The clock hit 7 pm the day before Thanksgiving, and people were huddled together to witness the beginning of the end of a cinematic masterpiece, Stranger Things.
Netflix’s original series, Stranger Things, is directed and created by the Duffer Brothers (Ross and Matt Duffer). The science fiction and horror series set in the 1980s focuses on the friend group of four boys, Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas, in Hawkins, Indiana. The four boys uncover supernatural mysteries and government conspiracies. The disappearance of Will Byers and the discovery of a supernatural girl; Eleven, unfold the secrets behind a parallel dimension filled with monsters, known as the “Upside Down.” The five seasons explore their journey and the hardships the kids overcome with other main characters, such as Hooper, Joyce, and Max.
Stranger Things was released on July 15th, 2016, and the series’s final episode will be released on December 31st this year. Fans all around the world have been waiting for one last adventure since season 4, which was released in the summer of 2022. We ended off with a cliffhanger, not knowing what was going to happen next for Hawkins and Vecna’s possible takeover.
Season 5, Volume 1 was released on November 26th. Leading up to its release, stores such as Hot Topic, Five Below, and Target filled up their shelves with Stranger Things merchandise not only to feed into the fans’ excitement but also to boost the stores and their sales.
Trends on social media platforms have also been going viral with songs like “Should I Stay or Should I Go” by The Clash and “Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God)” by Kate Bush. These 80s songs are featured throughout the series and bring the nostalgic thrill back to life.
The hooking beginning to the season pulled back fans into the early magic of the show. We get a look into what Hawkins has turned into a year after Vecna’s massive rift opened into the town. With the overwhelming trauma and suffering Hawkins has gone through, the Duffer Brothers open up the new season with a throwback to Will’s disappearance from the first season. However, Will’s interaction with Vecna was new and foreshadowed a deeper meaning in their relationship.
The long-awaited Stranger Things Season 5, Volume 1 did not disappoint. Through the pacing, horror tone, and emotional moments, you can sense the fear and terror the characters were feeling in every scene. Side characters in the past seasons, such as Holly Wheeler are introduced as key characters in season 5’s plot. Holly’s disappearance is just the chaotic beginning of an overall turning point in this season. Holly’s imaginary friend, “Mr Whatsit,” is simply a friendly, charming disguise of Henry Creel, aka Vecna. Karen Wheeler gains a spotlight in the first few episodes as she ferociously, protectively takes on the demogorgon with her wine bottle to save Holly, her youngest daughter. What a girl boss moment for Mrs. Wheeler, and we’re all loving it.
As brutally intense as Stranger Things is, the joy and heart-warming character bonds are still present. We get sweet moments with Hooper and Eleven in the upside down while Eleven cares for Hopper’s wound, moments of gentle love while Lucas watches over Max in the hospital, and Hopper reassuring Joyce everything will be okay before The Crawl. We also see new character dynamics form as the storyline splits into perspectives, like Mike and Holly growing in their sibling bond when Mike gives her a D&D figure for protection, Holly the Heroic, and Robin guiding and supporting Will while he’s finding himself and his confidence. However, are there some relationship breakups? What is happening in the love triangle with Nancy, Steve, and Jonathan? What surprise is to come with Jonathan’s “jazz tape?” Steve still has feelings for Nancy, and competing with Jonathan to get her attention is proving that statement. Beloved duos like Steve and Dustin are slowly losing their spark. From season 3 and their goofy, adorable humor to now, where they’re both just fed up with each other. We will see a lot of character development in season 5, so be prepared for seasons of build-up to evoke a lot of emotions in this season’s climax.
As characters develop, so does the storyline. The beginning of season 5 so far is nothing like what we’ve seen before. We jumped right into all the chaos and strange things happening in Hawkins. But we’re also diving into what’s happening on the other side of Hawkins. With the army base built in the Upside Down and the town’s quarantine, the people of Hawkins don’t really understand what’s happening or what catastrophic events are going to occur. We have the military actively hunting Eleven, viewing her as the major threat. Led by Dr. Kay, a military scientist, they stupidly follow tracks to hunt down Eleven using “kryptonite” to block her powers, ultimately doing nothing by getting in the way and hurting Hopper and Eleven’s progress to find and destroy Vecna.
At the end of Chapter Three: The Turnbow Trap, we finally find out where Max has been for the past year. She lures Holly into the woods, from the Creel’s house, where she explains to Holly the truth and reveals that she’s been trapped in Vecna’s memories or mind prison. Piecing her way through Vecan’s memories led Max to a possible escape, an opening to reality, where she just “could not” run fast enough before Kate Bush stopped singing. The plot point was a huge discovery and could have landed as its own main idea, instead of an exposition chunk told in the past tense. We are left with the question: what scares Vecna so much in the caves? Max’s sanctuary is her only form of protection in that world from Vecna, and curiously, the audience wants to find out why.
Max’s exhilarating introduction to the season was great. It was surprising, exciting, and most of all hopeful. Max won’t just be sleeping this whole season. No, she’s in this other world with Holly to survive from Vecna’s schemes. With Max’s guidance, Holly may evolve into a brave character defending herself and the other kids who may come along against Vecna with the courage from her necklace.
Eleven’s courage throughout Hopper and her journey was thrilling. Eleven has finally found her confidence in her abilities after gaining her powers back in season 4. Their plan to break into the army-based station in the Upside Down was risky, but definitely worth the risk based on their discoveries. The Duffer Brothers keep us hooked in both worlds, weaving together the Hawkins reality and the Upside Down through escalating stakes and intertwined character arcs like Will and the Upside Down’s connection.
Eleven searches Lieutenant Akers’s mind to figure out what is behind the door. She finds out that whatever is behind the door, it’s “someone powerful” like her. That leaves two people. Vecna and her sister, Kali 08, who we last saw in season 2. The Duffer Brothers were brilliant for bringing such a forgotten but important character back into the plot. Her character was left to be buried in that past, making her presence so shocking. The Duffer Brothers are known for bringing back characters, and they’re good about having a dramatic ending with them, too… Kali’s introduction to this season might have one of the most impactful motives, as she seems to be working for the antagonist of the story. Kali is being controlled by the military, captive as leverage. Now, possibly leading to a mission to rescue her.
The final for volume 1 was phenomenal. With the escape plan failing, we get to see Robin and Murray protect one group of kids, Lucas protecting another in the tunnels, and even Mike taking authority during the battle scene against the demogorgons to try and get the kids to safety. However, even in a dramatic mood like so, Delightful Derek always knows how to lighten up the mood somehow with his crude humor. Derek is a comedy character, much like Argyle was last season, to lighten the mood during the dark and spine-chilling moments. We can’t ever go through a scene of Derek without cracking up at his mischievous jokes or reactions from the rest of the characters.
The volume’s finale doesn’t just build tension through action and humor-it sets the stage for the emotional turning point to come. There is a shifting happening within characters, but someone in particular more than others.
After years of suffering with the great misfortune Will has to endure, he uses that to his advantage and overcomes the overwhelming compliance he feels he needs to obey. Will is done with the shy and quiet facade. The trauma from seasons 1 and 2 didn’t break him. It simply empowered him. The confidence he needed was never to be found in somebody else, as he had the answer all along. Robin’s words from their talk at the beginning of the episode allow Will to realize he can’t be scared to find himself, because once he does, he can fly. His realization awakens a new and evolved Will Byers. The chilling climax scene calls for a round of applause as the Duffer Brothers excite us with Will’s arousal. Will finally found it, he finally found what’s been hidden all along. The power to end everything that once started with him. Eleven is no longer the only character with a bloody nose this time.
Stranger Things Season 5 has only begun. We have four more episodes to wait for before this generational sensation comes to a close. As the lights of Hawkins flicker one last time, saying goodbye to Stranger Things will be anything but simple, as the legacy of Stranger Things will chill far beyond its final frame.
