Has ‘Stranger Things’ already predicted Eddie’s tragic end?

Spoilers for ‘Stranger Things’ Season 4 Volume 1 below

‘Stranger Things 4’ It’s only been a week Netflixbut it has already given us many things: a renewed love for Kate Bush, nods to horror movies with a villain so creepy that leaves Freddy Krueger in dust, and Steve Harrington shirtless.

Really, there’s something for everyone in this series, even if it’s just a sprinkling of some ’80s nostalgia in pursuit of nostalgia.

But the most important thing is that there is someone who has proven to be universally adored for fans of the seriesand your name is Eddie Munson: The leader of the Hellfire club.

Portrayed by British actor Joseph Quinn, metalhead Eddie looks like a child member of Mötley Crüe, with her glam-rock hair, leather and denim fashion sense, and love of silver rings. But his tough-looking exterior is nothing more than a front for those who can’t or won’t understand him in Hawkins, Indiana.

If you spend more than five minutes with him, you will discover that he is nothing more than the king of nerds lover of ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ (whose future series already has a director), who is content to hang out with his small group of outcasts and do a little drug dealing.

So naturally we are concerned about your safety, and we fear the series is setting it up for disaster which may be near the end of the season.

This fear is not unfounded. In fact, if our concerns are correct, it actually fits a tried-and-true formula within the world of Hawkins, Indiana.

‘Stranger Things’ has a little problem of delivery overload, and this only gets worse with each new season and its corresponding new additions. Even Millie Bobby Brown and Noah Schnapp, two of the main actors of the series, have not missed it, and have declared to ‘The Wrap’ before the premiere of the fourth season that it is necessary to make a selection in the style of ‘Game of Thrones’ -and whose connection between the two is real- to cut the credits.

“The Duffer Brothers [creadores de la serie] they are so sensitive that they don’t want to kill anyone”Millie said. “We have to have the ‘Game of Thrones’ mentality. Kill me! They tried to kill David [Harbour] and they brought him back.

Although this observation is actually spot on, with almost two dozen main characters having their own subplots in this season alone, actually there is an exception to this rule, and it is the trope known as “the sacrificial lamb”.

The Duffer brothers know that a series like ‘Stranger Things’ needs some interest. The fact that all of our loved ones miraculously survive numerous run-ins with a murderous monster over a long period of time is not only unrealistic (well… as unrealistic as it can be given the fantasy world they find themselves in). ), but it also means that there is little tension, since you know that the main group is going to be fine.

But there is a loophole in this, something that ‘Stranger Things’ has already used with a effect terrifying on multiple occasions: you bring someone into the main fold whose sole purpose is to die.

This person usually has some sort of importance to at least one of the main characters, becomes a key part of the narrative, and is often quite lovable, giving his or her death an emotional impact different from that of an antagonist whose death serves to delight.

But the greatest tragedy of the slaughtered lambs is that they are often killed off in such a way that they have hardly any lasting impact on the series as a whole, even if they do have some emotional effect on their friends or provide some sort of key effect on their behavior in the game. future.

in the first seasonthis was beardNancy’s friend who ends up being dragged into a pool and eaten by the demogorgon while her friend is having a fight with Steve in an upstairs room.

This was the first seemingly important character to be taken into the unknown, and fans wanted Barb to be done justice… but after the first season she was barely mentioned again. It took until season four for Nancy to acknowledge her guilt in her friend’s death, and even that was when Vecna ​​infiltrated her brain.

In the second season, Bob Newby he became the sacrificial lamb, throwing himself to the wolves (well…the dogs) so that the others might live to fight one more day. In the lead up to the incident, he proved to be a much-needed foil to Joyce, a father figure to Will and Jonathan, a vital and intelligent member of the adult gang, as well as an overall charmer. But since then he is barely mentioned in passing.

And then, in the third seasonwe had the Russian scientist Alexei, the comic relief for Joyce and Hopper’s continuing romance, who run away with him. A pure and sweet little angel, who didn’t speak a word of English and just wanted to get to know America, drink cherry slushies and watch ‘Woody Bird’ cartoons. Although he was a bit elusive at times, deep down he was harmless, and he quickly became a favorite.

Then, without warning, he was killed in the middle of the Hawkins 4th of July fair. This served as a stark reminder that no one was safe on this series, as much as you loved its characters.

But realistically, where could his character have gone? The Russians weren’t going to let him defect, were they? So the chances of her living a quiet life in Hawkins were never going to happen. Sadly, from the moment Alexei first made us laugh, it was a foregone conclusion that his death was near.

Now, we’re devastated to say this, but if the Duffer Brothers continue this dynamic like they have in previous seasons, then it seems very likely that sweet Eddieour new favorite rocker, be in the eye of the hurricane. According to the fourth season of the series, he has already become “the sacrificial lamb” in a way, without even dying.

His sudden involvement with the group does not go beyond the six months he spent playing ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ with Dustin and Will. But now is experiencing the Upside Down, fighting supernatural forces without any long-term bond with Steve, Nancy, and Robin.

He has no romantic entanglements or family, so the only real thread to the plot is his attachment to Dustin, admitting that he wants to impress the young man.

The odds are against youand it seems that her great evil may come from something scarier than Vecna: the belief that Eddie is the devil.

Whatever happens to Vecna, the satanic panic that has shaken Hawkins isn’t going to go away any time soon, lest the entire Upside Down be exposed to the residents.

Satanic panic is a moral panic too real it was particularly prominent in the 80s and 90s, and especially in the so-called Bible Belt of the United States. By then, se blamed horrific murders on Satan or members of satanic cults who worshiped the devil. This was the reason the prosecution gave in the case of three misfit boys wrongly convicted of the murder of three children in Arkansas in 1993, in the now infamous “West Memphis Three” case.

In the UK, horror films nicknamed “Video Nasties” were banned in the 1980s as they were considered to encourage and incite violence. ‘The Exorcist’ was banned for 11 years, and was only released again in 1999. Will the same thing happen with the future trilogy by Blumhouse Pictures?

So what if you’re a well-known metal bandleader from something called The Hellfire Club, spend your days playing ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ and are present at almost unexplained murders of teenage residents? Okay… you become public enemy number one.

So even if he manages to survive the next battle against Vecna, there’s very little chance this teen will get the happy ending he deserves.

Let’s say this: We don’t know what’s going to happen, and we want to protect Eddie at all costs, but if the Duffer Brothers want a shocking death without losing any of the main cast, then sadly Eddie is going to be her boy.

Even if he doesn’t die, the multiple unexplained deathsincluding Chrissy Cunningham, Fred Benson and Patrick McKinney, will be attributed to him. Already doing so is Jason Carver, the high school jock who waited ten seconds to resort to violence and try to track down a terrified Eddie after Chrissy’s death.

Jason’s mob is dangerous, violent and vindictive. If he doesn’t kill him, the innocent young man will probably end up in jaillest a miracle save him at the last moment. In any case, it’s not the ending he deserves.

We hope we are wrong. And until we see it on screen, we will believe that we were wrong. Exclusively for DigitalSpy, actor Joseph has hinted that he survives at least until the fifth seasonindicating that he wants to return.

“Oh yeah, I think so. I don’t see why not. I’d be furious if they didn’t bring me back,” he said… which definitely sounds like there’s a chance he might.

But history has a habit of repeating itself in Hawkins.

Waiting for the fifth and final season, Netflix will premiere volume 2 of the fourth season of ‘Stranger Things’ on July 1.