Season one of Stranger things

A tv show by Lee Sonogan

Stranger Things are so many things. Sci-fi, mystery eighties throwback, psychological thriller, horror and more. The plot is about a young boy who disappears. His mother, a police chief, and his friends must confront terrifying forces in order to get him back. Also about a young girl with telekinetic powers. We have the Duffer brothers to thank for creating this series. The Duffer Brothers originally wanted to make the upcoming remake of Stephen King’s “IT” but were turned down. They then went on to make Stranger Things which is why it is littered with homages to Stephen King movies. Released in July this year on Netflix, it has been rated and loved by many.

Winona Ryder portrays a mother whose child has gone missing. In real life, Ryder dedicated the film Little Women to Polly Hannah Klaas, a young girl from her hometown of Petaluma, California, who went missing and was later revealed to have been kidnapped and brutally murdered. She offered a $200,000 reward for anyone with information on the subject, and as of 2016 she still remains a strong supporter of the Polly Klaas Foundation for Prevention of child abduction, and aid in the search.

Several songs featured in the series and heard by the characters, such as “Hazy Shade of Winter” by The Bangles (1987), we released well after the date the series is meant to be set (November 1983). The series’s logo resembles the font used on the covers for the original 1980s editions of Stephen King novels, notably Cujo and Christine.  The 1988 anime AKIRA involves children with telekinetic abilities who are addressed by numbers that are tattooed on their wrists, much like the character Eleven in the show. Also, Eleven’s escape from the lab and her confrontation with the guards is very similar to Tetsuo’s escape from the lab in Akira.

The font for the credits and episode titles is the same as that used on Dungeons & Dragons sourcebooks. The repeated shots of the Byers’ home with the porch swing in the foreground is a nod to The Evil Dead.

In conclusion, I was very entertained. Each character is important and vital to the story. With each episode being 50 minutes, the story is developed very well. The young and adult actors both play important and interesting parts in the overall show. Especially the dark scenes with Eleven. The final episode in the upside-down world is visually stunning. It is a very clever show. Watch this show now god damn it.

8.7/10

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4574334/