“Don’t you think it’s weird…that we only seem to hang out when the world’s about to end?” – Nancy, aka Nance
The residents of Hawkins, Indiana have been through a lot. At least the ones we got to know back in Season 1 of Stranger Things: the Netflix show that unexpectedly became a meme-generating, merch- selling phenomenon last summer (#justiceforbarb). Whether it was losing a best friend, getting trapped in a supernatural underworld by a demonic presence, or having their very first crush on a girl, these characters endured some heavy stuff.
And that’s where Season two picks up. Enough time has passed (almost a year, or 353 days to be exact) so that it feels like things should be back to normal in this small Midwestern town. But “should” doesn’t always line up with reality, especially when trauma is involved. And that incongruity is highlighted from the first episode of this surprisingly strong sophomore effort. On the surface, it seems like Will Byers has settled back into his old life after having almost died in the Upside Down. Remember how we barely ever saw Will in Season 1, except in flashbacks or as an unconscious prisoner? Well he’s now a main character, with the 80s bowl haircut that all of our moms really should have had the good sense to avoid. But in truth neither his mental nor his physical health have fully recovered – he’s secretly coughing up strange things into the sink and losing time to what appears to be flashbacks to the dark world he was caught in for so long.
I’ve seen other articles praising Noah Schnapp, the young actor who plays Will, and I agree that his impressive performance holds so much of this season together. From the minute he appears on-screen, there’s a specter of sickness and foreboding that hangs over Will, even as he tries so hard to fit back in with his family and friends. As much as they care and worry about him, they can never really understand what he’s experienced, so his isolation from them becomes another heartbreak he has to endure.
Of course Will may be the most traumatized of everyone – if that’s the sort of thing you can even measure – but he’s certainly not the only character dealing with grief, confusion and shock. Nancy (Natalia Dyer) seems happily coupled up with Steve (Joe Keery), but can’t get past her guilt at losing Barb (yes, Barb, she was a thing, RIP Barb and just fyi that Shannon Purser is on Riverdale now). Will’s mom, Joyce (Winona Ryder) has a wonderful new boyfriend named Samwise, I mean Bob (Sean Astin), but can’t feel safe whenever Will’s not in her sights. And Chief Hopper (David Harbour), who never tried to hide being a screw-up, is having secret rendezvous with someone in the woods. And then there also are plenty of new characters, all of whome seem just as damaged as everyone else.
And I haven’t even talked about Will’s brother, Jonathon(Charlie Heaton), Will’s friends, Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Lucas(Caleb McLaughlin) and Dustin(Gaten Matarazzo), and this Eggo-fiend with a shaved head, you might remember she went by Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown). One of the strengths of this show is that with an ensemble cast so big, you figure you’re bound to get stuck with a few dud characters or storylines that drag. But in the world of Stranger Things, every subplot or side character is moving enough, endearing enough, or at least has ridiculous enough hair, to keep you interested. And Season 2 plays to that strength by mixing things up and pairing people off in new ways. Ever want to see a buddy comedy starring John Hughs-esque heartthrob Steve and the adorable moppet/smart aleck Dustin? You will after this. And while none of the new characters really steal the scene (good luck with that with the incomporable Millie Bobby Brown around) – Paul Reiser’s suspicious doctor, the very sweet Bob and Max, the new kid in town, all come close – none of them diminish the amazing chemistry the original cast already established.
If the show – and particularly this season – has a weakness, it’s in the recycled feel of the scifi elements in some storylines. Why did it feel so fresh last year to see a bunch of rag-tag kids taking on all kinds of evil – real world and supernatural – as they biked through the 80s, the decade perfectly recreated with every shoulder pad and hair metal band on the soundtrack? Maybe because we weren’t yet in the middle of a Stephen King-assaince? (Seeing Finn Wolfhard in this and IT definitely blurs the line). Maybe just cause this season was bound to feel like a call back to itself? Anyway, it’s not the perfect pop culture reverence that bothers me – put an ET doll in a scene where a character feeds his new alien pet some candy any day – I get it and I love it. But some of the plot starts to feel like a paint-by-the-numbers for anyone who’s followed sci-fi movies or TV for the past 30 years. The aforementioned “cute” alien pet that quickly gets not so cute. Check. A ragtag group of rebel youth, some with special powers. Check. A bitter father-figure and precocious but violent child who team up to battle evil. Ugh, Logan was great though, wasn’t it? Let’s just say there were times when I wanted the show to surprise me and it didn’t get quite there.
But that’s not to say I was ever bored. I binged the entire thing in one day, and sure, maybe that’s partly because I was on deadline for this, but the truth is I would have done it anyway. Once things really start rolling at the end of episode two – and that’s the Halloween episode, so get ready for some throwback costume perfection – I was along for the ride. And I suspect you will be too. The Duffer Brothers – who created the show and write and direct a good percentage of the episodes – are just too good at getting you hooked, at making you care. You’ll notice in the first few paragraphs of this review I mention a lot of words like “trauma”, “foreboding”, “heartbreak” and “isolation”. So you might have been asking yourself if you were gonna have any fun watching this. Absolutely you are – it’s also a riot – with the jokes and callbacks you’ve been dying for since you binged season 1 last July. And that’s what gets you – that combination of so many great, original characters, who go through some really interesting and serious emotional development, plus all the meme-able dad jokes you could want. All that makes Stranger Things a highly addicting TV show and thoroughly satisfying way to spend nine hours on your couch, even if the world will be ending soon.
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr., affectionately known as Jr NTR, has consistently enthralled audiences with his dynamic performances and versatile acting prowess. Following the successful release of “Devara: Part 1” on September 27, 2024, fans are eagerly anticipating his forthcoming projects. Here’s an overview of what’s next for this action superstar.
1. Devara: Part 2
After the resounding success of “Devara: Part 1,” which grossed over ₹466 crore globally, the sequel is highly anticipated. Director Koratala Siva has hinted that “Devara: Part 2” will be even more intense, stating that if Part 1 showcased 10% of Jr NTR’s capabilities, Part 2 will unveil the remaining 90%. Filming is slated to commence in the first half of 2026, with a targeted release by the end of that year.
2. War 2
Expanding his horizons, Jr NTR is set to make his Hindi film debut with “War 2,” directed by Ayan Mukerji. This sequel to the 2019 blockbuster “War” will see him sharing screen space with Hrithik Roshan and Kiara Advani. The film is part of the YRF Spy Universe and is scheduled for release on August 14, 2025, coinciding with the Indian Independence Day weekend.
3. NTR 31 (Tentative Title: Dragon)
In collaboration with acclaimed director Prashanth Neel, Jr NTR will star in a period drama tentatively titled “Dragon.” The film is set to delve into themes of immigration and is expected to be one of the most expensive projects for both the actor and the director. The movie is slated for a grand release on January 9, 2026.
Why Jr NTR is the Action Hero Everyone Wants to See
Jr NTR’s appeal as an action hero stems from his ability to seamlessly blend intense physicality with deep emotional resonance. His performances are characterized by a compelling screen presence, dynamic energy, and a remarkable ability to connect with audiences across diverse roles. This unique combination of skills has solidified his status as a leading figure in Indian cinema, making him the action hero everyone wants to see.
With a lineup of diverse and high-profile projects, Jr NTR continues to push cinematic boundaries and captivate audiences worldwide. His dedication to his craft and ability to reinvent himself with each role ensure that fans have much to look forward to in the coming years.
Headed to a wilderness retreat of a wealthy pharmaceutical CEO to hopefully land a lucrative job, widower Elliot and his reluctant daughter Ridley manage to have a car accident with a heretofore-thought creature out of legend, and hijinks ensue!
Oh this is an absolute gem of a movie y’all, brought to you by the genius minds of film production company A24, a delightful blend of horror and campy, almost idiotic, comedy. Make sure your seatbelt is buckled and let’s dive into this!
So Ridley (Jenna Ortega) is you typical teenager, angsty and missing her passed-on mother, full of acne troubles and secretly vaping while her dad Elliot (Paul Rudd) ignores her for much more than appearance purposes, while he schmoozes his way into the good graces of the family they’re going to stay with. Elliot ignores everything but his continued greed, for both money and continuous stability for him and Ridley, really, he swears, so when the misty mountains cause their electronics to go haywire and Elliot’s busy with that crisis, he doesn’t notice until it’s too late and BAM. You’ve hit an actual unicorn with your car.
Like most girls, Ridley can’t help but be fascinated by the poor mythical horse-like creature, and of course she reaches out to grasp the glowing horn, filling her head full of magic and her eyes full of stars and the cosmos, while Elliot has a much more, let’s say visceral, reaction. But rather than calling, I dunno, some sort of wildlife preserve or the cops or even considering burying the unfortunate horned horse, no, the baby is loaded like a downed stag into the back of Elliott’s car and they hurry on to the CEO’s wilderness retreat.
It makes sense that the changes to Ridley’s appearance are the first thing that allows O’Dell (Richard E. Grant) and his greedy, grasping family to understand that the body of the unicorn has healing properties. Wife Belinda (Tea Leoni) is your typical utterly vapid socialite who helps the poor downtrodden of whatever’s currently popular third world country, not for the do-gooder part of it, but for the optics. And their son Shepard (Will Poulter) is a walking poster boy for the arrogant frat boy type who could never settle on just one thing to be or do, and so he tries them all – archery, photography, mixology, music and various forms of pharmaceuticals, all while sporting these terrible fashion choices in shorts and rambling proudly about his nonexistent accomplishments. Griff (Anthony Carrigan) is the family butler and general verbal punching bag, and let us not forget the unfortunate pair of doctoral research scientists who get called in to examine the unicorn, Dr. Song (Steve Park) and Dr. Bhatia (Sunita Mani).
So we have a family of covetous types who all want to divy the unicorn up and sell its various parts for as much wealth and power as they can get, plus the pair of scientists who are flabbergasted to find themselves dissecting an actual unicorn that, hey, guess what, isn’t actually dead for really-real yet. Elliott’s trying to procure his and Ridley’s slice of the action, though honestly, his lawyerly powers of persuasion seem to be rather lacking in this regard, while Ridley is off doing some actual research on medieval unicorns and what the ancient legends in tapestries had to say about them. You know how the modern genie, with his Arabian lamp and his three wishes with their horrifically ironic consequences, actually stems from the ancient legend of that old monster, the creature born from fire that wants nothing more than to destroy all human life on Earth, the Djinn? Our modern legends and beliefs about unicorns is kinda like that.
So everyone, even our scientists with their experiments and O’Dell supposedly being an experienced animal hunter, seems to have forgotten that a horse is a mammal and therefore, has parents. And while everyone is concerning themselves with what to use the babies’ various parts for, only Ridley seems to have realized, that the babies’ sire and dam are coming for it!
We all know horses are smart, and that humans and horses can form an almost mythical bond, but when a stallion or even a dam’s ire is raised, they can attack and defend just as well as any rampaging beast, and do present a very real and dire threat. And these particular horses, with their shaggy midnight-black coats and hooves the size of monster-truck hubcaps, their fangs and absolute righteous rage at their baby being stolen, not to mention both mom and dad’s inherently magical nature, and those utterly badass war-unicorn horns, are here to wreak utter destruction and death upon the humans that would dare to eat, drink and snort, their baby!
Full of utterly ridiculous fun with human greed and the scarcely-remembered wonder of those magical creatures you heard about as a child, cheer along with the Jurassic Park-like screech of our rampaging parents to save their baby, in Death of a Unicorn, in theaters now!
Upcoming NTR Junior projects
“Death of a Unicorn: A24’s Twisted Fairytale You Won’t Forget”
WonderCon 2025: A Faith Full Dickens Tale & The King of Kings Animated Movie
WonderCon 2025: Fade to Black Interviews
Top 10 Unexpected Movies Where The Bad Guy Wins
