Why Stranger Things Season 4 Is A Time Travel Story (Kind Of)

WARNING: The following contains SPOILERS for Stranger Things season 4, part 1.

The Stranger Things season 4 time travel factor is a little complicated — while not technically a time travel story, time is still important. Stranger Things season 4 showed the return of Dr. Brenner and Hopper, the existence of more test subjects from Hawkins Lab (namely Henry Creel/001/Vecna), Eleven imprisoned in the NINA machine, and the mysterious Creel house that's connected to the Upside Down. The earliest Stranger Things season 4 theories initially suggested that time travel could also be involved – but that didn't necessarily materialize. Stranger Things took the world by surprise in 2016 and quickly became one of Netflix’s biggest hits thanks to its combination of sci-fi, horror, drama, and references to the 1980s (yes, including Back To The Future and Terminator).

Stranger Things season 1 was about the disappearance of Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) and Eleven’s (Millie Bobby Brown) escape from Hawkins Lab, unleashing a series of strange and dangerous events in the town of Hawkins, Indiana. Season 2 covered the aftermath of Will’s return and the effects of his time in the Upside Down, as well as Eleven’s return. Season 3 took the series on a different path by bringing Russians to Hawkins, who built an underground lab beneath the new Starcourt Mall in an attempt to open a portal to the Upside Down. Stranger Things season 4, part 1's ending explained the creation of Vecna, as well as showing Eleven regaining her memories, Mike and the gang tracking her whereabouts, and Nancy stuck in the Upside Down.

Even though Netflix kept most story details under wraps, that didn't stop people from making their own Stranger Things season 4 theories. With the clock appearing all over marketing promotions, and the various teasers, it was understandable that a lot of folks assumed time travel would be involved. In reality, the Stranger Things season 4 time travel factor is subtler. While there's no overt time traversing during season 4, the concept of time is still integral to the plot. Here's how Stranger Things season 4 is still (kind of) a time travel story.

What Stranger Things Season 4 Confirms About The Time Travel Theory

The Stranger Things season 4 time travel theories ran rampant because of the perpetual clock motifs in promo materials. Only after watching Stranger Things season 4, part 1 does the true significance of the grandfather clock come to light. While many thought that the clock signified time travel, it's more closely associated with Vecna. The grandfather clock first appeared in its physical form at the Creel House during Henry Creel/Vecna's childhood. Over time, as Henry's powers grew, he began viewing the clock as a metaphor; that everyone is simply marching through time towards their demise. This is why each person that falls under Vecna's curse sees the clock. He's reminding them that they're only marching through time towards the inevitable, though their death will be at his hands.

The closest thing that comes to time travel in Stranger Things season 4 is Eleven's storyline. Eleven's lost powers in Stranger Things season 4 are returned with the help of the NINA machine. In the machine, she is forced to relive her memories until it sparks something in her brain that will bring her powers back. Eleven sorts through and relives these memories, until she reaches her jailbreak from Hawkins Lab. It turns out that she's partially responsible for creating Vecna after the massacre at Hawkins Laboratory. After she removes his chip, he goes on a killing spree within the lab. Eleven becomes enraged and banishes 001 to the Upside Down once and for all. After this, she wakes up.

Vecna's actions also aid to the Stranger Things season 4 time travel theories. While he doesn't technically take people back in time, he does freeze them in their most painful memories. Like what Eleven has to go through, he forces his victims to relive their most painful memories from the past before killing them. It's also worth noting, that the Upside Down is set in the past, years before the events of Stranger Things season 4.

Stranger Things Season 4 Didn't Reward The Time Travel Theories

Eleven - Henry Creel/Vecna - Hawkins Lab - Stranger Things 4s

Netflix took viewers to the Upside Down in the marketing for Stranger Things, all while dropping sneaky Stranger Things season 4 time travel hints. In it, the series’ logo appeared along with a big four, and the screen began to glitch. It then showed tendrils slowly taking over the Stranger Things logo, and a clock, located in a tree on the left side of the screen, was heard ticking. Later footage would reveal that season 4 brings characters to the Upside Down, Russia, California, and possibly other places – or times. However, all of these seem to have been red herrings courtesy of the marketing team.

The hints at time travel in Stranger Things season 4 didn’t stop there, as a second teaser returned viewers to Hawkins Lab and focused on a clock marking 3 o’clock, with its ticking scoring over half of the video. This teaser also reunited the audience with Dr. Brenner at the lab and showed other, young test subjects, as well as Eleven locked in her room, and these are events that should have taken place years ago. It's later revealed in Stranger Things season 4, part 1, that Eleven has to relive her memories over and over to get her powers back. After this came the Creel House teaser, which had even more hints at time travel and showed multiple timelines (as it goes back to the 1950s to show the mysterious events that took place there and back to the 1980s with the group). This was cleared up when Vecna revealed his origin story, which occurred in the 1950s.

At the end of the teaser, the audience is taken to the attic, where a grandfather clock is shown. Then, the setting changes to the Upside Down, and the glass of the clock breaks as the camera gets closer, hinting at time being fractured. All of this pointed to time travel's involvement in Stranger Things season 4. Though the Upside Down is stuck in the past, Vecna freezes his victims in time, and Eleven has to relive her memories, the implied Stranger Things season 4 time travel in the marketing didn't really come to pass in the series.

Time Travel Would Have Fit With Stranger Things’ 1980s References

Another reason that Stranger Things season 4 time travel theories were popular comes from the various easter eggs and references in the nostalgic series. Back to the Future isn’t the only inspiration for Stranger Things that deals with time travel. Among the many references to 1980s movies pop culture in Stranger Things is The Terminator, mostly in season 3, where the character of Grigori (Andrey Ivchenko) was an undeniable reference to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s famous time-traveling character.

The writers of Stranger Things tend to tease fans on Twitter. Back in May 2020, they shared a photo of a board with all the movies they had been taking a look at for inspiration, and fans were surprised to see they weren’t all from the 1980s, and there were more modern movies as well. The Bill and Ted movies ranked among their inspirations – a franchise that famously handles time travel with a good dose of humor – as did 12 Monkeys, in which a man is sent back in time to find an apocalyptic virus and help scientists develop a cure. Terminator 2: Judgment Day and Terminator: Dark Fate also featured as cinematic touchstones. While it’s part of Stranger Things' essence to pay tribute to the most significant movies from the 1980s, Stranger Things season 4 time travel didn't happen in the traditional sense.

Next: All The Complaints About Robin In Stranger Things 4 Are Absurd

Stranger Things season 4, part 2, releases on Netflix on July 1st, 2022 at 3AM EST.

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