(A potential spoiler or two is enclosed but only in generalities)
The Starcourt Mall, a seemingly typical 80s mall, is the setting for much of Season 3 of "Stranger Things". Therefore, given that the horror and characterization have been amped up this season, I give "Stranger Things Season 3" five Starcourt Malls instead of five stars. In fact, the relatively new mall does have some connection to some of the stranger things going on within the town of Hawkins, Indiana.
The opening scene seemingly contrasts the benign happy-go-lucky mall scenes which soon follow. In a stark environment, the scene shows Russians doing basically what the American government has done in previous seasons with tampering with space-time with some sort of particle machine but opening up a portal to another dimension, a dark one. (The Cold War and the nuclear arms race of the 80s have seemed to be motivators for the experiments in previous seasons.) The Russian scene appears to be a prequel scene of sorts which then flashforwards to the present day after the events of Seasons 1 and 2.
Next, some of the main youth characters have entered puberty and are in the ups and downs of relationships but at least one wants to regress, and this creates some conflicts. Eleven and Finn are getting a little too close with their relationship, and Hopper, her guardian, intervenes. Eventually, a rift is driven between them for a while. Next, Lucas and Max, "Mad Max" the feisty red-headed young lady, are having conflicts as well. As in previous seasons, there are conflicts between friends as well. Dustin is upset when his friends do not try to get in touch with him upon his return from a month-long "nerd camp." He continues his "bromance" with older friend Steve who has taken several steps down the social ladder by working at an ice-cream parlor (shades of "Fast Times in Ridgemont High" are evident in some of the Starcourt Mall facets and even the public pool scenes) with a young lady who is not charmed by him. Dustin takes more of a leadership role with Steve in some ways, so there is more of a role reversal there. Finally, Will wants things to remain with his friends more like they were when they were younger and is not pursuing any romantic interest. In fact, Will even tells his mom he probably will not be pursuing a romantic relationship. He wants to still play D&D and just hang out and talk with his friends. As his friends are more interested in pursuing romances, this puts him in conflict with them at times. The characterization seems improved thanks to these conflicts and interactions and the dynamic qualities of the characters.
The main adult characters, Hopper and Joyce, are leaning more toward romance after the loss of her uber-nerd boyfriend, Bob Newby, in Season 2. (Newby's heroism is alluded to and respected in the new season.) Hopper and Joyce's past history figures into their current relationship (hasn't it always in some ways?). The same holds true for photographer Jonathan Byers, Will's brother, who is now interning at a newspaper, and Nancy Wheeler, who is interning there too and is treated more like a coffee girl in a male dominated, chauvenistic newsroom. However, she aspires to be so much more. Their snooping and ambitions soon land them into trouble, and this jeopardizes their relationship.
As you can tell from previews, the evil force from previous seasons has returned. Much like in "It" or other works of Stephen King, whose work inspired this series, a bully, who you can probably guess without spoilers, cooperates with this evil force. Eleven, once again, is called to help go against this force but others do their best to as well. What is interesting in this season is that Eleven uses her powers almost as much for adolescent snooping and curiousity about the opposite sex as she does against the evil force. Will uses his connection to the dark force to help in this season as well.
In a kind of "Red Dawn"-esque scenario with Russian influences, multiple horror influences are played out amongst an 80s-nostalgia-heavy setting. New Coke, 80s mall store favorites, and 80s songs take one back over 30 years ago as other nostalgic aspects did in previous seasons. 80s film classics such as "The Dawn of the Dead" and "Back to the Future" are brought into the mix as well. (Oz fans will even notice the cult classic "Return to Oz" is mentioned on the mall cinema's marquee.) One 80s fantasy film classic is brought into the series is a surprising, fun way toward the end as well. In addition to 80s films nostalgia, the Duffer Brothers, directors, and screen-writers have taken aspects of "Willard", "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", "The Blob", the works of H.P. Lovecraft, Stephen King's "The Tommyknockers", and other horror tropes and have woven them into this new season. Some may question the freshness of the material thanks to these tropes, yet I think it is the blending of these aspects and other facets that keep watchers coming back for more.
When I wrote source above, I meant the source for the photo, etc. The review is mine, etc. Thanks!
ReplyDelete