Stranger Things (Season 2) - Review: Everything Season 1 Was, with One GLARING Weakness
Release date (US): October 27th, 2017
Starring: Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Dacre Montgomery, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Joe Keery, Sean Astin
Starring: Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Dacre Montgomery, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Joe Keery, Sean Astin
**DISCLAIMER**: This is a subjective, opinionated article that does not have, nor should have any effect on your opinion. As such, my opinion is entitled to change over time and whatever is written here at this point in time may not and should not be held to me in the future. You are not meant to agree with me 100 percent of the time, because the nature of subjectivity is we see everything differently. If there is something you happen to disagree with, I absolutely respect your point of view if you will respect mine. Please keep this in mind.
The Review
There was no way that a second season building off of the incredible, unimaginable success of the first season, would be able to match the level of quality of Stranger Things. There was no conceivable way. But sequels have been made that have surpassed the original: we look to the quintessential Empire Strikes Back.
And yet, for as hard as this season tries to be the "Empire" of its current trilogy, it misses the mark in one key category that hinders the show for almost the entirety of the season.
Pacing.
Pacing is not often something that I discuss as I review films. I mention it here and there because good pacing is incredibly important to capturing an audience and keeping them invested in your film. But good pacing often goes unnoticed and taken for granted, while bad pacing is laughably bad often times.
With television, however, it's a little different. You're not confined to the two hours that a movie demands, and you can watch as you go. So with television pacing, what's important is that whenever you turn on the show again to watch the next episode, that you're just as intrigued and invested as you were the last time you saw an episode.
Season 2 succeeds in that regard. It still holds the same level of intrigue that the first season had with some great new characters and even better character dynamics. But the story pacing is an absolute mess. There are character decisions made that, yes, one can always make the "they're just kids" argument, but in hindsight, were incredibly dumb.
The brunt of that leans on Dustin who makes a decision that takes up a lot of screen time throughout this season and pays off in a rather minor way at the end of the season.
But Season 2 is still an incredibly enjoyable watch, despite a horribly messy story. The new characters introduced this time around, notably Sean Astin's Bob Newby and Sadie Sink's Maxine, fit incredibly well and seamlessly into the established narrative. And what's so expertly handled about this season is character growth. As fun as our kids were in the first season, they're going to keep growing, and we see that. Mike is still not moving on from the "death" of Eleven. We see the group begin to split apart a little bit as tensions rise between Dustin and Lucas. We see Steve enter the group dynamic with the kids in a beautifully crafted, rather clever way.
The Duffer brothers show that they have a clear handle on character, and that remains a very remarkable strength of theirs as they continue to allow these characters to grow and develop into real, mature human beings.
Winona Ryder and David Harbour are also given a little more to do this time around, rather than just be the "adults". They have some really interesting arcs and some great sequences with some of the new characters as well.
As for Eleven, who was the clear standout of last season, though her scenes and interactions with other characters are wonderful as always, she was easily the most disappointing part of Season 2. She was relegated to a side role much of the season. And yes, we are going to discuss the infamous Episode 7.
Episode 7 should not exist, and I will never rewatch it if I were to come back to this season. It is messy, it feels so out of place, and the characters are extremely unlikable. This, thus far in Stranger Things, has been the one big misstep of the creators. They were trying to build up something bigger and grander to go off of for next season, and it did not work in the slightest.
Taking Eleven's place as the standout this time around is Will Byers. Will, who had very little to do in the first season, is now thrust in the leading role. He's required to play a character that has so many layers, and that's incredible to see from such a young performer. His acting, especially as the season progressed, kept getting better and better.
Again, Stranger Things 2 isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination. I love these characters and their dynamics so incredibly much, I would see eight hours of them just hanging out. But the fact remains that while the concept behind the story is incredibly interesting, and the season comes to a very, very satisfying conclusion, the bulk of this season feels lost and meandering. Like it's building towards something, but even it doesn't know what that something is. Ultimately, season 2 is a great launching pad for another season, but not a memorable one by any stretch of the imagination.
And yet, for as hard as this season tries to be the "Empire" of its current trilogy, it misses the mark in one key category that hinders the show for almost the entirety of the season.
Pacing.
Pacing is not often something that I discuss as I review films. I mention it here and there because good pacing is incredibly important to capturing an audience and keeping them invested in your film. But good pacing often goes unnoticed and taken for granted, while bad pacing is laughably bad often times.
With television, however, it's a little different. You're not confined to the two hours that a movie demands, and you can watch as you go. So with television pacing, what's important is that whenever you turn on the show again to watch the next episode, that you're just as intrigued and invested as you were the last time you saw an episode.
Season 2 succeeds in that regard. It still holds the same level of intrigue that the first season had with some great new characters and even better character dynamics. But the story pacing is an absolute mess. There are character decisions made that, yes, one can always make the "they're just kids" argument, but in hindsight, were incredibly dumb.
The brunt of that leans on Dustin who makes a decision that takes up a lot of screen time throughout this season and pays off in a rather minor way at the end of the season.
But Season 2 is still an incredibly enjoyable watch, despite a horribly messy story. The new characters introduced this time around, notably Sean Astin's Bob Newby and Sadie Sink's Maxine, fit incredibly well and seamlessly into the established narrative. And what's so expertly handled about this season is character growth. As fun as our kids were in the first season, they're going to keep growing, and we see that. Mike is still not moving on from the "death" of Eleven. We see the group begin to split apart a little bit as tensions rise between Dustin and Lucas. We see Steve enter the group dynamic with the kids in a beautifully crafted, rather clever way.
The Duffer brothers show that they have a clear handle on character, and that remains a very remarkable strength of theirs as they continue to allow these characters to grow and develop into real, mature human beings.
Winona Ryder and David Harbour are also given a little more to do this time around, rather than just be the "adults". They have some really interesting arcs and some great sequences with some of the new characters as well.
As for Eleven, who was the clear standout of last season, though her scenes and interactions with other characters are wonderful as always, she was easily the most disappointing part of Season 2. She was relegated to a side role much of the season. And yes, we are going to discuss the infamous Episode 7.
Episode 7 should not exist, and I will never rewatch it if I were to come back to this season. It is messy, it feels so out of place, and the characters are extremely unlikable. This, thus far in Stranger Things, has been the one big misstep of the creators. They were trying to build up something bigger and grander to go off of for next season, and it did not work in the slightest.
Taking Eleven's place as the standout this time around is Will Byers. Will, who had very little to do in the first season, is now thrust in the leading role. He's required to play a character that has so many layers, and that's incredible to see from such a young performer. His acting, especially as the season progressed, kept getting better and better.
Again, Stranger Things 2 isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination. I love these characters and their dynamics so incredibly much, I would see eight hours of them just hanging out. But the fact remains that while the concept behind the story is incredibly interesting, and the season comes to a very, very satisfying conclusion, the bulk of this season feels lost and meandering. Like it's building towards something, but even it doesn't know what that something is. Ultimately, season 2 is a great launching pad for another season, but not a memorable one by any stretch of the imagination.
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