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5 Things We Learned From the “Stranger Things” Season 2 Teaser

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The game was pretty great last night. But for us, it was all about “Stranger Things.”

As promised, the first teaser for the second season of Netflix’s nostalgic series premiered during the Super Bowl last night, and though it was only 30-seconds long, it was more than enough to whet our appetite and, well, let’s be honest: it made us so goddamn happy. We also learned quite a bit about the new season from the trailer, despite how short-but-sweet it may have been.

What did we learn, you ask? Here are the 5 most important things.

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1) PREMIERING ON HALLOWEEN!

We knew that “Stranger Things” was returning this year, but it wasn’t until last night that we learned it’ll be hitting Netflix on the most perfect day of the year for it to premiere: Halloween, of course! That’s right, all nine episodes of Season 2 will be available for streaming on October 31st, and if you’re thinking you’ll probably spend the entire day on the couch binging the whole damn thing, just know that you won’t be alone. The wait is a bit longer than expected (Season 1 premiered last July), but we’d rather them take their time than rush to get it up before it’s ready.

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2) SET ON HALLOWEEN!

We already picked up on this when the above screen-grab hit the net prior to the Super Bowl, but not only will the second season of “Stranger Things” premiere on Halloween, it’s also set right around Halloween! As evidenced by the kids wearing Ghostbusters costumes (the film was released in June of ’84), the second season looks to take place in late October of 1984 – just about one year after the events of the first season. There’s also a shot in the teaser of Will Byers being tested in the wake of his Upside Down nightmare: the timestamp indicates it’s 10/30/84.

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3) NEW MONSTER!

We got two glimpses of the second season’s new monster in the “Stranger Things” Super Bowl spot, first courtesy of a drawing and then an actual shot of the monster against an eerie red backdrop. But what the hell is this creature, which looks like something out of The Mist? You may remember that Season One ended just as it began, with the kids playing Dungeons & Dragons, and in the game they encountered the Thessalhydra: a monster that has multiple, snake-like heads and a deadly tail. Season One’s Demogorgon was inspired by a D&D character, so it stands to reason that the season finale’s reference to the Thessalhydra was a big time Season 2 clue. And judging by what we’ve seen so far, the new monster sure looks similar to the Thessalhydra.

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4) ELEVEN LIVES!

Season One of “Stranger Things” ended with Eleven seemingly sacrificing herself to kill the Demogorgon, but we were pretty sure that we hadn’t seen the last of the beloved character. Indeed Millie Bobby Brown will be reprising the role of Eleven in Season 2, and the teaser gave us our first glimpse of her coming back to life. At the start of the teaser, we see her opening her eyes with blood dripping from her nose; fittingly, she’s upside down in that shot. We’ll likely have to wait until October to find out what really happened to Eleven; how is she still alive?!

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5) MORE HOMAGES!

One of the coolest things about the first season of “Stranger Things” is that it was loaded with homages to ’80s movies like A Nightmare on Elm Street, Poltergeist, E.T., and Stand By Me; and it looks like Season 2, also set in the ’80s, will continue that tradition. In less than 30-seconds of footage, we’ve already seen our first homage from Season 2. There’s a shot in the teaser of Will standing in front of an open door, with an otherworldly glow lighting up the sky outside, and that moment is almost directly lifted from Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Should be fun to watch the new season and pick out all the little Easter eggs.

If you missed it, you can watch the Season 2 Super Bowl spot below!

Writer in the horror community since 2008. Editor in Chief of Bloody Disgusting. Owns Eli Roth's prop corpse from Piranha 3D. Has four awesome cats. Still plays with toys.

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AreYouWatching.com: ‘The Watchers’ Interactive Website Is Full of Creepy Easter Eggs

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Are you watching? Ishana Night Shyamalan has clearly been paying attention to her father, M. Night Shyamalan. Not only is she following in his footsteps as a filmmaker, but she’s also embracing a similar mystique surrounding her work.

The new trailer for her feature directorial debut, The Watchers, gives viewers a taste of what’s in store. AreYouWatching.com has launched with even more clues.

Visit the site to join the mysterious creatures that lurk in the Irish forest as you observe a shelter. From the time the sun sets at 7:30 PM until it rises at 5:55 AM, four strangers played by Dakota Fanning, Georgina Campbell, Oliver Finnegan, and Olwen Fouere can be seen trapped inside.

You’ll find several interactive items. Click on the gramophone to set the mood with some spooky music. Tap on the birdcage to hear an ominous message from the parrot inside: “I’m going out, try not to die.” Press on the TV to watch clips from a fake reality show called Lair of Love. And if you tap on the window during the daytime … they’ll tap back.

There are also Easter eggs hidden at specific times. We’ve discovered three: a disorienting shot of Fanning’s character’s car at 5:52 PM, a closer view of the captives at 11:11 PM, and a glimpse of monitors at 12:46 AM. Let us know if you find any more in the comments…

The Watchers opens in theaters on June 14 via New Line Cinema. Ishana Night Shyamalan writes and directs, based on the 2022 novel of the same name by A.M. Shine. M. Night Shyamalan produces.

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