Cellar Door

Thought this was funny:

Finisher

Wouldn't mind if they wrote one note Winona Ryder and her eldest cokehead son off this show. They probably should've weeded out some of the cast, which is pretty large. I like the Steve character and actor but that would've been a perfect death scene with the demodogs running by him in the tunnel.

Michael T Hudson

Just finished the season. Show has a lot of heart.

Rival11

Definitely - so much so that if it didn't have the heart it has.....I probably would have tuned out well before season 2 was done.

Noonan

Watching this season made me wish it was more of a Goonie's adventure with only the kids (still set in the 80's) rather than all this upside-down/demon trying to end the world stuff. They all play well off each other, except Will, IMO. Everything involving the adults was forgettable, at best.

fumanstan

Finished the season tonight. I enjoyed it, but I preferred Season 1 much more.



Still, bring on Season 3!

TGM

just watched the infamous episode 7. wow. shitty.

d2cheer

Finished it last night. While not as good as the first season it still was great.

We plowed through the last 4 episodes last night and didn't pay attention to what number we were on but when episode 7 started I knew that must be the one everyone hated. Really liked how the Steve character progressed. Didn't like what they allowed to happen to him "again" but oh well. For those that don't like Winona Ryder she is absolutely needed on this show. Her and Hopper are hooking up next season.

dhmac

Finished S2 - liked it but overall not as good as S1. And episode 7 with the Made-For-TV Punks was just as bad as everyone says.

Season 1 had Barb and Season 2 had Bob. So if Season 3 has a character named Bub then a predictable pattern will definitely be in play.

Thrush

Overall I thought it was a great season. Not quite up to season 1. Probably because the kids weren't at the heart of everything this time. But still very good.

I was positive Sean Astin's character was going to end up being a mole from some agency sent to keep tabs on Will and his family.

As everyone else mentioned ep 7 was terrible and could have been handled with a 15 minute sequence.


She was the worst part of the show in season 1. And shes still the worst part of the show.

eXcentris

Like others here, I liked this, but not as much as S1. Broader scope but it lost a certain charm in the process by having the kids scattered/not at the center of everything. And some stuff taken separately might be interesting (like the Hopper/Eleven relationship) but it didn't feel like a cohesive whole. I also didn't care for Bobby/Max at all, and their inclusion seemed forced, i.e. we need a villain and a girl to replace Eleven. And of course, the very beginning where #008 is revealed and the ill-advised episode 7. They could have scrapped all this and just show the reveal of 008 at the very end in some sort of epilogue.

Funny thing, I started buying/eating Eggo waffles.

tanman

I agree but I think they really redeemed themselves in the last two episodes. All the threads came together and they were able to work as a team coming from their own journeys through the season. Plus it made the snow ball scene that much more meaningful. But I do hope they still write the kids young the next couple seasons as they are the heart of the show. I hope they don't try to make them more grown up than they already are.

Geofferson

Finished S2 over the weekend. Overall, I thought it was good, not great. Enjoyed the easter eggs and nods to 80s genre movies. Felt the plot and excitement was down from last year and the payoff wasn't terribly climactic. The flow would have been better without the cold opening set in Chicago and the subsequent throwaway episode 7. Though their roles didn't bring all that much creatively, I did like the casting of both Reiser and Astin to the season.

mcnabb

I just finished the season and really enjoyed it as I feel it’s much better then Season 1. It’s only a 9 Episode season so anyone whining the first few episodes feel like a slow burn shows the impatience that binge watching has had on the public. People forget that every show back in the day had 24 episode seasons, so 9 episodes is a breeze to get through.

I saw a lot of backlash everywhere to Episode 7 that just focuses on Eleven, but that is why this season is better then season 1. They did a good job of fleshing out these characters and the effect the events had on all of them.

Anyone feel the final school dance was a nod to Footloose? You had the parents talking outside while the kids awkwardly learn to dance?

And Steve & Dustin scenes are all gold as it’s like watching Riggs and Murtaugh in Lethal Weapon!

islandclaws

I find it interesting the worst episode of the series was directed by a woman - the only one to direct an episode yet - and it focused entirely on sisterly bonding b.s. and horrible characters while ignoring what makes the show so great. Now, the question I have here is did the Duffer Bros have this exact treatment in mind for the episode, or was this a pitch Rebecca Thomas came up with?

Before anyone gets in a huff, I'm not saying women are bad directors. Not at all. But it is curious given the current Hollywood push more female-driven stories and this is the one time a woman jumped into this universe.

Also, S2 was still fun but S1 is miles better. Everyone lauded the show for how well the group works together... so the plan for S2 was to break them all up? Not the smartest move. And it would be nice if Will wasn't the guinea pig in S3. Maybe let him be part of the group instead of retreading his story from the first season.

Demogorgon dogs? Seriously, they tease a whole world of monsters and we get smaller versions of the S1 Big Bad? That's... really unoriginal, which is par for the course on this show. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE me some Stranger Things but the influences are clear as crystal. It's a well-made pastiche.

The music continues to be my favorite thing about the show. In fact, the S2 soundtrack might even edge S1.

Barry and Mike's mom need more scenes together in S3.

mcnabb

It’s amazing how people are missing the point of Episode 7 as it explores that there atleast 11 people with this power. Eleven has finally met the FIRST person other then her with this power so this will definitely be explored more in the next few seasons.

The freaks are metaphor for Eleven as she is an outcast just like them. The difference is she has a conscious as she couldn’t kill the man once she saw the picture of his kids. But she learned she can channel her power more through anger and that is what she used in the final episode.

fumanstan

I don't think anyone really "missed" that aspect at all, especially since it was apparent in the first few minutes of the season when they showed that group escaping from the cops. Plus, they basically hammered it home with other flashbacks and the scenes with her mom.

And just because there was a point to the episode doesn't mean it was entertaining. I think they could have handled Eleven meeting another person that was experimented on much easier.

DaveyJoe

I think the show's strongest element for a lot of viewers is the ensemble cast. So focusing an entire episode on any specific character would be underwhelming for people, especially Eleven who doesn't have a strong, outgoing personality. I didn't think the episode was terrible or anything, but I was definitely eager to get back to Hawkins.

I admire that they tried something new, but I understand why it didn't work for so many viewers. I think taken in a vacuum, it's a fine episode. But having it interrupt a more compelling storyline/cast of characters was a bit jarring.

Cellar Door

Agreed. The idea of Eleven meeting another 'gifted' person like herself is a fine--if obvious--direction to go, but the writing and directing of the episode left a lot to be desired.

Also, as others have noted, a lot of viewers were anxious for Eleven to be reunited with the other kids, and just when it looked like she might be ready to do so... she leaves town, making this episode an easy focus for the frustration of those of us that wanted to see El, Mike, and company back together sooner rather than later.

That said, I really enjoyed the season as a whole, and am looking forward to season 3. I imagine there will be further exploration of the other gifted kids out there, and I hope it will be incorporated better into the storyline than it was in season 2.

story

I guarantee if the episode 7 story had been part of Eleven's arch sprinkled throughout like everyone else's, people would love it. Even if it got a big 20-minute puece for the ending, people would've dug it.

mcnabb

No doubt the show works best with the ensemble cast together, but I’m just surprised at the utter disdain of one isolated episode. (Not you personally as this is directed at a section of the fanbase) Heck, even TV Guide gave the episode a ‘Jeer.’

This always happens with shows or even movie franchises as once they try to do something a bit different, they get criticized. But in the same vein, I read several comments that they don’t want Will to be the sacrificial lamb for Season 3 and want something different.

This is a binge show that fans don’t have to wait week to week so Episode 7 should not have been so jarring since you could watch Episode 8 right after it.

Toddarino

What wouldn't surprise me at the end of this series is that all 11 subjects are needed to fully defeat the main enemy/ close the upside down.

DaveyJoe

Yeah I know people complained about this same issue with Game of Thrones ending one episode on a cliffhanger and then the next episode was focused entirely on a different set of characters. With Stranger Things I could just binge the next two episodes in a row, but that was a long 45 minutes waiting to get back to Hawkins.

Then again I'm not sure cutting back and forth would have worked either. It would have been annoying to go from pandemonium in the science labs over to Eleven moving a train. I think the answer was to just write better characters, the execution was lacking. In the series premier, the kids were almost immediately likable, but did anybody find the new characters in 2x07 compelling? Good writing would have left us wanting more of those characters, but instead we were all relieved to get back to the gang in Hawkins.

mphtrilogy

Just finished ...



other than that I liked S1 better.. but last two eps delivered

DaveyJoe