My review of The King was short. This is going to be shorter still.
I avoided watching Stranger Things for ages. Just as I avoided reading Harry Potter and ASoIaF for years as well. Why? Because everyone was reading them I arrogantly decided that I wouldn’t. Because the general public’s taste in art can’t be trusted.
With JK Rowling’s and GRRM’s books I was forced to eat a lot of humble pie. They are great. The latter twists and turns like a snake on a dance floor. And the Potter books got millions of kids reading and gave us unforgettable characters like Snape and Umbridge, whose sadistic pettiness is so much worse because it is so commonplace. But… Enough padding, back to my short review of Stranger Things.
I gave in. I watched it. I loved it. It has the right balance of humour and horror. There are characters to love and hate, laugh at and rage at. There are the stack of 80’s references and pop music classics to ring all kinds of shoulder-padded bells. The acting was superb. And the big death scenes at the ends of Seasons 2 & 3? Goosebumps.
It’s one of the best things I’ve seen and cannot wait for season 4.
Here ends my considered, thoughtful, highly critical review.*
And in future, I’m not going to be quite so snobbish about the general public’s opinions.
*(Maybe I should stick to book reviews.)
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