17 '80s-Inspired Easter Eggs in "Stranger Things" Season 4

As you might expect, several popular '80s toys and games make guest appearances throughout the new season. In one flashback to El's time in Dr. Brenner's lab, another test subject is seen using a Magic 8 Ball to answer questions. Later, Lucas's sister, Erica, demands a Nintendo with the game "Duck Hunt" as payment for covering for him, and a Rubik's Cube can be seen at the video store where Steve and Robin work. The team also brings back the old favorite, the Lite-Brite, in a great callback to previous seasons and to '80s toys alike.

Out in California, Will and El (aka "Jane" to her classmates) have to give diorama presentations on their heroes. While we don't see Will's whole presentation, we do catch a glimpse of his poster and who he's picked as his hero: Alan Turing, the British codebreaking and mathematics genius who worked to break the infamous "Enigma" code during World War II. Turing was also famous for the devastating way he was treated as a gay man — another hint among others scattered throughout the season that Will, too, is questioning his sexuality.

Lucas joins the basketball team in the fourth season, and if you pay attention to his jersey, you'll spot a tribute to a real-life basketball legend.

"The #8 jersey Lucas wears is a nod to Kobe Bryant's first jersey number," the Netflix Twitter account revealed. "@calebmclaughlin is a huge fan and had the idea to pay tribute to Kobe through his character's jersey."

The name of the Dungeons & Dragons club that the Hawkins kids join has not one but two meanings. First, it's a reference to the X-Men comics, where a group known as the "Hellfire Club" play a significant role in several storylines (including the famed "Dark Phoenix" storyline, which El's recent plot has mirrored to a degree). It's also a reference to the "satanic panic" of the era. Eddie even reads the club a magazine article decrying the "dangers" of letting kids play games like D&D.

As a bonus, Dustin later claims to have hacked a police database with the help of "Cerebro" — aka Professor X's psychic-power device.

A little deeper cut in the '80s nostalgia comes in one of Jonathan's throwaway lines. While the Byers's home is being guarded by cops, Jonathan refers to two of them as "Ponch and Jon," referencing "CHiPs," an '80s TV show about California highway patrol officers.

Steve and Robin's mall job at Scoops Ahoy is gone this season, and in its place is a gig at a video rental store. Of course, video rental stores were one of the icons of '80s and '90s pop culture, so it's no wonder that it would play a major role in this show that runs on nostalgia!

While playing D&D, Dustin quips, "Never tell me the odds," as he tries to get a strategic roll. This is, of course, a direct quote from "The Empire Strikes Back," where Han Solo tells off C-3PO for trying to tell him the (hilariously low) statistical likelihood of successfully navigating an asteroid field.

Steve continues to be a supportive friend to lesbian BFF Robin, this time using their video store job to reassure her that her new crush might like her back. His evidence? Said new crush returned a copy of "Fast Times at Ridgemont High," and the video is stopped at exactly the moment where Phoebe Cates's character wears (and then removes) a red bikini.

When Mike and Will call "Nina," they almost instantly realize they're actually connecting with a computer because they recognize the sound it makes as being the same sound from the cyberthriller movie "WarGames." At one point, Mike outright comments about how similar "Nina" is to "Joshua," the powerful computer from the movie.

During one of those classic, very funny scenes between Dustin and Steve, Dustin tries to sound much loftier than his older pal by quoting none other than Sherlock Holmes. "The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes," he quips. The 1980s saw a new PBS adaptation of Sherlock Holmes, so Dustin could have either picked it up there or from the actual books.

Dustin has a pin on his backpack reading "I've Been Slimed." He and his friends have been huge "Ghostbusters" fans from the very beginning, even dressing up as the characters for Halloween back in the second season, so it's no wonder he has this pin.

This one gets a little meta, and we'd expect nothing less from "Stranger Things." In the new season, actor Robert Englund plays Victor Creel, who gets compared to Michael Myers, the horror villain from the Halloween franchise. Englund himself played a different iconic horror villain: Freddy Krueger from "A Nightmare on Elm Street" — who himself gets name-dropped in this season too!

Throughout the season, different characters reveal just how much they know about some of the most beloved (and cult-favorite) pop culture properties of the time. Jonathan notes that "Police Academy 3" is currently playing in theaters, while Nancy has a Tom Cruise poster on her wall, with the season taking place right around the same time that his breakout hit "Top Gun" came out. Will is in on it too, with a "Little Shop of Horrors" poster in his room.

While the Hawkins crew is on the run, hilarious new addition Eddie throws on a white mask — aka the iconic Michael Myers mask from the Halloween slasher-film series. It's a twofer Easter egg, too! Not only does the mask reference the Halloween series, but it's also a throwback to the Halloween episode of the second season, where Max wears the same mask and startles the boys.

Vickie, Robin's bandmate-turned-crush who she pines for throughout the fourth season, bears a striking resemblance to another '80s teen queen. With her short red hair and her hat-and-a-slouchy-jacket signature style, Vickie seems to have been styled after Molly Ringwald — specifically, after her quirky-fashion-loving "Pretty in Pink" character, Andie.

The good news is, Joyce and Hopper are finally reunited and, with an assist from Murray, get out of prison and help their kids save the day. The bad news is, they need a wardrobe change partway through — and the only things they can find are Hulk Hogan-themed shirts. Apparently, even Soviet baddies have time to be fans of '80s pro-wrestling stars!

The season ends on a bittersweet note with Max's fate left up in the air as she lies in a coma after her encounter with Vecna. In the hospital, we see Lucas reading aloud to Max from Stephen King's "The Talisman." The book is about a young boy who goes on a cross-country quest looking for the titular "talisman" in hopes of saving his mother's life. A nod to the show's horror roots . . . or a hint at Lucas's arc for the final season?