Stranger Things

[riosamba]

I skipped all the season 2 posts. I'm dying like Barb to binge season 2, but I'm still finishing costumes and I've been sucked into decorating a trunk for our church "trunk or treat" event.

[kostgard]

Oct 28, 2017 10:49:13 GMT -4 @ximena said:

I marathoned six episodes yesterday and the last three this morning. I loved it, so much fun, and it continues on the path of season one without feeling repetitive.

SPOILERS:

I pretty much binged in the same fashion. Not flaw-free, but still pretty entertaining.

One thing I wondered if I missed (and not spoiling this since it is mostly a question from season one) - season two confirmed that the food we saw Hopper leave out in the woods in the season one finale was indeed for Eleven. Did they explain how he knew she was out there and I missed it? I suppose it could have been
(gonna spoil this one)

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}the hunter Eleven knocked out so she could take his coat and hat. Maybe he filed a police report and as soon as Hopper head about a little girl in the woods who knocked out an adult man, he knew who it was.

Now the rest of the spoiler-y stuff:

SPOILER: Click to show

{Spoiler}One thing I didn't like was how separate Eleven was from everyone else. They should have folded her back in the group much sooner than they did. But I LOVED how at the end of the first episode they revealed that she had been living with Hopper. He gets a second chance at being a dad and she kinda gets a family. And at first I thought it was sweet that he read Anne of Green Gables to both his "daughters", then I realized how perfect a story it was for Eleven. Anne was adopted around the same age Eleven is, and she is a "weird" girl who doesn't really fit in, but she finds family and friend anyway. Once I made that connection I thought, "Aw. Hopper is her crusty Matthew, who swears and smokes a lot."

Also loved the pairing of Steve and Dustin. That worked really well. Don't know if I loved Kali, but I suspect she will be back in future seasons.

Max was okay. Actress very pretty (but I love redheads). I only want her brother to come back if he's having an affair with Mike's mom (you know she's not getting anything from Mike's lame dad).

Finally, I get that the whole Dart/nougat thing was a homage to E.T., but I was like, "Come on! Dustin is a smart kid and he owns a reptile! What made him think a lizard would do well eating nougat?

[prisma]

I am on episode 3, so I didn't read the spoiler stuff. I am enjoying it so far. A gripe: at the drunken high school Halloween party, Duran Duran's Girls on Film was playing. This is set in 1984 and Girls on Film came out in 1981 and was never a radio hit in the U.S., and it certainly wouldn't have been popular around that mainstream kind of a crowd three years later. That's an example of where the 80s stuff feels overly studied and a little incongruent. (I was/am a huge Duran Duran fan, so that mismatch really jumped out at me.)

Also, it may be the writing but I don't think Millie Bobby Brown is that great of an actress. She's great with facial expressions but her line delivery drives me crazy.

I am enjoying it so far, though!

[kateln]

I loved it, that's all.

Prisma, I might be disagreeing with you a bit on the "Girls on Film" song. I remember hearing that as a 6 year old in 83'/84' in South Carolina. Even seeing the video (cleaned up) on MTV. I was obsessed with Simon LeBon at the time, though (first real celeb crush), so maybe it was just me. So it didn't feel out of place to me, like that's what my teenage siblings were listening too.

I did get annoyed with Elle's response to Max, I felt that was a little too ugh...cliche, and something I wish films and tv would get away from. But overall I really liked this season. It was done well.


suekel I felt the same way about the one off episode! It didn't feel like the same show.

[suekel]

I binged all 9 episodes yesterday. Really enjoyed it, thought it lived up to my hopes for a second season. I wasn't crazy about the one off episode in another location, but aside from that really enjoyed the ride.

[Deleted]

I finished it last night. I really enjoyed the season overall, I felt like it was a great continuation of the story of Season 1.

Like others, I also didn't like the one-off episode.

SPOILER: Click to show

Spoiler
Spoiler
It was out of place, mostly pointless and ruined the momentum of the season. I think upon rewatch, it would be possible to watch episode six, skip seven, watch eight, and not really miss any important plot at all.

I also really wish Eleven had been introduced back into the group sooner. Her off on her own dragged on too long. I did love the pseduo parent-child relationship that developed between Hopper and Eleven though. It was really sweet and I'm glad they each are finding some semblance of family.

I actually like Steve now. His big brother-ish relationship with the other kids was great. It seemed like he was getting the hero arc, so I thought for sure he was a goner when the Demadogs were surrounding them under the pumpkin fields. I'm glad he didn't bite the dust.

Poor Bob. Bob Newby, Superhero.

I really need to know what's up with Trans Am Billy. There's more to that whole story, I'm sure. That actor was super annoying though. When he was primping himself in front of the mirror, I was starting to get a Buffalo Bill vibe.

[GirlyGhoul]

I binged over the weekend and loved it. But it was also really intense. Steve actually redeemed himself this season, but the statement he made about himself (which I won't spoil here) sums up my feelings about him perfectly.

I don't know if there will be another season, but if the show ends on this one, it will have ended well. And if they keep going, they still have material they could work with. Part of me feels like they should quit while they're ahead. But who knows, maybe they can pull off another season just as exciting and awesome as the first two have been.

ETA: I might be the odd one out in that I actually liked the one off episode- even though it did change the tone and scenery, etc. I liked the characters who were introduced, but was glad they didn't intermix with the original characters. It matched the rest of the show only in that it was paying homage to 80's movies... it just happened to be paying homage to a different set of 80's movies than what the bulk of the episodes were if that makes sense.

[kostgard]

Oct 30, 2017 10:20:05 GMT -4 GirlyGhoul said:

I don't know if there will be another season, but if the show ends on this one, it will have ended well. And if they keep going, they still have material they could work with. Part of me feels like they should quit while they're ahead. But who knows, maybe they can pull off another season just as exciting and awesome as the first two have been.

They are already talking season three. But the Duffer Brothers have said that the plan is four seasons and done. I think that is smart. I think they can maintain that long, but not much longer.

[kateln]

Oct 30, 2017 10:20:05 GMT -4 GirlyGhoul said:

I binged over the weekend and loved it. But it was also really intense. Steve actually redeemed himself this season, but the statement he made about himself (which I won't spoil here) sums up my feelings about him perfectly.

I don't know if there will be another season, but if the show ends on this one, it will have ended well. And if they keep going, they still have material they could work with. Part of me feels like they should quit while they're ahead. But who knows, maybe they can pull off another season just as exciting and awesome as the first two have been.

I was joking as the season went on that I would kill for a Dustin, Lucas, and Max spinoff where they drive around solving mysteries. Steve was added to the list when I saw the scene (in the trailers) where he and Dustin opened the trunk to grab the bat with nails. The actor killed it.

[Deleted]

David Harbour did some great work with the kids this year too. He had a handful of emotional scenes with Millie and then that one in either episode 8 or 9 (can't remember) with Finn Wolfhard that I think were really well done.