Stranger Things is one of the most popular shows on television and therefore, one of the most analyzed. Within hours of season two premiering last Friday, there were scene-by-scene breakdowns all over social media (we chipped in with questions for next season, fan theories, and bad spinoff ideas).
One of the best (and heartbreaking) Easter eggs had nothing to do with Gremlins references or waffles. Throughout the season, Chief Hopper wears a blue bracelet around his wrist. When asked about it on Twitter, actor David Harbour tweeted, “It’s subtle, but there. Rewatch the first flashback with my daughter in season one. See if you can spot it…” Cue the waterworks.
In the season one finale, Hopper has a flashback to when he was happily married and his young daughter, Sara, was still alive. The first time we see her, she’s wearing a blue hair tie; later on, in a scene that takes place months later, she’s in a hospital bed, shortly before she passes away from cancer. The hair tie has now become a bracelet around Hopper’s wrist.
The bracelet appears throughout season one…
…but no one really noticed it until the season two finale. Shortly after Dr. Owens makes a fake birth certificate for Hopper to “adopt” Eleven, er, Jane, she wears it to the Hawkins Middle School Snow Ball. It’s clearly visible while Jane’s dancing with Mike (infinite awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww).
The blue dots were connected on Reddit, where one user noted, “I love the subtlety of it. We didn’t need an emotional scene where Hopper gives El the hair tie/bracelet — it’s just understood that she’s now daddy’s girl.” Stranger Things season three will reportedly take place at least a year after the season two finale (to match how fast the show’s young cast is aging). Hopefully, Jane is still wearing it then, maybe with an attached good luck waffle charm.
(Via Reddit)