“Stranger Things” released its finale on New Year’s and has ended the show, which many have enjoyed for a decade. But reviews were very much mixed on the much-awaited series finale. Some people thoroughly enjoyed the structure of the finale, while many others thought that there were many loose ends that the Duffer brothers were not able to cover and that the series finale tainted the reputation of the entire series as a whole.
The show’s finale had a massive buildup, with the second volume leaving 12 kids stuck in Dimension X, and Vecna plotting to bring both dimensions together to complete his plan. In the beginning of the finale, the crew set off on a mission to find the kids, bring down Vecna and destroy the Upside Down. Eleven, Hopper, Murray and Kali stayed in the Upside Down while the rest of the crew went to Dimension X to kill Vecna. Eleven and Kali are able to get into Vecna’s mind but then Vecna overpowered them, inciting Eleven to travel to Dimension X.
The kids who were trapped in Vecna’s mind tried to get out while closely being chased by Vecna’s human avatar, Henry Creel. While they attempt to escape, the crew reaches Vecna’s lair in Dimension X, and a battle kicks of between the Mind Flayer and the crew, who manage to kill the Mind Flayer, and later on, Vecna. Upon returning to the gate between the real world and the Upside Down, the military captures them, wanting to trap Eleven. Eleven, however, sacrifices herself while the Upside Down disintegrates. The finale then has a time skip to when Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas and Max are supposed to graduate. Mike concludes the finale, sharing his theory that Eleven never passed, leaving fans with an open-ended interpretation of her supposed death.
Many fans found themselves content with the ending. The open ended nature surrounding Eleven’s death and the glimpses of the futures of the main cast were heartwarming to close the finale. Some viewers believed that this ending truly depicted the whole meaning of the show, which revolved around friendship.
Social media, however, was filled with criticism. Many pointed out the inconsistencies in the plot and claimed the show never got the ending it truly deserved. They criticized the lack of monsters in the Upside Down, the lack of insight into Vecna’s backstory and Will’s initial disappearance.
“Stranger Things” was a generational show that shaped television and pop culture. Although the overall quality of the finale is being questioned, the impact and longevity of “Stranger Things” cannot be denied.
