Stranger Things Season 4 has been a rollercoaster ride for many and with a new type of story-telling, a much more sinister villain, a nine-episode run with more than an out each, and a journey to the beginning of the end, is the fourth installment of the series worth watching?
Is Stranger Things Season 4 Worth Watching?
Stranger Things Season 4 showed a lot of new things for the beloved Netflix series. The storytelling is quite similar to an anthology, the villain is nothing like those seen in the past, and the characters literally grew up before everyone's eyes.
It took years before Stranger Things Season 4 arrived, but the show made it sure that the wait is worthwhile. No one can blame anyone for the time passing due to the pandemic but surely, everyone working on the series pushed their limits to deliver a fantastic piece of work.
For the first time, a season is split in half, Volume 1 and Volume 2, and basing on the new strategy of its release, it kept everyone waiting and wanting for the next volume to arrive. It's effective, that is for sure!
The lengths of the episodes are hours long like you're watching nine movies and to be honest, while watching, you won't even feel the time passing because everything that happens will keep your eyes glued to your screen and anticipating what comes next.
The storytelling of Stranger Things Season 4 is nothing like the previous seasons. This time, they opted for something like an anthology where four different stories are happening all together at once. It shifts everyone's attention to each of the characters within a specific place and story and you'd be excited when they would all see each other again.
However, with so much characters in a story, some narratives are quite left behind. Like that of Will Byers, he has been a standee for most of the season and he only butts in when needed. Even in the sidelines, he tells a story which could have been explored but given the finale of Volume 2, it's quite justifiable that maybe, they're saving his story for later.
Speaking of characters, the actors and actresses of the series delivered so well, you'll feel how genuine their friendship is through the screens. They literally grew up together. In the first season of the show, they were just little children wandering around with their bikes and now, they are all teens and having teenage problems, though it can also make you feel old, like time passed by so fast, they grew right before everyone's eyes.
The addition of Vecna to the cast is a huge plus. His plot became the surprise center of Stranger Things Season 4 and for the show to have such an amazing villain who will surely make the hair at the back of your next stand up, it only means that Vecna is effective, possibly the best villain of the show.
Stranger Things Season 4's set also brought something new to the table. Given that things are happening in four different places, it must have been a fiasco looking for locations for each of the story and with the challenge of the pandemic with the health protocol and such, the show still pulled it off.
The special effects of the show keeps getting better and better wit each installment and by far, Stranger Things Season 4 has the best. It adds so much to the scare, the horror-movie vibe, and the overall goal of the show.
READ MORE: Who Lives, Who Dies in Stranger Things Season 4 Volume 2?
Just by looking at the creatures of the Upside Down, it sends chills down anyone's spine -- literally nightmares pulled out into reality. Each are unique in their own way and scarier when you look at it closely, like they are real!
Speaking of scary, look at Vecna, did you know that all of those are prosthetics and make-up? You heard it right! Looking at how Jamie Campbell Bower wore all those while still pulling off a great villain is definitely a highlight of the show.
The costume department also made a strong point. See, the show is set in the 80s and with each of the character carrying a different style to fit their personality, they made everyone look like they are definitely from the 80s. Take note of Mrs. Wheeler, please, she nails the 80s looks!
Since the 80s is mentioned, it is no surprise that the soundtrack of the show is a star of its own. It revived the best of the 80s especially with Kate Bush's Running Up That Hill which made it back to the charts decades after its release!
To add, the shoundtrack of the show fits so well with all the aesthetics and the whole story itself. The choice of songs from the 80s made the narrative more connected to the viewers especially those who knows the songs. As Eddie would say, "This is music!"
All in all, Stranger Things Season 4 delivered. If you'd ask us if it is worth watching, yes! It is worth your time to binge-watch the whole series! It will take you to a rollercoaster ride of emotions where you'll laugh, get scared, get tensed, and even cry. The totality of the package is what matters and the series really pulled it off.
Stranger Things Season 4 is now streaming on Netflix.
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