Stranger Things isn't solely about '80s nostalgia — it's a masterclass in storytelling. It's one of the top shows on Netflix and for a good reason! Matt and Ross Duffer are brilliant storytellers who had their plan outlined for the Hawkins kids from the beginning. Now is the time to rewatch Stranger Things because there's likely a ton you missed regarding the Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) storyline, the over-arching "big bad" in the series, and how he connects to many of the show's characters.
The Duffers have been showing us pieces of the big picture from the beginning. In the first season of Stranger Things, Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) goes missing in the Upside Down. Meanwhile, back in the real world, his friends Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), and Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) encounter what they perceive to be a real-life superhero, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown). Together, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, and El work to defeat the Demogorgon and bring Will back to the land of the living. But as we learned in Season 4 of Stranger Things, all of these events — including Will's capture — were triggered by Eleven's escape. A rewatch of Stranger Things Season 1 will showcase all the nuances in the story you might have missed on the first go round. For example, El's storyline with Dr. Martin Brenner (Matthew Modine), who she calls "Papa," gets introduced in the first season. Dr. Brenner's experiments are crucial to the story in Season 4 and the overall story of Stranger Things, so every minute detail from the Hawkins Lab in Season 1 is vital.
Season 1 Teases Many of the Events Happening Now
Moreover, another reason to rewatch Stranger Things is so you can take note of all the ways Vecna — also referred to as Henry Creel and 001 in the series — has been present in El's life from the beginning. "The truth is he did not just want to study me; he wanted more," Vecna says of Dr. Brenner in Episode 7 of Season 4, Volume 1. A rewatch of the series will allow you to pick up on how Dr. Brenner's work could have been misconstrued as evil. After hearing Vecna's monologue, you'll want to go back and pick on all the things he references as they pertain to Eleven's storyline.
Similarly, the Duffer Brothers introduced Will's connection to Vecna and the Upside Down from the get-go. A Dungeons and Dragons player, Will used his obsession with the game to survive his first go-round in the Upside Down. But was there more to Will surviving down there in Season 1? Vecna's connection to Will has yet to be deeply explored in the series, but Will's connection to the Mind Flayer and the Upside Down has been touched upon throughout all four seasons. When Season 4 concludes, Will feels a prickling on his neck that indicates the connection is still live and Vecna is still out there. We'll likely get more clarity on this connection in the last season of Stranger Things, but a rewatch will refresh viewers on all the clues regarding Will's relationship to the evil in the Upside Down that the Duffers have laid out so far.
Moments That Seem Minor, But Really Aren't
A few other minor comments from the first season of Stranger Things play a significant role in the overall story of the Netflix series. From El's experience in the sensory deprivation tank to Lucas's comments about the Pennhurst Mental Hospital and hints about Project MKUltra, all of these mentions lend themselves to the overarching narrative in Stranger Things. And speaking of an overarching narrative, most of the characters that pop up in Seasons 1 through 3 of Stranger Things come up in the fourth season. That's because instead of having the group reunite to fight the villain, they had to break off into groups and fight Vecna from their respective locations. A rewatch of the early seasons of Stranger Things will provide perspective (and a refresher) on the more minor characters from the series like Suzie (Gabriella Pizzolo), Dustin's long-distance girlfriend.
Aside from rewatching Season 3 to pick up on the Vecna nuances the Mind Flayer hints at, the third season introduces the source of Max Mayfield's (Sadie Sink) trauma. Despite the absolute torture her stepbrother Billy (Dacre Montgomery) put her through, Max is devastated after he sacrifices himself to the Mind Flayer in the battle at the Starcourt Mall. While Stranger Things Season 4, Volume 1 provides flashbacks of this traumatizing moment, a rewatch of Season 3 will give you all the context you need and time to soak up the subtle things the Duffers included throughout the entire season.
You Might've Missed Something
Finally, a rewatch of Stranger Things might give you an appreciation (or more appreciation) for a season or episode you might not have felt strongly about the first time. As previously mentioned, the Duffers don't include filler — even the Season 2 subplot involving Kali (Linnea Berthelsen), Number 8, who shares some key powers with Vecna.
Unlike most children with special powers at the Hawkins Lab, Kali is one of the few with the ability to manipulate people's minds. As exhibited in the second season of the series, her mind-controlling ability is how she escaped the lab in the first place. In another scene, Kali conjures visions of spiders crawling all over her friend Axel (James Landry Hébert). Who else do we know that is capable of mind control and has a thing for spiders? Good ol' Vecna.
Like Kali, Vecna can make people see things that aren't there. This power is how he slowly starts to chip away at his victim's mental stability. First, they see the grandfather clock from the Creel house; then, they start seeing horrific images of the people they know and love. Moreover, Vecna can conjure scenarios and force his victims to suffer through them, just another way he chips away at their sanity. His powers are much stronger than Kali's, but Vecna's connection to Kali could be vital in the fifth and final season of the Netflix series.
So, have you hit play on Stranger Things Season 1 yet?