Stranger Things 2: Episode 7 Was Loosely Inspired By Empire Strikes Back

Episode 7 of Stranger Things was considered to be one of the most controversial of the new season, but it had undoubtedly given Eleven's character a necessary boots when it comes to understanding her powers. As it turns out, El's whole journey about learning to hone her skills was loosely inspired by The Empire Strikes Back.

Talking to Entertainment Weekly, the Duffer Brothers explain:

"We talked a lot about Empire Strikes Back. We talked about Luke going to Dagobah and meeting Yoda. Also, the idea of a dark Eleven, of Eleven being pulled to the dark side was an interesting idea. So a lot of that episode was what happens if Eleven is drawn towards this darkness and what can she learn about herself if that's the case."

Linnea Berthelsen, who plays Kali, also commented:

"I took everything from Luke and from the relationship with Anakin. The reason why Kali is so angry is also because of love. She wants to believe in another human being. Something really went wrong and people let her down. She's trying what she believes is the best way to support Eleven. Maybe it's not the right way to do it but it's coming from a good place. And I think that's the same thing with Darth Vader — he believes it's the right thing and he's doing everything for the love of his mother."

Though El being whisked away to go "training" is very reminiscent of ESB, I found myself remembering X-Men more, particulary First Class. The scene where Kali teaches El how to move the truck was pretty much like Professor X trying to coax Magneto into moving the huge satellite dish.

With the introduction of Kali to Stranger Things, it's possible that we'll be meeting more of Eleven's "siblings" in future seasons. Personally though, I prefer that ST stick to the mystery of the Upside-Down as to giving us a checklist of the other Hawkins Lab kids and their powers. This isn't X-Men!

Catch the second season of Stranger Things on Netflix.

See Also: Stranger Things: David Harbour Teases Jim Hopper's Older Brother