Amph The Stranger Things thread (Tag All Spoilers)

Silence of the Lambs! Carrie! This show has everything.

 

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Wargames.

 

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Freddy Krueger

 

End of ep 4 is magnificent. Sort of an ode to the greatness of Stranger Things at its best

 

Yeah, I just watched the first episode and it feels sort of unnecessary.

Amazing.

 

Definitely one of the best episodes of the series thus far. The Dive and The Massacre at Hawkins Lab are up there too though. Enjoy!

 

Ok. So. Wow.

Did not see that coming. And I'm glad. It just hits so hard that way.

I have to say the cgi was so good I only saw one small item for young El. She was standing there close and looking up and you could see the border on the right side of her face.

 

Great stuff. Very good story. I really did not expect them to do such a great job. Other franchises should have a good look on how to please the fandom.

 

The hint that hit me was...

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When 01, before we knew he was 01, looked at the device removed from his neck like Boromir at the One Ring with a rather evil look on his face and commented about so small a thing.

 

Episode 2 thoughts:

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That roller rink scene encapsulated everything that was awesome about what little I remember of the 80s (I was born in 82). Roller skate to the face, ouch. Can’t say that girl didn’t deserve it though. Really hoping that El gets her Carrie moment soon.

So Vecna is basically Freddie Krueger meets I Know What You Did Last Summer. I like it. I was even more creeped out by Fred’s unfortunate demise than I was by Chrissy’s. Every bone broken in unnatural directions, sucked out from the inside, then dropped like an empty sack. I got a feeling that Max will be a future victim of Vecna’s.

Hopper being in a Russian gulag isn’t surprising in the least. But Jaqen H’ghar is (apparently) helping him!

Will seems like a waste of a character at this point. Like he said, he’s a third wheel. I hope he gets to do something significant soon.

 

Episode 7 ties most of the season's threads together nicely. I don't know if it's the best season, but maybe the best since season one. It probably misses the point to

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accuse the show of absurdity, but the Russian rescue mission is difficult to swallow. Not that anyone has been rescued. It's a bit of a Death Star situation without an escape ship, so there's half a season left to figure that one out.

 

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---While I don’t necessarily hope for a Carrie moment, I do hope El opens a can of whoopass. ---

Making a guess off what I've seen. El gets assisted by her favorite song or some such.

 

Russian rescue plot is so slow. It doesn’t help the Black Widow blew doors off a Russian prison break Last year. This can’t come close. It did get interesting when they were all getting fed a feast and Hopper broke down why to the other prisoners.

This season is so long. A lot of pork.

 

Exactly, and it's an unfortunate coincidence that was to free David Harbour, too.

And speaking of David Harbour...

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I can't help link Hopper's recollection of his time in the army mixing defoliant, with the reminder that the Upside Down vines and creatures are all connected. Will Hopper go all Agent Orange on the Upside Down landscape in an effort to strike at Vecna? Or am I reading to much into it?

 

Wow. Very astute. There is so much extra in the season I didn’t even recognize that. I bet you’re right.

 

I feel silly arguing that the Russian scenes go too far, but I completely agree with you.

 

I absolutely love the Russian subplots as it's irrelevant, silly and funny. The only issue I had with it this season is the subplot

Spoiler: Soviet Union Style Spoilers!

lasted too long as it's honestly it could been resolved in the fourth or even fifth episode though technically it's not resolved as they are still in the Soviet Union and have to find a way home but obviously Joyce and Hopper are reunited which again could happen sooner.

 

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It would be easier for Joyce and Hopper to find a gate and walk back to Alaska via the upside down than to escape from the Soviet Union without outside help.

 

Episodes 3 and 4:

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Yep, I was right about Max being the next victim. Terrific Billy cameo. I had forgotten how much of a prick he was. Sadie Sink’s acting throughout episode 4 was superb.

Robert ****ing Englund! Freddy Krueger himself was a glorious addition to the cast this season. Obvious Silence of the Lambs homage, which came out five years after this season is set, but whatever.

When El gets her powers back later in this season, there had better be a Rocky-style montage. Otherwise, we riot.

I loved the camera work during the shootout in the Byers’ home. You really experienced how chaotic something like that could be. I think it was all a single shot too.

The Joyce/Murray plot remains the weakest part of this season. I figured Jaqen would be the one to betray Hopper, but I was wrong there.

 

Filming location question (404)

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Is the Creel house the same house from "American Horror Story: S1 - Murder House"?

 

Binged all of it. Starts off a bit slow and rather ... repetitive, maybe a bit unnecessary ... but by Ep 2, and 3 it really starts hitting a sweet spot. Loved how it all came together. Can't wait for July.

Spoiler: Vol 1 Spoilers

Once they introduced 001 - El's buddy/helper - I knew he was evil from the start. I mean...just look at the guy. But didn't know how it was going to be connected. Really liked how they filmed Current El experiencing a past memory and how they kept changing from young El to Current El in the same scene.

And when 001 asked for the tracker to be taken out, I figured this guy was super-powered (remembering that collar device from before)...and started snapping necks freely, just by his look, his eyes, I pegged that he was the "4 Star General" who can make gateways. (Also because you typically already meet the bad guy long before you know it kind of thing) During his monologue I was thinking he had already created the Upside Down as a place to rule. His sanctuary. That he opened the first gateway (cuz that's what the General does) Really intrigued by the outcome though. Kinda curious why Nancy is allowed to witness 001's past with the house, that seems way outside the normal nightmare that his victims experience. and seems mostly for the audience to understand the monologue. But it was great watching it unfold.

The Russian plot was important but was bloated. There's some great stuff there, but maybe only half of it was needed to advance that plot. Also not really into the Basketball Captain Jesus Freak stuff, but we'll see where it goes.