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nauru-1's Replies
I think we can all agree the original intent behind the lyrics was sinister. I would also argue the use of this song has more than one meaning. The lyrics in this case can apply remarkably well to both the lingering threat of the Mind Flayer and the particular dynamics of Mike and El. Consider how El was watching Mike without him seeing her back, just like the stalker in the song. Or how Mike was "lost without a trace" ever "since she was gone". There's a yearning to the song that speaks to their romance, and the voyeuristic component works on two levels.
He may very well end up towering over her, but a height imbalance doesn't throw off romantic credibility the way it would be if one of them looked like a teenager and the other like a little kid. Millie and Finn both look like teenagers now already, so I don't foresee this being a problem from here on out.
By contrast, Caleb in season 1 was about the same age as Millie will be in season 3. A discrepancy like that would have made them a much more tenuous match.
I actually think they got pretty lucky with the growth of Millie and Finn happening at pretty much the same time. If you look at them in the promotional work for season 2's release, at this point they're both old enough looking that it shouldn't ever be an issue for their on-screen romance.
He is the more sardonic of the two.
Everything to do with the snowball was wonderful, absolutely. Poignant, heartwarming, fleeting. I want season 3 to offer more of those vibes as I feel some of the other moments winding down season 2 felt a little rushed.
They all seem to be managing as teen icons. I would say no season will have it tougher with the kids growing up than season 2 did though.
Good stuff. My correct prediction was Hopper being struck by an unseen force (shots in one of the trailers) was caused by El having a fit.
Almost too big period for me, so much as to change the whole tone of the show. I think they could have expanded the threats a la Aliens without completely losing that. I loved that it was a genre show that didn't feel like an apocalyptic scale fantasy-action, but at times in season 2 it was basically flirting with that. My hope is just that they don't feel every season needs to up the ante, and that they won't be afraid to go low-key as well.
I almost feel like the Mind Flayer is more of a series endgame. It's basically god-tier on the supernatural threat level, and then where do you go from there? I'm hoping season 3 has more of a human antagonist. Someone like Brenner could have a serious emotional impact on Eleven that may require other characters to take action.
I agree with pretty much all of this, though it also would be refreshing if they don't have to rely on El saving the day every season. I would like to see them use creativity in dealing with threats without sidelining her, like the solution being something more psychological or El's use of her powers having consequences.
I do think Will coughing up the slug works as an ending. The end to the El story would be pretty unsatisfying to me as is though. And while I would never have expected them to do it, I would have enjoyed if ST2 had dispensed with the need to expand on the genre elements. I love the aesthetic, the music, the thriller elements, but the coming-of-age stuff among the kids and the personal dramas facing the older characters were the most compelling part of the show.
If season 1 works perfectly on its own, pursuing it further shouldn't really affect it. It's when people actually feel there is more story to tell that the decisions for where they take it that it merits a bigger point of contention.
I wouldn't say the big differences between the seasons we're talking about stems from the maturation of the kids. Those two examples would be a natural progression within the coming-of-age subgenre, and one I would hope to see exploited further as the story continues. It's fundamentally different from the apocalyptic action and comic book fantasy elements hinted in season 2 that people wouldn't want to see the show going down in the future. Season 1's style didn't necessitate evolution in that way.
You said it was silly for people to worry about being disappointed. I'm saying that whether concern applies to them will largely depend on their tastes. If the show had released something more like season 2 first and then something like season 1, it sounds like you wouldn't be as crazy about the direction the show is going. And one can applaud the effort to develop a story and take risks without being enthusiastic about the results.
As for tone, I think it's a question of degrees. Obviously shows want to maintain a certain measure of consistency to be palatable. Where one sits in that spectrum and where one views Stranger Things in achieving it lies the question.
See, I actually felt in season 2 like not enough time was spent on some of the ideas they had built rather than stretching ideas out. I'm going to reserve on what their supposed future plans are, but if it's anything like episode 7 it's not going to be my thing.
Yeah, depending on how long they make the time jumps I guess. It would seem like next season will pick up in 1985 based on Dr. Owens saying to wait about a year.
Yes, that was their plan if season 1 had been a limited series/standalone 8-hour movie. That plan I believe was changed by the time the show was officially picked up by Netflix. So they working as they go in the sense that season 1 was all they had initially, but I do think since then they have ideas in terms of where an endgame would be, which some of the cast like David Harbour have alluded to.
See, I would actually argue the kids took a backseat this season, not necessarily in terms of screentime but in terms of importance to the story. Whereas in season 1 it seemed like each faction was in their own world, this time it felt like adult characters like Hopper were clearly the glue.
Minimum 4, maximum 5.
That's viewing the season on pretty simple terms, though I actually agree that it would have been nice for the premise to not involve the same character in peril and the same character saving the day.
However, my gripes about season 2 are actually that it wasn't enough like the season 1 in certain ways. A lot of the magical character interplay and more modest scale was lost.
I would tend to agree, and I hope controversies like this don't get in the way of candid conversations about the show in the future.