‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’: Eric Robles On Expanding Hawkins, Keeping The Stakes Real, & Why This Isn’t Just ‘Stranger Things For Kids’ [Bingeworthy Podcast]

When networks spin off popular series, it's easy to come at them with arms folded and write them off as cash grabs. A " Stranger Things " animated spin-off really could have failed. A version of this show exists, in another reality, as something like a Saturday morning cartoon with “Stranger Things” as a disguise: bright colors, low stakes, perhaps Dustin and a sweet monster learning to be friends. Luckily, “ Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 ” appeared from a different portal. This version remembers that Hawkins is a town where children don't tell their parents the truth, quarrel with their friends, and then, from time to time, confront something that really shouldn't be there. The animated series is placed between the second and third seasons of "Stranger Things", fitting into that odd, in-between period when things should be calm. They aren't, though. Instead, the show manages to feel like a lost season that just happens to be animated - the same tension, the same complicated feelings, and the same sense that one poor choice is about to cause five even worse ones, along with some new mysteries. ‘The Boys’ Season 5: Karl Urban, Jack Quaid, Karen Fukuhara, Jensen Ackles, Erin Moriarty, and Laz Alonso On Ending The Series, and Potential Spin-Offs [Bingeworthy Podcast] On this episode of Bingeworthy , host Mike DeAngelo is joined by showrunner Eric Robles to discuss entering the wider world of the Upside Down and finding ways to have fun with the characters and story without ruining them.

You can listen to ‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’: Eric Robles On Expanding Hawkins, Keeping The Stakes Real, & Why This Isn’t Just ‘Stranger Things For Kids’ [Bingeworthy Podcast] online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

‘Stranger Things: Tales From ’85’: Eric Robles On Expanding Hawkins, Keeping The Stakes Real, & Why This Isn’t Just ‘Stranger Things For Kids’ [Bingeworthy Podcast] is an episode from The Playlist Podcast Network by The Playlist.

This episode is 00:20:30 long.

This episode was published on Apr 23, 2026.

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