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Dissecting Pop Culture
The Feminism of Stranger Things 3 Is Unwatchable
Male writers once again being clueless about feminist characters
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Stranger Things 3.
Here are two truths: I’m a Stranger Things fan, and I’m also a feminist. Because of these facts, a large part of me hollered with joy when the third season of the show began to invest in the friendship between El and Max.
Girls hanging out alone, without boys? And talking to each other? Woah.
But soon enough, I groaned at how arid it all became. And how parched it left me as a viewer.
It was as if one of the writers (in the team led by the Duffer brothers — who are two men, by the by) stumbled upon a feminist bumper sticker in a gift shop and decided to slap it on the show. As if the writers had read a handful of think pieces and decided that, because of feminism’s current popularity, viewership might ramp up if they added bits here and there.
It didn’t work. Not for me, anyway. Watching the show felt like sucking on a dried-out orange, hoping for some juice but only finding an unsatisfying pulp.
Not sure what I’m talking about? Keep reading.
