The following review contains some light spoilers for Stranger Things season five, volume one.
It’s been a staggering three years since the last season of Stranger Things. In that water cooler conversation-dominating fourth installment, the Duffer brothers brought us Sadie Sink’s Max running up that hill to Kate Bush, before ending with Joseph Quinn’s Eddie Munson’s death via Demobats, Max landing in a coma and Vecna’s gates ripping through Hawkins in extraordinary fashion. The stage was set for a mind-melting final showdown—and now, it’s finally here, albeit in three installments: volume one, comprised of the first four episodes, which are now on Netflix; volume two, with the next three, arriving on Boxing Day; and a two-hour-long finale which streams on New Year’s Day.
Does this long-gestating, endlessly agonized-over conclusion meet the head-spinningly high expectations of fans? From these first four episodes—all that’s been shared with critics in advance, thus far—the answer is complicated. It’s a total, unequivocal joy to be reunited with these characters, and to be reminded of the intricate, concurrent, intersecting plot lines which have defined this sci-fi sensation since the very beginning, particularly in a TV landscape where many shows feel rushed or sloppily constructed. And it looks spectacular, too, from the CGI Demogorgons to the sweeping cinematography—it’s as big-screen worthy as TV gets.
Still, these first four (occasionally supersized) episodes—two are over an hour, and the fourth almost an hour and a half—aren’t fully satisfying in and of themselves. They exist to reacquaint us with this world after our prolonged hiatus, and to set up the explosive showdown to come. There are a number of eye-popping set pieces which had me gripped, but you can also feel the Duffer brothers holding back, pulling firmly on the reins to ensure they don’t peak too early.
Part of the joy of that “Running Up That Hill” sequence from last time was that it came seemingly out of nowhere, slap bang in the middle of season four, volume one. It wasn’t a mid-season cliffhanger or a let’s-go-all-out finale, but instead, proof that this was a show which wanted to over-deliver with every single episode. The result was culture shifting—frenzied speculation, record-breaking viewing figures, Kate Bush flying up the charts. So far, nothing in this new installment comes close.
With this last blockbuster outing, you can’t help but wish that the creators had just gone for it, all guns blazing, from the start—particularly considering the length of the episodes, how expensive they must have been to make, and the time it’s taken for us to get here. But, of course, the hope remains that the payoff will be worth it come the season’s second half.
In what we do get, there’s plenty to enjoy. After a flashback to the abduction of Noah Schnapp’s Will Byers in season one (the significance of this scene will become clear by the end of these four episodes), we return to Hawkins circa November 1987, over a year and a half on from that Vecna-generated earthquake. Since then, the town and its residents have been under quarantine, metal plates have been used to seal the cracks in the ground, and a military access control zone set up and presided over by the nefarious Dr Kay (’80s legend and The Terminator star Linda Hamilton, who is new to the cast this season).
Max is still in a coma; Will, Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo), Mike (Finn Wolfhard) and Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) are at school; Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) is in hiding, training hard for the war to come with the support of Hopper (David Harbour) and Joyce (Winona Ryder); and Robin (Maya Hawke), Steve (Joe Keery), Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) are helping the team coordinate their latest “crawl”—a mission into the Upside Down to finally locate Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower). And so, we kick off a string of parallel adventures—one which takes us to that eerie other dimension, and others which see its blood-thirsty occupants, the terrifying Demogorgons, scratch through the walls into ours and wreak havoc.
The second episode opens with a hair-raising scene which had me holding my breath, and in the third, there’s a generous dose of Home Alone-inspired hijinks which is rip-roaringly entertaining, not to mention perfectly timed for the festive season. In episode four’s final moments, there’s a genuine sense of peril, too, and, as you’d expect, the action is expertly choreographed and bracingly directed.
The whole thing has a swagger and confidence which the show has always possessed—evident in the nostalgic soundtrack, meticulous production design, zippy editing, and quippy scripts, as well—placing it high above its rivals. And the shot that volume one ends on is something of a killer blow, a goosebump-inducing confirmation of something you’ll likely suspect from early on in the new season.
But, it all seems like the prelude to the main event, almost like a Marvel movie made to facilitate further sequels and spin-offs—a breathtaking ride to be sure, but one which feels a little functional, too. Given the main course is due to follow in just under a month, it probably doesn’t matter—as long as those four episodes pull out all the stops and then some.
I firmly believe that Stranger Things is one of the best TV shows of all time—it just deserves an ending worthy of everything that’s come before, and that is, ultimately, what its legacy will depend on.
Stranger Things season five, volume one, with the first four episodes, is streaming now on Netflix. Volume two, with the next three episodes, drops Boxing Day, and the finale on New Year’s Day.
