S2E03
The Pollywog
Will begins experiencing disturbing visions connected to the Upside Down.
đ Transcript
Stranger Things â S02E03 â Chapter Three: The Pollywog | Full transcript [Claudia] Dusty! Dusty, how was it? [stammers] How was what? âHow was what?â The greatest night of the year, of course. Oh. Oh, yeah, it was⊠It was, uh, tubular. Whatâs wrong with you? Nothing. Did something happen? No. What? No. Are you constipated again? No. Mom! Okay, youâre acting weird. I am not acting weird! [thudding] Whoa! Ah! [laughing nervously] [hissing] Awesome, right? Yeah⊠I rigged the trap with, uh, a motor to make it look like I caught a ghost. Just like the movie. [laughs nervously] Oh, Dusty. [laughs] Yeah. [both laughing] Funny. Look at that. Look at that. I told you to keep quiet. All you had to do was stay still for one minute. One minute. Sorry, Yertle. Temporary eviction, buddy. [chittering] What are you, little guy? What were you doing in my trash? You hungry? Nougat. Go on, eat. [screeches] Too hot? Sorry about that, little guy. [chuckles] You like nougat, too, huh? Youâre pretty cute, you know that? Iâm glad I found you. [chuckles] DâArtagnan. Iâm gonna call you dâArtagnan. [dâArtagnan chittering] [screeches] [theme music playing] [footsteps approaching] [Hopper] Rise and shine. So thatâs it, huh? Youâre still not talking? All right. I guess Iâm just gonna have to, uh⊠enjoy this triple-decker Eggo extravaganza on my own. [Hopper grunts] Mmm! Mmm! Good, right? Know the great thing about it? Itâs only 8,000 calories. [sniffles] You visited him again last night? He says he needs me. Want me to go check on him? I know that you miss him, all right? But itâs too dangerous. Youâre the last thing he needs right now. Youâre gonna see him. Soon. And not just in that head of yours. Youâre gonna see him in real life. I feel like Iâm making progress with these people. Friends donât lie. What? You say âsoonâ on day 21. You say âsoonâ on day 205. You now say âsoonâ on day 326? What is this? Youâre counting the days now like youâre some kind of prisoner? When is âsoonâ? âSoonâ is when⊠itâs not dangerous anymore. When? I donât know. On day 500? I donât know. On day 600? I donât know. Day 700? On day 800? No! I need to see him. Tell me! I said I⊠Oh! Shit! Shit! Friends donât lie! Jesus. Have you seen them? Weâre looking, Mom. Yeah, weâre⊠weâre looking. [Bob] Aha! Found âem. [chuckles] [Joyce] Oh! Hiding under some jeans, sneaky little buggers. Thank you. Thank you. Youâre a life saver. Can you take Will to school today? I cannot be late again. Heâs staying over now? Can you just take Will, please? I can take him. Will you make sure he gets in okay? Yeah, of course. What do you say, big guy? Wanna go for a ride in the Bobmobile? Mr. Henderson, you know the rules. Five at a time. Yep. One, two, three, four and five. Ten. You already have five books checked out. My mistake. However⊠I am on a curiosity voyage, and I need my paddles to travel. These books⊠These books are my paddles. Five at a time. Are you shitting me? Excuse me? What the hell is⊠Mr. Henderson! I need my paddles! Was that you I heard milling around last night, or was that a ghost? Yeah. Me, probably. Another nightmare? Um⊠no. Did I ever tell you about Mr. Baldo? Mr. Baldo? Yeah. I was a little younger than you, standing in line for the Ferris wheel at the Roane County fair. Mmmhmm. And suddenly, I feel this fat white glove tap me on the shoulder. I spin around, and there he is. Mr. Baldo. [imitating clown] âHey, kiddo, would you like a balloon?â [chuckles] Go ahead, laugh. Itâs funny. It wasnât funny back then, I can tell you that. I couldnât get him out of my head. Every night, he would come to me in my dreams. And every night when he came to me⊠I ran. [sighs] It got so bad that I made my mom stay in the room with me until I could fall asleep every night. Really? Really. It went on like that for months. And then one day, the nightmares suddenly stopped. Wanna know how? How? Well, I fell asleep⊠and just like always, Mr. Baldo came to me. Only this time, I didnât run. This time, I stood my ground. I just looked at Mr. Baldo in his stupid face, and I said, âGo away. Go away!â Just like that, he was gone. Never saw him again. Easy-peasy, right? Easy-peasy. Just like that. I still donât get why they call him zombie boy. I mean, I get it. He got lost in the woods for a week or something, but why is he a zombie? Because everyone thought he was dead? Yeah. I mean, we had a funeral for him and everything. After a week? Well, see, some other kid drowned at the quarry. We thought it was Will because his body was super decomposed. What? Okay, thatâs not funny. Itâs not a joke, all right? Itâs public knowledge. You can ask anybody. Except Will, because he is really sensitive about it. All right? Okay. [Bob] Have a great day, kiddo. [Mr. Clarke] The case of Phineas Gage is one of the great medical curiosities of all time. Phineas was a railroad worker in 1848 who had a nightmarish accident. A large iron rod was driven completely through his head. Phineas miraculously survived. He seemed fine. And physically, yes, he was. But his injury resulted in a complete change to his personality. So much so that friends that knew him started referring to him as âNo longer Gage.â At the time, this was known as the American Crowbar Case. Although it wasnât a⊠[panting] I am so sorry, Mr. Clarke. Really, Iâm so sorry. Please continue with the class. Donât mind me. Really, continue, please. Thanks. Although it wasnât a crowbar, it was a rod, as I said. [softly] We have to meet. All of us. At lunch, AV Club. Why? I have something that you wonât believe. AV Club. Lunch. Dustin! Yes, my lord? Would you care to join the class now? Please, yes. The case of Phineas Gage. Phineas Gage. [Mr. Clarke] Page 104. [Dustin] 104. 104. [Mr. Clarke] Focus. Focusing. Focusing. [softly] AV Club. And he began to curse, using terrible words that I donât dare repeat here. [dâArtagnan chittering] [Powell] And we found some more by Gilbertâs farm. [Callahan] Some real nasty stuff. It was sticky. All right. Where else? That was it, Chief. That was it, or you get tired of looking? It was getting dark. I mean, it was really dark. Theyâre called flashlights, you dipshits. Oh, okay. Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning. [Powell] More lady problems, Chief? Hey, Chief! Where you going? You want us to go back out there? Whyâs he gotta kick the door? Hey, Chief! [sighs] [sighs] [Hopper] My granddad used to live here. Long time ago. I mainly just use it for storage now. Lot of history here. So, uh⊠what do you think? Itâs a work-in-progress. You know, itâs, uh⊠It takes a little imagination, but, uh⊠once we fix it up, itâs gonna be nice. Real nice. This is your new home. Home. [Hopper sighs] Oh, yeah. Yeah, yeah. All right, this⊠this is music. [âYou Donât Mess Around with Jimâ playing] âȘ Uptown got its hustlers The bowery got its bums âȘ âȘ 42nd Street got Big Jim Walker âȘ All right. [claps] Letâs get to work. âȘ Heâs a pool-shootinâ son of a gun âȘ âȘ Yeah, heâs big and dumb As a man can come âȘ âȘ But heâs stronger than a country hoss âȘ âȘ And when the bad folks All get together at night âȘ âȘ You know they all call big Jim âbossâ Just because âȘ âȘ And they say You donât tug on Supermanâs cape âȘ âȘ You donât spit into the wind âȘ âȘ You donât pull the mask Off that old Lone Ranger âȘ âȘ And you donât mess around with Jim âȘ [static crackling] âȘ Well, outta South Alabama Come a country boy âȘ âȘ He said âIâm lookinâ for a man named Jim âȘâ âȘ I am a pool-shootinâ boy My name is Willie McCoy âȘ âȘ But down home they call me Slim âȘ âȘ Yeah, Iâm lookinâ for The king of 42nd Street âȘ âȘ He drivinâ a drop top Cadillac âȘ âȘ Last week, he took all my money And it may sound funny âȘ âȘ But I come to get my money backâ âȘ âȘ And everybody say, Jack, donât you know âȘ âȘ You donât tug on Supermanâs cape You donât spit into the wind âȘ âȘ You donât pull the mask Off that old Lone Ranger âȘ âȘ And you donât mess around with Slim âȘ [Hopper] Give me those. Okay. Now, this is called a trip wire. Itâs like an alarm. You, uh, set it up like this. And then, anybody gets close, itâs gonna make a loud noise like, uh, gunfire. Bang! [chuckles] Those bad men arenât gonna find ya. All right? Not way the hell out here. Weâll take some precautions. Thereâs gonna be a couple ground rules. Rule number one: always keep the curtains drawn. Rule number two: only open the door if you hear my secret knock. And rule number three: donât ever go out alone, especially not in the daylight. Thatâs it. Three rules. I call âem the, uh⊠Donât Be Stupid Rules. âCause weâre not stupid. Right? Not stupid. [Steve grunts] Harrington, right? I heard you used to run this school. That true? King Steve, they used to call you, huh? Then you turned bitch. Hey, maybe you should just shut up and just play the game. Whoo! Thatâs what Iâm talking about! Whoo! [Nancy] Steve? What are you doing here? What do you think? Where were you this morning? I missed first period. I figured Jonathan would take you. Wha⊠What are you talking about? [scoffs] Jesus, you really canât handle your alcohol. Uh⊠You remember going to Tinaâs party last night, right? Yes. And then what? I remember dancing, and⊠spilling some punch. You got mad at me because I was drunk⊠and then you took me home. [scoffs] No, see, thatâs where your mind gets a little bit fuzzy. That was your other boyfriend. That was⊠That was Jonathan. I donât understand. Itâs pretty simple, Nancy. You were just telling it like it is. What? Uh⊠apparently, uh⊠we killed Barb and I donât care, âcause Iâm bullshit⊠and our whole⊠our whole relationship is bullshit, and⊠I mean, pretty much everything is just bullshit, bullshit, bullshit. Oh, yeah, also, you donât love me. I was drunk, Steve. I donât remember any of that. So that makes everything that you said⊠Itâs what? Just bullshit, too? Yes. Well, then tell me. Tell you what? You love me. Really? [door bangs] Harrington! Dude, we need you, man. That douchebagâs killing us. Letâs go! All right! Come on! I think that youâre bullshit. [dâArtagnan chittering] [Dustin] His name is dâArtagnan. Cute, right? DâArtagnan? Dart for short. And he was in your trash? Foraging for food. You wanna hold him? No, no. He doesnât bite. I donât want to⊠Oh, God, heâs slimy! Ugh, heâs like a living booger. Ugh, oh, God! What is he? My question exactly. At first, I thought it was some type of pollywog. Pollywog? Itâs another word for tadpole. A tadpole is the larval stage of a toad. I know what a tadpole is. All right, then you know that most tadpoles are aquatic, right? Well, Dart, he isnât. He doesnât need water. Yeah, but arenât there nonaquatic pollywogs? Terrestrial pollywogs? Yep. Two to be exact. Indirana semipalmata. And the Adenomera andreae. Oneâs from India, oneâs from South America. So how did one end up in my trash? Maybe some scientists brought it here, and it escaped? Do you guys see that? Looks like something is moving inside of it. [screeches] [both gasp] [Dustin] Whoa. Itâs okay. Itâs okay. I got you, little guy. [chittering] I know you donât like that. Itâs okay. And thereâs another thing. Reptiles, theyâre coldblooded. Ectothermic, right? They love heat, the sun. Dart hates it. It hurts him. So, if heâs not a pollywog or a reptile⊠Then Iâve discovered a new species. [bell rings] We gotta show him to Mr. Clarke. What if he steals my discovery? Heâs not gonna steal your discovery. You know, Iâm thinking about calling it Dustonious pollywogus. What do you think? I think youâre an idiot. When I become rich and famous for this one day, donât come crawling back, saying, âOh, my God, Dustin, Iâm so sorry for being mean to you back in 8th grade. Oh, my God.â Have a nice day. Thank you. Baloney? Mmm. Last night was fun. Mmmhmm. Iâm sorry if I overstepped anything. No! No, you didnât. Okay. I mean⊠I⊠I like you so much. Not just you, everything that comes with you. Your family, your boys. And I hope itâs not wishful thinking, but⊠I kinda feel like Iâm breaking through with them. Not so much Jonathan. Heâs a tough cookie to crack, but⊠Yeah. With Will, I donât know, I feel like weâre connecting. He likes you, too. Yeah? Mmmhmm. I can tell. Good. Oh, there was⊠something else I was gonna mention, but⊠Itâs not a big deal at all, but⊠I just noticed this morning that my JVC was a little dinged up. Your what? The video camera. Oh. Yeah. It still works fine and everything. I just⊠I went back and watched the tape⊠and there were some older kids picking on Will. What? They scared him. Who were they? Were they the Zimmerman brothers again? Um, I donât know. They were wearing masks or sort of makeup and⊠Maybe. They were the right age. Iâll kill them. I swear to God, I will⊠I will kill them. Thatâs what I love about you. You punch back. [chuckles] I was never really one to put up a fight. I struggled a lot like Will when I was a kid. With bullies. [sighs] Itâs the ones like us, that donât punch back, that people really take advantage of, you know? They rub your nose in it, just a little bit more. I donât know why they do that. Maybe it makes them feel powerful. I donât know. But, hey, look at me now. I get to date Joyce Byers. Ha! [chuckles] Are you kidding me? I get to date⊠It all works out in the end, doesnât it? Yes, it does. [Hopper] Grass, crops, trees. Everything in this area is either dead or dying, and thatâs a radius of over three miles. And it all leads back to here. See, these patterns here are really pretty. I like the design. Itâs almost psychedelic. This is a joke to you, huh? No, itâs not a joke. I just⊠I donât understand what this has to do with me, Chief Hopper. Whatever is happening is spreading from this place, from this lab. Thatâs impossible. Itâs⊠The last burn was two days ago. Itâs contained. What if thereâs a leak? A leak? [scoffs] I donât know, man. Youâre the scientist. Exactly. And Iâm telling you thereâs nothing to worry about. Convince me. Convince you? Yeah. You and your egghead friends go out there to every area on this map and you run your tests, or whatever the hell it is you do, and you see if anything comes up. [scoffs] All right, so⊠So youâre⊠youâre giving me orders now? No. I keep things nice and quiet for you⊠Mmmhmm. And you keep your shit out of my town. That is the deal. I have done my part, now you do yours. Convince me. So, he asked you to take me home? Yeah. Yeah, he was upset. I mean, he was⊠He was really upset. But he was still worried about you. Hey. You need to cut yourself some slack, okay? People say stupid things when theyâre wasted. Things they donât mean. Yeah, but thatâs the thing. What if I did mean it? All this time, Iâve been trying so hard to pretend like everythingâs fine, but itâs not. I⊠I feel like thereâs this⊠I donât know, like this⊠Like thereâs this weight youâre carrying around with you. All the time. I feel it, too. Yeah, but itâs different for you. Will came home. Yeah. Yeah, he did. But heâs not the same. I try to be there for him, you know, to help him, but⊠[sighs] I donât know. I mean, maybe⊠maybe things just canât go back to the way they were. Doesnât that make you mad? Mad? Yeah, that those⊠those people who did this, who ruined so many lives, they just get away with it. The people responsible for this⊠theyâre dead. Do you really believe that? [rock song playing over headphones] Your momâs boyfriend. He works at RadioShack, right? Yeah. Why? What are you thinking? Do you wanna skip fourth period? [woman laughing] Isnât this fun? [continues laughing] [continues laughing] Pump your feet. [Hopper] âI would feel so sad if I thought I was a disappointment to herâŠâ because she didnât live very long after that, you see. She died of a fever when I was just three months old. I do wish sheâd lived long enough for me to remember calling her mother. âI think it would be so sweet to say âmother.'â Do I have a mother? Yeah, of course you have a mother. You couldnât really be born without one. Where is she? She⊠Sheâs not around anymore. Gone? Yeah. Iâm sorry about that, kid. âAnd, uh, father died four days afterwards from fever, too.â That left me an orphan and folks were at their witsâ end, so Mrs. Thomas said to me, what to do with me. You see, nobody wanted me even then. âIt seems to be my fate.â [woman] Is your mom here? Sweetie? School. Where is school? The school? Itâs, uh⊠itâs about a mile that way. At least. Where are your parents? [metal squeaking] [girl] Look, Mommy, look. [phone ringing] RadioShack, Bob Newby speaking. How can I help ya? Bob, itâs Joyce. Hey, Joyce, how ya doing? Hey, um⊠Iâm trying to watch your video thingy, and the tape, itâs⊠itâs tiny. Itâs like itâs shrunk. [chuckles] Thatâs âcause itâs a VHSC, not a VHS. You gotta find the RFP1U with coaxial cable so you can connect the video ins and outs. Bob, English. Right. Sorry. Um⊠No, yeah, I did the coaxial things in the back, so I⊠This one just goes into the camera itself? Yeah. Yeah, exactly. Itâs blue. I think itâs working. I was thinking maybe tonight⊠[dial tone] Joyce? So you hit T to zoom in, and W zooms back out. See? Easy-peasy. [boy 1] Watch it, zombie boy. [boy 2] Trick or treat, freak. Boo! [boys laughing] Loser. [Will] Mike! Mike! [ringing] Will, you coming? Letâs go show Mr. Clarke. What? What? Itâs about dâArtagnan. This is the reason I was late for class. Pretty neat. These doors function? Well, yeah, obviously. But itâs not about the trap. Itâs whatâs inside. Now, this very well may change your perception of the world. Consider my interest piqued. All right, first, letâs just clarify that⊠this is my discovery, not yours. Dustin, Jesus! Just show him! Iâm just trying to clarify⊠Dustin! Okay, fine. [door opens] [Mike] Stop! Iâm sorry, Mr. Clarke. It was just a stupid prank. What are you doing? I told him to stop. We need to go. [Dustin] Mike! Right now. Right now! So, your sister coming or what? Screw it. That little shit can skate home. And donât call her that. What? Sister. Sheâs not my sister. [rock music playing loudly] [banging on door] Hello? Hello? Guys, come on. Can I come in yet? [Mike] No! I donât understand. What do you not understand? Will saw something that looked like Dart last year? Kind of, but there was no tail. But then he heard it yesterday. The exact same sound. Why didnât you tell us before? I wasnât sure. A coincidence. [Mike] Or not. What if when Will was stuck in the Upside Down, he somehow acquired True Sight? True Sight? It gives you the power to see into the ethereal plane. [sighs] Elaborate. Maybe these episodes that Will keeps having arenât really flashbacks at all. Maybe theyâre real. Maybe Will can somehow see into the Upside Down. So that would mean⊠Dart is from the Upside Down. [sighs] We have to take him to Hopper. I agree. No way. If we take him to Hopper, Dartâs good as dead. Maybe he should be. How can you say that? How can you not? Heâs from the Upside Down. Maybe. But even if he is, it doesnât automatically mean that heâs bad. Thatâs like saying just because someoneâs from the Death Star doesnât make them bad. We have a bond. A bond? Just because he likes nougat? No, because he trusts me! He trusts you? Yes, I promised I would take care of him. [Dart screeching] Guys, whatâs going on? Come on. Donât hurt him. Only if he attacks. Just open it already. Holy shit! Oh, shit! No! [Max] What the⊠Oh, shit! [Lucas] Whereâd he go? What was that? Dart! What? You let him escape! Why did you attack him? Come on. Donât hurt him. Donât you hurt him! Jonathan? Uh⊠Mrs. Wheeler. What a pleasant surprise. Yeah. Uh, we have a test tomorrow. Hmm. Oh, did you go shopping? Oh, uh, yeah. My Walkman broke. Aw! [Jonathan] Bummer. Anyway, we should go. Itâs a really big test. Yeah. So⊠Stressful. Very. Bye, Mrs. Wheeler. Bye! Itâs good to see you. [sighs] Okay, are you sure about this? No. [phone ringing] Hello. Marsha speaking. Hello? Hello? Mrs. Holland. Hi, itâs, um⊠itâs Nancy. Nancy? I, uh⊠I need to tell you something. Something about Barb. About that night. I, uh⊠I, uh⊠I havenât been honest with you. But I canât tell you here on the phone. Meet me tomorrow, Forrest Hills Park, 9:00 a. m. Donât tell anyone. And donât call me back here. Itâs dangerous. [Marsha] Nancy, what is this? [Nancy] I just need you to trust me. Please. [Owens] Well, you were right about these pumpkins. Some nasty stuff. [chuckling] And the smell⊠Gee, mother of God. What exactly do you think is going on⊠Well, I told you what I think. But weâll run the tests, and weâll see what comes up. In the meantime, I just need you to keep the area clear for us. I donât think itâll be more than a day or two. What do you want me to tell people? Iâm sure youâll figure something out. [Powell on radio] Hey, Chief, you copy? Yeah. Do you remember that Russian girl Murray was going on about the other day? Yeah, well, now Iâm thinking heâs not so crazy after all. Stay where you are. Do not move. East is clear. No sign of Dart. Whereâd you go, you little bastard? West is clear, too. Will? South is clear. Lucas? Anything? Excuse me! Mr. Sinclair! [stammering] Sorry, I was looking for study hall. Bye. Nothing here, man. [objects clattering] [yells] What the hell are you doing? What are you doing? Why are you in here? Looking for Dart. This is the boysâ room. Yeah, so? So you should go home. Why do you hate me so much? I donât hate you. How can I hate you? I donât know you. But you donât want me in your party. Correct. Why not? Because youâre annoying. Also, we donât need another party member. Iâm our paladin, Willâs our cleric, Dustinâs our bard, Lucas is our ranger, and El is our mage. El? Whoâs El? Someone. No one. Someone or no one? She was in our party a long time ago. She moved away, okay? She was a mage? Well, what could she do? Like, magic tricks or something? Well, I could be your zoomer. Thatâs not even a real thing. It could be. See? Zoomer. Mind-blowing. Come on, you know youâre impressed. [Mike] I donât see any tricks. Youâre just going around in a circle. [Max] If itâs so easy, you try it. [Mike] No. [Max] Why not? [Mike] I donât know how. [Max] So, then you admit itâs kind of impressive. [Mike] I think if I spent, like, all day practicing, I could do that. [Max] I would give you a million bucks if you could. [Mike] Okay, youâre making me dizzy. Please just stop. Iâll stop when I join your party. Come on, just stop. Itâs a simple question. Am I in or out? [grunts] Jesus! Are you all right? Yeah, yeah. I think so. What happened? I donât know. It was like a magnet or something pulling on my board. I know that sounds crazy. [line ringing] [sighs] Come on, come on, come on! [phone ringing] Hawkins Middle. May I help you? Yes. Hi, Doris. Itâs Joyce. Uh, Joyce Byers. [mouthing] Joyce. Uh, Will has AV Club today. Could you transfer me to Mr. Clarke? Mr. Clarke? Huh. You know what? What? I just saw him leave for the day. Maybe AV was canceled? What? Would you like me to⊠[Dart chittering] Guys⊠I found him. [Dustin] Where? In the bathroom by Mr. Salernoâs. [Mike] Copy that. Itâs okay. Iâm not gonna hurt you. [screeches] [monster growling] Hey, buddy. Come here. You know I wonât hurt you. [chittering] Itâs okay. Itâs just me. Youâre okay. [Mike] Letâs go. Down here. [Lucas] Weâre coming! Stay low. Keep quiet. Whereâs Dart? I donât know. Not here. What? [Max] He said by Salernoâs, right? [Dustin] Yeah, maybe Will has him. Where is Will? Only this time, I didnât run. This time, I stood my ground. [breathing heavily] [screeching] I said, âGo away. Go away!â Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away! [screeching] Easy-peasy, right? Easy-peasy. Just like that.