DO NOT CROSS HERE IF SPOILERS OFFEND
DO NOT CROSS HERE IF SPOILERS OFFEND
DO NOT CROSS
FFEND
JamesDyer:Hopper’sheroicexit,havingtaken
outtheunstoppableRedenforceronlytobecut
offfromJoyceandcaughtinthemachine’s
explosion,is theseries’bigtwist.Havinghad
muchmoretodothistime,Hopperfinallyfeltlike
a realmemberofthegang,onlytodieina storm
offireandlightning.Ordidhe?Weneverseehis
finalmomentsonscreenandthosewhostick
aroundfortheendcreditstingwillnoticethe
Russiansoldierselectnottofeed“theAmerican”
totheDemogorgon,optingforoneoftheir
ill-fatedcomradesinstead.CouldHopperhave
beensnatchedawayandbundledofftoa Russian
gulag?Oris thereanotherAmericaninthat cell,
onethatwillberevealedinSeason4?AmonWarmann:Afterthreeconsecutiveyears
ofnear-deathexperiencesandenoughtraumato
lasta lifetime,theByers— andElevenalongwith
them— arefinally(FINALLY!)gettingthehellout
ofdodge.OrHawkins.Notonlywillhavingmore
oftheshowbeingsetoutsideofHawkinsbroaden
thestorytellingtemplate,it couldhelpestablish
theShadowMonsterasa globalthreat.Withthat
said,it’slikelythateveryonewillbedrawnback
toIndiana— akathesourceofalltheconflict in
theseriesthusfar— onceDustinand co
inevitably send out a Code Red.AmonWarmann:‘Rebellious
kidwithpowers’hasbeen
Eleven’sdefaultsettingformuch
ofStrangerThings, butthis
seasongiftsMillieBobbyBrown
severalnewbeatstoplay.After
beingkeptawayfromtherest
oftheensembleforthe
majorityofSeason2,wesee
ElandMikegothroughtheups
anddownsofdatingwhileshe
alsoexploresfemalefriendship
andself-expression(through
’80sfashion!)withMax.It’sthe
mostmulti-facetedElhasbeen,
andherresponsetotheseason’s
hugelossesshouldonlyadd
tothecharacter’sevolution.JamesDyer:Eleven’s‘flat
battery’is oneoftheseries’
majorcurveballs,leavingher
telekinetic abilities absent duringtheconflict’sfinalact.Despite
claimingsheonlyneedstimeto
recharge,thefinalepisode’s
codashowsherpowershaveyet
toreturn.Wasit a resultof
over-exertion?DidtheFlayer
parasiteaffectherphysiology?
It’syettobemadeclear,butplot
aside,El’sdepoweringservesan
importantnarrativefunction.
Aftersavingthedaytwoyears
runningwithhervastpsychic
abilities,Elhadbecomeaneasy
outtobrushasideeventhemost
deathlyperil.Takingthegang’s
WMDoutoftheequationledto
a moreinventivesolutionthat
allowedHopper,Joyceandthe
restofthegangtostepup.And
assheleavesforpasturesnew,
justa regulargirl,it’shardto
begrudgeherthe shotat
a normal life.4 ELEVEN’S MELTDOWN
6 THE FINAL TWIST
5 THERUSSIANSARRIVE
Clockwise
fromleft:
Thegang’s
gameofSpin
TheBottlewas
moretense than
usual;
Somethingstirs
atStarcourt
Mall;Heroic
Hopper;
Someonelooks
a littleflame-
thrower-happy;
Billygoesbad;
MindFlayer
needsa
breathmint.WARNING!
SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
JamesDyer:What’80smysterywouldbe
completewithouta littleRedPeril?Whilethe
firsttwoseriesfocusedondomesticgovernment
misadventure,it’stheRusskiesbehindSeason
3’sdimensionalbreach.Quitehowtheymanaged
toenlistthenecessarylabourandinfrastructure
toconstructanextensivemilitarycomplex
beneaththeStarcourtMallis anyone’sguess,but
theinclusionofa Sovietincursion(completewith
weasellytorturerandunstoppableIvanDrago-
likeüberthug)addsa ColdWarspinthat
perfectlyfitsthesetting.It alsomarksa story
escalation:thestingattheendnotonlyshows
thattheRedshaveaccesstomorethanone
‘doorway’buttheUpsideDownis shapingup
tobethenewcontested ground between
LANDMARKglobalsuperpowers.