A Review of Stranger Things from a Genuine Gen X Kid
A Stranger Things Gen X review from someone who lived the 80s; horror, D&D, VHS culture, and the casting choices that made it authentic.
If you squealed at half the older cast, we’re BFF’s now
Stranger Things is over and I’ve had a couple days to process it as a Gen X horror and Dungeons and Dragons nerd. How big of a nerd? I used to describe dates according to their alignment. I was a sucker for chaotic good men and chaotic neutral women, which is an essay for another day. I for some reason missed the Stranger Things phenomenon for years and started at Season 1, Episode 1 only about a month ago. I have binged every episode and caught up just in time to watch the finale with the rest of the world.
At first, I was stunned by how accurate an 80s fictional universe Matt and Ross Duffer created for two men squarely in the millennial age group. And then I noticed the real accuracy was in set design, costuming, and casting. Mainly casting. So while my mind is buzzing with all kinds of processing (like how storytelling in the 80’s required a small town, a supernatural evil in a quirky façade, the sacrifice of a lovable character, and a deep fear of satanic rituals), I am trying to relax on a Saturday so I’m going to just talk about my 80’s celebrity crushes and heroes. So let’s get into it.
Of course, most of us know Winona Ryder because of the iconic Beetlejuice, but what makes her perfect for her role here is her breakout role in Lucas and later role in my favorite movie about bullies, Heathers. So her being the mother of the bullied brothers feels like closure for all the young women in the 80’s who saw Ryder as a symbol for the bullying we experienced and the bullying we saw our crushes endure.
Matthew Modine is an interesting one because I swore to not look at IMDB while watching and my mind kept seeing Dr. Brenner played by Donald Sutherland or Malcolm McDowell and I wondered who this guy was who was channeling them so well. It dawned on me at the end of Season 3 that this was a guy I couldn’t look at in the 80s and 90s without singing Madonna. Matthew Modine is one of those actors who deserved so much more than he got in the 80s. I remember Vision Quest was going to be his 80’s heartthrob ticket, but that never truly transpired and I feel like his real career success is here, as this nuanced villain – a troubled and troubling father figure. And bookending the psycho leaders of the lab, Linda Hamilton will always be for me the first woman I saw “cock” a rifle with one hand in a fiery gun fight. Terminator 2 is the seed that planted what I write in my fiction now: women who don’t give a fuck. And what sweet, sweet delight to see the two softer men (Modine and later Paul Reiser who was in Aliens) pale in their sociopathy to Hamilton’s Dr. Kay.
Did you stand up and scream when you realized One’s father was Robert Englund? Then you are over 40 or have an unhealthy obsession with the 80s for a young’un. Either way, only Anthony Hopkins at the end of that hall would be more fitting. And Cary Elwes as a corrupt mayor? Hm. Not the Princess Bride hero in any way shape or form, but still a fun moment as well.
That The Goonies Sean Astin is also in Stranger Things as Bob the Brain is wonderful. On the topic of The Goonies, I kept seeing Corey Feldman when I watched Dustin and a part of me wants to jump timelines to a world where Corey Feldman would be cast in this show and he would rock a part as Steve’s Dad.
Carmen Cuba, the casting director, is exactly the age I expected. My age. She worked from memory, from nostalgia, from the love of her adolescent movie-watching years. And for that, thank you, sister in hairspray and shoulder pads, you have done an amazing job. Of course, if I could cast a whole season or even an episode, there’s a ton of great actors I’d suggest. Maybe Maya Hawke’s parents to start?
FAQ: Stranger Things From a Gen X Perspective
Is Stranger Things accurate to the 1980s for Gen X viewers?
Yes—Stranger Things captures 1980s culture with surprising precision, particularly in casting, set design, and storytelling structure. For Gen X viewers, the show mirrors the tone of small-town supernatural horror, Reagan-era suburbia, and the lived reality of growing up with Dungeons & Dragons, satanic panic, and VHS-era cinema.
Why does Stranger Things resonate so strongly with Gen X audiences?
This Stranger Things Gen X review perspective resonates because the series doesn’t just reference the 1980s—it recreates the emotional language of the era. From Spielberg-style pacing to horror archetypes and familiar casting faces, the show reflects how Gen X actually experienced fear, friendship, and pop culture.
Is Stranger Things more nostalgia than storytelling?
While nostalgia is a major hook, Stranger Things succeeds because it applies 1980s storytelling rules—small towns, real stakes, sacrifice, and practical horror—to modern television. The result is a series that feels authentic rather than exploitative, especially to Gen X viewers who recognize the structure as much as the references.