The Void is a visual representation of a psychokinetic test subject's mind when immersed in a highly particular psychic state, which can be achieved through sensory deprivation or exposure to electrical static.[3] In this state, such individuals can use extrasensory perception to psychically project themselves to other locations, or locate other conscious entities.
History[]
1959[]
In 1959, Patty Newby convinced Henry Creel to use his powers to track down her biological mother. However, while using the power he called "the battlefield", he lost control and frightened Patty. When her father walked in and witnessed the scene, he was attacked and almost killed by Henry, being controlled by a shadowy presence. With Patty encouraging Henry to fight back, Henry was able to end the situation, but not before Patty's father was blinded and seriously injured.
Some time later, Dr. Martin Brenner took Henry to Hawkins National Laboratory to study him. Henry, using a sensory deprivation chamber and "the battlefield", showed Brenner a humanoid creature, displaying the image of the creature via a screen. Upon returning home, Henry sensed that his family was unhappy about his return. Using his powers, he read his mother's thoughts and learned that she wanted to send him back to Brenner.[1]
1959-1979[]
At some point before Dr. Brenner suppressed Henry's powers using Soteria, Brenner tested Henry's ability to imagine and destroy within the Void. Brenner then instructed Henry to use his remote viewing ability to track down a Russian spy in Hawkins.[4]
1969[]
Indiana college student Terry Ives took part in MKUltra experiments conducted at Hawkins National Laboratory; under the supervision of Dr. Martin Brenner, Terry would become sensorily deprived inside an isolation tank, while also under the influence of mind-altering drugs. While in this state, Terry would visualize a kind of inner mental void of infinite blackness, through which she saw herself inhabit and walk through.[5][6]
Terry's newborn daughter, Jane, would later be abducted by Dr. Brenner. Jane was confined to the lab and renamed "Eleven", becoming the eleventh member of Brenner's child test subjects.
1983[]
In 1983, Brenner conducted an experiment to test Eleven's remote viewing abilities. Tasked with finding a Russian spy, she was lowered into a sensory deprivation tank. She then entered a deep psychic state, allowing her to enter a mental void. With ease, she located the spy and was able to broadcast what he said over the lab's speakers. However, her focus shifted to a growling sound that came from some sort of creature. Frightened, Eleven fled and the experiment was aborted.
On November 6, Dr. Martin Brenner held another experiment. Intrigued by the creature, he urged Eleven to make contact, saying it was reaching out to her. When she found the Demogorgon, it appeared to be hunched over and feeding on a large egg. Cautiously, she approached and made contact. This caused a rift to another dimension to open and subsequently unleashed the Monster upon Hawkins.
On November 12, at the Byers house, Eleven failed to located Barbara Holland and Will Byers using her powers. Eleven suggested that she could find them in "the bath". The group then came up with a plan to build a makeshift deprivation tank, setting it up at the Middle School. Eleven entered the void, and first located Barb. Unfortunately, Eleven only found her corpse. The gruesome sight made Eleven panic and scream. After being comforted by Joyce Byers, Eleven continued to search for Will. She found him hiding from the Demogorgon in Castle Byers. Relaying Joyce's message, she told Will to hold on and that his mother would be coming for him. However, she suddenly lost contact and Will vanished.
1984[]
Eleven primarily used the Void to visit Mike Wheeler during their year of separation and attempted to contact him almost every night, though unsuccessful. On at least one occasion, Halloween night, Mike sensed the presence of Eleven, but dismissed these feelings. She was, nevertheless, able to communicate with her mother, Terry Ives, whose mind was otherwise destroyed, rendering her semi-consicous. After prompting from Terry, Eleven entered the Void to track and locate her "sister", Kali Prasad, in Chicago. Kali in turn used her to locate former employees of Hawkins lab to target them for assassination. Again, this was carried out through the Void.
Eleven learned of the dire situation in Hawkins via another attempt to check on Mike and Jim Hopper through the Void, prompting her to return to rescue her friends.
1985[]
The Void was still used to locate other characters and examine their behavior. One such notable circumstance occurred when Eleven and Max Mayfield played spin the bottle at their sleepover. The goal of the game was to determine who El would spy on. After landing on Billy Hargrove, Eleven went into the Void where she saw Billy kidnapping the missing lifeguard, Heather Holloway. Possessed by the Mind Flayer, Billy was able to sense Eleven's presence and was even able to faintly see her. This shocked Eleven, and caused her to believe there was something terribly wrong.
Later, Eleven entered the Void to look for Heather, only to find her in a bathtub full of ice. Like Billy, Heather sensed Eleven's presence and begged her for help before she was pulled down into the water, to the bottom of the Void. While searching for the Flayed, Eleven spent hours in the Void until she located Billy and entered his mind, in the hopes of finding the location of the Mind Flayer. Unfortunately, before Eleven could exit out of the Void, the Mind Flayer discovered where she was located and spoke to her through Billy as the Flayed were summoned to Brimborn Steel Works. Eleven managed to get out of the Void and cried in Mike's arms as the Mind Flayer finished constructing his avatar by melting the Flayed and using through their remains for his avatar.
1986[]
After Eleven was taken to the Nina Project by Dr. Sam Owens, she used the Void to spy on Max, Lucas Sinclair, Dustin Henderson, Nancy Wheeler, Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley, Erica Sinclair, and Eddie Munson.[2]
Later, she used it for "piggybacking" to Max's memories and then Vecna's Mind Lair. After Vecna's physical body was damaged, the Mind Lair evaporated and Eleven returned to the Void.[7]
Description[]
The Void appears as a vast endless expanse of nothingness. The floor is covered in a thin layer of water. It is completely empty, except for Eleven herself or whatever or whoever she is trying to locate.
Originally, Eleven could only enter the Void while sensorily deprived, specifically when she was submerged in a sensory deprivation tank. By 1984, Eleven's powers had grown to the point where she could enter the Void without subjecting herself to total sensory deprivation. Simply blindfolding herself and listening to the white noise of a television was sufficient to induce the state.[8] Eventually, even this wasn't needed, her powers having grown strong enough were she just had to close her eyes and concentrate.[9] In this space, she can psychically locate people and observe their actions. Distance doesn't appear to be an issue, as she found the Russian spy a continent away. She also found the Demogorgon, which was in a different dimension. It seems Eleven can choose to simply observe, or make her presence known by making contact, usually by "touching" with her psychic avatar. The people and objects she interacts with are not physically in the space, but are mental projections of their physical selves.
Behind the scenes[]
The Void bears resemblance to another void-like place in the 2013 film Under the Skin, where the main character, played by Scarlett Johansson, lures unsuspecting men. The Duffers have confirmed the film as being the direct inspiration for the Void.[3]
When creating the Void, the Duffers decided to use practical effects. The effect was achieved with a thin layer of water on the ground, and having the surrounding area covered with black curtains. The Duffers explained they decided to go with this simple approach to avoid the story becoming too overblown with detail, while also using the budget limitations to be more creative without the use of CGI:
"The Void was a great way to portray an abstract and sort of bizarre idea, but what we were trying to do with the show was go back to the idea that simple can be better. Even in our title sequence — as opposed to trying to one-up these huge shows or big movies with elaborate sequences, it was always about going back to the simplicity of something you couldn’t do before you had big CG effects."[3]
In Beyond Stranger Things, Bill Nye described the Void as a point where multiverses intersect (e.g. the Upside Down and the regular world).[10] However, the Duffers' previous statements that the Void portrays the inside of Eleven's mind contradict this.
Gallery[]
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For this subject's gallery, see The Void/Gallery. |
Trivia[]
- The Void shares a lot in common with Vecna's Mind Lair. The Void is a representation of Eleven's mind, while the Mind Lair is a representation of Vecna's. Eleven and Vecna's unique ability to craft and picture themselves in these mental locations seems to be tied up with their other psychokinetic abilities.
- A similar Void concept was used in Assassin's Creed Valhalla.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Stranger Things: The First Shadow
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Papa"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "How 'Stranger Things' Created The Void" Inverse. August 2, 2016.
- ↑ Stranger Things VR
- ↑ Stranger Things: Suspicious Minds
- ↑ "The Monster"
- ↑ "The Piggyback"
- ↑ "Trick or Treat, Freak"
- ↑ "The Lost Sister"
- ↑ Beyond Stranger Things, V1:E5 The AV Club
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| Locations | |
| Entities | |
| The Flayed | |
| Visitors | |
| Miscellaneous | |