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Stranger Things looks like a nostalgic sci-fi adventure about kids on bikes, but it's actually about the specific terror of losing control over your own world. What starts as mystery becomes sustained dread punctuated by genuine warmth.

Like being a kid again in the worst and best ways possible. The fear hits deeper because it's filtered through characters who still believe adults can fix things, even when they clearly can't. The supernatural horror serves the emotional horror—watching childhood end in real time, with monsters that are somehow less frightening than the human cruelty that created them.

The relentless threat to children, both supernatural and human. Characters you've grown attached to face genuine peril repeatedly, and the show doesn't always protect them. Government conspiracy adds layers of helplessness—the very adults meant to protect these kids are often the ones endangering them. Trauma compounds across seasons without easy resolution.

Intense peril involving children throughout, including psychological and physical harm. Anyone sensitive to themes of government experimentation or child endangerment may find this particularly difficult.