Stranger Things Season 3: 5 Massively Missed Opportunities

Stranger Things' third season was undoubtedly one of Netflix's most-anticipated releases of the year, and it isn't hard to see why. The beloved show is one of the streaming service's most popular offerings, with its endearing characters and compelling storylines earning it acclaim from fans and critics.

The third season followed suit and threw us straight into the wonderful world of Hawkins and its twisted reflection (a.k.a. the Upside Down), as the deadly Mind Flayer returned to threaten the gang of young heroes one more time, and in doing so, proved to be the spectacle that we were all waiting for. That being said, it wasn't all perfect.

While Stranger Things 3 did take us into previously uncharted territory and shone the spotlight on the criminally underrated Billy Hargrove, it also made a number of errors along the way. Though they might seem minor to some, that doesn't change the fact that this is a show that doesn't usually make them and, unfortunately, Season 3 ended up leaving many of us feeling a little robbed.

Please be aware, this post contains heavy SPOILERS for Stranger Things season 3.

Nancy Wheeler and Jonathan Byers are essentially Hawkins' answer to Mulder and Scully. Back in Season 1, they set out to prove that the impossible existed - and that's exactly what they ended up doing. The second season took them on another adventure, as they set out to prove that the Hawkins Lab was up to no good and, with the help of Murray, that's exactly what they did.

With adventures like that to their name already, it was only fitting that the young couple started Season 3 working at a newspaper. However, while this initially provided Nancy with an interesting against-all-odds story in which she would overcome the patriarchal environment of the workplace and prove herself, that's not what she ended up doing. In fact, she didn't do anything - she failed - and that narrative was completely dropped halfway throughout the season, leaving her without purpose.

Jonathan, however, wasn't even that lucky as he somehow remained present for the entire season despite not having a single important scene. Whether he was being dragged along by Nancy on her mission to prove everyone wrong, or helping the kids defeat the Mind Flayer, he was just there in the background to ensure that all of the show's ensemble cast had something to do. Unfortunately, that didn't involve any type of meaningful character-driven material.

Given how important both characters are to the show, they (Jonathan especially) really deserved something with a bit more teeth than this.