YUP, I’M A FAN
I arrived fairly late to the Stranger Things franchise. Season 1 was released on July 15th, 2016. I got into it because of the COVID lockdowns, and I had to find something to do, so I binged Stranger Things for 3 Seasons and was hooked. After almost 10 years, this franchise has come to a close, and I’m satisfied with the ending. I’ve heard and read the criticisms of Season 5, and in my opinion, a lot of it is political noise.
Stranger Things is not woke. Will’s character was gay from Season 1 and he didn’t come out till Season 5. It’s also important to note that the way Vecna, the main antagonist, manipulated his victims was by getting into their minds and using their worst fears against them to drive them insane. Will feared being accepted for being gay, which was not accepted in the 80’s, and in order for him to face Vecna, he had pretty much had to come out.
Was it an agenda of the Duffy Brothers? Most likely. But it was also honest to the canon, so it’s not a negative strike against Stranger Things.
Now, I will agree that Wokeness ruins a lot of movies and franchises. For example, we didn’t need to reboot the Ghostbuster series with women Ghostbusters – just to be fair. We didn’t need to make Star Wars Rey all-powerful, all-knowing, all-everything, because she was female. We didn’t need a black Little Mermaid with red hair – to be politically correct. We didn’t need a documentary with Cleopatra as black, who is in fact Greek.
My rule of thumb. Respect the canon, respect history, and respect reality, and your audience will come with you for the ride.
This series was not perfect. I wish it were, and it did have some major forehead-slapping hair-pulling moments when watching Stranger Things.
EXTREMELY BAD PARENTING 101
One of the ongoing themes, which is probably unintentional, is the amount of bad parenting that plagues the small town of Hawkins. There’s not one good parent in that entire town. Kids are so free-ranged that they wander throughout the town at night, get shot at, kidnapped by Russians, journey into different dimensions, while their parents sit at home without a worry. It’s quite amazing to watch. I wish my parents were that relaxed.
LET’S TALK ABOUT OUR FEELINGS
All of the characters tend to talk about their feelings at the worst times. If there was a bomb to diffuse with five minutes left on the ticker, instead of immediately diffusing the bomb, the main characters of Stranger Things will ALWAYS elect to talk about their feelings first. I’m not sure if there’s something in the water there that makes them this stupid, but it won’t just be a few lines or two. We are talking – monologues, arguments, discussions – just when the shit is literally hitting the fan.
These moments are literally, “Are you kidding me!” hair-pulling moments where you shout at the TV, “Hello! There are kids being killed here! Let’s talk about our love for each other later!”
These moments have been happening a lot in movies, but it was extremely noticeable in The Lord Of The Rings where Samwise kept telling Frodo to, “Remember the Shire!” I’d literally scream, “No, not the shire!” And then Frodo will gaze over and whisper, “The Shire….” and we would be stuck like what felt like 5-hour flashback. We called those “Shire Moments” and we still do.
Rule of thumb, the less Shire Moments, the better.
SO, LET’S STOP THE REVIEW HERE AND TALK ABOUT:
| Actor | Character | Season 1 | Season 2 | Season 3 | Season 4 | Season 5* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winona Ryder | Joyce Byers | $100k | $100–150k | $350k | $500–650k | $600k+ |
| David Harbour | Jim Hopper | $80k | $100k | $350k | $500–600k | $600k+ |
| Millie Bobby Brown | Eleven | $20k | $30k | $250k | $300–350k | $350k+ |
| Finn Wolfhard | Mike Wheeler | $20k | $30k | $200–250k | $250k | $250k |
| Gaten Matarazzo | Dustin Henderson | $20k | $30k | $200k | $200–250k | $200–250k |
| Caleb McLaughlin | Lucas Sinclair | $20k | $30k | $200k | $200–250k | $200–250k |
| Noah Schnapp | Will Byers | $20k | $30k | $150k | $250k | $250k |
| Joe Keery | Steve Harrington | $15–20k | $30k | $150k | $200–250k | $250k |
| Natalia Dyer | Nancy Wheeler | $20k | $30k | $150k | $200–250k | $250k |
| Charlie Heaton | Jonathan Byers | $20k | $30k | $100–150k | $150k | $150k |
| Maya Hawke | Robin Buckley | — | — | $30–40k | $150–200k | $200k |
| Sadie Sink | Max Mayfield | — | $30k | $150k | $150–250k | — |
| Dacre Montgomery | Billy Hargrove | — | $30–40k | $80–150k | — | — |
| Anniston Price & Tinsley Price | Holly Wheeler | $1–3k | $1–3k | $1–3k | $1–3k | $1–3k |
MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!
They say it takes money to make money, and in the case of Netflix, it takes money to get more subscribers and to hold onto them. Netflix treated the Stranger Things franchise much like a young NFL team. In the 1st Season they signed their star QB, Winona Ryder, to a $100k per episode deal, then hired cheap, unknown, talented actors to fill the roster. Netflix did not believe Stranger Things would be a hit, but by the time the 3rd season came around, and they had their Super Bowl roster, they locked everyone in, paid them well, and avoided contract standoffs.
By the time Season 5 came around, Netflix spent around $450-$520M for 8 episodes. That’s more expensive than Avatar: Way of the Water and about 50% of the GDP of Sao Tome, the smallest African economy.
| Season | Fan-Favorite Character | Why This Character Won the Season |
|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | Eleven | Mystery, vulnerability, and sacrifice. Eleven was the emotional and mythological hook that defined the show’s identity. |
| Season 2 | Dustin Henderson | Humor and heart carried the season. Dustin became the audience surrogate and emotional relief during darker storytelling. |
| Season 3 | Steve Harrington | The full evolution into “babysitter Steve.” Comedy, bravery, and humility made him the most rewatchable character of the season. |
| Season 4 | Max Mayfield | Trauma, grief, and survival. Max became the emotional center of the show and delivered its most talked-about scene. |
| Season 5 | Steve Harrington | Legacy favorite. Steve’s consistency, loyalty, and quiet heroism cemented him as the series’ most beloved character overall. |
WHOSE THE FAN FAVORITE?
Overall, fans say it’s Steve, and I have to agree.
I love redemption characters. Steve wasn’t supposed to stay around past Season One. In earlier drafts, Steve Harrington was supposed to exit early. But Joe Keery, the actor who played Steve, didn’t portray his character as a villain, but as a conflicted bad guy. And well, it worked. The script was rewritten to keep Steve Harrington till the end.
I’m sure a lot of you are looking for a Maverick Review here. You know, one where I break down the character by personality type, and analyze the director, screenplay cinematorgrphy, yada-yada. Well, I could. But that would take a long time, and I’m feeling lazy. Actually, it’s mostly 95% all okay. Subtract out all the Shire Moments, add realistic parenting, and the show would be perfect. The characters are good and honest, and the story is interesting. Even with its flaws, Stranger Things works because it’s entertaining, and that’s the golden rule of working in the Entertainment Industry – you need to entertain.
Go see it.
GRADE: A
Steve Young
