Stranger Things immediately garnered a massive following from its Netflix debut. A short, but poignant, funny, and dynamic show, it captured the hearts and minds of audiences everywhere and left them wanting more. It gave people their 80s alien flick fix with an updated twist. Eight episodes just wasn’t nearly enough, even though the first season of the show had a pretty solid conclusion. Stranger Things was renewed for a second season of nine episodes on August 31st 2016 that are slated to be released in 2017. Now with Stranger Things 2 being confirmed, here are a few things we are hoping to see when one of the best 80s nostalgia alien shows ever comes back to us.
What happened to Eleven?
Eleven quickly warmed our hearts with her adorable personality, love for Eggos, and above all her immense strength, which came from all that she endured at the hands of the scientists who experimented on her. After season 1 left Eleven’s fate completely up in the air, with her disappearing along with the Demogorgon, after she saves the boys’ lives for one last time. Millie Bobbie Brown has now just recently been confirmed to make her return in the second season as Eleven. So naturally that leaves us more eager than ever to find out El’s fate, and how exactly she returns come 1984, or if she even returns to our world at all.
What is happening to Will?
It’s no secret that Will has a very rough time during this series. His disappearance in the first episode set off a chain of events that introduced the demogorgon and led the eventual discovery of the Upside Down. At the end of Stranger Things, all seems well. Joyce, Will, and Jonathan are seen having a nice family dinner. Will excuses himself to go the bathroom, and it seems that Upside-Down isn’t quite ready to let go of him. He coughs up something that looks like a black slug, and briefly sees the walls of the bathroom transform into the world of the Upside-Down.
What is the Demogorgon, or what role does it play in the Upside-Down?
In the first season, we get a very vague idea of what the demogorgon is, only that it’s dangerous, and the government’s scientists wanted Eleven to try and make contact with it. She accidentally released the monster during a reconnaissance mission, when she opened a gate to the Upside-Down. The demogorgon can transport people into the Upside-Down, but does it have a motivation to do so? What does it want with our world? Seeing this terrifying creature fleshed out more would be extremely exciting.
How does communication work between our world and the Upside-Down?
We see Will try to make contact with his mother via a distorted phone call to her home shortly after he vanishes. Joyce’s phone immediately short circuits afterwards. She also hears music from his room and sees something come through the wall, the creature itself. Joyce finally finds a way to communicate with her son by stringing up Christmas lights with letters painted on them. Will blinks the light above the letter to spell out his message. But how is he able to do all of this? It certainly is a very cool concept and seeing how it works would solidify it more.
How much will the Upside-Down affect our world?
Although this question is a bit more general, it can be looked at in a variety of ways. Although the show is set a year later in 1984, everyone is still coping with how the Upside-Down impacted their lives on an individual scale. From those who have been there to those who have battled the Demogorgon, everyone has had different experiences. In addition, it is very likely that the Upside-Down will return to cause some trouble in this second season, especially for Will who is dealing with the side effects of the exposure to it. The Upside-Down is also known to be a parallel reflection of our own world, as explained by Mr. Clarke in episode 5.
What role in the story will the two new characters play?
Two new characters are being introduced in the show’s newest season. Obviously their roles will be addressed, but it is interesting to see how they will fit in with the current cast of characters, or if they will even interact with them right away. Sadie Sink plays Max, who is described as, “a tough and confident girl whose appearance, behavior and pursuits seem more typical of boys than of girls in this era. She has a complicated history and is generally suspicious of those around her”. Dacre Montgomery plays the role of Billy described as “Max’s hyper-confident, and edgy older step-brother. He steals girlfriends away from their boyfriends, is great at drinking games, and drives a black Camaro. But lurking under his apparent charisma, is a violent and unpredictable nature.”
What new scientific influences will be cited?
Currently, Stranger Things has established the mythos that the Upside-Down is a darker and more terrifying parallel of our own world. In addition, in episode 5, Mr. Clarke brings in some discussion about dimensions. A spacetime tear could create a passage in between these dimensions and the tear could disrupt the electromagnetic field of Earth. We have also seen Eleven be placed in a sensory deprivation tank, as well delved into the areas of telepathy and psychokinetic influences with her powers. Season 2 has promised to explore the “bigger mythology” of Will’s disappearance according to the Duffer brothers.
What will happen with Nancy and Jonathan’s relationship?
Nancy gives Jonathan a brand new camera as a present in the season finale of the series, but she’s back with Steve at the same time. Although all three seem to be still on good terms and will remain friends, possibly through to the second season. It’s no surprise the Nancy and Jonathan had a certain chemistry together during their time trying to track down the monster, but whether or not it was the makings of a romantic relationship is completely open for interpretation. One thing is for sure, seeing how people will band together to deal with the after effects of season 1 will be interesting.
Why did Barb die but Will survive?
Oh Barb. Why did you have to die? Many fans have cried Justice for Barb, upset that she was taken from the series far too soon for their liking. It is very interesting to think why Will survived and Barb didn’t in terms of the environment they were subjected to. Will had been in the Upside-Down for longer than Barb had, and if exposure to the universe had anything to do with it, Barb would have likely stood a better chance at survival. However, Will didn’t escape unscathed, as he’s still secretly dealing with whatever he caught from that same exposure to the Upside-Down. The biological reasons for Barb’s death are just as compelling as the plot-related ones, as some think her death was a bit of a push for the other characters to pursue justice by killing the Demogorgon that took her life.
Does Hopper know where Eleven is?
Hopper is seen at the end of episode 8 leaving some Eggos and other food in a box in the woods. It’s pretty clear that this is either a memorial to the “fallen” Eleven or perhaps he’s sneaking food to her because she’s hiding somewhere. This is just mere speculation, but because the scene was presented in a fairly ambiguous way, it’s interesting to speculate whether or not Hopper knows more than he is really letting on about Eleven’s whereabouts. In fact, the Duffer brothers admitted to “leaving her fate “purposefully ambiguous” and explained that, because the show has sci-fi rules and another plane of existence is in play, they’re “not boxed in, narratively” when it comes to the character’s potential future.”
