'Stranger Things' season 3 introduces us to Robin, but should we be scared of Steve's new co-worker?
When 'Stranger Things' released its promotional photos and trailer for the upcoming season 3, fans were thrilled to see a new addition to the already adorable cast, because it gave us hope for a certain Steve Harrington, who has been loveless for a while now. Called Robin, and played by Maya Hawke, the character has been established as Steve's (Joe Keery) coworker at the ice cream outlet, Scoops Ahoy, in the Star Court Mall, where most of the action in season 3 has been teased to go down. But all of that aside, who exactly is this Robin person? Should we be scared of her? Or will she give Steve the butterflies that our substitute mom has been missing?
According to Deadline, "Hawke’s character is described as an alternative girl who is equal parts sharp and playful. Bored with her mundane day job, she just wants a little excitement in her life… and gets more than she bargained for when she uncovers a dark secret in Hawkins." Isn't that the case with everyone at Hawkins? It's a small town, people get bored easily, and the next thing you know, they have to fight the shadow monster, the Demogorgon, the mind flayer and what not. So it's a given that Robin will very much be a part of all the action about to unfold this season, but what role will she play in the group of teens trying to save Hawkins?
Whatever it is, let's just hope Robin doesn't turn out to be a host for the Mind Flayer - the gigantic monster that feeds off of other people after possessing them. Why? Simply because we would like something happy to happen to everybody's favorite (fake) teen-mom on the show, Steve. Our man with the good hair has been heartbroken and sad for a while now, ever since he did some pretty sh*tty things to his ex-girlfriend, Nancy (Natalia Dyer), who then dumped his a** (like she should have) and moved on with the kind and sensible, Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton.)
Meanwhile, Steve found a wholesome friendship in the considerably younger Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) and we saw the two boys bonding in season 2 over common heartbreak among other things. Dustin and Steve have been the tightest ever since and going by the trailer for season 3, the two are going to be just as close, and will even team up to take down whatever evil is haunting Hawkins. So by extension, it's expected that Steve's co-worker Robin will also become a part of the team and be an absolute badass, fighting monsters from the Upside Down like most female characters on the show have in the past. That is, of course, unless she doesn't get preyed on by the Mind Flayer first, in which case, it would be goodbye, Robin, it was nice knowing you.
It isn't clear right now whether Steve and Robin had known each other before being coworkers at the frozen dairy outlet, or whether she is fresh out of school. She looks about Steve's age, so that should make her a high school graduate because Steve was a senior in season 2, that was set in 1984. Season 3 is set in the summer of '85, so both Steve and Robin being high-school passouts makes sense. But what we are really curious about is whether this punk rock, bored with life, alternative 80s teen really ends up liking Steve 'Hair' Harrington or not. If not on a romantic level, let's just hope she at least has an affinity for the boy so he finally has a friend of his own age. Not that we're complaining about him being bffs with a gang of children, but just saying. It'd be nice.
But here's a fun fact: Hawke, the actress playing Robin, is not only just a familiar face from PBS' 'Little Women' series adaptation, where she played Jo March. Hawke - like the name suggests - is actually Ethan Hawke's ('Reality Bites', 'Boyhood') daughter with 'Kill Bill' actress Uma Thurman.
'Stranger Things' premieres on Thursday, July 4, only on Netflix.