Objectively, the Russia storyline is absolutely bloated unless they manage to tie it in somehow (seems unlikely at this point), but subjectively I was really enjoying all the Hopper whump, so I didn't actually mind it! LOL. I was least interested in the California boys except for that really ferocious gun battle which was stellar. Mostly I just wish they'd stop separating El from the party for her superhero storyline? It would have been so fascinating to have Mike or Will get dragged along with her *handwave* somehow - especially Will, because him vs Brenner and Owens with his backstory and more Will-El foster siblings times would have been amazing. I do also desperately want Will and Robin to baby-gay-bond when they all inevitably get to Hawkins.
Everyone who raved about the scene at the end of the fourth episode with Max and "Running Up That Hill" was spot on; it was fantastic, the highlight of the season. (Her story in general was wonderful.) Another shot I really enjoyed was the kids on bikes in the real world, and then the camera flips to the older teens on bikes in the Upside Down. That kind of shot never gets old.
YYY 100% agreed on all counts!
I called Creepy Blond Research Assistant as being the subject formerly known as One from the moment he started talking to El about him, but I did NOT expect it to tie into the Creel story like it did. That was a great twist; I totally overlooked the son character in the 1950s scenes, so it was cool that he became One, who then became Vecna after killing everyone at the lab and setting off El's first portal-making session.
It was the perfect kind of twist, because in hindsight they totally laid all the groundwork for the reveal - I remember snagging on Henry Creel being described as 'sensitive' because that is 80s paranormal genre code for 'spooky', but then he 'died' and I forgot about it (though I ALSO was like 'huh, weird that he died in a coma unlike everyone else'). They even specifically date the Creel stuff (as part of a verbal joke) and the El flashbacks, so we could have done the math ourselves! Some excellent not-actually-red-herring work there.
Not loving the impending Steve/Nancy/Jonathan triangle.
Ugh, you, me, and everyone else I've talked to. I'm hoping it's gonna get subverted like how they did with Robin & Steve in S3 - like, Nancy and Steve mutually realize that staying exes and loving each other as hot competent monster-hunting friends is better.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2022-06-07 04:06 am (UTC)Everyone who raved about the scene at the end of the fourth episode with Max and "Running Up That Hill" was spot on; it was fantastic, the highlight of the season. (Her story in general was wonderful.) Another shot I really enjoyed was the kids on bikes in the real world, and then the camera flips to the older teens on bikes in the Upside Down. That kind of shot never gets old.
YYY 100% agreed on all counts!
I called Creepy Blond Research Assistant as being the subject formerly known as One from the moment he started talking to El about him, but I did NOT expect it to tie into the Creel story like it did. That was a great twist; I totally overlooked the son character in the 1950s scenes, so it was cool that he became One, who then became Vecna after killing everyone at the lab and setting off El's first portal-making session.
It was the perfect kind of twist, because in hindsight they totally laid all the groundwork for the reveal - I remember snagging on Henry Creel being described as 'sensitive' because that is 80s paranormal genre code for 'spooky', but then he 'died' and I forgot about it (though I ALSO was like 'huh, weird that he died in a coma unlike everyone else'). They even specifically date the Creel stuff (as part of a verbal joke) and the El flashbacks, so we could have done the math ourselves! Some excellent not-actually-red-herring work there.
Not loving the impending Steve/Nancy/Jonathan triangle.
Ugh, you, me, and everyone else I've talked to. I'm hoping it's gonna get subverted like how they did with Robin & Steve in S3 - like, Nancy and Steve mutually realize that staying exes and loving each other as hot competent monster-hunting friends is better.