On October 27th, 2017, as soon as Netflix unleashed the newest season on its website, I began my binge watching journey and have lived to tell the tale. That’s right, I watched the entire second season of Stranger Things in one sitting. To put it simply: It. Blew. My. Mind. The character development, 80s aesthetics, music choices, cinematography; everything fell perfectly into place and came together to complete a challenging feat: surpass the first season.
As this introduction may hint to you, Stranger Things 2 has destroyed my soul in the best way possible and there are so many aspects of this wonderful show that I would love to explore. For the sake of you lovely readers, I’ll attempt to break everything down and keep it short. Here is a quick list of some of my favorite plot points in the hair-raising second installment of Stranger Things.
Eleven and Hopper
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Introduced at the end of the first episode, the father-daughter relationship that blossoms between Chief Hopper and Eleven is so unexpected yet so heart-achingly beautiful. As we learned in the previous season, the loss of Hopper’s young daughter, Sarah, has been an emotional weak spot for the seemingly nonchalant Hawkins police chief. Eleven, who has never truly had a family, finds home with Hopper and the two push and pull at each other’s insecurities until they finally learn how to heal. While we got some hints about Hopper’s connection to Eleven at the end of the first season (him leaving Eggos in the forest), this complex and well-developed relationship came as a major surprise for me. With all of the development that happened in this second season, it’s no question that I am emotionally invested in these two characters and the development of their relationship for the seasons to come.
JANCY
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It. Finally. Happened. I have been rooting for Jancy to happen since the pairing became a possibility and have been waiting for their moment to arrive. The writers knew exactly how to build the quiet tension between the two characters, which made for a slow-burn effect that had fans like myself ready to pull our hair out. Do I feel bad for Steve, the fun-loving pretty boy with perfect hair? Sure I do. But no one supported Nancy through Barb’s death and the fight against the demogorgans more than our beloved Jonathan. Steve and Nancy were cute together but neither of them were able to develop as individuals in the relationship. Besides, Steve’s sudden solo status helps him become one of the most lovable characters in the series…
Dustin and Steve’s Unlikely Friendship
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Which brings us to Steve’s brotherly relationship with Dustin. Another friendship that comes out of the blue, Dustin manages to catch Steve in a moment of desperation and set him on a road, albeit a dangerous one, to heroism. This is the first moment that begins to make Steve a more stupidly hilarious and lovable character. As he half-willingly helps Dustin and the gang battle the demodogs and the town bully, we see a messy, genuine and brave side of Steve Harrington that his usual antics rarely bring to the surface. Of course, Steve isn’t the only one who benefits from this unusual friendship, through their shared romantic struggles (including an oddly shared admiration of Nancy), both Dustin and Steve are able to forge a mentor-mentee bond that makes them yet another lovely character pairing that I know I won’t get tired of.
Will and the Mind Flayer
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If there is one thing I can say about Stranger Things 2, it’s that it kicked up the creepy levels exponentially and Will’s journey through the physical and psychological torture in this season sent chills down my spine. Although he survived the Upside Down, our poor Will cannot seem to catch a break. As the Mind Flayer/Shadow Monster haunted Will’s mind and eventually his body, the gradual change in Will’s behavior had me on the edge of my seat for the entire season. Of course, none of this hair-raising drama would have been quite as potent without the work of the show’s phenomenal actors. Portraying Will’s tortured soul to a T, Noah Schnapp’s performance in this season was simply superb and exceeded all expectations. His skillful transition from portraying the quiet and creative Will Byers to the banshee-screaming demon child from Hell (or the Upside Down to be exact), had me reeling and in awe of his raw talent. Since we didn’t get to see much of Will in the previous season, I was super excited to finally be able to spend more time with the survivor of the Upside Down, and I certainly was not disappointed. I only hope that Will can finally have a peaceful and somewhat normal childhood, but let’s be honest, are the writers really going to let that happen?
Eleven’s Epic Return
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We all saw Eleven’s reappearance in the first episode, but her true return didn’t happen until the last few seconds of episode 8. Looking badass in her bitchin’ punk getup, Eleven swoops in to save her friends right when they need her the most. The fact that they didn’t reunite until the end was definitely painful but made the reunion that much more beautiful (of course, Max doesn’t get the warmest welcome. A beef I hope will soon be squashed). At the end of the day, Eleven acts as the glue that keeps everyone together and before long, the whole gang seems to be back on track and better than ever.
Hooray for friendship and fighting against evil!
There you have it, my fun-sized rant about Stranger Things 2! What are your thoughts about this epic new season? Was it everything you hoped it would be?
Bonus pro-tip: If you’re feeling the post-Stranger Things withdrawals, Spotify has an awesome playlist that will take you back to your favorite moments and make you wish you were a kid in the 80s. Or you can just play the theme song on repeat.
Image courtesy of Giphy
Thanks for reading!