On July 15th, 2016 Netflix released an original series that became an internet craze. Stranger Things is an eight episode series that follows the disappearance of a twelve year old boy named Will Byers in Hawkins, Indiana in 1983. The focus of the show is two-fold. The first is to recover Will, which sets his three best friends and half the town of Hawkins on a wild goose chase. The second is uncovering the powers that Eleven or "El" possesses, a girl who escapes an experimental facility. The series is inspired by movies like Stand By Me and anything by Stephen So, without further ado, four reasons to love Stranger Things.
*Spoiler Alert*
1. Cinematography.
This series looks like it was filmed in the 1980's. The costumes and sets are all typical 80's. Not only that, but their are some very creative shots and angles used that you don't typically see in tv shows or movies to transition scenes or cover an action shot.
2. "El"
Probably one of the best takes on a modern superhero, she's completely badass. Over the course of the series El's powers are slowly revealed. We start off with her doing things like crushing soda cans and it escalates to flipping vans and murdering monsters. She was used as an experiment guinea pig after being born with telepathic and telekinetic powers after being taken from her mother, Terry, who was also a test subject. The girl goes through hell in the course of the show and barely speaks English, but still manages to come out on top as the heroine of the series.
3. The Upside Down
The concept of "The Upside Down" is one borrowed from the popular Role Play Game Dungeons and Dragons. The Veil of Shadows is where Will, Barb and everyone else who disappears goes to. It mirrors the world we live in, but darker and full of monsters. Will, Lucas, Dustin and Mike kick off episode one with a game of D&D encountering a Demogorgon. Will Byers chooses to sacrifice his character for the group and becomes target number one for a real life Demogorgon who pulls him into The Upside Down.
4. Building Storyline
The scary part of all of this series is the mystery you just don't get in modern horror films and shows. In every aspect of the show nothing is revealed all at once; El's powers, details of the monster, details about the Upside Down, the characters relationships to one another, none of it is given to you at the start. The show constantly keeps you guessing and you can never really predict what will happen. Mrs. Byers tearing a hole in her wall with an axe, the Demogorgon busting through the Byers' wall after Will makes contact via Christmas lights, Nancy and Jonathan monster hunting, you just never know what the actors are getting into next.
