Should Kids Watch Stranger Things?

"I'm going to watch Stranger Things," I told my daughter.

"I'll watch with you," she answered. "Finn is in it, and he's nice to look at."

"Also," I said as I started up Netflix. "Winona Ryder is in this. You know who she is, right? Lydia from Beetlejuice."

Natalie's eyes lit up. "I love that movie! I WAS Lydia for Halloween once."

We started to watch. I jumped more than Natalie, who is 10. For those who don't know, Stranger Things is a show set in Hawkins, Indiana. Something strange is going on in the lab nearby. A young girl escapes. A weird creature takes a boy from the town at the same time. What is happening? Dun-dun-DUN.

"I hope Will is okay," I said nervously after the first episode.

"There's Millie Bobby Brown," Natalie pointed out. "She has a fancy name."

We ended up finishing Stranger Things in a week. Then we moved onto Stranger Things 2.

"Gosh," I said, frowning. "Everything keeps happening to Will."

"Poor Will."

Our final thoughts? It's a fabulous show. Watch it. Some people might be wondering if kids can watch as well, and, well, here's my response.

1. There is swearing, but I don't find it excessive. Natalie hears worse from my mouth. We live in Texas, where no one knows how to drive, so yeah, choice phrases tumble from my mouth, the kind where I have to remind Natalie "not to repeat."



2. It can be scary. I did jump a few times. But if your child doesn't scare easily, they'll be fine. I jumped more than my daughter.



3. There is a slightly suggestive scene in Stranger Things, episode 2. You'll see a teenager in a bra, with a boy in bed. But at that same moment, something else is happening to another character, so the focus is mostly on that. (Barb!)



4. The fact that there's no iPhones might be traumatizing to today's children. Ha, I'm kidding. I hope. But the show is set in the 1980s, which I thought was awesome. I remembered riding my bike all over the place like the boys in the show.



5. There is some violence. You know, there's a bat with nails. It reminded me of Lucille from The Walking Dead. There's some blood and shooting. But again, nothing too crazy. (RIP Mews)

I personally think it's a sweet show when you get to the bottom of it. I love how it deals with friendship. One line that is used quite a bit is "friends don't lie." The fact that it's set in the 80s is another plus for me. If you grew up in the 80s, you'll get a cozy nostalgic feeling. The soundtrack also has 80s music so you don't have to worry about hearing Ariana Grande wailing in the background. Plus, it's created by the Duffer brothers, and that's fun to say.


So should kids watch Stranger Things? I think they can if they are mature enough. My daughter says many kids in her fifth grade class have seen the show.

Have you seen Stranger Things yet? If you have, did you want some Eggos too?