Hopper: mornings are for coffee and contemplation
Hopper shuffles into the station late and hungover, waves off garden gnomes and a missing kid, and delivers his morning rule.
Jim Hopper
Hawkins' police chief, a man with a lost past who takes the Byers case seriously when nobody else does. Played by David Harbour.
94 moments · 2h 11m
Joyce begs Hopper to find her son
Hopper says kids his age play hooky and quotes 99 out of 100; Joyce demands to know about the one. Nothing bad happens in Hawkins, he insists.
Hopper questions the boys about Mirkwood
The party explains Will's route home via a road named from The Hobbit; Hopper orders them straight home with no investigating.
Hopper searches the Byers shed and calls a search party
Will's bike is found but not Will. Hopper checks the house, then the shed, and comes out rattled enough to summon every volunteer in town.
Hopper and Mr. Clarke talk about Sarah
On the night search Will's teacher introduces himself; Hopper mentions his daughter loved the stars, and a deputy fills in what he left out.
Joyce tells Hopper the call was Will
Hopper calls the melted phone a prank; Joyce refuses to be managed and hits back with a question about his own daughter.
Hopper learns about the kid with the buzzed head
Questioning Benny's friend, Hopper hears about a small child stealing food from the kitchen, hair buzzed to the scalp, who could have been Will.
Hopper on the porch: you ever feel cursed?
Out in the cold, Hopper counts Hawkins' last disappearance and last suicide and asks when someone last froze to death.
Hopper talks his way through the Hawkins Lab gate
Deputies joke about space weapons while Hopper leans on the gate guard: a panicked mayor, reporters, ten minutes tops.
No rain on the tape: Hopper knows the lab is lying
The security chief swears nobody gets in, but the footage from the night Will vanished is bone dry during a storm.
Hopper gets chewed out by the librarian he ghosted
Marissa tells Hopper exactly what he should have called to say, then the deputies start digging through newspapers on Hawkins Lab.
Hopper connects Brenner, the CIA and a hospital gown
Powell dismisses the Terry Ives story, but Hopper lays out the lab's old research and the scrap of fabric at the pipe.
A body comes out of the quarry and Mike turns on Eleven
Hopper watches divers pull a small body from the water; the boys see it on the news and Mike screams at Eleven for lying.
Joyce swears the body in the quarry is not Will
Hopper lays out the drowning theory; Joyce insists she spoke to Will through the lights and describes a faceless, long-armed thing in her wall.
Hopper tells Joyce about seeing Sarah after she died
Hopper opens up about hearing his dead daughter and packing the grief away, then urges Joyce to go to the morgue and see for herself.
Joyce checks the body for Will's birthmark and refuses to sign
Joyce asks to see the birthmark on the arm; outside, Hopper and Jonathan talk about how tough she is, then she storms out saying that is not her son.
The police pull Nancy out of class to ask about Barb
Nancy admits she told Barb to go home and that something may have taken her; the cops suggest Barb ran off jealous and ask about her clothes.
Hopper buys the trooper a drink and toasts Sarah
Playing a proud dad celebrating a spelling bee win, Hopper spells out odontalgia and raises a glass to his daughter Sarah.
Hopper catches the trooper lying about the quarry
Hopper points out the quarry is Sattler-owned, not state-run, follows O'Bannon outside and beats out who told him to guard the body.
Hopper bluffs his way into the morgue and knocks out the guard
Hopper tells Patty he forgot his hat, tries an O'Bannon excuse on the state trooper guarding the body, and drops him when it fails.
Hopper drunk-dials his ex-wife
Alone and drinking, Hopper calls Diane to say he does not regret their seven years together; she asks him to take care of himself and hangs up.
Hopper tells Joyce she was right about Will's body
After sweeping the house for bugs, Hopper admits he went to the morgue the night before: the body was a fake, and Joyce has been right the whole time.
Hopper realises the lab child may not be Will
Joyce retells the lab child's room; Hopper connects the drawing and Benny's diner to Terry Ives and fears he has been chasing another kid.
Hopper and Joyce meet Terry Ives
Terry's sister lets them in, but Joyce's plea about Will and Jane meets a woman who cannot answer anything at all.
MK Ultra: Terry, the LSD and the isolation tanks
Terry's sister explains the CIA study that paid her sister to take psychedelics and float in sensory-deprivation tanks while pregnant.
Jane, born with abilities
The sister insists Terry miscarried, yet Terry has spent twelve years believing a gifted daughter was stolen by the government.
What Hopper would give for a chance
Driving away from Terry's house, Joyce despairs of finding Will; Hopper reminds her the girl surfaced five nights ago, so they still have a chance.
Joyce tells Jonathan he is not alone
At the station Joyce lays into Jonathan for hunting the monster himself and reminds him he has a family.
Troy tells Hopper the girl can make you fly
Troy's mother storms the station demanding an apology, and Hopper learns a shaved-headed girl who hangs with the losers broke his arm.
Nancy and Hopper radio Mike: We're here
Nancy uses the AV room ham radio to reach her brother; the boys debate a Lando Calrissian trap until Mike finally answers.
The acrobat and the flea: Eleven tries to find Will
Nancy hugs Mike and notices her dress; the boys explain the Upside Down with a flea and a tightrope; Eleven reaches and comes up empty.
Eleven finds Barb in the Upside Down
In the void Eleven calls Barb's name and finds her; she surfaces screaming one word while Joyce holds her, then names Castle Byers.
Eleven reaches Will: Mom is coming
Eleven finds Will in his fort and relays Joyce's message to hold on; she comes out of the water shaking and is told she did good.
Joyce insists on going for Will: He's my son, Hop
Hopper wants Joyce to stay back; she refuses outright and tells Jonathan to watch the kids before they head for the lab.
Hopper and Joyce walk up to the lab fence
Hopper's plan is to let himself get caught; guards swarm them at the gate as The Clash plays out the episode.
Hopper bluffs his way into a deal
Strapped to a chair, Hopper lays out everything the lab did, invents a friend at the Times, and dictates terms to the men holding him.
Hopper trades Eleven's location for a way into the gate
Hopper names his price for giving up the girl, then explains the deal to a stunned Joyce as they are handed suits for the atmosphere inside.
Hopper's breathing and the memory of a princess
Inside the Upside Down, Hopper talks Joyce through a panic attack and is pulled back into a bedtime story he once told his own daughter.
Will is found; Mike promises Eleven the Snow Ball
Joyce and Hopper pull Will out of the thing holding him in the Upside Down while Mike carries a fading Eleven and promises her Eggos and a dance.
Joyce and Hopper bring Will back
Will isn't breathing. Hopper counts compressions, Joyce begs her son to come back, and Hopper's memory of a hospital monitor cuts through it all.
Hopper leaves the party with a plate of food
Hopper claims he only came to the station's Christmas party for the food, then drives his leftovers out to the woods and leaves them in a box.
Murray pitches Hopper a Russian psychic girl in Hawkins
A conspiracy-minded journalist chases Hopper into the station with reports of a shaved-head girl with powers and a theory about Barbara's fate.
Hopper inspects Merrill's rotten pumpkin field
A farmer blames his feuding neighbor Eugene for poisoning his prize pumpkins overnight; Hopper humors him while eyeing the rot.
Owens warns of the Anniversary Effect; Hopper tells Joyce to call him first
The doctor predicts more episodes and asks for trust; outside, Joyce bristles and Hopper backs the science but insists she call him if it worsens.
Hopper comes home late to the cabin, and someone is waiting
A reproach about signals and lateness, a rule about dinner before dessert: the episode ends on who Hopper has been keeping secret.
Hopper and Eleven's Halloween compromise
A sheet-ghost at breakfast asks to go trick-or-treating; Hopper says no risks, then offers candy and a scary movie at 5:15. Word of the day: compromise.
Joyce and Hopper: nightmares or flashbacks
Joyce shows Hopper Will's drawing; he calls the episodes flashbacks and says it will get better in time, then they share a cigarette like high school.
Hopper and the pumpkin conspiracy
A farmer swears his rival poisoned his pumpkins; Hopper blames cold weather until he hears every farm around has died the same night.
Hopper, late, pleads through the cabin door
Hours past 5:15, Hopper arrives with candy and apologies, talks to a locked door about heart attacks and getting fat, and gets no answer.
Eleven counts 326 days of Hopper saying soon
A triple-decker Eggo breakfast sours when Eleven demands to see Mike; Hopper's promise of soon has reached day 326, and her anger shakes the cabin.
Hopper shows Eleven her new home
Hopper walks Eleven through his grandfather's dusty cabin, admits it takes some imagination, and tells her this is where she lives now.
Cabin cleanup montage to Jim Croce
Hopper drops the needle on a record and he and Eleven sweep, scrub and rebuild the cabin to You Don't Mess Around with Jim.
Hopper lays down the three Don't Be Stupid rules
A trip wire for an alarm, curtains always drawn, a secret knock, never out alone: Hopper's house rules for keeping Eleven hidden.
Hopper demands the lab convince him the rot is contained
With a map of dead crops three miles wide pointing at the lab, Hopper reminds Dr. Owens of their deal and insists he prove there is no leak.
Eleven asks Hopper if she has a mother
Hopper reads Eleven a bedtime book about an orphan; she asks about her own mother, then remembers wandering alone, asking the way to the school.
Hopper grounds Eleven: no Eggos, no TV
Hopper tears into Eleven for leaving the cabin and nearly being seen; she fires back that nothing ever happens, and he grounds her.
You are like Papa: Eleven and Hopper's fight boils over
The TV punishment escalates by the week, Eleven compares Hopper to Papa, he threatens the lab and calls her a brat, and a door slams between them.
Hopper's awkward morning after and eight missed calls
Hopper tries to say something about last night, settles for ordering a cleanup, then Flo radios that Joyce has been calling all morning.
Will explains his now-memories to Hopper
Hopper gently questions Will about the shadow; Will says he just knows things now, memories that are not his, growing, spreading, killing.
Joyce and Hopper connect the drawings into vines
Joyce realizes the black lines in Will's drawings join up; laid across the floor they fork like lightning, and Hopper names them: vines.
Mike asks Joyce about the shadow monster
Mike turns up at the Byers house to see Will, Joyce fobs him off, and he asks point blank whether this is about the shadow monster.
Joyce and Bob cut Hopper free of the vines
Following his hat through the tunnels, Joyce finds Hopper being strangled by vines and hacks him loose as the lab team floods in.
Joyce demands answers from the lab doctors
Joyce tears into the Hawkins Lab staff who told her to be patient, and asks the room whether anyone can say what is wrong with her son.
Owens shows Hopper what is growing under the lab
Cleared by the doctors, Hopper is walked down to see how far the rot from the gate has spread, and why they have not burned it.
Will remembers Mike but not Hopper
The doctor tests Will's memory: he knows his friend in the photo but not the man who carried him out, and says the soldiers upset something.
A virus with a hive mind
Owens lays out his theory that Will is infected by something whose hosts communicate, and Joyce asks what happens when nothing of her boy is left.
Hopper's message home to Eleven
From the lab, Hopper leaves a message for the cabin: he is not mad, he is sorry, he does not want to lose her, and she should eat the peas.
Will sees the shadow monster's weak spot
Mike waits impatiently and Hopper is kept out, then Will comes to with a vision and says he knows how to stop the shadow monster.
Will's confession: it was a trap
Will apologizes and says he was made to do it. Mike realizes the soldiers are walking into a trap, and Will says it is already too late.
Hopper's radio apology reaches an empty cabin
Over the radio Hopper tells El he is not angry about their fight and that he is sorry; she wakes from a bad dream to Kali, not him.
Kali teaches Eleven to pull a train with her anger
On the rail yard Kali tells Eleven to stop hiding from her pain and channel it; flashes of Hopper and Papa fuel her until the boxcar moves.
Eleven hears Mike calling from the lab
Sitting with the gang's poker game, Eleven drifts through memories of Mike and Hopper, then sees Mike in danger shouting about a trap.
Cold open: the demo-dogs breach the lab
Hopper and the lab staff watch the pack test the glass from the other side; the defences fail and the alarm goes up as the attack starts.
Will has to be put to sleep
With the lab overrun, Mike argues Will is a spy for the shadow monster. Joyce asks her screaming son if he knows her before holding him down to sedate him.
Bob Newby, superhero: Bob volunteers for the breakers
Only Bob knows BASIC, so he insists on going down to the basement alone. Hopper teaches him the gun in four words, and Bob promises to get everyone out.
Open sesame: Bob gets the doors open
Alone in the dark basement, Bob resets the breakers and reboots the system while Nancy and Jonathan rattle the gate outside. The locks release and he cheers.
Guided through the halls: get in the closet
The stairwell is no longer clear. Bob improvises with an extinguisher, hands over the radio, and is talked through the corridors until he has to hide.
Bob's run for the front door
Told he is almost home free, Bob makes a break for the lobby. Joyce arrives just in time to watch and Hopper has to drag her away.
Demo-dogs: Dustin names the enemy
Grieving at the Byers house, the kids remember Bob founded Hawkins AV, then Dustin defends his compound word and Mike realises the army answers to one master.
The Mind Flayer: the kids explain the hive mind
The party lays out the shadow monster as a hive mind and reaches for a D&D analogy. Hopper calls it a kids' game; Dustin says the manual is not for kids.
Joyce decides: we have to kill it
No one trusts the military to stop this. Joyce says she wants to kill it, Hopper agrees, and Mike points out the one person connected to the thing is Will.
Will wakes up tied to a chair
In the shed, Will comes round bound and surrounded by family. Joyce says they only want to talk; he demands to know why he is tied up until his voice gives out.
Morse code: Will spells out the answer
Will is talking without words. The group feeds him memories while Dustin and Lucas decode the taps letter by letter into a two-word instruction.
The phone rings: it knows where they are
A ringing phone cuts through the shed. Everyone freezes hoping Will did not hear it, but he did, and the house has to move fast.
Demo-dogs surround the Byers house
Hopper orders everyone from the windows and Nancy takes the shotgun. The pack circles outside, then one comes crashing through, already dead.
Mike confronts Hopper for hiding Eleven for 353 days
Eleven walks back into the Byers house; Mike's joy turns to fury when he learns Hopper kept her hidden all year, and he screams that Hopper is a liar.
Eleven meets Max, sees Will, and agrees to close the gate
Dustin shows off his new teeth, Max introduces herself, and Eleven sees how sick Will is before Hopper asks if she can shut the gate she opened.
Demo-dogs, and why closing the gate could kill Will
Dustin names the Demo-dogs, Eleven insists she can close the gate, Mike realises that would kill Will, and Joyce decides to burn the thing out of him.
Hopper and Eleven in the truck: the black hole and Sarah
Driving to the lab, Hopper asks about the punk look, apologises for his lies, and finally tells Eleven about his daughter Sarah. They make up. Bitchin'.
Hopper finds Owens and asks him to give Eleven a normal life
In the wrecked lab, Hopper patches up a wounded Doc Owens, introduces Eleven, and asks him to help her live without being treated like a lab rat.
Joyce burns the shadow out of Will, and Jonathan radios: Close it
Joyce screams for the thing to get out of her son; Will finally wakes and says Mom, and Jonathan tells Hopper over the radio to close the gate.
Eleven closes the gate
Haunted by Papa's words about her wound, Eleven pushes with everything she has and seals the gate while Hopper holds the line; he tells her she did good.
Owens hands Hopper a birth certificate, and Hopper asks for one night out
Over diner food, Owens gives Hopper the paperwork that makes Eleven his, warns him to keep her hidden for a year, and Hopper bargains for one night.
Hopper and Joyce share a cigarette outside the gym
Waiting on their kids, Hopper and Joyce catch up in the parking lot and he tells her the grief never goes away, but every day gets a little easier.