Stranger Things 5: A Long and Tender Goodbye.

With Netflix's phenomenon Stranger Things finally coming to an end, I could't help but get a little emotional and also, reminisce about when it all started back in 2016. I was a teenager myself, while the main cast was a few years younger, but I could still relate to some essential situations most of us face in adolescence. For me, the series was always about these main things: we stay true to ourselves and stay true to our friends, a fundamental quote mentioned by Dustin in the first episode of this (last) epic season. Contrary to most people nowadays (or not), I don't get to watch many TV shows as I'd like to, movies tend to come more easily to me. But the Duffer Brothers were not only able to create an ingenious story fit for cinema standards, but also be able to sustain it for as long as it did without becoming tiresome. 

The Party Is As United As Ever

Watching the boys come together to take down Vecna once and for all brough me back to season one when the four of them were just little kids playing Dungeons & Dragons in the basement. This particular scene where they all join hands made me come up with the feeling that their bond and trust upon each other should be strong once again, and since the cast has grown and matured over the last (almost) ten years, the characters are each facing their own personal issues in ways that weren't so affectable in the previous seasons. Personally, I'm really, truly hoping that if they don't keep the party of four alive, at least don't kill off Mike or Will.

It Started With Him and It's Going to End With Him

I had never really though of it, until watching these four episodes, but Will Byers has been my favorite character of this show all along. The creators had given us hints that the last season would focus on the character and, considering how episode four ended, it is exactly how it's going to go. There's some irony in this since Will had only a recurring role in the first season, having been a regular beginning from the second season. And now, as things turn to a closing point, the fate of Hawkins depends on this boy, who at the end of the last episode of volume one, proved to be even more powerful than Eleven. I first start my praises directly to Noah Schnapp. His performance is a beautifully complex mix of feelings of someone that for long enough has been misunderstood, never really knew how to embrace his identity and didn't have to face his time in the Upside Down so closely. Until now. I adored the fact that one of the elements of the fifth season was exploring the dynamic between Will and Robin, since both characters have a couple of things in common. I can't think yet of how this love triangle will end, but considering Robin's encouraging role in giving Will the courage to confront the monsters, in the midst of it we see that he indeed has romantic feelings for Finn Wolfhard's character Mike. I find it kind of difficult that they will end up together, since Eleven has been the subject of Mike's affections since the beginning, but I sure hope that Will's finale is fulfilling. 

The Beginning of the End

So, considering that we have over a month to see for ourselves the conclusion of this enduring series, a few things most of us should be questioning and searching for answers in the next volume are:

• What will happen to Hawkins?
• Which couples will end up together?
• Is the story (and sexuality) of Will going to be more explored?
• Will Max wake up from the coma?
• Who will survive?

And, let's hope for the best and that, once again, Stranger Things doesn't let us down.

Vol. 2: Christmas Day.

Finale: New Year’s Eve.