First Things First…
I’m IN for finding out more about Vecna after the incredible ending of the season premiere!
What I had heard about the horror being amped up this season held true so far. Now I’m hoping it continues all season. Plus, I’m anxious to see what happens to Eddie, and how he’ll react, now that a girl has been basically mutilated in his trailer.
Of course, there are other storylines I’m interested in…
- Will Mike make his flight and make it out to California for a reunion with El and Will?
- Will we see another flashback to what might’ve been El’s deadly childhood rampage through the lab?
- How will Lucas respond to his friends missing his “one shining moment,” and to being replaced in Hellfire Club by his sister?
- Will we learn more about Hopper’s whereabouts, and the strange message Joyce got about him still being alive?
- Is Max going to continue to withdraw within herself?
4 Things I Like
4. Big Shoes… Big Shoes
“Is the new chief of police, Powell, in over his head? Or is he the very savior this town needs?”
Beverly Moss, Channel 9
It hadn’t occurred to me that, with Hopper gone, one of his dipshit deputies (and I say that with all due love and enjoyment) would take over as Hawkins’ Chief of Police.
Turns out it’s Powell… and he’s in way over his head. His voice shakes and quivers as he calls for backup and says, “I need you down here ASAP to tell me what the hell I’m looking at, or how someone could even do something like this.”
In fairness, anyone would be dumbfounded after finding Chrissy’s body in the condition Vecna left her in.
But still, it says a lot about Hopper—and I expect this to be an ongoing thing—that his replacement can’t fill his shoes.
3. Third Wheel
Gotta feel bad for Will here. I mean, of course Mike is most excited to see El when he arrives in California. But he acts like he barely even knows Will.
I wouldn’t exactly say it’s fun watching these friendships continue to disintegrate. But it’s such an interesting look at how friends drift apart over time. We saw it with Mike and Will last season, as Mike (and Lucas) were outgrowing the nerdy stuff they had always been into.
Now, even though they’re back into that nerdy stuff, Mike still seems to have outgrown Will.
2. The Wrath of El
I wasn’t enjoying a lot of the El stuff—her lies to Mike, her desire to have Angela and the other bullies say she’s their friend even though they hate her. But when she loses her shit and hits Angela in the face with a roller skate, it’s a good look at just how poorly adjusted she is.
And it’s really not her fault. She’s been traumatized over and over again. She’d been forced to rely on her powers to protect herself and literally save the world. Now she doesn’t have them.
What’s interesting is that we already saw how poorly adjusted El is last episode. If you think hitting a girl in the face with a roller skate is bad, imagine how devastating it would’ve been if she had her powers and really flung her into a brick wall.
Not to mention, El goes from sad and self-pitying to downright homicidal lightning fast when she watches Angela and company through the blinds in the employees office and hears them still laughing at her.
I don’t know where this takes El, if she’s going to get her powers back, or if she even should. What’s clear is that protecting herself from Dr. Brenner and the lab workers… and from the Mind Flayer… did not prepare her for the terrors of middle school.
1. Vecna Strikes Again
We’re now two for two this season with deaths of new characters who I thought would be much more consequential.
This time, poor Fred goes out like a sissy.
I’m still not sure how Vecna operates. Is it as simple as him preying on people with secrets?
I’m not sure—but he’s a badass. And it’s now a lot clearer here that he’s from—or at least connected to—the Upside Down.
Again, I’m not sure how exactly, but this is the storyline and character I’m dying to learn more about.
1 Thing I’m Mixed On
1. Hopper in Hell
“This man does not deserve the peace of death. So I have sent him to Hell.”
Russian Officer
I originally put this in the “Don’t Like” category because of how much I don’t like the entire setup to this storyline. But I couldn’t keep it there for this episode because the truth is I didn’t dislike these scenes.
“The Elephant” is a particularly messed up torture device. It’s harrowing watching Hopper suffocate in there.
It’s good to see Hopper back, but I still think it would’ve made more sense if this didn’t get revealed so quickly. I feel like we’ve almost resolved the whole issue already, which I don’t like. But despite that, they’re pretty good scenes.
2 Things I Don’t Like
2. Jonathan’s Lies
They’re making Jonathan out to be way stupider than he really is. I’m as confused about the way he’s acting as his stoner friend Argyle is. It’s just a really dumb plan for him to have lied to Nancy (and his mom) about applying to the school she’s going to.
It’d be one thing if they used this as a way to get some conflict IF Jonathan was a dumb, thoughtless character. But he’s not. Lying about all this to the love of his life is way out of character.
And his assumption that if Nancy knew he wouldn’t leave his mom and brother behind, she’d just throw her dreams away to go to California to be with him—I’m not so sure about that. She’s a good girlfriend, but she’s also ambitious. I don’t think Jonathan has a handle on the situation at all.
1. Basketball Vigilantes
“Let’s go hunt some freak—for Chrissy!”
Jason
I’m not really looking forward to a “jocks vs. nerds” storyline, even though it’s classic 80’s. But with Jason putting all the blame for his girlfriend’s death on Eddie and D&D, it looks like that’s what we’re about to get.
If there’s one potentially bright spot here, it’s that Lucas will be caught in the middle of it all. It could be interesting to see how he approaches this, and if he turns on Mike and Dustin for his basketball friends.
Tim Matassa
