In “Chapter Four: The Body” of Stranger Things 1, I missed some things in the first go around of this airing. First, Mike loses faith in Eleven when Will’s body turns up. Second, there is a festering jurisdictional issue between the Indiana state and local Hawkins authorities in regards to an autopsy of Will Byers. As well, Chief Hopper uses police brutality in order to get the truth from a state trooper. Finally, there are a few other story lines, which I missed on the first go of this episode.
To start, Mike loses faith in Eleven when Will turns up dead. Angerily, Mike says, “Please stop that. Are you deaf? I thought we were friends, you know? Friends tell each other the truth, and they definitely don’t lie to each other. You made me think Will was ok. That he was still, that he was still out there. But he wasn’t. He wasn’t. Maybe you thought you were helping, but you weren’t. You hurt me. Do you understand? What you did sucks. Lucas was right about you. All along.”
It’s “Chapter Four: The Body” where state/local jurisdictions clash in the autospy of Will Byers. We learn of this fight when Patty and Chief Hopper have a discussion. This is how the whole jurisdictional battle plays out.
According to Patty, a stale clerk at the Hawkins Coroner’s Office, a state coroner claimed jurisdiction over the atopsy of Will Byers and did it when a local cornoner wants to conduct it.
“I thought you knew. Those men from state. They sent Gary home last night,” as Chief Hopper replies, “So who did the autopsy?”
Because of the state/local jurisidiction issue, Chief Hopper becomes suspicious of the whole autopsy process on Will Byers. He can’t understand why a local citizen would get a state autopsy from a state official when it is clearly in the jurisidiction of the local Hawkins coroner to conduct such an autopsy. Chief Hopper wonders why the state officials are meddling in local affairs of Hawkins citizens like in the case of autopsies.
Also, during this segment, we learn of Joyce’s past mental health issues. Jonathan explains to Chief Hopper, quietly, “Yeah, she’s had anxiety problems in the past.”
This broadcast sees Steve with a messed up set of prioorities. Nancy tells Steve saying, “I don’t understand. Barb is missing, and you are worried about your dad?”
Once again, in this airing, the Uncanny X-Men find their way into Stranger Things.
“Somehow she’s channelling him,” Mikes says to Dustin. “Like professor X,” repies Dustin.
Meanwhile, Gary, the local Hawkins coroner, draws a comparison between Will Byer’s autopsy and that of John F. Kennedy, which he tells to Chief Hopper.
“It was about six of them, I’d say. Yes sir, never seen that many troopers come with a body before. They claimed jurisidiction. Kicked me out. It all seemed over the top to me, considering. Considering this was Will Byers and and not John F. Kennedy.”
Elsewhere, Nancy is judged by her mother.
“You and Steve were talking…It does matter,” yells an adament Karen. “We slept together. Is that what you want to know. It doesn’t matter… No, it is all bullshit. It has nothing to do with Barb. And she is missing, and something terrible happened to her. I know it. I know it. And no one is listening to me,” cries an upset Nancy.
Meanwhile, as he’s doing some undercover detective work at a local bar, Chief Hopper celebrates his dead daughter’s past spelling bee win as a front to get the truth from a lying state trooper. “So that quarry. That’s state run where they found that boy, huh?.. Well, that’s funny, cause I know for a fact that it’s run by the Satler company, Frank Satler, decent guy, still has a couple operational quarries up in Roane. So why you lying to me, man?”
That being said, Chief Hopper uses police brutality on the state trooper. Hopper demands from the state trooper, saying, “Who told you to be out there? What were you doing out there?”
Moreover, Chief Hopper wants to know who the state trooper is working for. As he beats up the trooper, he yells, “Who do you work for? The NSA? Hawkins Lab?”
Eventually, Chief Hopper heads to the hospital where they are keeping Will Byer’s body. A state trooper is guarding it and tells Chief Hopper: “Hey, you can’t be back here.” After attempting to lie to the state trooper, Chief Hopper has to knock him out in order to go see Will Byer’s body.
In conclusion, I missed lots in this episode, which I only picked up in the second review. I totally missed that jurisidictional spat between local and state authorities in the background of this episode. Also, I missed the part where Chief Hopper goes to a bar in order to scope out the truth about Will’s body from an unsuspecting state trooper. These are just some things I missed in watching this episode on the first run.
