Stranger Things - Season 4 part II (episodes 8-9) [SPOILERS for 1-7]

[Hugh]

How did about knowing all that has happened with Number 1 and the creation of the Upside Down affected that mystery?

If I understand you right, in Season 4 we find we're faced with just another super-villain, whereas in Season 1 everything is strange, threatening, mysterious.

 

[ctg]

If I understand you right, in Season 4 we find we're faced with just another super-villain, whereas in Season 1 everything is strange, threatening, mysterious.

Well, no, the enemy is the same in season 4 as it is in the first one. However, in the latest season the enemy got a face and a personality, whereas in the first one it's more about a spooky feature that nobody can explain. And that scares people because they cannot understand it and it scared them, because they cannot fight it in normal terms.

In a way that I see it is, the original first season is like Spielberg's ET. Absolutely believable and somewhat scary, but as we've got to know the enemy and the nature of the other dimension over the years, it seems that we've started to despise the spookiness, because it all came from one sick individual and the Upside Down isn't tied to some bigger realm.

It all could be fixed and deepened if there was another evil thing.

 

[Hugh]

@ctg wrote:
Well, no, the enemy is the same in season 4 as it is in the first one. However, in the latest season the enemy got a face and a personality, whereas in the first one it's more about a spooky feature that nobody can explain. And that scares people because they cannot understand it and it scared them, because they cannot fight it in normal terms.
Agree. In watching Season 1, I don't know who the enemy is or what the Upside Down is. That works for me.

In a way that I see it is, the original first season is like Spielberg's ET. Absolutely believable and somewhat scary,
Agree. Maybe Close Encounters. Likewise overtones of Buffy and others.

but as we've got to know the enemy and the nature of the other dimension over the years, it seems that we've started to despise the spookiness, because it all came from one sick individual and the Upside Down isn't tied to some bigger realm.
Not sure about this. The word despise doesn't ring true - the whole business just becomes more bland. The Upside Down World is still interesting, but loses something with the character of Vecna being revealed as the motivating force.

However, that's probably enough from me now - thanks for the discussion. My brain needs to wind down.