BACK TO THE UPSIDE DOWN 2

TAKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE AS WE CELEBRATE SEASON TWO OF STRANGER THINGS

- WORDS: ADAM TANSWELL

ON 27 OCTOBER 2017, THE second season of Stranger Things dropped on Netflix, and audiences went wild. The Duffer Brothers triumphantly returned to the small screen with Hopper (David Harbour), Joyce (Winona Ryder), Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) and the gang of bike-riding buddies for nine episodic doses of supernatural scares and Mind Flayer madness. For season two there were some additions to the story in the form of skateboarding teen Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink), Max's mysterious stepbrother Billy Hargrove (Dacre Montgomery), Joyce's rather bumbling love interest Bob Newby (Sean Astin) and the enigmatic Dr Sam Owens (Paul Reiser). Millions across the globe tuned in.

When the action begins, it's 28 October 1984 and the camera focuses on a star-filled sky before panning down to an urban city street. It's been close to a year since we last saw Hawkins, Indiana, but the season two story opens in a new location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Viewers are introduced to an intriguing new character with a bloody nose and “008” sinisterly tattooed on her wrist. Sound familiar? Yep, we're back in the world of Stranger Things - complete with new mysteries, new creatures (hello Demodogs!) and even more danger from the Upside Down.

"We were in our own little bubble making the first season of Stranger Things, and the success was a surprise - but by the time the show came out, we were already working on season two," Matt Duffer told SFX during an interview at San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC) in July 2017. The Stranger Things co-creator was animated and excited as he chatted away after a jam-packed Hall H panel, where the team premiered a new trailer and answered questions from a hyped-up crowd.