There was a great “Stranger Things” reference in “Riverdale,” and Team Barb forever

We’ve been psyched ever since Shannon Purser, aka Barb from Stranger Things, was cast on Riverdale, The CW’s new teen drama, as Ethel Muggs. And this week, she finally made her appearance on Riverdale and we even got a Stranger Things shout-out!

When Barb disappeared into the Upside Down on Stranger Things Season 1, fans started a campaign to get #JusticeForBarb. In the third episode of Riverdale, the girls of town banned together to get justice for all of them that had been wronged by the dudes in town. And Cheryl suggested #JusticeForEthel for their campaign. Oh, and did we mention there was also a pool involved?!

The Internet lost their minds.

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It’s cool enough that the girl power-packed episode featured teens coming together for a common goal of telling guys that it’s not okay to humiliate and slut-shame them. But to also get a Stranger Things reference, really made the episode perfect. Actress Shannon Purser sat down with EW to talk about the nice shout-out saying:

"It was cute that they threw that in there. I think that they’ve done it in a way that doesn’t feel too cheesy or obvious. But I have expected pretty much nothing that has happened in these past six months, so it’s really crazy to think that role would have such a big impact on my future and my career, but I’m so grateful for it."

We can’t wait to see what is in store for Ethel and the rest of the Riverdale gang this season. Maybe we can even hope for more references thrown in for Stranger Things fans. Make sure to tune in Thursdays on The CW.

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