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Stranger Things Season 4 Teaser Reminds Us Who the Real Monster Is

And it's not the Demogorgon.

We’re heading back to Hawkins, Indiana in the second teaser trailer for Netflix’s Stranger Things season 4. (The first teaser being about Hopper.) With this teaser comes the disbelief that it’s been almost two years since season 3, which is by far the best season, in my book. And this teaser just proves that some monsters (human and otherworldly) just keep coming back for more, even after they’re defeated. Or even after we all think that they’ve been defeated.

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The teaser for Stranger Things season 4 shows a bunch of children that look like Eleven, with the shorn off hair and hospital gown combo, having a good ol’ time in the rainbow room. They’re playing with each other, laughing in a manner that is absolutely creepy, and building things like this is just a regular thing that they do every day of the week and twice on Sundays.

That’s when things get even more creepy. A silhouetted man, who absolutely looks like Dr. Martin Brenner, starts approaching the rainbow room. He goes through the door, greeting them and having them, in turn, call him “papa” just like Eleven did when we met her way back in season one. He speaks with them and says, “I have something very special planned for you.”

The camera pans over as Brenner is having this conversation with the kids., heavy breathing playing in the background as we approach a door. The closer we get to said door, the louder the music gets and the clearer the number on the door becomes. It’s the number 11. Brenner then says, “Eleven, are you listening?” before we see Eleven opening her eyes for a brief moment.

Then the screen goes black and we’re all left wondering what the hell we just watched.

But one thing is for sure: Eleven isn’t as alone as she thinks she is. There are plenty of other children who called Brenner “papa” and who were experimented on just like she was in the rainbow room. The thing is, are they loyal to Brenner, the real monster of this series who experimented on children and used them for his purposes and that of the governments? Or will they side with Eleven in her battle to stop the Demogorgon and his realm from destroying us?

Whatever comes next, I’m looking forward to the fan theories, more teases, and the potential for this series to make a return by the end of this year or into the next.

(image: Netflix)

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Lyra Hale
Lyra (She/Her) is a queer Latinx writer who stans badass women in movies, TV shows, and books. She loves crafting, tostones, and speculating all over queer media. And when not writing she's scrolling through TikTok or rebuilding her book collection.

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