'Stranger Things' on Netflix: Duffer Brothers gave this character a truly raw deal in Season 4 Volume 1
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Stranger Things' has taken the world by storm ever since the release of Season 4 Volume 1. While Season 4 took almost two years to drop, expectations run high for Season 5, right from storyline to new characters along with new and fiendish twists and turns. While the Duffer Brothers, Matt and Ross, did not disappoint with Season 4, they did not do justice to a very lovable character.
Chrissy Cunningham, portrayed by Grace Van Dien, was killed off by the end of Episode 1 of Season 4 Volume 1, far too soon. While audiences looked forward to watching the character grow and have more of screen time, the creators admitted to the mistake of killing off the character too quickly.
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Vecna's first victim
There were many deaths in Season 4, but the most heartbreaking and unexpected was of Chrissy. The first victim of Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) was killed at the end of Episode 1. While the death was necessary for the plot to be set in motion, it seems like the Duffer Brothers did not give much thought to the character and gave her the end that she did clearly did not deserve. Season 4 came with the curse of Vecna, a humanoid demon who preys on its victims based on their trauma. The deeper the trauma, the more the chances are of getting killed. Vecna's strategy of killing was to show its victims elements and flashbacks of their trauma, which drove them crazy, making them more vulnerable to be killed by the otherworldly entity and taken to the Upside Down.
Chrissy is shown as a cheery and down-to-earth cheerleader. She is dating the school jock Jason, who is seen in later episodes going after her killer. In a way, Chrissy is the catalyst that gets things going and also makes the idea of the new villian in town known to rest of the Hawkins teenagers. Viewers mourned Chrissy's death as they imagined a better ending or more screen time for her and Eddie “The Freak” Munson (Joseph Quinn). Chrissy's death was among the saddest deaths after Barb, who was killed off in Season 1. While Chrissy's death still remained an important motivation for the basketball team in 'Stranger Things' Season 4, the character's importance and impact could have been far greater if the creators waited at least one or two episodes before killing her off.
The reason Chrissy's death did not impact Eleven and Co, as compared to that of Alexei in Season 3, was because of how less her character interacted with others. She only brushed past Max in a bathroom when she was running away from the guidance counseler's office. If she would have been given more screen time and a proper story, her death would have impacted the teenagers the way it should have.
The Duffer Brothers regret killing off Chrissy
Its not just the audience who thought that Chrissy's sudden death was unnecessary as the co-creators agreed to the idea as well. The Duffer Brothers admitted that they regretted killing off Chrissy in Episode 1. The scene where Vecna killed Chrissy was shot before the scene where she and Eddie met in the woods, post which they realized how great the chemistry was between the two. However, by the time they realized that, it was too late and there was no way going back from the "what have we done" moment. While Chrissy's death was necessary to pave the way for Vecna's storyline to begin, it could have been done later.
