Stranger Things season 4 episode 7 recap: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab

This article contains SPOILERS for Stranger Things season 4 episode 7.

As Eleven gets help from her friendly orderly, Vecna is able to get a hold of another victim in the seventh episode of Stranger Things season 4.

Catch up here on everything from the last episode!

This episode of Stranger Things season 4 picks up right where the last one started with Steve being eaten alive by some vulture, bat-like monsters. Eventually, Nancy, Robin, and Eddie arrive and free him.

The group fights and kills all the vicious monsters. There is a short-lived break before a whole hoard of these monsters begins flying right towards them.

The captured agent that Colonel Sullivan was interrogating finally gives in to the torture and will give up the information if the dastardly colonel promises he won’t kill Eleven. Back in the private facility in Nevada, Eleven is still struggling with her powers which leads to Dr. Owens not believing Dr. Brenner can actually do what he promised.

Privately, Dr. Brenner tells Eleven that he knows she can do it, she just has to get out of her own head. He asks her to trust herself and go into the Nina machine one last time.

As Eleven gets set up in the machine, Dr. Brenner gets the tape of the day that Eleven killed the other children. This day is September 8th, 1979, the same one audiences saw play out from Dr. Brenner’s point of view in the first episode of Stranger Things season 4.

Stranger Things season 4 episode 7: Huddle up at the Wheeler house

Chief Powell and Officer Callahan returned Dustin, Lucas, and Max to their parents at the Wheeler house and ask them why they were at the lake. They try their best and lie about why they were there, something Erica calls them out on.

This leads to yelling and arguing from all parties. Powell quiets everyone down before taking Max to talk to her privately.

In the Upside Down, the four older members are trekking through the woods, hiding from any monsters. They try moving again when Steve falls back due to blood loss.

Nancy uses a makeshift bandage to patch up her former lover as they share a longing look. The four of them make a plan to go to the Wheeler house where Nancy has two guns in her bedroom.

Over in the Russian prison, Hopper and Antonov have devised their plan and are waiting for the right moment to carry it out. As they wait, they talk about their respective children and bond even more.

Hopper talks about Eleven and how that monster is trying to kill her. He will do anything in his power to stop it before it can.

Outside the prison, Murray and Joyce’s first part of their plan goes off well with Murray using his Russian language skills to trick the guards and gain passage within the prison walls. Eleven remembers the fallout from when the other children attacked her.

Dr. Brenner does not believe her story and tries to get to the bottom of it. Two jokes about it but that only puts the spotlight on him.

Dr. Brenner puts a shock collar on Two that increases in electricity every time him provides lies to Dr. Brenner’s questions.

Stranger Things season 4 episode 7: Dustin proves to be a kid genius

Steve and Eddie are walking a little behind the women when Eddie explains how he was always jealous of Steve because Dustin worships him. This flatters Steve and as he tries to compliment Eddie, he cuts him off and admits that he runs when faced with danger.

But Nancy is not like that, not when it comes to Steve at least. The ground starts to rumble again as the foursome arrives at the Wheeler house.

Within the actual Wheeler house, Dustin and Lucas tell Erica everything privately. Erica asks who opened the watergate and so Dustin takes a moment to process the info he has.

Finally, Dustin and Lucas realize that Vecna has been opening gates for the Mind Flayer through a psychic connection with its victims. Following a nifty editing technique, audiences transition back down to the Upside Down where Nancy goes to her room, but the guns are not there.

She looks around and sees a lot of old stuff before checking her diary and notices the last entry is from the day Will went missing 3 years ago. Steve is in the kitchen because he can hear Dustin talking.

They try using light switches to communicate before seeing an overhead fixture with glowing particles around it. Eddie writes out SOS which leads Dustin to realize his four friends actually went through the watergate.

Stranger Things season 4 episode 7: Joyce finds Hopper a little too late

Behind the prison walls, Murray is perfectly pulling off Yuri, even tricking the warden. After “Yuri” asks about the other American in here, the warden walks his guests to the area where Hopper, Antonov, and the other prisoners are preparing for their fight with the Demogorgon.

While in the Nina machine, Eleven is taken aside by her friendly orderly to play chess. During this game, he explains how Papa has been manipulating his other children so he could control her.

As he gives Eleven his keycard, the orderly explains he is helping because he believes in her and wants her to be free.

Using Lite Brite, Dustin is able to communicate with Nancy in the Upside Down. They agree to all go and meet up at Eddie’s home.

This leads to Steve, Nancy, Robin, and Eddie riding bikes in the Upside Down along with Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Erica doing the same in reality. Still in Nina and after the orderly’s warning that the other kids would attack Eleven as a part of Dr. Brenner’s plan to control her, she remains nervous all morning.

After pretending to not feel well, she is able to walk freely until she gets to the boiler room where the orderly is hiding. The orderly explains he is unable to leave since he has a tracker on him and would be detrimental to Eleven’s safety.

Eleven then offers to use her powers so she can remove the tracker, something the orderly is delighted to hear.

Stranger Things season 4 episode 7: Regrouping at Eddie’s home

Hopper and the rest of the prisoners are getting ready to fight the Demogorgon. When the buzzer sounds they get their weapons.

Hopper uses the rag and alcohol he brought in to light his barbaric spear on fire which is able to keep the Demogorgon away from him. Above this battle area, Murray and Joyce stop the guards from intervening and aid Hopper and Antonov escape the Demogorgon.

This eventually leads to a heart-wrenching reunion between Hopper and Joyce that is long overdue. Eleven takes out the tracker in her friendly orderly’s neck when the guards find them.

They try to run but the guards eventually corner them. The orderly then uses his own powers to take them out and reveals himself to be the infamous One all along.

One has Eleven stay where she is so can he go make sure the area is clear. Both groups of four arrive at Eddie’s home, leading to both parties looking at each other through the gate.

Using a bedsheet ladder (and The Duffer Brothers bending the rules of physics) Robin and Eddie are both able to leave the Upside Down and land safely on a mattress. When Nancy goes through, however, she falls through to find herself at the bottom of the pool where Barb was killed.

It turns out Vecna got to Nancy and has her in a trance while in the Upside Down. After getting anxious waiting for One to return, Eleven goes looking to find a radio where people are screaming on the other end.

Eleven runs to the Rainbow Room to find all of the children in the facility slaughtered by One. When the murderous One finds Eleven, he traps her in the room trying to justify his actions.

Stranger Things season 4 episode 7: The truth comes out

As this goes on, Nancy explores Vecna’s world some more and sees the Creel house just like Max did back in episode 4. Nancy is shown snippets of Victor Creel and his family which beautifully reveals Victor’s son, Henry, is actually One.

Henry Creel/One goes on to explain to Eleven how after feeling odd for most of his childhood, he found comfort in his new home in Hawkins. This comfort came from his cynical belief that life and the world are pointless and mundane.

Therefore, he started using his powers to show dominance.

When Henry’s mom wanted to get him checked out because she thought something was wrong, Henry used his powers and killed his mom and sister. When his dad survived, he was happy to hear about him being charged with both murders.

But Henry was not happy to be back in the custody of Dr. Brenner. One explains his whole story and uses that to explain why Eleven should join him on his quest, but she declines.

The two duel, with One having the upper hand initially but Eleven using love and happy memories to fuel her powers which prove even stronger than when she used sad and mad memories. Eleven continues to use her powers leading her to create the initial gate into the Upside Down at Hawkins Laboratory.

This causes Dr. Owens and Dr. Brenner to get excited because they know Eleven made a breakthrough in Nina. Because he went through, however, One/Henry Creel was shot with energy blasts from this untouched world that would turn this man into the monster we have called Vecna all season.

Did you see The Orderly/One/Henry Creel/Vecna twist coming? Do you think Nancy will be ok under Vecna’s curse?

Are Mike, Will, Jonathan, and Argyle ok? Let us know your answers and opinions in the comments below!

Watch all of Stranger Things season 4, only on Netflix!