I have two extremely minor critiques of Stranger Things, and one real “I hope they do better” critique. First, the minor ones. There is a profound inability of bad guys with guns to do much of anything effective (other than shooting Brenner from a helicopter with a sniper rifle, and the guard-dudes inside the house…
Category: And Now For Something Completely Different
130) Stranger Things, Part 4: How the Great Evil will be defeated
So, how will the Great Evil finally be defeated? How will the heroes possibly prevail, as Hell gets unleashed on Earth? Dustin! One more drum roll, please…….. My best guess is that Vecna is going to rebel at a key moment, acting on some deeply buried vestige of his humanity which has retained a tiny…
129) Stranger Things, Part 3: The Master of Puppets
The true villain of Stranger Things isn’t Vecna, obviously. The Upside Down already existed when Henry fell into it, and he was initially terrified, thinking that he was dying. However, he was transformed into Vecna. Why? Presumably because he was already a super-powerful psychic dude, and he was psychotic, and he was willing to offer…
128) Stranger Things, Part 2: Eleven’s real “papa”
***SPOILER ALERT*** This contains mad spoilers for Stranger Things. If you haven’t watched it, don’t read this! * * * * * One of the enduring mysteries of the show is, WHO is Eleven’s true “papa”? Well….(Dustin! Drum roll please…..) ——— I think it’s Henry AKA Vecna AKA 001. I know, icky icky icky,…
127) Stranger Things, Part 1: I am finally cool (Plus, some Season 5 plot predictions)
I am finally cool. It took half a century, and I’m sure my newfound status as cool likely only extends to two people on the planet, but hey, I have finally joined the ranks. What a feeling! How did I attain this exalted status? Well, the other day, I was hanging with my kids, and…
125) If I Could Write a Poem
I want to write a poem about beauty and love and laughter and kindness and inspiration and heroes, about Grandma’s hands, and Grandpa’s chuckles, and the smell of the dog I had as a child and the sweet tartness of apples and the purring pleasure of an orgasm and snowflakes sparkling in sunlight and those…
116) Dealing with the Devil: Adventures in parenting, Part 4 — Role-play, kids, and personal growth
So, Siskenet had a pretty interesting discussion with a Lord of Evil eh? What fertile ground has been prepared! And seeded! Such rich soil, such abundant energy, for future conversations and questions about topics like power, compassion, maturation, stereotypes of masculinity, personal responsibility, and Lord (of Evil) knows what else! This is one of…
115) Dealing with the Devil: Adventures in parenting, Part 3 – Philosophizing with Asmodeus
“It’s like a game, Siskenet. You like games?” After a pause, reluctantly, Siskenet nodded. “Right, so if you want a really excellent, super-satisfying game, what has to happen?” Siskenet answered right away. “You have to win?” The man laughed heartily, holding his belly. “Well,” he sniffed, wiping his eyes, “that does help.” He blew his…
114) Dealing with the Devil: Adventures in parenting, Part 2 – Asmodeus and Siskenet
Siskenet glanced sideways at Faeruz, hoping for a signal, a suggestion, anything helpful at all. Faeruz, unfortunately, was staring ahead, blank, as if in shock. Which made sense. They were, after all, being interrogated by a very large, terrifying, horned creature; an actual Demon, from the actual Hells. And not just one. This one,…
113) Dealing with the Devil: Adventures in parenting, Part 1 – A Sentient Universe
So, the other day, my kids and I made a deal with Baphomet. It was our second time making a deal with a Lord of Evil. Hmmm, you may be getting the wrong impression here. Let me explain. In my Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) campaign, demons and devils are quite real, as the incarnation of…