FourStranger Thingstrailers were releasedas far back as February 2020, teasing a quartet of plots in the show’s highly anticipated season 4, volume 1. Now, fans have some fantastic posters to go with the trailers! Each mysterious yet telling image betrays siphoned-off storylines with compartmentalized character developments, giving us lots of relational conflicts and supernatural goings-on to expect in this year’s long-awaited new season.
So, what can fans expect from the quartet ofStranger Thingsstorylines? Let’s see what the posters have revealed.
Poster 001
The first poster is captioned: “001. Russia. Getting the band back together. Bring a jacket.” The numbering of the posters harkens back to Jane’s (Millie Bobby Brown) original name, 011. Three people are inside a snowy, bleak Russian prison compound, with campfire remains and weapons and tools strewn about. The person in the center is a shaven and overworked Sheriff Hopper, played byDavid Harbour. He has spent an unknown amount of time laboring in a USSR prison since somehowtraveling through the entrance to the Upside Down at the end of season 3. He looks determinedly over his shoulder toward the viewer, with a no-nonsense attitude.
The person to Hopper’s left isWinona Ryder’s Joyce Byers. This indicates that either Hopper has found a way to contact her with his whereabouts or that Joyce believed he survived the explosion of the Upside Down portal and has been relentlessly searching for him, similar to how she did with her son, Will. Or, perhaps, outside parties have conspired to reunite the almost lovers.
Related:These Are the Best Winona Ryder Movies, RankedThe person to Hopper’s right is, as of now, unknown. He could be an ally of Joyce’s there to assist in rescuing Hopper, or he could be a fellow inmate with whom Hopper has built an alliance. Regardless, the caption supports that Hopper has reunited with at least a few of his friends from Hawkins and can look forward to soon returning to American soil.
Poster 002
The second poster shows only Millie Bobby Brown’s Jane inside the broken down Hawkins National Laboratory, where she was raised as a weapon. There are broken equipment and papers scattered along the hallway. Jane appears to be hesitating, gazing fearfully ahead, hair pulled back and ready for action. The poster is captioned: “002. The Lab. Every story starts somewhere.” It can be gathered that some serious plot developments are forcing Jane to return to the sight of her past horrors.
Though he is absent from the artwork, fans can look forward toMatthew Modine’s returnas the sinister “Papa” in this laboratory environment.
Poster 003
The third poster has to do with the infamous Creel House, the run-of-the-mill gothic mansion with a gruesome past, hiding some dark connection to the Upside Down and the Hawkins Lab. The poster is captioned: “Creel House. Tick-Tock.” A giant grandfather clock stares the characters down, the source of that “tick-tock” theme. The gathering of cast members indicates the most camaraderie in the season will be amongst this group, despite the dark and terrifying set, particularly since Steve and Dusty are together again amongst these ranks.
Related:Stranger Things Renewed for Fifth and Final Season at NetflixThe closest standing together are Max (Sadie Sink) and Lucas (Caleb Ronald McLaughlin), making fans smile that the adorable couple is apparently still going strong. In the following line, from left to right, is Steve (Joe Keery), dapper as ever while watching over Dusty (Gaten Matarazzo), with Lucas' sister Erica (Priah Ferguson) at the far right. At the front of the line are Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Robin (Maya Hawke), maintaining eye contact.
Nancy is Steve’s old flame, and Robin is his best friend after the events of season 3. Just these three being together in a group, most notably without Nancy’s boyfriend Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) anywhere to be seen, could be a juicy subplot. Steve was mostly okay after he and Nancy grew apart, and she eventually chose Jonathan over him and has since pursued his friendships and interests. Will their adrenaline-charged time together in the Creel House, with Robin there to vouch for Steve’s superior character and overall awesomeness, reignite some old passions or regrets for Nancy?
Poster 004
The fourth poster is quite fun, captioned: “004. California. Hold onto your butts, brochachos.” A bike is cast aside, a sign of discarded childhood and innocence, while Will (Noah Schnapp) and Mike (Finn Wolfhard) look to each other for strength as they walk into a rising (or setting?) California sun. The furthest figure is probably Jonathan Byers, while the person to the left can be recognized from the teaser trailer as a pizza van-driving new face. The Byers now live in California, but what is Mike doing without Jane? Who is back in Hawkins at the lab? One thing’s for sure – pizza will be central to this season’s plot.
The Common Link
All four groups in the posters have in common: they are all advancing to a tentacled portal to the Upside Down. It is glowing, fiery red and spelling doom with the same text on each poster: “Every Ending has a Beginning,” which seems like a characteristic backward play on more conventional wording. The storylines will likely converge at the end of the season, at the Upside Down portal central to the finished and final poster depicting all the teams.
The duality of previousStranger Thingsimagery is known to us, but why is it now four-sided? Why do we have a box rather than the split-screen we’ve come to recognize, a kind of symbol of four dimensions rather than the two we are used to? The Upside Down has always been darkness and evil, while the Rightside Up is the ordinary world of Hawkins. A place for good, friendship, and sacrifice. Why has season 4 doubled these dimensions? Could it just be for dramatic effect, or can audiences expect deeper symbolism behind these captivating and revealing posters?
