So, I’ve finished the first four episodes of season 5 and I’m still exhausted despite having adrenaline pumping through me. It hit me after three years of abstinence from Stranger Things right smack at the beginning of the first episode: Yes, you’re dragged right back in, and yes, it still feels sacrilegeous to skip the intro. I can’t do it, at least. The music continued to have a stranglehold on me, preventing me from fast-forwarding right into the action.
Speaking of “Skip Intro”: Please be aware that there will, of course, be spoilers in this overview of the first four episodes!
Welcome Back to Hawkins and the Stranger Things Cosmos
Three years of waiting is a very long time, especially when it comes to a series as pop-culturally charged as Stranger Things. It does make you wonder whether the hype isn’t slowly fizzling out after an incredibly strong fourth season. Don’t panic! The Duffer Brothers have impressed us with the first four episodes of “Stranger Things: Season 5 – Volume 1” on Netflix: Eighties music is back in force, and at full volume! Speaking of music: Yes, there is “that one song” again in this season which is prominently featured, but more about that later.
We’ve been able to binge-watch the first four chapters of the grand finale since November 27. The next three will then drop on December 26 (from 2 a.m.), followed by the finale on January 1, 2026, also from 2 a.m. So, what can we say about the first four episodes? In short? Yes, it feels like Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter, and Stephen King came together for a menage-a-trois and curiously, spawned a baby via a conscious, collective effort. The producers were giving us the perfect mix of goosebumps, drama, action, and nostalgia that we have come to love.
I’ll briefly summarize the story of these four episodes so far, followed by three reasons why we can all really, really look forward to the final four episodes!
Badass Reboot in the Quarantine Area
After the disastrous ending in season 4, when the Upside Down practically invaded our world and tore Hawkins to pieces, I was expecting some kind of “War of the Worlds” scenario. The new season made a surprisingly huge leap and picked up about 18 months later, in the fall of 1987, with the aftermath of the “earthquake” seemingly under (military) control. Hawkins is now a restricted area, where the cracks are sealed with steel plates.
The adults — Joyce, Hopper and Murray — are working to protect the children and stop Vecna. At the same time, our heroes conduct regular “crawls” into the Upside Down to track down the Bad Guy, who they believe is still out there somewhere.
The heroes, here Dustin and Steve, search for Vecna in their crawls. Image source: Netflix (Screenshot: nextpit)
It soon becomes clear: Vecna is indeed still there, and his plan is more nefarious than ever. He kidnaps children — like Mike’s younger sister, Holly Wheeler, who has an “imaginary” friend. Vecna (alias Henry Creel) needs children, as it turns out, or as he himself will put it. Why? Because they are easy to break and control. He uses them to create new “antennae” with which to anchor his foothold in our world. More on the antenna issue later. So the stakes are higher than ever!
Reason 1 to Look Forward to the Finale: The Gang is Back – Goosebumps Guaranteed!
After such a long break, seeing the ensemble cast come together again is simply wonderful and makes me happy. For me, the series is, above all, the story of this community and their willingness to stand up for each other. The Duffer Brothers took a lot of time to build us up emotionally. Perhaps a wee bit too long for some, but I think it’s perfect pacing. After all, I want to be prepared for a finale for as long and as continuously as possible.
We see how Steve and Robin work at a radio station (keyword: “Rockin’ Robin”) and use their broadcasts as encrypted code for the “crawls”. By the way, I really like how the gang here project their “Dungeons & Dragons” skills in everyday life or use them in the fight against Vecna. As a former D&D gamer, this really resonated with me.
In my opinion, Dustin’s development is particularly noteworthy: he still wears the “Hellfire Club” T-shirt of his lost friend Eddie and gets beaten up by bullies for it. He’s angry, sad and yes, a bit vengeful too. I think the further development of the characters is well thought out and fits in with the long break. In general, I’d like to emphasize once again how much I like the fact that we continue to see more about these characters revealed over the seasons and learn more about them.
Theme: 80s Vibes
It’s fun to see the relationship dynamics between the kids (Mike, Lucas, Will), the teens (Nancy, Jonathan, Steve, Robin) and the responsible adults (Joyce and Hopper) who are willing to give their lives to protect the boys. Bringing a breath of fresh air to this dynamic are characters who are either new or — like Holly, Mike’s younger sister — haven’t played a particular role before.
Holly comes to the fore with her imaginary friend. Image source: Netflix (Screenshot: nextpit)
As a child of the 1980s, I love the fact that Stranger Things includes a hero from that era in the cast every season. This time, it’s Linda Hamilton, who we know as Sarah Connor from the Terminator films. Here, she plays the soldier Dr. Kay, who leads the military mission. As a tough-as-nails soldier bent on capturing Elfi/Jane, she exudes an ice-cold “Von der Leyen” charm.
And when we talk about 80s vibes, we naturally have to refer to its music. The producers know how to create pop culture moments. Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” is etched in our collective memory and plays a role again this time. This time, Tiffany (oh, what a crush I had on her back then) is given this honor, who landed a worldwide hit with “I Think We’re Alone Now”. A tiny point of criticism: a dance scene to this exact song? Yes, we’ve kind of similar scenes before in “Umbrella Academy”. Perhaps they could have been a bit more creative.
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Reason 2: Will Byers become “Will the Sorcerer” — the Team’s New Superpower?
Will Byers was mostly portrayed as the victim throughout the series, the boy who was kidnapped in season 1. But all of that has come full circle now! We remember that the entire story began with him disappearing in episode 1 of the first season. Now this boy may be the key to defeating Vecna — great storytelling and another satisfying resolution.
We learn the following: Will was “impregnated” by a Demogorgon, uh yeah, sort of, and has had a connection to the Upside Down ever since. He gets these “tingles” and is like an antenna that unintentionally sees what Vecna sees.
And let’s be honest: I’ve spoken to a few people about the fifth season and I’ve also seen a few reviews of the season. Somehow, no one makes a connection to Harry Potter and Voldemort. Am I really that out of whack to see a parallel here? I mean, it’s about the fact that one person can see through the other’s eyes, but also about the fact that perhaps fate, and therefore one’s own survival, is also linked to the other.
Will Goes From Victim to Sorcerer
Things get crazy in the finale of this first rush of episodes, when Mike, Joyce, and Robin are attacked by Demogorgons. In an already phenomenal scene, Will suddenly uses his connection to the “hive mind”, this collective Upside Down consciousness. He takes control of the Demogorgons!
Will’s eyes turn white, and he practically crumbles the monsters the same way Vecna crumbled his victims in season 4. Image source: Netflix (Screenshot: nextpit)
With this newly discovered ability, Will is suddenly at least as powerful as Eleven/Jane. He can see into the minds of all the Demogorgons and control them. The trio of Eleven, Will, and the surprising return of Kali (Eleven’s sister, aka number 8), who also has superpowers, form a superhero team in my eyes that will be extremely effective in the fight against Vecna.
With that set up, I’m really optimistic about the final four episodes because now Vecna has an opponent who can use his powers against him.
Reason 3: Epic Action and Lore Payoffs
The first half of the season built up a lot, but it also delivered. The action sequence where the Demogorgons attacked the military base was probably one of the most awesome sequences I’ve seen in a long time. The camera work, the numerous one-shots — it’s world class! Do watch out for these one-shot scenes.
Speaking of action: the Demogorgons are finally fearsome, indestructible creatures again, and not just accessories or cannon fodder. We see this not only in the “small” finale, but also in the prior scene when Holly’s mother tries to defend herself against a Demogorgon with a bottle. And yes, I don’t think we’ve ever seen so many explicit scenes in Stranger Things as in this season.
Not Always Entirely Logical
Incidentally, I had to think again about the fact that I’ve also come across some logical errors in the course of the series. Some of them are total clichés: when a Demogorgon fights random soldiers, it slaughters a dozen of them in seconds. But if he stands in front of one of the important characters, he seems much slower and more indecisive.
Do you know what I was thinking in this context? Maybe that’s intentional! Since the beginning, the Duffer Brothers have somehow been telling us the story as if it really came from the eighties. The visuals, the stylistic devices, everything else, are very reminiscent of E.T., Goonies, Stand by Me, etc. There are also these 80s macho vibes in some of the male characters (Hopper in some instances, for example) and this classic “Cold War” narrative: Russia bad, USA great. Back then, stories were told in a simpler and less complex manner — why shouldn’t certain logical flaws be able to work in the same way as they always did, forced upon us back then?
In this context, this is what I also think of Derek: no soldier is surprised when he suddenly turned up on the doorstep of a military base? And was no one surprised by the noises his suitcase made because it contains a walkie-talkie? I think that supports my thesis about the deliberate logic loopholes. But by the way, thanks for “Dipshit Derek” — what a great new character!
Derek – gotta love him, right? Image source: Netflix (Screenshot: nextpit)
Old Plot Threads Revisited
The mind space and the cave: Max is in a coma, lovingly cared for by Lucas. But she has “burrowed” into Vecna’s memories. She meets Holly Wheeler there and finds a cave that Vecna is afraid of — if she finds out what it is, she should have a weapon against Vecna aka Henry Creel, in his own world.
The Return of Kali: Yes, the weird episode from season 2, we remember that! The Duffer Brothers are no longer ignoring Eleven’s sister (008). At first we thought the military might be holding the weakened Vecna, but then we are quite surprised: Dr. Kay is holding Kali captive in a military base in the Upside Down instead. This return somehow makes sense, as Kali was also trained by Dr. Brenner and wanted to take revenge on the military.
The Upside Down’s origin story: Dustin discovered that the slimy wall around Vecna’s memories forms a circle, the centre of which is the Hawkins Lab. In other words, the place where Eleven banished Henry Creel to Dimension X. So we will probably find out in the next parts how the Upside Down really came about. That’s how it’s supposed to be, since the Duffer Brothers promised to resolve it beforehand.
Stranger Things: My Verdict on the First 4 Episodes of Season 5
So, let’s get this sorted, please: The first four episodes laid the groundwork for a massive finale, that’s for sure! The budget ($400 to $480 million for the season) is obvious in the look and the worldbuilding. The great thing is, it’s not a waste of money if these four episodes are the benchmark. It’s not a pointless mash-up of excessive CGI scenes and 80s references. Instead, we get a story that pulls us back into the story from the very beginning.
Some people may find the narrative too lame or the story a little too overdone. But hey, I love this series and yes, damn: I want it to be told pompously in a long-winded manner and a wild ride right to the very end. The season takes time to create great interpersonal moments in between. Scenes that bring us even closer to the characters than we already are.
I’m still thinking about whether there’s an analogy between Will and Vecna to Voldemort and Harry Potter, or in other words: the Duffer brothers announced in advance that a main character was going to die. Beforehand, Will was always a bit of a victim, so you might have guessed that he would die anyway. The dynamics are completely different now that he can use his powers. But that makes me think that perhaps Vecna can only die if Will dies too.
Either way, the stage is set for a really incredible finale. I thought episodes 1-3 were really good, even if they weren’t quite at “season 4” level yet. But with this fourth instalment, I’m completely on fire again and, as the Grinch that I actually am, I’m looking forward to Christmas for the first time since my childhood. Then three more episodes beckon before this great series finally comes to an end on New Year’s Day.
Let me know what you think of my opinion. Personally, after these four episodes, I really hope that the series will give us a worthy ending.
