Stranger Things Season 4

I finished watching Season 4 of Stranger Things last night. Season 4 didn't disappoint, and I continue to be grateful for tuning in and getting invested in these characters when the show first premiered. 

That's not to say the season was perfect. For every hint of a Steve/Nancy Rekindling there was a Wil crying and moping, and for every Eddie Munson there was the ridiculous Russian smuggler. 

You take the good with the bad, what can I say.  SPOILERS AHEAD

The Good: I enjoyed Steve's continued renaissance, my only issue with it being that he's become so dang close to mature and wise that they HAVE to be setting him up to die miserably, right? 

The Bad: Seriously - when did the Robin of Season 3 become an intelligent but scatterbrained comic foil? 

The Good: pretty much every scene set in and around Hawkins

The Bad: The California expedition seemed bleh, minus the shootout, anytime Eleven wasn't around.  

The Good: Nice revelation as to the identity of Vecna. I didn't see it coming. 

The Bad: I like Hopper. But he should have stayed dead at the end of season 3. Resurrecting a character cheats the audience out of the emotional impact of the death and plays with their trust.  

The Good: the scenes with Papa

The bad: Eddie dies for, essentially nothing. Which, in the real world, of course, is what most deaths amount to. But to "buy time?" To "not run away."?  The gang had already been captured. What a waste. 

The Good: how neatly the three divergent storylines merged to take on Vecna, even when separated by continents.

The Bad:  Max dies, but doesn't, and may awaken, or may not. Bah. Another Hopper. She opened the fourth gate, she should have remained lost to the group. 

I eagerly look forward to season 5. I imagine the grand finale will be quite the doozy.