Stranger Things 2: Episode 8 “The Mind Flayer” Review
- Adam Tye
- Nov 13, 2017
- 4 min read
★★★★
“The Mind Flayer” is everything good and bad about Stranger Things 2 coagulated into a single whole. Which means it comes out much better than it does worse. I’ll probably reflect properly after next episode on the ways that this Season has improved over the first, but it is relieving that even eight episodes in, Stranger Things 2 has kept up the assured pace that it set into motion all the way back in “MADMAX”. Even if not everything is quite as tight as it could be.
The episode picks up after the events of Episode 6, with the Lab under attack by mini-Demogorgans (Demodogs?) and the revelation that the Shadow Monster can use Will to spy on those who pose the greatest threat. The Lab then goes into complete shutdown, trapping Joyce, Mike, Will, Hopper and Bob inside.
I’ve hammered on a lot about how, compared to last year’s glacial drift, Stranger Things 2 has opted to divide its story beats more clearly. I do that because the results have pretty much transformed the show. It’s because of this that “The Mind Flayer” actually feels meaningful, rather than just another tiny step in the show’s grand scheme. I can barely remember most of the horror stuff from Season 1, but I’m pretty sure that’s not going to be the case this time. There’s even a basement scene with Bob searching for the breaker switch that gives off vibes reminiscent of The Last of Us’ hotel basement sequence.
Which, sadly, brings us all-too neatly to Bob. Oh Bob. You were not meant for a world as cruel as this. It almost feels like too much of a loss for the show, given how much of a breath of fresh air his character has been, but I can’t say I didn’t see it coming the moment he decided to go and turn the power back on.
The actual horror sequence itself is kind of oddly structured and, if anything, is maybe over a tad too quickly given how horrific the circumstances are. The scene plays a bit too strong with claustrophobia to give us the impression that the creatures could come from anywhere, which makes Bob’s fairly eventless basement trip pretty tame in comparison to, well, the aforementioned basement scene from The Last of Us. But overall, it’s memorable enough to pull things together.
Reconvening back at Joyce’s house, the characters turn to D&D again to finally explain the shadow monster, or as we now call it: The Mind Flayer. This to me is the only time the D&D bit has ever really worked in the show. It’s both convincing as a coping mechanism that arrives during the Season’s darkest moment, whilst also self-deprecating enough to stave off any eye-rolling (“You summon an army of the undead.”)
Communicating with Will through morse code – which calls back to the way Joyce communicated with him in Season 1 through Christmas lights – the characters receive a message on how to kill The Mind Flayer: “CLOSEGATE”, before the Deomodogs arrive. Not before they are taken out by Eleven in a ‘surprise’ reveal that’s a bit too easy to see coming given how much the direction amps it up (this show still has a problem with directing sequences against the audiences knowledge of what will happen – see also: the ending of Episode 3 in Season 1).
Some of the more extraneous plot problems can’t help but rear their heads again as well, such as Max’ brother who finally gets a bit more motivation in way of his father being an abusive asshole. There’s also Nancy and Jonathon’s trip to the journalist, which impacts the episode in now way whatsoever – not even between them and Steve. I could dive in and kick the crap out of these things, but such is the problem of reviewing part of a story before knowing its ending. Both subplots reek of impending payoff, so I’m leaving them be for now.
“The Mind Flayer” is a great encapsulation of how far Stranger Things has come since last year and what distance it still has to cover. There’s a lot left to tie up in one episode so fingers crossed the finale doesn’t cop out with cliffhanger syndrome, but after a Season spent dividing the characters apart, let’s see how well the show pulls things off when it brings them back together.
Other notes:
Mike is still an asshole to Max. They really should have made that whole thing a lot clearer.
Actually, the women in Season 2 in general are getting...I don't want to say short shrift but they seem a little less developed in comparison to, say, Eleven and the rest of the cast. Even Winona Ryder who doesn't have to cry every five minutes like in Season 1 is kind of getting tossed around a little flippantly. Winona Ryder is still great, though.
That Doctor is totally still alive.
If we're raising the undead to beat The Mind Flayer, does that mean we can bring back Bob?
The Mind Flayer in the book looks a bit like Cthulhu. Just sayin'.
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