Following up on an incredible first season, the second season of the Netflix original series “Stranger Things” left me blown away.
The first season of the Duffer brothers’ television show became an instant sensation among many generations with its detailed 80s references, cinematography and brilliant cast.
One of the most engaging qualities of “Stranger Things’” first season was the way the show combined different movie tropes and morphed the trope in a way to give the show a unique feel.
“Stranger Things” takes the basic character archetypes typical of 80s movies. and adds human qualities to even make the villains relatable at times.
Mike and his friends, Eleven, Nancy and Steve, and Hopper and Joyce all embody different archetypes from 80s movies. However, these characters managed to break from their base mold and stand alone as original, fleshed out characters.
Season two continues to develop many of the characters from the first season and takes what could have been flat, stock characters and adds depth and humanity to the mix.
While Mike Wheeler was the main character for most of season one, the other members of the friend group stepped farther into the spotlight this season.
Lucas Sinclair is no longer just the token African-American friend for the group, but has his own goals and motivations driving the plot. The viewers finally get a glimpse into Lucas’s family life and gain a better understanding of his background.
From his parents, Lucas gets the motivation to tell Max, the new girl in Hawkins, about everything that happened to the group in the last year, and tries to develop a relationship with her. By the end of season two, the pair is seen together at the school dance with Max giving Lucas a kiss.
In season one, Lucas was not a priority to the plot, but now, his role in the series is better fleshed out and highlighted as important.
Will Byers was missing most of season one, so it is not surprising he did not have a lot of screen time throughout the season. In season two, Will’s character continues to be the focus of the plot and has much more screen time.
Will is struggling with balancing his relationship with “the upside-down,” and ends up being consumed by the “Shadow Monster:” a new creature who appears to control “the upside-down” and its “Demogorgon” residents.
The Will we see throughout this season is a combination of himself and the monster.
The balance between the two parts of Will is hard to determine at times, but by the end of the season, Will is free from the Shadow Monster and able to live his own life–for now.
Another example of breaking character archetypes can be seen with Billy, Max’s violent older brother.
The show could have easily left Billy as the abusive playboy, but the show goes a step further into his character. A glimpse into her brother’s life shows how his father’s abusive behavior molded him into who he is.
While Billy is still a jerk and ends up beating the crap out of Steve, this character development makes him more realistic and human to the audience. People in life, even the awful ones, will tend to have layered personalities.
One of my personal favorite characters in this new season is Bob, Joyce’s boyfriend who makes a killing working at Radio Shack.
Bob is not just a nerdy nice guy, but he ends up being a hero and is the reason Joyce, Hopper and Will escape the laboratory in Hawkins.
My jaw dropped and heart was shattered as Bob was suddenly taken down by the “Demo-dogs.”
For some reason, the Duffer brothers, while adding depth to their nerdy characters like Barb and Bob, enjoy killing off these fun-loving and kind people. 
On the negative side of the season, the episode with Eleven and Kahli felt forced and unnatural to the plot.
It was important Eleven have this experience and meet another child who was experimented on, but the character of 008 (aka Kahli) left me with many plot questions.
How did Kahli really escape? How has the lab not found her if she is actively hunting members of the organization? How does she have an Indian accent if she grew up inside of the Hawkins Laboratory? These questions and many more left me with a lot of frustration and anticipation for the next season.
There is so much I could say about the second season of “Strangers Things,” but despite lacking some of the attention to detail present in season one, it was overall enjoyable and developed the story of “Stranger Things” rather than trying to emulate the format of season one.
The characters I loved are continuing to grow and develop into something ready to support a long-term series.
“Stranger Things” is breaking the standards of TV shows, and is housing some of today’s rising actors and actresses. If you have not already seen “Stranger Things,” you need to take a trip to “the upside-down” as soon as possible.