Stranger Things

The 'Stranger Things' season 4 finale saw Eleven and Vecna in an epic showdown. Here's exactly what happened—and why it matters for season 5.

Maybe I showcase a tendency to fall for basic fan-baiting, but the moments “Piggyback” wanted to feel epic did feel epic. The hairs on the back of Will’s neck stand up, and they all look into the sky: A storm is coming. Nancy, Steve, and Robin find the real Vecna in the Upside Down and prepare a roast. And that’s the end: A next-season set-up worthy of a Marvel post-credits scene. Although a new character to the Stranger Things brigade—and thus one we’ve had less time to grow attached to—Eddie’s death is nevertheless a gut-wrenching blow, particularly when Dustin begins to sob by his side. Also, Eleven is coding in the salt bath, and Mike confesses his love in order to get her to stick around. He pleads with her to fight, and so she does: The tentacles release from around her neck and joints. He would then “pick up the pieces” of the broken world and remake it “into something…beautiful.” Alright, Thanos. They bus over to the local Surfer Boy franchise and take over the kitchen, with the help of a stiff joint, and discover the 600 pounds of salt Argyle promised. When Max asks, we get what will surely become another iconic Eleven quote, emblazoned on Reddit graphics and T-shirts everywhere: “I piggybacked through a pizza dough freezer.” But the good humor doesn’t last, as Vecna regains his strength and takes both Max’s unconscious body and Eleven’s writing one to his blood-red Creel lair in the Upside Down. “Papa is dead,” Eleven tells him, trying to calm his wrath. As Hopper and Co. orchestrate a method for trapping the demo-creatures in the prison pit and lighting them on fire, thereby weakening Vecna, Eddie and Dustin rally to wield off the remaining hell-bats. On the phone, Hop learns their kids are in trouble: As we saw in the penultimate episode, Dr. Brenner, a.k.a Papa, is dead, and Eleven is “indisposed.” Joyce’s kids are “off the grid,” too.

Psychic superheroine Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) has unlocked memories from a childhood spent in a secure facility for kids with strange powers, revealing that ...

When the flames sputter and the vampire bats stop flapping, the survivors know who they are and are back where they belong. It’s hinted that this will involve a disaster on a global scale rather than a conspiracy only a select few geeks know about – and with the core cast no longer minors, some adjustments are surely necessary. The decisions over which character intervenes when, and how, are perfectly made – as are the ones over who dies and why. Sooner or later, you’ll have to stop being the class joker and admit there are things you believe in and people you love. The Duffers appreciate that all this is a metaphor for coming of age, so they sprinkle their finale with universal life lessons about slaying your personal monsters and growing up. In Hawkins, Indiana, in 1986, waiting for a gang of plucky teens to mount a final assault on Vecna, the demon who roams a dank dimension beneath the town.

Stranger Things season 5 is set to end Netflix's adventures in Hawkins as we know it. As we recover from season 4, here's what we know about the final ...

That was kind of a given though following volume 2's devastating finale. Plus there are likely newcomers being added to the scene as well. So yep, expect to see more of Jamie Campbell-Bower as Henry slash 001 slash Vecna slash a big old meanie! - Noah Schnapp (Will) "There are still many more exciting stories to tell within the world of Stranger Things; new mysteries, new adventures, new unexpected heroes. Can they really close the door on the Upside Down for good and learn to live somewhat normal lives?

"Stranger Things 4 — Vol. 2" hits Netflix this weekend, and the kids from Hawkins, Indiana, are back at just the right time for the streaming giant.

"Bingeing worked as a strategy to disrupt the marketplace," Shaikh said. This isn't the first time Netflix has split up a series. The two premieres take place in two different quarters for the company. With new episodes straddling two different quarters around holiday weekends, the company has a better chance of retaining subscribers, which it needs to do to keep Wall Street happy. There's been a lot of debate around whether streamers should release episodes weekly or all at once. "Stranger Things 4 — Vol. 1" is roughly nine hours long.

Stranger Things season 5 won't be released on Netflix in July 2022 along with Stranger Things season 4 vol. 2. But here's the latest on the final season.

After finishing Stranger Things season 4, The Duffer Brothers completed an outline for season 5 and have the final run fully mapped out ahead of production. The season definitely won’t be released one calendar year from now. Stranger Things season 4 has come to an explosive end with the release of volume 2 on Friday, July 1, 2022.

Stranger Things season 5 is officially on the way. The new episodes may not have started filming yet, but we still have some idea about what to expect in ...

It's highly unlikely that any of the main cast members are going to split before Stranger Things wraps itself up for good, so it's expected that they're all set to return for season 5. For now, the Stranger Things season 5 plot is firmly under wraps, but the Duffer Brothers have teased that they have the whole series' conclusion pretty firmly mapped out. Joseph Quinn, who was introduced as Eddie Munson in season 4, recently told The Guardian (opens in new tab) that he'd love to see the leader of the Dungeons & Dragons' loving Hellfire Club return in season 5. Considering how Stranger Things season 5 has yet to start filming, it's safe to assume we've got a little bit of a wait before the next chapter arrives. Stranger Things season 5 is officially on the way. In recent weeks, fans have been theorising as to what might happen in the fifth and final chapter. (Fore more, check out our guide to the Stranger Things season 4, Volume 2 ending.) Realistically, though, the new season will probably drop in 2024. Factor in lengthy VFX post-production work and it takes well over a year to complete a season from start to finish. Word of caution: friends don't lie, and they also don't knowingly ruin things, so if you've yet to watch Stranger Things 4, click away and come back at a later date. And while there's no exact Stranger Things season 5 release date just yet, we can use our knowledge of previous seasons to work out when new episodes could arrive. "We really want to stick the landing."

After the explosive finale of 'Stranger Things' Season 4, Volume 2, we should take stock of the fates of the Netflix series' heroes and villains.

Plus someone from the Upside Down to keep torturing poor Will. Unless the CIA truly went batshit on the poor guy, he'll be just fine. Last time we saw Dr. Owens—who acts as a slight foil to Dr. Brenner, kinda-sorta helping Eleven along the way—he was cowering in a makeshift jail cell. Damn. Eddie Munson's act of self-sacrifice is a crushing loss on the level of Barb and Bob. Which is also why we refuse to believe that the man is gone for good—especially so soon after he learned to stand his ground and become a hero. Considering that Brenner never seems to go the hell away from the series, we can't give him a full 10. As all great blockbuster stories tend to do nowadays, Stranger Things likes to play fast and loose with its fatalities.

Show creators the Duffer brothers told Variety they don't anticipate the gap being anywhere near as long as the one between series 3 and 4.

However, the show has turned many of the cast into household names who now have other commitments to fulfil. You would be forgiven for thinking that this mammoth episode will wrap up the entire series, but the good news for fans is that a fifth series is already in the works. For the first time, this series of Stranger Things was split into two parts, due to it being significantly longer than previous seasons.

After the big Vecna/Henry/One reveal, the crew puts their various plans into motion. A recap of “Papa,” episode eight of season four of Netflix's 'Stranger ...

She kneels at his side, and in the greatest power move, when he begs her to tell him that she understands he did everything he did because he loved her, she refuses to give him that last win. They escape the prison through sewage pipes and arrive at Yuri’s stash house only to learn that he only has a helicopter to get them home. Their beeping distracts the military guys in the helicopter long enough for Eleven to get her bearings, and I know I’ve already said it, but it deserves to be repeated: She summons all of her strength and she brings that helicopter down in one giant, flaming crash. She realizes that Brenner was pushing her to her breaking point and forcing her to explore that dark void under false pretenses of tracking the Soviets because he was obsessed with finding One in the Upside Down. His anger led to Eleven opening that first gate in 1983. Dampening the power of his best weapon like a real idiot, Brenner is left to carry Eleven out of the bunker to safety. And when Owens and Brenner give her the full rundown of what has been happening — and is about to happen — in Hawkins at the (creepy, long) hands of Vecna, she uses her other power to check in on her friends in that dark void of hers. It’s quite the opposite: If Eleven’s journey this season is all about her finally believing that she is not a monster, then of course it would always come down to her realizing who the actual monster is and confronting him. Dr. Owens reminds his colleague that this isn’t a prison and Eleven is free to come and go as she pleases, but then Brenner turns around and has Owens handcuffed to a pipe and locks Eleven in a room with him. When she wakes up, she finds that she’s been collared in that device Brenner used to torture the other kids in her program. Aside from once again trying to make Eleven believe in his twisted family fantasy, he also knows where to hit her so it hurts — he tells her that she is only acting out because of the guilt she feels for freeing One and for causing all of this death and destruction. Did you use it wisely, or did you spend the whole time listening to Kate Bush and thinking about how you will slowly walk out into the sea if the body count at the end of this season — you know there is going to be a body count — includes Hopper or Steve? And then they realize that if Vecna is looking to make four separate gates, he must make four kills.