Disclaimer: This review contains spoilers for Stranger Things – Season 5.
Stranger Things – Season 5 is the much-anticipated final season to the hit Netflix series. What started out as a low-budget love letter to 1980s horror and sci-fi has now evolved into something totally different, for better and worse. The stakes are as high as they have ever been, going from a missing child to the end of the world as the small town of Hawkins, Indiana faces an invasion head-on.
After the events of Season 4, all of the characters are reunited in Hawkins. Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) has successfully opened the gates from the Upside Down allowing him to merge the two worlds. The military has taken over the town with the intention of capturing Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), believing she is responsible for the suffering and loss in Hawkins while simultaneously containing the threats from the Upside Down. Like other TV shows as of late, this season was released in separate volumes, with there being a clear beginning, middle, and end.
The nice part about this season is it knows what it is trying to accomplish. From the very first episode, the mission is clear: find and kill Vecna. This idea is present throughout each and every episode as the cast find ways to defeat him and regroup when plans go awry.
It also brings back the focus on Will (Noah Schnapp) as this season explores what connection he had to Vecna when it’s later revealed they established a psychic link when he was trapped in the Upside Down during Season 1. The best episode of the season is easily Episode 4: “Sorcerer,” where Will unlocks powers similar to Eleven and Vecna and takes out Demogorgons. It’s amazing to see Will develop into someone who embraces himself and overcome his fears and insecurities. Noah Schnapp’s performance is evident of this since he has not gotten a lot of focus since the second season. His disappearance was the hook of the story, and it’s fitting he plays a crucial role in defeating Vecna.
The season still has plenty of development for the ensemble despite their focus on trying to take out Vecna. Dustin (Gaten Mattarazzo) is grieving the loss of Eddie (Joseph Quinn), who sacrificed himself in Season 4. While one may think his survivor’s guilt was too similar to Max (Sadie Sink) in that same season after her brother Billy (Dacre Montgomery) died, it is not. Dustin is arguing with Steve (Joe Keery) and provoking bullies. His frustration and grief is more apparent than Max’s, and it’s tough to see him not be a happy-go-lucky-kid anymore. It was heartwarming when he broke down in front of Steve and explained he was so upset because he doesn’t want to lose him.
The season doubles down on one of, if not the biggest problem fans and critics have with the show: the lack of meaningful character deaths. One would think that there would be characters dying to provide a sense of closure since it’s the last season, and the stakes are the highest they’ve been. I believe there does not need to be death for a show to be impactful or “good.” Where I have issues is with plot armor and feeling like the Duffer Brothers, the show’s creators, trick us.
In Episode 4, Hopper, believing Vecna is being held in a secret room in a military complex, is shown to have bombs strapped to his chest and tells Eleven he is planning to sacrifice himself. He walks into the room, and the screen cuts to black. Shortly after, the door opens and Hopper is right there who shows Eleven the prisoner is actually Kali Prassad a.k.a. “Eight” (Linnea Berthelsen).
I didn’t feel like anything was happening in this scene because Hopper “died” at the end of Season 3 but was revealed to be alive in a Russian prison. This took away from the emotional aspect of this scene as he already “died,” it wouldn’t make sense if he suddenly died again because it wouldn’t have the same impact. Even if Hopper did die here, assuming he survived after the end of Season 3, it would be a cheap end to his character.
Another example is in Episode 6 where Nancy and Jonathan explore Hawkins Lab in the Upside Down and stumble upon mysterious glue. The room around them is collapsing and, believing there is no way out, confess to each other the reasons why they are not worthy of each other.
Jonathan previously wanted to propose to Nancy but slowly realized throughout the season why he was not worthy of her anymore. Nancy, feeling the same way, accepts Jonathan’s “un-proposal” and the pair accepts their fate. However, the glue stopped out of nowhere and is never addressed again. I thought it would have been an emotional farewell to these characters that wrapped up their character arcs. Had Jonathan and Nancy died, it would have genuinely been a shocking moment. If someone’s going to die, especially at the end of the line, why taunt us?
Stranger Things – Season 5 is an imperfect yet satisfying conclusion to the series. While I believe it should have taken more risks, especially in regard to characters biting the dust, it was amazing to spend one last adventure with them and to see the cast grow up.