My Review of "Stranger Things: Season 4 Part 1"

Stranger Things: Season 4 Part 1 has just dropped on Netflix and I think fans of the series are overjoyed about this. This series is probably one of Netflix's most popular franchises right now. We've all been waiting for season 4 but we had no idea they'd give us such a huge season that they'd split it into 2 parts.

This season starts not too long after the 3rd season. The gang has been split up where Eleven has moved in with the Byers clan all the way in California to build a new life. Hopper is believed to be have died during that whole ordeal in the last season.

Even though it's been a short amount of time the kids have all grown up in real life so it's kind of weird seeing them so big now in comparison to season 3. Then again you can say the same with season 3 to 2 but this season it's a huge change.

Anyways it's summer break and Mike is about to visit Eleven in California. Eleven has been making it out as if she's having a grand old time in California. This is nowhere close to the truth. She's being picked on and being bullied. Worse yet, she doesn't have her superhuman powers anymore.

Meanwhile back in Hawkins, Lucas yet again tries to get in with a cooler crowd but this time it's the basketball team. Mike and Dustin instead fraternize with the nerds and join a Dungeons and Dragons group called the Hellfire Club. Obviously this builds a little tension in the group. Nothing we haven't seen before.

Max is still grieving over the loss of her step brother Billy. Sure she hated him when he was alive but he helped save her at the very end of season 3. I guess you don't know what you have until it's gone.

While this all sets up the backstory of all of the characters there is obviously going to be another supernatural phenomenon. Yes it of course has to deal with the upside down. In this season they set it up so that it feels like this is the final season of series. They're bringing everything together into one cohesive loop that will hopefully make sense to us the viewers.

There are a whole slew of stories going on in this season. Spoiler alert because it's pretty obvious but Hopper's not dead and there's a side story to save him. I felt like this storyline was a little superfluous but I have a feeling it has an important impact for the second part of the season.

It sort of played off as more of a comedy side show to the regular main story. The adults are all kind of really goofy and cartoonish in this little adventure. You will also have to throw away your sense of logic while watching it. Well we already threw logic out the window when they announced he's alive. People are going to run on broken bones and impervious skin later on in the show. Us as the viewers will just watch it and take it for what it is because the overall story is fun.

The main story that deals with the new big bad from the upside down is pretty fun. They play around with it as if it's some sort of mystery. Nancy is basically Nancy Drew in this season, trying to solve the mystery of this mysterious haunted house and the family that lived there.

Don't worry it's all connected and it's also geared toward young adults so the story won't be too convoluted. Well if you can keep up with the many side stories that are going on. I think you will too because they made all the characters really charming and lovable. There are characters that you feel you're going to hate but you just can't help but liking them.

All your favorites are back and they've added a few new faces. Some you've seen from season 3 but some new to season 4. I liked how they played around with this alpha jock character that always falls into some sort of motivational soliloquy to rile up the group he's talking to. He does this on multiple occasions showing that this show continues to be very self aware and likes to have fun.

Again there are a ton of references to old movies and there are slew easter eggs. There are plenty and some of them go by so quickly that you might have to re watch the episode to catch it again. It's very much everything that you loved from the previous seasons but this one is done in a more epic fashion.

Each of the episodes feels like a movie. There are a total of 7 episodes for this first part. Don't worry, the second part will be dropping on July 1. So it's only 4 weeks to wait for the next episodes. The way they set it up, you can tell these last episodes are going to be pretty epic.

Overall, I had a really good time watching this. They pushed the production level of this show to the max. There are a few moments where you'll have a question mark over your head because some of the stuff is nonsensical but this whole show is based on fantasy so what are you going to do. I have to give this first part of season 4 an 8 out of 10. Really good stuff and I can't wait for July 1st for the second half!