Stranger Things

Stranger Things' fourth season is its most overrated, running 13 hours—2.5 hours longer than the first—yet delivering less character development and a 51% drop in critical approval on Rotten Tomatoes, a decline sharper than #4 Bridgerton's 12% second-season dip. Its $30 million per episode budget, among the highest in streaming, produces CGI spectacle but masks bloated fan service that stretches Eleven's arc across side plots, losing narrative focus faster than the average season-two sequel. With an 8-point gap between critic and audience scores, over 40% of its praise comes from nostalgia alone, not original storytelling.