The good:
Charisma is still there with most of the characters. Billy's arc was also solid. I have a little crush on Natalia Dyer based on all of the absolute bad-assery they lined her up with. Also tons of great references to 80s and 90s movies.
The bad:
Not much new ground broken. Scary got replaced by gore, which is always a bad trade. Motivations and plot holes abounded. The motivations of the Russians made essentially no sense, or the mayor for that matter. Here's just a small example of a plot hole... we're gonna blow up the laser so that it can't be used again... but like... it's not going to kill us if we're next to it in this room, but it is going to kill us if we're next to it in this other room... that explosion made no sense, which is a shame because it was a fairly crucial point in the show.
Here's another example of a plot hole... how exactly is the bad guy benefiting from the rift being open? He's trapped in the right-side-up, but also the upside-down? Or maybe not? Totally unclear. I have no idea why the rift being closed would stop him, or why having it open was enabling him... and that's also a shame because it's also a fairly crucial plot point for the show.
I've got more, but you get the idea.
Conclusion:
It was fun. It's not something to think too hard about since it really doesn't hold up to scrutiny to the level of season 1. It didn't manage to recapture the magic or intrigue of the first season, but on its own it's a worthy of some couch time with popcorn.
