They hit a perfect combo of fannish enthusiasm and critical analysis of themes/story/etc.

This is a cool idea with a disappointing execution. We never got to know these characters, so when this story hit emotional beats where big grand secrets are revealed, they didn’t feel earned. And I saw the big twist coming a mile away, which would’ve been fine if we’d gotten deep explorations of interesting characters, but these characters unfortunately felt like they were just there to hit beats on a story outline, and not because they were organically moving through a rich story universe. My biggest positive is I liked Julianne Moore and Oscar Isaac’s embodiment of these characters, and I hope they both do more audio dramas in the future.

Very enjoyable. I like the conceit of Robin reading a different book every episode and being roped into book-ish analytical discussions with her favorite teacher, and the relationship between them was so heartwarming. I haven’t read the book yet, but the tone of this podcast makes me super hyped to read more about Robin. The podcast also fleshes out a lot of Robin’s specific fears about living in Hawkins, and the Steve Harrington cameos are fun to hear, knowing what’s coming for them in season 3.