WARNING! Spoilers ahead for Stranger Things season 4, volume 1!
Eddie Munson has ed Stranger Things season 4 with an engaging story and organic chemistry with the other characters, fixing the series’ biggest Jonathan Byers failure. As the cast of Stranger Things grows faster than those who perish, the Netflix show has presented itself with an issue of how to balance the stories of the new figures with the long-established staples of the narrative. Two characters who have been failed by Stranger Things’ character problems are brothers Jonathan and Will Byers, who are primarily sidelined in season 4.
Alongside Dmitri (aka Enzo), Vecna (aka Number One), and Argyle, Stranger Things season 4’s most important new character is Joseph Quinn’s Eddie Munson. Introduced as the leader of Hawkins High’s Hellfire Club, Eddie has been held back twice in school and yearns to finally graduate, having taken Mike and Dustin under his wing as they represent the future of the D&D group. The eccentric metalhead teenager then unexpectedly s the main group of characters in Stranger Things season 4 when he’s suspected of murdering Chrissy Cunningham, whose death was actually caused by Vecna’s curse. After Dustin steps in to help his friend who he knows to be innocent, Eddie ends up ing the older teens in battling the Upside Down’s creatures with Steve, Nancy, and Robin.
While the Hawkins location holds the most interesting storyline of Stranger Things season 4, the Russia and California settings also add important context to the series’ conflicts. In California, Nancy’s long-distance boyfriend Jonathan Byers is traveling with Will, Mike, and Argyle, where they hope to reach the Nina Project lab to help Eleven before the U.S. military does. However, unlike previous installments, Jonathan is hardly featured in Stranger Things season 4, with new characters like Eddie, Dmitri, and even Jason receiving considerably more screen time. As Stranger Things’ failures with Jonathan increase in season 4, it seems the series is effectively replacing him with Eddie Munson.
Eddie Is Stranger Things Season 4’s Best New Character
Out of every Stranger Things season 4's Eddie and invited him into the fold.
He doesn’t feel unnecessary in the least, which can at times be the case for new Stranger Things characters or series in general that make a mistake by adding in too many figures when seeking to expand the scope of the story. Rather, Eddie feels like the new Max, Bob, Murray, and Robin, all of whom were incredible new Stranger Things characters who genuinely added something novel that pushed the story forward. Unlike some of the other additions, Eddie isn’t a disposable character who can be added this season and die by the end – he fits far too well to discard him in this way.
Stranger Things Has No Idea What To Do With Jonathan
While Jonathan was one of the most important Stranger Things figures in seasons 1 and 2, Charlie Heaton’s character has become increasingly irrelevant in seasons 3 and 4. Jonathan’s pairing with Nancy was perfect for the smaller scale of Stranger Things season 1, with their second team-up in season 2 also serving the purpose to expose Hawkins Lab. Jonathan was also arguably given larger importance in Stranger Things’ first two seasons because his younger brother Will was the subject of the Upside Down’s infiltrations into their dimension.
Once Will’s connection to the Upside Down primarily became a tingle in his neck when he felt the Mind Flayer was near, Jonathan’s purpose in Stranger Things seemed to be more lost. Stranger Things season 3 then saw Jonathan cling to Nancy’s journalistic pursuits for his story, but this subplot failed to captivate viewers like the other three main storylines had. Stranger Things' newspaper subplot also held back both Nancy and Jonathan from forming compelling connections with the rest of the characters, with the series instead rehashing the same exclusive pairing.
Will has virtually no connection to the Upside Down in Stranger Things season 4, which is largely explained by the Byers family having moved out to California and away from the hellmouth of Hawkins. As such, Jonathan doesn’t quite have a storyline or connection to a major plot in Stranger Things season 4, with his small inclusion in the season primarily being one-note in relation to his new stoner lifestyle and relationship problems with Nancy. Jonathan doesn’t really have anything to do in Stranger Things season 4, volume 1 aside from being the guardian for Will and Mike as the characters make their way to the Nina Project lab. Jonathan and Nancy haven’t interacted once throughout Stranger Things season 4, volume 1, and he and Joyce have only had about one scene together. Stranger Things can’t simply get rid of the character because of his connection to the larger narrative, but the series doesn’t seem to have any clue of what to do with him in the meantime.
Stranger Things Seems To Be Phasing Out Jonathan
Out of all the original Stranger Things characters in season 4, Jonathan was given the least important storyline, with the character also hardly having any lines when he’s on-screen. While Jonathan left Hawkins at the end of Stranger Things season 3 prepared to maintain a healthy long-distance relationship with Nancy, the season 4 premiere reveals this didn’t end up being the case. Both Jonathan and Nancy can see the end of their relationship, but are letting it ride out because they’re too scared to call it quits. Jonathan doesn’t want to go to college at Emerson with Nancy, but he’s afraid to tell her because he thinks she would give up her own dreams to be with him. Since he wants to go to Lenora Hills Community College with Argyle instead, Jonathan is essentially being phased out of the Hawkins storyline, which would become complete if he and Nancy break up.
Not only is Jonathan much happier in California than he ever was in Hawkins, but Stranger Things season 4 also suggests that Nancy is moving on. While Jonathan has been smoking weed with Argyle on their road trip, Dustin, Robin, and Eddie have been trying to convince Steve and Nancy to get back together. Nancy and Steve have had a romantic tension in their Stranger Things season 4 pairing that hasn’t been seen since season 1, with Jonathan hardly seeming like an obstacle to their reunion. By removing his relationship with Nancy, Jonathan has no connection to the rest of the story outside of Will and Joyce, with his impact on Stranger Things shaping up to be almost nonexistent by season 5.
Eddie Has Better Chemistry With The Other Characters Moving Forward
Jonathan is being failed by Stranger Things as he’s essentially phased out of the more important narrative, but this may be because Eddie Munson is his perfect Hawkins replacement. Jonathan only ever truly had compelling connections with Will, Nancy, and Joyce, leaving him with a very limited framework for his storylines. Eddie, on the other hand, has incredible chemistry with every character he’s come into with so far. From Dustin and Mike in the younger teen group to Steve, Nancy, and Robin in the older teenage crowd, Eddie has the ability to shuffle around character groups in a similar fashion to Steve.
Perhaps Jonathan could have been able to engage in a larger storyline if he was given the chance to show his chemistry with anyone other than his family and Nancy, but Stranger Things has essentially chosen to sideline him instead. With Jonathan being phased out, Eddie’s role in the Hawkins location is becoming far more prioritized and naturally positioned. It seems that rather than trying to give Jonathan importance of his own, Stranger Things season 4 is replacing him with Eddie as a more relatable figure who can better connect with the other characters.
Stranger Things season 4, volume 2 arrives on Netflix on July 1.