The below is a spoiler-free review of Stranger Things Season 4, Part 2, which is now streaming on Netflix.
It may have initially seemed like a head-scratcher when Netflix revealed that Part 2 of Stranger Things Season 4 would consist of only two episodes, as opposed to Part 1’s seven, but that doesn’t mean the hit’s big finale is a quick watch. Get ready to set aside four hours for just about all the Upside Down madness you can handle; and you can rest assured that there’s never a dull moment in those jam-packed four hours. This is Stranger Things as its most emotional, thrilling, and yes, ambitious, a word I used a lot in my review of Part 1, but it holds true even more so for the last two episodes. It also happens to be Stranger Things at its very best, guaranteed to give fans everything they want and a whole lot more.
It’s hard to talk about too much without getting into spoilers (and even though this review is running on the day the episodes debut, we’re still going to play it safe here in case you don’t have four hours to immediately jump back into the Upside Down), but we can say that it’s nice to finally see the branching-narrative style of storytelling that was established in the first part finally converge in a way that feels incredibly satisfying. The first seven episodes constantly jumped from California (two storylines in California, to be exact) to Hawkins to Russia, and while there’s still a good amount of that in Part 2, for the most part, it manages to bring our players together in a way that pays off the patience that was required for Part 1.
My biggest complaint in Part 1 was that the Mike, Will, Jonathan, and Argyle subplot in California didn’t quite feel as in-step, tonally, with the rest of the season, and while these detours weren’t bad, they felt less necessary than what the larger gang was doing in Hawkins, or Hopper’s attempts to escape a Russian prison. The good news is that this is largely remedied in Part 2 – they even manage to justify Argyle’s involvement beyond mere comedic relief. And Will, who was pretty underserved in Part 1, gets a few emotional scenes, including one gut-wrenching one in Episode 8 that is easily Noah Schnapp’s most impressive showcase on the show thus far.
In fact, there’s a lot of that going on in Part 2, with several actors, including Caleb McLaughlin, Gaten Matarazzo, Joe Keery, Sadie Sink, Millie Bobby Brown, Natalia Dyer, Joseph Quinn, and David Harbour, giving some series-best performances. There’s a ton of effects-heavy action and exciting plot momentum, but one of the most impressive things about these two episodes is how many moments of tenderness it manages to squeeze in between various characters, with more than a couple of tear-jerking moments.
While the runtimes may seem overwhelming for some (1.5 hours for Episode 8 and 2.5 hours for Episode 9, for those curious about the math), the result is that not one bit of it feels rushed. The action, emotional beats, and the many answered questions about the show’s lore are given plenty of time to breathe, without any of the elements undermining each other. And, since the show has racked up quite the sprawling cast at this point, it feels important to avoid giving any one character the shaft, and Part 2 does well to honor just about every central player.
That doesn’t mean it doesn’t feel a tad bit unwieldy at times, though. Once again, the Hawkins storyline is the strongest, and it’s extraordinarily good at building tension. For the first time in a long time, it truly feels like we could lose some of these characters, and it makes for a nerve-wracking watch. Still, in the middle of that tension, it’ll occasionally halt its own momentum for a detour to the Russian storyline (which takes the California subplot’s place as feeling the least necessary in this installment). It might’ve felt a little more manageable if Episode 9 were split up into two episodes, instead of giving us such a packed-to-the-brim behemoth of a finale.
But, taking Season 4 in as a whole, it’s pretty astonishing how much creators Matt and Ross Duffer were able to accomplish. Both Episodes 8 and 9 (9 in particular) feel like big blockbuster movies in every way, especially in the effects, stunts, and production design. From the deserts of California to the slime of the Upside Down, everything simply looks incredible, and sleeker than Stranger Things has ever looked – not that it was ever a slouch in the visuals department. The ambition that marks Season 4 extends to every single part of these episodes, especially the storyline.
Speaking of which, longtime fans can rest assured, we’re continuing to get a ton more answers in regards to the Upside Down, Eleven, Vecna, and Hawkins, while still opening up plenty more to explore in the final season. It’s here that the Duffers’ master plan really starts to show, even managing to connect antagonists from previous seasons like the Mind Flayer to what’s happening now. And speaking of antagonists, Vecna remains a formidable one, as chilling and menacing as ever.
As for where it all ends up, let’s just say we hope we don’t have quite as long a wait for the final season as we had to for this one. It doesn’t conclude on a cliffhanger per se, but it does leave us by teasing just how much will need to be tackled in Season 5. It ends up feeling a lot like Avengers: Infinity War, with higher stakes than ever before and setting up what has to be an even bigger final season. In short, bring on the Endgame.
from IGN Reviews https://ift.tt/kGUZzT4
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