Now that “House of Cards” is done and Kevin Spacey has argued tarnished its legacy as Netflix’s first critically-acclaimed, Emmy-winning show, perhaps when the revisionist history of Netflix is told, the ghostwriter who pens the story will leaning harder into “Stranger Things,” the streaming network’s flagship show. Something of a cultural phenomenon when it first premiered in 2016.
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“Stranger Things” made a shooting star out of Millie Bobby Brown, gave big career boosts to Winona Ryder and David Harbour (who’s now the new “Hellboy”) and introduced the world to Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Cara Buono, Noah Schnapp and Joe Keery. Dacre Montgomery became something of a sex symbol after season 2 even rivaling the big hair fandom of Keerys.
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Set in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, in the 1980s, the first season focused on the investigation into the disappearance of a young boy amid supernatural events occurring around the town, including the appearance of a girl with psychokinetic abilities who helps the missing boy’s friends in their own search. Season two continued the story of the world of the Upside Down and the monster, the return of the character Eleven (Bobby Brown) and the death of a beloved supporting character (Sean Astin).
The third season is set a year later, in mid-1985, in the midst of the popularity of the film “Back to the Future” Mike (Wolfhard ) and Eleven has developed a relationship, as have Max (Sadie Sink) and Lucas (McLaughlin).
Now, Netflix has announced that “Stranger Things” season three will also arrive in the summer, this summer, in fact, July 4, 2019. The streaming giant released an announcement trailer on midnight New Year’s Eve, and while it doesn’t reveal a lot, fans are already parsing it, and the new poster (which you can see below) for details.
My biggest question for “Stranger Things,” which seemed to dip in popularity and quality in season two, how long will the Duffer Brothers go with this show? “Stranger Things” feels like its story has been primarily told; the second season didn’t offer that much in way of anything new. Frankly, they’d be smart to go out on top and end things after season three, but something tells me, like a lot of TV shows, they’re just going to try and ride the wave as far as they can, but it often does the legacy of a story a disservice. The world is the Duffer Brothers’ oyster; they should take advantage of it now.
