So much of what is being criticized by others here is simply the Duffers attempt to be authentically '80s:
-Dustin and Erica watching "Back to the Future" at the theater
-the whole "New Coke" shtick
-Russians: Red Dawn? Glasnost? Perestroika
These were all big trends in the mid-80s.
The ONLY 80s ball they dropped was Robin's coming out. Robin and Steve had been smacked around by the Russians for the prior episode and a half, and this was a period when the fear of contracting AIDS from LGBT people was just slightly more insane than the early days of the COVID pandemic. Steve took the whole thing awfully calmly, which may be more a reflection of current attitudes than anything.
The "meta" was a little stronger in this episode than usual, but it made a good cliffhanger for the next episode.
These were all big trends in the mid-80s.
The ONLY 80s ball they dropped was Robin's coming out. Robin and Steve had been smacked around by the Russians for the prior episode and a half, and this was a period when the fear of contracting AIDS from LGBT people was just slightly more insane than the early days of the COVID pandemic. Steve took the whole thing awfully calmly, which may be more a reflection of current attitudes than anything.
The "meta" was a little stronger in this episode than usual, but it made a good cliffhanger for the next episode.