Stranger Things season 4: Viewers complain over ‘ridiculous’ explanation to season three cliffhanger

Fans are racing their way through season four of Stranger Things – and already one storyline has some viewers riled up.

Season four of the hit Netflix series arrived on Friday (27 May), with seven new episodes now available to watch.

*Spoilers for Stranger Things season four, episode two below*

Season three ended with Hopper (David Harbour) left presumably dead after a plan to blow up the Russian lab gate to the Upside Down went awry, leaving him inside the chamber with the bomb.

While it appeared that Hopper sacrificed his life for the cause, many people suspected that he was not truly dead.

This speculation was not long after confirmed in the earliest teasers for the new series that saw Hopper alive and imprisoned in a Russian camp.

Episode two of season four reveals exactly how Hopper survived – and fans are not impressed.

While some people proposed that perhaps Hopper might have jumped through the gate to the Upside Down to survive or found a secret trapdoor, the real explanation is far more simple.

open image in gallery

The scene shows that Hopper merely jumped off the platform where the laser machine was located and managed to dodge the explosion. He was shrouded in smoke and left unconscious, but eventually came to and was taken prisoner by Russian soldiers.

While it makes sense that Joyce (Winona Ryder) wouldn’t have time to look for Hopper after the explosion, knowing that he was simply unconscious on the floor in front of her has proven to be a frustrating explanation.

Many viewers agreed that it felt unsatisfying to discover there is not a more elaborate reveal behind his character’s survival.

One person wrote on Twitter: “The way Hopper ‘survives’ is SO ridiculous it fr made me so mad like – everyone evaporated but noooo if I jump to the floor I survive, don’t I?”

“Man, of all the ways they could have had Hopper survive that explosion, Stranger Things definitely went with ‘everyone left and didn’t notice,’” said another.

open image in gallery

Others pointed out that the same explosion, which Hopper survived by simply ducking, evaporated the soldiers surrounding him.

A third person asked: “HOW DID HOPPER SURVIVE WHEN THE MACHINE EXPLODED??? IT MELTED THE SOLDIERS IN THEIR UNIFORMS.”

“How tf did Hopper survive that?” questioned someone else. “Bro, Hopper [just] jumped. How did he survive that?”

The new season of Stranger Things has brought with it a new villain, Vecna. Find out more about the frightening antagonist and his true identity here.

Fans have also been reminded of another Netflix release: last year’s Fear Street trilogy. Here is how the two hits are related.

Weird Al Yankovich has also reacted to hearing his name referenced in a joke in the new season.