I rewatched Stranger Things and I loved it!

********potential spoilers ahead********

I recently went to go see 'Stranger Things: The First Shadow' in London's West End and it got me thinking about where the TV show actually stood for me in terms of shows I've watched over the years. It was a show that I had watched and enjoyed upon release, but I had never really felt an urge to rewatch until watching the prequel play. Truthfully, there aren't many shows that I regularly rewatch, but often with the shows I have enjoyed the most I occasionally watch the odd episode when looking for something to do. Sure, those episodes are normally shows with under 30 minute watch times and happen to be sitcoms, but it still counts towards a rewatch in my eyes.

So what changed?

I found Stranger Things: The First Shadow a fascinating and intriguing way to be drawn back into the story of Hawkins, Indiana. Set in 1959, the play follows the story of a younger Jim Hopper (David Harbour in the TV Show), Joyce Maldonado (Winona Ryder) and Bob Newby (Sean Astin) as they investigate the creepy goings on in their quiet town that seemingly start just after the troubled Henry Creel and his family move in nearby. Over the course of the 3 hour epic, the audience is shown the origins of some major plot points of the TV Show all told through the eyes of the younger versions of the adults of the show and visually through some spectacular special effects and great storytelling.

On a side note, I think it's interesting to look at this play in comparison with Harry Potter and the Cursed Child due to the similar premise of it being a play being created specifically to compliment a pre-existing franchise. Whilst The First Shadow focuses predominantly on adding more context and understanding to the characters before we first saw them in the TV show, Cursed Child focuses instead on showing the audience what the characters we know got up too after the books/films. Having been fortunate enough to have now seen both shows, I think both achieve what they are trying to do in terms of adding more depth to the universe for fans whilst also creating compelling stories for the stage.

I surprisingly found that The First Shadow gave me more in terms of wanting to revisit the original stories, despite in general being a bigger Harry Potter fan before watching. I think that's why I was surprised I felt that way. By the time I watched Cursed Child, I had already seen the films and read the books on multiple occasions, whereas I had only watched Stranger Things once through so naturally I think I expected to enjoy Cursed Child more. Upon reflection, I think this was because the nature of when Cursed Child is set means that there are a larger amount of new characters to root for. Despite being a two part play (at least in the UK), as an audience member, you very quickly need to root for the new characters at the heart of the story compared to The First Shadow, where despite seeing pre-established characters at a stage of their life you haven't seen before, you are still viewing them as an audience member who is seeing their dynamics and character traits grow to become what you know from the TV show. This offers a interesting dilemma if you haven't consumed any content from either of the franchises, which in the realms of Harry Potter, probably isn't that many people, but with Stranger Things probably more so. Neither my Brother or my Dad had watched any of Stranger Things before watching the play so discussing the show afterwards with them was fascinating as I quickly realised my investment in the characters was completely different to theres. I knew who survived, who got together, and was invested in the journey of how they got to the point. They understandably didn't pick up on any of it so had a completely different experience to me.

Overall, I think if you're a fan of the Stranger Things franchise, even just as a casual viewer of the show, it's worth going to see the play if you have a chance. The cast really embody the roles they're performing whilst giving some incredible performances. The story really builds up the lore of the show nicely and although it's a long show, it manages to flow pretty smoothly from set piece to set piece with only the odd moment which feels slow to watch as an audience member.

But I thought this was blog post was going to be about you rewatching the TV show?

After a few days of these thoughts floating through my head, I eventually decided to start my rewatch of Stranger Things - a task made easier by a new job meaning I now commute 2 hours each way when I go in to the office. Truthfully, my first realisation was that I hadn't quite realised how long the franchise had been going for, with the first season debuting way back in 2016 (before I even went to University - which makes me feel old).

Chapter One - The First Season

If you haven't had a chance to watch yet, I have to say this is a particularly strong season of television and can really recommend for those who are interested in sci-fi/horror/dramas. It really sets the tone for the rest of the franchise with a in depth plot line, a good balance between all the genres and strong character dynamics established early in the season's arc. The leads of the show, Winona Ryder, David Harbour, and all of the younger characters (Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin) as well as the slightly older Natalia Dyer and Charlie Heaton (plus the early stages of Joe Keery in the show) really bring there all to the characters and you quickly find yourself rooting for the characters and often, for their survival.

Chapter Two - The Second Season

I found that this is definitely the weakest of all the seasons, but is incredibly important for setting the groundwork for the following seasons plot. Episodes 1 through to 6 build on each other really nicely but unfortunately lead to a skippable Episode 7 (the less said the better but i'll happily give the show one episode worth skipping given the success of the rest) before a strong ending with Episodes 8 and 9. One thing that I think Stranger Things is incredibly good at is having the groups split up early in the plot only to come back together right at the end when all their plot lines intertwine and this season is another great example of that.

Chapter Three - The Third Season

Personally this is quite comfortably my favourite season of the show with some very well done visuals, humour, performances throughout the whole season. Each season often has some really spectacular set pieces but the final episode of this season really is the icing of the cake when it comes to the show. Outside of this, the third season does a really good job of continuing to develop the characters dynamics from the original seasons, growing the newer characters from Season 2, whilst carefully adding new characters into the mix and effortlessly integrating them into the plot. This show could have really easily fallen into the trap of getting overly convoluted with characters and plot, and apart from the occasional blip, doesn't manage to do so throughout Season 3.

Chapter Four - The Fourth Season

Although this season still works for me as a viewer, it's definitely a lot messier than it was in previous seasons. It continues to try build on it's plot, and it continues to try walk the delicate balance of building establishing characters and bringing in new ones, but unfortunately. I think it probably teeters more towards not landing in the ways they wanted it too for large portions of the season. Whilst it still makes for a good season of television, it is heavily carried by your pre-established love for the characters and the interest in the show's lore that was developed over previous seasons.

In conclusion, I enjoyed the rewatch of Stranger Things a lot more than I thought I would. Whilst I remembered large proportions of the plot, a lot of the character dynamics and how they intertwined had slipped my mind and as a result, found myself drawn in on occasions as if I hadn't watched the show before. It's incredibly clear why this show became such a behemoth for Netflix - it's well written, with strong direction, easy to follow plot (in most cases) and in my cases, very good performances throughout. I am looking forward to see what they do in Season 5.

4 👍👍👍👍 out of 5 👍👍👍👍👍