Stranger Things - 'Chapter Two: The Weirdo on Maple Street'

Being nice to the odd kid in class is one of those things that could go either
way in the eighties.

Things take a turn for the even more sinister in episode two of masterful eighties period piece, Stranger Things.

The boys bring Eleven into Mike's basement, with the plan that she will rock up to the door in the morning and Mom will sort everything out. It becomes apparent, however, that she is not comfortable with this, or with confinement, although to the boys' utter consternation she clearly has no problems with nudity, almost changing in front of them until directed to the bathroom. Mike apparently gets her, giving her the 'real world' tour in much the same way as Elliot in E.T., although it's not clear how much this is him understanding her removal from societal norms and how much is him acting out a role.

He dubs her El (for short) and when she recognises Will becomes convinced she knows something about what happened to him. She tries to explain this using the D&D board to indicate the presence of something monstrous pursuing Will; not on the grid, but on the other side of the board. Is Will even alive? Perhaps. After all, his brother Jonathan reminds the Sheriff, 'he's good at hiding.'

D&D: Gateway occultism.

Sheriff Hopper - who did have a thing with Nora once, and who despite his skepticism continues to display the qualities of an excellent copper - isn't convinced that the heavy-breathing call was from Will. It's far more likely to be some douchebag who things spoofing the bereaved is a right laugh. Will's mother gets a new phone, but receives another sinister call, then one of Will's favourite songs - The Clash's 'Should I Stay or Should I Go' - plays from his room when no-one is in.

Government agents poke around and lights flicker and something seems to lurk in the corners like a Hound of Tindallos. El rejects the call for her to turn herself in with a firm 'no' and a burst of telekinesis, and Nancy gets laid.

Yeah, there's this whole thing where Nancy agrees to go to a party at her boyfriend's house, and she dismisses her sensible friend. Jonathan, somewhere between a teenage sage - advising Will 'you shouldn't like something because people tell you to' - and a creeper - taking photos of the party from afar, shies from actually shooting the object of his affection having sex, instead taking a melancholy snap of sensible Barb sitting by the pool, then leaving mere moments before Barb is snatched by something. To be honest, the bulk of this subplot is not very interesting.

Doors are important in Stranger Things, and not just physical doors. Doors bar the way, and doors let things in. El hates confinement, and we see that she was locked in a cell by her Papa, not so long ago. Plans involve doors - sneaking through doors, knocking on doors; Jonathan and Will's father slamming the door on Jonathan, not wanting to be involved - and there are apparently doors that are not even doors. 'Chapter Two' also loves it some windows, which repeatedly allow characters to view a scene they are not party to, with Jonathan's camera acting as an ersatz window, insulating him from the party even when the partygoers are outside. The dichotomy of access and exclusion is redolent in the series.

It also strike me that Stranger Things is also part of the quite recent move of the eighties setting to the realm of full-blown 'period,' worthy of the same level of exacting recreation as the Regency or the Old West.