<P> The second season will take place around Halloween (October 31) of 1984, about a year after the events of the first season, and will explore the "bigger mythology" of Will's disappearance, according to the Duffers . Levy described the second season as being about the "determined desire to return to normalcy in Hawkins" for Will, his family, his friends, and the other residents in the town affected by the events . Will suffers from "some sort of post-traumatic stress disorder" from his time in the Upside Down, and Joyce is attempting to help him deal with it, while trying to date her old classmate Bob to cover up her own emotions . Nancy and Mike are mourning for the apparent losses of their friends Barb and Eleven, respectively; however, Eleven is still alive and is a "major part of the season", according to Matt Duffer, and her backstory will be explored during the season . Chief Hopper struggles under the weight of having to cover up for the events of the first season to protect Will and Joyce; while some residents of Hawkins will be aware of these events, "certain people...don't know what happened", according to the Duffers . The laboratory, as well as the rift to the Upside Down, remains open and run by Dr. Owens . The characters will face "different kinds of horror" in contrast to the monster from the first season . Parts of the season will also take place outside of Hawkins, Indiana . </P> <P> Despite revealing episode titles for the season in the announcement teaser in order "to provide some hint of where we were going in season two without giving anything away," Matt Duffer stated that some of the titles would change, since there were some things "we didn't want to put on there because we felt like it would give too much away," and because "people are smart on the fucking internet" with fan - created "videos analyzing the chapter titles...right on a lot" of how the titles related to the plot of the season . </P> <Table> Season 2 episodes <Tr> <Th> No . overall </Th> <Th> No. in season </Th> <Th> Title </Th> <Th> Directed by </Th> <Th> Written by </Th> <Th> Original release date </Th> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 9 </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> "Madmax" </Td> <Td> The Duffer Brothers </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 10 </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> "The Boy Who Came Back to Life" </Td> <Td> The Duffer Brothers </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 11 </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> "The Pumpkin Patch" </Td> <Td> Shawn Levy </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 12 </Th> <Td> </Td> <Td> "The Palace" </Td> <Td> Shawn Levy </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 13 </Th> <Td> 5 </Td> <Td> "The Storm" </Td> <Td> Andrew Stanton </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 14 </Th> <Td> 6 </Td> <Td> "The Pollywog" </Td> <Td> Andrew Stanton </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 15 </Th> <Td> 7 </Td> <Td> "The Secret Cabin" </Td> <Td> Rebecca Thomas </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 16 </Th> <Td> 8 </Td> <Td> "The Brain" </Td> <Td> The Duffer Brothers </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> 17 </Th> <Td> 9 </Td> <Td> "The Lost Brother" </Td> <Td> The Duffer Brothers </Td> <Td> TBA </Td> <Td> October 27, 2017 (2017 - 10 - 27) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Th> No . overall </Th> <Th> No. in season </Th> <Th> Title </Th> <Th> Directed by </Th> <Th> Written by </Th> <Th> Original release date </Th> </Tr>

How many episodes of stranger things season 2 are there