Stranger Things Season 3 (2019)
…………………………………………………
Stranger Things Season 3 Review
The third season of Stranger Things is weaker than its predecessors, but overall it’s another very good season of fun SF horror entertainment.
………………………………………………….
“The hurt is good.
It means you’re out of that cave.
But please, if you don’t mind,
for the sake of your poor old dad,
keep the door open three inches“
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
The overall plot is simply not as strong here as it was before. Yes, I did like it, and I’ve had a blast watching it, but the whole Russian storyline felt overly dated for this century and too faithful to the eighties. Alexei himself was great though. And simply the whole story felt implausible and too convenient, albeit the plot points themselves, character interactions and how everybody came together were all very well dealt with.
I did like that Eleven here lost her powers, and she struggled at times. She’s still powerful, but those human moments made her more relatable. Millie Bobby Brown continues to excel in this role, especially in her emotive eyes. And I simply loved her budding relationship with Max who continues to be such a cool girl.
Jim Hopper is terrific. Although I hated the fake death cop-out at the end, I still continue to find his character tremendous, a lot of fun and superbly acted by David Harbour. Winona Ryder is also terrific as Joyce and wonderfully proactive this time around. The two are excellent together and I loved their developing romance.
Mike is sidelined this time around, and he’s quite a jerk at times too. Lucas is also sidelined quite a bit whereas Dustin is once again quite likable. Will’s problems with growing up were so well handled and quite touching. Jonathan is forgettable whereas Nancy had some great moments for herself. Erica is quite an obnoxious little girl. She’s at times fun, but mostly aggressively negative.
…………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………..
Steve is so good here and his friendship with Robin is absolutely terrific. She is Stranger Things’ first openly gay character, and that coming out sequence was the most beautiful, most nuanced moment in this entire season. It was both sophisticated and hugely realistic.
Overall, this was a fine season. The first half of the season was simply too slow and uneventful, but the characterization was strong there as was the sense of fun. The second half was also done for better and for worse – it had some great action, but the character moments were sidelined. I did like how emotional it was, and the dialogue continues to be great, but I wanted a better crafted, more interesting storyline.
Worst Episode: Chapter One: Suzie, Do You Copy?
Best Episode: Chapter Seven: The Bite.
