STRANGER THINGS 2 REVIEW

Article first published as TV Review: STRANGER THINGS 2 on Seat42F.

 Caution: This review contains light spoilers from the first three episodes of season two.

Netflix’s 1980s-set sci-fi horror Spielberg-esque hit, STRANGER THINGS, is back for a second round! Similar to a movie series, it’s being titled STRANGER THINGS 2, which seems appropriate, given the feel of the program. Like before, it features a scant number of episodes (nine this time). But also like before, this makes for a concentrated, intense story about weird occurrences in a small town. All of your favorite players have returned, plus a few new faces, and the quality seems to have been maintained. The stakes have even risen a bit.

The action picks up roughly one year after the events of the first season. Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) is still haunted by his time in the Upside Down. Mother Joyce (Winona Ryder) hopes these are just flashbacks, as Dr. Owens (Paul Reiser, Married) seems to indicate. Will’s brother, Jonathan (Charlie Heaton), is there to help his brother through. But Owens may have ulterior motives, working with the government agency that has kept a tight lid on the alternate dimension, forcing all who know of it not to tell anyone, and it soon becomes clear that Will is being warned of a new, bigger threat.

Meanwhile, Will’s friends all have their own things going on. Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) is interested in the new girl in town, video game master Max (Sadie Sink, American Odyssey). Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) has an odd pet. Mike (Finn Wolfhard) has some serious emotional issues. Nancy (Natalia Dyer) isn’t sure she’s made the right choice in staying with Steve (Joe Keery). Even Joyce has a new steady, Bob (Sean Astin, The Goonies).

These are all interesting stories, some more than others, but they do an important thing. As much as I liked season one, the story was concentrated on a few members of the large ensemble, with others regulated to supporting status. In STRANGER THINGS 2, the plot is more balanced, incorporating more of the cast on a regular basis. There are more moving pieces of note, which makes for a denser story. This isn’t a knock on season one, which made the right choice for the initial outing. However, it’s a satisfying development for the sequel, now that the world is more established.

It’s also nice that Barb figures into STRANGER THINGS 2. Yes, she’s still dead, and I don’t think it likely that she undergoes resurrection. She was the also-missing in season one, someone who caught audience attention, but didn’t have much traction on screen. A subplot involving her parents, who have still not been told of her death, is moving and heart-breaking, giving more meaning to everyone’s favorite redhead downer.

Many fans tuning in are probably most curious about Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), who we last assumed was hiding out in the woods. She is, courtesy of Jim Hopper (David Harbour), protected and hidden from friends and foes alike. While I don’t mind this in of itself, it is made better by the flashbacks to show what happened and how it happened between Eleven and Hopper in between seasons. This better informs the relationship between the cop and his sort-of-adopted-daughter, as well as the motivations both are facing now.

I think STRANGER THINGS 2 totally lives up to year one. It’s enticing, well-made, beautifully produced, and has fine performances, including the newcomers, who easily slide right in. It deepens a complex mystery, and both scares and touches you at the same time. The wonder and charm have been retained, even while what is terrifying has gotten more so. As important, it remains grounded. There are plenty of places for this show to go, and I’m happy to be along for the ride.

STRANGER THINGS 2 is available now on Netflix.

I've Seen STRANGER THINGS

Article first published as STRANGER THINGS Review on Seat42F.

Do you remember the movie genre that is uniquely 1980s about a bunch of kids getting over their heads in an adventure? It’s a bit campy, but can also be a bit scary, and when the young actors are well chosen, it’s among the best of film for those who grew up in that era and hold a special nostalgia for it in their hearts.

If so, then Netflix’s newest series, STRANGER THINGS, created by twins Matt and Ross Duffer (Hidden), (appropriately for this piece) credited as The Duffer Brothers, is going to seem very familiar to you. Set in the 80s, the story is that of four RPG-playing boys, one of whom, Will (Noah Schnapp, Bridge of Spies), goes missing early on in the pilot. While the adults, including Will’s single mother, Joyce (Winona Ryder, Edward Scissorhands, Black Swan), go looking for Will, his friends, against their parents’ orders, join in the hunt, unable to just sit on the sidelines and wonder what happened to their pal.

It’s funny, most television shows and movies, unless made specifically for children, don’t allow the youngest members of society to act on their own and with peers in a big way. Generally, in stories like this one, the focus would be on the parents and the law enforcement officers who are trying to solve the case. Yet, in STRANGER THINGS, the plotline is divided, allowing us to see Will’s mom and the local police chief’s, Hopper (David Harbour, The Newsroom, The Equalizer) side of things, but giving at least equal time over to the kids.

Make no mistake, that is a plus for STRANGER THINGS, which has assembled a very talented group of youngsters, the best-known of which is Schnapp, who will be the least seen. The leader and best friend to missing Will is Mike (Finn Wolfhard), whose sister, Nancy (Natalia Dyer, I Believe in Unicorns), is the boy-crazy outsider who will presumably get drawn into her little brother’s journey, eventually. Dustin (Gaten Matarazo) is the awkward one who feels like the funny, chubby guy, but without being chubby, and whom harbors a crush on Nancy. If STRANGER THINGS were truly made in the 1980s, then the last member of the group, Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), would be the token minority. While less developed in the pilot than the others, I hope that the show has more in store for Lucas than that.

Now, up to this point, I’ve only laid out the program as a missing child story, but it’s more than that. Like the best of the 80s flicks, there is an unearthly bend. In this case, it’s a secret lab led by Dr. Martin Brenner (Matthew Modine, Weeds, The Dark Knight Rises), which has other-wordly things in it. There’s also a strange child named Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown, Intruders) who has a connection to it. STRANGER THINGS doesn’t jump the gun by giving us much information at all about this lab, but it’s certain that Will’s disappearance will tie into it.

Which leaves the overall tone creepy, like the best of Netflix’s little-watched Hemlock Grove or a classic horror film, while serving the fun-loving attitude of the era. It’s a period piece that really does feel, so far, like it was made in the period in which it is set, and is thoroughly enjoyable. This type of story has been begging for more than two hours to explore itself in, and STRANGER THINGS finally delivers on that. Combined with a couple vintage-style comedy series, the streaming service is setting itself up as a destination for taking risks, as I wouldn’t expect any other network to pick up something like this, and this risk is worth taking. I think Netflix may very well have a hit on its hands.

STRANGER THINGS’ eight-episode first season will be available on Netflix on July 15^th.

STATE OF AFFAIRS Is Solid

Article first published as STATE OF AFFAIRS Review on Seat42F.

Anyone who remembers the Grey’s Anatomy behind-the-scenes drama of a few years ago won’t exactly be excited for Katherine Heigl’s return to television. NBC decided to take a chance on her anyway with STATE OF AFFAIRS, premiering this week, which has Heigl in the leading role. With some good actors around her, though, and an interesting premise, this series is not half bad, though far from great.

Heigl plays Charleston “Charlie” Tucker, a CIA Analyst responsible for assembling and delivering the president’s daily briefing. Charlie is haunted by her past, though, suffering PTSD from witnessing her fiance’s death in the Middle East, leading to copious drinking and erratic sexual decisions in her off-hours, before somehow still managing to be a put-together woman at work, doing her job well, even at 2AM. Will this catch up with her? Or might her therapist, whom she resents having to see, eventually be able to help her work through her issues?

STATE OF AFFAIRS does suffer from an abundance of coincidence and believability-stretching elements. The president whom Charlie serves is Constance Payton (Alfre Woodard, Desperate Housewives, Star Trek: First Contact), who just happens to be Charlie’s dead fiance’s mother. Constance is bent on revenge for her son, which makes one wonder how she manages to stay in office and be a good leader as the first black female POTUS. There’s also a mystery surrounding the day of the death about which Charlie is repressing memories. This all feels a little too contrived to me.

Charlie’s team is equally preposterous, eagerly standing by her at the risk of their own jobs, without pausing to consider what might happen to them. Even if they like her, they shouldn’t be so willing to jump off a cliff for her, at least not without agonizing over the decision.

Charlie has a scene in the pilot in which she defies her boss in order to do a noble thing, putting the life of a doctor captured by terrorists ahead of petty vengeance. This is supposed to establish Charlie has a genuine hero, but instead, drags STATE OF AFFAIRS down. For one, why do TV shows always have to have one person who ignores authority because they inherently know the right thing, proving themselves better than everyone else? For another, why would a briefer have the power Charlie has to affect events?

Yet, I still want to watch this show. One big reason for that is because it is a political drama. I love the machinations of politics, various factions battling one another for power on the national stage. There are many shows that have done it a lot better and more authentic than STATE OF AFFAIRS; The West Wing and House of Cards spring to mind, or even Scandal. But there is still some draw that this show has in that arena.

For another, besides Woodard, whom I enjoy, the show has David Harbour (The Newsroom, Manhattan) as Chief of Staff David Patrick and several familiar guest actors sure to be recurring. These performers are entertaining to watch and raise the show a bit above Heigl’s expected quality.

STATE OF AFFAIRS does have the afore-mentioned personal component in Heigl’s character, but unlike new CBS stinker Madam Secretary, doesn’t allow it to make the show melodramatic or whiny. The scenes outside of the work place are well used to add depth to the character, but not the meat of each episode. Hopefully, it stays that way.

STATE OF AFFAIRS is popcorn in the way 24 was. It gets the adrenaline pumping and it’s fun to watch, but it’s never going to win any awards for being the best acting or writing on television. For my money, that’s good enough for now, and compared to a very weak crop of fellow freshman dramas this fall, this one is certainly one of the better recent entries on the broadcast networks.

STATE OF AFFAIRS premieres Monday, November 17^th at 10 p.m. ET on NBC.

MANHATTAN Ignites

Article originally written for Seat42F.

WGN America is making huge plays these days to elevate itself from ‘superstation’ to full-fledged cable network, including creating their own content. Their first original drama, Salem, is good. Their second, MANHATTAN, which premiered last night, is even better.

Set in Los Alamos, New Mexico, which was unnamed in the 1940s when this story takes place, the series dramatizes the invention of the atomic bomb, with a focus on those who helped design and formulate it, as well as their families. A highly secretive project, the men and women employed by the U.S. government at this isolated site were among the best and the brightest. Their spouses often were not, and were not even trusted with knowing what the employees were desperately working on, racing against Germany to end the war.

MANHATTAN is besieged by the ticking clock. The Americans believed that Hitler was also working on the bomb-to-end-all-bombs, and that he was close to finishing it. Thus, they are spurred on not only by patriotism, which nearly all of them possess in spades, but also by the fear of the consequences should they lose the race. As one character muses when his daughter wants to go to college in New York, to paraphrase, ‘A densely populated city on the East Coast? No way.’

The pilot, “You Always Hurt the One You Love,” introduces us to a lot of characters, but thankfully, it keeps the core cast small enough to handle. There’s: Frank Winter (John Benjamin Hickey, The Big C), a brilliant scientist leading a small team competing with Akley’s (David Harbour, The Newsroom) much bigger, more well-funded one; Frank’s wife, Liza (Olivia Williams, Dollhouse), a botanist with a PhD who isn’t allowed to plant crops in the complex; new recruit Charlie Isaacs (Ashley Zukerman, Rush), who is physically nauseated when the purpose of the place is revealed; and Charlie’s wife, Abby (Rachel Brosnahan, House of Cards), who wants to go home, and will likely get Charlie into trouble.

These four are surrounded by a large group of wonderful players, including Daniel Stern (Home Alone, City Slickers), Josh Cooke (Dexter), Harry Lloyd (Game of Thrones), Eddie Shin (Men of a Certain Age), Michael Chernus (Orange is the New Black), Christopher Denham (Argo), Katja Herbers Alexia Fast (Jack Reacher), Richard Schiff (The West Wing), and Mark Moses (Mad Men), but keeping these two couples at the core helps ground the narrative.

Many issues are brought up and dealt with in MANHATTAN, even when just considering the pilot. There’s the military state, security that may be over the top or could be construed as necessary, depending on your perspective. There’s the political nature of the hierarchy, as Frank finds out when he approaches Oppenheimer (Daniel London, Mildred Pierce) with a better idea than Ackley’s, but is shot down anyway. There is the splintering of marriage when trust is broken, mainly because of the constraints of the job. There is the constant threat that even the best intentions could get one into serious trouble, and rumors and gossip spread quickly. There is the challenge of living in a new environment in the middle of nowhere, a major stressor on those who aren’t in the office at all hours.

Yet, despite the extremely full hour-plus running time, MANHATTAN is not overwhelming. Instead, it presents a complex structure with interesting topics and people, an authentic-seeming look at an important part of history. The moral quandaries of The Manhattan Project are still debated today, so MANHATTAN, besides being an entertaining drama, is also a way for modern people to sort out mixed feelings about it, and also get some historical perspective. I find myself thoroughly engrossed and excited about this series.

MANHATTAN airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on WGN America.