We love Stranger Things. Netflix hit it out of the park with this one. Eight binge worthy episodes later, we are left waiting for season two to drop on us like an anvil. But why do we love this show? It's not particularly creative, funny, or groundbreaking. Perhaps this is why we love it- because it is nothing special, yet one of a kind all at once. A puzzle wrapped in an enigma stuffed in a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
We live in a society that is constantly putting us in a box, telling us who we are and how we should feel. Before social media existed, people actually lived to exist with the people around them. Now that our society has been inundated with the inner web, deconstructing and determining our every move, we have lost a certain freedom. The freedom to just be- be who you are without worrying about the Snapchat ghost constantly hovering above your shoulder.
What makes Stranger Things so great is that it is not judgmental. This is The Breakfast Club of TV shows. It doesn't tell us how we should feel- the show is too busy having a blast to tell anyone what to do. It simply unleashes a land of nostalgia that operates as an olive branch to the audience. This olive branch is telling us to relax and enjoy the nighttime bike ride.
Stranger Things is a very intricate series yet hits all the broad strokes. There's the main kid, with his friends and family. There's the good cop and the evil guy with slicked back gray hair. He's supposed to be the enemy because- just look at him. He looks like he's plotting to steal the last turkey from the homeless shelter on Thanksgiving. But the show is not so black and white. Life is not black and white. It's gray. Like this guy's slicked back, neatly combed matte of hair. So who's the enemy then if it's not this slick guy? All of us. We are all the enemy. There's a monster in each and every one of us, clawing at our walls. Some people can suffocate the monster, others fall victim to its heinous ways. It's not all bad, though. We're not just the slick gray wolf, we are also the hero cop, the frightened mother, and the bullied brother. Each character in this show is a representative of a different facet of who we are as people. There's an inner war going on every day inside all of us, monsters fighting hero cops. Craziness you say? All I know is I've seen Stranger Things.
No comments:
Post a Comment