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

I just finished it there and I have to agree with some of the comments regarding the length. maybe it's indulgence on behalf of the directors or the nature of streaming where you don't need to conform to a T.V schedule but maybe there's something to be said for having to trim down to 42-46 minutes. it forces the direcors to cut unnecessary fluff and shorten scenes, leaving a leaner show.

There's also the well documented issue of character bloat. Mike and the Byers brothers really had nothing to do for the majority of the season. instead of just scaling down their screentime (adressing the length) they get silly side-quests to do. i.e. the agent gives them a pen with a phone number hidden inside it, which rings a computer, so we have to go to Suzie for help, then come up with a way around her father so she can get the information they need, which turns out to be co-ordinates. this nonsense could have been avoided if the co-ordinates were just written on that paper in the pen.

I also dislike the obvious retconning. The "it was me all along!" trope. that Vecna/001 shped the upside-down into what it is and either created or is the Mind Flayer is poor writing. it takes this dangerous mirror world controlled my this mysterious entity and makes everything less intiresting. look at seasons 2 and 3 when the Mind Flayer speaks to our heroes. it's clearly not a human with a personal connection to 11.

I know i sound awfully negative but i really did enjoy this season. The stuff with the gang back at Hawkins was always great, i enjoyed the prison stuff once it got going and loved the idea of prisoners bieng used to feed/entertain the demigorgon. 11's story got good once she got into the immersion tank at the N.I.N.A project. we've a nice little cliffhanger with high stakes and hopefully season 5 will finish on a high.

Finally finished this tonight, took me a few weeks to find the time and want to spend two and a half hours on the final episode, probably the best season over all and episode 4 probably the best of the lot.

one thing that bugged the **** out of me in the last episode, it's a very small detail really but surprising for show that prides itself on 80 nostalgia and authenticity, the dj mixer shown is from the early 2000, knew the second I seen it on screen it wasn't from the 80s, very small detail that I doubt most noticed but annoyed me 😂

I was gonna say if they don't add anyone, who will they kill off, but then it is the final season so everyone is expendable.

Watch them do a Walking Dead and announce details of the spinoff before season 5 is released, giving away a number of people who will survive.

Yeah think I read that. But was just giving an example of how they could make the stakes lower by spoiling who survives.

Like I was thinking of catching up with Walking Dead before the finale but then saw all the spinoffs announced.

Either Will or Jonathan would be first on the list to die, as characters who are pretty surplus to requirements, big emotional scene for Joyce etc. Robin/Priyah would be next as "main characters but not as long as the others", maybe Brett Gelman's character either. After that I guess Eleven in a big sacrifice to end things, considering it all centres around her.

Or they make it look that way to take her off the government's radar again.

Will they do the usual final season thing of bringing people back, like will we see El's sister come to help? Since that's the episode everyone wants to be reminded of. 😃

For some reason I thought Vecna was done digitally, at least for some of him. But going by that video it was pretty much all practical.

Finally got to watch The Piggyback last night - like someone else said above I also had difficulty finding two and half hours.

Bloody good stuff as always.

I am certain that it had been announced season 4 was to be the final season - am I completely wrong about that?

Was it just assumed by people that it would be?

I heard when they announced season 4 that they also announced a final ending so I missed the season 5 bit and got confused.

Don't think I was the only one.

Disney with Marvel and Star Wars?