Welcome back for the sixth installment of the Summer TV Binge of Stranger Things, looking back at season one, episode six (released July 15, 2016):
“Chapter Six: The Monster”
Written by Jessie Nickson-Lopez
Directed by the Duffer Bros.
On this episode, Nancy narrowly escapes from the Upside Down, but Steve sees her with Jonathan, and gets the wrong idea. Mike and Dustin go searching for Eleven, while Lucas spies on the lab. Joyce and Hopper team up to find Terry Ives, the woman who claims her baby was taken by Dr. Brenner.
1. The Demogorgon Has Nothing on Jealous Boys
Steve goes over to the Wheeler house to further apologize for being a jerk over Barb’s disappearance, but he spots Jonathan comforting her through her bedroom window. Unaware of her traumatic encounter with the Demogorgon, Steve assumes she’s cheating on him, and passively encourages his friends to spray prominent graffiti across town proclaiming she’s a “slut.” Nancy and Jonathan find Steve and pals spraying more taunts in an alleyway, and try to explain what really happened, but Steve is too emotional, and provokes Jonathan into a fist fight after insulting his entire family, including his brother. Steve is one of the show’s most charismatic characters, but this was definitely the wake up call he needed to shed the last vestiges of his douchey jock persona.
2. Heathers
Hopper’s colleagues Powell and Callahan notice the disturbance and intervene (which, hilariously, results in Callahan getting punched as well), and arrest Jonathan. They keep him at the station after discovering all the hunting equipment he and Nancy bought in his car, which is understandable: for all they know, he could’ve been planning a mass shooting, and his emotions are pretty high after Will’s “death.” The whole scene where Jonathan and Nancy buy the equipment they need to hunt the Demogorgon was funny because of the retailer’s nonplussed reaction, but also pretty uncomfortable because of how he wasn’t more suspicious of their motivations. I mean, “monster hunting”? Really?
3. The Secret Origin of Eleven
After deducing that there is another child, and who she might be, Joyce and Hopper discover Terry Ives is living in a vegetative state, and being cared for by her sister Becky. Becky confirms Terry participated under Brenner’s supervision in Project MKUltra, but she believes the hospital’s official report that her sister miscarried, and her claims Brenner kidnapped the child were the ensuing result of mental instability. She compares Terry’s claims about her daughter’s powers to the plot of a Stephen King novel (isn’t it funny how life imitates art on this show?)
Before leaving, Joyce takes one last look at Terry languishing in her chair, and there’s a strong sense of recognition that they’re both mothers who have lost their children to a bizarre conspiracy, and have been gaslit for it — and if she’s not careful, these ruthless government agents could also reduce her to this utterly helpless state. It’s a superb moment of silent interaction, that lets you wonder if Terry is aware of this or not as well.
4. Mixed Effects
School bullies Troy and James find Mike and Dustin, and corner them at the cliff where Will is believed to have fallen from. Still furious at being made to wet himself, Troy grabs Dustin, and threatens to cut out his teeth with a switchblade, unless Mike jumps off the cliff. (That boy seriously needs help.) Mike, our brave, noble, selfless hero, jumps, but is saved by Eleven, who overheard him looking for her.
It’s a breathtaking moment, but the shots of Mike hovering in the air after El’s intervention had some pretty obvious greenscreen, especially five years later. It’s a fun reminder of how this show wasn’t always Netflix’s biggest priority, and I suppose it does makes it feel more like an ’80s movie, but it’s amusing given this episode also has the flashback of Eleven making first contact with the Demogorgon, which has a spectacularly realistic close-up of its skin.
5. “She’s our friend and she’s crazy!”
This is the episode where Eleven enters a grocery store, and casually steals a load of Eggo waffles — it’s a stark contrast to her timid introduction in the first episode, when she ran after Benny spotted her in his kitchen. It’s clear her time with the boys has emboldened her, something reflected by her ditching the silly blonde wig: she’s no longer hiding who she is.
Continued belowWhen El finds the boys, she intimidates the bullies with her severe true appearance, and then breaks Troy’s arm. She then collapses from the exertion of doing that and rescuing Mike, and tearfully confesses she was the one who opened the gate to the Upside Down, calling herself a monster. Mike and Dustin refuse to blame her for everything that’s happened, and they all hug before returning to the Wheeler home. It’s true, it’s not her fault, it’s Dr. Brenner’s, and likewise, it’s not her fault she’s a violent, feral girl: like Dustin says, it’s OK that she’s not OK. All in all, it’s a perfectly emotional resolution for this chapter.
Other Things:
– Isn’t it great how Joyce and Hopper deduce Eleven’s existence from comparing her drawing in the lab to Will’s artwork? It pays off the flashback in the previous episode, and it reminds us it’s OK to be better at some things than others.
– The Wheeler home must have some seriously thick walls, it’s no wonder Karen learned to pick locks. (“Your mom doesn’t knock?”)
– God, Brenner was such a bastard for encouraging Eleven to go back into the deprivation tank to find the Demogorgon.
– I’m not a D&D player, but if I had to guess, I’d say Dustin is Lawful Good.
– Lucas looks so much like Rambo with the headband when he stakes out the lab, it’s adorable.
See you next week for our look at “Chapter Seven: The Bathtub.”
