Since May 27, it is impossible not to talk about Hawkings and the dangers that lurk in the dark corners of the small town now that volume one (which consists of seven episodes) of the fourth season of Stranger Things is available to stream. The series broke Bridgerton's season two record, becoming the most-watched English-language series on Netflix. The audience will have to wait until July to watch the final episodes of the story. It was recently announced that season five will be the final season of the Netflix sci-fi tale. A series that captured the audience because of its compelling story and even a more compelling throwback and tribute to the 80s, Stranger Things won viewers' hearts from episode one.
Set in the 1980s, the show has a nostalgic feeling that is impossible not to like. From the characters wearing Ghostbusters costumes to re-popularizing great songs from that period (Running Up That Hill by Kate Bush hit #1 on iTunes after season four aired, 27 years after it was released), the Duffer Brothers took setting the atmosphere of the story really seriously.
Stranger Things tells the story of a group of friends who are outcasts. After one of them disappears, they will have to face the unimaginable horrors which begin infiltrating their small town of Hawkings; government secret projects and monsters straight from nightmares are only a few things they have to deal with.
The setting and aesthetics of the story is extremely important. It sets the tone, mood, and overall feel the audience will get when watching the episodes unfold. The 80s references are deeply embedded in the storytelling, and being able to compare different seasons to different movies from that time can be an interesting way to track the growth of the show and its referential, postmodern use of touchstones to develop its plot. Here are all four seasons of Stranger Things compared, using 80s classic movies.
Stranger Things Season 1
There is no denying that season one of Stranger Things was an instant success. The series became Netflix's biggest hit for quite some time, and has now regained its spot as the most-watched original English-language series by the streaming service. In season one, the audience got to know a group of outcast boys, Will, Lucas, Dustin, and Mike, thrown into the unknown once Will mysteriously disappeared after a night of fantasy role-playing games. When they encounter Eleven, a powerful young girl, they try to help each other. It becomes unmistakable: a group of kids riding their bikes in a small town, looking for someone while hiding somebody else with near-supernatural powers, was reminiscent of one of the biggest movies of the '80s and one of the best of all time, E.T.
Just like in the Steven Spielberg movie, in season one the kids have to deal with their problems on their own, feeling they're not able to trust any grown-ups that live around them; government forces are out to get their friend, and they don't know who to turn to. But the resemblance goes beyond the most apparent similarities between the two stories. The core of them is the same: true friendship, especially between outsiders or misfits. The innocence of their actions and words speaks deeply to what makes this season so special, having to come up with intense solutions to even more intense problems at such a young age. Their childlike vision of the world and others around them made this story have such a powerful beginning.
Stranger Things Season 2
Season two brought a lot of new elements to the series, and new characters and storylines were a few of them. The most important one? A new monster. With the new threat comes new adventures with higher risks. Now, the story resembles the adventure-packed classic, The Goonies, one of the best coming-of-age films of the 80s. It is still a show revolving around children, but what they face is much darker than they had in season one. The reality of what they have to deal with is scarier and heavier than before, just like the group of kids that travels to an island after a treasure following a map and uncovers a much darker truth.
There is a clear and more mature development of topics mentioned in the previous season, and not only for the main group of characters. In season two, Jonathan and Nancy finally get together as a couple, and Will's PTSD from his time on the Upside Down is one of the main topics (and how he is somehow still connected to that world). But it also develops time to explore darker subjects such as Billy's toxic and abusive relationship with his sister, Max (and pretty much everyone around him). These elements are also present in the adventure classic: the adventure they face changes the characters forever. Season two of Stranger Things even stars Sean Astin, who played Mikey in The Goonies, just one of several references to the film. The tone of the series has a shift here that is only enhanced as the seasons go on.
Stranger Things Season 3
Season three was definitely a turning point for the show. The actors were leaving their childhood and (just like their characters) entering their teenage years. The coming-of-age element of this season was explored in different ways, reminiscent of the classic movie adaptation of Stephen King's novella Stand by Me. The series title is written in the same font used in King's paperbacks in the 80s. There is a naivety that comes from their lack of experience in more adult scenarios, but at the same time, they are not the children they were in previous seasons. Romantic relationships, trauma, and other factors start to appear in their lives and affect them in distinct forms, just like the unavoidable changes growing up brings and the anxiety it can create inside the characters.
The stakes are through the roof for them. They have to deal with loss and death in a way that was not shown before, just like the characters from Stand by Me, when they find a body and have to handle the reality of their mortality - this season changed the characters more than they had so far.
Season 4
Volume one of season four is the one that really stands out from the others. It was a much more horror-orientated story, remembering old classics like Nightmare on Elm Street. The whole 'dream world' Freddy can create and kill his victims can definitely be compared to the Upside Down this season. It is a much more teenager-focused season, which would be the only reasonable choice since the actors are not children anymore. Just like this season of Stranger Things, Nightmare on Elm Street is about teenagers, and for the first time, the main movie reference doesn't have children as the main characters. Dustin even mentions the burned Freddy Krueger in one of the episodes so that it is easier to understand the concept of what they are facing. Robert Englund, who plays the monster in the famous 80s franchise, has a guest appearance in the series.
Another surprising change was the fact that from the very first episode, the monster that is the villain of the story is revealed and the threat is understood from the beginning, like Nightmare on Elm Street in contrast to many of the other 80s movie references. The impending doom that comes from seeing the visions by Vecna is a great element that is also present in the 80s movies: you will have to fall asleep eventually. Also, Vecna attacks one person at a time, just like Krueger does.
Fans eagerly await the final episodes of the new season, as well as the final season to finish this incredible sci-fi story, and it will be fascinating to see how Stranger Things continues to evolve, and what movies they'll reference to do so.