Stranger Things: Season 5, Chapter 4- Sorcerer

 "Henry is a lot of things, but in trouble with the monsters is not one of them."

Wow. That episode was a bit good, to put it mildly. But I'll open with my only gripe before I go on to the gushing... Stranger Things takes such care over the '80s period detail, but seems to get sloppy when it comes to D&D, and we have a particularly wincing example here. Mike's pep talk to Will is great, but it's anachronistic, because the sorcerer character class, as opposed to the magic user or wizard, was not introduced until 3rd edition in 2000, whereas in 1987 things were very much either OD&D or 1st edition. This may seem a minor point to those who don't play D&D, but it's basic stuff and certainly not a minor error.

That aside, though, this episode is pretty much flawless. I'm relieved to see so much of Max here. She may spend pretty much doing exposition to Holly, but it's truly magnificent, conceptually mind-blowing exposition that both answers questions and asks them. Is Henry/Vecna in some kind of psychic prison?

The Great Escape set piece is awesome, of course. So is Dustin's breakthrough with the wall in the Upside Down, and the scenes between Eleven and Hopper are both exciting and great in terms of characterisation. I like the bait and switch- we expect to find Vecna in that room, but we find Eight.

That final sequence, though, with all those Demogorgons, all the children taken by Vecna and all seeming lost.... but then Will gets the pep talk from Vecna (Why? What is Vecna planning for Will? Because this is a crucial thread this season.) and realises he has powers...

Now that's what I call a cliffhanger. And that's what I call bloody good telly, much though I may worry that the insanely high production values provide simply impossible competition to the rest of telly.

Roll on Christmas.

Stranger Things: Season 5, Chapter 3- The Turnbow Trap

 "No, we're saving a child via kidnapping."

I know, I'm getting rather behind: bear with me, it's my condition. All will be well after the op. Meanwhile, though, I have Little Miss Llamastrangler with me for Christmas (yay!) and so not bingeing Stranger Things is absolutely not a thing this week.

This episode is, basically, magnificent. All that stuff with Holly and Henry is splendidly fairytale, right down to the Red Riding Hood outfit, and the reveal with Max is a magnificent shock... but makes total sense. I assume her mind has been there since going into the coma, that Henry wants to keep Holly away from the forest in order to stop her meeting Max, and it was in fact Max who wrote the note? We shall see!

I'm loving the character moments. Murray urging Jonathan to propose to Nancy. The stuff between Will and Joyce. Will asking Robin about the experience of being gay. Dustin doing that to Steve's car.

All that, and we get a superb Home Alone type set piece. We finally get to see Erica again- it's about time; she's awesome. We get hints- does Dr Sarah Connor really have Vecna's physical body as a prisoner? What's her angle, though, besides wanting Eleven?

This episode has it all- the set pieces, the character moments, Winona Ryder's superb acting. One more to go until I'm caught up...

Stranger Things: Season 4, Chapter 7- Massacre at Hawkins Lab

 "Where others saw order, I saw a straitjacket..."

SPOILERS. Be warned. .

But, like, wow. I mean, yes, there are other plot threads- although the California contingent are suspiciously absent from the whole episode, suggesting that they have big things to come. But, well before we discuss Eleven's memories and the huge bombshell, let's do a tour of the characters.

So the police are a bit wet. Dustin, Lucas, Max and especially Erica are awesome. Yet poor Nancy, Robin, Steve and interestingly Eddie fare well in the Upside Down- Eddie in particular being his cool metalhead, D&D self. The kids avoid the police materdfully. The bikes blatantly reference ET.

And we get the suspense of the veryblovely Joyce and the indefaiigable Murrat rescuing action hero Hopper and his mate... and the Russian Demogorgon.

Yet this is all about Eleven’s past, about who did. About who One is, who Vecna is. The revelation is masterfully handled, and will hopefully restore Eleven’s powers. It really does come as a huge revelation, masterfully delivered. Yet we end worried about Nancy.

There’s so much character stuff here. The bug between Joyce and Hopper. The chat between Steve and Eddie where they connect and Eddie tells him not to let Nancy go. Erica being awesome. Dustin being a genius.

I now need to wait until 1 July. Bastards.

Stranger Things: Season 4, Chapter 1- The Hellfire Club

 “I like boobies. You like boobies.”

It’s back. And it’s… seventy-seven minutes long. With the following six episodes to be released thus far being a similar length. Gulp. Oh, and those episodes don’t even comprise the whole season.

This is the biggest season of Stranger Things this far. Judging by this highly eventful first episode, although there’s a long way to go, early signs are that it’s a contender for the best.

There are, by now, so many characters to keep track of. Now in California we have Eleven, being bullied, and Will, while Joyce discovers a clue in a creepy Russian doll (brrr!) that Hopper may still be alive. Simultaneously, in Hawkins, Lucas is turning away from geekdom towards basketball and the popular kids, but his awesome sister Erica is more than a suitable replacement.

There’s more. Steve and Robin make great friends, talking about girls they like. There’s a new, awesome, weed dealing geek metalhead character, Eddie. And there’s the poor girl who is so horribly and effectively killed by Vecna who, as is traditional, is a D&D baddie- in this case, I believe, a lich from the Greyhawk campaign. Incidentally, I loved seeing the 1st Edition AD&D paraphernalia.

So far there’s a lot of very well done character stuff, and the villain seems to be terrifying in a way that truly uses the grammar of cinematic horror. It’s very well directed indeed by the Duffer Brothers. And I’m already hooked.

Loving the title too; I suspect it's a reference not so much to Joseph Dashwood as to Chris Claremont.

Stranger Things: Season 3, Chapter Seven- The Bite

“We all die, my strange little child friend.”

The penultimate episode begins with, well, rather cheery scenes of a Fourth of July funfair via Karen and her family seeing some possibly CGI fireworks from the top of the Ferris wheel. Only their little girl commenting on the trees moving (I’m sure the reference to Ents is deliberate) suggest that there is anything amiss, but amiss things certainly are, as Eleven is at a low ebb after her recent encounter with “Billy”- and a massive Mind Flayer is suddenly after them. They certainly seem to be in a bit of a pickle, as the big set piece with the Mind Flayer sending it’s pointy teethed tentacles through the windows is utterly bloody terrifying, and while El manages to beat it back so they can all drive off she is wounded.

Meanwhile Dustin, Erica, and a still somewhat stoned Robin and Steve manage to escape to the cinema, which has a brand new film playing- Back to the Future, which is quite rightly dwelt upon somewhat. I love Robin and Steve’s stoned conversation about the timey-wimeyness.

Meanwhile, Murray continues to be most perceptive about Joyce and Hopper just needing to get a bloody room, and his exchange with Alexei on the subject is bloody hilarious. Also amusing is that Lucas’ idea for a weapon against the baddie- fireworks- is again pooh poohed, although we know his ideas always seem to work. I note his catapult saves the gang from the Mind Flayer, too, in the ensuing set piece in the foyer. I also like how Mike is saved from having to tell El that he loves her by Dustin’s “code red”...

There’s a poignant scene, though, in the toilet(!), Where Dustin explains his feelings for Robin, only for her to unexpectedly and gently explain that her preferences are for another gender- and Steve proceeds to not be a dick about it and make very clear that he just wants to be good friends. A potential romance is derailed, but both characters are rather lovely here.

There’s an amusing scene with Joyce and Hopper in the Graviton (Do they still have that in Alton Towers? I haven’t been on one since about ‘93), but this is juxtaposed with Alexei, just when he’s had a bit of fun, being shot by his motorbiking fellow Russian. Murray is devastated; we’ve seen this odd friendship developing and Murray is now fully on board with the mission.

There’s a splendid set piece between Hopper and Motorbike Comrade in the hall of mirrors, and Dustin and co finally reunite with the other kids- with Lucas amazed to see Erica. But El collapses with what I’m sure is not a normal infected wound, and we have only an Uber-long finale to go.

Obviously, this is awesome. Saying that almost seems superfluous.

Stranger Things: Season 3, Chapter Five- The Flayed

“Can you redirect your stream please?”

We rejoin with the lift going down, down, down, until it stops and, er, Steve falls on his groin. They’re trapped, but Erica is super cool as ever. I’d say already that she’s passed the audition as they all stay relatively calm for quite a while in spite of bladder issues. Meanwhile Joyce and Hopper search the house of the motorbike man, and after hearing Russian voices they soon end up with two Soviet captives- until the big boss arrives (the subtitles call him Grigory but I do t think we’re supposed to know that) and a big set piece fight begins. Ultimately Hopper and Joyce escape with one of the Russians, but they are clearly being pursued.

There’s still time for some ‘80s flavour, though, and so it’s good to see a poster for R.E.M.’s “Murmur” on Jonathan’s wall, keeping him in our eyes as someone with unremittingly good musical taste, a character trait recently neglected. Personally I find the production alienating as it sounds completely unlike what the band would become, in spite of a strong set of tunes.

Anyway, Jonathan gets a 6am call from an alarmed Nancy at the hospital, urgently needing to speak to Will after what she's seen- the Mind Flayer is back. This leads to the pair of them joining the kids, a pivotal plot moment, just as Millie is using her powers to find Hopper and Joyce in the woods with said Russian, trying to get to Hopper’s acquaintance in Illinois.

Meanwhile, underground, with bladders straining, clever Steve gets everyone out of the lift and into... a long, empty corridor. Yes, this scene is pretty much padding until they get to the lab but that’s ok because the interaction of the characters is splendid, especially Dustin telling Erica, with the authority of My Little Pony, that shes a nerd too. Ouch.

While this is going on, Nancy and Jonathan Deal stories with the kids, bringing their respective strands together, working out that, if Heather has been turned, Tom must have been too, so it’s off to the family home and the scene of the crime. Meanwhile Hopper and Joyce, amusingly, are saved by Alexie who finds that grand American institution, the 7 Eleven, which I don’t believe I visited on any of my four visits to the country, a curious omission. Here unfold various amusing scenes of fast food consumption and car theft in what is certainly becoming the plot thread with the most comic relief.

More progress is made by Dustin and co, working out that the mall must exist as cover for what lies underneath. This, of course, brings up the awkwardness that Robin and Erica don’t know the weird stuff that’s happened. The kids make progress too, though, working out that the Mind Flayer must have a base of operations somewhere, that Mrs D wants to get there, so why not go to the hospital and use her as bait? What could possibly go catastrophically, cliffhangeringly wrong?

Then we have the highlight of the episode, as Hopper’s friend in Illinois is the conspiracy theorist from last season, who happens to speak Russian, a good excuse to have him back- and he’s immediately perceptive about the relationship between Joyce and Hopper. But more is discovered by Dustin and co who finally emerge into the lab.... which clearly centres on a massive portal into the Upside Down, as alluded to at the start of the first time and explaining a lot. There’s also interesting scenes in the hospital as Nancy and Jonathan make up, him cheerfully admitting he’s wrong, and there is much weirdness with American chocolate bars. Their Kit Kats look bizarre. Their Marathons were called Snickers even in 1985. Does not compute.

Almost, but not quite, as horrifying is that Tom and his odious mate are waiting, having been got at by the Mind Flayer, and the ensuing scenes of them trying to get Nancy are pure horror. But not as horrifying as what happens next as both baddies dissolve into an ooze which re-forms into a terrifying and very well-realised monster. Oh dear.

Yeah. That was very good.

Stranger Things: Season 3, Chapter Four- The Sauna Test

”Commence Operation Child Endangerment!”

Another splendid episode of investigation, but also one of progress this time, plus some nice little character touches; Max is a regular reader of Wonder Woman! I’m afraid my knowledge of the ‘80s scene is very, very Marvel with my knowledge of the Disgruntled Competition focused mainly on Batman, John Byrne’s Superman, Justice League International and the usual stuff by Alan Moore and Neil Gaiman- was Wonder Woman any good in 1985?

Anyway, editor Tom and his wife have been well and truly got at by Billy- and that horrible beast underground whom everyone seems to be sacrificed to, a kind of miniature Mind Flayer, seems to such up their faces which... well, uuurgh.

Tom is visibly sweating while bollocking Nancy and Jonathan for their unauthorised investigations, with Mrs Driscoll in hospital and an awful lot of trouble, but seems pretty much himself as he sacks the pair of them. Both of them are devastated and have a bit of a row, which is revealing; Nancy did it because she was fed up of being treated as a young woman in a man’s world, understandably. It went beyond being young and working your way up; this was real, nasty, misogyny. Then again, she comes from a well off family and can afford this setback. Jonathan doesn’t, and can’t.

One consequence, though, is a lovely scene between her and her mother, Karen. In the first season there were many scenes of Karen helplessly failing to connect with her daughter but they really bond over this, and Karen is fantastic, urging her not to give up.

Will knows that the Mind Flayer is back, which means the party- Max and El included- are back together, minus the otherwise occupied Dustin, in spite of the awkwardness meaning that even Mine explaining what happened with Hopper just looks desperate and butters not a single parsnip.

We get an interesting scene where Joyce and Hopper investigate the dodgy Mayor- that bloke on the motorbike was there the last time they visited Town Hall, and it seems he was handing a bribe to the Mayor- a bribe for getting people to sell land next to the land for the mall to expand there- a possible source of the magnetic weirdness? This goes well, so much so that Hopper offers Joyce a police job, which would be perfect for a detective like her.

Even more brilliant, super sleuth Robin manages to get plans to the Russians’ warehouse, and cones up with the idea to use, as is traditional, air vents to reach the inner sanctum. Cue the utterly superb Erica who wangles herself a lifetime of free ice cream for doing the crawling. Erica is awesome. An equally cool idea is for the gang to test Billy for Mind Flayer influence by shoving him in a sauna, a brilliantly executed scene.

We end with trouble, though. Robin, Steve, Erica and Dustin arrive in the inner sanctum, see some mysterious glowing green object, but end up travelling down several floors as the room turns out to be a lift. And the gang’s confrontation with Billy turns out to be a tad dramatic, although at least it ends up revealing how much El and Mike are willing to do for each other. Once again, a splendid marriage of character and plot structure in what is a slow building but clever season based, unusually, more on intrigue than scares.

The final scenes see an investigating Nancy present as Mrs Driscoll is about to e pride, while Billy has turned dozens of people via that underground monster and, surreally, they all start creepily channelling Dame Vera Lynn...