Stranger Things [Netflix] [* Spoilers *]

molloyjh · 29-05-2022 12:59am

2 episodes down and overall I’m really enjoying it. Dark with real classic 80s horror vibes. A couple of bits have been a bit cheesy or just not compelling (the bully and the baseball team) but otherwise it’s been a pretty strong opening 2 episodes.

Slydice · 29-05-2022 3:12am

3: Oh that was intense! I swear I was looking through my fingers with

Hopper getting his leg out of his chains 😱

Max looks like she's been on Vecnas list for a while. Maybe the drugs she was taking had helped.

I had to look up the name on the message Dr Owens sent when it was called operation Nina I think? I was guessing that might be the girl from season two but no, she was Kali.

I have to say.. something about this season so far feels way more grounded and like season one that season two or three did.

The dark and tenseness sure is intense.

Slydice · 29-05-2022 4:50pm

4: Wow! What an episode! That was just so much!

I think the biggest 😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲😲 came from:

The betrayal by Yuri of .. like everyone.. I didn't see it coming .. though it makes sense from the trailers having Hop have to fight a creature in the prison.

The first thing that got me though was the scene between Max and her mother in the yard.. even though it turns out it didn't really happen. That bonding scene was done so well.

The whole development of Max so far but particularly in this episode.. they've really done well in getting across that she's still processing so much that happened in her life and yet she's still so young. For so much to have happened and how that has affected her.

but like also so much in the episode..

I was also 😲😲😲😲 when the army and the secret service were going at it in California! That was intense!

There was just sooo much in that episode! I can't believe it was the same length as the others. Wow just like.. so much!

Side note, I noticed some boxes with Model 072 written on them so I googled it. I think all the hits mostly point at an "analog monophonic synth from the early '70s". Someone on the crew getting their nostalgia nod in I think. There's a photo on this site:

https://www.softube.com/model-72-synthesizer-system

This was in

the church that Happer arrived into

Agent Coulson · 29-05-2022 7:44pm

So is there only 2 featue length epsiodes left to come now after these 7?

Penn · 29-05-2022 8:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119131950#Comment_119131950

Yeah. Two episodes, which are approx. 1.5hours and 2.5hours.

Slydice · 30-05-2022 12:18am

5: Good ending on this one I thought.

Also forgot to mention after the last episode that my current guess is that

the son of the Creels, Henry I think?.. that Vecna might be him. The fathers recollection didn't actually show him dying and I don't think I saw any of his nightmares. So like.. either him or something to do with him.. maybe the Mind Flayer got to him.. I dunno.

Liked the nod back to Hoppers story from season one. Good they didn't overdo it, take from it or mess it up.

Eleven showing some power there was cool. I'm guessing there's a bunch more learning to do but that facility could be under threat from the army.

Also I counted I think 15 other kids who were in elevens memories. Think I spotted Kali (eight?) but was guessing giving the hair cuts.

Mushy · 30-05-2022 11:08am

Really enjoying this season, finished up to 7th episode last night so the final episodes are set up well

Fowler87 · 30-05-2022 12:01pm

Was worth the wait anyhow. Duffer bros really upped their game this season. Had elements from numerous film francises with nods to Matrix and Nightmare on Elm street. Looking forward to Part 2 in July

pixelburp · 30-05-2022 3:24pm

Finally found the 1 hour 20 to watch the first episode. It was enjoyable, certainly felt a high enough production enough given the reported budget, while the pacing never felt excessively slow that the feature length got in the way. Still found myself getting a wee bit impatient for the story to get going.

breezy1985 · 30-05-2022 3:27pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119128928#Comment_119128928

You would forget that season 1 was a bit darker and more adult than 2 and 3 where I think they went a bit more mainstream due to the popularity.

This season hasnt held back though and definitely feels more like 1.

pixelburp · 30-05-2022 3:33pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119135502#Comment_119135502

Really? I dunno, season 3 felt far gorier than prior runs, in particular when the Hawkins town people got turned into goop, including a kid.

breezy1985 · 30-05-2022 4:02pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119135538#Comment_119135538

It's not just the gory stuff. American TV in particular can be very gory and violent but still try to be all ages and a bit cheesy.

Thinking back to season 1 and scenes like Barb and Nancy arguing about her losing her virginity or sad scenes with Hops now forgotten son. The show has always mixed Halloween/It/Elm Street with ET/Goonies and I felt 2 and 3 were more the latter and 1 and 4 the former.

Evade · 30-05-2022 9:55pm

Good season over all. I didn't know it was split into two parts or I would have waited to watch it but oh well. One tiny gripe at the very end of the last episode

the zoom in on the 001 tattoo was really unnecessary and took away from the whole reveal sequence.

I really like the way Netflix have embraced the fact that they're not confined to 40-45 minute episodes now.

Slydice · 30-05-2022 10:43pm

6: Oh Crap! 😲

Steve's not dead is he?!!? They wouldn't kill Steve! Those creatures look like they got right into his belly already. That can't be good!

Aside from that, earlier in the episode I had a right laugh along with

Hopper and the Russian Guard/Bribe dude/Co Prisoner as they laughed about the plan to get the vodka and lighter.

At this point.. it's looking a bit like

Eleven will need to develop her powers and pull off some real last minute remote monster kills

Slydice · 30-05-2022 10:46pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119135538#Comment_119135538

To me, that type of gory and goop made season 3 feel less like season 1.

Nigel Fairservice · 31-05-2022 7:01pm

i'm 2 episodes in and enjoying it. Everytime I see Will I think I'm looking at a Vulcan with that haircut!

breezy1985 · 31-05-2022 7:14pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119141229#Comment_119141229

In terms of growth spurts he is the only ridiculous looking one. I think it's because they are still trying to make him look shy and innocent.

Slydice · 31-05-2022 8:11pm

WELL! ... WELL WELL WELL!

I'll be needing those last two episodes on 01 July as soon as possible please!!!

7: I swear I thought they had

cut to a cliffhanger when it faded to black in the prison but no .. It was Demogorgon time! 😲That thing can kill!!

I'm glad I noticed the kid Creele was probably Vecna and I had an inkling something was up with the dude helping Eleven.. as this episode went on.. especially with the chip.. I figured he was 001 but .. BUT.. I didn't put them together and that.. that was special! It's good to have such an intricate plot that I can figure parts of but still get a decent surprise from.

Feels like Eleven is really gonna get her full powers back and there's gonna be one helluva showdown between herself and 001.

Nods to the extra season one feeling given

when Hopper and Joyce got reunited in the prison. They're using callbacks to that Hopper storyline sparingly and I think I prefer it that way.

El Gato De Negocios · 31-05-2022 11:02pm

Watches episodes 3 and 4 this evening, trying to stretch it out a bit. Loving it, for the length of the episodes they are absolutely zipping by. Darkest season so far imo and I'm loving all the little horror nods, from the Elm Street sampling music to having The Thing poster on the wall. Fantastic stuff and I think my favourite season to date.

Mad_maxx · 31-05-2022 11:28pm

just finished episode four tonight , love the Max character , she is so authentic and real

easy to see the influences of both Silence of the lambs , nightmare on elm st and Hellraiser tonight ( even the music sounds a bit like Hellraiser at times ) , great episode

how much bad luck can Hopper have ?

TICKLE_ME_ELMO · 31-05-2022 11:46pm

Finished it tonight, thought it was grand. I didn't really notice the slightly longer run times, but I was zoning out a lot during the Russian stuff, and especially the California stuff. The storyline in Hawkins, and the Eleven stuff could have been all they did this season and I'd have been perfectly happy with that. I loved the 4 older kids in Hawkins teaming up, and that group in general, and the way the tied so many threads together by the end.

All in all, didn't enjoy it as much as other seasons, but the bits I did enjoy were 10/10, and I can't wait for the next ones.

gmisk · 31-05-2022 11:52pm

I am trying to ration it....but episode 4 was a bit of a corker!

But I must admit the Russian set stuff isn't really doing it for me massively.

fritzelly · 01-06-2022 5:02am

Only just starting to watch it but how the hell does it cost 30 million per episode (assume that is the average for the whole season)? That is big movie budgets territory

TICKLE_ME_ELMO · 01-06-2022 9:15am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119142642#Comment_119142642

Can't say for sure where all the money went but in the credits they have 3 separate film crews, Georgia, Albequerqie, and Lithuania. So that alone, I assume, is costly

Penn · 01-06-2022 9:24am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119142966#Comment_119142966

Yeah there's a lot of different locations and exterior filming, a pretty bloated cast, and it's hard to know what the actors contracts were like when they first signed up, but I'm sure there's a decent amount going to their paychecks now. Then you add in the SFX (both digital and prosthetics) and the length of the episodes (average of 85mins across all 9 episodes). Music licensing can be pretty costly too.

But, when you consider a big Hollywood blockbuster (like most MCU/DC movies) might be 200-300m for 2-3 hours, but Stranger Things is approx 270m for almost 13 hours, it's not too bad. I'm sure it's worth it for Netflix anyway.

pixelburp · 01-06-2022 9:27am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119142966#Comment_119142966

There's also loads of extras, I noticed. Two completely separate high schools to populate. Obviously they're not going to be paid Megabucks but that plus the larger salaries for the main cast probably pushed up the cost per episode as well.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO · 01-06-2022 10:21am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119143010#Comment_119143010

I'd assume the high-school bits were filmed pre covid shutdown, because otherwise that would cost an absolute fortune having that many people working under covid protocols.

johnny_ultimate · 01-06-2022 12:44pm

I'm finished episode 5 (the ending of episode 4 really was excellent) and so far I think the Hawkins stuff is pretty much as good as the show has been. The horror vibes work surprisingly well, the main villain feels like a proper threat, some of the character work is strong, and there's a real air of menace and danger.

But the myriad of other stuff going on really isn't anywhere near as compelling or interesting. As much as I like some of the actors involved, the Duffers really are struggling to take their characters in new and fresh directions. You really feel those extended running times with the B and C 'road trip' plots, and the Eleven plot in particular just feels like the character was written into a dead-end last season and they're now trying to fix it. Hopefully the plots and characters come together in a satisfying way in the final episodes.

And while an allowance can be made for all the production delays etc, the next series realllllly probably should have a time jump of a few years as most of the cast (through no fault of their own) really aren't convincing as 15-year-olds any more.

pixelburp · 01-06-2022 2:25pm

To no great surprise, this was a hit and became Netflix's largest English language for an "opening weekend" of its shows. Squid Game still beats everything, and will probably remain thus barring another pandemic.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO · 01-06-2022 3:07pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119144641#Comment_119144641

Pandemic also probably helped Stranger Things. I've seen/heard a lot of people who watched it for the first time during lockdowns.

Stranger Things [Netflix] [*** Spoilers ***]

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Stranger Things [Netflix] [* Spoilers *]