Stranger Things Ending Explained & Series Analysis

Stranger Things: References, Alluzia & Chitts . The first season will tell you about the adventures of a small group of children (as well as their parents, the local sheriff and all of them) looking for the missing boy. The second season will tell about the consequences of the first one, as well as introduce a few new characters.

The show was shot by the Duffer brothers. This project, apart from a few short films in the past, is their debut on the big screen. Well, as on the big one, depending on how big the monitor of your laptop is, after all the serial is prepared for streaming network Netflix, and is accessible for viewing on the same site.

Let’s take care of the references

Events of the series unfold in a small, fictional town of  Hawkins in 1983. And almost its main achievement (series) is references. Almost every series is filled with a couple (or more) of easter eggs to the pop culture of the 80s. Here you can find popular movies, music, books, parallel worlds along with zone 51, government, FBI, CIA and russian intelligence. Sounds interesting? Of course, it is difficult to work with such material and not to fall to the level of “Scary Movie”. That’s why the creators do not push that there is urine, all their ideas. For example, and as mentioned above – the city of Hawkins, where the events take place, fictional. But it has a name, the city is not anonymous, and everything that happens in it could be avoided if you leave its borders. Remember Stephen King’s novels in which he almost shamelessly places everything and everything in Maine. And also a related joke: “In fact, the universe of Stephen King is quite safe place. To survive, you just have to stay away from Maine. And the first lead we have is a reference to almost any King’s robot, namely: Hawkins is a small copy of Maine, where, like King’s, completely unimaginable things happen.

Some references to Stephen King’s works

But that’s not where King’s quoting stops. The number of references to the works of the “King of Horror” in “Strange Things” is record high. Let’s proceed rather and take apart the most obvious of them (or only those that we have time to notice).

It (1986) and Carrie (1974)

Most likely, the most important and pronounced comparisons can be made between the novels “It“, “Carrie” and the novel “The Mist”. Less noticeable references to the novels “Rage“, “Cujo“, “The Shining” and the story “The House on Maple Street”. From the first we have a parallel with the experiments on children:

The second, the scene where the protagonists are hunted by the Demogorans, something like dogs. In the third, the access road to the laboratory reminds us of the road to Overlook. The reference to the story is a conversation between the boys and Max, in which they appoint a meeting on Maple Street. It’s entertaining, isn’t it?

More obvious allusions can be carried out with the “It” Here we have several characteristic characters who, not counting adults, and create the main backbone of the plot: a group of friends from the “Strange Things” almost repeats the group of boys from the “It”, who, (will not believe) looking for the missing brother of the protagonist.

Of course, to make the missing boy from the “Very strange things” brother of someone from the company of the main characters Duffer brothers could not. After all, the very fact of sending, it is nothing but a hint of the work, which was inspired, not an exact copy of the latter.

The most vivid references to “It”

The scene of the eighth series of the first season, where Lucas tries to kill Demagorgon from a slingshot exactly repeats the scene from the screen version of “It” (1990).

A scene where a friend of Jess Bob Newby’s tells Will about the clown Baldo who scared him when he was a kid. It is noteworthy that earlier on the plot Bob offered to move Jess to his parents’ house in Maine, where the novel “It” takes place.

Eleven of them have toy copies of Pennywise over their crib.

In the last episode of the second season, a group of children decide to go down into the tunnels of the Shadow Monster, which are very much like the sewers from “It”.

If we’re talking about “Carrie”, then we have a heroine who can move things by the power of the mind, in other words, has telekinesis. In “Very strange things” the main character of the children’s caste also boasts a similar ability. But even this is allusion, not copying. The fact is that telekinesis, as an engine of the plot in the movies and TV series may soon get a separate genre of gradation, because too many paintings use this and so tortured chip all over the world. In defense of “Strange Things” it is worth saying that if the heroine could not move objects with the power of thought, but only found and listened to the right people, we would not stop watching this character.

Finishes the list of references to King’s works unknown something from the “The Mist” (based on the monster from the same name screenings), which became the prototype of the Shadow Monster in the second season. Here you have panic, fog, and even the atmosphere of complete oppression is present. Tried so hard. Thus, if it concerns monsters, this reference becomes the most obvious of all listed above.

Other references

But King wasn’t the only one who was inspired by the creators. By the allusions to the works of the horror King in the series can be traced subtle quotes on movies of the 80s and 2000s, namely:

The Goonies (1985)

A group of kids looking for treasure. It is noteworthy that the performer of the role of Bob Newby Sean Estin played the role of one of the main characters in the “The Goonies”.

Super 8 (2011)

Kids are witnessing abnormal events.

Stand by Me (1986)

A group of kids are going to look for the missing boy.

The Walking Dead (2010), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and Jaws (1975)

All three paintings served to create the image of Sheriff Hopper, from the form and headgear, to the character and determination.

 Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

The frame in the first episode of the second season seems to be screaming about it.

Ghostbusters (1984)

The Halloween (1978)

Max wore the mask of Michael Myers’ killer.

Friday the 13th (1980)

Someone dressed like a maniac, Jason Voorhees.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992)

On Halloween,  Winona Ryder‘s heroine dances with Bob, who’s changed into Dracula. In “Dracula” in 1992, the actress performed the role of a charming girl Mina. Twisted so twisted.

Jurassic Park (1993)

All references to this picture are related to the Demagogon monsters (Demops) whose habits are very similar to those of cyclists. It is also worth noting that the scene with the switches, which must be turned on to get out of the trap – a reference to the switches of the first part of the “Jurassic Park”, in which they had to be restarted to ensure the safety of the park.

 E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

The scene of the first episode of the first season, where the main characters play the board game is a direct reference to the “E.T.” (1982) Spielbegra, which has the same scene. Frankly speaking, Spielberg’s “E.T” allusions are enough for “Strange Thinds”. Among the most memorable are the main character’s room with a sign on the door, secret services, which both there and here are looking for a fugitive. (in the case of  “Strange Things”, – fugitive). Bicycles as a means of transportation, a hangar, in which things important to the plot occur. Incomplete family with two brothers (older and younger), sister and mother. Dressing up for unrecognizability. And the similarity of the dogs of the main characters. Dustin Henderson even has an alien figure at home, so the creators liked this film.

Star Wars

It is also necessary to mention a series of “Star Wars” posters and posters which were inspired by the creation of the poster for  “Strange Things”. It is worth noting that there are no direct references to this series. Unless the protagonist can play with a figure of a master Yoda or a thousand-year-old falcon.

The Thing (1982), Alien (1979)

Didn’t get past John Carpenter and his famous “The Thing”. Taking as a basis the image of an unknown alien creature and applying it in the creation of his monster, which, like in “The Thing” can also be parasitized by laying eggs. The picture of the poster of the film in the main character’s bedroom highlights this allusion even more. Speaking of the main monster of the first season (Demagogon), it is necessary to note the obvious influence of “Alien” Ridley Scott. The series even has a frame that hints that “Alien” has reached America in the 80’s.

And in the second season we have the opportunity to watch Demagorgon’s tadpole (Demops in the future – allusion to “Cujo”, remember?). When the tadpole gets home to Dustin, the boy’s red cat knows that this is a direct threat to his life. Which is the second reference to “Alien”.

Twin Peaks (1992)

The fact of existence of the parallel world and portals Duffers brothers borrowed from the published only in 1992 (the series takes place in 1983) “Twin Peaks” by David Lynch, so in “Strange Things” there are no obvious references to this series. Unless the fact of a parallel world is one big reference.

Ultimately, the list of allusions, quotes, Easter eggs and references that appeared in the first and second season of “Strange Things” can go on forever. But even this amount of information does not prevent viewing, because if you remove all the links (some of which do not carry almost no semantic load, except for the warmth of the soul, of course) the plot of the series will not suffer.

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