The episode of Legends of Tomorrow that aired a few days after Season 2's release also features a kid befriending a small, cute creature that turns out to be a juvenile form of a dangerous race.
2019 now has two instances where a major sci-fi franchise, as directed by two brothers, kills offnote Or presumably kills off, in Hopper's case a beloved character, with their final words being a post-mortem message to their daughters. Both of them even utilize the number three in their goodbyes; Tony says "I love you 3000", while Hopper says "Keep the door open three inches".
Season 4 taking place in 1986 becomes this when, due to an odd circumstance of timing (both projects were heavily delayed by the COVID-19 Pandemic), Volume I launched the same day that Top Gun: Maverick — the long-awaited sequel to 1986's biggest film — opened in theaters. The fact that Stranger Thingshelped propel the 1986 song "Running Up That Hill" into the music charts while Top Gun dominated the box office led some to joke that they felt like they really were back in 1986.
When Fear Street came out, fans already noted the similarities involving the Stranger Things cast members - Maya Hawke being a Deadpan Snarker who works in mall retail, and Sadie Sink being a Fiery Redhead who's a non-conformist. Then Season 4 came out and it ended up featuring several elements from Fear Street - such as Sadie Sink once again being signalled for death by a Deadly Nosebleed, other characters trying to protect her from death and her being legally dead and then getting a supernatural Revival Loophole. Superficially, Ziggy in Fear Street had an alcoholic mother and a Disappeared Dad; Season 4 revealed Max's stepfather to have left after Billy's death and her mother was now drinking.
