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Stranger Things |OT| Hey, you guys...it's our time. It's our time in here July 15th

So, I watched the first 2 episodes with my girlfriend last night and while she loved it, I can't shake the feeling that this show feels like the creators watched Elfen Lied and thought HOLY BALLS LET'S MAKE A NETFLIX SERIES. The aesthetics feels a bit off to me too, I don't know, feels like an Instagram retro filter. I absolutely hated Sense 8 and now I'm not enjoying this one as well, but then again maybe it will get better and I only watched 2 episodes.
 
Lionel Richie said:
So, I watched the first 2 episodes with my girlfriend last night and while she loved it, I can't shake the feeling that this show feels like the creators watched Elfen Lied and thought HOLY BALLS LET'S MAKE A NETFLIX SERIES. The aesthetics feels a bit off to me too, I don't know, feels like an Instagram retro filter. I absolutely hated Sense 8 and now I'm not enjoying this one as well, but then again maybe it will get better and I only watched 2 episodes.
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I think it's the best live action Netflix show (best overall being bojack ) so hopefully you enjoy it more too!
 
Lionel Richie said:
So, I watched the first 2 episodes with my girlfriend last night and while she loved it, I can't shake the feeling that this show feels like the creators watched Elfen Lied and thought HOLY BALLS LET'S MAKE A NETFLIX SERIES. The aesthetics feels a bit off to me too, I don't know, feels like an Instagram retro filter. I absolutely hated Sense 8 and now I'm not enjoying this one as well, but then again maybe it will get better and I only watched 2 episodes.
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Elfen Lied? That is an interesting first choice. Perhaps something like Firestarter seeing that is based on a Stephen King novel. I don't think anime was an influence on this show, its just a hunch.
 
HStallion said:
Elfen Lied? That is an interesting first choice. Perhaps something like Firestarter seeing that is based on a Stephen King novel. I don't think anime was an influence on this show, its just a hunch.
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Maybe it was just me, but the monster girl out of the very shady psychic institution chased by an assault team led by a father figure and being housed by a good guy young boy feels very familiar. Then again, I only watched 2 episodes so it could go on a very different path from here. Besides, being reminded of Elfen Lied is not bad at all because I loved that anime.
 
Just finished it.

Really loved it overall but I feel like it lost a bit of steam in the second half...

Basically I didn't like the fact that they had an actual monster. I much prefered when everything was more mysterious and ambiguous. I feel like having an actual monster kinda cheapened the whole experience. Doesn't help that the monster design and CGI was kinda bad.
 
Zaventem said:
The
loser gets the girl trope
is so played out. Yes
Steve joined his friends in shaming her but he apologized and made up for it, guy even put himself in danger when he didn't know a fucking thing about the creature.
I would have the same brute mentality if some
sneak fuck took pics of my gf in a bush then I see him in her bedroom
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Oh no, I don't think the other guy is any better. They're both trash imo.
 
It's been way too long since a show like this crept out of nowhere and amazed.

I loved the dynamic of the three different ages groups all trying to solved the mystery. Nailing the four kids' performances really set it above and mixing up how the tropes played out was a nice change of pace. The look of the Upside Down was awesome and watching the house filled with Christmas lights slowly become more and more deranged as time went by was great. And then there's the music, both original and the songs used, were all perfectly used. Also, the font game is top notch.

I badly want a season 2. 8 eps was just not enough. I am weary about how it'll continue on. Except for a few parts, it felt like a very concise mini-series. Reading that they have a lot of the lore planned out eases my mind somewhat. And maybe see if you can hire DelToro for a few days... actually this is good advice for anything.
 
Watched it over the space of <36 hours.
Very good, highly enjoyed it, in that tense upsetting way that I like.

Losing eleven is heart breaking. And the cop somehow being involved in persisting the danger is .. not what I want.

A follow up season is interesting, but I almost wish this was standalone.
 
Just finished this. What a great show. Really well-paced. Loved how all the storylines converged as the season went on. Just felt incredibly well-planned out and executed. The atmosphere and music were also just fantastic. Definitely excited to see where this show goes next.
 
WarRock said:
Loved this show, but I don't see the point of doing a second season at all. Things ended well enough.
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Personally, I just want more. And I imagine that's what a lot of people also want, and Netflix simply wants to fulfill the demand. Just a guess. :-P
 
Zeouterlimits said:
And the cop somehow being involved in persisting the danger is .. not what I want.
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Full series spoilers.
Not saying you are wrong, jus I see it as a glass half full proposition. In other words the cover ups are going to happen regardless but Hop loves the town and if he is really working for them will probably take a softer gentler road , for instance not killing Benny, at least calling Barb missing, sure it's not closure but it's better than making her family think she ran away of her own will and never being seen again. Things like trying to get will back instead of faking his death and leaving him to the mercy of the upside down.

Plus that they are willing to deal with Hop makes me think while still evil maybe they will at least have some accountability.

Again not a perfect situation, but better than s secret project ran by a sociopath who leaves cleanup in the hands of a woman that thinks murder is the best and first option.
 
HStallion said:
Elfen Lied? That is an interesting first choice. Perhaps something like Firestarter seeing that is based on a Stephen King novel. I don't think anime was an influence on this show, its just a hunch.
Click to expand...

Elfen Lied was listed as an inspiration in an interview with the creators. One or more of the scenes was a straight up homage.
 
Just watched this back to back till finished.
Loved it.

Only just heard about this recently from adverts, and was blown away i could watch all on Netflix.
 
Spiral Insanity said:
Elfen Lied was listed as an inspiration in an interview with the creators. One or more of the scenes was a straight up homage.
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Really? Holy shit I had no idea, but indeed it reminded me so much of it. Hopefully the next Netflix series takes inspiration from Serial Experiments Lain, I'd love that too (:
 
i hope Hopper is some sort of mulder character now that they can all on in the future. A big bad from a another dimension shows up again and they have to find 11 to defeat it.

Also steve with the spike bat twirl at the end was fucking golden. Both him and jonathan are flawed characters. Jon can find someone else or he can save nancies life again.
 
Just finished it and thought it was pretty great/fun. It seems to be quite the critical success, but does any know how popular it is and if/when Netflix plans to renew? I'd look forward to a sequel as this season gives me confidence in that everyone involved knows what they're doing. Never really get the 'concern trolling' that happens around new seasons.
 
User33 said:
Sadly not really digging Winona Ryder in this. Something about her acting seems off, at least to me.



I don't think that's it, because the character trope doesn't usually bug me. Laura Palmer's mother in Twin Peaks is a similar type of character, and even though she has a much smaller role, I liked the character simply because the actress played the part well. I just think Winona's acting comes across as more wooden.
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I probably haven't watched a movie of hers since the early 90s. I thought she was great. Perfect casting all around.
 
PackerinMN said:
I probably haven't watched a movie of hers since the early 90s. I thought she was great. Perfect casting all around.
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She was alright but I knew of her and no one else in this so it was jarring. Like in old cartoons where the object to be used is a lighter floating shape compared to the highly detailed background. She stuck out to me so bad but it didn't ruin it. Hope her part in a future version of this is minimal though.
 
Ecto311 said:
She was alright but I knew of her and no one else in this so it was jarring. Like in old cartoons where the object to be used is a lighter floating shape compared to the highly detailed background. She stuck out to me so bad but it didn't ruin it. Hope her part in a future version of this is minimal though.
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I know what you're saying. I had that exact same feeling with Hopper. I've seen him in something terrible and thought he would be horrible but I got over it.


I'm surprised to see so many people want different characters next season. The kids were phenomenal and had great chemistry. This show made me miss my childhood.
 
I guess I have a strong Winona bias as I'm enjoying all her scenes.

Love the intro sequence & the "It" inspired episode titles. Actually, I would love to see them adapt It.
 
I finished this a couple of days ago. Overall, it's pretty great. The kids were great, especially Eleven.

The soundtrack, however, is incredible. I love the score and the licensed songs.

Also, Dunstin is great.
 
This series is great, before it came along I didn't know that I've been wanting to watch kids adventures stories. I really enjoy watching how the kids interact with each other and how they work together to solve the great mystery.

I was a little disappointed when
Mike confessed his love to Eleven. I was hoping that this would be one of the rarer stories where a girl can exist as a core team member without having to be a love interest to the boys. They're just 12 years kids who mostly occupy themselves with fun and games, there's no need for romance plot to be tacked in so early.
It's too bad really, her character, design, and acting are all superb.

I notice the kids mention Star Wars a lot but they avoid mentioning ET and Alien, where both movies are directly more applicable to their experiences.

I don't really enjoy the teenager's arc, their part is too predictable. They feel like caricatures of characters from other existing stories: "miss perfect", "the awkward but awesome introvert", "the douchebag jock", "the less attractive girl sidekick".
Though it is quite refreshing when Steve redeems himself.
I hope the writers will put more effort to grow these characters so they can be more complex and interesting in the sequels.
 
Just powered through this show, it was awesome! Thought it was a sweet mix of Sandlot and Xfiles. They had just the right amount of scares and horror elements without becoming repetitive.

I do hope if they go for a second season they find a way to make it fresh. This story seem to wrap up pretty nicely.
 
Just finished it. Liked it but far from loved it. 9.2 on IMDB is a joke. Lots of plot points were way too convenient for me to be able to suspend my disbelief.
 
Bakkus said:
Just finished it. Liked it but far from loved it. 9.2 on IMDB is a joke. Lots of plot points were way too convenient for me to be able to suspend my disbelief.
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Its a joke to you. But the vast majority disagree with you. Accept that and move on.

Also suspend you're disbelief? lol
 
Dany said:
Im literally screaming at the ending of the fourth episode WTF
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Yep, just finished the same and I was floored. The
flashback scenes with Eleven
were especially gripping. I'm loving everything about this from the cinematography to the roller coaster ride of genre/tonal shifts. Really can't wait to finish this and see where all these plot points come together.

Also, really not getting the dislike for Winona. The scene on the street with Jonathan might've been the best acted of the show so far, she did an incredible job.
 
Well, it's 5:04 in the morning here and I've been up since midnight finishing this. "One more episode." Suuuuuure. Good thing I have nothing going on till the afternoon tomorrow.

The show was great. I don't really want a follow up, but of course I'll watch it when it happens. It's good to see the show get such good word of mouth.

I definitely relate to the Winona complaints. Her craziness felt really contrived and, well, like she was acting. She was the worst main character by far, but not terrible or anything. Just not good. Also I had NO IDEA she was Winona Rider until the sixth or seventh episode. I'm usually staring at my phone during opening credits, so I totally missed it, haha.

I appreciated the dynamic between (ending spoilers)
Nancy, Jonathan, and Steve. The drama there felt really authentic, human, and... fair? Like, Steve owned up to his asshole behavior, helped out in the end, and Nancy stuck with him while still being affectionate and friendly with Jonathan. It was cool.
And of course the main crew of kids were fucking amazing, especially Dustin.

I think my biggest pet peeve across the whole show was the sheriff dude (mid season spoilers)
breaking into the laboratory the first time. Like, how the hell would they ever let that happen, especially with recent events. There's no way some small town nobody would be able to just accidentally fight his way into a fucking interdimensional gateway.

(General spoilers)
Speaking of gateway, I'm just really in love with the core concept of the show. Government experimenting with telepathy accidentally happening upon interdimensional life. Fucking cool
.
 
Spiral Insanity said:
Elfen Lied was listed as an inspiration in an interview with the creators. One or more of the scenes was a straight up homage.
Click to expand...

Wow really? Well I'm glad they left most references really vague and didn't took much actual inspiration from it besides a psychic girl and evil scientist/father figure because I thought Elfen Lied was crap.
 
I watched the first episode and it was alright. I'm interested but the comparisons bring up John Carpenter and E.T. Is it more E.T. or is it more John Carpenter?
 
Finished it last night and really enjoyed the ride. The kids were really good especially Eleven and Dustin. Loved the soundtrack too. Wish it had lasted longer but I'm really glad this show exists.
 
BenjaminBirdie said:
It's more the Southern Reach Trilogy than either, if you're a reader.
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The Southern Reach books? How so aside from like one or two ideas? And thankfully this show is nothing like the those books, they are like the exact opposite in story telling methods and characterizations.
 
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