Stranger Things in Stranger Times: Navigating Nostalgia in the Digital Age

“For us, we like going back to a time—and I’m sure nostalgia is feeding into that—where cell phones and the internet weren’t around. If you went off with friends, it felt like you really could get lost on a grand adventure.”

- The Duffer Brothers

In this episode of Risking Enchantment I'm joined by Robyn Conroy, a professional animator who previously joined us for our episodes 'Cartoon Saloon: Celtic and Christian Coexistence' and 'The Prince of Egypt: An Epic in Animation'.

This time she joins us to discuss the hit Netflix series Stranger Things. Set in the 1980s in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, Stranger Things is a sci-fi horror series centered on the supernatural events occurring around the town, including the appearance of a girl with psychic and telepathic abilities.

In the episode we discuss our love for the show and it's grounding in the virtues of loyalty, friendship and courage. We also talk about the complicated relationship our society has with the past and nostalgia, as typified by the success of Stranger Thing's 80's setting. We look at the negative effect of an over reliance on nostalgia, as well as a look at how the digital age might be impacting our ability to embrace the present and even encounter the mystery of our faith.

Hosts: Rachel Sherlock, Robyn Conroy

Follow Rachel on social media: @seekingwatson

Follow Robyn on Instagram: @robynconroyart

Follow the podcast on Instagram: @riskingenchantmentpodcast

Find out more at www.rachelsherlock.com

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Works Mentioned:

Stranger Things, created by The Duffer Brothers

"Why do we like 'Stranger Things' so much? A BYU professor explains"  

On Fairy Stories by J.R.R. Tolkien

 The Past Is a Foreign Country—Revisited by David Lowenthal

"Jack Antonoff has a 'Strange Desire' for the '80s"

1999 by Charli XCX

2002 by Anne-Marie

The 90s by Finneas

Coney Island ft. The National by Taylor Swift

"‘Stranger Things’ is all too familiar"

"The Strangness of Stranger Things"

"Gateway to the upside down"

 

What We're Enjoying at the Moment

Robyn: Take the Sadness out of Saturday Night by Bleacher

Rachel: An American in Paris