by Alexa Nazareno, Aleah Sia, Kimmy Tanchay and Sanya Saxena
WARNING: Article contains major spoilers
Nostalgic references to eighties pop culture, compelling acting among seasoned actors and rising child stars, and a mysterious bald girl with a number as her name. What’s not to love about Netflix’s critically-acclaimed original series, Stranger Things?
Amongst the many TV shows we’ve watched on Netflix, Stranger Things is definitely one of the best. This series is fun, scary and a perfect tribute to the 1980’s indiana era, with the spot-in hairdos and clothes. There are some genuine scares in there, but some heartfelt moments as well. It builds speed and tension at a remarkable, consistent pace - making every episode more entertaining than the one before.
Much of Stranger Things’ charm comes from their references to 80’s pop culture, nostalgia that reverberates through the show’s music, clothing, and overall atmosphere; series creators Matt and Ross Duffer were perfectly able to capture the notion of mystery and suspense that has been under-shadowed and is uncommon in more modern thriller movies and television. It is also evident that the Duffer Brothers were heavily inspired by the style of Stephen King’s books, and were able to mirror these aspects to make the show as exciting and engrossing as it was. Nods to 80’s pop culture through 10-hour sessions of Dungeons & Dragons, retro Coca-Cola ads on tube type televisions and a Goonies-inspired gang are just some of the other beloved references to the era.
The acting by the iconic Winona Ryder and David Harbour was amazing. However,the child actors definitely stole the show. They are such likable, funny characters that easily made the audience root for them, giving the show a bit of a contrast of comedy amidst the thrilling suspense.
Amongst everyone in the show, Millie Bobby-Brown’s portrayal of the character Eleven is spectacular. Millie took on a difficult role, one that involved very limited speaking lines and mostly about her ability to react to the surroundings as Eleven would; but there wasn’t a single second in the show that her performance wavered or broke character. Her character was very real and original which is one of the reasons why the show keeps the audience engaged from start to finish.
The writers of the hit series apply long-overused movie tropes to their utmost advantages; instead of the ‘mean popular guy is dating the smart pretty girl’ or the ‘seemingly ordinary town has a dark secret’ stereotypes weighing down the story as ‘awkward baggage’, they play them up and come out with an originality that is so refreshing to see in an age where reboots and sequels have dominated the market.
The suspense that intensified with each episode was good, but also worked against them near the end of the season. The story was incredibly well-written during the series’ first half, building up tension towards what we think will be an unstoppable showdown between the characters and the supernatural element of the plot, but this was built up only to be cut off so abruptly, making the ending feel hurried, and almost anti-climactic.
Despite being the main protagonist, Eleven is underdeveloped as a character. Even with a rich back story, her limited dialogue adds to the mystery of the show but also restricts how her character is portrayed.
Eleven’s “death” seemed somewhat overshadowed as she added an interesting sense of excitement and uncertainty, making it stand out from a typical boyhood adventure show, only to quickly kill off her character without much thought afterwards.
And how can we forget about Barb? Will Byer disappears and everyone is looking for him but nearly no one, including her family, even bats an eyelash when Barb went missing as well? Okay, Nancy did try looking for her at the start but halfway through the series, everyone just forgot about poor Barb. This plothole bothered us way too much.
Overall, despite a few flaws, Stranger Things will not disappoint and will keep you binge watching for hours on end, constantly clicking the ‘next’ button. This show is currently in the making of the second season so all of the unanswered questions will hopefully be answered (including the origins of the story and Barb’s disappearance). We definitely recommend this show to anyone who loves thrilling mysteries, supernatural and science fiction. If you got a free weekend, get ready for some Netflix and chill.
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