ReviewStranger Things 3: why you need to watch Netflix series, from fresh horrors to new relationships

Mall rat culture meets government conspiracy and otherworldly evil in the new season that crackles with that same oddball charm and dark suspense

Throwback references are everywhere – The Terminator, Back to the Future – and while they’re delicious, they’re the icing here, not the cake

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What makes the new series of Stranger Things great is the characters and their relationships to one another, and those bonds are tested throughout the new season. Photo: Netflix/TNS

Published: 7:30pm, 9 Jul 2019Updated: 12:31pm, 10 Jul 2019

Demogorgons. Mad scientists. A parallel universe. It has seemed that Hawkins, Indiana, saw it all over the past two seasons of Stranger Things, the 1980s-set Netflix sci-fi horror series. But the fictional town faces a new threat: the Starcourt Mall.

It’s 1985 and the Fourth of July is days away, yet the residents of Hawkins aren’t in the mood to celebrate. The behemoth shopping centre is sucking the life out of the area’s mom and pop shops, luring teenagers and serving something called Orange Julius. It’s sure to be the town’s downfall.

El (Millie Bobby Brown), Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Will (Noah Schnapp), Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) and Max (Sadie Sink) are now teens, so they’re of course happy to hang out in the food court, arguing the merits of Coke versus New Coke. Until they sense danger of another sort, that is. It’s much bigger and more pervasive than Hawkins’ shiny new galleria. And it’s deadly.

Mall rat culture meets government conspiracy and otherworldly evil in the new, eight-episode season. Thankfully, the enigmatic El has powers, such as the ability to pick up a car and hurl it telepathically, or to travel to other places in her mind. Plus, her friends are resourceful amateur sleuths.

(From left) Robin (Maya Hawke), Steve (Joe Keery) and Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) are stand-outs in Season 3 of Stranger Things. Photo: Netflix/The Washington Post

When the band of misfits sets out to solve the mystery, Stranger Things 3 crackles with the same oddball charm, dark suspense, innocence and self-aware humour that made this nerdy monster tale a surprise hit in the first place.