Top 10 Scariest Moments on Stranger Things

“Chapter Three: The Pollywog”

Season two got off to a harrowing start, signaling even higher stakes than the previous season. Throughout the first episodes, Will suffers visions of the Mind Flayer. Good old Bob does what he can and tells Will to face his fears head-on. So he does. Only, it doesn’t go so well. The school chase is chilling, and the blue light filter adds a nightmarish quality. Will makes it to safety outside the school, but that’s when the Mind Flayer pounces, pushing its shadowy tentacles into Will’s eyes, nose, and mouth. It’s an image we won’t soon forget.

“Chapter Six: E Pluribus Unum”

In one of season three’s most effective scenes, the Mind Flayer speaks to Eleven through Billy. It’s a blood-curdling speech that strikes fear into Eleven and the audience, in no small part thanks to convincing performances from Dacre Montgomery and Millie Bobby Brown. But it’s the editing that really makes this sequence. Anxiety-inducing music swells during the Mind Flayer’s monologue, and the scene periodically cuts to the citizens of Hawkins mindlessly strolling to the mill to be dissolved. It’s terrifically well executed and fantastically spooky.

“Chapter Three: Holly, Jolly”

Joyce’s Christmas lights became one of the defining images of the first season, and they’re used to chilling effect in this memorable sequence. Will speaks to Joyce through the lights as she asks him what she should do. The lights then slowly spell R-U-N while the music bangs ominously with each letter. The tension is unbearable, and reaches a head when the Demogorgon emerges from the wall behind Joyce. If viewers weren’t on the edge of their seats by now, this horrifying scene definitely got them there.

“Chapter Six: The Spy”

Steve memorably teams up with Dustin, Max, and Lucas in the second season, and they lure Dart to a local junkyard. Unfortunately, Dart is accompanied by several other Demodogs hungry for flesh. Mom Steve defends the group, but at great risk to his own life. The scene is bristling with tension, as the Demodogs close in and we realize just how trapped Steve is. Steve gets a lot of love from fans, and this scene convinced us, at least briefly, that he was a goner. Luckily, he lived to fight another day (and to scoop ice cream in a sailor hat).

“Chapter Two: The Weirdo on Maple Street”

Barb became so much of a meme that we forget how scary her disappearance actually was. Poor Barb was just sitting all alone, nursing her wounds. Her fresh cut was still bleeding, and she’d been abandoned by Nancy, who ditched her in favor of sleeping with Steve. As the Demogorgon draws closer, the lights flicker, and its unearthly growls emanate from behind her. She’s then dragged screaming into the pool, before the crunching chords of The Bangles open the credits. It’s easily one of the most memorable endings in the show’s history.

“Chapter Nine: The Gate”

For a good chunk of the second season, Will is under the influence of the Mind Flayer. But that all changes in the glorious and action-packed finale. In a crude homemade exorcism, the Byers and Nancy attempt to purge the Mind Flayer from Will by turning up the heat. Will screams and flails in pain, as grotesque black veins creep across his face and the inhuman moans of the Mind Flayer fill the room. Luckily, Nancy saves the day by branding Will with a fireplace poker, and the Mind Flayer is successfully purged from his body. Watching this, we were all sweating at home just as much as Will!

“Chapter One: Suzie, Do You Copy?”

Much of the first episode in season three was devoted to teen romance and the new, colorful mall. However, a memorable ending let viewers know that the old “Stranger Things” magic was still intact. Billy is on his way to meet with Mrs. Wheeler when his car is hit by a mysterious creature. While investigating the damage, Billy is snagged around the ankle by a tentacle and dragged away into the nearby mill. The scene strikes a perfect balance between showing us the horror and letting our imaginations fill in the rest.

“Chapter Eight: The Mind Flayer”

Poor Bob Newby. He was just too pure for the “Stranger Things” world. The electrifying climax of season two begins when the Demodogs invade the Hawkins Lab. After their appearance, we knew that someone wasn’t making it out of that building. Unfortunately, that someone was Bob. Just after Bob saves the day by resetting the breakers, he’s pounced on by a Demodog and torn apart by its massive claws. Bob dying was bad enough. Having him die in such a grotesque fashion, and right in front of a screaming Joyce, was just too much. It was spine-chilling and heartbreaking in equal measure.

“Chapter Five: The Flayed”

Those who say season three was too light and playful clearly missed the scene with the hospital monster. Chapter five ends in surprisingly brutal fashion, with Nancy and Jonathan discovering that both Tom and Bruce have become part of the Flayed. They kill their old co-workers, which is certainly dark enough, but then things get even worse. Their bodies dissolve into a meaty goop, which assembles itself into a massive monster. “Stranger Things” may take its cues from classic family movies, but revolting scenes like this are straight up horror.

“Chapter One: The Vanishing of Will Byers”

“Stranger Things” is one of those shows that grips you within the first few minutes. The sequence in which Will is stalked and taken by the Demogorgon is pure nightmare fuel. The eerie sound design and claustrophobic framing put you right there with him as he runs through the house, then into the shed. As he aims the gun at the door though, frightening sounds come from behind him … and the Demogorgon takes him! This is the scene that set the tone for the series, and it’s still burned into our memories!