With Netflix being flipped turned upside down due to the events of Stranger Things 3 it’s time to Breakdown the alternate universe that the show centres around.
Throughout this, I’ll be going over everything that you need to know about the upside down and the characters that inhabit it.
There will be heavy spoilers here, so if you haven’t seen all of Season 3 of Stranger things then I highly recommend that you turn off now.
With that out the way, I just wanna give a huge thank you for clicking this video now let’s get into my breakdown of the Upside Down!
The Upside Down Explained
The upside down was first introduced in Stranger Things Season One after Will Byers disappeared into the dark dimension. The upside down is a dark mirror antimatter version of our universe that is inhospitable to humans and is dangerous for all that venture into it.
The landscape of the upside down is similar to our Earth, possessing similar locales and landmarks however human life is completely absent from it due to the toxicity in the atmosphere.
There’s a shadowy aura to everything and a goo like webbing that is attached to almost every surface which highlights the hive mind that exists there.
It’s almost like an even creepier version of Silent Hill with ash and hive spores floating through every inch of oxygen making it almost impossible to breathe in.
The History Of The Upside Down
Whilst in Season One it was simply an alternate dimension that sprung forth some dark and twisted creatures. In season two it began seeping into our world and infecting all life through bleeding into our dimension.
By season 3 the Mind flayer that ruled over the dark world had begun amassing forces through Billy in order to fully come into our world and destroy all life. Russia had been secretly experimenting in the area in order to open a doorway to the alternate universe and this further helped to empower the Mind Flayer.
Who Created The Upside Down?
Whilst we’ve never had concrete answers about who or what created the upside down, it’s clear that the creatures that live in it all have an obsession with our world and are desperate to take over it. The dimension was initially discovered by accident in Hawkins lab during experiments involving Eleven and opening a gateway but none of the creatures that live there have ever explained anything about their world, even when possessing humans.
The Upside Down Monsters Explained
Several monsters exist in the upside down but the most notable of these is The Mind Flayer. This is the overlord of the area and due to its ability to control other creatures, it is viewed as the ruler of the upside down.
The Mind Flayer possesses psychic abilities and is even able to control humans and influence them to do its bidding which we see throughout season 3 when forcing Billy to bring it bodies.
It has successfully entered the consciousness of Will and Eleven as well as Billy all in its goal to take over the world.
How To Get To The Upside Down
There are actually several ways to get to the upside down though typically this involves opening a portal. In Season 1 Eleven opened a portal in Hawkins Lab which allowed scientists and explorers to venture into it and also enabled creatures from the dimension to break through.
This allowed membranes to spread throughout the city which could also be used to step into the other world.
We witness this when Eleven is pulled through Into the upside down and can see through the tears back into our world.
It’s clear that the dimension tears throughout the town and throughout the three seasons it has reached into several parts of the city. In season 2, Jim Hopper traveled through a large section of the town and discovered that the universe had begun bleeding into our world. Under the town, there existed a network of tunnels that all tied directly back to a large portal which Eleven managed to close in the finale.
Stranger Things 3 – The Upside Down
However, a part of the Mind Flayer remained in Hawkins looking for a new host after it was exorcised from Will which is when it latched onto Billy. Through him, it builds an army known as the flayed that run rampant through the town.
In addition to this, The Russians were using a device to create another tear so that more of the Mind Flayer hosts in the upside down were able to come back through.
By the end of Season 3, with help from Jim Hopper, Joyce was able to destroy the weapon that the Russians had been using in their experiments and close the portal once more. Hopper seemingly died in the explosion brought forth by the weapon, however, it’s extremely possible that he instead used the tear as protection and traveled through into the upside down in order to survive the destruction of the machine.
This would explain how there is an American in Russia in the seasons post-credits scene as they could’ve have pulled him through this doorway on the other side.
What’s so amazing about the dimension is that it’s still cloaked in a lot of mystique and magic but one thing is clear, whoever comes into contact with it is left either dead or haunted horrifically by the things they’ve seen.
Your Thoughts
Obviously, I’d love to hear your thoughts on The Upside down and if there’s anything else that you think should have been included in the video then make sure you let me know in the comments below.
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