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MONDAY, JAN. 12, 2026
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Monday, Jan. 12 2026
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NEWS
Suspect in custody following vape shop stabbing Police responded to a reported stabbing at a vape shop on Hilyard Street. By Tarek Anthony
Editor-in-Chief
Eugene Police Department spokesperson Melinda McLaughlin said that an altercation on Jan. 8 over a barking dog led to a stabbing inside Nephos Vape Shop at 1333 Hilyard St.. Per McLaughlin, a 32-year-old victim was attempting to make a purchase when a dispute over his barking dog occurred, leading to the stabbing. The victim was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police arrested a 39-year-old shortly after the incident at 13th Ave. and Alder Street, a block away from the shop. As of Jan. 9 he is being held at the Lane County Jail on charges of second-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon. This is an ongoing story. Visit Dailyemerald.com for more updates.
OPINION
NEWS
UOSW holds town hall meeting discussing RA changes
Betts: Appreciating Ferry Street Village Opinion: Ferry Street Village, Eugene’s first Black community, was destroyed by the city. We need to better remember and acknowledge this crucial piece of Eugene history. By Reed Betts
Opinion Columnist
Walking through Alton Baker Park is much like any other: paths, clearings and some trees. It would be easy to overlook the rich and tragic history of this innocuous green space, one that is core to the Black history of Eugene. This was the site of the Ferry Street Village, or “The Under the Bridge Community” (From a statement by Laurie Trieger). This community has been consistently overlooked as our city has developed, with it only recently receiving
official recognition from the local government. It is imperative that we, as the people of Eugene, appreciate this community as a cornerstone of our city’s history. The Ferry Street Village was the first Black community in Eugene. In an interview with Oregon Public Broadcasting, Talicia Brown-Crowell said that, when it first began in early 1940s, it consisted of only five families. These families came together in an act of solidarity and defiance: Eugene, and Oregon as a whole, were highly racist and banned African Continue story on page 8
UO Student Workers Union held a town hall last week to discuss the replacement of resident assistants. By Katarina Ilic
News Reporter
On Wednesday, the University of Oregon Student Workers Union held a town hall meeting in McKenzie hall to discuss the new “evolved roles” of community assistants and community safety assistants the new roles will be replacing the resident assistant job. The meeting was held for current RAs to discuss their concerns and frustrations about the changes to the position. “The reason we’re having this town hall now is to allow resident assistants to talk through any worries or fears that they might have with the split role change,” UOSW president Jacob Gattone said.
Continue story online
page 3
SPORTS Oregon women’s basketball: looking into the remainder of conference play Read story online at Dailyemerald.com
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Live updates: Tracking Oregon players in the transfer portal The National College Football Transfer Portal opened Friday, Jan. 2, and will close Jan. 16. It is the only transfer portal window for 2026. Read story online at Dailyemerald.com
Monday, Jan. 12, 2026
page 5
SATURDAY
Jan. 17, 2026 Oregon vs. Michigan The Ducks men’s basketball team gears up to play the Wolverines this Saturday afternoon at Matthew Knight Arena at 1:00 p.m. PT.
The final D2 Duck When Hunter Voyles graduates in the spring, it will mark the end of the Oregon club hockey team’s transition from ACHA Division II to Division I. By Henry Light
Sports Writer
On Oct. 7, 2022, Hunter Voyles stepped into the spotlight in the 2,700-seat The Rink Exchange and took in the 3,500 fans welcoming him to the new era of University of Oregon hockey. It was a full-circle moment for the sophomore defenseman, who had forgone the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division II program to play junior hockey when it recruited him out of high school. Voyles lifted his stick with his right hand to salute the crowd that had poured in for the Ducks’ first Division I game against then 20th-ranked Arizona State University. “My sophomore year, probably one of my favorite Oregon hockey games at home was ASU game one. We had 3,500 in attendance, which was an absolute riot. We had zero security. We had no idea how many people were going to show up, and it blew up out of thin air,” Voyles said. Oregon lost the game 7-6, but considering the quality of the opponent, its opening game was one of the best performances in its inaugural Division I season. Four minutes into the game, Voyles saw an Arizona State player talking to Oregon’s goalie after a whistle. The sixfoot-four, 225-pound defenseman skated in from the blue line and delivered a firm shove to the Sun Devil’s back. The roughing penalty gave Voyles an early start toward the 54 penalty minutes he logged in his freshman season due to the physical role he played since high school. “I think probably coming into college, maybe even after that, I was still kind of like that loose cannon, on the ice, but even off the ice a little bit,” Voyles said. “For the most part now, it’s like, what happens in the glass stays in the glass.” Five years later, Voyles is one of the team’s two seniors tasked with mentoring a nine-player freshman class. His decision to come back for a graduate season while completing a master of science degree in management made him the final Duck to play Division II hockey and inextricably linked him to the program’s transition to Division I. Voyles began playing hockey at two years old, following his older brother into a small but growing Orange County hockey community from Aliso Viejo, Calif.. “My brother started playing when he was about five, and I was kind of just following in his footsteps, and it’s kind of like the only thing I know at this point,” Voyles said. Relatively early in his hockey career, Voyles briefly questioned his love for the sport. “My freshman year, I played on a club team as well as my high school team, which I lowkey got a little burnt out (from). Going from high school to high school practice, driving up to LA for night practice for my club team, it kind of got to be a lot,” Voyles said. Voyles committed to the Santa Margarita Catholic High School team the next season, a decision he now calls the best he ever made. It immediately paid off with a run to the USA Hockey National Championship that ended in a second-place finish, and the Eagles would rally to win back-to-back national championships in Voyles’ junior and senior seasons. Voyles decided on tier II junior hockey as his next step, with hopes to move on to an NCAA Division III program from there. In his first year playing for the Boston (now
Bridgewater) Junior Bandits in the United States Premier Hockey League, the defenseman logged career highs in both penalty minutes (70) and goals (nine). After his second year in the USPHL, Voyles’ junior coach convinced him to look into club hockey as an alternative to NCAA Division III, making the case that the skill levels can be similar and club hockey offers a more traditional college experience. At the same time, then Oregon head coach, Rylee Orr, who had recruited Voyles in high school, was in the process of helping the club move from ACHA Division II to Division I. The move would give the program access to a new level of talent and make full use of the resources that come with Eugene’s athletics culture. This time, Voyles’ timeline lined up with the program’s, and he brought his 124 junior penalty minutes to Eugene. “(Orr) basically explained to us ‘hey, we’re going to be DII this year, but if we have a good year, there’s a high likelihood of us going DI,’” Voyles said. “Me personally, I always like coming somewhere, like to a team or whatever, and trying to leave it better than I found it. So, yeah, I came in knowing it was DII.” The team did move up the next year, and although Voyles’ point total has peaked at half of the 12 he put up at the Division II level, the growth of the program has been worth it. Voyles was able to adapt the physical and defensive playstyle that had been his hallmark at every level, while reining it in at the advice of his coaches to avoid taking penalties and becoming distracted. “I mean, he’s a big kid, right?” Oregon head coach Jackson Hyman said. “You know, size-wise, he’s probably the biggest guy on the team, if not one of them, and physicality is a big part of hockey, but at the same time, if you’re continuously in the box, you can’t be out on the ice to help your team.” Hyman is Voyles’ third college coach, an added challenge for the players who navigated the transition. With his third season underway, it looks like Oregon has finally found stability in the transition.
Hyman has seen Voyles’ development from the later stages of his “loose cannon” playstyle and personality to a key leader for the team, both on and off the ice. “Him being one of the two seniors on the team for this year, he’s been able to dive in more and, I’ve been very lucky that he decided to come back, not only for what he can do on the ice, but also off the ice,” Hyman said. “That occurs in adding these other extracurricular things to his plate to help raise awareness for the team, as well as do good in the community.” Along with the attention from the move to Division I and the newfound stability at that level, the team has increased fan interest through savvy local partnerships like Rennie’s Landing and Voodoo Doughnut, and capitalized on the popularity of the university’s athletics branding by selling jerseys and hats. Voyles has become more involved behind the scenes as he has risen through the leadership and student-management hierarchy of the club, along with the UO business program. This season, in an increased role, he is committed to continuing the program’s momentum with fan engagement. “I’m trying to plan a teddy bear toss for the Ronald McDonald Foundation, and then for our Bend Classic game, I’m working with OHSU, which is the children’s hospital in Portland, to hopefully, if all goes well, do a toy drive for a donation up there,” Voyles said. The end of Voyles’ hockey career marks the end of an era for the Oregon Hockey Program, and while the six PAC-8 Championships it left behind at the Division II level have made the transition bittersweet, Voyles has undeniably fulfilled his goal of leaving the program better than he found it.
(ABOVE) Hunter Voyles (6) high fives Lars Kroes (10) as the players get on the ice for the start of the second period. The University of Oregon Ducks men's hockey team faced off against the University of California Golden Bears on Feb. 2, 2025, at the Rink Exchange in Eugene, Ore. (Anna Liv Myklebust/Emerald)
NEWS
Searching for ‘CAHOOTS 2.0’ With the loss of CAHOOTS in Eugene, other programs are stepping up to fill the gap. By Joseph Chiu
Associate News Editor
Headlined by the loss of the Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets mobile crisis program in the City of Eugene, the mental health crisis quickly became a large concern for citizens and the city government. CAHOOTS’ absence has highlighted challenges and left a gap in community service for Eugene’s mental health crisis. There are still many existing services which offer mental health crisis services, but few handle calls, dispatches and care to the extent CAHOOTS did.
Losing CAHOOTS CAHOOTS mobile crisis services ended in Eugene on April 7, 2025. The program was entirely operated by White Bird Clinic, which made the decision to close following the layoff of CAHOOTS staff and a lack of capacity to provide a full mobile crisis service in Eugene. CAHOOTS still operates in Springfield, providing services from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. seven days a week. The program responded to 13,929 incidents in 2024 and over 3,200 incidents during its final three months in 2025. Its ability to provide non-emergency transportation while conducting basic needs assistance, welfare checks and aftercare removed a lot of burden from police and first responders, who have now been faced with handling calls that were previously handed off to CAHOOTS. “It’s clear to any community member who would see someone in crisis and call EPD’s non-emergency line in the hopes that CAHOOTS would be deployed. With CAHOOTS not in our community, we risk a great disservice to our most vulnerable community members who are in the most need, experiencing a crisis,” City Councilor Matt Keating said. A gap in service was revealed in the City of Eugene’s memorandum regarding the “Gap Analysis of Eugene’s Crisis Response Services Post-CAHOOTS Closure,” which found that no existing service replicates the impact and role that CAHOOTS had on the community across its 35-year tenure. Most notably, 40.19% of CAHOOTS’ calls in 2024 were for public assistance, and 29.47% of the calls were for welfare checks. After its closure, despite Mobile Crisis Services of Lane County handling 3,124 dispatched calls countywide, police or EMS were rarely on scene. MCS-LC was launched by Lane County Behavioral Health as a pilot program on Aug. 18, 2024, and became the primary resource for mental health crisis responses and mobile crisis services following CAHOOTS’ exit. However, the program does not capture the full range of former CAHOOTS calls and, as a result, the absence of dedicated crisis responders was highlighted in the outcome data, which showed that over 72% of MCS-LC cases were stabilized in the community without hospital transport. In addition, police officers now handle calls involving safety concerns if MCS-LC is unavailable and provide courtesy transport for people. The gap report stated that “the burden of complex social service calls on police has grown, and some calls may be unresolved or delayed.” Eugene Mayor Kaarin Knudson pointed out how challenging CAHOOTS’ closure was for the city since it had no control over the decision. Still, they actively worked with
partners and nonprofit sectors to continue providing support for those in need. “(The end of CAHOOTS) is not the end of our community’s work to be innovative and responsive to people’s needs, and to continue piloting crisis response and behavioral support in our community that will be effective,” Knudson said.
Finding a new CAHOOTS While there isn’t one service that currently fulfills everything CAHOOTS did for Eugene, there are some major services that citizens can rely on for crisis support without having to directly call emergency or dispatch services. MCS-LC provides mobile crisis support and response with the goal of quick de-escalation and stabilization for individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The program connects individuals with qualified mental health professionals, access to further resources and transportation through its dispatch vehicles, follow-up checks, referrals and safety planning. “With Lane County’s mobile crisis (services) coming online this year in Eugene, we knew that there was likely to be some gap in service that we felt as a community was im-
portant to close,” Knudson said. “I think we’re going to see this next chapter of work implemented in the next couple of months, and that will be another really positive step.” Despite White Bird’s loss of CAHOOTS, White Bird Clinic still operates a medical clinic, a dental clinic, crisis services, behavioral health services, youth services and social service needs. Among the services still provided are crisis intervention, special transportation services — such as free taxi rides for people experiencing significant mental health-related disabilities — information, referrals and the 15th Night initiative, which is a youth-led movement focused on ending youth homelessness. But those in need of crisis response services in Eugene are now directed to MCS-LC instead, a service largely taken up by CAHOOTS before its closure. In addition to the White Bird Crisis Center and MCS-LC being available in Eugene for crisis and emotional support, Willamette Valley Crisis Care is a nonprofit organization formed by former CAHOOTS staff after its closure, hoping to create a similar mobile crisis intervention program. WVCC provides mobile crisis response services with the goals of dispatching trained responders through the 911 communications system to help people in crisis. WVCC
DAILY EMERALD
aims to provide trauma-informed care, community response services and other services that can provide an alternative crisis intervention service for individuals experiencing health crises. The nonprofit already created its board of directors and receives a large portion of funding from donations, grants and grassroots funding. Yet, WVCC is continuously seeking city support by applying for grants and consulting work to expand its services further. “This crisis response effort by our nonprofit partners, I would hope, would be celebrated by the council and the community to fill the vacuum that’s desperately needed with CAHOOTS not in our community,” Keating said. “So I applaud those who have stepped up, but I recognize that there’s a dearth of behavioral health support on the streets.” While there are many crisis response services and resources available in Eugene, the city is still seeking a response program that can effectively replace CAHOOTS and ensure the community can lean on a service that can meet their needs. According to Keating, the city is doing what it can to support the mayor, the new city manager and be on a pathway to have a relationship with whatever the new “CAHOOTS 2.0” may be. “I welcome it because it’s desperately needed on our streets,” Keating said. “If we can find a way in this new year to think more creatively about who that responsible party is for that new CAHOOTS 2.0, I’m all in.” (BELOW) The White Bird Clinic, located on the corner of 12th and Mills Alley, runs the CAHOOTS program previously in Eugene and now exclusively in Springfield. (Rowan Campbell/Emerald).
Monday, Jan. 12, 2026
page 7
There are barriers in affordable mass timber, UO’s future Acoustic Research Lab may change that New UO acoustic research lab will test timber for sound and impact transmission to use in affordable housing. By Corey Hoffman
Senior News Reporter
The University of Oregon is one year away from the completion of the new Oregon Acoustic Research Lab, which tests for sound and impact transmission in mass-timber. The timber tested in the new lab, located in Terminal 2 in the Port of Portland, will be used to build affordable, multi-family housing. A marine terminal, Terminal 2 is used to ship wood and steel out of Portland. In 2017, the city of Portland chose to repurpose the land for “new sustainable timber products and technologies and a major increase in Oregon’s housing supply.” Talks of an Acoustic Lab date back to 2018, but following the Labor Day Fires that ravaged Western Oregon in 2020, multiple state agencies and special districts including the Port of Portland, the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and the TallWood Design Institute came together to brainstorm solutions for what to do with wood coming out of post-fire restoration projects and ways to rapidly produce new homes. In 2021, an application was submitted by the group for funding for multiple projects related to the issue and research into the development of the mass timber ecosystem in Oregon. In September of 2022, the Acoustic Lab project was awarded. Due to building code requirements, all mass timber must be tested for sound transmission and impact transmission, especially for residential structures. “In order to meet those requirements, you have to be what is known as ASTM certified, which is the American Society for Testing and Materials,” Judith Sheine, professor of architecture and director of design at the TallWood Design Institute, said. “You have to have certified tests that say this particular assembly of this type of mass timber at this thickness, with this kind of acoustic mat, meets these code requirements.” The OARL is just one step in the “supply chain” that takes the wood from tree to structure.
“(Wood goes from) being logged in a forest to a sawmill or to a peeling plant and then to manufacturers that make either cross laminated timber or mass plywood. Then those are specified by architects and engineers for particular projects,” Sheine said. “If they want an assembly that has not been tested yet, or they want to try some other thickness they don’t have testing for, that (wood) goes to the new (OARL) facility and it can be tested and certified or not.” The Acoustic Lab will consist of two chambers, an upper chamber and a lower chamber, with slabs of timber covered in various materials such as acoustic mats or concrete in the middle. In these chambers, sound transmissions can be tested by having sound played in the upper level and measuring what comes through to the lower level. The OARL will primarily focus on floor and ceiling timber which, according to Shine, is harder to test than timber used for walls. “You have to use a crane to get these very heavy samples into the chambers, incredibly particular requirements for the chambers themselves, so you don’t have what is called flanking noise, which is noise that leaks in that interferes with your tests,” Sheine said. The importance of having the Acoustic Lab in Oregon, Sheine said, cannot be overstated. Mass timber is closely related to both the economy and the culture of Oregon and the state is the leading producer of softwood lumber products in the country. “We see this as a way of reviving communities, because these factories that make mass timber panels are located in rural communities and it makes sense to not take the material very far away,” Sheine said. According to Sheine, the total cost of the project is $25.88 million and the completed lab will be approximately 14,000 square feet. (ABOVE) Rendering of new Oregon Acoustic Research Lab located in Terminal 2 of the Port of Portland. (Photo courtesy of LEVER Architecture)
OPINION
DAILY EMERALD
Monday, Jan. 12, 2026
page 8
Betts: Appreciating Ferry Street Village Continued from page 3
Americans from owning property as part of their Constitution’s “Exclusion Laws.” President Demond Hawkins of the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People said, “It was a place where Black families built lives, raised children, and sustained each other through strength and love amid persistent racial barriers and forced displacement.” Each of the residents of the Village contributed to the wider community in a unique way. One notable resident was Mattie Reynolds, a civil rights advocate who founded the city’s St. Mark Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, which still has a thriving and diverse congregation to this day. Sadly, the Ferry Street Village was not to last, as in 1949, less than a decade after its founding, Eugene city officials ordered the complete destruction of the Village to make way for the Ferry Street Bridge. According to an article clipping by J. Mosley for the Eugene Register-Guard, the community and its residents were dehumanized, referred to as a “shantytown,” rather than acknowledging it as a vibrant and important focal point of Black Eugene culture. Not long after the initial warning (some people received only six days’ notice), Ferry Street Village was razed. This act was devastating to the community, forcing residents to disperse widely, with many leaving Oregon to escape the Exclusion Laws that prevented them from finding new residences. For decades, this story was swept under the rug and rarely mentioned as Eugene expanded. Only
recently is the city finally coming to terms with the damage it dealt. In 2024, the City of Eugene issued a formal apology for its actions regarding Ferry Street Village, in conjunction with the local NAACP chapter and several residents of the original community: “75 years is a long time of not recognizing the pain, the anguish, the agony, the countless millions of dollars lost, lives lost, families broken apart,” Oregon State Senator James Manning acknowledged. Lane County Commissioner Laurie Trieger, who gave a statement to The Daily Emerald, also gave a speech for the event. “I’m here today on behalf of your Lane County government to acknowledge this painful past,” she said. “This is not just a moment for reflection, but for atonement.” A statue commemorating the families of the Village is planned to be placed in Alton Baker Park, and Reynolds will be celebrated with the creation of the Mattie Reynolds community park.
However, the work is far from done. “Remembrance must be paired with ongoing action — addressing the systemic inequities that uprooted those families and continue to affect housing, education, and opportunity today,” Hawkins said. Continued action and acknowledgement is necessary to account for the tragedy of Ferry Street Village. We need to continue to remember those who lost their homes and livelihoods to the past actions of the city we live in today. “We welcome continued dialogue and partnership with the city and community organizations to ensure the legacy of Ferry Street Village is honored not just in words, but in enduring commitments,” Hawkins said.
Reed is a firstyear political science student who’s interested in unusual historical facts and sharing the stories behind them. He plans to pursue law in the future, but for now, he enjoys exploring Eugene, trying out new clubs and diving into any friendly debate that comes his way.
(ABOVE) The view of the Ferry Street Bridge from Alton Baker Park, where Ferry Street Village once stood, in Eugene, Ore. (Katie Poluyansky/Emerald)
Kahl: Eugene’s healthcare system is failing students and residents Emma Kahl is an opinion columnist for The Daily Emerald. She is currently a senior, majoring in written journalism and minoring in global studies. Her writing focuses on social commentary, culture and politics.
Opinion: As Eugene faces a worsening healthcare crisis, it’s time to rethink local access. By Emma Kahl
Opinion Columnist
It’s no secret that University of Oregon’s Health Center has long waitlists, a lack of medication and steep fees. These issues are compounded by the further lack of access to affordable healthcare in Eugene, leaving students and the local community to suffer. Stella Schneider, a junior studying business and psychology, has regularly visited the UO Health Center when sick. She noted that while the care was adequate, wait times were long and that things “could be improved a bit.” Schneider also mentioned she has noticed a lack of access to women’s health resources and programs at UO, and in Eugene as a whole. When a friend of hers went to the health center to get an IUD, she faced issues that led her to seek care elsewhere. “I think changes need to be made,” Schneider said. As students feel the weight of limited care options, it seems that this points to a much larger crisis taking place. With the shutdown of Eugene’s only emergency room in December 2023, the shutdown of Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets in April 2025 and urgent care clinics that take hours to get an appointment at, Eugene residents are being put at risk. These changes allow for further delays in care, unnecessary and avoidable medical complications and mental health crises to go untreated.
During my freshman year, I had a sinus infection that took me out for nearly two weeks. After finally deciding to seek care at a walk-in clinic near campus, my last name was misspelled, causing my insurance not to cover the expenses. Three years later and countless phone calls to many billing departments, I never got a cent back from an over $300, five-minute visit. Recently, a friend of mine visited this same clinic, where they paid only a $60 copay. So, without insurance, a patient might face a 400% increase for the same care received. As useful as health insurance can be, it also took this same friend over eight months to receive health insurance after moving to Oregon. The impact of limited healthcare access hits some harder than others. Eugene’s unhoused population is already facing increased health risks and barriers to receiving care. With funding reductions and diminished capacity for winter warming centers in Eugene, the lack of accessible and affordable healthcare becomes significantly more dangerous. Healthcare access has long been a systemic issue, which Oregon will continue to face as federal funds steadily diminish. According to the Oregon Department of Human Services, the Oregon Health Plan may see up to a $10 billion decrease over the next decade. The Oregon Division of Financial Regulation recently noted that it expects insurance rates to increase by around 9.7% in 2026. This is due to the expiration of “federal Affordable Care Act tax
subsidies” on Dec. 31, 2025, that helped to offset medical costs for many Oregonians. These local failures point to a deeper-rooted issue that goes beyond the need for short-term fixes. Healthcare for All Oregon is a nonprofit that has been working on universal health care reform in Oregon for over 20 years. According to their website, the organization advocates for equity, affordability and a “high-quality publicly funded universal healthcare system.” Collin Stackhouse is HCAO’s communications coordinator. He explained that our current for-profit healthcare system is deeply broken. “The biggest systemic failure is not having moved as a state to universal health care decades ago; propping up a broken system is the problem,” Stackhouse said. “Canada spends half the money that we spend (on healthcare) in the U.S., and their people live five years longer on average than most Americans. The current status quo is the most expensive option on the planet, and it’s time for a change,” Stackhouse said. HCAO helped create and now advocates for Oregon’s Universal Health Plan Governance Board, which is developing a plan to transition Oregon to a universal health care system by the 2027 legislative session. “Oregon has shown remarkable tenacity and an ability to think creatively within a federal system that is dysfunctional and failing,” Stackhouse said.
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ARTS & CULTURE
DAILY EMERALD
Monday, Jan. 12, 2026
page 11
‘Stranger Things’ unceremoniously concludes The hit series deserved a better finale. By Vinny White
Arts & Culture Writer
After a promising first couple of episodes, “Stranger Things” Season Five limped to the finish line with a disappointing finale. Unanswered questions, poor visuals and a baffling misunderstanding of what made the series great in the first place all combined to form a disappointing end to the series that has captivated audiences since 2016. Episode eight of season five, entitled “The Rightside Up” sees the party come face to face with Vecna in a final showdown that leaves this reviewer feeling disappointed in the once great show.
(Sofia Campbell/Emerald)
The episodes preceding “The Rightside Up” spent an excruciating amount of time explaining the intimate details of The Upside Down as well as the newly defined Dimension X. Going into the finale, the series set a clear precedent that even the most minor of questions would be explained. Throughout season 5, the questions of “Why can’t Vecna enter the cave in his mind that Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) spent two years hiding in?,” “What’s in the briefcase of the man that Henry killed as a child?,” and “What is the Mind Flayer?” were begging to be answered. Unfortunately, the answers to all these questions are unsatisfying. Vecna can enter the cave if he tries hard enough, the briefcase contains a magic stone with a connection to the Mind Flayer that is given absolutely no explanation, and the Mind Flayer is still just a mysterious floating dust being that Vecna only likes because he is evil. Beyond the unsatisfying plot reveals, the finale is littered with moments that feel completely out of place for a show as renowned as Stranger Things. 20 minutes into the episode, Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) falls off a radio tower. Instead of showing Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton) diving to save him, the show cuts to black for ten seconds, completely misleading the audience in the cheapest way possible. A cut to black as a character falls is more reminiscent of something one would see in a trailer, not a high-budget television finale. The episode fails on the action front, too, with the final battle opting to turn the Mind Flayer into a flesh monster with easily accessible “hit points” that can be damaged with guns, fire, and spears. The party fights the monster with little difficulty, and seem overall unfazed by the great evil in front of them. Within the monster, the fight scene with Elle and Vecna is just as disappointing. They both wave their hands at each other for a few minutes, and then proceed to get jostled around until Elle can impale Vecna with a conveniently placed spike. The rest of the crew then proceeds to blow up The Upside Down to the sounds of Prince’s “Purple Rain,” a fitting track for the end of the ill fated world. Elle sacrifices herself so the horrors of Vecna can finally cease to hold a grasp over
the fate of Earth, and an exciting compilation of recognizable locations from The Upside Down are shown getting sucked into space. Ultimately, the finale leaves the military feeling like more of a threat than the Mind Flayer and Vecna. The military, of course, seemingly leaves the party alone after Elle fakes her death. Why Dr. Kay (Linda Hamilton) would stop pursuing the gang is unclear. In fact, who Dr. Kay even is remains unclear. While her white hair and general attitude set her up to be some sort of protege or partner of Dr. Brenner, she ultimately just acts as another generic military villain. The visuals also looked rushed and, oftentimes, ugly. The entire battle in Dimension X looks nothing like they are on another planet, and the gross yellow hue over the whole sequence just adds to the unrealistic and generally unpleasant look of the battle. Even when shooting in real locations, nearly everything behind the main characters’ heads are thrown out of focus, making the scene look like it was shot in front of a green screen instead of a practical set. The last act of the episode does have some redeeming qualities, fortunately. The main cast gets to graduate in style, most of the characters are all given proper goodbyes, we get a glimpse at the lives of the college-aged characters, and the last scene successfully tugs on the heartstrings of anyone who’s stuck around long enough to see this series out. “The Rightside Up,” in its attempt to shoehorn in a huge “be all end all” finale battle, completely forgoes what made the series so endearing when it first premiered. It felt empty, like something whipped up to appeal to a sense of spectacle instead of the artists’ creative desires. Stranger Things did not always need to stay the same, but if it had to get more grandiose each season, it could at least do a good job at it.
“Tomorrow is a Latter Day”: ‘The Book of Mormon’ comes to Eugene Broadway’s most blasphemous hit finally comes to the Hult Center. By Amelia Fiore
Arts & Culture Writer
Most people have seen them on the street or at their doorstep, but does anyone really know what Mormon missionaries are all about? “The Book of Mormon,” a musical co-written by Trey Parker, Matt Stone (“South Park”) and Robert Lopez (“Avenue Q”), offers a satirical look into the world of the church. Opening on Broadway in 2011, the original cast starred powerhouses Andrew Rannells and Josh Gad, and won nine Tony awards and a Grammy. It is the tenth-longest-running Broadway show, with more than 5,000 performances, a number that continues to grow as they tour across the country into later this year. From Jan. 2-4, the production made a pit stop at the Hult Center for the Performing Arts in Eugene. Although a namesake, “The Book of Mormon” isn’t a direct retelling of the religious text, but a story of two Mormon missionaries and their experience trying to proselytize in rural Uganda. It centers Kevin Price (Sam McLellan), a self-important, “great Mormon” who would rather spend his two-year mission in Orlando. He is accompanied by the clumsy Arnold Cunningham (Jacob Aune), a compulsive liar who preferred watching Star Wars over reading the Book of Mormon. In Uganda, the pair meet the other missionaries, led by Elder McKinley (Craig Franke), who have been unsuccess-
ful in their assignment to baptize any townspeople. We are also introduced to Nabulungi (Charity Arianna), a young woman who dreams of a brighter future for her village amid the threat of a local warlord. This cast brought both vocal skill and a vibrant acting style to this production. Cunningham was played expertly by Aune, who leaned into the character’s social awkwardness and nerdy obsessions to win laughs from the audience whenever he was on stage. McLellan, though a compelling actor who effectively captured his character’s motivations, seemed to struggle with some of Price’s belted notes, especially in the demanding solo, “I Believe.” Ultimately, it was Arianna’s voice that commanded the theater with Nabulungi’s Act One solo, “Sal Tlay Ka Siti,” where she asserted herself as not a side character, but someone to root for. The set, brought to life by Scott Pask, features simple props that come together to portray a tattered, simplified representation of a small Ugandan town, which starkly contrasts the bright white attire of the missionaries. The proscenium that framed the stage was inspired by contemporary Mormon temples and features a golden statue of the angel Moroni at its top. In the number “Spooky Mormon Hell Dream,” where Price is in, you guessed it — hell — the costumes designed by Ann Roth sparkle and captivate the eye while its content shocks the moral conscience. But the music of “Mormon” is truly what transforms what would have been a silly comedy sketch into a sincere, masterful piece of theater. Parker, Stone and Lopez expertly
blend classic showtune-style melodies and “South Park”-esque wit within its lyrics. “Turn it Off,” for example, is a satirical play on emotionally repressive behaviors, like suppressing one’s own homosexuality, that are often commonplace in Latter-day Saints culture. While contextually depressing, it also features an endearing dance break and a quick change into pink sequin vests. The show ends with “Tomorrow Is a Latter Day,” a spunky all-cast ending number with the message: People don’t need the rules and restrictions of organized religion, but should simply care for each other and focus on one day at a time. The content has faced some criticism over the years, mainly on how the Ugandan townspeople were portrayed as unsophisticated and ignorant. After the pandemic, Parker and Stone made several revisions to the script and certain gags. Nabulungi now uses an iPad instead of a typewriter, and there is more of an emphasis on the dangers of online misinformation versus ignorant naivety. Theater has been in a constant grapple with its future since the 90s, and “The Book of Mormon” serves as a glimmer of hope among the dark uncertainty of the performing arts. With decreased funding and dwindling public interest amid the digital age, theater has taken quite a hit in recent years. Shows like “Mormon” are necessary to keep the heart of performing arts beating — audiences need to see that theater can be funny, moving and even moderately offensive.
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