28th June, 2022.
Tuesday’s are unusual.
Or possibly usual.
Or possibly somewhere in between.
At any rate, and unusually for me?
I’ve got time to start watching another TV series: and will be watching The Hellfire Club, the first episode of Stranger Things’ fourth series.
Those of you who read my film and TV reviews will know I’m doing my usual thing.
I’m starting this review on the night I’m watching the episode: and will be finishing it off, tomorrow night.
Once I’ve had dinner!
Now, if you’ll excuse me?
I’ve got to put vegetables on!
29th June, 2022.
Chapter 1 — The Hellfire Club — opens with a flashback to 1979: showing us a paper boy, delivering papers to the sleepy suburbs of Hawkins, Indiana.
And shows us Dr Brenner (Matthew Modine), starting his day at home: then heading to the Hawkins National Laboratories.
Where he’s carrying out tests on the powerfully telepathic Subject Ten (Christian Ganiere).
Unfortunately? Whilst telepathically monitoring the base, Ten picks up the activities in nearby parts of the base.
Many of the scientists and children in the base? Are being killed by something.
Something that seems to be Eleven (Young Eleven is played by Martie Blair).
Post titles?
The scene shifts: to show us Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) is now known as Jane Hopper.
She, Joyce, Will and Jonathon Byers (Winona Ryder, Noah Schnapp and Charlie Heaton) have moved to California after the events of Season Three.
She frequently tells Mike (Finn Wolfhard) in a series of letters that she’s doing well … whilst hiding the fact she’s being bullied at her new school.
Mike, by contrast? Mike — alongside Dustin, Lucas and Max (Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin and Sadie Sink) — are still at Hawkins, and have started at Hawkins High.
Mike and Dustin have joined the Hellfire Club, the school’s Dungeons and Dragons club, run by Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn): whilst Lucas has joined the school’s basketball team.
And the Hellfire Club.
Mike and the gang have issues.
The final of the inter-school basketball tournament is that night.
The same night as the last episode of Eddie’s Dungeons and Dragons campaign.
Finding a substitute is mild.
Compared to Max and Chrissie’s counselling sessions.
And the mysterious package that Joyce receives.
Yes: those were Russian stamps on that parcel …
~≈🧟≈~
Now … what did I make of The Hellfire Club? What I make of this opening episode?
I don’t know if I mentioned, but I’ve just recently started watching the second series of Star Trek Picard.
Having caught the impressing opening episode, last Friday.
Am I still impressed with The Star Gazer, right now?
Yes, I am.
But? Star Trek Picard is telling a very different story, compared to The Hellfire Club.
Stranger Things is horror, after all, rather than science fiction.
But both opening episodes are equally as well made and written.
Both The Hellfire Club and The Star Gazer reintroduces us to the main characters, shows us their new situations.
And, in the case of The Hellfire Club, shows that Eleven is in an extremely vulnerable state.
It’s also doing a few other things, as well.
The episode’s introduced us to charismatic cheerleader, Chrissy Cunningham … then ended with her violent death.
Something I feel is going to set the tone for this particular series.
Many will also tell you that Stranger Things owes much to Stephen King.
I couldn’t tell you, there: I’ve not read as much of the man’s work as I could.
But? I notice that The Hellfire Club introduces us to at least three potential plotlines for this series;
- Joyce trying to find Hopper.
- Eleven’s problems at school.
- Eddie Munson’s problems.
Something that’s reminded me not of King, but of William Gibson: his Sprawl Trilogy in particular.
I suspect that, much like the latter?
We’ll see all three plots tied off at the end of the series.
I’m also a former games master.
So, seeing The Hellfire Club introduce us to Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), the charismatic — and incredibly theatrical — leader of the eponymous club?
Was welcome.
And, I suspect, pivotal.
I get the impression the Munson character’s going to be as pivotal as some of the series regulars!
At any rate?
I’m impressed enough with The Hellfire Club to carry on watching this series of Stranger Things.
I’ll be watching episode two, Vecna’s Curse, on 5th July: and posting a video and written review on the 6th*.
You’d be welcome to join me.
The Hellfire Club.★★★★
* If you’re interested? I’ll be watching Penance — episode two of Star Trek Picard’s second series — on 1st July: and posting its reviews on the second.
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