Is Stranger Things a love letter to Jean Grey? *Spoilers!*

[Peanutsinspace]

The Netflix hit has pleased many fans of classic 80's horror films and the shows homage to horror icons hasn't gone unnoticed. What also seems to have struck a chord with some people are the similarities in the show to that of the X-Men character Jean Grey. There are fan theories and articles about the shows connection to Jean Grey, going so far as to spoilers:

name Eleven's character 'Jane'

end of spoilers which some people have taken as a clear nod to the Jean Grey character in general and to X-Men #134 in particular as it's a significant turning point in Jean Grey's life.



People have pointed out certain scenes that they feel allude to Jean like the one below:




What do you think? Is Stranger Things not only an homage to great classic films and a genre that defined horror, but is it also an homage to one of the greatest X-Men sagas of all time?



Some articles explaining the shows connection to X-Men and Jean:
http://www.vox.com/2016/8/5/12375808...-134-jean-grey

http://www.bustle.com/articles/17766...-and-the-x-men

[Fissiks]

yes. I just finished watching it and i felt this was probably gonna be the best live action Dark Phoenix Saga we would ever get.

[Jean Grey]

Yes this has been discussed in the Jean thread, the most obvious sign is the significance of the Xmen title referenced in Episode one, which is basically the plot of the series!

[silence.]

Nope. I wouldn't be inclined to say it is.

[ariwl1]

Maybe. I believe the kids do mention X-Men #134 casually at one point early in the series.

But it's also important to remember the series is built around 80's movie and pop-culture nostalgia, including the work of Stephen King. Stranger Things very much watches like a Stephen King novel brought to life, and he's very fond of using characters with psychic powers (often young women/girls) that aren't usually explained in great detail like in Carrie and Firestarter.

He also has a penchant for shady government agencies that unapologetically screw with people.

[Wiccan]

"A Love letter" is just a poetic way to say it's somehow inspired by her and her plots, and in that case, yes.

[Wolverine12]

I don't think I would say that the story was written strictly as an homage to Jean, but the similarities are hard to ignore if you are a X-Men fan.

[MarvelMaster616]

I don't think I would say that the story was written strictly as an homage to Jean, but the similarities are hard to ignore if you are a X-Men fan.

Agreed. I think the parallels are definitely there. They're not exactly subtle and there's nothing wrong with that. If you're going to draw inspiration from any X-men character, you really can't go wrong with Jean Grey and her Phoenix heritage.

[Rivka]

"A Love letter" is just a poetic way to say it's somehow inspired by her and her plots, and in that case, yes.

I think it's a "love letter" to Chris Claremont and his New Mutants and X-Men! A bow to pop culture of the 1980s indeed, but also a heartfelt homage. It's a mash-up of movies, comics, and television--geek culture of the time--but there's also a genuine feeling of love. (And seriously, was there ever a more glorious decade for geek culture?)