A review of the concluding season of the Netflix phenomenon
The fifth and final instalment of Netflix phenomenon Stranger Things is here at last, approximately a decade following the release of the incredibly successful first season in 2016. While I was not a fan of the first five minutes released back in November, the rest of the season did not disappoint. As a concluding instalment, one of the most important focuses should be wrapping up character arcs and storylines, and the Duffer Brothers did not hold back. Joyce and Hopper finally have their date at Enzo’s. Lucas and Max finally make it to the movies. Hopper’s trauma over the loss of his daughter Sarah and his association of her and Eleven is fully addressed and resolved. Eddie’s death and Dustin’s grief are given their due diligence. Steve and Jonathon squash their beef (and ironically bond over Nancy).
My main concern prior to the release of Season 5 was that the writers were not going to address the growing divide between Nancy and Jonathan. This concern grew immensely when Jonathan revealed the ring in Volume 1. I despise the notion of using the allure of marriage to lovebomb your way out of relationship issues (*cough*cough* Jeremiah Fisher), and to be completely honest, I had zero faith in the Duffer Brothers to not cheap out and take this route. However, I was pleasantly surprised by their break-up in Episode 6. So much of their relationship was built on forced proximity and shared trauma, which is all well and good if it works out and they make each other happy, but they did not make each other happy. Both of them were miserable. Their shared trauma had become more suffocating than comforting. Also, I was never really a fan of Jancy in general. I’m still at the restaurant; I’m still not over Jonathon taking photos of Nancy undressing in the first season. I think we all collectively breezed over that a bit too quickly. Murray’s persistence on the engagement and his characterization of the relationship as “the stuff of fate, of destiny,” perfectly mislead assumptions regarding the future of Jancy.
This is not the only time the writers mislead assumptions. A popular fan theory proposed Eddie Munson would return as a vampire and play a major role in the defeat of Vecna. This theory is supported by the nature of Vecna’s defeat in Dungeons & Dragons canon. Vecna is betrayed and killed by Kas, his most trusted lieutenant – a fallen warrior granted powers (including vampiricism) by Vecna in exchange for his service. Eddie is killed by demobats in Season 4, which evokes vampiric imagery. Additionally, his body disappears from the site of his death with no explicit explanation. This theory is further supported by Henry’s fear of the caves. Bats are known to hang out in caves, and as per popular lore, vampires can turn into bats. Additionally, there is the unknown figure communicating with Holly Wheeler from the caves. All signs lead to Eddie’s resurrection as a vampire – a perfect use of misdirection to build suspense and anticipation.
In reality, the character of Kas is instead reproduced through “zombie boy,” Will Byers, a fallen warrior, “resurrected” to execute the will of Vecna and the Mindflayer (an incredibly pertinent aspect of the plot in the second season), tunneling in his sleep and leading soldiers into an ambush. It is Will who ultimately secures Vecna’s death in the finale (though Joyce deals the final blow), and using power Vecna himself gave him access to, just like with Kas. Originally, I was confused as to why Joyce went with the kids to the Upside Down. I guess I figured she would go with Hopper and Murray or man the station back at The Squawk. It felt odd having the regular gang together and then Will’s mom tagging along. Of course, I see the plan now. Joyce being the one to kill Vecna is a major callback to the first season and was likely meant as a full circle moment, but it undermines Will’s growth as a character, which is a major storyline in the final season, in the entire show even. He’s not a little kid anymore. He doesn’t need his mother to fight his battles for him. Yes, Joyce has been through hell – Vecna attacked her child, but Will was that child. He deserved vindication.
My main issue with Season 5, however, is how the writers handled Nancy Wheeler’s arc. With such a comprehensive resolution in regards to the rest of the ensemble, Nancy’s ending felt lacking. Jonathan got into NYU and is making a short film, Steve has his RV and is coaching baseball, Robin is doing God knows what (on par for her character though), and Nancy just seems lost. She is not happy, which stands out like a sore thumb amidst the completed arcs of the surrounding characters. They never addressed Nancy and Steve either. We needed a conversation between the two of them explicitly acknowledging the status of their relationship and instead the only thing we got was a brief mention of the matter during Nancy and Jonathan’s breakup in episode six. Here I was trying to get over the fact that Jonathan threw out a pink sweater of Nancy’s because he hates when she wears pink (as she literally sits in front of him in head-to-toe pink) when he responds to her telling him she stayed home during spring break because she needed space with: “space to be with someone else.” No, Jonathan, not to be with someone else. Just space from you. Your obsession with Steve is getting old. Learn to take accountability, please.
Overall, I give the season an 8/10. I enjoyed it in the moment, but the longer I pick it apart the lower the score gets so I’m just going to stop now (someone else can write about how Mileven was butchered).