What about Bob?
Thatâs what âStranger Thingsâ fans should be asking after watching Season 2 of the Netflix show, but not just because of Bob Newbyâs (Sean Astin) final big scene.
It turns out that examining Bobâs actions could be the opening into the world of the Upside Down that fans have been searching for.
(Warning! âStranger Thingsâ Season 2 spoilers below!)
In an interview ahead of the latest seasonâs release, Astin told HuffPost he just wanted his character to do âsomething heroic, no matter what it is.â
Throughout Season 2, Bob accomplished that goal multiple times over. He was the one who figured out that the strange images Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) was drawing actually formed a map of Hawkins, Indiana. Later, he essentially sacrificed himself in order to turn on the power and unlock the doors at Hawkins Lab, allowing his friends to escape the Demogorgon-like creatures known as demodogs. (Bob wasnât so lucky.)
âEven helping figure out the map, that was enough. But then getting to do that [death scene] was so satisfying,â the actor said.
However, the characterâs most heroic contribution might still be forthcoming. It seems his scenes might have slyly hinted at the key to defeating the monsters in the Upside Down: water.
In âStranger Thingsâ Season 2, we get multiple hints that the monsters from the Upside Down hate water. And itâs all thanks to Bob.
When heâs working out the map at the Byersâ house, Bob âthe Brainâ cracks the case by noting that the Upside Downâs tunnels âdonât go over water.â
Later, after Bob heads to the basement and restores the power to Hawkins Lab, Dr. Owens (Paul Reiser) notices a demodog in the stairwell on the security cameras. Bob turns on the sprinkler system, and the demodog runs away. Easy peasy.
Bobâs scenes also put other parts of the show in new light.
During one moment in Season 2, Will doesnât want to get in a bathtub of warm water after being possessed by the Mind Flayer.
âHe likes it cold,â Will says, all weird and freaky-like. While his comment might just be referring to the monsterâs affinity for cold temperatures, Bobâs water-related moments suggest the monster might also be resisting the tub regardless of the heat.
Then, of course, thereâs Barbâs (Shannon Purser) death scene in Season 1.
In the human world, the pool at Steve Harringtonâs (Joe Keery) house is full of high-quality H2O. But when Barb goes to the Upside Down, itâs empty. Itâs a detail that can easily be forgotten unless you consider what we eventually learn in Season 2.
We asked Astin about this water theory, and he proposed that Bob wouldnât know much about it either way.
âOne of the things that Bob doesnât get to do is really experience the Upside Down. He doesnât meet Eleven ... He doesnât really know even in his death. He doesnât know in the amount of time between learning about this other world and being chased down the hallway by these demodogs,â he said.
The actor claims heâs unsure whether water has a âsupernatural effectâ on the monsters, but Astin did bring up that his own dogs and cats react at the mere sight of a spray bottle, even though theyâve barely ever been sprayed with water.
âI donât know if thereâs anything story-wise, or within the sense of the world â that it melts them, or itâs like a vampire with sacred water on it or something ... I think for Bob in that moment, itâs like, âOh, watch me freak the dogs out.ââ he said.