Spoilers Stranger Things - Season 4

My idea has been a sequel series with the kids now parents to a new generation of kids, who get drawn into all sorts of new Upside Down shenanigans.

 

90s nostalgia is a thing now, right?

 

Yeah, but it's still not as cool as 80s nostalgia!

 

I am getting nostalgic for the 80's 50's nostalgia.

 

Millie Bobby Brown turns 18 today!
https://www.instagram.com/p/CaKhrVCsmqW/

 

I think Steve only works as a character when he's bouncing his awkward mentoring skills off of the younger characters.

 

New trailer coming tomorrow! Watch this space.

 

Oh my fucking Lord!! What an awesome trailer - the music, the cuts, seeing the guys and girls. Don't know where to begin to talk about it

( aaaand of course it premieres the same day as my surgery, on the same day that Kenobi premieres )

 

Oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods, oh my gods!

Sooo much is happening in that trailer, so much to take in.

It's going to take a view more watches to really process it all.

But no matter what, May 27 cannot come soon enough!

 

Sort of interesting trailer. Yes, this is set in the 80s, but I could have done without a modified version of Journey's "Separate Ways" (which was really hitting viewers over the head with that selection). Not unexpected with many "end-all" style trailers, some cuts seem to suggest one or more characters might meet their end, but I would hope the showrunners subvert the expectation of following inspiration from certain King material and have the main cast survive the entire ordeal.

 

Damn, that was an awesome trailer.
Looks like we're getting an Upside Down monster who can actually talk, so that should be interesting. I saw one article where the showrunners said they were going to start exploring more of the backstory, so if the new monster is going to be part of that.

 

AND it's the same day Top Gun: Maverick hits theaters! Busy weekend!

 

So some thoughts now that I've watched it a few times now:

1. While we've had vague villains from the Upside Down in the previous seasons, this is the time one is given a voice and a humanlike face. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I've really enjoyed the weirdness of the Demogorgon and the Mind-Flayer as these more abstract villains with abstract purposes. Giving the Upside Down a humanoid avatar as a possible leader of all of this chaos reminds me of the Borg Queen. It could go either way but I will trust the Duffer brothers for now.
2. Max can levitate now?! I'm very curious to learn what that's all about. Something to do with the grandfather clock that's haunting her...
3. I completely forgot Billy died last season but it's good to see Max reflecting over his death.
4. Looks like Mike visits Jane and family in California...just in time to see her taken away by someone. Possibly...
5. The return of Paul Reiser as Sam Owens! The trailer fills in a small hole that bothered me (but not too much) about how season 3 concluded, specifically how Joyce was able to assume care of Jane and then take her all the way to California. That was left unexplained but it makes sense that Owens helped them relocate for their own safety.
6. Joyce and Murray appear to be attempting to rescue Hop! Be still my beating heart!
7. Also, how did Hop know where to send anything to Joyce in California...?
8. Like I said before, May 27 cannot come soon enough!!

 

IGN has an exclusive trailer breakdown with the Duffer brother.

Interesting new things they reveal:
The biggest challenge that the characters face is that they're so spread out now.
They call this their "Game of Thrones Season" because of how spread out everyone is.
The new baddie is named Vecna, and they compare him to Freddy Krueger, Pinhead, and Pennywise, and that they've wanted to do this kind of bad guy for a while now.
A big part of the season is going to focus on the characters dealing with their trauma from the other seasons.
The scene with Max talking to Billy's grave is from Episode 4, which is titled.... "Dear Billy". They say several times that Max is going to be a big part of the season.
The clock is an important part of the story this season, and seeing it is bad.
The flying monsters are Demobats, and one isn't to dangerous, but when you get a lot of them together they can be.
The Russia scenes were filmed in Lithuania, with a few interiors filmed in Atlanta.
Joyce is now working as a telemarketer, and the package with all of the Russian stamps sets her off on an "epic journey".
Another big part of the season will be the characters moving on to high school, with some of them getting involved in things like sports and finding new friends.
We'll also see Eleven struggling to fit in with normal kids at school, and trying to figure out who she is without her powers.
The fight we see with the Demogorgon is something they've wanting to do for a while, and takes place it happens is called the Demopit.
The scene with her in the bloody hospital gown takes place before Season 1, and will be the earliest stuff we've seen with her. It sounds like it will be dealing with what happened to the other numbers.
We'll be spending the most time in the Upside Down on any season so far.
The guy with no eyes is Victor Creel, who is played by Freddy Krueger himself, Robert England, and he plays a pivotal role in the season. They don't say anything about it, but I'm assuming it's not a coincidence that his last name is Creel, and we'll be visiting the Creel House.
Vecna is 90% practical, and the makeup for him was created by the same guy who did The Night King for Game of Thrones, and the radiation makeup for Chernobyl.

 

My biggest takeaways from that breakdown:

A lot more time spent in the Upside Down, deliberately done so to make up the lack of time there in season 3. I've been desperate to learn more about that world and I'm thrilled we're finally going to more.

I'm also excited that we're finally going to learn more about the other children who were experimented on along with Jane and Kali. Hopefully that means we'll finally see the return of Kali in present day.

In this day and age of heavy reliance on special effects (and this show has been guilty of that), I'm particularly happy that they're doing more with practical effects this season.

As for Vecna, I can appreciate his inclusion better now after hearing the Duffer brothers mention he was inspired by Freddy Kruger, Pennywise, and Pinhead. After all, this whole show is a love letter to the 80s.

I know I'm probably the only one here appreciated this bit, but I broke out into a big smile when the Duffer brothers mentioned how they grew up in North Carolina and basketball is a very big deal there (understatement of the century), which is why they've included that element this season. Here's hoping to more Durham references!

 

Does this mean Joyce will just be able to run from California to Indiana in one episode.

 

My only issue with the trailer is I think they showed us to much. Some of this stuff I would have liked seeing first in the episodes.

 

Perhaps...but imagine all of the stuff they didn't show.

 

Trailer gave me a real Buffy opening of the hellmouth vibe.Also as I expected the boys are starting to look ridiculously grown up.Overall looks really fun and looks like it will go back to season 1s darker scarier vibe