Stranger Things: The Best Character Formula I've Ever Seen.

It has been almost two weeks since Netflix released their fourth season of Stranger Things; spoilers ahead, of course, it's almost been two weeks! Before I get into this personal critique of the show's characters, I must note that I had this article planned before Vol I premiered and was not aware of the Duffer brother's collaboration with Masterclass until they began promoting it. I have not seen it, nor know if they cover this topic in the series.

Phew, now that we got that out of the way… let's dive into my character formula by breaking down the different categories of characters.

First, we have the Main Cast/Protagonists; these are self-explanatory but let's cover all the fun stuff. These are the constantly returning characters in the story, that was until the Duffer brothers committed a war crime on all of our feelings with Max's fate. Now I’m talking about Hopper, Eleven, Mike, Will, and everyone who we have come to love throughout the series. They possess the most drive and change throughout the series. They answer the call of the journey (quite literally at times) and help save the world.

Then we have our Antagonist: Papa, Demigorgons, the Mind Flayer, and of course Vecna. What is a great story without people or things that challenge the protagonist's journey throughout the story? We need them to feel grounded and focus on what is truly important in the underlying themes.

Next are your Side Characters, which are characters that do not offer much to the story besides being there to further the plot for the main characters. These are people like Mr. Clarke, who is mostly in the story to give the kids access to radio equipment that was crucial to the story in S1. Then, to give the kids (and Joyce) scientific knowledge throughout the rest of the series.

My favorite is Mrs. Wheeler, whose main purpose, besides never noticing her children are in danger (let's be real, what parent in Hawkins ever noticed?), was being the catalyst that led to Billy being assimilated by the Mind Flayer in S3. There are many side characters throughout the series. I believe the number chosen helps keep the plot flowing smoothly. You can even find yourself wishing for more from a side character. For example, I absolutely loved Dimitri in S4, but he was just another side character. What's that? He was a main character? Is that why we don’t even see if he was finally reunited with his family at the end of the season? That’s because he’s not a main character! Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved him too and am quite sad that we will not see him again. Thank you, Dimitri, much for being the catalyst for Joyce to find Hopper! You did your job, and now you can rest.

Now before we get into the Formula, I have to go over one more type of character so I don't cause any confusion. The Side-Character becomes Protagonist/Antagonist These are your Erica’s who were just in S1 for mere minutes but then became one of the crucial characters in S3 and 4. Or Billy, just the bratty brother in S2, who becomes one of the lead Antagonists in S3. Then there is my personal favorite, Murray, who is nothing more than an exposition machine in S2 and quickly moves into the main character position in S3 and 4. These characters are exempted from the formula because they were introduced prior to being main characters.

Now that I have cleared the air on that, we can get onto my devised formula from the series. You will understand why I needed to specify these characters..

Upon rewatching Stranger Things, I realized there was a very simple formula every season. They would introduce two new main characters, one a kill-off and the other a permanent. Season One is the only one that is excluded because it has the kill-off being Barb but has the introduction of the main cast. We get sweet, innocent hero Bob Newman and Maxine Mayfield in season two. No one can forget the torture of watching them kill off Bob, but then I noticed it in S3. We were given Robin alongside Alexi, who again was murdered in cold blood by the clone of Arnold Schwarzenegger. The torture! To test my theory, I sat down to watch Season 4. Who are these new characters they would introduce? There they were, Eddy Munson and Argyle. During the first appearance of Eddy on screen, I begged, "please don’t let this man be the new main character." I couldn’t believe how obnoxious he was. Then there was Argyle, who was just there, but I was really rooting for him when he ran off with Eden for a smoke sesh.

However, as Vol 1 continued, I slowly fell in love with Eddy like everyone else. I really forgot about all the shitty things he was doing before he witnessed Chrissy’s murder. To my despair, as Argyle's plot wasn’t getting any darker and Eddy ventured into the upside down, I started to fear that my formula was correct. It was over in a flash; we watched the life drain from Eddy’s eyes while Argyle whipped up a sick pizza pie. The deed was done.

I personally think this was a fantastic formula to use in a horror series. This brings on the pain of loss while never having to deal with tearing out the hearts of fans who come to love characters from the very first episode. I can't wait to use this formula in one of my series so that I can effectively toy with my fans as they dread each and every episode.

Now we can sit and wait to see if the fifth season of Stranger Things will bring on two new main characters. We will ask ourselves, "Which one of you is dying this season?" I full-heartedly expect this because the Duffer brothers promised not to kill any main characters (is that why we can’t find Max?), so how else will they get in their tear-jerker without introducing an amazing person to kill off eight episodes later? I can’t wait to experience another wild season with the rest of the world.