Stranger Things: Is Robin's maroon beret inspired by the Paras?

Stranger Things fans are locked in speculation and debate over a maroon beret worn by the TV show's character Robin in an episode of the blockbuster series and whether or not it is the headgear of a military regiment.

Robin Buckley, played by Maya Hawke and one of the main characters in the third and fourth season of the Netflix series, appears in the fourth season finale wearing a military-style maroon beret with a hard-to-discern cap badge.

Dedicated fans of the hit series, an American science fiction horror drama that first appeared on screens in 2016, are often known to pore over every detail of the plot, the characters and the costumes worn by the actors in the show.

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Eagle-eyed fans with an interest in the military were quick to spot that Robin's beret in The Piggyback – episode nine in series four – looked like the type worn by paratroopers of the British Parachute Regiment.

However, the dark scenes in the show make it hard for viewers to see the cap badge on the beret, thus making a clear identification difficult.

Others suggested the beret was of the kind worn by branches of the American military, including US Army freefall parachutists, while others have noted that maroon is the symbol of some airborne forces all around the world, including Canada and India.

In The Piggyback episode, the heroes of the fictional town of Hawkins battle their villain Vecna, while their counterparts in Russia assist elsewhere.

Robin dresses to do battle and appears with the beret as a plan unfolds to venture into the alternate dimension –  depicted in the show to be in parallel to the human world and known as The Upside Down.

In one post on the social media platform Reddit, one Redditor using the name Rae, u/StrangxrThings, posted an image from the scene under the title 'New Pic of Steve, Robin, and Nancy', depicting characters from the show including Robin in the beret, which prompted a thread under 'Robin's beret appreciation post'.

Another Redditor, StephenHunterUK, suggested: "That red beret is associated in the United Kingdom with the Parachute Regiment. Not got a good enough view of the badge though."

However, another Reddit post by uy/SupergCapMarv asks: "Is anyone able to discern what branch of the military this pin belongs to on Robin's beret?"

A Redditor going by the handle DeanMalHanNJackIsms responds by saying that the beret is that of an American military unit: "Army freefall parachutist, worn by those qualified for the High Altitude, Low Open (HALO) jump."

Another commentator, under the name u/Suspicious-Appeal-94, suggested that if the beret were that of the British Parachute Regiment, the inclusion in the show might offend some people, saying: "Also, its some what (sic) offensive as British berets for regiments in the army are an honour and meant to only be worn by member who have gone through."

Others simply debated whether the beret was in the style of the American military, or British.

Commentator TapesFromTheFuture suggests the beret is from a division of the US Navy that Robin's father was a member of, suggesting that was a line in one part of the plot of the show.

Others suggested the scenes of Robin in the beret were reminiscent of French Resistance fighters making their way through German lines in 1944.

While another comment suggested the scene conjured up images of the Wolverines in the 1980s film Red Dawn starring Patrick Swayze and Charlie Sheen in which US college students resist a Russian invasion of America.

Redditor telstra_3_way_chat said: "Costume designer Amy Parris said that one of the key inspirations for the team in ST4 Vol 2 was Red Dawn."

The Red Dawn film has also provided inspiration for Ukrainian resistance fighters who have used the graffiti tag 'Wolverines' – spray-painting the tag across burnt-out Russian military tanks and vehicles as a symbol of defiance in reference to the 1980s film.

It is not yet clear what, if any, branch of the Armed Forces the beret belongs to, but Netflix has been approached for clarification.

Are you a fan of Stranger Things? What do you think the beret is? Let us know on our social media pages.