Netflix's Stranger Things Season 2

If you haven't watched the fan letter to 80s movies that is Stranger Things, I don't know where you've been, but you've been missing out. 

Stranger Things is a sci-fi horror movie stitched together from various 80s influences. It's John Hughes meets Steven Spielberg wrapped in Stephen King. The thing that makes it stand out is the love its creators obviously have for the time period, the horror genre, and the medium of film.

The plot follows a group of nerdy middle school friends, their families, and the town sheriff as they discover, investigate, and combat otherworldly forces unleashed by a secret CIA experiment.

Season 2 deals directly with the fallout of Season 1, picking up just short of one year after the events of the first season.

Here are some thoughts on Season 2. Spoilers ahead.

Pros

The Duffer Brothers continue to capture the look and feel of the 1980s. I'm a bit in awe that they were able to reproduce or find enough vintage cars, clothing, and claptrap to fill a production studio believably. Everything from the ads to the clothing to the food to the music is authentic. I played games in these homes as a child. Uncanny.

Anchored by solid performances from Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Paul Riser, and Sean Astin, the cast is believable and likable. These are some of the best child actors you've ever seen on screen. In fact, one of the main sources of horror in this series would be completely undermined without Will (Noah Schnapp) and friends being so endearing to the audience.

Character development is organic, not dramatic. What I mean is, characters grow and change in a way defined by who they are and the circumstances they're in, not because the plot demands they be that way. The writers earn the ending we see.

The organic character development makes Bob Newby one of the best "Everyman" heroes on television. He isn't a fighter, but "Bob the Brain" is instrumental in the defeat of the menace and the salvation of the town of Hawkins. Bonus points for having one of the Goonies in your 80s themed show. #BobNewbySuperhero

In fact, one of the themes of the whole show is the extraordinary feats normal people are capable of when fighting for their family and friends. 

Speaking of family, nearly every family in this show is broken and/or dysfunctional in some way and that is universally portrayed as a BAD THING. The creators obviously value the Platonic ideal of a good family and all that it does to support, protect, and provide for its members. 

This season is much faster paced than the first, but manages to maintain a good amount of tension throughout. 

Cons

The "Blackmailing-the-CIA" subplot. I get why they did it, as it resolves a left over plot point regarding Barb's death in Season 1. I don't believe for a second that they would have let Nancy keep her purse without searching it. Take that away and they have no leverage and no reason to seek out the investigator. Also, it doesn't really add anything to the main story. Hawkins Lab was going to be shut down once the "leak" from the Upside Down was plugged, regardless of the blackmail. 

Everything with Eleven and Eight. We learn nothing about Eleven in those scenes we didn't already know. It's there as a sort of "training ground" for Eleven's powers. It could have been accomplished solely with her mother or with El herself. Kali and her gang are not nearly as interesting or likable as the Hawkins AV Club, and without any established relationship, nothing Kali says comes across as anything but self-serving. It really felt like it was just a contrived way to keep El out of the fighting until the very end. Unless Kali and crew are instrumental in Season 3, chalk this up as wasted space and budget.

Fathers are nearly all either absent or evil. Seriously, mothers are the only parents doing anything besides bringing in a paycheck. Of the two fathers we see at the kitchen table, Mike's is nearly useless and Lucas's only comment is to instruct his son to be lead by women. It's an extremely passive portrayal of fatherhood. Add in El's "Papa" and Max's thug of a step-father and you don't have a pretty picture.

Even Hopper, who tries to do better in his guardianship of El, is less than successful.

Hopper and El's relationship is freighted with his unwillingness to tell her the truth about her mother and his constraining fear for her safety. No explanation is given about lying to her regarding her mother. However, every other rule is the result of Hopper's love for El and his very legitimate concerns over what would happen to her if her presence were revealed. Her reaction to both of these actions is believable, and so is his counter reaction. 

Unfortunately, the resolution requires Hopper to unilaterally forgive El for a) running away b) hitch hiking c) refusing to apologize d) refusing to accept any consequences for her outburst. He implicitly admits that he was wrong on ALL these points and not just some, bowing to the wisdom of a thirteen year old girl with a very limited understanding of the wider world. El is never made to apologize at all. It's a better, if muddled, picture of fatherly love, but it's a long way from ideal.

[Minor Edit: After watching some interviews, apparently home life was like this for the Duffers and they are faithfully reproducing the time period as they saw it.]

tl;dr - Cons: poor plotting or pacing choices for a couple subplots and a very unflattering portrayal of fathers. Pros: Everything else.