Stranger Things: Erica the Great is a graphic novel written by Greg Pak and Danny Lore with artwork by Valeria Favoccia, colors by Dan Jackson, and letters from Nate Piekos. It was released on February 22, 2022.
Synopsis[]
The storyline finds Hawkins, Indiana still plagued by more strange events. With the Starcourt Mall's recent destruction, Erica has lost her favorite hangout spot and her sweet "free Ice cream for life" deal at Scoops-Ahoy.
To make matters worse, her brother is too busy for her and her mom won't let her play Dungeons and Dragons anymore. This is the tale of an ambitious, bossy, brilliant 10-year-old kid dealing with boredom and the complexities of maintaining friendships through tough times.
Plot[]
The comic shifts through the real world and Erica's imaginary situations, with her friends and family dressed in fantasy-wear and referred to by their D&D character names.
Erica angers her mother by playing an intense game of D&D by herself on the floor of a store. As they walk home, her mother explains that she doesn't have a problem with the game, only that Erica is misbehaving in public and spending all her time alone. They pass by their neighbor, Miss Dorothy, and Erica is made to say hello to her. Dorothy doesn't seem to have a high opinion of Erica, but politely gives her a nickel as she tells her to be more like her friend Tanya. Erica leaves, disregarding the nickel. She attempts to go to her room to play more D&D, but Sue once again suggests she plays with her friends instead of alone.
Erica invites her friends Tanya, April and Kelly to play with her later that night. While she is excited about it, she has a difficult time explaining it to her friends. Tanya is the most skeptical, but Kelly is interested by the promise of unicorns and April is persuaded to come by the fact there will be pizza. Tanya eventually agrees, as her strict mother is out of town.
Erica happily prepares and welcomes her friends, bringing them immediately into a game with characters she created for them. After a difficult game, Erica "kills" Tanya's character while claiming victory for herself, angering Tanya. Tanya then leaves and returns with something "way cooler than make-believe," which is her mother's prize-winning parakeet, Eliot. Erica becomes upset at the interruption fo the game, and Tanya tells her to stop being jealous. The two argue and accidentally kick the birdcage, releasing the parakeet, which flies outside. The girls retreat to Erica's room as her mom arrives and meets the pizza man, and they watch from the window as the parakeet flies into Miss Dorothy's house.
Tanya becomes panicked and fearful, especially as April and Kelly decline to help, instead suggesting she call her mom. Erica then volunteers to do the job herself, shocking her friends by climbing out her window and shimmying down a tree. She attempts to break into Miss Dorothy's house, only for her dog, Daniel, to see her and begin to bark. Tanya runs after her to help, and Erica comes up with a plan: while Tanya distracts Miss Erica, who likes her company, Erica will sneak into the house and retrieve the parakeet. She then declares Tanya a bard: "Tricksy, like a thief... but with a lot more charisma." This interests Tanya, and she agrees.
As Tanya distracts Miss Dorothy with a talk and a song on the piano, Erica sneaks into the kitchen and gives the dog a treat to quiet him and manages to catch the bird in a net, only for the dog to bite through the net and set it free again. The dog and bird escape out the door, and Tanya quickly offers to fetch Daniel for Miss Dorothy as the girls escape.
The dog and bird split paths. Erica attempts to come up with another plan, which angers a stressed Tanya, who tells Erica that she's been hogging the glory all night, and that they need help. They fetch April and Kelly, and quickly spot the parakeet. Erica comes up with a better plan, in which Tanya lures the bird back into its cage with seeds. Just as Eliot approaches, Daniel attacks again. Erica attempts to grab the dog while Tanya grabs Eliot; they succeed in catching the bird, but Daniel escapes again. Kelly questions if they actually have to fetch the dog, as Miss Dorothy doesn't know the dog escaping is their fault. After seeing Tanya's guilt, Erica pushes them on.
Tanya lures Daniel with the parakeet in the cage until Erica is able to grab him by the collar. They return him to Miss Dorothy's house, who is upset by the fact Erica is wandering around so late at night. Tanya stands up for her, as well as the rest of her friends, saying that she needed all of them to catch him. Miss Dorothy goes inside to give her dog a bath, telling the girls to return home. Erica is shocked that she's not going to call her mom, and Miss Dorothy says that she trusts Tanya's judgement for this time.
Now better understanding how to be a Dungeon Master, Erica reforms the girls into a D&D Party, allowing them to roll their own characters and make their own decisions, learning it was "a little more fun to share the glory."
Characters[]
- Erica Sinclair
- Sue Sinclair ("Queen Sin of Clair")
- Miss Dorothy
- Tanya
- April
- Kelly
- Eliot
- Daniel
Trivia[]
- Miss Dorothy's dog is referred to as "Daniel" by his owner, though both Erica and Tanya refer to him as "Dante."
- Erica's character of "Erica the Great" is noted to be a Paladin in the notes at the end of the comic. In "The Hellfire Club", Erica has a character named Lady Applejack who is a Rogue.
- Erica's original characters for her friends placed Tanya as a Thief, Kelly as a Cleric and April as a Wizard; when they rolled their own characters, all three chose to be bards, though Kelly became a Bard/Cleric and Tanya a Bard/Thief.
- Starcourt Mall is referenced on page 18, when Erica names their starting location as "Starcourt Tavern."
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