REVIEW #191 Stranger Things (Season 4)

Stranger Things season 4 finds the gang split between Hawkings and California where Joyce, Eleven, Will and Jonathan have started their new lives. However the group finds their new lives cut short when they are forced to try and stop the latest threat arising from the upside down, Vecna. 


The Duffer brothers have produced the most thrilling season yet by introducing the deadliest antagonist we have seen so far, Vecna. Not only that, they have also introduced some amazing new characters such as Eddie Munson who took the audience by storm with his unique charm and quirky personality, the perfect addition to the group of misfit heroes we have come to love. The storyline was broken up into three key parts, we had Joyce and Murray rescuing Hopper in Russia, Eleven, Mike, Will and Jonathan in California and then the rest of the crew in Hawkings. I loved the overall plot and season 4 was absolutely incredible but the only criticism I had was that I just didn’t care much for any of the other storylines bar the main Hawkings one. Although I do understand the purpose of them and their effect on the finale episodes but I still would have preferred the group stay intact. Granted that would have been difficult with so many main characters now. For me the highlight of the series was Max played by the amazing Sadie Sink, the character wasn’t even in my top 5 prior to this season but that has certainly changed now! Her performance was incredible and there were so many scenes where she alone, brought tears to your eyes. That being said I think everyone performed really well, the entire cast is certainly showcasing their talents in season 4. Going into the new season I was slightly concerned by how they would continue the upside down storyline, how were they going to keep things fresh and exciting considering they have already tackled it in three separate seasons…But I was pleasantly surprised, Vecna is nothing short of genius! The writing for the character is so well thought out and the way he ties into eleven and her story is brilliant. I would go as far to say Vecna has to be in my top 10 antagonists of all time and I hope we see him again in season 5. The cinematography continues to be one of the highlights of Stranger Things, they expanded the upside down environment even further and they also introduced Vecna’s lair which looked amazing and obviously that created the most iconic scene in the entire show (max escaping to the sound of Running up that Hill). I love the colour grading too, they alway seem to have that down to perfection and it contributes so much to the horror vibe, which was incredibly important in season 4 considering it was a lot darker in comparison to the other seasons. So the latest season reinforced my love for Stranger Things and cemented it as one of my all time favourites, it’s certainly my favourite Netflix show for sure. If you haven’t watched it yet, then where have you been! Get started and I can assure you, you won’t regret it. Just be ready for one hell of an emotional finale. 


Overall (9.2/10)

Thanks for reading. 

Callan

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