S02.E08: Chapter Eight: The Mind Flayer

[Clanstarling]

25 minutes ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Awwww, Bob. As soon as we got the Jurassic Park plot about someone having to leave the group in order to turn the power back on and restart all the security stuff, I knew someone was going to die. As terrible as this sounds, better Bob than Hopper.

One of the cutest things was seeing Hopper and Nancy with guns, Steve with his nail bat, and then Lucas with his slingshot.

Okay, I get everyone freaking out when the phone rang because they didn't want Will/the Shadow Monster to figure out where they were, but how about ANSWERING the phone instead of just hanging it up and then ripping it out of the wall? Did anyone consider that whoever was calling might have important information or was calling about Dr. Owens and the lab?

That shot with all of them prepared was terrific (especially the slingshot). There have been a lot of memorable shots this season. 

Excellent point about the phone.

[Taryn74]

12 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Okay, I get everyone freaking out when the phone rang because they didn't want Will/the Shadow Monster to figure out where they were, but how about ANSWERING the phone instead of just hanging it up and then ripping it out of the wall? Did anyone consider that whoever was calling might have important information or was calling about Dr. Owens and the lab?

Especially since Hopper had just yelled at someone earlier that they had BETTER call him back at THIS number.  Poor guy (lady) got the phone slammed down in their ear and then ripped out of the wall for doing what they were told.  LOL.

[Meowwww]

The nose blood makes me want to hurl every time.  Sometimes it reaches El’s mouth and must go in.  Ewwww

[VCRTracking]

On 11/4/2017 at 7:09 AM, Clanstarling said:

On 11/4/2017 at 6:42 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Awwww, Bob. As soon as we got the Jurassic Park plot about someone having to leave the group in order to turn the power back on and restart all the security stuff, I knew someone was going to die. As terrible as this sounds, better Bob than Hopper.

One of the cutest things was seeing Hopper and Nancy with guns, Steve with his nail bat, and then Lucas with his slingshot.

Okay, I get everyone freaking out when the phone rang because they didn't want Will/the Shadow Monster to figure out where they were, but how about ANSWERING the phone instead of just hanging it up and then ripping it out of the wall? Did anyone consider that whoever was calling might have important information or was calling about Dr. Owens and the lab?

That shot with all of them prepared was terrific (especially the slingshot). There have been a lot of memorable shots this season. 

Excellent point about the phone.

Amazing though was finding out when they were finished filming that shot it was already the end of the day because child actors can only work 10 hour days they left so  the shot of Eleven seeing Mike had to be filmed the next day. Millie then told them put just different color tape where each of the other characters were for her eyeline and she could act to that. The filmmakers were skeptical but she was confident she could do it and she NAILED IT. It's incredible. Then the next day they realized they had to do another closeup of Mike's reaction so Finn asked to see footage of  what Millie did so he could base his performance on that. I synched up this video to where she talks about it:

Edited November 6, 2017 by VCRTracking

[The Companion]

On 10/29/2017 at 4:26 PM, kitcloudkicker said:

When they introduced Bob, I guessed that he was going to be the Barb of this season. He was, as the kids say, "too pure for this world." That death scene though, ugh. Even seeing it coming, and even when I rewatched the episode with a roommate, you were rooting for him to make it. I liked that they made him useful, and not a bumbling idiot, where they could have easily taken his character. 

RIP Bob, you beautiful cinnamon roll. 

Exactly. Poor Bob. I have been saying he is DOOMED all season, but man he was a great guy. Even after everything went to hell and back, there he was being supportive, kind and steady. They could have made him incompetent or a coward. He could have been a safe choice for Joyce and nothing more. Instead we got a surprisingly competent and sweet character. You could imagine a different world where he and Joyce got together, and he and Will spent hours playing board games while he made terrible Dad jokes. You just knew he was a goner from the get go, but you couldn't help but like him. 

 

On 10/30/2017 at 7:23 PM, tennisgurl said:

I laughed so hard at Nancy and Jonathan being all "Steve?!" when they saw him in the woods. Like, "how did you end up in this plot?" levels of confusion. I really liked seeing the whole cast (sans El) all teaming up and reacting off each other. Especially as Dustin explains how everything comes back to DnD, while Hop gets increasingly frustrated. Everyone got something to do, and I thought they're plan was quite solid. The only reason it didn't work was because the phone ring, which is a pretty understandable detail to forget. It also meant more of Steve's Adventures in Babysitting, which is just the best thing about this whole season. I also liked the bit of Steve and Nancy talking, but I wish we had seen him and Jonathan talk a bit. I think it was a mistake not to give them more interaction this season. 

Ha! "how did you end up in this plot?" indeed. I have been waiting for the payoff of bringing everyone together and it did not disappoint. Steve has grown on me now that he is taking care of the guys instead of being the love interest. It was really cute how he was the last one to get in the car. I loved how he jumped right in and just went with it. 

On 10/30/2017 at 9:10 PM, Mama No Life said:

I'm still waiting to see why we had to suffer through Billy and Max.

The rest of this has been pretty darn perfect.  I can even buy Hopper leaving El out of this...one, he wants to keep her safe. Two, he thinks she's avoiding him. He doesn't know she got his last apology in her mind...

I mean, I GUESS I am waiting to see why we had to suffer through Billy, but I would be just as happy if they dropped the plot and Billy never showed up on the screen again (or he only showed up to be eaten by demodogs). The entire thing just felt "after school special" to me. The rest of the characters have such nuance, and then here comes Billy, the over-the-top bully who (shockingly to zero people) is abused by his father and also appears to be horrendously racist. I just don't care, not even if he has a great redemption. He is the anti-Bob.

I can also buy Hopper leaving El out of it. If the bad guys are going to show up anywhere, it is going to be here. Beyond that, it wouldn't have felt in character to have him leave them while they are dealing with a crisis to go get her or to have him send someone else to get her.

On 11/2/2017 at 8:29 AM, nachomama said:

For the love of Pete, why does no one ever wipe blood off Eleven's nose? She's hugging everyone and Winona is a mom, mom's always do that.

 

On 11/2/2017 at 9:38 AM, Taryn74 said:

Lord, yes! I'm always like, somebody give the poor girl a tissue for crying out loud. Even mom-spit would be better than walking around with blood pouring down your face.

OMG, both of these comments kill me. It is so true, though. As a mom, I just want to reach out with a purse tissue and wipe her nose while giving her a giant hug.

 

On 11/3/2017 at 2:07 AM, Cheezwiz said:

The whole time I was watching this I kept thinking about how exhausted and wrung out Noah Schnapp must've been after shooting all of his scenes. Just non-stop super intense stuff for such a little guy.

Yes, THIS. Some abusers are clever enough to look relatively normal or even charming until they've totally wormed their way into someone else's life. Then they work on isolating them. Now we know where Billy gets his assholish behavior from. Poor Max & Max's Mom - I hope Stepdad is not going to start directing his abuse at them now that he's got them moved away from their home.

Agreed on Noah Schnapp. I sound like a broken record, but this cast is just incredible. These kids are phenomenal actors.

As for the abuser who looks normal and charming, I think we even saw a bit of that in the scene. He looked so genial until he went into abuser mode. Still, I hate the entire plot line. More upside down monsters and fewer human ones please, please. 

On 11/3/2017 at 7:44 PM, Ellaria Sand said:

Can we assume that Paul Reiser survived somehow?

I am applying the Sci Fi rule of onscreen death or it didn't happen. It isn't like poor Bob's death was subtle. I am betting Reiser isn't done.

 

Y'all, I have never wanted to stay up late for one more episode more than last night. What an incredible episode. So much happened. I LOVED getting the band back together. It was really fun to have the characters that have been having their separate adventures converge. I particularly loved Max's question as to why they were running towards the noise. I found the Demodogs fairly scary because they were running in a pack. They were so fast and they were clearly capable of taking someone down to the ground. The entire escape was so tense. I found myself holding my breath and even though I knew Bob was surely doomed, I was rooting so hard for him. I actually gasped when the broom fell. 

Similarly, watching them all come together to try and get answers from Will was great. I loved everyone trying to come up with solutions together. The tension as they tried to communicate with Will was palpable. 

Obviously, the appearance of Eleven at the end was amazing. I legitimately cannot wait for the final episode. Is it inappropriate to go home early for Stranger Things? That's a real excuse, right?

[ElectricBoogaloo]

13 hours ago, The Companion said:

I legitimately cannot wait for the final episode. Is it inappropriate to go home early for Stranger Things? That's a real excuse, right?

You have my permission! Tell your boss I said so!

[questionfear]

On 10/29/2017 at 7:42 PM, nodorothyparker said:

And that, boys and girls and Bob, is why you don't stop for a big dramatic moment until you're actually safe on the other side of the glass.  At least Sean Astin gets another hero's ending to add to the Samwise Gamgee pile.  You could see that coming when only he could go to the basement because only he knew Basic.

 

I was just saying that Bob's dislike of horror movies worked against him-if he'd seen any horror movies, he would know better than to stop and wave!

[VCRTracking]

20 hours ago, The Companion said:

So much happened. I LOVED getting the band back together. It was really fun to have the characters that have been having their separate adventures converge.

As I said, it's why "The Bathtub" was my favorite episode last year. I hope the Duffers continue this formula where the the different storylines converge in the penultimate episode next season. Realistically the characters who know about the whole "Upside Down" should have learned to contact each other immediately when shit starts to go down in like episode 3, but what fun is that?

Edited November 7, 2017 by VCRTracking

[The Companion]

26 minutes ago, VCRTracking said:

As I said, it's why "The Bathtub" was my favorite episode last year. I hope the Duffers continue this formula where the the different storylines converge in the penultimate episode next season. Realistically the characters who know about the whole "Upside Down" should have learned to contact each other immediately when shit starts to down in like episode 3, but what fun is that?

I agree. The multiple storylines keep the pace moving and it is fun when they finally converge.

[DearEvette]

Again, I can't say enough superlatives about Noah Schnapp's portrayal of will.  His face while they were talking to him, first so yearning then hardening into resolve.  Ugh.  So talented.

Poor Bob Newby.  I am legit hurt by his death.  He was so sweet to Joyce and her kids.  And he came through!

The tense stand off at the end and Eleven triumphant return was great.  But good lord, the slo mo love glances between her and Mike was just so over the top. 

and Poor Joyce's house.  I wonder if she puts in insurance claims?

[Coxfires]

What a fantastic episode, even though losing Bob really hurt more than I thought. The poor guy was just a good good person, a little dorky but far from dumb, loving Joyce and her kids. So sad to see him bring games to cheer them up and end up dead. At least he went as a true hero, and they didn’t make him a bag guy. All the props to Sean Austin for making him so endearing.

Everything with Will was pure win, because Noah is incredible but also because all actors brought their A-game in the « memories sharing » scenes. Plus the direction left me hanging on the edge of my seat, it was masterful.

Steve has evolved so, so much, what a delight he was this season, especially with Dustin! Unlikely but fantastic pairing. The « Steve??? » chorus was hilarious!

Eleven’s come back was just perfection, everyone lined up ready to shoot, and then her entrance, and Her and Mike’s reaction... Epic.

[Enero]

On 11/1/2017 at 7:29 PM, jane1978 said:

I quess I´m in total minority, but I really cringe at the way they portray the love connection between Mike and Eleven. It´s like they are soulmates supercouple from a soap, not 13 year old kids. And honestly, Mike seems almost obsessed with her. On the other side, Max and Lucas are portrayed just right, even while Max seems too awsome to be real sometimes. But maybe that´s California.

 

On 11/7/2017 at 5:05 PM, DearEvette said:

The tense stand off at the end and Eleven triumphant return was great.  But good lord, the slo mo love glances between her and Mike was just so over the top. 

I completely agree about the Mike/Eleven relationship. They are way too young for this whole soulmates in love deal. Their “connection” is so over the top it’s almost icky. 

I too prefer Max/Lucas way more realistic for 13 year olds. I also prefer the father/daughter connection between Hop and Eleven.

The Mike/Eleven stuff aside, this was a great episode. 

[VCRTracking]

16 hours ago, Enero said:

On 11/7/2017 at 2:05 PM, DearEvette said:

The tense stand off at the end and Eleven triumphant return was great.  But good lord, the slo mo love glances between her and Mike was just so over the top. 

I completely agree about the Mike/Eleven relationship. They are way too young for this whole soulmates in love deal. Their “connection” is so over the top it’s almost icky. 

As I posted earlier, Millie was actually looking at color tape at the end and then the next day they had Finn match his performance to hers. It may be over the top but I can buy that the year apart intensified their feelings.

It does make me think If there's going to be a time jump next season 3 as the Duffer say(due to the young cast growing up so fast) their going to be in high school. They should be like the characters in "Freaks and Geeks" and "Sixteen Candles" and not "Endless Love".

Edited November 9, 2017 by VCRTracking

[LeGrandElephant]

Did they explain last season why Nancy knows how to handle a gun? Her dad doesn’t seem like the type to teach her. 

 

They should have had Hopper know Eleven was gone out of touch so it wouldn’t look so odd that he didn’t try to call her from Joyce’s house. 

 

Since Billy is a weight lifter and out looking for Max, I’m assuming he’ll show up and hit a monster in the nick of time. And since there isn’t much time left this season, maybe they’ll be redeeming him next season. I still think they went overboard with him being a total one note jerk; it’s going to be hard to redeem him even seeing how his father is. If Max has a nice father back in California why is she stuck with an abusive stepbrother and stepfather? Those seem like good enough reasons for her father to fight for custody. 

[LeGrandElephant]

On 11/1/2017 at 7:29 PM, jane1978 said:

I quess I´m in total minority, but I really cringe at the way they portray the love connection between Mike and Eleven. It´s like they are soulmates supercouple from a soap, not 13 year old kids. And honestly, Mike seems almost obsessed with her. On the other side, Max and Lucas are portrayed just right, even while Max seems too awsome to be real sometimes. But maybe that´s California.

I'm not thrilled with it either. In the first season I thought the tone was better, with them being friends with maybe a touch of possible romance coming. This season they're filming it like they're star crossed lovers, and I think they're too young for that. If she actually stuck around and went to their school or anything, how would that go? They're 13. They're going to get married or something? They're way too young to be that serious about romance. Maybe they kept them apart all season because they couldn't figure out how to play this romance under any circumstances other than the world about to end. 

(Reminds me a bit of the end of the book The Amber Spyglass, which I also didn't like.)

I don't understand how knowing BASIC equates to knowing how to deal with that particular government security system... 

[LeGrandElephant]

9 hours ago, VCRTracking said:

As I posted earlier, Millie was actually looking at color tape at the end and then the next day they had Finn match his performance to hers. It may be over the top but I can buy that the year apart intensified their feelings.

It does make me think If there's going to be a time jump next season 3 as the Duffer say(due to the young cast growing up so fast) their going to be in high school. They should be like the characters in "Freaks and Geeks" and "Sixteen Candles" and not "Endless Love".

Freaks and Geeks yes, but not Sixteen Candles! Watching that movie as an adult is horrifying. So much disturbing stuff went over my head when I was younger, but its really messed up. 

 

On 11/6/2017 at 5:13 PM, The Companion said:

As a mom, I just want to reach out with a purse tissue and wipe her nose

All the comments about wiping El's nose blood - I keep wondering if the fact that her nose bleeds when she uses her powers shows that its damaging to her, and eventually could kill her if she doesn't stop. That could be a future plot...

[dju]

6 hours ago, LeGrandElephant said:

All the comments about wiping El's nose blood - I keep wondering if the fact that her nose bleeds when she uses her powers shows that its damaging to her, and eventually could kill her if she doesn't stop. That could be a future plot...

I always wonder about this. It can’t be a good thing that even with her powers growing in strength, her nose still bleeds can it? And in fact, her nose seems to bleed more when the powers are intensified.

[The Companion]

12 hours ago, LeGrandElephant said:

All the comments about wiping El's nose blood - I keep wondering if the fact that her nose bleeds when she uses her powers shows that its damaging to her, and eventually could kill her if she doesn't stop. That could be a future plot...

 

5 hours ago, dju said:

I always wonder about this. It can’t be a good thing that even with her powers growing in strength, her nose still bleeds can it? And in fact, her nose seems to bleed more when the powers are intensified.

Yeah, I can't decide if it is doing permanent damage or if it is just a device to show a physical manifestation of how much it take out of her (and therefore why she can't use it all the time). I can definitely see it becoming a plot point later (and therefore giving them an excuse to require the characters to come up with other ways to defeat baddies).  

[methodwriter85]

On 11/9/2017 at 11:10 AM, VCRTracking said:

As I posted earlier, Millie was actually looking at color tape at the end and then the next day they had Finn match his performance to hers. It may be over the top but I can buy that the year apart intensified their feelings.

It does make me think If there's going to be a time jump next season 3 as the Duffer say(due to the young cast growing up so fast) their going to be in high school. They should be like the characters in "Freaks and Geeks" and "Sixteen Candles" and not "Endless Love".

The irony about Brooke Shields is that she played the underage sexpot in so many movies and t.v. commercials, and she was a virgin until she was 21! And man, Endless Love...that movie was insane. The failed reboot should have just gone with the insanity instead of watering the plot down.

Anyway, Bob's little smile to Joyce before he gets killed just tugged at my heart strings.

[VCRTracking]

From io9(also read it if you've finished watching season 2):

5 Things Stranger Things Would Be Missing Without Eight and 'The Lost Sister'

[Ottis]

On 10/29/2017 at 2:39 PM, SeanC said:

Minor touch I really liked:  when everybody is arming themselves at the end and bracing for confrontation with the Demodogs, Lucas aiming his big slingshot is filmed no differently than Hopper and Nancy with their guns.

I actually laughed at that, and wondered about Lucas' grasp on reality.

Bob's death is yet another example of why this show regularly disappoints me. if it isn't the fact that characters don't talk to each other when they clearly should, it's because a character does something inexplicable just so something specific can happen. I saw no reason at all for Bob to stop where he did, just as there was no reason for Hopper to explore the tunnel without telling someone, anyone where he was first.

If they would clean that up, Stranger Things would be in my top 10.

Edited November 11, 2017 by Ottis

[SeanC]

20 minutes ago, Ottis said:

I actually laughed at that, and wondered about Lucas' grasp on reality.

When all you have is a hammer...

It's a good joke, and better for the fact that the show doesn't underline it with an audio sad trombone (or visual equivalent).

[VCRTracking]

1 hour ago, Ottis said:

On 10/29/2017 at 1:39 PM, SeanC said:

Minor touch I really liked:  when everybody is arming themselves at the end and bracing for confrontation with the Demodogs, Lucas aiming his big slingshot is filmed no differently than Hopper and Nancy with their guns.

I actually laughed at that, and wondered about Lucas' grasp on reality.

 

38 minutes ago, SeanC said:

When all you have is a hammer...

It's a good joke, and better for the fact that the show doesn't underline it with an audio sad trombone (or visual equivalent).

And Mike had a candlestick! This isn't a game of Clue kid!

It's like when the Super Bowl ad for the first Avengers movie in 2012 came out and they had that badass shot of the Avengers in a circle surrounded by an army of aliens: NIron Man, Thor and his hammer, Captain America, Hawkeye with his bow and arrow,(no Hulk though, I guess the CGI wasn't done yet) and Black Widow cocking her tiny glock pistol.

Speaking of the Avengers, the appeal of that movie is seeing these very different characters(from their own movies) come together to fight a common enemy is why I love this episode and last season's "The Bathtub" the most. It's why it despite it being ridiculously contrived and suddenly people are travelling all over Westeros faster and in shorter time than the previous seasons,  I liked Game of Thrones season 7. I loved seeing all the characters we've followed on their own storylines meet for the first time.

[dju]

13 hours ago, VCRTracking said:

And Mike had a candlestick! This isn't a game of Clue kid!

Oh man, it’s very funny reaching him at the end of that line holding that candlestick so seriously, especially on repeated viewings. I get they needed to give him something to fill out the gap and it needed to be something that complimented the size of the other weapons but even a kitchen blade or having a lighter at the ready would work and look somewhat better than a feeble candlestick. It looks way sillier to me than the slingshot.

[SparklesBitch]

I was so sad to see Bob go!! I was really pulling for him to make it. Poor Joyce. This is why you don’t stop running until you’re out the door, Bob. Clearly, he never saw a horror movie. He went out like a hero, though. RIP! 

Other than poor Bob, I thought this episode was fantastic. I loved that everyone came together at the end and finally getting to see Mike and El reunite again. 

Loved that Nancy threw the phone and was the only other one with a gun besides Hopper. Lucas having his slingshot ready was perfect. 

I feel like I keep saying this, but every single one of these kids is insanely talented. They got so unbelievably lucky with Noah Schnapp in particular. Poor kid must have been exhausted after filming all of his scenes. Having Mike and Joyce and Jonathan all take part in the interrogation was brilliant and I totally teared up. I thought it was pretty ingenious that Hop figured out that Will was trying to communicate through Morse Code. 

I still don’t see the point in Billy at all, and I feel a little disgusted with myself because I have no sympathy for him even though he’s obviously being abused by his dad. Billy is just that much of an irredeemable over-the-top jerk that I just can’t bring myself to care. And yo, Max’s mom, what do you even see in that guy? You seem pretty down to earth and normal. Even if he’s not abusing you and/or Max yet, it’s obviously just a matter of time. I’d be happy if Max’s whole family got eaten. Maybe Joyce or Hop can adopt her. 

I’m also finding myself hoping that Paul Reiser is still alive. 

[Holmbo]

I was annoyed by Bobs death. I expected him to die but a small part of me was hoping they'd let him live to surprise us. It's such a cheap way to get rid of an inconvenient nice person. I don't see why Hopper and Joyce has to get together anyway, they were barely interacting for most of this season.

Edited November 17, 2017 by Holmbo

[SherriAnt]

On ‎2017‎-‎11‎-‎02 at 10:59 AM, Danny Franks said:

I get Max's family even less, now. Because her mother seems very together, responsible, nice. But her stepdad is an even bigger asshole than his son, and she seemed scared of him. I mean, maybe he's a thoroughly decent man, but has to be a massive dick to control his son but... it seems more like he's a large part of why his son is like this. Max spoke fondly of her real dad, so what is it that her mother sees in stepdad to make him better?

This is exactly what I think! I  don't understand women who would marry someone like that!! She had to know how he was with his son before she said I do. 

[Clanstarling]

5 hours ago, SherriAnt said:

This is exactly what I think! I  don't understand women who would marry someone like that!! She had to know how he was with his son before she said I do. 

No, I don't think she did. It's not uncommon for women to be sucked in by controlling bastards who seem nice until she's locked in.  I'm not sure they've said how long they've been married - but if it's been a few years, he might have held more control (less visibly abusive) over his son. 

[Kel Varnsen]

2 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

No, I don't think she did. It's not uncommon for women to be sucked in by controlling bastards who seem nice until she's locked in.  I'm not sure they've said how long they've been married - but if it's been a few years, he might have held more control (less visibly abusive) over his son. 

Plus maybe he is only an asshole to his own son, who is kind of a dirtbag himself. Maybe he is decent (or even not as much if an asshole) to Max and her mom. Considering she is a woman with a kid and already one failed marriage and that there would be limited  options for leaving a shitty husband in rural Indiana when you just moved there and don't know anyone it would be pretty easy to justify not leaving.

Or maybe like just about everyone else she also hates Billy.

[SoWindsor]

On 11/6/2017 at 1:27 AM, VCRTracking said:

Amazing though was finding out when they were finished filming that shot it was already the end of the day because child actors can only work 10 hour days they left so  the shot of Eleven seeing Mike had to be filmed the next day. Millie then told them put just different color tape where each of the other characters were for her eyeline and she could act to that. The filmmakers were skeptical but she was confident she could do it and she NAILED IT. It's incredible. Then the next day they realized they had to do another closeup of Mike's reaction so Finn asked to see footage of  what Millie did so he could base his performance on that. I synched up this video to where she talks about it:

This video starts at the beginning. Where in it does she talk about this?

I rewatched the Mike/Eleven scene 10 times and am crying. It was just incredible. Such amazing actors to make you feel raw emotion. 

[VCRTracking]

2 hours ago, SoWindsor said:

This video starts at the beginning. Where in it does she talk about this?

The 21: 35 mark.

[Jordan61]

On 11/10/2017 at 6:40 AM, The Companion said:

 

Yeah, I can't decide if it is doing permanent damage or if it is just a device to show a physical manifestation of how much it take out of her (and therefore why she can't use it all the time). I can definitely see it becoming a plot point later (and therefore giving them an excuse to require the characters to come up with other ways to defeat baddies).  

It reminds me of Firestarter when the dad (Andy?) was killing his brain cells every time he used his ability, and ended up basically giving himself a massive stroke.

[Clanstarling]

8 hours ago, Jordan61 said:

It reminds me of Firestarter when the dad (Andy?) was killing his brain cells every time he used his ability, and ended up basically giving himself a massive stroke.

There was a lot of this that reminds me of Firestarter. I used it to try to explain who El was using Firestarter as an example (he was reading a business article and asked about the phrase "The Stranger Things Eleven effect" (a bump in the sales for Eggos) and he didn't know El was a character). Of course, that explanation made as little sense to him as the phrase in the article....

[Hanahope]

Finally some information as to why Billy is such an asshole.  Should have known he learned from his father. No doubt Max kept ‘running away’ to live with her nicer dad, but asshole step dad got mad and moved the family away.

 

i was so sad to see Bob die.  He did such a good job with the computer and security system.  How did that one demo dog get out into the lobby without anyone seeing it?  And of course it didn’t attack anyone until bob got there, sure.

 

trying to trick the shadow monster was a great idea and pretty good execution.  I do wonder who was calling, maybe it was the military or state police for Hopper.

and finally Eleven arrives!  Great timing too. What an entrance.

[theatremouse]

On 11/8/2017 at 6:46 PM, Enero said:

about the Mike/Eleven relationship. They are way too young for this whole soulmates in love deal. Their “connection” is so over the top it’s almost icky. 

I don't find their relationship unrealistic for two reasons: 1) 13 year olds are hella melodramatic, in my experience. 2) It is extremely common for people who go through a traumatic experience together to be extremely bonded to each other (even absent any other logical reason to care about each other). These two actually like each other, and have been through multiple life and death situations. Yes, they're getting a wee bit lovey dovey at this point (a smidge more than I'd like) but the intensity of their feelings in general, I think, is entirely supported by the plot and doesn't require any magic or true love bullshit handwaving, to me.

[CeeBeeGee]

On 11/9/2017 at 9:04 PM, LeGrandElephant said:

Freaks and Geeks yes, but not Sixteen Candles! Watching that movie as an adult is horrifying. So much disturbing stuff went over my head when I was younger, but its really messed up. 

Sixteen Candles--like Revenge of the Nerds--is completely unwatchable to me now. The casual racism, Jake's date-rapey attitude toward his girlfriend...ugh.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

4 hours ago, CeeBeeGee said:

Sixteen Candles--like Revenge of the Nerds--is completely unwatchable to me now. The casual racism, Jake's date-rapey attitude toward his girlfriend...ugh.

Yeah, I loved that movie when I was younger but as an adult, Jake's attitude towards Caroline is terrible. If you don't like your shallow girlfriend, just break up with her instead of letting some kid who doesn't even have a license drive her passed out ass to the church parking lot and have sex with her!

[Clanstarling]

3 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Yeah, I loved that movie when I was younger but as an adult, Jake's attitude towards Caroline is terrible. If you don't like your shallow girlfriend, just break up with her instead of letting some kid who doesn't even have a license drive her passed out ass to the church parking lot and have sex with her!

I have the same problem with MASH. I tried watching and I just cringed and hated Hawkeye. I think Alda changed him up some in later seasons, but I couldn't bring myself to watch it all again. Some things survive the test of time, others do not. But it is an interesting reflection in how our society has changed.

[aliferous85]

My God, show, you kill me.

Minor nitpick: In the time that the brush fell and Bob stood there and it made noise and all, Bob could have gotten back in the closet.

But that wouldn't have been as brutal as being blindsided by a demo dog, so.

I don't even know where to begin talking about how freaking awesome it all was. 

Quote

Okay, I get everyone freaking out when the phone rang because they didn't want Will/the Shadow Monster to figure out where they were, but how about ANSWERING the phone instead of just hanging it up and then ripping it out of the wall? Did anyone consider that whoever was calling might have important information or was calling about Dr. Owens and the lab?

It could have been a telemarketer for all we know. 

Joyce should get her next phone bolted to the wall. 

Edited December 2, 2017 by aliferous85

[Dev F]

53 minutes ago, aliferous85 said:

Joyce should get her next phone bolted to the wall. 

Joyce actually did buy a cordless phone toward the end of last season, but Nancy broke that one too, throwing it across the room to try to convince Steve to leave when the demogorgon was attacking them.

Edited to add: Whoops, misread! I thought you were saying she should have her next phone not bolted to the wall for easier disposal. Never mind. :)

Edited December 2, 2017 by Dev F

[LilJen]

On ‎10‎/‎30‎/‎2017 at 10:10 PM, Mama No Life said:

I'm still waiting to see why we had to suffer through Billy and Max.

 

On ‎11‎/‎3‎/‎2017 at 8:44 PM, Ellaria Sand said:

While I now understand why Billy is a miserable person, I’m still not sure why he is in this show. And I can’t imagine that his purpose will be explained in the final episode

Yep. I don't mind Max, but Billy??? They better have a HELLUVA good reason for that twit.

[stillshimpy]

Well, we'd been calling Bob "Redshirt Robert" since the day they introduced him and he was just super nice, super kind, super patient...and so clearly super dead.  Didn't realize that he'd die from a bad case of genre blindness but okey dokey.  Also, way to revel in the gross, show, the demo-dogs did not bother to eat anyone else that comprehensively.  A slash here, what looked like a wound from a potato peeler there, but Bob apparently was constructed out of Dunkin Donuts for Demo-dogs because they turned poor Bob into a Buffet.  

Just a general life tip:  when fleeing for your fucking life, don't bother checking the progress of your pursuer, just haul balls all the way to safety, Redshirt Robert.  It was obvious he was a goner from his introduction, they kept underlining it in really blunt ways "OH NO!  He left the gun!! Which he can't shoot, so maybe that's a fucking mercy seeing as this man is so dead, he's likely already busily reincarnating."  

Poor Joyce, again, some more but if y'all had ever bothered to watch a horror movie in your lives, maybe she'd have thought to be standing there with the door open, instead of wringing her hands on scrubs.  

Nice to see Paul Reiser reliably being the portents of ironic doom.  "You can make it..." (well, you're fucked, Bob, might as well get your affairs in order)   "they can't get through the glass" (and then they all stand there eyeing the ever-widening cracks with what was really mild concern, all things considered). 

Save time and lives, fire Paul Reiser from your risk management team now. 

It would also be just swell if people would stop taking Dustin's advice because "let's stuff this thing in the freezer" considering the whole "He likes it cold" was poor planning even preteens should be able to spot.  

Joyce's home owner's insurance policy takes yet another "say, sorry about...you know...wow...what happened this time?  Oh, a rhinoceros got loose, you say? Sorry, sounds plausible.  Was it stopped by the thing with the insanely phallic head that is clambering out from under the tater tots, and Tony's pizzas by any chance?" 

My emotional investment in this series has never been super high, but it's working really well to treat it as a dark comedy.  Drink whenever something eats Bob's liver!  Drink whenever that caricature of toxic masculinity, Max's brother with the grotesque hair, gives a master class in scenery chewing idiocy.  

I will give the actor playing his dad this though: holy shit, that guy was actually scary.  I am not actually afraid of people yelling, the Great Santini did not cause me to so much as flinch, but that guy had me burrowing a little bit closer into the couch pillows.  

Hurricane Toxic Masculinity heads straight towards Joyce's House of Frequent Property Damage.  Here's hoping Bob had a hefty life insurance policy that he made Joyce the recipient of because her rehab budget just went up.  Again. 

[Dev F]

47 minutes ago, stillshimpy said:

Well, we'd been calling Bob "Redshirt Robert" since the day they introduced him and he was just super nice, super kind, super patient...and so clearly super dead.  Didn't realize that he'd die from a bad case of genre blindness but okey dokey.  Also, way to revel in the gross, show, the demo-dogs did not bother to eat anyone else that comprehensively.

Others have pointed out that the writers probably wanted to make it super clear that Bob was actually dead, after there was so much "Maybe Barb is still coming back?" speculation last year even after we saw her body multiple times. But I realized that there was another potential reason to linger: perhaps they wanted to give us a good look at every demodog involved in Bob's death to make it clear that Dart wasn't one of them.

[jhlipton]

On 10/28/2017 at 8:02 PM, Lady Calypso said:

Oh man, no, not Bob! Why? Why couldn't they have a twist and keep him alive? Darn it! I get it, though. Part of the reason is that they need to make way for Joyce and Hopper, so Bob had to die. At least he went out a hero

On 11/17/2017 at 12:42 PM, Holmbo said:

I was annoyed by Bobs death. I expected him to die but a small part of me was hoping they'd let him live to surprise us. It's such a cheap way to get rid of an inconvenient nice person. I don't see why Hopper and Joyce has to get together anyway, they were barely interacting for most of this season.

I like Hopper and Joyce together, but didn't want Bob to die (even though he was Monster Chow pretty much from the get-go.  I woulod ahve loved a scene with him and Steve looking at the women they loved being with another guy, and instead of being jerks about it (which is the usual) just commiserating with each other. Instead they just went for the cliched death.

On 12/2/2017 at 1:11 PM, aliferous85 said:

Minor nitpick: In the time that the brush fell and Bob stood there and it made noise and all, Bob could have gotten back in the closet.

The Demo-Dog (great name by the way!) would have known the sound came from the closet.  Going back in wouldn't have saved him.

On 11/9/2017 at 5:50 PM, LeGrandElephant said:

I don't understand how knowing BASIC equates to knowing how to deal with that particular government security system... 

BASIC was the coding language of the day -- this was the 80's equivalent of the hacker tapping into the security system.

Here's a screen cap of the code:

He wrote a program to run through all permutations of number 0000 through 9999, stopping when it found the right code.

[foxfreakinmulder]

On ‎11‎/‎1‎/‎2017 at 11:57 PM, VCRTracking said:

God, that scene when Joyce, Jonathan and Mike was telling all their memories of Will to possessed Will. Everyone was incredible but especially Noah. When the Duffers said it was like they didn't realize they had a Ferrarri in the garage the first season and now they're letting it loose, they weren't kidding!

A fantastic ending and Mike and Eleven's faces when they saw each other was worth the wait.

That scene with Will was incredible. And I loved Mike's smile when he saw Eleven.

These kids are so good. They really did find gold casting this group.

I think I liked this episode even more on my rewatch. It kicked ass.

Poor Bob, even though I knew it was coming it still hurts :-(

I got a kick out of Dustin thinking he opened the gate.

Did anyone get the Christmas Story vibe when they were deciphering the sos code? Be sure to drink your Ovaltine lol.

[Taryn74]

On 7/21/2019 at 9:44 PM, foxfreakinmulder said:

Did anyone get the Christmas Story vibe when they were deciphering the sos code? Be sure to drink your Ovaltine lol.

Son of a bitch!

[Quickbeam]

This is the episode that made me love Steve….and oddly enough Billy.

[roamyn]

Mike has been such a big dick this season, that I could care less abt his reunion with El.  I'd rather her first hug be with Hopper.

And I know I'm probably the only one to feel this way, but the best thing for Will would've been to let him die last season, or kill him now.  Poor kid.  He'll never get over all this trauma.  

I hope Reiser's character survives, too bad it's at the expense of poor Bob.

I think I actually saw a tear on Billie's face.  I wonder if evil father is somehow involved in organized crime, and they moved to the Midwest 1) to escape the heat in Cali; and/or 2) expand the base of operations to the midwest.

[cleo]

I'm a late viewer to this show. I enjoy it, but find the twu wuv stuff bw Mike and El irritating. It was even more irritating last season. Agreed with another poster who said Lucas and Max were being handled much better.

I cannot for the life of me figure out why Max and her step brother are together and what happened there, nor do I see why I should care.

What I really came to say, though, was I much prefer Steve to Jonathan. Steve at least has something of a personality, while Jonathan is just a moping outcast who gets the girl he mooned over and stalked stereotype.

That sounds harsh, I don't mind Jonathan, I just think it would actually have been more interesting if Nancy had stuck with Steve who seems to be trying to grow as a person. It's just more interesting than a mopey stereotype.