
Their experiments involve a huge electromagnetic “key” intended to open the gate at will - a detail we ultimately learn because Joyce becomes obsessed with why her refrigerator magnets aren’t working like they should. The Russians are presumably why Will keeps sensing that the Mind Flayer is back to wreak havoc on Hawkins it seems they’ve already opened the gate just enough to let the monster through. But after Dustin intercepts a strange coded message spoken in Russian and transmitted from the mall itself, he - along with Steve and Robin - can’t help but investigate, and the trio’s quest to infiltrate the lab keeps them busy for most of the season (not least because they end up trapped there for a while). Why they’re doing this is never explained. A group of evil Russians have built a covert underground lab beneath the Starcourt Mall food court (stay with me here), and they’re working to secure access to the Upside Down. The rats, as it turns out, are indirectly connected to a major underworld conspiracy - literally. Let’s be clear: Never in a zillion years would a teenage girl decide to start developing her journalistic beat around diseased rats, but sure, Stranger Things, you can have this one. She’s eager to find a story that will allow her to prove herself as a reporter, and the one she decides to pursue is grisly - it seems there’s an infestation of diseased rats who are eating fertilizer and other chemical substances all over town. But while Jonathan is seen as a star employee, Nancy is constantly belittled and mocked by the paper’s top editors, all of whom are men. Meanwhile, Mike’s older sister Nancy ( Natalia Dyer) has started working as an intern at the local newspaper, alongside her boyfriend (and Will’s older brother) Jonathan ( Charlie Heaton). He’s also distracted by his constant sense that the Mind Flayer - the giant spider-like monster that came from the Upside Down to threaten Hawkins in season two - is still lurking around town, despite the closing of the gate between worlds in the season two finale. Much to the chagrin of Will ( Noah Schnapp), his friends all seem way more interested in having girlfriends than in embarking on new D&D adventures, and as the group’s only late bloomer or asexual and/or queer kid, he’s feeling pretty left out. Vox-mark vox-mark vox-mark vox-mark vox-mark Hopper turns to Will’s mom Joyce ( Winona Ryder) for help, but since he isn’t ready to listen to her, his efforts only serve to drive a wedge between El and Mike.
#STRANGER THINGS SEASON 2 EPISODE 3 SUMMARY HOW TO#
Lucas ( Caleb McLaughlin) and his girlfriend Max ( Sadie Sink) are mainly spending their time helping Mike and Eleven avoid breaking up due to pressure from Chief Hopper ( David Harbour), who doesn’t seem to know how to handle his adopted daughter having a boyfriend. (You may remember Erica from season two she’s Lucas’s little sister.) Steve, in turn, is working at the new Starcourt Mall he’s serving ice cream in the food court’s Scoops Ahoy, where he’s regularly mocked by his deadpan coworker Robin ( Maya Hawke) and strategically undermined by mall patron and ice cream connoisseur Erica ( Priah Ferguson). Dustin ( Gaten Matarazzo), newly back from summer camp, winds up bonding even more with his old pal Steve (Joe Keery), whose season two role as an accidental babysitter made him a breakout meme star. And between the constant makeout sessions that Eleven ( Millie Bobbie Brown) and Mike ( Finn Wolfhard) are having and the disinterest that some members of the group are feeling toward Dungeons & Dragons, the gang is starting to grow apart.īut that’s not entirely a bad thing, and Stranger Things capitalizes on the opportunity to try out some new character pairings. It’s immediately clear that our adorable tweens have sprouted into full-on teens.

Stranger Things 3 takes place in the summer of 1985. The plot of Stranger Things 3 is the show’s silliest and most convoluted yet Evil Russians? In your mall? It’s more likely than you think! Netflix

If you’d like to get an idea of what to expect without any spoilers at all, check out our spoiler-free review if you’re comfortable knowing at least the basics, read on. It’s a bit convoluted, but it’s also pretty fun.

To talk about what season three really gets right and what it doesn’t, we have to spoil some of the plot for you. Stranger Things season 3 is charming but frustrating.
