Oh, it was a fucking mess. But were the movies that inspired it. Criticisms are valid, but I still enjoyed it more than the past few seasons.
There was a tidier way to handle all the influences that seems OBVIOUS to me, but apparently the Duffers didn’t have time for a second draft because all those kids are getting AARP cards.
California: El and Will are adjusting to California but then Mike comes out for spring break and El gets distracted by lovey dovey stuff and Will starts acting weird. Surprise, it’s not because Will is emotionally torn b/c of Mike and El hanging out, it’s because his connection to the upside down is flaring up—specifically, a feeling that Hopper is still alive.
Hopper: Turns out the Russians have a base within the upside down and they’re holding Hopper there for whatever evil Rooskie reasons. Sci-fi bullshit or whatever.
Hawkins: This thread can pretty much stay the same. But maybe can it with the sub-Buffy evil townsfolk believe in satanic panic baloney. Because that trope is tired if you aren’t gonna tweak it.
California: Will convinces Mike who convinces El that Hopper is alive and they concoct a government-free plan for El to training montage her way back to superhero status so they can Search for Spock Hopper. El refuses the call. She learns to love. Blah blah…they descend into the underworld. Maybe It looks like El dies and all hope is lost.
Hopper: Maybe the Russians are paying fealty to Vecna or supplying him with power ups. I don’t know. Some reason to maybe tie things together. This aspect isn’t important except to create stakes. Maybe Hopper is in carbonite and the Russians and Vecna are Jabba’s Palace.
The Hawkins kids pursue Vecna into the underworld. They’re basically getting their asses kicked then El and Hopper show up and allow for an escape, but the kids don’t win and Vecna and The Rooskies are wounded but flee.
Basically, you scale down the locations and the bullshit US Govt baloney and flashbacks and have an “our heroes converge on Cloud City” to get their asses kicked but survive (sorta) plot. And just leave more room for character moments and spooky stuff. And everyone comes out the other end in Hawkins for the obvious conclusion. No Murray/Yuri. No return of the bad daddies government stuff. No ducking around aimlessly and joylessly in the pizza van. Just two parties of adventurers pursuing two different goals that wind up being connected and located in the upside down. Also, Hawkins doesn’t blow up. Vecna isn’t doing an apocalypse. He’s just a slasher monster. Hawkins should never know the reason scope of the peril that the plucky kids save them from. Anything bigger is just too dumb.
