Essays on Eighties Nostalgia, Cynicism and Innocence in the Series
Edited by Kevin J. Wetmore, Jr
The success of ‘Stranger Things’ comes as no surprise. The 80s are far enough in the past to seem distant enough for comment yet near enough to feel fresh in the mind. This is a superb collection of 23 new essays exploring the influences of the series.
For example, take ‘Stranger (The) Thing: Echoes of John Carpenter in the Series’ by John Palisano, which really illustrates the sheer quality of this book. (Plus I love John Carpenter’s work, big time – Big Trouble!) John Palisano rightly acknowledges the huge influence of the Western (surely the American cinematic art form) on John Carpenter’s work and Palisano wisely sees ‘Stranger Things’ as a Western in the Mode of Carpenter.
I have commented on just one essay for the purposes of this review, but they are all great, rest assured. This is a worthy collection of essays for a worthy television series.
Published by McFarland
