13 Reasons to Watch Stranger Things

Bored with all the same old shows on TV lately? Wondering if there is anything exciting and new to watch? Good news! There is!

I just discovered an amazing new show called Stranger Things, a Netflix original, and I want to help the rest of the world discover it too! Right now you can binge watch the entire first season in preparation for the second season, coming next year.

What is this Stranger Things show, you ask? It's part Stephen King creepy, scary fun. It's part Twilight Zone what the heck is happening here fun. And it's part Goonie's crazy kids running around saving the world fun!

Who doesn't love that combination???

Here are 13 reasons why you NEED to watch Stranger Things:

1. Winona Ryder - Winona Ryder blows the socks off the role of Joyce Byers, a neurotic, anxious, stressed out single mother of two boys in Stranger Things. Her younger boy goes missing. And then strange things start happening. Winona is so much fun to watch. My favorite scene of hers was when she went to buy Christmas lights in the store she worked at before her son went missing. You're going to love her character! She is a loving, hard working, loyal and fiercely protective mother. She deserves to win some awards for her performance.

2. The Boys - Frustrated with the adults in their town, the three best friends of the missing boy begin their own investigation. Dustan, Lucas and Mike are each very different but very good friends who must face both inner and outer turmoil as they search for their friend Will. Nerdy, brilliant, brave and kind, these boys ride around town on their BMX bikes chasing down clues and solving the case Goonies style.

3. Eleven - Millie Bobby Brown plays Eleven, the bad ass star of the show, a young frightened girl who escapes from an experimental government facility. Eleven doesn't speak much and she has strange telekinetic powers. Each episode offers new clues as to who she is. She grows more and more powerful and confident as she bonds with the boys and helps them find their friend. But you are still left wondering; how did she get her powers to begin with and what exactly happens to her in the end? It's a mystery...

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4. The Eighties - I was a teenager during the Eighties so I LOVE the Eighties. The world before cell phones, computers and flat screen TVs was much simpler. Stranger Things manages to perfectly capture the nostalgia from this decade from thick bouncy feather hair, high waist jeans and ruffled blouses, walkie talkies, Saturday morning cartoons, role playing games and old fashioned eighties decor in each of the character's homes. It's so good, it almost feels like the show was actually recorded in the eighties.

5. The Soundtrack - Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash, Toto's Africa, I Melt You by Modern English and Waiting for a Girl Like You by Foreigner are some of my favorite songs from the 80's. Even the theme music is 80's synth. Go back in time with the music playlist on Spotify.

6. The Originality - Although you see influences of movies and tv shows in Stranger Things - E.T., Star Wars, Poltergeist, Alien - this show is it's very own fresh new concept. From the characters to the trouble they get into, you've never seen anything like Stranger Things.

7. The Monster - Crawling through walls, hunting and killing. Who is this monster? What does he want? How did he get here? And how can we get rid of him? These are the questions you are asking yourself in every episode.

8. The Creepy Bad Guy -  Mathew Modine plays Dr. Martin Brenner, the creepy white haired bad guy in Stranger Things. He doesn't say much but he does despicable things including torturing and then hunting down Eleven after she escapes. You love to hate his character.

9. The Acting - Besides Winona Ryder, the entire cast delivers brilliant performances. Two standouts include David Harbour who does a fabulous job of portraying Jim Harper, the town's down-on-his-luck police chief. Even though he is a self destructive and sometimes violently angry man, you can't help but route for him. And Gaten Matarazzo, who plays Dustan, a twelve year old comedic genius who must bring his friends back together time and time again.

10. The Writing - From first love and popularity contests to dealing with loss, this show tackles all kinds of issues with ease. You get so totally immersed in what's going on during each episode that you are a bit surprised when the episode is over. You never want the fun and horror to end!

11. Pop Culture References - If you love pop culture you'll get your fill in Stranger Things. Risky Business is showing at the local cinema, Jaws and Evil Dead posters on the walls, and Star Wars is referenced multiple times (a model Millennium Falcon gets flown around the room) just to name a few!

12. The Love Triangle Teenage love is so complicated, especially when two boys love the same girl. Steve, the popular guy, and Jonathon, the awkward older brother of Will, the lost boy, both fall for Nancy, the pretty smart girl who is torn between two worlds. Her best friend is an awkward nerdy girl who doesn't quite approve when Steve starts showing Nancy attention. Does Nancy stay true to her best friend? Or does she follow her heart with Steve? Complications grow when her best friend disappears and Nancy joins up with Jonathon to find his brother and her best friend. Jonathon is clearly enamored with Nancy, causing tensions with Steve.

13. Government Conspiracies - The government is all powerful, ultra secretive and up to no good in Stranger Things. Yet the townsfolk go up against them anyway in order to find and save Will. It's the little guys against the big guys! Who will triumph?