Sci-fi monsters vs nerdy heroes? Stranger Things have happened

Jennifer Cartwright on Stranger Things

- 

It's been almost a decade since Stranger Things first arrived on our screens. The coming-of-age 1980s sci-fi transported us all to a time where the hair was bigger and the TVs smaller, the clothes brighter and the music louder. Now it's back and once again it is brilliant.

Fans have waited a long time for the final season of Stranger Things - three years, to be precise.

The cast, all in their 20s and 30s, are still playing teenagers, meaning entry into this season requires some suspension of disbelief before the supernatural happenings even resume.

At one moment, Wheeler matriarch Karen (Cara Buono) tells her husband that he doesn't even know how old their daughter Holly is. Ironically, it's difficult for us to remember too.

It's also difficult for us to remember all the action that has led up to now as the lore of Stranger Things has grown more convoluted with each instalment.

What was once a relatively simple story about a missing 12-year-old with a supernatural twist has turned into an epic fantasy saga with dozens of characters, subplots and even an Olivier Award-winning stage show.