Stranger Things (Netflix) - Part 1

[Albright]

Anyone else think Mike is such an annoying little *****e? In season 1 I couldn't stand Lucas but in season 2 and 3, Mike is the worst kid besides Erica

Will
Eleven
Dustin
Max
Lucas
Mike

I like Lucas much more in season 2 and 3

My thoughts exactly. Lucas really got more likable from season to season, whereas Mike got more annoying.
I also think, that Joyce was less annoying this time lol.

I really hope, that season 4 will be set during Christmas in a snowy Hawkins with a Gremlins vibe and a big showdown with the Mindflayer on Christmas Eve

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

I would say that Mike pretty much puts most everything on the back burner in favor of Eleven rather consistently. He's in the throws of first love, and while there's an innocent and wonderful aspect of that, there's also an overwhelming facet too. One which can and does make people say, and do stupid, even hurtful things to those around them... And that's fine. That's real. I don't have a problem with the characters not being perfect at all times. But it is there. And I think it's why some have soured on Mike. They want the characters to stay like warm security blankets esconced in innocent nostalgic good times.

And... Eleven herself has acted out and not always been reasonable when it comes to Mike. But her excuse is she's not a completely socialized individual, still learning about the world and what it means to be a person and not just the subject of an experiment. She gets some more leeway for her actions I think. But she too has a history of being bratty and selfish at times and lashing out when she doesn't understand why limits are placed on her. Again... That's not changed how I view her or made me dislike her... But it is there.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

My thoughts exactly. Lucas really got more likable from season to season, whereas Mike got more annoying.
I also think, that Joyce was less annoying this time lol.

I really hope, that season 4 will be set during Christmas in a snowy Hawkins with a Gremlins vibe and a big showdown with the Mindflayer on Christmas Eve

See... I think Lucas is the one that's just kinda "there" now. In season 3 he was just defined as the somewhat henpecked boyfriend of Max's. He's turned out to be the most flat of the kids for myself.

 

[Legendver2]

See... I think Lucas is the one that's just kinda "there" now. In season 3 he was just defined as the somewhat henpecked boyfriend of Max's. He's turned out to be the most flat of the kids for myself.

Lol more flat than Will?

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

Lol more flat than Will?

In season 2 (Since Will was mostly absent being lost in the Upside Down) Schnapp gave one hell of a performance as the scarred and then possessed Will. In season 3 Will has the (unfortunately cut short) arc of being left behind by his friends who are marching towards and embracing the changes of their teen years. He has scenes where he gets into it with Mike or where he destroys Castle Byers. What have they EVER done with Lucas anywhere near as dramatically rich or as interesting as that? The honest answer is that they haven't. Of all the kids he has the most subdued personality, whether by design or default, they just haven't done anything particularly meaty or interesting with Lucas. Thus, he finds himself mostly just kinda there. Sure... They give him an action to do, use his wrist rocket, come up with the plan to use the fireworks... But is that an arc? Are those textured traits of characterization? I would say no.

 

[Arachnerd]

Lol more flat than Will?

Ehhh. Noah Schnapp didn't exactly have a whole lot to do this season. Not exactly his fault.

 

[Man in the Suit]

I'm rewatching Season 3 and the music budget is insane. It's basically the Duffer Brothers showing off.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

I'm rewatching Season 3 and the music budget is insane. It's basically the Duffer Brothers showing off.

They went overboard in the first episode of the season. There was a musical intro to almost every scene featuring an 80's song. There was overall just a lot more restraint to stuff like that in the previous seasons.

 

[Thome216]

I loved this season. Better than one and far, FAR better than two. I felt all the kids had great rolls to play, the imagery was spectacular and it was a great mix of gore, thriller, feel-great nostalgia, drama and humor all mixed in just the right proportions.

 

[Legendver2]

This season might be peak 80's, and I think the next 1-2 seasons are gonna start transitioning to to a more 90s flair maybe.

 

[-JKR-]

Stranger Things is the most beautiful thing in pop culture this decade, period. Yes, that includes films.

 

[Brother Jack]

Ehhh. Noah Schnapp didn't exactly have a whole lot to do this season. Not exactly his fault.

After two seasons of him being in constant danger (and the centerpiece of the plot), I'm glad he took a backseat this season. And he still had some strong moments; the scene of him wrecking Castle Byers is one of the more emotional of the season.

 

[Sawyer]

Yeah, I'm glad they didn't go down the "Will is in danger" route again, but I wish they had followed up more effectively on his outburst with Mike, rather than having him spend the entire second half of the season looking worried.

 

[antsman41]

Season 3 was sooooo good, easily the best flow.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

Yeah, I'm glad they didn't go down the "Will is in danger" route again, but I wish they had followed up more effectively on his outburst with Mike, rather than having him spend the entire second half of the season looking worried.

I think this was symtomatic of issues all over this season, which I feel fans are glossing over because it was such over all breezy fun. But lots of stuff raised early on in the season don't go anywhere and are kinda dropped by the end. Mike and Will's clashing and the issues brought up are just the biggest example. Any of the more character driven aspects just go by the wayside once the monster/horror stuff kicks in and, yeah... That makes sense. Who has time to parse out their feelings about non-interdimensional monster issues when there's a giant grotesque protoplasmic beast looking to unleash hell and absorbing all the bio-mass it can get?

Still... This year the pacing was so fast and in a way, so focused on that plot that there was little room for anything else. The show didn't make time for stuff that was more quiet, subtle or character based. It was very bombast, action and comedy driven. Which I guess is why it seems to be so crowd pleasing. But I think it didn't serve some of it's core characters all that well in the process.

 

[javonstokess]

I agree about Lucas. He took quite a backseat this season. I mean, we've only seen his parents in one frame of one scene in 3 seasons.

 

[Arachnerd]

It's kind of the problem when you introduce new characters each season. Some of the original cast gets less and less to do. I hope there's very few, if any, introduced in season 4.

 

[Sawyer]

Ehhh... the only really significant addition this season was Robin. Smirnoff probably comes in second.

All things considered, I'm actually a little surprised how little Jake Busey and Cary Elwes appeared throughout the season.

 

[Brother Jack]

I agree about Lucas. He took quite a backseat this season. I mean, we've only seen his parents in one frame of one scene in 3 seasons.

He had his moments (he comes in with clutch saves multiple times), but I agree in that I want him to have a bigger arc next season. And I think it would make sense for the show structurally; out of the boys season one focused more on Mike, two on Will, and three had Dustin separated on his own plotline with Steve. So I'm thinking and hoping he'll have more to do in season four.

 

[carrrnuttt]

Spoiler

I genuinely think that having El still not have her powers at the end foreshadows that Hopper is still alive.

Think about it: if El had her powers, it'd be hard to believe that she wouldn't be able to connect to Hopper's mind, no matter where he is, creating an unbridgeable gap when they reveal him next season.

 

[Legendver2]

I think this was symtomatic of issues all over this season, which I feel fans are glossing over because it was such over all breezy fun. But lots of stuff raised early on in the season don't go anywhere and are kinda dropped by the end. Mike and Will's clashing and the issues brought up are just the biggest example. Any of the more character driven aspects just go by the wayside once the monster/horror stuff kicks in and, yeah... That makes sense. Who has time to parse out their feelings about non-interdimensional monster issues when there's a giant grotesque protoplasmic beast looking to unleash hell and absorbing all the bio-mass it can get?

Still... This year the pacing was so fast and in a way, so focused on that plot that there was little room for anything else. The show didn't make time for stuff that was more quiet, subtle or character based. It was very bombast, action and comedy driven. Which I guess is why it seems to be so crowd pleasing. But I think it didn't serve some of it's core characters all that well in the process.

I'm of the mind that most of that stuff is setting up for next season. IMO there's probably tops 2 more seasons left, and next season will be brought more back down to earth before we go ballistic again in season 5 like we just did with 3. With El losing her powers, moving out of Hawkins, with Brenner revealed to be alive, and Kali+ others still out there, the inter-dimensional threat might be downgraded to Russia's demogorgon(s) while characters hash out the remainder of their arcs before we get to the big showdown with OG Mind Flayer in the upside down itself in season 5. So far each season the threat has been escalating to bigger and bigger monsters, so season 4 downgrading the inter-dimensional threat but upgrading the human threat in Brenner and Russia would be interesting.

Spoiler

I genuinely think that having El still not have her powers at the end foreshadows that Hopper is still alive.

Think about it: if El had her powers, it'd be hard to believe that she wouldn't be able to connect to Hopper's mind, no matter where he is, creating an unbridgeable gap when they reveal him next season.

Spoiler

So if season 3 mirrors season 1 in ending with a "death", then 4 might mirror 2 in that El is gonna go through the exact same thing with Hopper that she did with Mike, able to see him via scrying, but not being able to communicate directly.

 

[Man in the Suit]

 

[Persona]

Finished the season. It was entertaining enough but it felt a lot more forced and contrived to me than S1 and even S2. They really need to figure out a new angle, setting, and structure for whatever the next season is. This really should have been an anthology series but that was never gonna happen after the first season which was such a big hit and people latched onto the characters they way they did.

There's a smugness and bigger-is-better vibe to this season that I didn't much care for and the whole Russian plotline felt like it came from a completely different show, and it's not a very good show. That said, there were some cool moments and it's still an enjoyable watch overall.

 

[KevTravels]

Anyone else think Mike is such an annoying little *****e? In season 1 I couldn't stand Lucas but in season 2 and 3, Mike is the worst kid besides Erica

Will
Eleven
Dustin
Max
Lucas
Mike

I like Lucas much more in season 2 and 3

Lucas was pretty relaxed this season. More comic relief which worked.

 

[KevTravels]

I kinda wish we saw more of Max and Lucas. They have good chemistry but almost seemed like the writers forgot they were a couple this season. And I'd have loved one scene with the two of them and Billy before he got all Mind Flayered. Just to remind us that M/L as a couple ain't welcomed by everyone.

Hopefully we see more of M/L in next season.