Written by Andre Todman
Spoilers ahead.
Supanova guest Millie Bobby Brown has won countless fans through her portrayal of Eleven on the Netflix mega-hit Stranger Things.
The character has become one of the most complex and entertaining out of any in recent history, and with season 2 still fresh and Brown in the country for Supanova – hitting Adelaide this weekend – we thought it appropriate to highlight 11 times Eleven stole the show.
SHOWING OFF TO HER NEW FRIENDS
In a scene ripped straight from a comic book, Eleven runs away from home and joins a punk gang, led by Kali, a charismatic leader on a path of retribution. In a showcase of her skills, Eleven is taught in total Emperor Palpatine fashion to use anger from her past to help increase her powers and move a 48-tonne train carriage. An important lesson for Eleven’s character arc and an interesting insight into the motivation behind her abilities.
IT’S NOT A PHASE
Embracing the city lifestyle, Eleven trades in her country overalls for dark eyeliner, slicked back hair, and black clothes to become a punk. The image change is a cliché but does effectively show the newfound freedom her character has. It was entertaining to watch Eleven slide to the more extreme side of unregistered control and test her own limits between what she is capable of doing and what she chooses to do.
SHUTTING DOWN BULLIES
In every kid’s fanservice come true, Mike chases Troy and pushes him over for laughing during assembly for Will’s disappearance. But before Troy can retaliate, Eleven stops him and makes him pee himself in front of everyone.
DON’T PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD, KIDS
In one of the more light-hearted moments, a flashback scene shows Eleven alone in the woods surviving off a squirrel for food when she encounters a hunter who begins to ask questions. Frightened by the man, Eleven easily makes one of the most gifable moments in television, by using her powers to fling a flaming log at the man, knocking him over while she escapes.
ROCK AROUND THE BLOCK
With Eleven being separated from the group for most of season 2, all hope was lost when the Demodogs were circling them. But then she returns in a blaze of glory. Low whines and a snapping sound are heard outside, followed by a dead Demodog being flung into the house. Eleven is revealed to the gang’s shock.
THE LAST LEVEL: DEFEAT THE BOSS
In the season 2 finale, Eleven and Hopper are in an elevator inside the hive and being attacked by Demodogs. Eleven tries to close the gate and seal in the Demogorgon but the creature attempts one last attack. In what seems like a disappointing and anticlimactic end to the creature that had been amped up since the beginning, Eleven levitates to focus her power and successfully close the gate, stopping the monster with ease.
THE FORCE
During Eleven’s adolescence stage in Chicago, she breaks into an apartment with Kali and the gang to get revenge on a scientist who experimented on them. Eleven is given the freedom to make her own choices and ‘put a face’ to all her anger, mistrust and pain she has felt over the years. Unleashing a threshold of unregistered emotions, Eleven throws him against the wall and begins to choke him as she drags him across the ground. It was appreciated that they still understood her character and didn’t cross the line too far, with Eleven not wanting to kill him and even stopping Kali from doing so.
TROY TROUBLES
Troy! Buddy, we need to talk. There is less ‘get thrown in jail’ ways to get revenge on a kid who made you pee yourself. Holding one hostage with a knife and threatening to cut out his teeth, unless they jump off a ‘suicide cliff’ is the worst thing you could have done, especially when their telekinetic friend finds you and breaks your arm.
PHONE HOME
Like many pop culture shows, the big bad government in Stranger Things just loves to chase kids around. Season 1 features a pretty thrilling chase with Eleven’s own ET moment as she uses her powers to fling an approaching van over the gang’s heads. This happens early on and is Eleven’s first real standout moment.
HIT THE DECK
The first season did a fantastic job at slowly revealing Eleven’s powers. Flipping vans, breaking arms and making kids pee themselves were just a few instances of her powers. Only mildly dangerous situations. We knew that she was more powerful from her pupa telling us how special but dangerous she was but we had no idea. Until Eleven faces a life or death situation like having a gun pointed at her and surrounded by eight armed professionals. This was our first real look at Eleven’s capability when under threat. She made bleed drip from their eyes before doing away with them all for good.
AT LEAST WE WILL ALWAYS HAVE EGGOS TO FILL THE HOLE
In an emotional last battle in the season 1 finale, the gang humorously try to fight off a dangerous monster that has survived many bullets and armed professionals with the most dangerous weapon of all, a slingshot. Yes, in true kid spirit they sling rocks at the Demogorgon trying to warn it off, but Eleven wakes up and vanquishes the beast to the Upside Down, taking herself with it and in a heart-wrenching goodbye to a character. A perfect cliffhanger for a fantastic show that recreates the nostalgia for classic science fiction in an innovative but still sentimental way.
