We all know by now: “Stranger Things” is, officially, the hype. The Duffer Brothers’ crazy-enjoyable and disarmingly sincere paean to the ’80s kiddie-monster yarns they grew up on is Netflix’s new big hit, and the buzz shows no signs of dying down anytime soon. Even for audience members who are weary of the constant stream of recycled pop-culture flotsam in the entertainment we consume — not to mention the notion of nostalgia as cultural currency — “Stranger Things” will still prove hard to resist. This is a show that takes what might seem musty and outdated in the hands of a less competent creative team and makes it pop with life.
READ MORE: ‘Stranger Things,’ ‘Bloodline,’ ‘Preacher’ & The Problems Of Plotting & Pacing In Peak TV
The show is not short on visual homage, as many other film scholars have explored. It’s also flush with references to films like “E.T.,” “Starman” and “Stand By Me.” What’s not often mentioned, however, is how brisk and well-paced the Duffer Brothers’ show is. Compared to the sluggish meandering of Netflix’s other original series, “Bloodline,” season one of “Stranger Things” moves. Not surprisingly, the show makes adroit use of scene transitions — a point that is underlined in this new video essay from Mr. Nerdista that examines how the Duffer Brothers used various transitional points to move their story forward in interesting and unusual ways.
A transition, as we all know, is a jump-off point from one scene to another that’s essentially used to move the story forward. The basis for a transition can be visual, aural or simply layered into the script. Considering that “Stranger Things” juggles a pretty substantial ensemble as the citizens of Hawkins scramble to search for the missing Will Byers, the Duffers’ use of transitions can be considered all the more impressive. The essay makes note of several prominent examples, though the one that stands out (spoiler) is the show’s emotionally loaded flashback to one of the last times Will Byers saw his brother Jack — scored, of course, to the raucous notes of “Should I Stay or Should I Go” by The Clash. Of course, we’ve all read and watched a lot about “Stranger Things” in the past few weeks, but the show’s die-hard fans may want to give this essay a look.
The first season of “Stranger Things” is currently streaming on Netflix, in case you’re not all caught up. [One Perfect Shot]