1983: Finding Eleven in the woods after her escape from the Upside Down, Chief Hopper all but adopts her. They clean up a cabin in the woods that belonged to Hopper’s grandfather, where he promises she will be safe. Basic ground rules are set: she’s to keep the windows and doors closed, and never leave the cabin. As long as she can abide by those rules, and stay out of sight, Hopper promises the “bad men” can’t hurt her again.
Halloween, 1984: Returning home from trick-or-treating, Dustin finds a snail-like creature in his family’s trash can, and promptly does what any kid dressed as a Ghostbuster would do: he puts it in the “ghost trap” that’s part of his costume. When he shows it to his friends, though, Will Byers has a visceral reaction – he’s seen something like this before. Still, Dustin seems to think that the creature is his new pet. Eleven decides that she’s fed up with Chief Hopper’s house rules and her isolation. Bob, Joyce Byers’ boyfriend, tries to befriend Will and give him advice on how to deal with his fears, but only too late as Joyce spots in the background of the VHS tape of the boys’ trick-or-treating the same enormous, multi-legged creature that has shown up in Will’s drawings. It’s that same creature that Will sees approaching him after a second close brush with Dustin’s new pet leaves him in the Upside Down…
written by Justin Doble
directed by Shawn Levy
music by Michael Stein & Kyle Dixon
Cast: Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers), David Harbour (Jim Hopper), Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler), Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven), Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson), Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair), Noah Schanpp (Will Byers), Sadie Sink (Max), Natalia Dyer (Nancy Wheeler), Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers), Joe Keery (Steve Harrington), Dacre Montgomery (Billy), Cara Buono (Karen Wheeler), Sean Astin (Bob Newby), Paul Reiser (Dr. Owens), Catherine Curtin (Claudia Henderson), Randy Havens (Mr. Clarke), Rob Morgan (Officer Powell), John Reynolds (Officer Callahan), Chester Rushing (Tommy H.), Sam Ashby (Werewolf), Lynne Ashe (Happy Homeowner), Cynthia Barrett (Mrs. Holland), Harper Cavanaugh (Young Girl on Swingset), Abigail Cowan (Vicki), Bethany DeZelle (Mother at Swingset), Cameron Newton (Jason Voorhees), Suzanne Jordan Roush (Doris, High School Receptionist), Drew Scheid (Sweaty Teen Boy), Susan Shalhoub Larkin (Florence), Christi Waldon (Marissa), Andrew Wilson Williams (Scary Clown), Donna Wright (Elderly Math Teacher)
LogBook entry by Earl Green
