S03.E08: Chapter Eight: The Battle of Starcourt

[moonshine71]

On 7/5/2019 at 2:02 PM, Quilt Fairy said:

Slightly out of the' 80s ballpark since it's from '91, but I think you can add Terminator 2 to the list of movie callbacks.   Every time the Mind Flayer dissolved and reformed, slid through a vent cover or under a door, or put out a claw to reabsorb a bit of goo I thought of that movie.

I read a review that said that Hopper's last fight was straight out of Raiders of the Lost Ark, but I don't see it.  

I guess that's a reference to Indy fighting the big Nazi who gets taken out by the plane propeller, since the Russian gets killed by the spinning laser cannon.

[moonshine71]

On 7/21/2019 at 8:05 PM, Littlebitofcheese said:

Actually Finn is far and away the most productive and sought after actor on the show right now.... even more than Millie. He'll have a big part in The Turning which Steven Spielberg is executive producing. Has landed a role in the new Ghostbuster 2020 movie which will be directed by Ivan Reitman who did the first two original films. Also will be in The Goldfinch which stars Nicole Kidman and  Ansel Elgort .

With the resume he's collecting I see Finn being the first of the group to go big IMHO.

The new Ghostbusters is being directed by his son, Jason Reitman(Juno, Young Adult)

[moonshine71]

On 7/23/2019 at 9:05 AM, QuantumMechanic said:

With respect to the “how could the Russians have gotten away (potentially with Hopper) when the US military was all over the place” question...

The under-mall base was HUGE. And I would be shocked if there wasn’t at least one “emergency exit” that came up above ground a good distance from the mall. The Russians who escaped could have escaped that way, bringing Hopper with them if they had captured him.

We already saw that there was another entrance, the stairs under the bed at Hess farm.

[galaxychaser]

I watched all seasons in 2 weeks tops. What a great show! 

Hopper can’t be dead. Maybe he fused with a Demi gorgan or something.

[Hook75]

El seems to forget about her mother this season. And what about her father? Maybe if "The american" is not Hopper, he is El's father?

Don't like Max and Erica. I hate when new characters come and suck the airtime from the main characters (Arrow, Flash etc). BUT I do like Robin, lol.

MVP: Dustin and Steve.

[Clanstarling]

1 hour ago, Hook75 said:

El seems to forget about her mother this season. And what about her father? Maybe if "The american" is not Hopper, he is El's father?

Now, that's an intriguing thought.

[foxfreakinmulder]

Finished my rewatch of season 3 and thank god season 4 will be Billy free.

As much as I love Steve and Dustin together I didn't like them being separated from the group for as long as they were.

I still believe the American is Hopper even though I noticed the gate was not that close to the steel Hopper was on. He would've had to run and jump. I read an article that the show ran a promotion for a couple of days where if you called Murray's phone number Hopper gave the government a recording of Murray answered and said, If this is Joyce I have an update it's about.... well, It's probably best if we meet in person. It's not good or bad but it's something.

Erica got on my nerves!

[scottiB]

I graduated from high school in 1985 and worked retail clothing in a mall just outside Detroit (Fairlane Town Center), and the producers, wardrobers, designers were really close in look/feel. Just finished a re-watch of season 3, and a few things I noticed that were on the mark which I didn't catch before:

• Lucas's Asian-inspired shirt in episode 7. Chinese/Japanese characters were, maybe not big, but prevalent in the 1980's version of Hot Topics stores.
• Pointer Sisters "Neutron Dance" playing when Alexi was going to leave in the Cadillac (ep.7, too). "Neutron Dance" was featured in the opening action sequence of Beverly Hills Cop and was all over the radio at the time.
• Max wearing a Swatch that had a pretty popular band+watch face color for 1985.
• Am glad they used Yello's "Goldrush" in episode 8 and not the more popular "Oh Yeah" (used in Ferris Bueller's Day Off) - though "Goldrush" didn't come out until 1986.
• Had a mild out-of-body experience with "The Never-ending Story". One afternoon when I was working alone in the store in 1985, Limhal and his manager came in to look for clothes. He is like 5' 2". Didn't buy anything.

[Quark]

I thoroughly enjoyed this season.

The acting was great, the pacing was great, the writing was great.

Looking forward to Season Four.

[rezahaghi321]

hi.. 
i think stranger things series is one of the best series in the world...
i really like this series...
i was so excited for season 3 but I don't understand why Joyce gets custody of El and she has to move away with them!! what is your opinion?!

[Ambrosefolly]

1 hour ago, rezahaghi321 said:

hi.. 
i think stranger things series is one of the best series in the world...
i really like this series...
i was so excited for season 3 but I don't understand why Joyce gets custody of El and she has to move away with them!! what is your opinion?!

I am of the opinion that the show hasn't explained where El's Aunt is in all of this. I honestly don't care that there is no one else Hop would want to look after El.  It was speculated last year that Hop would also try to have El forge some sort of relationship with her Aunt for Terri's sake. Since Terri's name was on the birth certificate, her and her family's rights to El were reinstated and considering (and hopefully Hop would have been told this by El) everything  Terri went through to get El back, they wouldn't want to steal El a way again.

[LeGrandElephant]

Just finally finished this season. 

Hmm, usually when a TV show is going to kill off a main character, they make you like them and sympathize with them more first, so it tugs at your heartstrings more. They did that with Billy, but not at all with Hopper - this season just made me dislike him more and more. I don't think he deserved to die, but I also don't think he was a very good father for El or a good potential boyfriend/husband for Joyce (better than El's first papa or Joyce's ex-husband, sure, but those are pretty low bars). 

I haven't read the thread yet, so I'm not sure if the "american" in russian prison at the end was supposed to be Hop, or Bald Eagle, or someone else (or if they haven't decided yet). 

Speaking of Billy, how come we haven't seen his dad? If he was abusive to Billy's mom and Billy, then he would likely also be abusive to Max's mom and Max, but we haven't seen any mention of Max's home life or how it affects her to be bullied by Billy and by her stepdad. Next season? But her being comfortable enough to have El over for a sleepover implies it can't be too bad. I feel like Max and Billy's family and backstory wasn't thought out that well. 

[CeeBeeGee]

On 7/6/2019 at 5:32 PM, VCRTracking said:

Another thing I thought of that might point to Hopper being alive is if El still had her powers she would've been able to find him through sensory deprevation.

That was my first thought--they made El lose her powers because otherwise she would find out he was alive in a hot minute. They're maintaining suspense this way.

On 7/6/2019 at 8:45 PM, ganesh said:

There was no way Duckie was straight. 

Oh God, of course not. (And how did they think that him ending up with Andie and that fug dress was a good idea? No wonder the test audiences hated it. Ducky, the most annoying and desperate and thirsty character in movie existence--the proto-Nice Guy--is rewarded for his shitty behavior by "getting" the girl? She was never, ever attracted to him and made that very clear throughout the movie.)

On 7/7/2019 at 12:05 PM, ruby24 said:

By the way, what is El's schooling situation? How is she being educated?

I'm wondering that myself!

On 7/8/2019 at 1:18 AM, mledawn said:

The relationship between El and Hopper is my FAVOURITE and I was absolutely bawling at the end. I hope that's Hop in the prison, my heart can't take it.

Oh my God, I will be heartbroken if he stays dead. The Russian (американский 😉 ) had better be him.

On 7/10/2019 at 2:19 PM, iMonrey said:

I felt kind of bad for Joe Keery (Steve). Imagine having to wear that stupid little sailor suit for however long it took to shoot this whole season.

Every time I see a movie like The Poseidon Adventure that's what I think about--how much it must suck to have to wear the same costume every. single. day. of that months long shoot.

[LeGrandElephant]

I forget what episode this happened in, but I really liked Robin's coming out - however, I would have liked it better without the too over the top fakeout before that where they had her say she had been obsessed with Steve. Surely there was a different way to hint she liked him, without it being so unrealistic that she would say she had been obsessed with him before and not realize that it sounded like she had had a crush on him?

[Gothish520]

Whew, just finished the series and what a ride! Love love love. The acting is just top-notch, the 80's references were spot-on, the tension and suspense were through the roof - the episodes just flew by. Seriously, I was riveted. So well-done. Damn.

I had read almost nothing about the show before I started watching, just knew that it took place in the 80s and that a boy disappears, so everything was a surprise and I remained mostly unspoiled, except for hearing that the ending of Season 3 was sad which of course had me speculating about who dies. Or, as it may turn out, who doesn't, aha!

I am usually not one for speculation, but maybe Hopper is in the Upside-Down and Brenner (Matthew Modine) is the American in the prison? Or Hopper is the prisoner and Brenner is working with the Russians?

Can't wait to find out.

[DoctorAtomic]

If Brenner is working with the Russians, which I wouldn't put it past him, then he's not going to be in the cell. It would have to be Hopper. 

[jhlipton]

On 7/15/2019 at 8:08 AM, The Companion said:

The emergency surgery was what got me, even more than exploding rats and melting people. 

My new band's name is "Exploding Rats and Melting People"!

On 7/21/2019 at 4:46 AM, AngelKitty said:

I watched that show and was disappointed when it was canceled, though I can't remember its name.

On 7/21/2019 at 7:25 AM, Clanstarling said:

I can never remember the name either - even though I JUST saw it. The Intruders? Very creepy show.

I looked at iMDB and it is indeed Intruders.

[BeeBop88]

All I can say, is that I LOOOVVVEEE this show. I came into it late, but what a great story. Very talented kid actors, and the adults aren't bad either. I am not an avid supernatural fan, but this show really grabbed my interest, and I wasn't bored with it or rolled my eyes once as some supernatural shows can get really stupid. I sure hope there is a season 4.

[Gothish520]

On 8/19/2019 at 5:41 PM, BeeBop88 said:

All I can say, is that I LOOOVVVEEE this show. I came into it late, but what a great story. Very talented kid actors, and the adults aren't bad either. I am not an avid supernatural fan, but this show really grabbed my interest, and I wasn't bored with it or rolled my eyes once as some supernatural shows can get really stupid. I sure hope there is a season 4.

Same same! I was blown away by how good this is and how fast the episodes seemed to fly by. I like Sci-Fi but I'm usually not a big fan of supernatural stuff and definitely NOT into horror at all, but this show is so good that it's worth having to shield my eyes from the screen on the odd occasion, lol.

[LeGrandElephant]

On rewatching the series, I noticed that in the terrible backdoor pilot episode of season 2, some dude tells them that Papa is still alive, and it’s established that Eleven never “looked” for him psychically. We also didn’t technically see him die in season 1. So it’s probably him in the Russian jail (though could still be Hopper). 

[Writing Wrongs]

I just binge-watched the entire series this weekend. What a great show!

As an 80's teen, I loved seeing all the stuff from back then. I loved seeing Wyatt's Cafeteria at the mall. We used to eat there on Sundays.

Yeah, the Russian stuff was pretty cheesy, but then I remember how prevalent it was back then with movies like Red Dawn (1984), Russkies (1987) and Little Nikita (1988) involving teen drama.

Good times.

It's funny that as central to the story as Will was in S1 & S2, his purpose in S3 was basically to let everyone know when he got goosebumps.

Edited September 16, 2019 by Writing Wrongs

[Birnam Wood]

Let us pause and consider the greatest unsolved mystery of the season: who the hell bought the Byers' house?

Given all of the negative publicity surrounding Hawkins, perhaps one of the plot points next year will be "Will's childhood home becomes a grow opp; mind flayers strangely subdued."

[grawlix]

1 hour ago, Birnam Wood said:

Let us pause and consider the greatest unsolved mystery of the season: who the hell bought the Byers' house?

Given all of the negative publicity surrounding Hawkins, perhaps one of the plot points next year will be "Will's childhood home becomes a grow opp; mind flayers strangely subdued."

My guess would be Dr. Owen's branch of the government since it is an area where there was a lot of upside down activity -- or the Russians.

[Gothish520]

On 9/11/2019 at 11:27 PM, LeGrandElephant said:

On rewatching the series, I noticed that in the terrible backdoor pilot episode of season 2, some dude tells them that Papa is still alive, and it’s established that Eleven never “looked” for him psychically. We also didn’t technically see him die in season 1. So it’s probably him in the Russian jail (though could still be Hopper). 

I actually loved that one-off episode. It was good for El to get out into the world, find out what her moral limits were with regard to her powers, and figure out where she wanted to be and where she belonged. I'm hoping we see Kali again, I thought her character was interesting.

[azshadowwalker]

On 7/5/2019 at 1:00 AM, Armchair Critic said:

Why do some of the guys still have bowl cuts?

They all dream of growing up to be Dee Dee Ramone. 

[Blue Plastic]

On 7/28/2019 at 3:58 PM, Hook75 said:

Don't like Max and Erica. I hate when new characters come and suck the airtime from the main characters (Arrow, Flash etc). BUT I do like Robin, lol.

I don't like them either, truth be told.  Not really.  But I don't really care for Robin, either.  No new characters!  There I said it.  I'm going to sulk in the corner now.  🙂

On 8/9/2019 at 5:53 PM, LeGrandElephant said:

Speaking of Billy, how come we haven't seen his dad? If he was abusive to Billy's mom and Billy, then he would likely also be abusive to Max's mom and Max, but we haven't seen any mention of Max's home life or how it affects her to be bullied by Billy and by her stepdad. Next season? But her being comfortable enough to have El over for a sleepover implies it can't be too bad. I feel like Max and Billy's family and backstory wasn't thought out that well. 

Yeah, all of this.  It's like they wanted Billy and Max to grow up in mostly the same environment with the same abusive dad/stepdad, but Billy is supposed to be an angsty abused and abusive teenager while Max is a lighthearted young girl who hasn't had any problems in her home life.

[madmax84]

I think this season was my favorite. I was always the person who didn't want to watch what everyone else was raving about, but I finally decided to give it a try. I binged all 3 seasons in like 2 weeks and now I'm obsessed.

I was glad they touched on the culture surrounding females in the work place in the 80's especially in a newsroom surrounded by guys. It was funny how the guys turned out to be flayed in the end. 

The addition of Robin was great and I loved her character. It was nice for Steve to have a bigger role in this season as well. Sad to say I fell for the chemistry between Robin and Steve and was surprised when they had Robin come out to him. It'll be nice for him to have a partner in crime though.

I accidentally spoiled myself with Hopper's death trying to figure out who exactly Murray was and why he kept cropping up in the last two seasons. 

[Emily Thrace]

On 8/11/2019 at 10:24 PM, Gothish520 said:

Whew, just finished the series and what a ride! Love love love. The acting is just top-notch, the 80's references were spot-on, the tension and suspense were through the roof - the episodes just flew by. Seriously, I was riveted. So well-done. Damn.

I had read almost nothing about the show before I started watching, just knew that it took place in the 80s and that a boy disappears, so everything was a surprise and I remained mostly unspoiled, except for hearing that the ending of Season 3 was sad which of course had me speculating about who dies. Or, as it may turn out, who doesn't, aha!

I am usually not one for speculation, but maybe Hopper is in the Upside-Down and Brenner (Matthew Modine) is the American in the prison? Or Hopper is the prisoner and Brenner is working with the Russians?

Can't wait to find out.

The thing about Brenner being "the American" is I don't think he is American at least not by birth even if he is naturalized. Based on his accent, El calling him Papa and the arm tattoo I suspect Brenner was born in Germany. In fact if he is roughly the right age to have been a Nazi (assuming he's in his late fifties or early sixties like Modine). He's too young to be Mengele but he had a few male assistants who were never caught and who knows how many guards. Not too mention there was all kinds of experiments on children as part of Action T4. Given the USSR's own history with the Nazis they wouldn't call him American. And Nazis would be first in line to be fed to Demogorgan.

[LeGrandElephant]

I have clear memories of watching The Neverending Story. I remember Bastian, and Falcor, and a creature made of rocks (or eating rocks?) explaining the Nothing that was coming to get them all. I even remember a sequel with Bastian played by a different actor  

But, somehow I have no memory at all of this song. Did it play over the credits, or in the movie itself? Why don’t I remember it?

Edited December 28, 2019 by LeGrandElephant

[Sarah 103]

On 7/5/2019 at 2:02 PM, Quilt Fairy said:

Slightly out of the' 80s ballpark since it's from '91, but I think you can add Terminator 2 to the list of movie callbacks.   Every time the Mind Flayer dissolved and reformed, slid through a vent cover or under a door, or put out a claw to reabsorb a bit of goo I thought of that movie.

I thought the Mind Flayer dissolving and reforming was like The Blob, but yours works better for the time period. 

On 7/7/2019 at 2:03 AM, sunshine23 said:

I think my favorite part of the season was watching Joyce and Hopper's interactions. Their thinly veiled attraction to each other made them act like immature teenagers more than those they are responsible for.

Personally I got a very Han/Leia from it, and that relationship has its roots in the old screwball romantic comedies or the Tracey/Hepburn movies. 

On 7/8/2019 at 4:28 PM, iMonrey said:

That exchange stopped me in my tracks. I couldn't figure out if they were implying that Will was gay or if he simply hadn't matured into liking girls yet. 

I took it as Mike implying that Will hadn't matured into liking girls, but realized it sounded like that he thought Will was gay and then immediately regretted that poor choice of words. In the first season  bullies teased Will because they thought he might be gay. 

Edited January 8, 2020 by Sarah 103

[Aliferously]

So now we are done.

I'm going to need a minute to find my bearings post emotional rollercoaster so this may sound unhinged.

- Being the semi adults that they are, Nancy and Jonathan could have gotten their own place. Just saying.

- My heart broke for El when she was reading that letter. So much.

- I am very willing to believe that Hopper is alive in a Russian prison. I don't think I want to do this show without David Harbour. By what exit did they sneak him out? Does the evil eye lead to Russia?

- Oh, Max.

- Other favourite moment, when the Demogorgon picked up the walkie and wailed into it. 

- Skipped the musical number because it wasn't necessary. JUST SAY THE DAMN CODE! How much time did they waste with that anyway? I was happy to see Suzie was real, for like ten seconds.

- Loved this season, even though the first few episodes felt annoying and not in line with the previous seasons.

-So much love this season for the Steve/Robin dynamic, Alexei, mad adventures involving a Cadillac, and for bringing the 80's to life. Bring on season 4.

 

 

Edited February 1, 2020 by Aliferously
I do like David Harbour, do want to see him next season

[QuantumMechanic]

The musical number was worth it for seeing Hopper standing there with this stunned look on his face and Joyce turning to the wall to lean against it in OMFG-I-can't-believe-this-ness.

[Taryn74]

Don't mind me, just over here sobbing my eyes out after finishing my rewatch.

I'm still annoyed with having Hopper and Joyce be so OTT with their denied attraction to each other. That's an 80s trope I can do without reliving, tyvm.

I continue to believe Hop managed to jump into the Gate as it was closing, crossed the Upside Down where distance doesn't really seem to matter, and ended up coming out (or getting pulled out by baddies) in Russia.

I caught this time around Alexei telling Hopper and Joyce that they were able to successfully use the key to begin to open a Gate in Russia, but it ended up that location was just as important as the key, which is why they moved their operation to Hawkins (where a Gate had already been opened before). It wouldn't surprise me if the Russians kept tabs on Dr. Brenner's experiments and had Hawkins on their radar already. Maybe Murray's story breaking tipped them off, wouldn't that be an ironic twist. As for them being able to come and go without detection - I think it was implied they were buying up all the land that had previously been tunneled out by the mind flayer and turning it all into part of their lab, or at least remote access to the lab.

I'm just going to go ahead and fanwank that Billy's dad killed his mom, and that's why Billy was such an OTT a-hole. His inexplicable rage toward Max and having to move to Hawkins would make sense if there was more to the story than just his parents were divorced and his dad was abusive. It would explain him not standing up to his dad even when he was being abusive toward him, because he knew how far his dad was capable of taking things. It could even explain his attitude toward Max dating Lucas and hanging out with the other kids - in his weird, messed up way he was trying to keep her from doing anything to put her in his dad's bad graces.

What else? I never felt the Erica love last season, but once she had more of a role than taking advantage of free ice cream samples this season she got better. She cussed a lot for a 10 yo, though. Not sure of the need for that.

Oh and Nancy's purple dress with the rectangle cutouts along the collar - my sister had that exact dress, only in red with navy blue trim. This show's ability to nail the culture of the day continues to impress. (Lose the bowl cut for Will, though, I beg you. Mike's hair doesn't actually bother me that much, I think because it's curly so it looks more messy. But Will's hair is a travesty.)

[Taryn74]

On 10/17/2020 at 11:29 PM, Taryn74 said:

I'm just going to go ahead and fanwank that Billy's dad killed his mom, and that's why Billy was such an OTT a-hole. His inexplicable rage toward Max and having to move to Hawkins would make sense if there was more to the story than just his parents were divorced and his dad was abusive. It would explain him not standing up to his dad even when he was being abusive toward him, because he knew how far his dad was capable of taking things. It could even explain his attitude toward Max dating Lucas and hanging out with the other kids - in his weird, messed up way he was trying to keep her from doing anything to put her in his dad's bad graces.

You know, when I said this I was kind of halfway kidding, as in it would be a storyline that would be a good explanation but I didn't really think it would fit everything we were shown. But it was bugging me so I went back and watched the parts of the episode where El sees all of Billy's childhood visions, and I actually think there could be something to it! We see Billy's father yelling at his mother and accusing her of cheating on him, which she denies, then Billy tries to stop his dad but since he's just a kid his dad pushes him aside and punches the mom. When he punches her there's a clap of thunder that sounds suspiciously like a gunshot. Then we see Billy on the phone with her, crying, asking why he can't come be with her. The next set of scenes with his father is when he meets Max for the first time, she looks to be about 9 or 10 yo (so it would be a couple of years before they moved to Hawkins). Billy is much more subdued in this scene, but obviously unhappy, and the way the father is talking to him has more of a sound of ominous calm than when he was flying off the handle all the time.

So, what if - what if! - after Billy got a little bit older he tried to run away to go live with his mom, his father chased him down and in a fit of rage he killed her and had to move his new family away, threatening Billy in the process that if he ever told anyone what happened he would do the same to him and/or Max. I could see it.

Edited October 19, 2020 by Taryn74

[Robert Lynch]

On 10/18/2020 at 12:29 AM, Taryn74 said:

Don't mind me, just over here sobbing my eyes out after finishing my rewatch.

I'm still annoyed with having Hopper and Joyce be so OTT with their denied attraction to each other. That's an 80s trope I can do without reliving, tyvm.

I continue to believe Hop managed to jump into the Gate as it was closing, crossed the Upside Down where distance doesn't really seem to matter, and ended up coming out (or getting pulled out by baddies) in Russia.

I caught this time around Alexei telling Hopper and Joyce that they were able to successfully use the key to begin to open a Gate in Russia, but it ended up that location was just as important as the key, which is why they moved their operation to Hawkins (where a Gate had already been opened before). It wouldn't surprise me if the Russians kept tabs on Dr. Brenner's experiments and had Hawkins on their radar already. Maybe Murray's story breaking tipped them off, wouldn't that be an ironic twist. As for them being able to come and go without detection - I think it was implied they were buying up all the land that had previously been tunneled out by the mind flayer and turning it all into part of their lab, or at least remote access to the lab.

I'm just going to go ahead and fanwank that Billy's dad killed his mom, and that's why Billy was such an OTT a-hole. His inexplicable rage toward Max and having to move to Hawkins would make sense if there was more to the story than just his parents were divorced and his dad was abusive. It would explain him not standing up to his dad even when he was being abusive toward him, because he knew how far his dad was capable of taking things. It could even explain his attitude toward Max dating Lucas and hanging out with the other kids - in his weird, messed up way he was trying to keep her from doing anything to put her in his dad's bad graces.

What else? I never felt the Erica love last season, but once she had more of a role than taking advantage of free ice cream samples this season she got better. She cussed a lot for a 10 yo, though. Not sure of the need for that.

Oh and Nancy's purple dress with the rectangle cutouts along the collar - my sister had that exact dress, only in red with navy blue trim. This show's ability to nail the culture of the day continues to impress. (Lose the bowl cut for Will, though, I beg you. Mike's hair doesn't actually bother me that much, I think because it's curly so it looks more messy. But Will's hair is a travesty.)

That monk hairdo on Will is a no no! Only in Renaissance times, not 1985! That was such a mistake.

[threebluestars]

I just finished all three seasons. At least I don't have to wait for S4 as long as everyone else lol.

I was totally expecting that Hopper ended up in the Upside Down and as they were packing up the ceiling lights would come on one by one and they'd know he was there and it would set up S4. Do they know if they're picked up when they're writing/shooting? The ending made me think they didn't know so they had to wrap things up enough that fans wouldn't be annoyed if S3 was the end.

I'm not super fond of the idea Hopper's in a Russian prison. I like the idea it could be El's papa, because it would make sense they'd kidnap someone who had knowledge of what Hawkins lab was originally doing so they could open up a gate themselves (if I remember right Alexei said Hawkins was an ideal place and they had issues in Russia?). I honestly can't see Hopper and his mouth lasting long in a Russian prison though.

The whole series I've been waiting for El to contact others like her. She knows there's more. I'm wondering if there's a connection she could tap into with Kali and the others like them. I feel like defeating the ultimate Big Bad would have to involve all of the psychic Hawkins kids so I'm hoping that comes into play.

One thing I understood, but wasn't super thrilled with, was the separation of all of the characters for so long. I know the cast is big and it's easier to divide everyone up to keep things controlled and make sure the audience knows what's what, but I really missed the interaction of the core kids.

I also need them to do something with Will. While I loved the storyline that everyone else was growing up faster than him, that's not a plot that carries a lot of story. I feel like he was really superfluous in all of the action. He didn't really do much but tell them the Mind Flayer was back and tell everyone they were out of fireworks. I need the writers to figure out what to do with him. Part of me wanted him to sacrifice himself or something so everyone could get away, but I realized watching him hide behind the car with everyone else that he seems way more traumatized than everyone else (for good reason) and wouldn't be able to do it. Maybe they can explore him dealing with PTSD and ultimately sacrificing himself - because I feel like one of the core kids will die at some point, and I think El might be a bit too obvious.

I think the look and feel of the show has been my ultimate favourite - from the clothes to the music to the score. It all hits way better than any 80s set show I've ever seen.

[Taryn74]

52 minutes ago, threebluestars said:

The whole series I've been waiting for El to contact others like her. She knows there's more. I'm wondering if there's a connection she could tap into with Kali and the others like them. I feel like defeating the ultimate Big Bad would have to involve all of the psychic Hawkins kids so I'm hoping that comes into play.

Something I got to wondering a while after my last rewatch, is if the other "numbers" were all kids, or were they just people who were part of their experiments? Like, maybe El's mom had a number? That doesn't really feel right, because it's hard to believe they were only doing the LSD experiments on less than a dozen people (remember, El was unique because they were giving Terry the LSD while she was pregnant with El, she just didn't know it yet). But we know Kali wasn't taken by Papa until she was a bit older, according to the newspaper article about her being kidnapped, and she looked roughly the same age in the flashback scenes as she did in the newspaper article, while El was around 3 or 4 at the time. But then, why did Kali have a lower number than El if El was taken as a newborn? Ugh. I'm confusing myself, LOL.

 

1 hour ago, threebluestars said:

I honestly can't see Hopper and his mouth lasting long in a Russian prison though.

Heh. It would be fun to watch him mouthing off to the guards and they couldn't do anything to him because they didn't have permission to.

 

1 hour ago, threebluestars said:

I think the look and feel of the show has been my ultimate favourite - from the clothes to the music to the score. It all hits way better than any 80s set show I've ever seen.

Absolutely. It was all so REAL. Not a caricature of the 80's at all, it really looked like it could have been filmed during the 80's. Man. I may have to rewatch again! I already miss it.

[Clanstarling]

10 hours ago, Taryn74 said:

Absolutely. It was all so REAL. Not a caricature of the 80's at all, it really looked like it could have been filmed during the 80's. Man. I may have to rewatch again! I already miss it.

It just occurred to me that I should rewatch too - as I just read that Season 4 comes out in December (I haven't been paying attention).

[ch1]

Season 4 is being filmed now so it won’t be out until sometime next year (if there are no more filming delays).

[Taryn74]

4 minutes ago, ch1 said:

Season 4 is being filmed now so it won’t be out until sometime next year (if there are no more filming delays).

Damn. I got excited. 😞

[Clanstarling]

3 hours ago, ch1 said:

Season 4 is being filmed now so it won’t be out until sometime next year (if there are no more filming delays).

Huh, I looked it up just before I commented - and the article had a November date. But I didn't exactly take a deep dive, so it could have been bogus (or it was November of last year -lol)

[Robert Lynch]

On 11/14/2020 at 1:57 PM, Clanstarling said:

Huh, I looked it up just before I commented - and the article had a November date. But I didn't exactly take a deep dive, so it could have been bogus (or it was November of last year -lol)

It be the Covid report they are watching.

[threebluestars]

I just binged the whole series again, and I just love the S3 finale so much. SO MUCH.

Even though I knew it was coming, I still laugh my ass off at the Neverending Story right in the middle of everything. It took me so my surprise the first time I had to pause it to stop laughing.

I am super curious how S4 will deal with everyone since there are so many key characters now, and they're in different places.

Edited November 14, 2021 by threebluestars

[Taryn74]

Finished S3 in my rewatch tonight. I was surprised to see going back over the conversations that I didn't enjoy S3 that much when it first aired. It definitely gets better with repeated viewing.

Erica annoyed me greatly the first time I watched, I do remember that LOL, but not nearly as much this time around. I guess it's because I know she ends up being very useful and isn't just there to be the Snarky Younger Sibling Who Won't Shut Up and just gets in the way all the time. I had forgotten that Will donated his D&D manuals to her. Nice touch.

Okay, Billy is still an asshole, but him crying over his childhood memories does get to me. Shut up. I do now firmly believe his father killed his mother and that's why they had to move (see my previous posts upthread about this theory) so El's repeated "She was pretty, she was very pretty" and his reaction to it made me choke up.

Spoilers for Season 4 -

Spoiler

It was quite jarring to see Max being just fine emotionally at the end when she was helping Will and El pack, harassing Dustin by singing with Lucas, when we know that in S4 she is an absolute mess over Billy's death. If they knew that was the route they were going to take her down they should have made her more pensive at the end of S3.

[Perfect Xero]

5 hours ago, Taryn74 said:

Finished S3 in my rewatch tonight. I was surprised to see going back over the conversations that I didn't enjoy S3 that much when it first aired. It definitely gets better with repeated viewing.

Erica annoyed me greatly the first time I watched, I do remember that LOL, but not nearly as much this time around. I guess it's because I know she ends up being very useful and isn't just there to be the Snarky Younger Sibling Who Won't Shut Up and just gets in the way all the time. I had forgotten that Will donated his D&D manuals to her. Nice touch.

Okay, Billy is still an asshole, but him crying over his childhood memories does get to me. Shut up. I do now firmly believe his father killed his mother and that's why they had to move (see my previous posts upthread about this theory) so El's repeated "She was pretty, she was very pretty" and his reaction to it made me choke up.

Spoilers for Season 4 -

  Hide contents

It was quite jarring to see Max being just fine emotionally at the end when she was helping Will and El pack, harassing Dustin by singing with Lucas, when we know that in S4 she is an absolute mess over Billy's death. If they knew that was the route they were going to take her down they should have made her more pensive at the end of S3.

The last shot of Max in S3 is her sitting alone in Billy's room looking sad, I think it's pretty clear that she's keeping a lot of her emotions hidden from her friends during the earlier scenes.

Spoiler

Which then plays out in the way she's largely isolated herself from them at the start of Season 4.

[Taryn74]

7 hours ago, Perfect Xero said:

The last shot of Max in S3 is her sitting alone in Billy's room looking sad, I think it's pretty clear that she's keeping a lot of her emotions hidden from her friends during the earlier scenes.

Good point.

Spoiler

I can see that getting worse and worse over the next few months. S4 takes place several months later, as I recall. So that does make more sense now, thanks!

[Taryn74]

Something that occurred to me which I should probably know since I just rewatched this season like two days ago, LOL, but did Will do anything to help actually fight the monster this season? Or was he just there to get goosebumps on his neck and be the monster radar? I honestly can't remember him doing anything to help in any of the fights.

[Dev F]

On 9/8/2022 at 12:41 AM, Taryn74 said:

Something that occurred to me which I should probably know since I just rewatched this season like two days ago, LOL, but did Will do anything to help actually fight the monster this season? Or was he just there to get goosebumps on his neck and be the monster radar?

That is how he helps them fight the Mind Flayer. He's the one who realizes that the Mind Flayer is back in the first place, that he's in control of Billy in the sauna when he's pretending to be remorseful, and so on.

He also throws fireworks at the Flesh Golem in the final battle.

[Quickbeam]

Late to the party first time binge watcher. I just can’t go on without David Harbour in this show! He’s my rock! 

[Kel Varnsen]

So my youngest daughter is now into the show so I have been doing a second rewatch. One cool thing I noticed when I watched this episode today was they cut to Suzie's house and then they pan across the room (before you even see her) you see Dustin's season 1 hat on her shelf.