The Duffer Brothers and Netflix give fans something new yet familiar to obsess over as they await the final season of ‘Stranger Things’

Hero image: Still from ‘Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales’ video game

Good news if you’re a Stranger Things fan and anime enthusiast: The Duffer Brothers’ highly successful Netflix original series about a group of kids who discover supernatural forces among them is getting a new Japanese treatment very soon, with an anime spin-off that will be set in 1980s Tokyo.

Poster for ‘Stranger Things’ season 4

While the original series is headed towards its fifth and final season, set for a 2024 release, The Duffer Brothers have been planning a spin-off for the Upside Down for a while now. Reportedly six hours in total, Stranger Things Tokyo will likely premiere sometime this year, before the Stranger Things final. Although specific details haven’t been unveiled, the official description for the animation reads: “An encounter with the Upside Down evolves into a grand adventure for video game-loving twin brothers living on the outskirts of 1980s Tokyo.”

A still from ‘Stranger Things’ season 4

According to the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Matt Duffer said that the spin-off would be “one thousand percent different” from the original and added that it’s going to be a “story that connects to the Stranger Things world, but it really is more about how we’re telling that story.” The Stranger Things franchise has already begun venturing into other mediums through Netflix, including a VR project, which is set to be released this year, and the video game Stranger Things: Puzzle Tales.