Do you think that the Kali ARC for Eleven in Stranger Things was necessary?

There are some people who feel that the Kali arc is not necessary for Eleven because she is known to do well with her friends. The fact that she was placed in a whole new place was a twist that people did not like that much. At the same time, it was probably for the best because they probably wanted to single her out.

She is meant to show her acting prowess more. She was able to deliver but it does not mean that fans are necessarily happy with how things turned out. Some people still wish that it could have been different but those who have always loved the show will always love the show and will watch it for as long as there are episodes available.

Unfortunately, Yes!

I honestly did not appreciate the Kali Arc. I understand the path the creators took and the character development for Eleven since she is one of the main characters of the series but the Kali Arc didn’t really appeal to me. I have a few reasons for it too. Let’s talk about them:

1. It disrupts the show’s narrative: The character Kali appears in only two episodes and the entire arc is set in the seventh episode right after an epic cliffhanger from episode six. The arc is relieving but destroys the intensity the previous episode had created. This pisses me off personally.

2. Feels Forced: The Kali Arc teaches Eleven the value of her true ‘friends’, how to control her powers and why killing is bad in one hour of the show. This seems really forced and shabbily crammed in. The Kali Arc could have been better if it would have been stretched at least into two episodes.

3. Bad Casting: Kali seems like a really cool character in the first episode but her acting throws me off. There are talented Indian-American actors and the casting is absurd. She looks good as Kali but doesn’t really match the acting standard of the rest of the show. Her dialogue delivery is really pathetic.

The only saving grace of the Kali Arc is how cool Eleven looks at the end of it. Her girlish charm comes out more and she looks badass.

They could have executed it better with longer involvement of Kali and careful placement of the episodes. The Kali Arc will go down as the ‘necessary evil’ of this series.