Stranger Things 2 > Stranger Things
May be recency bias, but it doesn’t really matter because the show is nearly perfect.
Dickhead Billy is the new Red Ranger in the Saban Power Rangers reboot via film franchise. Dacre Montgomery. As a 90’s kid who watch MMPR every day after school, I approve. He was cast to be the “leader,” and fills the role in a good but different way. The franchise is grown up, just like the kids who were watching it in the 90’s. I recommend it just for the experience if you have any familiarity or experience with MMPR. But even if you don’t, it’s really just an entertaining film. My wife loved it, and she never watched MMPR growing up.
Back to Stranger Things 2:
SPOILERS
Fuck yeah Steve Harrington. Superior character development, and a well-executed u-turn from what we thought he was. In season one, he was a borderline-shithead and horndog, as is expected for BMOC. In Season 2, he’s clearly seen some things, and it changes him for the better as more responsibility is put on his shoulders with each episode. Good shit.
Max and the struggle for her relation/inclusion with the group was also handled perfectly. These kids are dealing with end-of-the-world shit... but they ARE still kids. The conflict surrounding her character felt natural, despite the big picture stuff happening around them.
Episode 7 was useful for showing Eleven what she needs to be, but I thought it was setting up for a grand “Love > Hate” reveal, where she would try to close the gate with her hate flashbacks, it wouldn’t work, and then she’d need to recall her new, feel-good memories of Mike and Hopper to do it. Missed a big opportunity there, but maybe that’s JK Rowling’s fault for stealing that mechanism via the way Patronus spells work. Instead, it felt like ep7 was just setting up a weak Lost Boys reboot in the future.
Hopper is that dude.
God bless Bob/Rudy/Samwise.
Thought for sure the doctor getting bit was gonna set up a cliffhanger where he was a new gate for the Upside Down.
What did that final frame mean? Shadow Bro is just watching and waiting directly over/under them?
