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The upside down is full of hidden details! Join us as we explore the Easter eggs, references, and foreshadowing you might have missed in the latest episodes of Stranger Things. Our countdown includes Holly's literary choices, The Fall t-shirt, WSQK radio station, Back to the Future references, and more! What sneaky details did you catch? Let us know in the comments!
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the 10 easter eggs, references,
00:11and hidden details you may have missed in the newest episodes of Stranger Things.
00:15Beware, we will be talking about all four episodes, so major spoilers will follow.
00:20What did I tell you? 88 miles per hour!
00:25This literary nod is likely way more than just some fun character building.
00:39There are numerous times throughout the first two episodes that we see Madeline Lengel's seminal sci-fi novel A Wrinkle in Time.
00:45For those in the know, the book's plot mirrors the season's stakes perfectly.
00:49Lengel's classic book features a young girl traversing time and dimensions
00:53to save her father from a dark and spreading evil known as the Black Thing.
00:57How did you get here? It's dangerous, Lengel. You can't be here. How did you get here?
01:01You called out for us. We came for you. We're here to bring you home, Dad.
01:08Perhaps this will mirror a future journey in which Holly embarks to save Ted,
01:12or maybe it's a reference to her being inside the 50's Creel House, but there's more.
01:17With the book containing heavy themes of time travel, the flux capacitor reference,
01:21and with Mr. Clark teaching about wormholes in Episode 3.
01:24Could we have a bit of foreshadowing on our hands? Only time will tell.
01:29And, uh, just think of all the places mankind could go. Another galaxy. Another time, even.
01:37Number 9. Polly in Wonderland
01:40You may as well call this 1950's thing Wonderland, because Holly sure is Alice.
02:00Episodes 2 and 3 are chock full of references to the iconic book and 1951 film.
02:05Holly is taken through a mysterious hole into another dimension. A very technicolor dimension
02:10with bright hues and a popping larger-than-life color scheme. She follows Henry Creel,
02:15who looks mighty pale and has a brown vest and a pocket watch.
02:18Pocket watch.
02:21Tall?
02:22Vest. Okay, he wears a vest. Uh, he is gentle and kind.
02:29She sits at a long table and has tea with Henry. She gets a handwritten note in the mailbox. She
02:35dons a blue and white dress, which is a clear nod to Alice. And just in case you missed all these
02:40references, there's a poster for Alice in Wonderland hanging in the bedroom, just to drive the point
02:45home.
02:45I understand, but you cannot offer them comfort in Hawkins, Holly. The only comfort they have is
02:51knowing that you are here, safe, with me.
02:54Number 8. Will Singing
02:56Get your tissues ready, because this callback hits us right in the nostalgia.
03:09In the season opener's flashback to that fateful night in 1983, we see Will hiding inside Castle
03:15Byers and hiding from the Demogorgon. He shakily sings the clashes Should I Stay or Should I Go to
03:20Which fans will remember had a prominent role throughout Season 1 as Will's safe song.
03:25So, come on and let me know. Should I stay or should I go to...
03:32It's not just a callback. It's a narrative anchor. By returning to the song Jonathan used to bond with
03:37him, the show emphasizes that the series is ending where it began, with the Byers Brothers connection
03:43serving as the only light against the dark. It's a bit of an obvious one, but we had to include it
03:48for sheer nostalgia. Definitely.
03:55Number 7. Murray's Engagement Pun
04:00Santa's brought a full sack today!
04:10We can't overlook the cheeky bit of foreshadowing from everyone's favorite conspiracy theorist,
04:14Murray Bauman. If nothing else, Murray loves stirring the pot and digging into everyone's
04:19personal lives. During his drop-off in Episode 1, he gives Jonathan a John Coltrane cassette tape,
04:25saying that he'll find it, quote,
04:26quite engaging. You can immediately tell that something is off, given Murray's cheeky delivery
04:31of the line and Jonathan's panicked reaction.
04:33I know you're allergic to jazz, but just give it a whirl. I think you'll find it quite engaging.
04:41Indeed, we later see in Episode 3 that Murray has used the cassette to smuggle in an engagement ring.
04:47Murray's pun is easy to miss, but it's there. Because why would Murray pass up a chance to make
04:52a stupid pun? It won't be the first time he's made one to Nancy and Jonathan. Remember the iconic
04:57pull-out line from Season 2?
04:59So, Jonathan, how was the pull-out?
05:04Uh, sorry?
05:06The sofa.
05:09Number 6. The 88 decibels readout.
05:12Hey, anybody know how the Henderson's wheelie thing works?
05:14Uh, any ideas?
05:16There's a safety lock. Look for a small switch under the wheel.
05:18There should be a safety lock under the wheel.
05:21Safety lock. Real necessary.
05:24Great Scott!
05:25The Duffers love their 80s movie references and this one is tons of fun.
05:29In the first episode, Steve and Jonathan are tuning the new cerebral radio device in order to
05:35track Hopper's location in the Upside Down.
05:37Jonathan lets it build and build before finally telling Steve to drive once it hits 88 decibels.
05:42Should I move?
05:43No.
05:44Hold.
05:46Hold.
05:48Hold.
05:50Hold.
05:52Go!
05:54This is a clear and loving tip of the hat to Back to the Future,
05:59where the DeLorean must hit 88 miles per hour to travel through time.
06:02But as we've discussed, this season is dealing heavily with references to time travel,
06:07so the number isn't just a random digit.
06:10Could it be a visual cue suggesting that this van is going to be the key to traversing through time and space?
06:15A new DeLorean for a new generation?
06:17Wait a minute.
06:18Wait a minute, Doc.
06:19Are you telling me that you built a time machine out of a DeLorean?
06:26Number five, Will's Coke classic.
06:29You want to play the tape?
06:30I'm just, I'm going to go grab a Coke or something caffeinated because it's going to be a long night.
06:35You want one?
06:37No.
06:38I'm good.
06:39Thanks.
06:39The Cola Wars were a prominent aspect of 80s culture, with new Coke being an enormous flop.
06:45In season three, we see Lucas drinking a new Coke and waxing poetic about its qualities,
06:49much to the disappointment of his friends.
06:51But the remake?
06:52Sweeter, bolder, better.
07:07You're insane.
07:09Sorry Lucas, but you're on the wrong side of history here.
07:11Will buys a Coke in the hospital, and we see that it's a Coca-Cola classic.
07:15This is a subtle way of grounding us in late 1987,
07:19as the classic branding was reintroduced after the new Coke backlash.
07:23But maybe it goes even deeper than that.
07:25Maybe it represents a return to form.
07:27Just as the world rejected the new formula for the original,
07:30this season sees the show rejecting the epic cross-country dynamic
07:34to return to their classic season one roots.
07:37How much longer?
07:39What do you want me to do, Ted, huh?
07:41Kick him to the street?
07:43Is that an option?
07:44Number four, Austin Millbarge.
07:48I'm at Fitzhugh.
07:49Austin Millbarge.
07:50Murray Bauman is back with another fake identity,
07:53and this one is a bit of a deep cut.
07:55When trying to bluff his way through the military quarantine checkpoint,
07:58Murray gives the name Austin Millbarge.
08:01Hey, hey, how you doing?
08:03Austin Millbarge, ID 45289-er.
08:07That's me.
08:09This just so happens to be the name of Dan Aykroyd's character
08:12in the 1985 Cold War comedy Spies Like Us.
08:15The reference is hilariously appropriate for Murray.
08:18In that film, Millbarge is a brilliant but overlooked genius
08:21who gets recruited as a decoy spy to distract the enemy
08:24while the real agents do the work.
08:26He hilariously parallels Murray's role in the group,
08:29a conspiracy theorist who is technically a genius,
08:31but who constantly finds himself stumbling through high-stakes espionage
08:35way above his pay grade.
08:36We guess that military guy didn't see the movie.
08:39Enough bullets and shells for Hop to start a small war,
08:42if he should so choose.
08:45Anyone order a salad?
08:48Grenade salad?
08:50I hid the grenades under the, um, what is it?
08:53Number three, Holly's an American Tail poster.
08:56Production design tells a tragic story in Holly's bedroom,
09:15as we see a prominent poster for the 1986 animated film,
09:19An American Tail on her Wall.
09:20This movie tells the story of Fievel Mauskiewicz,
09:23a young mouse who gets separated from his family while immigrating to America,
09:26and spends the film trying to reunite with them.
09:29Oh, come on.
09:30What are you crying for?
09:31I can't get out of here, and I have to,
09:34so I can find my family.
09:37You lost your family?
09:40Mm-hmm.
09:41This is a heartbreaking parallel to Holly's arc throughout much of Season 5.
09:44Just like Fievel, she is a small, innocent character
09:47who is separated from her family and becomes lost in a vast and scary new world.
09:52It's a gut-wrenching detail that implies Holly isn't just a prisoner.
09:55She is actively wandering and searching,
09:58hoping that somewhere out there, her family is looking for her too.
10:02Somewhere out there, if love can see us through, then we'll be together.
10:21Number two, the missing person phone number.
10:24I think we still have some more of that waffle mix.
10:28And I think we should celebrate this record time with a stack of those.
10:33And then, maybe we could watch a Miami Vice marathon.
10:37Netflix marketing went all out for this one.
10:40In Episode 1, we see a missing person poster for Jane Hopper posted in the school.
10:44If you pause the show and look closely, the phone number listed can clearly be seen as
10:49765-303-2020.
10:52Unlike the usual fake 555 numbers that you see in movies and TV, this is actually a working
10:57number.
10:58If you dial it in real life, you get a pre-recorded voicemail from the Hawkins Police Department
11:02urging citizens to report sightings of the missing girl.
11:05It's a fantastic, immersive Easter egg that blurs the line between the show and reality.
11:10And it harkens back to the 1980s when cute marketing gimmicks like this were more common.
11:14Remember when Ghostbusters did the 1-800 thing?
11:17Have you or any of your family ever seen a spook, specter, or ghost?
11:21If the answer is yes, then don't wait another minute.
11:23Pick up your phone and call the professionals.
11:25Ghostbusters!
11:26Our courteous and efficient staff is on call 24 hours a day to serve all your supernatural
11:30elimination needs.
11:31We're ready to believe you!
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11:47Number 1.
11:50Jonathan's T-Shirt
11:51I don't see it.
11:53It's up there somewhere.
11:55It's gotta be.
11:56Taking the top spot is a potential piece of wardrobe foreshadowing that is both cool
12:01and terrifying.
12:02During the sequence in which Jonathan and Steve climb the radio tower, Jonathan can be
12:07wearing a t-shirt for the punk band The Fall.
12:09I, uh, I actually think this might be a better job for Jonathan Byers.
12:14I don't like one quarter monkey, dude.
12:16I got this, Byers.
12:17Don't sweat it.
12:18On the surface, this shirt fits his music taste perfectly.
12:21As we've known for a long time that he likes punk, specifically The Clash.
12:26But symbolically, it could be a dark omen.
12:29We're just saying it probably isn't a coincidence that Jonathan is wearing a fall t-shirt while
12:34climbing a massive radio tower.
12:36A climb that is explicitly mentioned as being very dangerous.
12:40Maybe it's just a fun visual gag.
12:42Hopefully that is all it is.
12:43But maybe, just maybe, it's a bit of foreshadowing.
12:45What fun easter eggs did you find?
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