A really great thing about the insanely popular show, Stranger Things, is its ability to (mostly) take tropes and clichés from classic 1980s film and television and subvert them in a way that's more realistic and refreshing, especially for the younger audience that adores the show and its characters.
And with these characters come inevitable changes that can make or break the show as it continues into its fourth season (set for release on Netflix in 2022). While there have been many changes throughout Stranger Things' first three seasons, some have been for the better, and some for the worse.
10 Worse, With Potential For Better: Allowing Problematic Tropes To Go Unchallenged
Since Stranger Things is an enormous love letter to nostalgia and horror/sci-fi of the 1980s, the show's creators borrow from many plot points and tropes from back then—the good and bad. One example is the subplot with Karen Wheeler and the other Hawkins mothers lusting after Billy Hargrove.
Billy is still a teenager and having this "jailbait" trope in the show go unchallenged is disappointing. However, the show does subvert expectations for the most part so there is potential in the coming seasons.
9 Better: Eleven's Relationships Outside Of Mike
While Mike and El's connection were a major plot point at the beginning of the show, moving away from their relationship in Season 3 was a great change.
While it's clear that they both mean a lot to each other and they will always love each other. They're still kids, so having El form a friendship with Max and become more independent of Mike was a huge development for her character. She was literally shown clinging to him at the beginning of Season 3.
8 Worse: Will's Increasing Isolation From The Others
Stranger Things kicked off with the disappearance of Will Byers and things were never quite the same. Will left the Upside Down at the end of Season 1 and in Season 2 he was free of the Mind Flayer's influence.
However, when everything had calmed down by the time Season 3 came around, Will was decidedly different from his friends. Puberty and girl trouble in Season 3, along with the fact that his friends don't want to play D&D, makes Will the continuous odd man out.
7 Better: Steve's Character Development
When Steve Harrington was first introduced, he was made out to be the stereotypical popular guy from '80s movies who was king of the school. He would say anything to get with the nice, smart girl Nancy Wheeler and then it turned out he was a complete jerk.
As Stranger Things has progressed, however, Steve has proven himself to not only be a good, stand-up guy but also a great babysitter in Season 2 and then a great friend and ally to Robin in Season 3.
6 Worse: Hopper's Slight Change In Personality
In Season 3, Jim Hopper's anger was very prevalent, and not something that was there in the earlier seasons. The Hopper from Season 1 is a smart and empathetic man, whose rescuing of Will and adoption of El are sort of redemptions for him.
However, the Hopper in Season 3 has grown very angry and loud, which may be a reflection of having to deal with teenagers, but it's still slightly off-putting for his character.
5 Better: Introducing Robin As LGBTQ+ Representation
Robin was Steve's sarcastic co-worker at Scoops Ahoy who had little patience for him. As Season 3 went on, Robin became a part of the group as she helped Steve and Dustin crack the Russian code.
Robin's coming out to Steve was such a fresh development in the show and it was done in a way that felt realistic for the times. The fact that Steve and Robin became best friends made it all the better.
4 Worse: Mike's Smug, Annoying Growing Pains
While Hopper's anger problems may be off-putting for his character, it's also an understandable reaction to the disrespect he receives from his daughter's boyfriend, Mike. Mike has always been a bit of an immature character but his heart has been in the right place, like when his priorities were finding his best friend Will and helping El.
Mike's treatment of everyone in Season 2, especially Max, was out of line, and even when El returned and they could be together, his personality devolved further into unpleasant angst.
3 Better: The Fashion Reflects The Time, Especially In The Midwest
While many may associate the 1980s fashion with neon colors and spandex, the reality was that a lot of the fashion was different shades of brown and a bit frumpy, particularly in Midwestern towns like Hawkins, Indiana.
While Season 1 was filled with more neutral colors and muted clothing, the introduction of Max and Billy from California brought a bit more modern clothing to Hawkins, and everything became more colorful and fashionable, especially El's fabulous wardrobe, thanks to access from the mall in Season 3.
2 Worse: Glossing Over Billy's Racism
Billy threatens Max and tells her to stay away from Lucas, and while Billy doesn't outright say it, his issue is implied to be based on Lucas' race.
It's revealed later that Billy's anger comes from his father's abuse, but there's no indication that his father was racist. Billy's early racism is glossed over, making his eventual redemption bothersome.
1 Better, With Potential For Worse: The Show's Growing Scale
With Season 4 somewhere on the horizon, the stakes have been raised, as it's been confirmed that Hopper is alive and somewhere in the Soviet Union. Since Season 3 took place in 1985, it's a fair assumption that Season 4 will be in 1986 which just so happens to be the year of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
Each season of the show has gotten bigger in scale and with one fan theory that links the show to Chernobyl, the show's scale could increase further.