Printed in Blood - Visions from the Upside Down: Stranger Things Artbook

The Printed In Blood team would like to thank the following fine people: KIM LAWRENCE, TARA SINCLAIR and the entire NETFLIX licensing team, ELIZABETH SCHAEFER, KEITH CLAYTON and the entire PRH team, ROSS and MATT DUFFER, MADISON, DLBROOKS, RYANE LYNN HILL, PHOEBE and RIPLEY. Without them, youd be holding an entirely different book.

RICH DAVIES

When Stranger Things suddenly appeared out of nowhere on Netflix in 2016, it felt like a breath of fresh air. Yes, its nostalgic in its mid-80s setting (something that appealed to me, being a kid of the 80s myself); but more importantly, it gets a lot right with its characters. The shows storylines are always told from the kids viewpointwhich a lot of movies from the 1980s did well. In this day and age of the adult superheroes and their balancing of grown-up feelings and saving the world, here is a show thats focused on the kids and the way they see the world. Even the adults in the show are often seen from the kids point of view. Stranger Things has often been compared to the likes of The Goonies,E.T., and It, in terms of how it looks, but its the writing that ensures the kids and their friendships are at the center of the show. I would have loved this show just as much at twelve as I do now in my forties!

DEVIN FRANCISCO

MATT BUSCH

CHRIS HITCHMAN

PEACH MOMOKO

SCOTT M C KAY

I feel like Stranger Things speaks to the outcasts, nerds, and weirdos, and tells us to never stop being who we are. Its a strong coming-of-age message that spoke to me in adulthood, but reminded the awkward kid within me that its okay to be unique.

ANGELINA BENEDETTI

In the Forests of Hawkins depicts the young Eleven in two different situations: The upper half shows her as a human experiment, sitting at a table in the Hawkins National Laboratory, dehumanized, with measuring tools attached to her head. The bottom half shows Eleven right after her escape. Autumn is foreshadowed by colorful leaves. Halloween approaches, and whereas the kids of Hawkins are looking forward to the festivities, Eleven is content with her waffles, breathing deeply for a minute and struggling to process whats going on. Shes free at last, but not yet sure what to do with it.

MATT NEEDLE

Stranger Things instantly drew me in, the second that I discovered it on Netflix and clicked on it. The throwback Stephen King/John Carpenteresque vibes of the opening credits, the beautiful synth musicit filled me with pure nostalgia and reminded me of everything I loved growing up. Especially Amblin Entertainment. The show evoked The Goonies spirit mixed with 80s horror, with fantastic performances from the talented cast, and its also well written and shotit really was, and continues to be, the perfect package. I cant wait to see what future seasons have in store.

JOHN M C CREA & DEE CUNNIFFE

EILEEN STEINBACH

BILL M C CONKEY

WILLIAM ONEILL

My childhood, back in nineteen eighty-something suburban New Jersey, was quiet and safe. However, underneath that pleasant veneer, just hidden from view, was a seemingly more mysterious worlda world of scary urban legends, fed by the pre-Internet kid grapevine. We whispered about the sister of a friend who claimed to see ghosts; a pentagram secretly scrawled by eight-year-olds onto the sidewalk at the park; the girl who one day just never showed up to class again; and that strange office complex nearby, where no one knew anyone who actually worked there.

Stranger Things reminds me of that youthful time of imagination and mystery. A time when a simple DO NOT ENTER sign meant a dark secretjust hidden from view.

ORLANDO AROCENA

GUY STAUBER

Im sure, like most people, Stranger Things speaks to the 80s kid in me. It rekindles the magic of 80s cinema in an authentic way, right down to the title font. Lots of shows these days are looking to trade on nostalgia, but so few get it rightWhen I watch Stranger Things, I can smell the popcorn and feel that same anticipation and excitement that a trip to the cinema used to bring. I can dive back into the 80s, when everything seemed like a glorious adventure, and summers seemed to last forever. Not since Stand by Me has the adolescent experience been described in such vivid and evocative detail. If E.T.,The Goonies, and Gremlins had an illegitimate child, they would call it Stranger Things.

JOHN PEARSON

MIKE MAHLE