Stranger Things Season 2 Episode 5 Review - Chapter Five: Dig Dug

This episode is all about digging, may it be physically or not, everyone is digging up their past, present relationships and more. The fifth episode is not that bad but also stops the momentum from the past two episodes. Hopefully “Dig Dug” is not a red flag on this season's overall quality.

“Dig Dug” starts with Will definitely not looking well. He is obviously struggling with whatever condition he is in and whatever is inside of him. He reveals that Hopper is in danger and they must find his location in the Upside Down ASAP. This sets off a chain reaction of further detective work for Mike, Joyce, and surprise, surprise Bob. More on that later. We then move to Eleven as she has now decided to set off looking for her Mama. It’s a surprising development now that it’s clear that she’s not that important to whatever the guys in Hawkins are dealing with. Unfortunately, this side plot of sorts brings reveals nothing new this episode. Hopefully, they can close the loop with Mama already and bring her character into a more significant role sooner rather than later. Back to Hopper, he is now trying to find a way out not knowing that he is in serious danger. Unluckily for Dustin, his emotional attachment to Dart doesn’t pan out. As everyone’s busy, no one hears his pleas for “Code Red” status which leads to an unlikely pairing with Steve. Worse though is that Lucas is making serious headways with Max while Dustin is busy containing Dart. As we said in the previous review, lying to your friends has serious karmic consequences, and it's more serious this time. Nancy and Jonathan turn to the private investigator Barb’s parents hired and he helps them find a way to make their story more believable. It’s interesting how this guy’s mind works and truly it’s one that peaked our interests. The episode ends as Will, Mike, Bob, and Joyce save Hopper which they do. They are helped by the guys from Hawkins Laboratory but as the Shadow Monster is burned, Will is also seriously hurt. It’s pretty clear that whatever is inside of Will is connected to him in such a way that he’s hurt when it’s hurt. This is not good at all.

We don’t know how to feel about how things are turning out for everyone. It is obvious at this point that this season is tackling a lot of stuff. While most of them are interesting, to say the least, they are not nearly as compelling as last season's plot points. It’s also disconcerting how everyone is out of touch with each other. Will and Mike, Dustin and Steve, Lucas and Max, Nancy and Jonathan each have their own agendas that may or may not conclude with a bang. There’s definitely some trouble brewing in terms of where the plot is going while Eleven’s plot is just completely out there at this point which is truly disappointing.

Rating: 4 reels