Stranger Things Is Shrinking

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Despite facing a world-ending threat – a bizarre supernatural event involving strange lights, constant thunder, and creeping vines – the final season of Stranger Things surprisingly feels contained. While the show has become known for its large budget, heavy use of 80s nostalgia, and complex storylines, the first four episodes of this last season focus tightly on the core group of friends as they try to resolve the conflict. It’s a more focused approach than previous seasons, even with the high stakes and extended episode lengths.

For nearly a decade, Stranger Things has been a major part of the cultural conversation, lasting through a pandemic and two presidential terms. However, even as the show enters its fifth season, many questions about the villain Vecna remain unanswered, as the story has only moved forward from 1983 to 1987. This creates some problems – it’s increasingly difficult to believe the actors are still portraying teenagers when they are now in their 20s and 30s, with Millie Bobby Brown, the show’s star, now a wife and mother in real life. But the issues go deeper than just aging characters. Stranger Things has moved beyond simply imitating 1980s culture; it’s now imitating itself, becoming repetitive and losing its original spark as it relies too heavily on familiar tropes.

The season begins with the episode “The Crawl,” following an opening scene that uses somewhat questionable technology to make the characters look younger. The story takes place on November 3, 1987, just three days before the anniversary of Will Byers’s disappearance into the Upside Down. A year has passed since the events of season four, and the U.S. military now occupies Hawkins. After Vecna opened portals to another dimension, troops moved in to quarantine the town and block off parts of the city center. Surprisingly, most residents seem to have accepted this military presence. However, the show’s main characters are disturbed by the transformation of their town into a heavily guarded area filled with barbed wire, checkpoints, and covert operations. The story focuses tightly on their experiences, making the already isolated setting feel even more confined.

The Party is secretly working to find and defeat Vecna, though their efforts vary. Eleven is in hiding and training with Hopper, eager to join his dangerous missions into the Upside Down, but he won’t allow it. Robin has started a radio show with Steve, using it to criticize the occupying forces and secretly communicate with Hopper. Robin, Steve, Joyce, Nancy, and Jonathan work together each night to help Hopper navigate the treacherous Upside Down. Elsewhere, Mike is trying to hold his group of friends together, while Lucas spends time with the comatose Max. Will is dealing with unrequited feelings for Mike and a new ability to sense Vecna’s attacks. And Dustin is grieving the loss of his friend Eddie, who was wrongly accused of murder last season, and is becoming withdrawn from the group.

As the group of heroes has gotten bigger, the show has struggled to give everyone a meaningful role in the main storyline and enough screen time. We’ve seen this before – like when Hopper was held captive by the Russians, or when Will moved to California and it felt like they were testing out a spin-off idea. This season, Ryder, who is usually one of the strongest performers, is again stuck playing the worried parent on the sidelines, while some characters fall back into old patterns that seemed to be resolved in previous seasons. The creators have always liked to reference past events, but this season goes too far, constantly revisiting old conflicts – like Jonathan and Steve fighting over Nancy – and repeating familiar character traits. Hopper is stuck remembering his dead daughter, Will is listening to The Clash to cope in the Upside Down, Eleven is sacrificing herself for her friends, and there’s another crisis involving Vecna. It’s starting to feel like Stranger Things is just playing the same hits over and over again.

Despite the show sometimes feeling familiar, some actors deliver particularly strong performances, notably Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Cara Buono as the detached Karen Wheeler (who finally shows vulnerability), and Priah Ferguson as Lucas’s now-teenage sister, Erica. The character of Holly Wheeler has been aged up and is now played by Nell Fisher, and Fisher and Buono create a very convincing mother-daughter relationship that makes a key action scene particularly impactful, echoing a classic 80s sci-fi film, as is typical for Stranger Things. When the show takes risks, it still packs an emotional punch – for example, Eleven and Hopper’s intense interrogation of a soldier is a dark take on a father-daughter moment, and the Party’s clever defense of a house against a Demogorgon demonstrates their teamwork and strategic thinking.

The fourth episode ends on a cliffhanger, and the next set of episodes will likely follow suit. Netflix will release three more episodes on December 25th, with the series finale arriving on December 31st. While this release schedule aims to capture viewers during the holidays, it feels rushed and unsatisfying. Despite some strong acting moments, the show isn’t as frightening or original as it once was, especially as it heads towards its climax. A scene of Nancy marking a map of Hawkins with Hopper’s patrol routes cleverly represents the show’s tendency to revisit old ground. Even a significant reveal in the latest episode feels like a rehash of previous ideas rather than a fresh development, as if the creators are relying on familiar tropes instead of exploring new territory. With only four episodes remaining, Stranger Things feels stuck in a rut, lacking the sense of creative freedom that defined the early seasons – seasons that celebrated the power of imagination, friendship, and the limitless possibilities of Dungeons & Dragons. That inventive spirit seems to be gone, and the show is simply retreading familiar territory, making it feel less strange and exciting.

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2025-11-27 04:56