For science!
Stranger Things Season 2
- Thread starter The Nth Doctor
- Start date
I recommend checking out Beyond Stranger Things, the behind-the-scenes discussion show hosted by Jim Rash, where talks with the cast and crew (plus one surprise guest). In one of the episodes, the Duffer Brothers reveal that an early draft had Will killing Bob the Brain earlier in the season while under possession of the Mind Flayer.
Someone is trying way too hard: https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opini...udes-unfortunate-political-subtext-ncna815751
Seriously? The connection is there, but requires mental gymnastics to make, or even care about. Sometimes I hate living in 2017.
Seriously? The connection is there, but requires mental gymnastics to make, or even care about. Sometimes I hate living in 2017.
Was that Steve? I also liked when he called them "little shitheads" multiple times
There's not a story in the world that can't be twisted into something it's not. I'd say that some people just need to chill, but unfortunately I helped them by clicking over out of curiosity.
Now you all know the point of the article, you don't have to click over if you don't want to.
It was, and so did I. He quickly became a favorite character.Was that Steve? I also liked when he called them "little shitheads" multiple times
Season one recap if you need it:
Ha, that's awesome (aside from suffering Fallon)! Millie Bobby Brown raps pretty damn well.
Finished it last night, the last 10 minutes or so at the dance were just excellent. Awesome season 
I look forward to more but I'd be just as happy if it had all ended like that.
*ep 7 was a bit of a dud but I can live with it. Nothing against the actress whatsoever but also as Eleven for me is the part of the show I'm least interested in. I just prefer all the other characters.
*Also slightly contrived how Bob ran though those last doors and then just stood there looking at Joyce till he got chowed down. I was like "don't just stop, move!!"
Brilliant soundtrack choices too
I was hoping to see in the the "one month later" part if Billy got with Nancy's mom
I look forward to more but I'd be just as happy if it had all ended like that.*ep 7 was a bit of a dud but I can live with it. Nothing against the actress whatsoever but also as Eleven for me is the part of the show I'm least interested in. I just prefer all the other characters.
*Also slightly contrived how Bob ran though those last doors and then just stood there looking at Joyce till he got chowed down. I was like "don't just stop, move!!"
Brilliant soundtrack choices too
I was hoping to see in the the "one month later" part if Billy got with Nancy's mom
Yup, I mentioned it a couple of pages ago. I love it and I quickly completed the whole thing over a few days. I was a little disappointed that the season 2 update only added one level and a handful of goals. Still, it's a great treat.
Whew! Yeah, I agree, that article was totally and completely without merit. Mental gymnastics is right.
A
Amaris
Guest
What a great season. What a great show! The nostalgia factor is ginormous as it is, but this cast brings it all to life and makes me feel like they really shot this in some pocket of the 1980s. Anyway, love all the characters, I liked how they kept a strong, even narrative all the way through the season (easier, I guess, when you can film them all at once as one cohesive story), and I loved the ending with the dance. I gave this season an A+.
Putting my entire "review" of sorts in Spoiler Tags because I'm not sure if spoilers are expected in this thread, nor what's considered spoilers, and just want to provide a stream of consciousness thoughts and not have to segregate them.
I got done watching the season this morning and found it to be quite enjoyable and comparable to the other season though I would probably put Season 1 on top.
In the first seasons events seemed critical and building to something but here things seemed a little more laid back, of sorts. Nothing was urgent until the last couple of episodes.
I'm disappointed that Eleven was kept away from the boys for virtually the entire season.
The red haired girl (Max) didn't seem to add much other than filling a "role" in the group dynamics as the "girl to shake things up" and to create the "love triangle."
Her brother was even worse as the overly typical '80s douchebag villain with no depth. I was expecting it to go somewhere or mean something in the end, similar to Steve finding out what's going on at the end of the first season and joining in with the group, but, nope, he's just an asshole the entire time.
I really liked the relationship between Hopper and Eleven.
Ugh, the episode in Chicago was needless. When we're introduced to "Eight" at the beginning I thought she was going to play a big part in the season and tie into things. Nope. We meet her int he first few minutes of the season and then get a single episode dedicated to her. That's it. And it wasn't even all of that interesting or greatly connected to everything else going on. (Which Eleven is totally unaware of until she gets visions of what's going on.)
I would've put money down at the beginning the Sean Astin's character was somehow "in on it" or some tool of the government or something. Glad I didn't. I ended up really liking his character and everything he did, particularly in the end when he volunteers to reboot the system because he knows BASIC enough to run the computer programs. It's moments like this where the setting of the '80s works well where being "computer literate" was far less common. Today virtually anyone with the passwords and such would be able to access the computer and do what was needed, but since it's 1984 you needed someone who knew computers and who better than someone who works at Radio Shack?
Liked Winona Ryder much more in this season, it's understandable where her extreme crazy comes from int he first season but in this season she's got it more together and the "crazy" lengths she goes to feels more natural and progressive.
Liked the scene with Bob in the room with the "root sketches" and figuring out the path. I think the was the episode that made me realize he wasn't a plant or operative. When he was in the car telling Will to confront the demons in his dreams I was sure he was a plant trying to "study" what was going with Will and push him to limits.
Also expected Paul Reiser to be a corrupted, "evil" doctor of sorts in on this conspiracy and was pleased and surprised we didn't reuse the trope of the evil government conspiracy, he genuinely seemed to have the best aims in mind at the lab.
Still don't feel Steve, still to much of the '80s preppy douchebag for me, and having dealt with that a lot in my younger years that may prevent me from seeing him as anything else. Good moments with him and his interactions with the kids but there were still moments with him and Nancy where this seemed like a typical '80s movie where the girl ins interested in the preppy douchebag and not the "nerd" character and there's no clear reason why she's into the DB given the way he treats her.
Hopper is always great. He's very much the '80s cliche of the "everyman hero."
I liked the repeat again of the improvised methods to carry out tasks, like with the sensory deprivation tank in the first one, this one being the "interrogation room" and the heating out of the Mind Flayer. Also liked more use of the DnD references and how the kids even explained they know the book is just part of a game but that there's no other analogies to make for what is going on.
Given how she got into it at the end of the first season it seemed terribly "easy" for Eleven to get out of the Upsidedown. It seemed implied this was some-kind-of one-way trip or her ability to return was uncertain but she pretty much turns right around gets back into the real-world?
As someone who's played DnD it's usually less fun when you split the party and that, mostly, holds true here when the kid characters are all separated in several different locations and have to be plot-contrived back together.
Wish we'd gotten more of the science teacher with him playing a role in everything that's going on or giving the boys the information or hints they need on figuring thing out.
I did like the conspiracy theorist guy and the role he played in helping Nancy and the other kid to reveal what was going on to the media.
Season 1: A+
Season 2: A
In the first seasons events seemed critical and building to something but here things seemed a little more laid back, of sorts. Nothing was urgent until the last couple of episodes.
I'm disappointed that Eleven was kept away from the boys for virtually the entire season.
The red haired girl (Max) didn't seem to add much other than filling a "role" in the group dynamics as the "girl to shake things up" and to create the "love triangle."
Her brother was even worse as the overly typical '80s douchebag villain with no depth. I was expecting it to go somewhere or mean something in the end, similar to Steve finding out what's going on at the end of the first season and joining in with the group, but, nope, he's just an asshole the entire time.
I really liked the relationship between Hopper and Eleven.
Ugh, the episode in Chicago was needless. When we're introduced to "Eight" at the beginning I thought she was going to play a big part in the season and tie into things. Nope. We meet her int he first few minutes of the season and then get a single episode dedicated to her. That's it. And it wasn't even all of that interesting or greatly connected to everything else going on. (Which Eleven is totally unaware of until she gets visions of what's going on.)
I would've put money down at the beginning the Sean Astin's character was somehow "in on it" or some tool of the government or something. Glad I didn't. I ended up really liking his character and everything he did, particularly in the end when he volunteers to reboot the system because he knows BASIC enough to run the computer programs. It's moments like this where the setting of the '80s works well where being "computer literate" was far less common. Today virtually anyone with the passwords and such would be able to access the computer and do what was needed, but since it's 1984 you needed someone who knew computers and who better than someone who works at Radio Shack?
Liked Winona Ryder much more in this season, it's understandable where her extreme crazy comes from int he first season but in this season she's got it more together and the "crazy" lengths she goes to feels more natural and progressive.
Liked the scene with Bob in the room with the "root sketches" and figuring out the path. I think the was the episode that made me realize he wasn't a plant or operative. When he was in the car telling Will to confront the demons in his dreams I was sure he was a plant trying to "study" what was going with Will and push him to limits.
Also expected Paul Reiser to be a corrupted, "evil" doctor of sorts in on this conspiracy and was pleased and surprised we didn't reuse the trope of the evil government conspiracy, he genuinely seemed to have the best aims in mind at the lab.
Still don't feel Steve, still to much of the '80s preppy douchebag for me, and having dealt with that a lot in my younger years that may prevent me from seeing him as anything else. Good moments with him and his interactions with the kids but there were still moments with him and Nancy where this seemed like a typical '80s movie where the girl ins interested in the preppy douchebag and not the "nerd" character and there's no clear reason why she's into the DB given the way he treats her.
Hopper is always great. He's very much the '80s cliche of the "everyman hero."
I liked the repeat again of the improvised methods to carry out tasks, like with the sensory deprivation tank in the first one, this one being the "interrogation room" and the heating out of the Mind Flayer. Also liked more use of the DnD references and how the kids even explained they know the book is just part of a game but that there's no other analogies to make for what is going on.
Given how she got into it at the end of the first season it seemed terribly "easy" for Eleven to get out of the Upsidedown. It seemed implied this was some-kind-of one-way trip or her ability to return was uncertain but she pretty much turns right around gets back into the real-world?
As someone who's played DnD it's usually less fun when you split the party and that, mostly, holds true here when the kid characters are all separated in several different locations and have to be plot-contrived back together.
Wish we'd gotten more of the science teacher with him playing a role in everything that's going on or giving the boys the information or hints they need on figuring thing out.
I did like the conspiracy theorist guy and the role he played in helping Nancy and the other kid to reveal what was going on to the media.
Season 1: A+
Season 2: A
^ I agree with you about Eleven and the big city episode.
I disagree that "The Lost Sister" (episode 7) was needless. It served a distinct purpose. We needed to meet Eight. She needed to act as "Yoda" to Eleven to tap into her potential, and through this, we saw how easily Eleven could've gone down a path to being a criminal/vigilante. The difference between Eleven and Eight is that Eleven has friends and family in Hawkins as her "anchor," and that's her salvation. The very end of the episode (as they explain in the aftershow) has Eight realize she has no anchor. She's a drifter with no home. Eleven has a home.
Every negative review I've read of the episode from TV blogs focus so much on the "It kills the momentum!" and "The characters are just 80's stereotypes!" That I wonder if they even realize (1) That's the entire point and (2) in just 45 minutes it touches on many themes and accomplishes just what it sets out to do.
Then again, most TV show reviewers probably couldn't write a coherent TV episode anyway.
Every negative review I've read of the episode from TV blogs focus so much on the "It kills the momentum!" and "The characters are just 80's stereotypes!" That I wonder if they even realize (1) That's the entire point and (2) in just 45 minutes it touches on many themes and accomplishes just what it sets out to do.
Then again, most TV show reviewers probably couldn't write a coherent TV episode anyway.
I feel that I'm also one of the people who really enjoyed "The Lost Sister" and I have absolutely no problem with the sudden shift to a Eleven-only episode.
Some of the criticisms I've seen against it (particularly from Vox and A.V. Club) is the new characters in the episode itself, particularly all of Kali's crew, which are reasonable complaints but they aren't deal breakers for me. The core of the episode, as well as Kali herself, were strong enough for me to look past those issues.
Some of the criticisms I've seen against it (particularly from Vox and A.V. Club) is the new characters in the episode itself, particularly all of Kali's crew, which are reasonable complaints but they aren't deal breakers for me. The core of the episode, as well as Kali herself, were strong enough for me to look past those issues.
Eleven stared down a hall full of guys in the first season and made them all instantly drop dead, she flipped a van with her mind and fought the demogorgon without hesitation, in the first season she clearly had no qualms about dropping people she felt were "deserving" of it. So, I don't feel she really needed this "Yoda Moment" to learn the extent of her powers, she's already kicked a lot of ass. And her "Yoda" being a violent criminal doesn't help matters much either (I suppose she has reasonable motivations, but you'd think she'd be able to accept the difference between and orderly doing his job and the execs actually running the show) the "Yoda Moment" would work better if Eight was a good person who helped Eleven to see she didn't necessarily need to kill are or cause serious harm to people to help, get her revenge, or defeat monsters.
And Eight's motivations, to me, were clearly not just to kill those from the lab and others she and her gang had serious criminal intentions, I mean the other guys had no revenge to seek from the Hawkins Laboratory, they were in it for the prizes. Eight's treatment of Eleven reminds me sort of..... I dunno, "Short Circuit 2" when Johnny Five encounters the street toughs who "befriend" him because he can help them boost car radios easier and Johnny takes it as being accepted by some arm of human society.
The episode with Eight may have worked better if we'd gotten more from her, if we'd occasionally cut to her in the other episodes and got a better feel for her motivations and to see if she was conflicted or realizing how she was being "used." But, no, we get that opening bit with her, don't see her for six full episodes, then in the middle of a climatic cliffhanger we drop back to dealing with her and her seemingly taking advantage of Eleven's naivety to the benefit of her revenge.
I think there was a better way for Eleven to have had her arc to realize her place and her "moral compass." To realize that Hooper was a "father" to her in the ways that mattered, he was protecting her, and how she needed to fight for what was "right" and not for revenge. We didn't need to divert in this episode, again, particularly after a cliffhanger with the devil-dogs/junior demogorgons coming out of the pit back at the lab.
And Eight's motivations, to me, were clearly not just to kill those from the lab and others she and her gang had serious criminal intentions, I mean the other guys had no revenge to seek from the Hawkins Laboratory, they were in it for the prizes. Eight's treatment of Eleven reminds me sort of..... I dunno, "Short Circuit 2" when Johnny Five encounters the street toughs who "befriend" him because he can help them boost car radios easier and Johnny takes it as being accepted by some arm of human society.
The episode with Eight may have worked better if we'd gotten more from her, if we'd occasionally cut to her in the other episodes and got a better feel for her motivations and to see if she was conflicted or realizing how she was being "used." But, no, we get that opening bit with her, don't see her for six full episodes, then in the middle of a climatic cliffhanger we drop back to dealing with her and her seemingly taking advantage of Eleven's naivety to the benefit of her revenge.
I think there was a better way for Eleven to have had her arc to realize her place and her "moral compass." To realize that Hooper was a "father" to her in the ways that mattered, he was protecting her, and how she needed to fight for what was "right" and not for revenge. We didn't need to divert in this episode, again, particularly after a cliffhanger with the devil-dogs/junior demogorgons coming out of the pit back at the lab.
Couldn't have said it better, The Lost Sister is pretty essential to Eleven's arc and told in a rather effective way.
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