Almost three years that we waited for the return of Stranger Things ! On the fiction side, however, only six months have elapsed between the conclusion of the third season and the start of this fourth and penultimate, which will last five hours longer than the previous ones and which will be deposited in two volumes on Netflix, the 27 May and the 1er July.
For the record, remember that the brothers Matt and Ross Duffer, inspired by Steven Spielberg and Stephen King, imagined a band of goonies good to them that they have planted in a universe reminiscent of that of That. With such references, the 1980s and their nostalgia-laden wagons were in order. Launched in July 2016, the series was an instant hit that hasn’t wavered since. Thus, put online on July 4, 2019 in 190 countries simultaneously, the third season has been viewed 40.7 million times in just a few days.
We can expect at least as much for this new trip to Hawkins, Indiana, which will not disappoint – we can conclude after seeing the first volume. In writing and directing most of the episodes, the Duffers do a job of dramatic scope that the cinema would not deny. In visual effects, the Montreal firm Rodeo FX is breathtaking: the Upside Down and the new monster, Vecna, cause both terror and dazzle.
But before getting there, the initial episode (re)places things and people. A slower pace which, as a bonus, allows the viewer to get used to the new appearance of a good part of the cast: Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas and Eleven were around twelve years old at the start of the series; Finn Wolfhard, Noah Schnapp, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin and Millie Bobby Brown were around the same age. Except that the gap has widened between characters and performers: while the former have aged two and a half years, the latter, at this age when one changes more quickly than one’s shadow, have taken six – including three since the last time we saw them in their role. You have to get used to it.
This departure, which takes its time, also suggests that over the course of the season, the characters – those we know and newcomers, there are several of them and they are immediately endearing – will be deepened. That their psychology will be deepened. That their past will be brought to the surface. And, joy, that is indeed what is happening, especially for Eleven, whose childhood in the laboratory was anything but normal; but also for the enigmatic Max (Sadie Sink) and for the amazing Robin (Maya Hawke).
The horror, in time
The duration of each episode (on average 75 minutes) allows this different rhythm before the machine gets carried away and the horror shows up. Because she shows up, and not nearly. And not just in Hawkins, because of the events of six months earlier.
Season 3, remember, ended with the closing of the portal to the Upside Down that the Russian forces were studying and protecting. Chief Hopper (David Harbour) was considered dead, and Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) moved to California with Will and Eleven — the latter now deprived of her telekinetic powers. The little band was therefore disbanded. For worse and for worse.
Left behind, Mike, Dustin, Lucas and company have somehow been amputated from a part of who they are. They are now looking for their marks in a reality which, from the outside, has not changed. As for Will and, above all, Eleven, their new life is pure nightmare. The opportunity to address, in Indiana as in California, themes such as intimidation, the desire for popularity, the loss of friendship, disturbed love, etc. And the horror? It is all the more solid that it is nourished and propelled by all that precedes.
There will be moments of panic leading to brilliant deductions. There will be violence, injustice, anger, but also humor. There will be detentions and escapes. There will be surprise returnees. And there will be casualties. Because, we suspected, there is still at least one portal between our world and the Upside Down.
Let’s say no more, except that the accumulation of violent and visually striking deaths forces the little band to get back into action. This time, distance requires, in two subgroups. Added to them are adults who are forced to leave the country, a duo of girls who stand apart, a prisoner who does not give up, and Eleven who pursues her quest alone. Going from one to the other gives crazy dynamism to episodes well balanced in tension and relaxation (very relative in the context), which systematically lead to cliffhangers calling the suite loudly. The last episode of this volume, which lasts 98 minutes, is that of all the revelations. Some will have guessed, others will be surprised, but, one thing is certain, for all, even if the Evil whose ins and outs we do not know is always more terrifying than that whose nature we know, wait until July for the conclusion is the real horror.