User Reviews

Well, Stranger Things, season 4 has not disappointed. It was epic and I can hardly wait to see the next two episodes, which I believe are the final.

This episode connected a lot of dots that I didn't even know needed connecting. It pretty much explains how the whole thing began. I kind of figured out that Ballard was "1" right away. Which then led me to believe he was the one responsible for the massacre. But I wasn't quite sure if he was Vecna or not. I had thought since Max was going through trauma, it might be Billy. I completely forgot about the little boy who went into a coma. So I didn't guess he was Ballard and also Vecna.

I love the flashbacks telling the story of how Ballard became 1 and then Vecna. That was so well done. Actually, I can see why season 4 was said to be the most expensive. They definitely didn't skimp on the production values.

I loved seeing Hopper reunited with Joyce. Murray beating up people is hilarious. I love it.

What will happen to Nancy? I love seeing how they came back full circle with her regarding Barb. Does anyone remember the "justice for Barb" tweets? I don't want to see Nancy die. I like her. I feel like one of the gang is going to die though. It's interesting that they seem to be rekindling the Steve/Nancy relationship. I had liked Jonathon to be with her in seasons 1 and 2. In season 3, he seemed really out of character. This season he's a stoner and kind of a bore. Btw, I find Argyle annoying af. Eddie was a great addition.

It's strange seeing Will, Mike, and Jonathon off somewhere else, not really in the thick of things, the main events, so to speak. However, I do really love the team of Steve, Nancy, Robin, Dustin, and Lucas. Thankfully they added Erica too. And Eddie. I feel like the parents are more present this time around. Although the kids keep getting away. Lol.

Anyway, great mid-season finale. Sometimes shows get stale as they go on. But wow this show still packs a lot of punch. 10/10.

Episode 7: I have to admit that I didn't expect such a gem of an episode. It's easily one of the very best of the whole series, if not the best until now.

The wonderful screenplay's plots, the high level of acting, outdone by 011 and 001, the meticulous attention to details, up to the smallest ones, depicting the horrifying events of the past set in the lab, the marvelous score and music and the whole explanatory developments shedding a new bright light on the true and real background of the children.

The whole episode deserves to be showered with multiple awards on almost every related category.

Now I understand the real meanings of "What have you done?!" together with the origin of the portal and the Upside Down.

Thank you Duffer Brothers for creating this outstanding show, being its masterminds and main contributors of this episode's writing.

Netflix, I'm hibernating till the 1st of July. The heavy weight of waiting is just too much!

The writers played a trick on us! And a very successful one at that. The revalation of who Peter Ballard turns out to be is masterfully done and Jamie Campbell Bower brings nothing short of perfection to portray one of the scariest and most menacing villains ever put to the TV screen.

His immediate shift back to 001 is one for the ages and I sincerely hope he receives tons of recognition and future acting work, because he made the main villain compelling, evil, and tragic. His monologue is mesmerizing, his voice is an absolute joy to listen to, and his facial movements should be studied in film schools. He steals every scene he's in like it's nobody's business and gives even the typical script lines a refreshingly good take. I have not been so compelled by an actor's performance in a long time!

The musical inclusion of "Prophecies" by Philip Glass was an inspired choice and fit the main revalation to a T.

Even former fans should flock back to Season 4, because the creators have stepped up their game considerably!

Being older, I don't experience the pain some of the reviewers seem to be experiencing. I found this episode enthralling. The backstory came at just the right time. We needed strings to tie things together and give us a broader view of Eleven. I thought it was seamless and concise with five major factions coming together. We still need to deal with the jocks and the townspeople. Can't wait until July.

Honestly giving massive props to the team for this flawlessly executed episode. It felt absolutely grandiose. Hopper and Joyce reuniting was so beautiful. On the other hand, Nancy is now stuck in the Upside Down.

The revelation in this episode and the seemless transitions, twists and turns is so epic. It's like the whole series led to that moment. Vecna is actually 001. My mind is so mindblown, it's not even funny. What am I supposed to do with myself now ?

Jamie Campbell Bower deserves all the awards for his portrayal. Just chilling and blood-curdling. The way it all played out with El in the bath and Nancy on the other side, all of it while the story was depicted to the audience is nothing short of incredible.

I can't believe my eyes. I'm literally SHAKING. Three hours later and I am still trying to process this.

VECNA IS 001??

Eleven DIDN'T commit the Hawkins massacre?

WHAT IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO NANCY?

I could not have asked for a better backstory with Vecna. This was everything I hoped for and more.

My heart aches for Eleven's characterisation. This season has built up so much pain within such an innocent girl, so many internal forces that devastate her again and again and again. She is so strong, she is so pure, she is an absolute example of the good and moral justness of the world hidden under the evil.

I just CANNOT WAIT for part two, and I couldn't have asked for a better part one. From this day on, I will be counting down the days from July 1st. The Duffer Brothers, cast and crew, everyone that was involved in making this season... Thank you.

It is people like you who push the limits of filmmaking and show us what television is truely capable of. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

I wrote this not having watched episodes 8 and 9 yet.

Hear me out:

This is an episode with some of the best moments in the series. The action scene involving the Russian demigorgon was riveting. The kids figuring out Vecna's plan is delightfully reminiscent of the show's old days. But...

I've got some major problems with this episode. First, why is it so long? It's like watching a full-length movie, but even less events transpired. There is a lot of filler, such as Steve and Nancy drama, the police questioning the kids, and Eddie's boring writing. Think of all the other things that could have happened in 100 minutes, then think about what we got. Seriously, you're telling me an episode this long has no time for our friends out in Utah? Do they not matter anymore? Are we ever going to get an explanation on how Papa survived after Season 1? I have no idea.

Also, I really don't buy into Papa's character at all. Like, supposedly now he's trying to help, and he does have a pretty well-written conversation with El early in this episode, but are we supposed to just believe him? Does anyone else remember how evil he was in Season 1 or how badly he treated El at the laboratory? I wish we got a scene showing how he was thankful to have survived the demigorgon attack and how he reflected on his terrible past actions and came to an epiphany. That would have been a good use of some of the 100 minutes of this episode.

And the last thing I want to talk about is, of course, the twist at the end. Hot take, but it was really dumb. Now, the acting performances sold this more than anything. But that doesn't change the fact that this reveal came completely out of nowhere. I guess it clears up Vecna's motivations and gives some history of the Hawkins Lab, but I stand by my point; it's kinda stupid. So the guy helping El escape is 001. Ok, that's pretty cool. It doesn't have a huge effect on the overall story, but cool. So, why is he now killing everyone is this place? Oh yeah, it's because he's just a generic villain with the most bland motivation and ideology of all time. Complete 180° character shift. "I was different and treated differently and the people are full of lies." Isn't that literally just half of all villains? Why does Nancy randomly get seized by Vecna and sees his memories as he disjointedly narrates them to El? The narration is jarring when you realize that he's saying all of this to El, like when he just starts talking about spiders for no reason. It's so loosely connected to his points and took me out of it a little. I can't believe I'm saying this, but it was difficult to watch.

I could mention also mention the terrible action scene at the beginning which is just so difficult to follow, but I'm done. I'm tired of seeing so much unwarranted praise for this, I'll be honest, only decent episode. It misused its characters, especially Papa, and the twist at the end was bad. I was initially going to rate this an 8/10, but after writing all this down, I'm honestly leaning towards a 7/10. I didn't hate it, but man, there was so much potential that got wasted in my eyes. But I guess it's not, since I stand alone on this opinion, so what more can I really do?

Vecna is the embodiment of all corrupted existential philosophies.

"Such widespread phenomena as depression, aggression and addiction are not understandable unless we recognize the existential vacuum underlying them."

• Viktor E. Frankl

Man's Search For Meaning.

Vecna's victims have been bitten by this bug; their past trauma and how they've interpreted it those events, and it's that which Vecna seeks to exploit.

Nihilism is a consequence of world view, and despair are it's rotten fruits. Vecna manifests that despair to it's furthermost conclusion. Nihilism in its final stage is violent. Destroying the world and our bodies.

How do we ward of meaninglessness? By obtaining meaning.

El portrays this in her rainbow room battle with 001. She attempted to pull on anger and hurt and it failed. She then reminisced on her life and value, and that's what empowered her.

If you want to destroy despair, you must first reject all that tries to convince you that you're nothing; a pest, a cosmic mistake.

What an ending! Storylines and mystries are solved so well. Peter = son of Voctor Creel = 001 = Vecna? What a twist. Eleven's scene are excellent as well. And the physics in the upside down. Everything. This season is strong and this episode is the best, shortly followed by Dear Billy.

Not terrible but they retconned the 1st season in a way that makes no sense because they wanted to milk the success of the start of the show again. They were pushing the idea that 11 forgot about events that took place in the massacre but it makes absolutely no sense that she forgot she wasn't to blame. The "survivors guilt" excuse doesn't apply at all because she even beat him so she had 0 reason to forget it.

This episode that has "the reveal", basically felt like the writers just meshed a whole bunch of ideas together to create this story angle which has so many holes.

I loved season 1, but each season since, the writing and the story gets worse. Almost like amateur writers are taking over.

I'm still going to watch to see how it ends, but this show has become an average show at best.