Stranger Things returns for its fourth season that is epic in nearly every way. In terms of sheer scale, it may be the biggest season of television I’ve ever seen, perhaps surpassing even that of Game of Thrones. The run times have been expanded to contain the massive plot that sends the series regulars across the globe in death and budget-defying adventures which will be talked about for months to come. Devoted fans will devour it, thrilled by revelations and obsessed with the questions it raises. We’re even presented with a new villain that has ties to the series’ past (no spoilers here).
But what if, after all of that money and time and effort, you just don’t care anymore?
Stranger Things premiered way back in 2016 with (it’s difficult to believe) little fanfare. It emerged as a kitschy throw-back to the early 1980s sci-fi / fantasy conventions we all loved. Its heavy references to both Steven Spielberg and Stephen King made those raised on 80s culture feel the excitement of a good Stand By Me or Goonies adventure again. Plus, it brought Winona Ryder back into pop culture (and my heart) where she forever belongs.
But along the way, Stranger Things became so synonymous with Netflix and its image as “must stream TV” that it now feels unavoidable. What was once a lark of a series now has the weight and heft of a major corporation struggling to stay relevant in the wild expansion of the very industry it pioneered. Now, with a seemingly bottomless pocketbook behind it, the series feels soulless, empty, and completely devoid of very necessary stakes. There’s no denying the huge talents of the creative minds behind the series, particularly the Duffer Brothers who continue to find interesting ways to throw audiences back to the art of their formative years.
But, I have to admit, this endless cycle of death-defying adventures takes a toll.
The end of season three scattered our main cast, and season four now faces the burden of focusing action in Hawkins, California, Russia, and the Upside Down. Not all sequences are worth the time and effort expended on them. The Russian sequences, in particular, are a slog. David Harbour’s Hopper returns as a prisoner of an isolated Soviet prison camp (hey, it’s not a spoiler because it’s in the trailer). The great benefit to Hopper was the father-daughter bond that organically developed with Millie Bobby Brown’s Eleven / Jane. Their relationship, in my eyes, formed the emotional core of the series, and without it in season four, Hopper’s presence feels extraneous. It doesn’t help that he’s given little to accomplish outside of being beaten mercilessly by his ruthless captors.
The best sequences take place in Hawkins as Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer), Steve Harrington (Joe Keery), and more fight to save Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) from a new demonic force. Sink is particularly strong this season thanks to the emotionally weighty material she’s given. The Duffer Brothers were smart to lean into the PTSD resulting from season three, and Sink makes the most of this opportunity for a few episodes.
Yet, without going into spoiler territory, none of this means anything in the end.
Stranger Things was designed to be an homage to the great sci-fi minds of our time, but after four seasons, it completely lacks depth of feeling or relatability or any emotional stakes. You watch season four feeling like a kid on the playground making up wild stories with your buddies and a handful of plastic action figures. If that appeals to you, then season four will rock your world. But for the rest of us who have grown up, throwbacks and homages can only go so far toward satisfying our need for emotionally complex and compelling material.
A lot of people are going to love this season because of its scale and well designed set pieces. But this viewer craves more than that. I was (and probably remain) infuriated with the awful endgame decisions made in Game of Thrones, but that anger manifested from a place of love. I cared about its characters. There were stakes at hand. Anyone could (and did) die, and it was thrilling in its unpredictability. Stranger Things now feels programmed to elicit obsessive fan culture love, leaving any real sense of adventure on the table.
Stranger Things returns to Netflix Friday, May 27, with seven episodes. The remainder of season four premieres on July 1.