By Nadia Rivas
***SPOILERS AHEAD
After almost four years of waiting, Stranger Things season five has officially been released… Well, at least part one, which was released on November 26, 2025, and as a long-time fan of the show, I was SAT. Having been reading some speculations online, I knew this season was going to be good, given that last season was amazing and ended in a sort of cliffhanger. For example, fans were left wondering what happened to Hawkins and Max. However, this season answered our questions immediately. Recently being split open, Hawkins is now under 24-hour military surveillance, and that big gaping hole was covered up by a “Metal Bandaid,” and Max is still in a coma, but we find out later in the episodes that she has been trapped in the upside down in Henry’s memory, and we see her trying to find a way to escape. For a brief moment, she almost awakens from her coma when Lucas plays Running Up That Hill. Sadly, the music stops, and she can no longer escape. Let’s move on to the main characters.
We see that the gang is all back together, no one is missing (except for Max), but this is the OG gang from season one. We see that they are trying to find Vecna by orchestrating these “Crawls” every few weeks. In addition, during one of these “Crawls,” Will realizes he can see the “Mindflayers” next victim and see the demogorgon going to the Wheelers’ house. We then see Nancy and Eleven race over to the Wheelers’ house before it’s too late. When they arrive, it is revealed that Holly Wheeler (the youngest wheeler) was taken by the demogorgon, and Karen and Ted Wheeler have been slashed by the demogorgon, left to bleed. Fortunately, they were rushed to the hospital, and so far they’re stable. This is just episode one, but let’s get to the main points of this season so far.
We know that Mr Whatsit is Henry Kreel, and he plans to basically take all the children of Hawkins because they are “easy”—-whatever that means—- and the military has constructed a headquarters in the upside down in hopes of capturing Eleven, which is why Hawkins is under quarantine. One of the craziest parts was when we see Will use his abilities to save his friends from being ripped to shreds by the demogorgon and free himself from Vecna’s grip. Holly is also trapped in the upside-down with Vecna, who lured her into his family’s old home and promised her safety. Another major plot twist was that Eleven reunited with her sister from season two, Kali, after Eleven found her trapped in a machine. Furthermore, this season has been full of surprises, and we fans are ready for part two and three to be dropped, and you better believe I’m spending this Christmas break either crying, devastated, and angry.