Stranger Things season 4 has finally arrived on Netflix after nearly three years of anticipation, bringing viewers back to Hawkins for the newest chapter in Eleven and the gang’s narrative.
Millie Bobby Brown’s character is without the characteristic powers that made her such a force to be reckoned with in earlier instalments, so there’s something different about her in the current batch of episodes.
Fans who are unfamiliar with the events of season 3 have naturally wondered how Eleven lost her powers and whether she would be able to reclaim them in Stranger Things season 4.
IN STRANGER THINGS, HOW DID ELEVEN LOSE HER POWERS?
As a result of the Mind Flayer, Eleven lost her powers in season 3 of Stranger Things.
The gang was attacked by the terrible thing in episode 7, the penultimate chapter, and while they managed to flee the confrontation, the Mind Flayer was able to hurt Eleven.
The wound began to pulsate towards the end of the episode, indicating that a chunk of the Mind Flayer had entered Eleven and was writhing around in her thigh, forcing her to collapse in pain.
In episode 8, Eleven overcame her suffering and used her abilities to free herself from the Mind Flayer’s grasp.
However, doing so resulted in Eleven losing her capabilities and being unable to utilise them in the final battle.
Eleven’s skills haven’t returned when we meet her again in season 4, leading to an awkward confrontation with the school bullies when Eleven attempts and fails to utilise her powers against them.
ARE ELEVEN’S POWERS RESTORED IN SEASON 4?
Eleven regains her powers in Stranger Things 4, but only for a short time.
Eleven is transported to a facility controlled by Dr Martin Brenner, who was responsible for the experimentation on Eleven when she was a child, after she goes many episodes without her talents.
She tries to flee but is drugged, and she subsequently has glimpses of her younger self and childhood trauma. Brenner has caused them in order for Eleven to relive her past.
Brenner’s newest experiments succeeds, as remembering Eleven’s painful history reawakens part of her skills and she regains her powers, if only for a few minutes as she battles off the facility’s guards while attempting to leave.
But her talents only last for a little while because when she tries to use them against Dr Brenner, nothing occurs and he asks threateningly, “You didn’t think it would be so simple, did you?”
WHERE DOES ELEVEN END UP BY THE END OF VOLUME 1?
Brenner gives Eleven the opportunity to leave the institution in episode 5, after giving her another taste of her talents. She decides to stay, hoping that by participating in further tests, she would be able to completely restore her powers.
In episodes 6 and 7, we see Eleven go through even more terrible experiences from her past, leading to the revelation of how the season’s villain, Vecna, came to be.
Eleven is joined in her visions by Henry Creel, who exposes a ‘001’ tattoo on his arm in the final scenes of episode 7, indicating he was the first kid to be admitted into Brenner’s experimental programme.
Eleven and the character we now know as One square off, and we witness Eleven use her talents to send One to the Upside Down, transforming him into the creature we now know as Vecna, who poses a threat to all of Hawkins in the present.
Stranger Things Season 4 is now available to view on Netflix, after its release on Friday, May 27th, 2022.