HOLLYWOOD—Relationships are changing and building in this episode of “Stranger Things”. The presence of Eleven and the monster has changed the dynamics throughout Hawkins.
Jonathan and Nancy are still trying to find each other as Nancy is stuck in the “Upside Down”. They can hear each other and the monster can sense Nancy. Luckily for her she finds the gateway in the tree at the same time Jonathan finds it in our reality. Jonathan pulls Nancy out before the monster can get her and the tree grows back over the gateway. Steve, Carol and Tommy drive to Nancy’s house so Steve can check in on her, but all he sees is Jonathan in her room.
Chief Hopper tells Joyce about what he saw in Hawkins Laboratory, including the child’s room with the child’s drawing. He had thought this was where Will was, but they both figure out that this may have been the room of another child. Hopper finds out the address of Terry Ives, a woman who had sued Dr. Brenner twelve years when her daughter went missing. Horror fanatics, can we guess who this missing daughter might be?
At Mike’s house he kicks down Eleven’s empty hiding spot before Dustin comes to visit him. Dustin has come to speak reason. He points out that Mike, Eleven and Lucas were all being jerks previously, but since Mike pushed Lucas first, he needs to apologize.
Nancy had asked Jonathan to stay the night in her bed because neither of them wanted to be alone after meeting the monster. In the morning they speculate about the monster coming to the conclusion that it is a single predator that can sense blood, like a shark. They want to test out theories by meeting with the monster on purpose.
Mike and Dustin arrive at Lucas’ house, but Lucas will not make up with Mike unless he promises Eleven is out of the picture. When Mike doesn’t agree to this Lucas says he is going to look for the gateway by himself. Dustin later talks to Mike about Lucas being jealous, because Mike wants to give all his attention to Eleven now. Eleven wakes up in the woods by herself, heads to the general store and steals some frozen waffles while breaking the glass door with her mind on the way out.
Hopper and Joyce arrive at Terry Ives’ house, but her sister says they won’t be able to get any answers out of her. Terry seems to not be talking and won’t move away from the TV. When Hopper and Joyce question Ives’ sister, she says that Terry was a part of Dr. Brenner’s experiments twelve years ago. These experiments included having Terry take experimental drugs, and at the time Terry didn’t know she was pregnant. All of the doctors claimed that Terry had miscarried in her third trimester, but Terry claimed she had given birth to her daughter and her daughter had special telekinetic powers. Lucas arrives at the gate surrounding Hawkins Laboratory.
Jonathan and Nancy go to the local army surplus store and buy bear traps, bullets and other weapons. As they leave someone drives by and makes a comment about “Nancy’s Movie”. Nancy and Jonathan arrive at the movie theater where someone has spray painted in the upcoming movie slot, “Nancy the Slut Starring Nancy Wheeler”. In the alleyway Nancy confronts Steve and slaps him. Steve starts making comments about Jonathan’s crazy family and that it is no surprise Will died. This leads to a fight that local police break up, but are only able to take Jonathan into custody. At the police station the receptionist points out to Nancy that only love will make a guy act that crazy and dumb.
Mike and Dustin continue to look for Eleven in the woods, but instead encounter their two bullies. One of the bullies has a knife and the boys ditch their bikes and run towards the lake where Will’s “body” had been pulled out. The bully with the knife gets ahold of Dustin and holds him at knife point. He says he will let Dustin go if Mike jumps off the way too high cliff into the lake as payback.
Mike walks to the edge and I am wondering where Eleven is. Mike jumps! The bullies and Dustin look over the edge of the cliff to see if Mike is alive and they see him floating in mid-air. We know who has saved Mike! Mike floats back up and is placed safely near the other boys. An angry Eleven comes marching towards the boys throwing one bully back and breaking the other one’s arm with her mind. The bullies run and Eleven collapses telling the boys she is the monster because she had opened the gateway. Mike and Dustin tell her she isn’t a monster and they give her a group hug.
In the flashback Eleven is being submerged in the water as Dr. Brenner and guests watch. Eleven is supposed to contact the monster and as she goes into her mind she sees the monster in the dark room. She walks right up to it, touches it and as it roars at her she screams and cracks start to run down the laboratory walls. In the present a Hawkins Laboratory man calls in that Mike, Dustin and Eleven are headed back to Mike’s house.
Only two more episodes left, horror fanatics! Sleep tight and don’t let the monsters bite!