Stranger Things 4: Volume 2 teaser promises, get this, even stranger things

Stranger Things is coming to an end. Not today, not tomorrow. But soon. The kids are growing up, and their innocent little faces will soon be that of a world-weary grownup. Mike Wheeler will have real problems, like taxes, a career, and whether or not he’s getting enough fiber. He won’t have time to seal up yet another Hellmouth opening at the Star Court. And if he does, he’ll be tried as an adult for causing so much mischief in the Upside Down.

But today is not that day. Today is the day Netflix, as part of its revered [sigh] Geeked Week celebration, shares sneak peeks with said geeks. And to think, Netflix could’ve just called it “Sneak Peek Week” instead of insulting the very fanbase its hope to attract. Still, the streamer did provide this teaser for Stranger Things 4: Volume 2, so all is forgiven.

Of course, there’s not much here by way of plot. The monster is free, and things will get much worse for the kids before it’s time to put childhood games, like saving their community from Robert Englund, away.

And what of Barb? In the grand scheme of fighting Demogorgons, it’s almost as if we’ve lost sight of what truly matters: Justice for Barb. She was the star of Stranger Things because she had funky glasses and hair, and now where is she? Dead and unavenged. Sure, they had a funeral. But still, this meme still has some juice in it.

As for Volume 1, we at The A.V. Club were more or less pleased with the direction of things. Our own Saloni Gajjar wrote:

Answers trickle in over seven entertaining, terrifying, and overlong episodes about who the heck controls the Upside Down, and how El is connected to it all. Unwieldy pacing notwithstanding, season four’s first half begins with a spectacular few episodes. The show succeeds in diving into the dark and unintended consequences of El’s powers, linking it all to Hawkins’ cursed past.

The final half of Stranger Things 4 hits Netflix on July 1.