"Chapter Three: The Case of the Missing Lifeguard" is the third episode of the third season of the American science fiction horror drama television series Stranger Things. Written by William Bridges and directed by Shawn Levy, it was originally released on Netflix in the United States on July 4, 2019, along with the rest of the third season.
"Chapter Three: The Case of the Missing Lifeguard" is the third episode of the third season of the American science fiction horror drama television series Stranger Things. Written by William Bridges and directed by Shawn Levy, it was originally released on Netflix in the United States on July 4, 2019, along with the rest of the third season.
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"Chapter Three: The Case of the Missing Lifeguard" is the third episode of the third season of the American science fiction horror drama television series Stranger Things. Written by William Bridges and directed by Shawn Levy, it was originally released on Netflix in the United States on July 4, 2019, along with the rest of the third season.
Created by the Duffer Brothers, the series, set in the 1980s, follows the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana, and the supernatural happenings that occur within it. In "The Case of the Missing Lifeguard", Eleven and Max find out that Billy is involved in Heather's disappearance, and go looking for her. Meanwhile, Joyce and Hopper investigate in Hawkins Lab, Nancy and Jonathan continue their pursuit of a story about the mysterious rats circulating Hawkins, and Steve, Robin, and Dustin crack the Russian code.
Filming of the episode was unique, both for the scene where Will destroys Castle Byers and when Heather is submerged in a bathtub; both Noah Schnapp and Francesca Reale enjoyed filming their respective scenes, with Millie Bobby Brown insisting on not using a body double for the latter's scene in order to help Reale through filming. Finn Wolfhard and Schnapp both agreed that the scene of Mike saying, "It's not my fault you don't like girls" was not a hint at Will possibly being queer, but instead an indicator of how different he was from his friends in terms of maturity. Despite this, the scene—and Will's general presence in the episode—have been analyzed for how it defines and changes his characterization from this point on. Upon release, the episode received generally positive reviews from critics, and was considered by some to be a step-up in quality for the season.
Background
Stranger Things is set in the 1980s, and follows the supernatural happenings occurring in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana. It houses an ensemble cast, focusing on three different groups: the children, Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Will (Noah Schnapp), Max (Sadie Sink), and Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), who has telekinetic powers; the teenagers, Steve (Joe Keery), Robin (Maya Hawke), Mike's older sister Nancy (Natalia Dyer), Max's step-brother Billy (Dacre Montgomery), and Will's older brother Jonathan (Charlie Heaton); and the adults, Will's mother Joyce (Winona Ryder), and Hawkins Police of Chief and Eleven's caretaker Hopper (David Harbour).
Throughout the first two seasons, Will experiences much of Hawkins' supernatural happenings, including being taken by a Demogorgon, a race of monsters. He is then controlled subconsciously by the Mind Flayer, an entity that controls the Demogorgons, who is also the main villain at this point. In season three, several plots have been set up in the prior two episodes, including a friendship forming between Max and Eleven—leading to the latter breaking up with Mike—and Joyce noticing odd occurrences, like magnets losing their magnetism. Other plots include Nancy and Jonathan, now working at a newspaper, stumbling upon a mystery involving strange rats that torment the town and an elderly woman named Mrs. Driscoll (Peggy Miley) who has information, and Steve and Dustin finding a secret Russian code while the former works at an ice cream shop with Robin in Starcourt Mall. Concurrently, Billy has been taken over by the Mind Flayer, and is giving people to it as a sacrifice, starting with his co-worker Heather (Francesca Reale).
Plot
At her house, Eleven uses her powers with Max to spy on people, and, after seeing Mike talk badly about them, they spy on Billy. Eleven finds him in the middle of sacrificing Heather to the Mind Flayer—although she only sees Billy holding Heather. Joyce comes to speak about the magnets with Hopper, who is upset that she ditched their date to go talk to schoolteacher Scott about the magnets, and, after Joyce pushes him to, they go to Hawkins Laboratory to see if they have any involvement. Max and Eleven go through Billy's room, and find Heather's belongings in his bathroom, prompting them to go look for her at her job to no avail, but they find a picture of Heather that they take. Nancy and Jonathan tell their employers about Mrs. Driscoll, but they mock her, and she walks off angry.
Production
"The Case of the Missing Lifeguard" was directed by Shawn Levy and written by William Bridges. The episode featured some guest stars, including Francesca Reale as Heather and Peggy Miley as Doris Driscoll.
When Will Byers and Mike Wheeler are arguing before the former storms off, M
At a sleepover, Will eagerly plays Dungeons & Dragons with Mike and Lucas, who mock him while playing, so Will storms off. They apologize, but Will says that Mike and Lucas care more about their girlfriends than him and Dustin, riding off on his bike in the rain. Eleven finds Heather with her powers, seeing Heather submerged in a bathtub filled with ice, asking for help, terrifying Eleven. After a false lead regarding the Russian code, Steve and Dustin get help from Robin, who instantly understands it as the Russians discussing a meeting point at the mall for something unknown. Mike and Lucas go looking for Will, and find him in the woods destroying his fort, Castle Byers, and Will reveals that he feels the Mind Flayer's presence again.
Nancy and Jonathan break into Mrs. Driscoll's house, and see her eating the same fertilizer that the rats have been consuming. Dustin, Robin, and Steve spy on the Russians making a delivery at the mall, and flee before they are caught. At Hawkins Lab, Joyce and Hopper don't find anything, but Hopper is beaten by a man in the dark, who runs off before they can identify him. Max and Eleven go to Heather's house, finding Heather's parents with Billy and Heather, confusing them, and they leave without telling the truth about why they came over. Billy sees them off, and Heather's parents both collapse, having been poisoned by Billy and a Mind Flayer-controlled Heather, and given as sacrifices to it.