Stranger Things

[Dolfan in NYC]

Loved the first season of the show, Season 2 comes out on the 27th.  The new trailer came out today:

 

[Dolfan in NYC]

 

[Technico Support]

Four episodes in and decent so far.  I'm still not a fan of the "we can pace the show differently because it's built for binging" school of scriptwriting, but I'm old, so ymmv.

[J.T.]

3 minutes ago, Technico Support said:

Four episodes in and decent so far.  I'm still not a fan of the "we can pace the show differently because it's built for binging" school of scriptwriting, but I'm old, so ymmv.

Same issues I'm having with this season of Mr. Robot.  Neither show is edited for episodic viewing once a week.  Both are designed to be consumed in one big sitting over pizza and soft drinks.

[Dolfan in NYC]

Finished it last night. Good build up and yeah, I agree, the pacing is set up for binge viewing, especially episode 7.  Having that kind of side track episode gets other normal series excoriated in the press. It's still a very good episode on its own, but in a usual broadcast TV show, it would have been broken up across 2 or 3 episodes. 

It's definitely a different feel from Season 1.  They've got a much bigger budget and it shows. 

I liked the ending, but it definitely felt like they left a lot of stuff unresolved. 

Spoiler

The Mindflayer/tornado monster is a good villain, especially because they have no idea how to actually defeat it.  And of course, that's clear when they show it's *also* attending the Sadie Hawkins dance at the end.

Unfortunately, no one wanted to dance with him.

I think Kali ("008") may come back as a villain next season, but I'm not sure.  

Also, so much to be explored with that (soon to be literal) motherfucker Billy. 

Sean Astin is bae. 

[J.T.]

12 minutes ago, Dolfan in NYC said:

Good build up and yeah, I agree, the pacing is set up for binge viewing, especially episode 7. 

Well, I don't really mind as far as Stranger Things goes since most Netflix showrunners have the decency to release the entire season all at once.

My complaint is mostly aimed at Mr. Robot which is obviously chopped up from much larger pieces and force fit into an episodic series.

[Technico Support]

2 hours ago, J.T. said:

Well, I don't really mind as far as Stranger Things goes since most Netflix showrunners have the decency to release the entire season all at once.

My complaint is mostly aimed at Mr. Robot which is obviously chopped up from much larger pieces and force fit into an episodic series.

That's what really got me.  Mr. Robot is on a network and is weekly...you know, the actual definition of episodic TV.   It should really be written that way.  If USA intends for me to binge it, let me know that ahead of time and I'll just watch it in a few months. 

[Mister TV]

Damn you Stranger Things for hitting all my nostalgia buttons, I was 10 in 1984.

 

[peterien]

Ive one episode left but thoughts so far;

Ep 1 is great, just a simple welcome back episode.

Eps 2-4 are the brakes being put on a small bit storytelling wise but from the end of ep4 onwards its very impressive. Ep 8 is incredible and the room got very dusty at the end of it even though it was fairly obvious. 

Some spoiler-filled thoughts ahead-

 

I honestly thought Sean Astins character was a spy for the lab but im glad he wasn't and he went out like a champ.

Elevens return was Austin returning to save the WWF from the Alliance and it was fucking great.

Hopper is my MVP of the season. Steve and Dustin 2nd. The Doc 3rd.

Steve and Dustin need a buddy cop duo show ASAP!

The drawings and eleven being kept away from the group are probably the most groan-worthy events of the series but it lives up to the hype

[RandomAct]

The Steve/Dustin pairing might be my favorite thing in the entire series. It was random AF, and just worked because those two have this bizarre chemistry. Steve started S1 as such a dickbag, and ended up being one of the more likeable characters.

Paul Reiser is almost unrecognizable.

[Jiji]

To be fair though, Dustin has chemistry with everybody.

[turk128]

The scene stealer/dark horse of this season has got to be Steve: he's a wonderfully chill bro. It helps that he's had a Jaime Lannister level of a face turn. Also, turns out that I dig the older teens' story arcs way more than the kids. Like who would have thought Steve would turn out to be such an elite tank class fighter?

They are just digging deeper and deeper into D&D lore and I'm freakin loving every second of it. I wouldn't put it past them to talk about the githyanki next season.

Spoiler

Bob turned out to be probably the most heroic figure. Just too bad Joyce has such trash perception check.

I can't wait to see how Billy can redeem himself. Speaking of which, how great is it that the characters are never black and white morally? I mean, you can even see that in Billy.

One of the most badass entrances:

Buckaroo Banzai the younger years:

 

There's so much of the visuals and setting I think owns much to Under the Skin... so much so that I wouldn't be surprise if they share a cinematographer or two.

I already thought this since season 1 but way more so with season 2: there needs to be a D&D mini-series. And it's only going to work if they went Stranger Things route... kinda like a twist on the old D&D cartoon. It practically rights itself.

[Mister TV]

12 minutes ago, turk128 said:

The scene stealer/dark horse of this season has got to be Steve: he's a wonderfully chill bro. It helps that he's had a Jaime Lannister level of a face turn. Also, turns out that I dig the older teens' story arcs way more than the kids. Like who would have thought Steve would turn out to be such an elite tank class fighter?

They are just digging deeper and deeper into D&D lore and I'm freakin loving every second of it. They wouldn't put it past them to talk about the githyanki next season.

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Bob turned out to be probably the most heroic figure. Just too bad Joyce has such trash perception check.

I can't wait to see how Billy can redeem himself. Speaking of which, how great is it that the characters are never black and white morally? I mean, you can even see that in Billy.

One of the most badass entrances:

Buckaroo Banzai the younger years:

 

There's so much of the visuals and setting I think owns much to Under the Skin... so much so that I wouldn't be surprise if they share a cinematographer or two.

I already thought of this since season 1 but way more so with season 2: there needs to be a D&D mini-series. And it's only going to work if they went Stranger Things route... kinda like a twist on the old D&D cartoon. It practically rights itself.

Spoiler

That second picture totally nails 1983/1984 style wise. The "cooler" kids like Steve and now Dustin had what is considered the cliche 80's hair styles and clothes while "normal" kids like Mike had the Nicholas from Eight is Enough haircuts and dressed like Mr. Kotter. It wouldn't be until late 85/early 86 for the "normal" kids to catch up and at that point Steve would be either dressing like Sonny Crockett or a preppy. Someone like Nancy would have been rocking a Esprit sweatshirt during that time though.

El using her powers to knock Max off her skateboard was great! With the kids getting older they need season 3 to almost be Freaks and Greeks with monsters.

Did anyone else find Kali's gang to be useless and that they'd be better off having her as a loaner or teamed up with one or two other people.

 

 

[turk128]

11 hours ago, happjack said:

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That second picture totally nails 1983/1984 style wise. The "cooler" kids like Steve and now Dustin had what is considered the cliche 80's hair styles and clothes while "normal" kids like Mike had the Nicholas from Eight is Enough haircuts and dressed like Mr. Kotter. It wouldn't be until late 85/early 86 for the "normal" kids to catch up and at that point Steve would be either dressing like Sonny Crockett or a preppy. Someone like Nancy would have been rocking a Esprit sweatshirt during that time though.

El using her powers to knock Max off her skateboard was great! With the kids getting older they need season 3 to almost be Freaks and Greeks with monsters.

Did anyone else find Kali's gang to be useless and that they'd be better off having her as a loaner or teamed up with one or two other people.

 

Spoiler

 

Dustin's doo was totally a Flock of Seagulls nod (especially after the bird comment).

I think Kali's episode was a necessary sacrifice to seed future plot. I can imagine crazy Dirk Gently-ish powered freaks out there. Also, I think the episode fell kinda flat because the actress seemed... limited; like her sidekicks were more charismatic.

Next season will most likely have humans aiding the  mindflayer.

 

 

[Craig H]

We finished it tonight and fucking loved it. I even liked episode 7. In hindsight it's nice getting that break with episode 7 because I was all teary eyed all through episodes 8 and 9.

Random thoughts...

I never thought I'd like Steve as much as I did.

When did Sean Astin turn into Patton Oswalt?

I fucking HATE Billy. Wow. What a huge piece of shit.

I love what they set up for season 3.

[turk128]

On 11/1/2017 at 9:11 PM, Craig H said:

I fucking HATE Billy. Wow. What a huge piece of shit.

Spoiler

 

Billy is low-key a good guy, just incredibly flawed since his social interaction is so skewed.

He is incredibly straightforward and not the type to back-stab unlike Steve's douche-bag friends in S1.

He tells Steve  straight-up how to deal with him: brace yourself and get ready when I charge in.

He was clearly harassing his sister but also in a weird way protecting her. Later on as his home life is revealed, he maybe unconsciously goading her to fight back... something he can't do himself.

 

 

[Craig H]

The Duffer Brothers and Levy both say that they wanted a human villain and Billy is it.

[RandomAct]

3 hours ago, turk128 said:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

Billy is low-key a good guy, just incredibly flawed since his social interaction is so skewed.

He is incredibly straightforward and not the type to back-stab unlike Steve's douche-bag friends in S1.

He tells Steve  straight-up how to deal with him: brace yourself and get ready when I charge in.

He was clearly harassing his sister but also in a weird way protecting her. Later on as his home life is revealed, he maybe unconsciously goading her to fight back... something he can't do himself.

 

 

I'm not spoilering shit, btw. Show is out for a week, don't come to the thread if you don't want spoilers.

Anyway, RE: Billy.....I looked at it as a kid that had to eat shit from his dad at all times(he seems like a super strict/military dad) and gets frustrated, so he takes it out on Max.  He even blames the move on her, so he's clearly resentful of her. I don't think he has many redeeming qualities BUT I can at least see the cause/effect of why he's the way he is. Not all kids react well to that strict environment, I know I never did.

[Craig H]

If you guys haven't watched the Beyond Stranger Things episodes, then I'd suggest watching them. They give a lot of insight to the characters on the show, what went into filming certain scenes, etc. That's where I saw the Duffer brothers talking about how Billy is a sociopath and the human villain in the show.

[turk128]

Yeah, but they also said Steve was originally written to be what I think they put into Billy this season. At face value, Billy is the human villain this season (a season where the human villain was very much a subplot and not the main baddy at all) but this show is so much more than that. Nothing is written in stone and even the Duffer brothers emphasized that in the interview.

There's clearly room for a redemption arc for Billy and if things work out and they dig the actor like they did Steve, Billy's gonna get his redemption.

Beyond Stranger Things  is a great show since there was a lot of stuff that was slipped/hinted that I don't think any other producers would want to let slip. It's so much more rewarding than Talking Dead. Example: 11 was  almost arguing with the brothers on how Papa was a good guy to her, like something even I wouldn't have considered.

[offspring515]

So this is by far the best Netflix original drama two seasons in yeah?

Read a lot of "good but not as good as season one" takes online, couldn't disagree more. They scaled up the threat and the scope of the show while keeping the focus on our heroes and their relationship to one another. Fantastic tv.

[Dolfan in NYC]

 

[Craig H]

3 hours ago, offspring515 said:

So this is by far the best Netflix original drama two seasons in yeah?

Read a lot of "good but not as good as season one" takes online, couldn't disagree more. They scaled up the threat and the scope of the show while keeping the focus on our heroes and their relationship to one another. Fantastic tv.

You know what? I think I'm with you. I think I liked this as much if not more than season 1. The really stuck to the formula from season 1 of having episodes 1 through 4 build up to what's happening with the holy shit moment coming at the end of episode 4. The only difference this time around is that episode 7 gives the viewer a chance to breathe before the final 2 episodes. The stakes are so much higher and they actually feel like they're higher. Not to mention we were delivered moments that have been brewing since season 1 and all of these kids are adorable.

[driver]

Pretty sure the step-dad is being set-up as being a huge problem. The seeds were planted with Billy telling Max "you know why you can't hang out with them."
 

I was 14 during the show's time frame and totally rocked a corduroy sport coat every Sunday for church. I was also prone to wearing a striped clip-on tie with a plaid shirt. I was never one for fashion. Heh.

 

[John from Cincinnati]

Disappointed that the Stranger Things Honest Trailer seemed to spoil some things for season two even though they said they wouldn't.

That said, I popped huge to learn that they also pop huge for Mike's dad saying dumb shit.