1. Eleven has a couple of the Polaroid photos Mike's mom took of him last Halloween — one is framed on her desk...
S'cute.
2. ...which she moves over to her bedside table later on in the season, after they've ~broken up~.
Maybe Eleven's been looking at the photo while she lies awake in bed...sigh! (Also, weird note, the "MIKE" stickers are missing on the frame here, but I'm like 99% sure it's the same frame.)
3. And there's another one tucked into her bedroom mirror frame.
Awwww.
4. She also has the mask she wore with Kali's gang (in Season 2) hanging on her wall.
I'm a LITTLE surprised she not only kept this, but also decided to decorate her room with it. ~MEMORIES~, I guess!
5. And the giant bird poster she has on her wall is from Mike's basement.
Just gonna go ahead and assume he gave it to her. AWWW.
6. Jonathan falling over while pulling on his pants is a direct nod to this classic moment in Back to the Future.
Ouch.
7. And, speaking of Back to the Future, the Scoop Troop sneak into the movie theater just in time to see Marty use the same JVC camcorder that Bob also had in Season 2.
BTTF plays a big part in Stranger Things 3 because it was released on July 3, 1985 (i.e., smack dab in the middle of Season 3's storyline).
8. One of the inventions Dustin brings home from summer camp is an electric hammer called, "The Slammer," which is just like the invention Mr. Peltzer (the dad) makes in Gremlins .
That's some very geeky (but very cool) inspiration!
9. And much later on in the season, in Episode 7, a clown walks by Alexei holding a Gremlin toy.
He also has a Gizmo toy in his other hand, which you can't see in this pic.
10. This one is pretty in your face, but just in case you missed it, Dustin's using the famous Farrah Fawcett hairspray Steve recommended last season.
"When your hair is damp, you do four puffs of the Farrah Fawcett spray."
11. Mrs. Wheeler is reading ANOTHER Johanna Lindsey romance novel with a Photoshopped cover that looks like Billy.
Last season it was Heart of Thunder; this season it's Tender is the Storm.
12. Steve spinning his ice cream scoop was a callback to his spiked baseball bat spin back in Season 1.
I guess you could call it his signature move.
13. The cash register at Scoops Ahoy in Episode 2 says "E02."
It's also the code for an "error" on some registers, so that may just be a fun coincidence. But I didn't notice it in the other episodes, so I like to think it was on purpose for funsies. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
14. One of the people protesting Starcourt Mall has a sign saying, "The pretzels aren't even that good!," which is just super funny.
LOL.
15. The "39 Still in Beirut, Awaiting Release" article seen on the Hawkins Post newspaper was a real news story in 1985 about hijacked flight TWA 847.
The passengers and the crew of the flight were taken hostage in a major and violent several-day ordeal. The hostages were released in groups, and the last 39 were released after President Reagan intervened.
16. The song Mr. Clarke is listening to in his garage is "Weird Al" Yankovic's "My Bologna," a parody of the song "My Sharona" by The Knack.
And "My Sharona" is the song Winona Ryder and her crew dance to in the iconic Reality Bites gas station scene!! Talk about a geeky/fun in-joke.
17. There are a lot of visual nods to iconic action films, like Erica crawling through the vents à la Die Hard...
Yippee ki yay...where's my U.S.S. Butterscotch?!
18. ...Grigori carrying himself like the Terminator...
Hair, straight-up stance, and all!
19. ...and the Mind Flayer getting all up in Nancy's face like in Alien 3.
Super chill.
20. The guy Hop, Joyce, and Alexei steal a car from is credited specifically as "Rich Douchebag Todd" LOL.
"TODFTHR"...HA!
21. The Hawkins Memorial Hospital logo is an homage to the Haddonfield Memorial Hospital logo in Halloween II.
Into it.
22. The red door and "1438" street number at the Holloway's house is a reference to A Nightmare on Elm Street.
The Thompsan's house in A Nightmare on Elm Street also has a red door and the number 1428.
23. Eleven and Hopper's hands are sweetly entwined with the infamous blue hairband-turned-bracelet here that Hop gave her last season.
*grabs some Kleenex*
24. Suzie has Dustin's old red, white, and blue hat on her nightstand.
Which explains why he's wearing a new hat this season.
25. There are also a bunch of nods to the Stranger Things crew in all the newspaper clippings in the epilogue. Like this one that quotes a "local townsperson" Dean Zimmerman, who is actually the show's editor...
The Journal Tribune reads: "It's been a rough two years for Hawkins. First the disappearance of that little boy, and now this," says local townsperson Dean Zimmerman.
26. ...this "Hero Chief Dies in Fire" story by Caitlin Schneiderhan, the Duffer Brothers' assistant...
The article also reveals Hopper is a "decorated veteran of the Vietnam War."
27. ...this Indiana Chronicle story by Brad Tobler, a VFX editor on the show...
28. ...and this Journal Tribune clipping that notes Andrea Knoll, the visual effects co-producer, and Caleb Heymann, one of the show's directors of photography.
So cool!
29. And finally, on moving day, Eleven wears the flannel shirt she got from Hop in Season 2 that reminded her of home (and the people she loves) when she was running around with Kali's gang.
OK, gotta go cry somewhere quiet, now!
Related:
These 23 Details In "Stranger Things 2" Are So Brilliant You'll Want To Watch It All Over Again
This "Stranger Things 2" Conspiracy Theory Will Send Pure Shivers Down Your Spine
There's A Heartbreaking Detail In "Stranger Things 2" That You Probably Missed And It Will Kill You
