Stranger Things 2 Ep. 9 – “The Gate”
Mike Sprague
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Welcome back to Dread Central’s daily recap/reviews of the second season of Netflix and The Duffer Brothers’ “Stranger Things”. You can find our recap/review of the previous episode right HERE. Now let’s get to it!
Here we are, the season finale of “Stranger Things 2”. We made it to the end and now there is only one thing left to do – starting counting down the days until season three hits.
To jump right into it, on the previous episode “The Mind Flayer” we ended with Eleven showing up to join forces with the rest of the main cast inside the Byers house as everyone prepares for the final battle with the evil Mind Flayer and his Demadogs. Mike is instantly pissed at Hopper for hiding Eleven from him and proceeds to try and beat him up. Hopper isn’t having any of that shit and pulls Mike to Will’s bedroom and calms his ass down.
Meanwhile, Eleven meets the new cast and reunites with the old. Then after a quick series of re-introductions Joyce takes Eleven to see comatose Will. She then shows Eleven Will’s secret message to “Close the Gate” and asks Eleven if she thinks she can close said gate if she can get close enough to it. Eleven just stares off into the distance as the (synth) music rises and we:
Cut to credits.
As we fade back from the bright red credits sequence we find – wait, what? Mike’s mother in the tub? Reading romance novels to candlelight? Oh… this is gonna be good. But, damn, instead of a Mike’s mom spin-off episode we get Max’s brother at the front door. The Red Ranger proceeds to mercilessly hit on Mike’s mom and we as an audience can’t blame him. Who knew Mike’s mom was such a hottie? Nice.
After some heavy flirting Billy heads on his way and we rejoin the gang at the Byers house. Eleven tells everyone that she can close the gate with her mind, but Mike reminds the gang that this could very well kill Will. Joyce then gets the bright idea that if they whisk off Will to Hopper’s cabin in the woods, they can make him really, really hot and that should expel the Shadow Demon inside him. This is because the Shadow Demon hates heat – for no reason that’s ever explained. But whatever. We’ll go with it.
Joyce, Nancy, and Jonathan head out to the cabin in the woods with Will as Hopper and Eleven head off to close the gate once and for all. Back at the Byers house, Dustin and Steve take the dead Demadog and put it in the Byers fridge (haha) and then the gang comes up with the plan to head into the tunnels and kill the Upside Down.
But then Billy shows up… Steve meets him outside because he’s a hero now and Billy punches him straight in the face. The battle that we’ve been waiting for all season is now upon us and Steve seems to be holding his own. Until he isn’t. But no worries, Max shows up with some “Knock Will Out Juice” and uses it to knock out Billy.
That’s it? Really? That douche deserved the wrath of Kahn, not a nap. Especially after beating Steve’s face to absolute shit. But I guess we have to take what we can get and murdering Max’s brother may have been a bit too much. Meh. I would have used that spiked bat on his strategically feathered dome.
While Billy is getting his ass all kinds of NOT kicked, Joyce and Nancy and Jonathan arrive at the cabin in the woods and begin setting fires and setting up space heaters. This should be interesting.
Meanwhile, Eleven and Hopper show up at the sinister energy plant of the hill and get to work on closing the gate. On their way down to the gate, they find Dr. Owens still alive and kicking. Why this dude gets to live and poor old Bob the Brain had to bite the big one is beyond me, but fair enough.
While gates are being mind-closed and Will is being exorcist-ed by space heaters, the rest of the Scooby gang steals Billy’s bitchin’ T-Bird and heads to the pumpkin patch, aka the entryway into the blue underground tunnels below Hawkins. Plus, we get a sweet payoff to Max’s “Zoomer” line from a few episodes back. Good times.
Down in the tunnels, Mike and the gang douse the vines in gasoline while Will’s ex-possession by space-heaters seems to be going well. Then Steve lights the vines on fire just as Nancy straight up stabs Will with a white-hot fireplace poker. Both of these things happening at the same time seems to cure Will and the Smoke Demon hits the road in a shrieking puff of smog. But I’m sure that’s not the last we’ll see of old Smog. Get it? Smog. Hurm.
Then down in the hell beneath the energy plant Eleven and Hopper ready themselves to close the damn gate and get this shit over with. They board a platform thing and Eleven goes about her whole deal. You know the one: holding up one hand and scowling at the demon gate while her nose starts to bleed. However, then a miracle happens – Eleven steps up her game in a HUGE way… by holding up TWO hands and bleeding out of BOTH nostrils. Holy shit. This just got epic! NOTE: I wish I had a sarcasm font.
All being a dick aside, it was pretty epic that Eleven started levitating. It reminds us all that the series seems to be setting up Eleven to become this series’ Dark Phoenix. Mark my words. Maybe not next season, but the one after that, Eleven will be the main villain. Until she is “saved” by Mike’s love (or some shit) in the final episode.
Until then, Eleven will continue to be the show’s “hero” of sorts and I’ll have to learn to deal with that. Teaming her up with Hopper this past season did wonders for making her character more sympathetic, but really, was sympathetic ever the issue with her character? No, I don’t think so.
After she closes the gate – with relative ease – we cut to “One Month Later” and find the energy plant getting shut down with Murray(!) waving the military off with the biggest shit-eating grin I’ve seen in years. Well deserved.
We then cut to the high school’s “Snow Ball” dance and here is where this f*cking 33-year-old dude got the feels big time. Not only does the Steve and Dustin relationship have a great payoff with Dustin feathering his hair up with Farah Fawcett spray, but then (gasp) it doesn’t work! Not only doesn’t Dustin get the girl (Max) but he – get THIS shit – doesn’t get to dance with one single girl.
Just when things are looking darkest for our favorite character, Dustin, who else but his first season dream girl Nancy Wheeler comes over and asks him to dance. “Out of all my brother’s friends, you’re my favorite. You always have been.” This was one of the sweetest moments in the series altogether and if it didn’t give you the feels, check your pulse because you may be a sociopath, Dexter.
As man-tears worthy as the Dustin payoff was, it wasn’t the moment that got this guy the most. The moment that brought me to fully dry cry involved (shockingly) Eleven. Yes, little Eleven and Mike’s dance and kiss was about the sweetest thing I’ve seen outside of a f*cking Disney movie. And I have no issue baring that to you guys.
When Eleven walks into the dance all John Hughes-style to The Police’s “I’ll be Watching You” and finds Mike all alone – by choice, mind you – I realized something: these are kids. No duh, but stick with me here. No matter the supernatural elements they’re forced to face and the horrible things adults have done to them in the past, they are still children and the fact that they find the power to fight all these very adult fears is a massive triumph.
Add to that the killer exchange the two share with Mike asking Eleven to dance. She says, “I don’t know how.” And Mike says, “Neither do I. Want to figure it out together?” And the waterworks started. Last season I didn’t buy Eleven and Mike’s kiss because she was basically E.T., and their kiss did little for me as it was basically like watching Elliot laying a big fat one on his extraterrestrial buddy. Not cute, sweet, or emotional.
Not so on this go around.
This time not only have the two grown up substantially, but they have both fought for the last 9 hours (our time, 353 days their time) to get to each other. Demadogs, Shadow Monsters, Mind Flayers and bully older brothers, etc. These two conquered them all just to get to this moment. And you can tell as they dance it was all worth it.
Now before I lose my “Man Card” altogether (too late) let’s skip to the end and sum up.
Hopper and Joyce share a cigarette out front, and Max and Lucas share a kiss themselves. Sweet moments, sure. But nothing compared to Lucas and Nancy, and Mike and Eleven.
The whole thing then wraps up with a wide angle showing us that the Shadow Monster is still alive and well, and overlooking everything these characters do at even their best moments. Darkness is coming – back. And it’s only a matter of time (about a year, right?) before their problems start up again.
But for now, all seems right. We’ll take the happy endings we can get. And I don’t know about you, but this season finale and this season overall put a smile on my face that is sure to last for at least 353 days.
See you guys next season!
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