Add Topic 'Stranger Things' holds a mirror to the '80s – and today | Opinion 'Stranger Things' offers us a mirror rooted in nostalgia as our own cultural moment is also filled with aggressive censorship, apocalyptic conspiracy, geopolitical panic and visions of violent horror. Jason C. Bivins Opinion contributor Hear this story As we near the end of the show " Stranger Things ," it’s worth wondering why the retro-nerdy, satanic panic, sci-fi/horror mashup has such a huge appeal. When the show debuted in 2016 , my Generation X friends and I fell instantly in love. Perhaps there was some fan service, we judged, but that was no fault in a show so filled with invention and heart and thrills. And yet the show quickly became a cross-generational smash. There’s even a float in the upcoming Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade . It’s not just those of us reared in the 1970s and ‘80s who love watching teens in Little League T-shirts ride banana bikes, use walkie-talkies and play role-playing games. (Remember Dungeons & Dragons?) Even leaving age brackets aside, there’s a pronounced fascination with the 1980s at the moment. On college campuses, for example, you can spot Reagan/Bush campaign shirts, jeans jackets with band patches and bare-shouldered "Flashdance" tops. Since a good amount of 1980s culture was defined by 1950s and 1960s nostalgia , maybe this is just a similar impulse. The teens at the heart of the show, however, sit fairly far from the decade’s mainstream culture, which sought to sell you on its uniqueness via its over-the-top spectacles. Watch it here: Stream your favorite shows, the biggest blockbusters and more. A show that turned our '80s nostalgia upside down Everything was turned up to 11 ( no pun intended ): dreams of an endless party (“ Don’t need nothin’ but a good time !”), DeLoreans, A Flock of Seagulls haircuts and "Field of Dreams" nostalgia. The 1980s was also a decade of religious and political violence, corruption, human rights abuses, poverty and scandal. While nobody would necessarily expect " Stranger Things " to channel any of that, perhaps least of all the geeky crew driving the narrative, the show’s palpable sense of menace might be a tell. Beneath the steady confidence of the '80s veneer, suspicion, secrecy and paranoia bred wildly. Opinion: Netflix's 'Monster: The Ed Gein Story' goes too far. Why romanticize this? As it became a megahit, we learned about the odd undercurrents in the fictional Hawkins, Indiana : the Upside Down, Eleven, Vecna, the Demogorgon. Watching plucky kids navigate this paranormal terrain isn’t a hard sell for Stephen King fans. "Stranger Things" is bigger than this appeal, though, and I believe that audiences sense the parallel between the dark ‘80s and our own time. A dark historical perspective on the 1980s In my classes on religion and culture, the same students who watch the show are eager to learn about the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), whose radar for “illicit” culture was trained on kids like the misunderstood Eddie Munson character in "Stranger Things." They’re gripped by the decade’s “ satanic panic ” surrounding popular music. Opinion: Ozzy Osbourne taught kids to rebel by subverting Christianity After the influential Trinity Broadcasting Network alleged in 1982 that "Stairway to Heaven" was coded with satanic messages, using “ backwards masking ,” others followed with a broader condemnation of “occult” or sexually explicit themes in entertainment. The high point was the PMRC’s infamous ratings system , fusing sensationalism, commerce and moral outrage that was a huge part of 1980s conservatism. It’s almost like the show provides a narrative for our feelings of dislocation, surrealism and “how did we get here?” sensibility. After all, our own cultural moment is also filled with aggressive censorship, apocalyptic conspiracy, geopolitical panic and visions of violent horror. In much the same spirit as 1970s paranoid cinema , the populist energies of our time are fueling a zeal for stories of innocents pitted against systems and shadowy elites. We see ourselves in the 'Stranger Things' cast Rooting for the "Stranger Things" kids, and for Hawkins folks like those played by Winona Ryder and David Harbour just trying to hang on, might reflect audiences’ hunger to understand the darkness and anxiety around them. The Hawkins kids don’t want any scolds or normies or government creeps telling them how to live. As we ride along with them, we want the authorities to let kids be kids. We want the dark and nerdy edges of pop culture to similarly be left to exist on their own terms. We want them to make it through an overwhelming moment so that, maybe, we too can find our way. We’ll find out this season if that’s too hopeful or not enough. Jason C. Bivins is a professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at North Carolina State University. He has published four books on religion, politics and culture in America. Featured Weekly Ad Source: https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2025/11/23/stranger-things-season-5-netflix-nostalgia/87376489007/