Stranger Things Season 2 streaming on Netflix now
Rating:
***WARNING: Spoilers Ahead***
“This thing has had Will long enough; let’s kill the Son of a Bitch.” – Joyce
OK, I’ve dragged out this second season for as long as I possibly could. I simply didn’t want the season to end. Writing weekly reviews (sometimes bi-weekly, ok, tri-weekly) helped stretch it out but now, I have to submit my final review for the season two finale, “Chapter 9: The Gate.” The adoration I have for the amazing characters and the wonderful actors who portray them can go on and on but I’m sure my readers are like – come on already with the finale review. At least I hope I have readers. I digress.
The reunion is bittersweet as El still has to face off against the monster.
After the traumatic events in the penultimate episode, “Chapter 8: The Mind Flayer,” I’m still reeling over the gory death of our beloved nerd Bob Newby (Sean Astin). He went out like a “superhero.” At the end of the episode, El (Millie Bobby Brown) came in to save her friends from the horde of “demogorons” surrounding the Byers’ house. Joyce (Winona Ryder) knows giving the “shadow monster” what it wants is only hurting her youngest son Will (Noah Schnapp). As Dr. Owens (Paul Reiser) said in “Chapter 6: The Spy,” the monster inside Will is like a virus feeding off its host. If you make the host inhospitable, then perhaps Will can be saved. Joyce, along with her older son Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) and friend Nancy (Natalia Dyer), takes Will to Chief Jim Hopper’s (David Harbour) cabin. They also bring several space heaters. The monster likes it cold but things are about to heat up!
El and Hopper head down to the antechamber inside Hawkins Lab to seal the gate
Meanwhile, Hopper and El make their way over to the lab. If Joyce is successful in expelling the monster from Will’s body, El can “close the gate” and seal the monster back in the “upside down.” Easier said than done, right? El and Hopper have a very profound conversation on the trip which made me smile. He’s getting a second chance at being a father and El finally gets a “Papa” who’s not trying to use her powers for personal gain.
Mike watches as his beloved El walks away…she will be back…she promised
And the rest of the gang – Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), Max (Sadie Sink), and Steve (Joe Keery) – stays behind. But their night isn’t going to be boring…oh no. Sadie’s pain-in-the-ass step-brother Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery) is out looking for her and when he finds her, the shit hits the proverbial fan.
People ask me what it is that I love so much about Stranger Things. For me, it harkens me back to my childhood. When I see Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas riding their bikes and hanging out, it reminds me of how I was with my friends growing up. Playing board games and doing nerdy stuff resonates with me. Season two pits these friends against not only an evil foe, but presents them with new challenges of growing up and…girls. Yes, girls. Mike’s over the moon about El while Dustin and Lucas have been vying for Max’s attention. Stranger Things 2 has been an entertaining ride from the first episode until the last. I’ve enjoyed watching El’s journey as she learns about who she is, that her mother Terry (Aimee Mullins) isn’t actually “gone,” and finding her “sister” Kali (Linnea Berthelsen) from the lab. El grew from the scared little girl in season one to a more confident, young pre-teen on the cusp of discovering her full abilities. She’s only begun to tap into what she can do with her powers. As the series continues (it better continue), I hope the writers will carve out more inventive ways for El to hone her unique skills.
“Chapter 9: The Gate” dedicates two-thirds of the episode to vanquishing the evil “shadow monster.” And while everything seems to have settled down now that the gate has been closed…well, let’s just say this is probably the calm before the storm.
Billy the Bully
Karen Wheeler is eyeing Billy like he’s the subject of her steamy romance novels… Sorry, he’s underage Mrs. Wheeler.
Billy stops by Mike’s house looking for his step-sister Max. Poor Mrs. Wheeler (Cara Buono) can’t catch a break. First her two-hour phone call gets interrupted and now her bath time with a steamy novel is sucked down the drain as the doorbell rings. Of course, when she sees the hunky Billy Hargrove standing there, with his long blonde hair and ‘too-cool for school’ attitude, she goes weak in the knees. And Billy hams it up like only Billy can. I had to refrain from excessive eye-rolls and choke back some vomit.
Billy goes to Will’s house where Steve greets him outside. Things take a violent turn once Billy sees Max is inside the house, hanging out with Lucas. I’m still not sure why Billy seems to loathe him so much. But Billy trying to hurt Lucas angered me so much. He’s just a kid, for Pete’s sake. Billy is an asshole, and never more so than in this scene.
Despite taking a brutal beat down, Steve helps Mike, Lucas, Dustin, and Max create a diversion in the underground tunnels #bestbabysitterEVER
Steve steps in to defend Lucas and the other kids. Things get heated and punches are thrown. While I knew Billy would take the upper hand, I cringed at the beat down he gives Steve; it’s brutal. When Max takes matters into her own hands and plunges the needle full of sedating medication into her step-brother’s neck, I screamed “hell yeah!” But it’s when Max takes the spiked bat to her brother’s balls that sent me over the top. Her courage and ferocity made me happy. There is a message in this scene – stand up to your bully and don’t back down. Of course, use your words and not a weapon because that’s jail time in the real world.
Dustin looks adorable with his slicked sides…totally rockin’ it!
Dance the Night Away
The school is hosting a winter dance called the “Snow Ball.” It’s so cute how all the kids get dressed up. Dustin steals the show with his new hair-do. And kudos to Steve for acting like a big brother and dropping Dustin off at the dance.
Their first kiss is so sweet!!
There are so many wonderful moments during the final scenes at the dance. Will (aka “Zombie Boy”) is asked to dance; Lucas asks Max to dance, well, sort of; and Dustin goes off in search of a dance partner while Mike stays behind alone. He’s saving his dance card for one special person he hopes will show up…and she does.
Dustin gets shut down by all the girls so when Nancy goes to him, it is the sweetest thing ever. Seeing her put his hands on her non-existent hips and telling him to scoot closer to her on the dance floor warms my heart.
Final Thoughts
Nancy is a hero…seriously
“Chaper 9: The Gate” is packed with so many great moments. It’s so exciting and intense as El uses all her powers to close the gate…this scene blew me away! There are tender moments too, like when Nancy comes to Dustin’s rescue at the dance, and infuriating moments during the fight scenes with Billy. Overall, the season two finale gives the audience a pretty full range of the emotional spectrum all while engaging the audience with the story.
Now that the story has leaked about the experiments at Hawkins Lab, things may get even more complicated for our beloved characters. And is the gate truly sealed? If the final scene is any indication, I think the citizens of Hawkins are in for some more harrowing events in their near future.
What did you think of “Chapter 9: The Gate?” Leave me a comment below and tweet me @judybopp.
For more on the show, go to the official site.
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Judy Manning
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