Season two of Stranger Things has audience on the edge of their seats

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Courtesy of Netflix services

Golden Globe-winning actress Winona Ryder plays Joyce Byers in seasons 1 and 2 of Stranger Things.

Kelsey Reynolds, Feature Editor

    The second season of Netflix’s science fiction series Stranger Things arrived Oct. 27 and creators, the Duffer Brothers have outdone themselves with characterization, plot development and special effects.

    In the last episode of the first season, the main character Will (Noah Schnapp) is seen coughing up what is believed to be a slug from the Upside Down. As they watch the second season, viewers quickly find out that Will’s homecoming has turned disastrous.

    In the beginning of the second season, Will, Dustin (Gaten Martarazzo), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) and Mike (Finn Wolfhard) are seen playing arcade games and riding bicycles around Hawkins. This first scene makes it seem like there is no impending danger ahead, but quickly after Will is shown having horrible visions.

    Along with the recurring cast and the addition of new characters, fans are greeted with some favorite and a few new duos. Eleven (Milly Bobby Brown) and Officer Hopper (David Harbour) become close between the first and second season showing a side to both of them that has never been seen before, with Hopper becoming her father figure. Another new duo forms between Steve (Joe Keery) and Dustin. Some of the best characters featured in the first season are now together foiling each others’ amazing acting skills.

    In the second season, the Duffer Brothers wanted to give watchers the same binge worthy episodes from last season, but with improvement. Compared to the first season, they have definitely outdone themselves with the CGI and special effects featured in the episodes, especially ones featuring character and monster interactions. In the new season viewers meet Dart, a 100 percent CGI monster that interacts with characters as if he were real.

    Throughout the season characters are featured fighting the forces of the Upside Down in combat and supernatural forces. With extreme advances in CGI equipment, the directors definitely took advantage of the resources they were given.

    Some might have said that the second season was too creepy, but to portray the amount of horror in the second season, there needed to be more shocking visuals and higher stakes to maintain interest in the show.

    The plot is not the only thing that has people on the edge of their seats. Fans young and old alike can enjoy the ‘80s flare, featured more frequently in the second season through costumes and pop culture. The characters are featured in shearling coats, high waisted jeans and big hair.

    Their biggest inspiration in the first season was the old TV series from the ‘60s, The Twilight Zone. In the second season the Duffer Brothers used inspiration for some of the new creatures from movies by H.P. Lovecraft and Stephen Spielberg such as Aliens, The Twilight Zone: The Movie and From Beyond. Fans of these hits, along with newer watchers, can clearly see the comparisons to these feature films.

    For having such big shoes to fill from the first season, the Duffer Brothers did an outstanding job with keeping the viewers’ interest. The addition of special effects and character and CGI interactions was definitely a good way to keep the flame lit.