Intertextuality in Stranger Things

The Duffer bros created a masterpiece with Stranger Things, described by some as a "nostalgia bath." The show draws on the work of Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter and Stephen King and many other notable works from the 80's. 

Carrie & Firestarter:-

Eleven from Stranger Things is a blend from two Stephen King stories about girls with telekinetic powers. Carrie and Eleven share a sheltered upbringing but are still widely knowledgable. They are also both product of needy parents, Carrie with her religious zealot and Eleven with the experimental scientist that doesn't allow socialisation with other children. Also, both characters are sweet natured but are capable of severe violence  when provoked. The classic looking out can be seen in the first photo which is when the characters have been provoked and this is before the violent outburst. The second picture shows how the duffer bros payed homage to Firestarter with the creation of the character Eleven but also with this near identical scene. 

Close Encounters of the Third Kind:-

The duffer bros chose to include a parent with an obsession with the supernatural. Much like in Close Encounters when one of the characters terrorises his family into an alien premonition. Similarly, in Stranger things, when Joyce finds out that her son is missing, she gets flashing lights and paints Ouija letters in the wall trying to reach him. Also, the shot on the right closely mirrors the original shot from close encounters. This pays homage massively as this shot was used to advertise the release of season 2. 

Star Wars - The Empire Strikes Back:-

The film was released three years before Stranger Things was set. Therefore it can be assumed the boys went to see it. This can be seen with the implicit intertextuality of Mikes Yoda toy which he shows to Eleven. More explicit references can be seen in both films when they use the arm out gesture to make something move. And Mike refers to Elevens powers as "like a Jedi." 

ET:-

One of the most notable references is to Spielbergs ET. A story in a small town with boys rushing around on bikes and they find a strange creature. The first shots are when they are both found. Many similarities can be drawn including the pathetic fallacy of it being night time and its raining and the bright torchlight finding them. In both films they hide the character without the parents finding out. The second photo shows how they dress them both up as girls to try and hide them. In addition to this, in ET when they are trying to escape being caught, ET uses their powers to make the bikes fly. Similarly, in Stranger Things when the boys are escaping, Eleven uses their power to levitate a van and throw it out of the way. 

Fandom in Forbrydelsen and Stranger Things

 Forbrydelsen:

One massive aspect of fandom in Forbrydelsen was with Sarah Lunds jumpers. The character played by Sophie Grabol had a set of distinctive jumpers. These were made by the danish brand Gudrun & Gudrun who still promote these on their website as "the one jumper everyone is talking about." These sold out very quickly after the show was first aired. Many fans began to knit their own Sarah Lund jumpers. In addition to this, some took the style of her jumpers to knit other things, including this knitted teddy. 

Another example of fandom in Forbrydelsen was the actress Sophie Grabol who played the lead roll Sarah Lund. Because the show challenged conventions by having a female detective, Grabol received a lot of media attention. When it was shown on BBC4 in the UK, the show received a BAFTA which saw her popularity sky rocket.

Stranger Things:

The fact that each season of Stranger Things was released at once on Netflix promoted binge watching. In turn this induced mass fandom. After watching the whole series the fans wanted more material to watch which can be seen on Netflix's YouTube channel with blooper reels. This cleverly makes the fans feel closer to the cast. 

Another aspect of fandom with Stranger things comes from the merchandise. There are hundreds of designs of t-shirts and hoodies and so many other items like mugs and even novelty items available. The demand for this shows how big the fan base of this show is. Owning a piece of merchandise makes you feel a bigger part of the show but it also shows other people you are a fan.

 This turns the audience into prosumers as they become involved with the show. Another way fans discuss the show is through online forums including multiple fan pages on facebook that have over 10,000 members. 

According to Jenkins, fandom can be focused on a celebrity. This is true for Stranger Things as all of the actors have become celebrities. Most notably Millie Bobby Brown who plays 11. She was virtually unknown before and now has over 43 million followers on Instagram. She has also become a producer as well as an actress on different projects as well.