Over the past 10 years, the Duffer Brothers have built one of the most well-known stories globally, and earned Netflix over $1 billion in revenue. Stranger Things season five was arguably the most anticipated piece of media in 2025. A total of eight episodes were released in three volumes: Volume One, with four episodes, was released on Thanksgiving; Volume Two, with three episodes, was released on Christmas Day; Volume Three, with the show’s finale episode, was released on New Year’s Eve. However, following the final episode, fans were thoroughly disappointed in the show’s ending, as well as the season overall.
The season started great; cliffhangers, plot twists and character development really helped the first four episodes stand out. While the first episode began to leave me a bit confused, it made sense towards the end and in the episodes which followed. However, with the release of Volume Two, the plot quickly became difficult to understand and just overall sort of random, with the finale being another rollercoaster of emotions. The plot of season five essentially revolved around the main characters getting to the bottom of Vecna’s plan and killing him and the Upside Down for good. While this is done for the most part, it is evident that the Duffers generally just got sloppy with writing and filming the final episode.
The actors this season did amazing for what they were given, with a few delivering incredible performances during heartfelt scenes. For example, Noah Schnapp, who plays Will Byers, delivered an incredible coming out speech in episode seven. Will is prompted to express this part of himself with his closest family and friends after Robin (Maya Hawke) helps him accept himself for who he truly is, as well as wanting to overcome Vecna’s exploitation of this when he speaks to Will at the end of episode four. The scene hit close to home for many viewers, and Schnapp did an outstanding job portraying the raw emotion that came with it. Maya Hawke also delivered an amazing monologue in episode four, targeted at Will and his journey on accepting who he is. One of my favorite lines from this is when she says, “I was looking for the answers in somebody else but, I had all the answers.” This line, along with the monologue as a whole, really encapsulates the experience of being queer and figuring out how to be okay with that part of who you are. Both performances brought tears to my eyes, and were two of the best parts of the entire season.
As for the plot this season, there were too many holes in it to count. There was so much potential, and it basically crashed and burned at the end. Five deaths were promised in the finale by the Duffers, but in the end, only three characters died: Kali (Linnea Berthelsen), Henry (Jamie Campbell Bower), and Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), unless you count the side characters. Every death was saved for the ending, which gave the Duffers a huge opportunity for emotional deaths, but they completely disregarded this upper hand and played most of the characters’ endings quite safely. Vecna’s death was anticipated and expected; however, the final battle and his death went way too quickly, considering how they have been building him up for five seasons. Joyce (Winona Ryder) being the one who ultimately killed him was a full circle moment for her and the plot, as well as the other characters having flashbacks of how he has hurt each of them and coming to peace with it. Kali’s death was not very impactful to the story, but dying in Eleven’s arms made it a bit more memorable. Eleven’s ending is where things get tricky. She sacrifices herself with the Upside Down as it is getting blown up and sucked into oblivion, saying that nothing will ever be over as long as she is still alive. In any case, her goodbye scene with Mike (Finn Wolfhard) was incredible, and the song “Purple Rain” by Prince as the background really set the emotions high and made it memorable. Even so, Eleven’s death could have been way more impactful. This could be a hot take, but it would have been so much more powerful if she died when Hopper (David Harbour) thought he shot her in the lab tank while hallucinating. The effect this would have on both the characters and the plot would be so significant it could never be ignored: Eleven dying at the hands of the man she saw as a father and a hero, and Hopper’s second daughter dying because of him. Furthermore, Steve (Joe Keery) should have died when he slipped off the tower. Although I did like how Jonathon (Charlie Heaton) was the one to save him, he should have missed Steve’s hand and consequently made Steve fall to his death. This happening before the real battle even began could have made the team angry and more prepared to fight with raw feeling, as well as adding to Dustin’s (Gaten Matarazzo) arc of grief and guilt, which began with Eddie’s (Joseph Quinn) death in season four and would most likely be intensified with Steve’s demise. This death also would have added much more weight to Nancy (Natalia Dyer) offering herself as bait for the Mind Flayer, which she should have died doing. Bravery ultimately being Nancy’s doom would have been the best way to end her character.
The last parts of the finale episode were rounding out endings for characters, with my favorite two being the graduation and final Dungeons and Dragons campaign of the main characters. Dustin’s speech during graduation was the exact same thing Eddie told him he wanted to do when he graduated. Since he never got to, Dustin did it in his honor. This really gave their relationship a lot more depth without even showing Eddie. Dustin had been battling his grief for Eddie all season, and this speech was his opportunity to finally let go and truly make peace with his death. After the graduation ceremony, the main four boys and Max (Sadie Sink) decide to ignore the afterparty invite they received and play one final campaign of D&D, and it is filled with metaphors for the show. After Max is upset with Mike’s ending, he creates a story about the mage as Eleven and how she and Kali actually faked her death; that she is really somewhere with “at least one waterfall,” living peacefully away from everything. This isn’t confirmed in any way, but all of the five say they believe the theory. They each put their binders on the shelf as a way for the actors to say goodbye to their characters. Exiting up the stairs one by one, Holly (Nell Fisher) and her friends rush down to take over the game. Mike stands at the top of the stairs, seeing himself and his friends in his sister and hers. The series ends exactly where it started: in Mike Wheeler’s basement playing D&D.
Following the release of chapter eight, fans thought it was so bad that it was actually a fake finale, and the real one would be released on January 7. This theory was called “Conformity Gate” by fans, and it was created because of the fact that the finale lacked so many details and contained so many plot holes. Essentially, the theory was that the viewers were actually being mind controlled by Vecna, and the finale was fake. Some examples of evidence include many characters standing like Henry throughout the season, Will’s coming out speech containing inconsistencies for the time period, the dial for the tower at the WSQK station changing colors, as well as many many more. When researching, I found this theory to generally make some sense, as the examples did line up. I knew it was highly unlikely that this would come true, though. And unfortunately, there was no secret episode. Stranger Things is overall one of the best TV shows in the history of media. Despite the rocky finale episode, I would give season five a 7/10. If you like sci-fi and mystery, this is definitely a show you should watch.
