Vol. 2 wasâŚ.something. In my opinion, S4 started out strong and was obliterated by Vol. 2 â and I could go on and on and on about the bones I have to pick with it, but everybody else seems to have covered it. I have one main issue with this season, and it pretty much is the root of everybodyâs complaints.
The writing has gotten careless.
The main part of Vol. 2 that bugged me so badly is how rushed it was. I get that the episodes were longer, meaning more time for action - but now weâre being catapulted into season 5 and the feeling is less than satisfactory.
Stranger Things as a whole was never intended to be a super long series with 10+ seasons and 15+ episodes per season. We knew this from at least season 2, and honestly Iâm glad that hasnât been designed to be dragged out until itâs sucked of all life. However, it feels like the Duffer bros are in such a rush to wrap the story up that the intensity and anticipation of the plot is suffering.
I found Vol. 2 (and honestly season 4 in general) to be so rushed and careless. Thereâs a difference between a fast paced plot because the story calls for it and a fast paced plot because the writers have gotten sloppy.
Eddieâs death was beyond disappointing. We all knew it was coming, and even as predictable as it was â it deserved better. Eddie deserved better, even as a minor/temporary character. The moment he shared with Dustin before his demise was sweet and heart tugging, but in no way was it was impactful as it shouldâve been.
(Edit because I completely canât believe I forgot to add this) I also found that Hopper and Elâs reunion was completely anticlimactic. Yes, El never stopped believing that Hop was still out there somewhere â but after 8 months of grieving and POTENTIALLY dealing with the fact that he COULDâVE been dead just for them to have a half-assed reunion?
Honestly, Hopper and Joyce were the only fully enjoyable part of this season for me. The reunion was perfect and well-timed. The brief moment of passion was understandable and made sense. It wasnât rushed, and it was long awaited.
A big thing that everyone is talking about is the whole âthey forgot Willâs birthdayâ incident. The Duffer Bros have confirmed that was a mistake, and honestly I think thatâs a mistake thatâs understandable. Willâs birthday is mentioned once, and it was in a minor moment in an early season. If I were a screenwriter, I probably wouldâve forgotten that detail too. In my opinion, that wasnât laziness. That was just a detail that they had forgotten was mentioned and then flubbed it.
HOWEVER
Season 4 had plot holes and information/details that werenât double checked (ex. Eddieâs age on his missing poster in the last episode is different than the age heâs confirmed to be in the first episode). Now THIS is a mistake that I DONâT think should be overlooked. Itâs one thing to mess up a detail from seasons before, but itâs another to mess it up in the same season (and just because youâre too careless to go back and check).
These critiques are off the top of my head, and probably even a little nit-picky. These are personal opinions, so donât take them too seriously!
