"Chapter Six: The Dive" is the sixth episode of the fourth season of Stranger Things and the thirty-first episode overall. It premiered on May 27, 2022, being the sixth episode of the first volume, and was directed by Nimród Antal.

Synopsis[]

Behind the Iron Curtain, a risky rescue mission gets underway. The California crew seeks help from a hacker. Steve takes one for the team.

Plot[]

Hawkins police arrive on the scene of Patrick McKinney's death, his mangled body pulled out of the water by Jason Carver. Calvin Powell and Phil Callahan question him, pointing out the impossibility of Eddie Munson killing Patrick, but Jason insists he is secretly a vessel for Satan, which gives him evil powers. In the depth's of Lover's Lake, a fish is grabbed by something unseen and pulled downwards.

Wallace is tortured in a government facility by Jack Sullivan's men. Sullivan again asks him for Eleven's location, which Wallace claims not to know. Sullivan remains firm that Eleven is responsible for Vecna's killings and Martin Brenner is helping her. Wallace again states he does not know where she is, and so Sullivan has him locked inside an overheated metal box. Brenner compares the loss of Eleven's powers to a stroke victim's brain, believing the parts of her memories she is repressing are what holds the key to getting her powers back. Eleven tells him of her memory of the massacre, and Brenner warns her that she must stick to one memory at a time so she does not overstrain her mind. Eleven is placed inside NINA, which has screens installed on the ceiling playing video clips from her repressed memories, and sinks into her mind. The Hawkins group goes to tell Eddie Munson about their findings about Vecna, only to find Rick Lipton's cabin swarming with police because of Patrick's death. Powell publicly releases Eddie's name as the primary suspect and sets an open forum at town hall. Eddie calls the group on a stolen walkie and tells them to meet him in the woods.

Joyce Byers and Murray Bauman, stranded in the Russian woods, try to get Yuri Ismaylov, tied to a tree, to help them. He initially refuses unless paid, but gives in when they threaten to leave him and points them towards his safe house. He leads Joyce them to it, where they arm themselves. Remembering his plan to turn them over to Kamchatka's warden, Bauman disguises Yuri as himself and himself as Yuri so they can break inside. Jim Hopper, Dmitri Antonov and the other prisoners are led to a large feast. Only Hopper refuses to partake. One prisoner points out that the guards are letting them regain their strength so they can fight whatever lives next to the arena, as he had seen other prisoners be given the same feast, only for all of them to be killed by it. He insists that they must band together to fight it instead of scattering like the other group did, but Hopper interrupts, explaining the monster is there to hunt them and that the food is to fatten them up.

In her memories, the orderly gives Eleven advice and claims she reminds her of the mythical number One, who Brenner tells the children does not exist. The orderly insists that One was real and he spent years working with him, and that he gave One advice to tap into his most traumatic memories. He reveals that Brenner had lied to her about her mother's death. Brenner leads the children away for another test. Outside NINA, Owens sighs that they should have told her the truth about something, to which Brenner responds "and risk everything?" As the Hawkins group walk to Eddie's location, Lucas Sinclair expresses guilt to Max Mayfield over witnessing signs of Patrick being abused but not doing anything about it. He realizes that all of Vecna's victims are linked by darkness in their life, and apologizes to Max for not trying harder to help her. Max insists that it was her fault for pulling away, and they resolve their distance. Nancy Wheeler admits the toll distance has taken on her relationship with Jonathan Byers to Robin Buckley, and the two become friends. Despite Dustin Henderson's compass being off, Steve Harrington finds Eddie's location, and the group meets up with him. As Powell fails to quell the crowd at town hall, Jason takes control of the situation, blaming all of the deaths caused by the Upside Down in the past years on the Hellfire Club and rallying the town against Eddie. As the police try to stop the townspeople, Karen Wheeler, Claudia Henderson, and Sue Sinclair all appear deeply discomforted. The families converge on the Wheeler house to find the kids gone, and Karen calls the police.

Nancy checks Eddie's broken watch and realizes Patrick's death matches the lights exploding in the Creel house, meaning that Vecna needs to attack from the attic. As the group wonders how they can get to the Upside Down to kill him, Dustin realizes his compass is off, and he and Lucas realize from their past experiences that there must be a gate nearby. The group agrees to follow Dustin's compass. Brenner arranges a test/game for the children where two of them will stand in opposite circles and try to knock each other over using their psychic abilities. Bully Two easily dominates the competition, leaving Eleven the last one standing. During the fight, Eleven follows the orderly's advice and taps into the memory of her mother being taken away from her, using it to win to Brenner's approval. While being led through the arena, Hopper provokes Antonov into a staged fight, and Hopper tries and fails to get the upper hand on the guards. Antonov assumes Hopper's attempt was worthless, only for him to reveal that he fought them so he could steal a lighter in the hopes of killing the Demogorgon with fire.

The California group arrives at Suzie Bingham's house, overrun her many young, eccentric siblings. Argyle is instantly smitten with her older sister Eden, and they find Suzie on the roof of her house, her computer taken away for changing Dustin's grade. After providing a fake cover story as to why they need to track the phone number, Suzie has her siblings distract her father while she and the California group breaks into his office and uses the computer to trace its location to Nevada. She prints out a map of the coordinates and sends them on their way, only for them to find Eden getting high with Argyle in the van. As Powell and Phil Callahan argue about their current situation, they get a call from an officer having found the Hawkins group's car up by Eddie's hideout. Knowing that Lover's Lake is close by, the two head for it. Dustin's compass leads the group to Lover's Lake, and Nancy remembers that the demogorgon would create smaller gates wherever it attacked, wondering if Vecna does the same thing. The older teens take Dustin's compass and take a boat out on the lake.

While spending her extra hour in the Rainbow Room, won by winning the competition, Eleven overhears screaming and comes across Brenner having the orderly tortured. She watches in horror as they drag him away and returns to the Rainbow Room to find Two and three of his accomplices waiting for her, having cut the power to the security cameras, and they attack her for winning. Two promises to kill her if she reports on him to Brenner. When Eleven looks in the mirror, she again sees her younger self, but the room and her clothes are in the same condition they were during the massacre. She uncovers a new memory—her bloodstained self-exerting her powers during the massacre and screaming. Her memory of Brenner again asks, "what have you done?" and she wakes up outside NINA. A horrified Eleven concludes that she killed the children in retribution for the attack.

Dustin's compass goes haywire, and the teens realize they are right on top of the gate. Steve, having the most swimming experience, offers to look for it. As he takes his shirt off, Robin notices Nancy watching him and smirks. Steve dives to the bottom of the lake, finding several fish skeletons, and notices a red light in the distance. As the younger teens observe the situation, the police arrive, forcing them to hide. Steve finds the gate sealed up and touches it, causing a tendril to press up from the other side. As he surfaces and confirms to his friends that he found the gate, the younger teens lures the police away from them. The tendril floats up to the surface and wraps around Steve's leg, dragging him into the Upside Down. Nancy immediately goes after him, and, after a moment of deliberation, so do Robin and Eddie. As the police catch Dustin, Max and Lucas, Steve is attacked by bat creatures. One of them strangles him with its tail, holding him down, and the others start to bite into his flesh.

Cast[]

Starring[] Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers David Harbour as Jim Hopper Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair Noah Schnapp as Will Byers Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers Joe Keery as Steve Harrington Maya Hawke as Robin Buckley Brett Gelman as Murray Bauman Priah Ferguson as Erica Sinclair Matthew Modine as Dr. Martin Brenner Paul Reiser as Dr. Sam Owens Also Starring[] Jamie Campbell Bower as Friendly Orderly Cara Buono as Karen Wheeler Eduardo Franco as Argyle Joseph Quinn as Eddie Munson Sherman Augustus as Lt. Col. Jack Sullivan Martie Blair as Young Eleven Joe Chrest as Ted Wheeler Catherine Curtin as Claudia Henderson Nikola Đjuričko as Yuri Mason Dye as Jason Carver Christian Ganiere as Ten Pasha Lychnikoff as Oleg Rob Morgan as Chief Powell Nikolai Nikolaeff as Ivan Gabriella Pizzolo as Suzie Bingham John Reynolds as Officer Callahan Tristan Spohn as Two Myles Truitt as Patrick McKinney Tom Wlaschiha as Dmitri Antonov

Co-Starring[] Chloe Adona as Nine Alexei Afonin as Prisoner #3 Gavin Borders as Cornelius Bingham Jeff Campanella as Reporter #4 Karen Ceesay as Sue Sinclair Kendrick Cross as Agent Wallace Lyric Deaderick as Tatum Shakirah DeMesier as Reporter #2 Roger Dale Floyd as Sterling Bingham Jeremiah Friedlander as Fourteen Morgan Gao as Three Ethan Green as Sixteen Oliver Green as Seventeen Raina Grey as Chef Kid Jayden Griffin as Freshman Teammate Martin Harris as Prisoner #2 Jules Hartley as Reporter #3 Charity Hitchcock as Scientist #3 Audrey Holcomb as Eden Ray Irwin as Construction Foreman Joel Ray Ishman as Construction Worker Clayton Johnson as Andy Sophia Joss as Tabitha Jenne Kang as Scientist #1 David Alexander Kaplan as Twelve Adam Murray as Angry Townsperson #2 Jessica Arden Napier as Five Sparrow Nicole as Four Jennifer Christa Palmer as Reporter #1 Konstantin Podprugin as Prisoner #1 Arnell Powell as Charles Sinclair Tinsley Price as Holly Wheeler Erika Robel as Angry Townsperson #1 Hunter Romanillos as Teammate Mark Rowe as Suzie's Dad Samuel Salary as Stern Orderly Holli Saperstein as Concerned Woman Olivia Sembra as Eighteen Mike Senior as Police Officer Dan Sheynin as Russian Guard #1 Jeff Sprauve as Officer Glenn Daniels Caz Sumner as Tanner Lana Jean Turner as Seven De'Jon Watts as Six Jackson Watts as Peter Samuel Whisnant as Scientist #2 Bentley Williams as Fifteen Hendrix Yancey as Thirteen

Music[]

Soundtrack[]

• "Stringfellows" by W. Bennett, M. Christer & R. Emanuel - Dustin, Lucas, Max, Nancy, Steve, and Robin contemplate how to break the news to Eddie that Vecna is in the Upside Down as they drive to Reefer Rick's.
• "Father Son" by Makeup and Vanity Set - Dustin, Lucas, Max, Nancy, Steve, and Robin drive to Reefer Rick's only to be halted by Patrick's crime scene; the Wheelers, Mrs. Henderson, and the Sinclairs watched the news bulletin of Patrick's murder.
• "Violin Concerto, Op. 35: III. Finale. Allegro assai vivace" by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, John Wilson, RTE Concert Orchestra, Andrew Haveron - Mike, Will, Jonathan, and Argyle arrive at the Bingham house, and meet Suzie's siblings before finally finding her on the roof.
• "The Snow Maiden, Op 12 - Chorus of the People and The Courtiers" by Russian State Chorus - Hopper, Enzo, and the prisoners are led to a feast.
• "Cavatine Et Rondo D'Antonida" by The National Bol Shoi Orchestra - The prisoners feast as Hopper stews and realizes their impending doom.
• "Marion Face" by Michael Rubini - The prisoners discuss the monster, and Hopper tells them the true motives of the feast.
• "The Man Appears" by Makeup and Vanity Set - The Wheelers, Mrs. Henderson, and the Sinclairs arrive at the Wheeler home to search for their kids.
• "Cutthroat" by S U R V I V E - Eleven sends Two flying into a double-sided mirror and cracking it.
• "Pass the Dutchie" by Musical Youth - Argyle and Eden are caught by Mike, Will, Jonathan, and Suzie smoking in the Surfer Boy Pizza van.
• "Killer Klown" by Gothic Storm - Steve is dragged into the Upside Down and finds himself in a desolate wasteland.

Original score[]

• "Buried Memories" - Brenner explains to Eleven how she can recover her powers through her memories.
• "Burning Baby" - Joyce and Murray threaten to leave Yuri to freeze to death in the woods, causing him to reluctantly help them locate the prison.
• "Nine Feet Tall" - Hopper tells Dmitri and his fellow prisoners of the Demogorgon and their fates are sealed.
• "One" - The orderly tells Eleven that she reminds him of One, and that Brenner doesn't always tells the truth.
• "Skull Rock" - The numbers file out of the Rainbow Room.
• "Does That Make Us Friends?" - Nancy rants to Robin about her relationship with Jonathan, and the two strengthen their friendship.
• "Curfew" - Karen, Ted, Sue, Charles, and Claudia realize that their children are in danger.
• "The Shire is Burning" - Eddie agrees to follow Dustin and the Party through the woods.
• "Breaking and Entering" - Powell and Callahan turn the car around to head to Lover's Lake, where the Party arrives.
• "Welcome to Kamchatka" - Credits roll.

Influences and references[]

See also: Influences & references

Films[]

• The Breakfast Club (1985)
  • The appearance of Eden was based on Allison Reynolds in the film.
• The Muppet Movie (1976)
  • Suzie has two posters of the film in her bedroom.
• The Wizard of Oz (1939)
  • Suzie has a metal tin poster for the film next to her bed.

Technology[]

• Nintendo Entertainment System
  • Mike and Will lie to Suzie that the NINA Project is a codename for a video game console, saying it's "America's answer to Nintendo", while Argyle dubs it "Americantendo".

Toys[]

• Raggedy Ann/Raggedy Andy
  • Suzie has two of the dolls on her bed.

Gallery[]

For this subject's gallery, see The Dive/Gallery.

Notes[]

• The title of the episode was revealed on November 6, 2021, on the occasion of Stranger Things Day.
• This is the only episode of the season where Vecna doesn’t make a present day appearance, only appearing via the NINA memories.
• This is the only episode of Season 4 that every main characters appears.
  • This including four other main characters, Vecna, Karen Wheeler, Eddie Munson, and Argyle as they were credited under “Also Starring” header.
• In the scene where Suzie dials Dr. Owens' number, she dials ‘202-564-9087’ as opposed to the written number ‘202-968-6161’. This error was carried over from "The Nina Project", where the initial audio has Will telling Mike the incorrect number.
• Dustin's birthday is revealed by Suzie; she says that the date would be "two months, three days, and five hours" from the current date - March 26, 1986 - putting his birthday at May 29, 1971.
• One mentions Eight in passing, saying she has already escaped Hawkins Lab.
• Terry Ives appears through a flashback, which also includes Kali.
• Test subject Five has her only line in this episode.

References[]

Episodes of Stranger Things
Season 1	The Vanishing of Will Byers • The Weirdo on Maple Street • Holly, Jolly • The Body • The Flea and the Acrobat • The Monster • The Bathtub • The Upside Down
Season 2	MADMAX • Trick or Treat, Freak • The Pollywog • Will the Wise • Dig Dug • The Spy • The Lost Sister • The Mind Flayer • The Gate
Season 3	Suzie, Do You Copy? • The Mall Rats • The Case of the Missing Lifeguard • The Sauna Test • The Flayed • E Pluribus Unum • The Bite • The Battle of Starcourt
Season 4	The Hellfire Club • Vecna's Curse • The Monster and the Superhero • Dear Billy • The Nina Project • The Dive • The Massacre at Hawkins Lab • Papa • The Piggyback
Season 5	The Crawl