put her fear aside and do what is necessary at the moment.

In later seasons, she even proves herself to be a leader in dangerous situations. She becomes very concerned about protecting the kids, even risking her own life to delay Billy outside of the mall while the Mind Flayer approaches.

1. WORST: Impressionability

One of Nancy's greatest weaknesses is how easily impressionable she is. In season 1, she quickly transforms into the person she thinks Steve wants her to be. Even though this is an act, she starts agreeing with some of their ideas and refuses to see the truth about Jonathan, for example.

But when she's with Jonathan, she's also easily impressionable. She allows him to sway her, even if it's momentarily. Whoever Nancy is with, she seems to adjust her behavior to fit in. Of course, this is natural for a girl of her age, but it causes some unnecessary drama within her circle of friends.

[Originally shared with ScreenRant]