Okay fine, you guessed it, it’s Jim Hopper. Honestly, I’m mostly surprised that Netflix revealed Hopper’s return in the very first teaser for the new season. Mostly everyone was able to figure out that Hopper was the American in Russia hinted at the end of the third season, but I figured that a big part of the marketing for the new season would be Joyce and the kids dealing with the loss of ol’ Jim. I’m sure Netflix has a well thought-out plan because they don’t have shit for brains like me, but I’m curious as to what they’ll do with season four. I’m on the record saying I would be fine without a season four:
Honestly, I’m a little worried about the show becoming stale. The first two seasons basically followed the same formula: weird shit happens in Hawkins because some scientists got overeager to play in the Upside Down, demogorgon(s) run amok, Eleven uses her powers to save the day, then she passes out/disappears. The third season added a wrinkle by having Eleven lose her powers toward the end and letting regular people be the hero. I’d imagine the fourth season goes something like this: we get a glimpse into how Hopper made his way through the Upside Down to regular Russia, he somehow gets in touch with Joyce and the kids, Eleven rediscovers her powers (maybe her sister who popped up in season two comes back into play?), they save the day, and it ends with some sort of cliffhanger indicating that the Upside Down is very much still in play.
HOWEVER, the Duffer Brothers have done a great job of keeping things fresh for three seasons now, and I believe in their ability to keep an audience engaged. After both of the first two seasons, I thought they were writing themselves into a corner. They proved me wrong both times. This show is their baby and I doubt they would do anything to water it down. Until they show me they don’t have the touch anymore, I have to believe they still have it.
ReJoyce 