Season 1 of Netflix’s Stranger Things was an instant hit, combining the mystery and frights of early Stephen King with the adventurous wonder of early Steven Spielberg. The powerful Eleven is clearly a nod to King’s novel Firestarter and its 1984 film adaptation, while the Spielberg references are absolutely off-the-charts, with at least a half-dozen visual homages to E.T. alone. The Duffer Brothers’ new classic is so deeply entrenched in 1970s and 1980s sci-fi and horror nostalgia, in fact, that nearly every scene contains a wink and a nod to one of the show’s many influences. But the story and characters are so engrossing, a lot of the more obscure references can go entirely unnoticed. For example…

[Looper]