Stranger Things 3 (Spoiler-Filled) Review

I will admit that I was part of the camp of critics who thought Stranger Things probably should have ended after its initial season (I feel I should also admit that I didn’t really like that first season all that much). Then came Stranger Things 2, which I enjoyed even more than season one (although there were definitely some major missteps, namely the stand-alone Eleven episode in Chicago and the entire Nancy and Jonathan arc). I was wary of Stranger Things 3, as I wasn’t sure the Duffer Brothers would be able to mine enough story out of the Upside Down to make it worth our while. Having binged the entire season in a single sitting, I have to admit that Stranger Things 3 might be my favorite of the lot, despite the series hitting some serious issues that will remain a problem should the show come back for a fourth round (and let’s be clear: we all know the show will be coming back for a fourth season).

Let’s deal with the things that didn’t quite work first, so that we can all dive into the general excellence of the season as a whole with a clear conscience. First up, Nancy and Jonathan are so boring and every time the series puts the focus on them, the episode grinds to a halt. Yes, sexism was awful in 1985 (and, yes, it’s still a problem today). Yes, we know the show needs to justify Nancy and Jonathan’s continued value to the story by letting them “figure out” a chunk of the season’s mystery. But, boy, those two character are so dull and utterly lacking in any energy that I cannot understand the reason the Duffer Brothers continue making us watch them. It doesn’t help matters that Natalia Dyer and Charlie Heaton are two of the show’s weakest actors (compare their work to their similarly situated compatriot Joe Kerry as Steve – Kerry has managed to take a stereotypical role and turn it into something special, while Dyer and Heaton have continued to languish). When we return to Hawkins for another season, I can only hope that Jonathan stays in whatever town the Byers family have moved to, and Nancy has headed off to college out of state.

The other part of season three that didn’t work was the show’s choice in villains. The Upside Down was suitably terrifying back in season one, and slightly less scary in season two, if only because the series hasn’t been able to really explain the rules of why Eleven can’t seem to completely defeat the demons and keep them hidden away. The reasoning for the Mind Flayer’s return in season three was shaky at best, and lazy if we’re really being honest. So, it dissipated into the ether of Earth when it was killed, and has simply waited for a chance to possess someone again? Then there’s the Russians. Sure, every good 80s set thriller needs some Soviets to fight, but couldn’t the show have made them a bit more than cartoonish buffoons? The Terminator homage with the singular Russian assassin was a nice touch, but I would have liked to learn a bit more about why the Soviets wanted to get access to the Upside Down and how they managed to completely infiltrate an Indiana town at the peak of Cold War 80s tensions. Alexei was lovely, and faceless Soviet bad guys might have worked in the 80s as villains, but that doesn’t cut it in 2019 (and on an 8-episode television series). Hey, perhaps we could have lost a couple of those Nancy and Jonathan scenes and spent some time learning what this master plan was all about? Judging from the season tag, we’ll be spending some more time with the Russians next season, but I would have loved some key face time now.

Now, lackluster villains might sound like the sort of thing that could torpedo a show as keyed into the horror-thriller combo as Stranger Things, but that wasn’t the case this time around. Three seasons in, the Duffer Brothers have created a cast of characters with enough depth and personality to bulldoze through confusing and lacking villains and make us care about the stakes (even if we can’t quite understand just exactly what they are – my take on the endgame was that the Mind Flayer is body snatching folks to create a earth-bound body to take over the world, as soon as he is fully released from the Upside Down by the Russians, but boy, I’m still not completely sure that was what it was). The relationships between the core cast are so well defined at this stage of the game that I was just as invested in whether or not the kids would manage to repair their crumbling friendships by season’s end as I was in whether or not El would manage to save the day one more time (and I was thrilled when the show zigged away from another season ender with her as the hero).

Continuing to build the ancillary relationships was also a stroke of genius on the part of the Duffers. Leaning into Steve’s present- day internet fame as the real parent of the Hawkins children was hilarious (and re-teaming him with Dustin, who got his own chance to be the Dad to a stoned out Steve, was also great). Adding Priah Ferguson’s awesome Erica and Maya Hawke’s brand-new, but tons of fun, Robin to the duo was also a brilliant move (and Robin’s low-key coming out moment was one of the best character beats of the season for both Steve and Robin – Steve Harrington remains the ultimate bro). I often found myself anxiously waiting for the next time the foursome would appear on screen. Also just as fun to watch was the team of Joyce (Winona Ryder, continuing to show just how great she can be at any genre) and Hopper (David Harbour, getting to flex his acting muscles a bit more this time around), who finally stopped dancing around their attraction at the eleventh hour, only to lose their chance at a happy ending. While I have no doubt that Hopper is the American sitting in the Russian prison cell in the season’s end tag, I still hope I’m wrong because losing Hopper was one of the best elements of the season.

Stranger Things has gone for the sacrificial fake out once before (with El in season one), and season two saw the loss of Bob Newby (who, like his name suggests, was new, but made a hell of an impression), but the show has never had the guts to kill off one of its major players (Billy’s sacrifice this time around doesn’t count, as the series never quite knew what to do with him). Hopper’s arc could easily end with his death here: El got his letter – where he essentially teaches her the most important of life’s lessons, without Jim around, Joyce moves her family out of the Hawkins death zone and presumably to a more normal existence (and while they won’t get a chance to date, Joyce has opened herself up to moving on from Bob), and Hopper finally got to complete his turn from depressed, hard drinking cop to fully-formed hero. It was the perfect way to end Hopper’s time on the series, and while losing the gravitas of Harbour would be difficult moving forward (especially on a series that severely lacks multi-faceted adult characters), it’s better for the show as a whole to allow this death to stand.

The series is, at its heart, a love letter to childhood. How it’s so simple to ride bikes with your friends all summer, play games, and believe in the things that go bump in the night. But as we grow, we start to lose that innocence. And the kids, at the close of season three, have begun that journey. Sure, you can be like Steve and Robin and hang out with kids and keep your own sense of child-like fun alive a bit longer. But kids grow up and grow apart (we saw the beginning of those fraying bonds throughout the season). Teens start dating and ditching their friends for their significant others (another prominent season plot point). And part of the growing up process is losing those we love. Max lost Billy (and I think we can assume that death is going to stick), even if she seemed pretty well-adjusted three months later. El lost Hopper (but also gained a new family, which I hope serves her well – more scenes between powerhouses Ryder and Millie Bobby Brown can only be a good thing). And all the kids lost a bit more of their innocence and their close friendship. Things are changing in Hawkins, and while I’m sure there will be more shenanigans from the Upside Down to contend with in season four, I would honestly be fine just watching a Stand By Me-esque tale of kids spending one final summer together before going their separate ways. There isn’t much runway left on this tale, but I’ll gladly take another helping of the fun and fury of a Hawkins summer.