One Last Adventure, Stranger Things Season 5 | Television Review

One Last Adventure | Goodbye Stranger Things

One last adventure. A finale goodbye. I didn’t know what I wanted but I got exactly what I needed. Were all my questions answered? Not really. Were my expectations met? No but was I sent on an emotional, nostalgic journey that ultimately led to saying goodbye to some of my favourite fictional characters, yes. The Stranger Things finale didn’t go as I planned, it wasn’t half as brutal or bloody as I was hoping for and almost every character walked away unscathed. Despite the lack of brutality the finale was an emotionally brutal. The first half everything falls into place and our heroes are triumphant, the second half we get to see the aftermath of their victory. The graduation scene was a highlight, Dustin’s speech and homage to Eddie was gut wrenchingly perfect and I found the last 20 minutes to be soul crushingly meaningful. The symmetry of ending the show the same way it started, with a game of D&D was undeniably the only way this show could have ended.

The ever expanding ensemble this season meant some of the performances weren’t given enough time to breathe but I personally thought we had some strong emotional moments in season 5 and that is thanks to the performances. In episode 7 when Max wakes up, Sadie Sink and Caleb McLaughlin gave exceptional performances. Jamie Campbell Bower is technically able to deliver two strong performances, Henry and Vecna this season are as powerful as ever. Particularly episode 8 when Henry goes into the cave and watches his first memory of the mind flayer. I also found the moments between Hopper and Eleven in episode 8 to be particularly beautiful, especially David Harbour’s performance. 

Chapter one re-introduced us to the classic nostalgia The Duffer Brothers deliver effortlessly, as soon as the score transcended and the characters chemistry bounced off one another I was instantly engrossed into a world I had missed. Chapter one wastes no time setting up that Holly is an integral component, episodes 1 to 3 have charm and whimsy as we discover WSQK The Squawk, Eleven’s training classes, Dustin’s rebel phase, Dr. Kay and Henry’s 1950’s world. The first three episodes exude a level of humour and darkness that keeps the threat level subdued, it isn’t until episode four when the real damage and hostility rises. Chapter 1 was high quality and even higher stakes, action packed and setting up endless possibilities for chapter 2. We see character reveals, demogorgon battles, easter eggs and emotional progression. Chapter 1 of Stranger Things is almost perfect. 

Chapter 2 takes its foot off the gas, compared to the previous 4 episodes the show takes its time to progress. Each episode felt a little less impactful and a little more subdued. We spend a lot of time setting up emotionally weighted relationships and conversations, which naturally led me to believe we were entering into war. I was expecting more casualties in chapter 2, for example in episode 6 when Nancy and Jonathon are trapped or the scene when Robin, Vickie, Lucas and Max are running from the demos in hospital. Despite the lack of killing off characters, chapter 2 did reveal the wormhole theory, Max waking up, the exotic matter, Steve’s master plan and Will’s coming out. Chapter 2 answered a few questions but lacked in depth, the 3 episodes were hard to distinguish from one another. After the strong first 4 episodes, I was expecting more. 

The finale was over 2 hours of close shaves, sad goodbyes, monumental battles and perfect song accompaniments. It might not be perfect but it was pretty spectacular.

EPISODIC PROBE POINTS:

EP01 - ★★★★★

EP02 -★★★★★

EP03 - ★★★★★

EP04 - ★★★★★

EP05 - ★★★

EP06 - ★★★★

EP07 - ★★★

EP08 - ★★★★