Stranger Things 2 Episode 5 Review – “Chapter Five: Dig Dug”

Stranger Things 2 Episode 5 “Chapter Five: Dig Dug”
Written by Jessie Nickson-Lopez
Directed by Andrew Stanton
Premiered October 27, 2017 on Netflix

The difference between “Dig Dug” and the previous two episodes of Stranger Things 2 are pretty stark; where “Trick or Treat, Freak” and “The Pollywog” both kept their stories at arm’s length, “Dig Dug” removes those artificial barriers to deliver one of the more driven (and at times, unsettling) episodes of the season so far. With a couple of strong reveals, a little puzzle-solving, and an impromptu rescue mission in the Upside Down, it feels like Stranger Things 2 is getting back on track… well, at least mostly.

It helps that “Chapter Five: Dig Dug” immediately establishes the stakes of the hour by incapacitating Hopper in the Upside Down. The moment he becomes trapped in the nasty tangle of vine-tentacles spreading underneath Hawkins, “Dig Dug” drops the pretense of preamble and starts pushing its players into more interesting, consequential positions. Some of this comes from simple conversations – hell, Nancy and Jonathan alone pick up the lumbering slack of Stranger Things 2‘s story and run with it, bringing Murray into the fold and also allowing them to finally address the Steve-sized elephant in the corner of their hotel room. And they aren’t the only ones; “Dig Dug” also formally brings Max and Bob into the fold through Lucas and Joyce, which remove these huge storytelling barriers season two’s had to work around for half the season.

With those finally out of the way, “Dig Dug” can really start to cook; and for most of the episode, it hums through its story, a much smoother, balanced integration of its larger narratives and smaller subplots as it begins to push them together. And like Stranger Things at its best, it balances a wide array of tones while doing so; there’s teenage drama with Nancy and Max, the brewing threats of Billy and the smoke tendrils Dr. Owen is kicking up with his lab samples, and the more endearing stories of Bob’s puzzle-solving skills or Lucas’s attempts to connect with Max (him asking his father how to apologize to a girl is one of the most adorable scenes of the entire season), all swirling around while Hopper investigates the Smoke Monster’s attempts to break through to our reality – and of course, poor Will getting caught up in it all again, as “Dig Dug” ends with him convulsing in the field where Bob and Joyce rescue Hopper.

If there’s one party of Stranger Things 2 that’s still dragging a bit, it’s with Eleven, who continues to be isolated from everyone else on her journey of self-discovery – which, in this episode, takes her to Terry Ives’ home, where her and Becky still live following their visit from Hopper and Joyce last season. At the very least, this gets Eleven out of the cabin and involved in the story of the season in some tangible capacity – unfortunately, the only plot development she’s really getting this season is in the void, where she learns her mother is left reliving the traumatic experiences of getting pregnant, giving birth to and losing her to Brenner and his goons, a result of the severe electroshock therapy delivered by Brenner after she storms the lab with a loaded pistol

Terry’s heartbreaking backstory aside, Eleven’s continued isolation from the main plot feels more and more unnecessary with each growing hour (even more so with the foresight of knowing what else Stranger Things 2 is going to do with her time away from Hawkins). Although it hasn’t become a completely illogical choice, one can feel the difference of having Eleven surrounded by adults constantly, than when she’s integrated into the party, able to to interact with peers of her age and able to have agency in something besides exploring the details of her own backstory – which are nice to have, but don’t necessarily add anything to the pathos or mythology of Jane/Eleven.

Regardless, enough of “Dig Dug” keeps a sense of momentum previous episodes were lacking, smartly putting Hopper in danger to catalyze some plot movement and a bit of an emotional arc to the episode, which ends with Hopper saving his hat from the Upside Down and the reveal of Will convulsing on the ground in the field near the portal Hopper dug into. More importantly, it brings characters like Bob and Max much closer into the fold by finally allowing them a bit of truth and finally resolves Eleven’s backstory, proving the old adage that knowledge is power, and hopefully getting Stranger Things 2 back on track right as it heads into its final act.

Grade: B

Other thoughts/observations:

• Dustin apologizes to the Demodog after he slap shots it into his basement: “I’m sorry. You ate my cat.”
  
• Mike tries to convince Will he is their ‘spy’ in the Upside Down, but boy, one can tell Will is not entirely convinced it isn’t the other way around.
  
• Terry talking to Eleven through the lights is an interesting moment, and begs an unanswered question: how did Will communicate through lights in season one?
  
• Lucas is learning about teenage girls, and quickly!
  
• Bob initially thinking Joyce and Will might be having manic episodes was a nice grounding moment for Stranger Things 2 – everyone’s gone with Joyce’s rants since she was proven right last season, so it was nice to see it acknowledged that yes, she’s still very willing to go off the rails in ways that can appear more than a little concerning to the outside world.
  
• In Terry’s vision, we see a young Eleven playing with a young Eight. Foreshadowing!
  
• I’m sure the Hawkins goons arriving just in time to save Hopper and find Will is going to work out fine for everyone!
  
• “Dig Dug” also introduces us to the pairing of Steve and Dustin, one of my favorite friendships of Stranger Things.
  
• Murray’s reasoning for using vodka to think is both hilarious and a bit troublesome.
  
• Stranger Things: the only show of the 2020s brave enough to make cigarettes a meaningful plot point.
  
• Erica’s use of syrup is disgusting.
  
• Murray’s plan to turn the Hawkins Lab story into something more digestible for the public (a chemical leak killing Barb rather than an otherworldly monster) is a hilarious note, considering how much of Hawkins is seemingly nonchalant or oblivious to everything happening around them.
  
• Also, remember that Hopper told Eleven Terry was dead. Just putting a pin in that for now.