The Outer Banks writers just proved they're willing to take bigger risks than the Stranger Things writers

Outer Banks season 4 part 2 has dropped on Netflix and after watching the final episode of the season, one thought remains at the forefront of my mind: Damn, they really went there. 

If you’ve seen the finale, you know exactly what I’m referring to already, but for those who haven’t yet finished their binge-watch of the latest season 4 episodes, allow me to politely drop this spoiler warning as I’m about to dive into some pretty major spoilers connected to the season 4 finale as I take a look at how Outer Banks just managed to pull off a twist that Stranger Things seems afraid to tackle. 

Now that my disclaimer is out of the way, let’s get to the heart of things. First, to my Outer Banks family, I am sending virtual hugs as the lord knows we need them now more than ever before. 

Heading into the final five episodes of season 4, I expected some chaos and treasure hunting – or what I like to call the Outer Banks special. What I did not expect was for the writers to go somewhere that I never expected them to go by incorporating a risk that few shows seem willing to take these days, including some of Netflix’s biggest hits such as Stranger Things. Again, if you’ve seen the finale, you know exactly why I’ve decided to call out Stranger Things in particular so let’s dive in. 

In the season 4 finale, the Outer Banks writers did the unthinkable when they killed off one of the show’s original and central characters with the death of JJ Maybank. That’s right, Outer Banks actually killed off one of the show’s Pogues and it was a moment that truly took the winds out of my sail and had tears streaming down my face. 

As the finale neared its end, JJ was murdered by his biological father, Chandler Groff, who stabbed JJ in an act of revenge after JJ walked away from his father earlier in the episode. The moment was honestly one of the most shocking moments in the show’s history, perhaps largely because no one expected the show would actually kill one of its core characters – especially not before its final season. 

Outer Banks proves it's not afraid to kill off major characters

After I got over the initial shock of watching JJ die in the arms of his longtime friend and love interest, Kiara, I couldn’t help but applaud the creative team. As heartbroken as I was – and still am – over the decision to kill JJ, it’s a decision that showed the writers aren’t afraid to actually take risks and actually sacrifice a major character for the sake of the story and to show just how high the stakes are in the story being told. 

From the start, Outer Banks has been a show about treasure hunting and those adventures have often put our favorite characters in extremely dangerous situations. While the Pogues have had a few brushes with death over the years including a few close calls, the show’s biggest deaths have come via secondary characters outside the core group of six in John B, Sarah, JJ, Kiara, Pope, and Cleo. 

In season 4, the writers could have very easily once again upped the stakes and added to the show’s body count without harming a hair on any of the Pogues’ heads. Instead, they chose to be bold in their storytelling and the end result was a moment that completely shocked the audience and rocked them to the core. This is what shows need every now and then, to show that when characters are facing life-and-death situations, not every character is going to make it out alive, and literally no one is safe. 

This is something I can truly appreciate as a Stranger Things fan as I’ve long griped about how the show’s creative team refuses to follow through with the deaths of major characters and instead only wants to sacrifice secondary characters, most often in the form of characters introduced only episodes before their demise. That’s not to say those character deaths aren’t impactful, but it becomes a bit predictable as every season has upped the threat level yet somehow the main characters never end up in any legitimate danger with the side characters serving as each season’s sacrificial lambs.

Of course, we don’t want our favorite characters to be killed off the shows we love, but when a show introduces new life-threatening scenarios every season only to hand out fakeout deaths and near-death moments, it starts to become predictable and less impactful. 

In killing JJ off ahead of the final season, the Outer Banks writers proved they’re not afraid to ruffle some features and make bold storytelling decisions in order to prove just how dangerous the circumstances the characters end up in actually are. For that, I applaud the writers.

I also applaud them for using this death in a way that will alter the show’s DNA and shape the course of the final season, with the death not just being used for shock value but to inform the trajectory of the final season and set up what are sure to be some of the most emotional character arcs we’ve seen from the show as it comes to a close. 

The Duffer Brothers could stand to take a page from the Outer Banks team’s playbook.

Outer Banks season 4 is streaming now on Netflix.