Joyce & Hopper Finally Get Their First Date in Stranger Things Comic
While viewers wait for Stranger Things season 5, a fan-made comic imagines Joyce and Hopper’s long-delayed first date. The Duffer brothers’ nostalgic 1980s horror series first debuted on Netflix in 2016 and quickly became a global pop culture hit. The series stars an ensemble cast that includes Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Joe Keery, Maya Hawke, Jamie Campbell Bower, Priah Ferguson, and Brett Gelman. Stranger Things was renewed for its fifth and final season earlier this year.
As the series has progressed from season to season, viewers have watched the people of Hawkins evolve as the threat from the sinister Upside Down has continued to grow. One important relationship which has been steadily intensifying is between Joyce (Ryder) and Hopper (Harbour). Although it was a long time in the making, the two finally shared their first kiss in Stranger Things season 4, episode 9, « The Piggyback, » after Joyce and Murray (Gelman) rescue Hopper from the Russian prison. The long-awaited moment rewarded patient fans who had been waiting since Hopper was abducted at the end of Stranger Things season 3, but there’s still one moment fans want to see between the couple, a first date.
Joyce and Hopper planned their first date in season 3, but viewers have been waiting since 2019 for those plans to be realized. Now, illustrator Rachel Hoo gives Stranger Things fans a taste of what they want with a comic posted to Instagram that imagines Joyce and Hopper’s first date as Hopper described in « The Piggyback. » Check out the sweet scene below:
It would be nice if Stranger Things season 5 included a well-deserved tender moment for Joyce and Hopper like Hoo’s comic depicts, but after the Stranger Things season 4 finale, the odds seem stacked against the couple. Several factors are working against Joyce and Hopper being able to focus on their new relationship in the next season. For starters, there is a chance that Enzo’s, the restaurant the couple had chosen, was either destroyed during the earthquake after Eleven (Brown) defeated Vecna (Bower) or was closed because of it. Additionally, the pair have more important things to focus on after their return to Hawkins, such as Eleven and Will’s continued connections to Vecna and the Upside Down.
It’s difficult to say how long Joyce and Hopper’s new relationship will last. So far, the Duffer brothers have revealed very little about Stranger Things season 5, but many fans believe that not all the Hawkins gang will survive. Joyce and Hopper, whose relationship so far has been riddled with misfortune, are both possible victims. Until more information about Stranger Things season 5 is released, both Joyce and Hopper’s fates are up in the air.
Source: Rachel Hoo
