[1] The series was created by the Duffer Brothers, who also serve as executive producers along with Shawn Levy, Dan Cohen and Iain Paterson.

This season stars Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Joe Keery, Dacre Montgomery, Cara Buono, Sean Astin and Paul Reiser.

In the fall of 1984, one year after his disappearance, Will Byers finds himself the target of the Upside Down as a large tentacled entity called the "Mind Flayer" possesses him and "Demogorgon dogs" or "Demodogs" terrorize the citizens of Hawkins.

Regarding the decision to wait more than a month after the first season was released to announce the renewal, Matt Duffer said, "it actually ended up working because it had built up to this fever pitch.

"[12] The success of the first season led the Duffers to let their writers' room propose any idea they could come up with out of desperation for ways to expand the show.

Seen in the photos were the main cast of kids and teens from the previous season, minus Millie Bobby Brown and Natalia Dyer, though who appeared to be a body double for Nancy was present.

Jumpshot, which "analyzes click-stream data from an online panel of more than 100 million consumers", looked at the viewing behavior and activity of the company's U.S. members, factoring in the relative number of U.S. Netflix viewers who watched at least one episode of the season.

The site's critical consensus states, "Stranger Things' slow-building sophomore season balances moments of humor and a nostalgic sweetness against a growing horror that's all the more effective thanks to the show's full-bodied characters and evocative tone.

[47] In a review for Rolling Stone, journalist David Fear praised the second season's character development, going so far as to say it shined more than the narrative: "...By the time you get to the John Hughes finale, in which the school's winter dance ties up numerous loose ends, you realize that Stranger Things 2 has not only been crafting a story about kids fumbling through and finding their way into young adulthood, but that those parts feel more interesting than any Upside Down, et al. shenanigans ... if the second season has anything on the first, it's that these characters now feel less like they stepped out of E.T.

"[48] Linda Holmes of National Public Radio also praised the season's character development, saying in her review, "There is much to be grateful for in the work given to the returning cast.

Perhaps the most unexpectedly successful move on this front, though, is to continue to build out Steve beyond Obstacle Boyfriend, in part by giving him some contact with people besides Nancy to work with.

"[49] Holmes also expressed misgiving, noting that the narrative structure was at times copying from the first season's plot line, but overall found this iteration to be enjoyable despite its shortcomings.

[50] The Kellogg Company, which manufactures Eggo, had not been part of the production prior to the first season's release, but recognized the market impact of the series.

It provided a vintage 1980s Eggo television advertisement for Netflix to use in its season two Super Bowl LI commercial, and is looking to become more involved with cross-promotion.