Hold onto your handlebars, nerds. After what feels like an eternity, we are finally heading back to Hawkins, Indiana, for one last adventure. The final season of Stranger Things is upon us, with the first four episodes of Season 5 hitting Netflix on November 26. It’s hard to believe it all started back in 2016—a time when the show's kid actors were actual kids.
Key Highlights
- ✓ Season 5 kicks off in the fall of 1987, starting in pure chaos after the heroes' loss in Season 4.
- ✓ The first four episodes drop on November 26, followed by more on Christmas and a finale on New Year's Eve.
- ✓ In a massive twist, Will Byers unleashes newfound telekinetic powers to fight off Demogorgons.
- ✓ A familiar face from Season 2 returns: Eleven's long-lost sister, Kali (a. k. a. Eight).
- ✓ The final season is described as an "all-out war," with armies of flying Demogorgons bursting from the ground in Hawkins.
With so much time and so many Demogorgons passed, it’s easy for the details to get a little foggy. Before we dive headfirst into the final battle, let's take a trip down memory lane and recap the entire saga, from a missing boy to an all-out war with the Upside Down.
Season 1: The Boy Who Vanished
It all started with the disappearance of Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) after a D&D session at Mike Wheeler's house. While the town searched, his mom, Joyce (Winona Ryder), refused to believe he was gone, convinced he was communicating through blinking lights. Police Chief Hopper (David Harbour) eventually realizes she isn't crazy when he discovers Will's supposed body is a fake.
This is when we meet the girl with telekinetic powers, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), who escaped from a sinister government lab run by Dr. Martin Brenner. She teams up with Mike, Dustin, and Lucas, who protect her "E. T. " style. We learn that while in the lab, Eleven psychically contacted a creature from the Upside Down—the Demogorgon—and accidentally opened a gate. In the end, Joyce and Hopper rescue Will, and Eleven seemingly sacrifices herself to defeat the monster.
Season 2: The Rise of the Mind Flayer
Of course, Eleven is alive. Hopper finds her and hides her away in an isolated cabin for her own safety. Meanwhile, Will isn't doing so well. He's having flashes of the Upside Down and a terrifying shadow monster the kids dub the Mind Flayer. It turns out Will is possessed by this creature, which is using him as a spy in the real world.
This season also introduces us to Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) and her stepbrother Billy. Eleven embarks on a personal journey, tracking down her catatonic mother, Terry Ives, and another former test subject, Kali (a. k. a. Eight). Ultimately, she returns to Hawkins just in time to help her friends, using her powers to seal the gate to the Upside Down and save Will from the Mind Flayer's grasp.
Season 3: The Battle of Starcourt Mall
Summer in Hawkins means the brand-new Starcourt Mall is the place to be. Steve Harrington is scooping ice cream with his new coworker Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke) when they, along with Dustin, uncover a secret Russian base underneath the mall. The Russians are trying to build their own machine to reopen the gate to the Upside Down.
At the same time, the Mind Flayer has found a new host: Billy. It uses him to kidnap townspeople, turning them into a grotesque, fleshy army known as the Flayed. It's important to highlight The season culminates in a massive battle where Billy, freed from the monster's control for a moment by Eleven, sacrifices himself to save everyone. Hopper seemingly dies in the explosion as he and Joyce destroy the Russian machine, closing the gate once again.
Season 4: The Arrival of Vecna
This is where things get really dark. Eight months later, the Byers family and a powerless Eleven are in California. Back in Hawkins, a new evil emerges, killing students in a gruesome way. This new monster is dubbed Vecna. We meet the leader of the Hellfire Club, Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), who is wrongly blamed for the murders.
Max realizes she's Vecna's next target, leading to that unforgettable scene where her friends save her by playing Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill. " The gang discovers that Vecna is actually Henry Creel, Dr. Brenner's first test subject, Number One. In a stunning flashback, we learn that a young Eleven banished him to the Upside Down years ago, where he transformed into the monster he is today. The season ends with a multi-front battle: Hopper fights Demogorgons in a Russian prison, the Hawkins crew attacks Vecna in his lair, and Eleven mentally fights him to save Max. Though they wound him, Vecna succeeds in opening four gates, creating massive rifts that tear through Hawkins.
The Beginning of the End: Season 5 Kicks Off
And that brings us to now. The first four episodes of Season 5, which pick up in the fall of 1987, are an absolute sprint from the get-go. As co-creator Ross Duffer says, "We usually set up their normal life. But in this case, this season is sprinting from the start. " The new trailer shows it's all-out war, with Dustin declaring, "I wanna see Vecna's heart on a platter. "
Things get wild fast. Vecna is back, this time disguised as a seemingly kind person named "Mr Whatsit" to lure children. While the gang tries to stop him, Hopper gets trapped in the other dimension, forcing Eleven to stage a daring rescue. During her mission, she breaks into a military base in the Upside Down only to discover it's not Vecna being held there, but her long-lost sister from Season 2, Kali.
But the biggest shocker comes from Will Byers. During a confrontation where Vecna unleashes his Demogorgons, he taunts Will, reminding him he was the first to fall. Just when it seems hopeless, Will taps into his memories and unleashes incredible, newfound telekinetic powers, single-handedly defeating all the monsters. It seems the kid who was taken in Season 1 is finally coming full circle, becoming a key player in this final fight.
Conclusion
From a simple search for a missing friend to a full-blown war against a malevolent dimension, the journey has been epic. With Hawkins scarred by Vecna's rifts and the Upside Down bleeding into the real world, the stakes have never been higher. The first batch of episodes proves that the Duffer brothers are not holding back, delivering shocking twists and game-changing character moments. This is the final showdown, and it’s clear that no one in Hawkins is safe.
