Tue Dec 30 19:40:00 UTC 2025: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“Stranger Things” Season Five: A Convoluted but Compelling Spectacle

[CITY, STATE] – July 3, 2024 – The penultimate batch of episodes of Netflix’s “Stranger Things” has arrived, and despite its unwieldy mythology and occasional narrative stumbles, the show remains a gripping spectacle. The series, now nearing its decade mark, grapples with a convoluted plot that threatens to overwhelm, but still delivers high-octane action and emotional resonance.

This season plunges deeper into the lore of the Upside Down, revealing it as a wormhole to an even more terrifying dimension, with Vecna aiming to collapse it and seize control of the world. As the characters navigate the real world, the Upside Down, and a secret memory world, the plot thickens, leading to increasingly bizarre situations, including characters trapped in a room filling with yoghurt.

While the show excels in action sequences, nostalgia, and operatic emotion, it is bogged down by excessive exposition. Characters frequently halt the action to explain the plot, often resorting to methods more suitable for children’s entertainment. Despite these narrative challenges, “Stranger Things” manages to maintain its captivating appeal, delivering moments of brilliance.

However, the series’ release strategy, which allows viewers time to reflect between episodes, exposes some of its flaws. Characters’ intelligence fluctuates to serve the plot, many characters appear superfluous, and the aging of the young cast is hard to ignore. The sidelining of Winona Ryder’s character remains a point of concern.

Unlike other landmark dramas that streamline their narratives towards the end, “Stranger Things” has a multitude of loose ends to tie up in its finale. Vecna must be defeated, children rescued, the world saved, and the scientists who initiated the chaos stopped. The show faces the challenge of providing believable and distinct emotional resolutions for 17 characters.

Despite the overwhelming tasks ahead, “Stranger Things” still has the potential to deliver a satisfying conclusion. The finale promises to be a spectacle unlike any other.

“Stranger Things” is currently streaming on Netflix.

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