Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 8 Review: Finale That Does The Characters Justice But Lacks Courage!

Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 8 Review: We’re finally there. A month and more after the first Play on the first episode of Stranger Things Season 5, for a path that at least in part recalled that of the old TV: not one episode a week, but three blocks to close the conversation with one of the most important series of this generation. But you know that closing is difficult, we have said it, and we reiterate it, and working on the final of something iconic like it was the Netflix series of the Duffer brothers was a mission impossible: each of the millions of viewers had their own conclusion in mind, which went on to emphasize their favorite characters and elements. Arriving at the end of Stranger Things meant facing a double challenge: to close an increasingly larger and more layered mythology, but, above all, to greet the characters who had become familiar over the course of almost ten years. The final is therefore loaded with a weight that goes beyond the single season, because it must respond not only to the plot, but also to the emotional investment of an entire generation of viewers.

He understands the final episode and makes a specific choice: he doesn’t try to reinvent the series at the last minute (looking for the shock moment or twist that many of the theories spread online took for granted), but works to make sense of it. It’s an ending that doesn’t try to surprise at all costs, but to be faithful to what Stranger Things has always been. But they, brothers Matt and Ross Duffer, are the story’s owners, and they brought it to fruition with coherence and balance, overcoming the difficulties that accumulated along the way due to the passing of time and the increasing attention. That’s enough for us, despite a few too many delays that are a product of our times rather than the 80s entertainment it’s inspired by. We’ll talk about it without spoilers, but we’ll inevitably allow ourselves some mild details about the final episode’s setup in order to move the discussion forward. But deep down, we know that almost everyone will read after devouring it tonight, after dinner and the end-of-year revelry.

Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 8 Review: The Story Plot

With a duration of over two hours, the final episode of Stranger Things offers a lot of material to analyze. When the Party kicks off the big mission in the finale of Volume 2 of the fifth season of Stranger Things, the final episode resumes immediately after the events of “The Bridge”, with the group splitting up in Upside Down to advance the various parts of an extremely complex plan. As Eleven heads to Hawkins’ lab with Kali, Hopper, and Murray, the others head to the tower and begin the climb. El, Kali, and Max have a brief moment to collaborate in the Void, where they enter Henry’s memories and find the children in the Creels’ home. Before they can kill Vecna, however, he derails their plan in the Upside Down. After Kali’s apparent death, Eleven joins the group in the Abyss, the scene of the great action sequence of the series finale of Stranger Things. In addition to a new clash between El and Vecna, the episode also marks the return of the Mind Flayer to its true form. El and the Party manage to gain the upper hand, but the showdown and epilogue deserve further analysis, while the main story of Stranger Things concludes.

Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 8 Review and Analysis

We had enthusiastically welcomed volume 1, which culminated in an epic and perfect climax; we had also considered volume 2 overall positive, because, despite some imbalance between explanations and action, it managed to provide us with some important moments related to the characters’ emotional depth. All this culminates in an ending that leads the characters to the long-awaited final confrontation with Vecna, in which, finally, Eleven, played by Millie Bobby Brown, returns to reclaim the role that has been hers since the first season. And even if his interpreter’s test didn’t convince us in the end, the face-to-face meeting with his antagonist left us satisfied. She is not alone in having the honour and burden of facing the enemy that made the history of Stranger Things, in a clash that involves everyone pulling the strings of what was set in the first two volumes, with the characters initially acting in separate subgroups to largely reunite for these two abundant hours of the finale. A collision break between them and Vecna that is reflected in that of the Abyss with our planet.

If the clash with Henry/Vecna continues to develop partly on the mental and magical level, a key element of this ending is to translate it onto the physical and concrete plane once the group of “space and interdimensional travelers” arrives at your destination. It is symbolic for the series and its protagonists that the adventure moves from the Dungeons & Dragons game table to the real one, from fantasy to life. A fundamental step in the history and evolution of individuals, now able to abandon the dice and take up arms, at the end of their growth journey. Divided to encircle and confront the enemy, but never so united. It is a clash that involves everyone and which also satisfies on a visual level, where, in the previous volumes, the CGI highlighted some uncertainty, broadening the scope to include some of the supporting characters added during the long journey of Stranger Things. We had imagined and would have liked more space at the core of the series, compared to those who have started to gravitate more and more around them from season to season, but ultimately, that’s okay too. We reiterate: the story is the Duffers’, not ours, and as long as everything is told consistently, we accept it.

This serves the structure of this ending in two narrative blocks, in two distinct souls: if the first half develops the action and the final clash, the second focuses more on the historical characters to close the circle. Guiding us are the narrative devices we know well, the radio voice of Rockin’ Robin and the game storytelling, to tell us about the aftermath, a world in which the protagonists must learn to live. Growing up, changed by what has been. No longer the children in the cellar we have come to know, to whom “childhood was stolen”, but men capable of facing life and finding their place in the world. Correct and exciting, like all self-respecting coming-of-age stories that the Duffer series is. And now it’s time for everyone to move on. For the Duffers who will be telling stories elsewhere; for the actors who have already begun their separate careers and can finally leave behind the kids who no longer physically reflect them; for seriality and global entertainment, which can go beyond ’80s nostalgia; for Netflix, which must find new icons to complement this one. An era ends with the ending of Stranger Things, an era we are happy to have lived through.

The ending of Stranger Things is, without a doubt, beautiful, intense, and touching, but it also leaves the feeling that one could have dared more. After years of waiting and narrative construction, many viewers expected an even more tragic epilogue, with greater pathos and truly tear-jerking consequences. Yes, of course, there are moments of real fear for our heroes, but after all the speculation and statements by the Duffer brothers that “many characters would die”, objectively, there is a little bitterness left in the mouth. One of the most successful aspects is that each character finds their own ending aptly. The storylines close coherently, respecting each individual’s personal evolution and restoring a sense of completeness to the journey that began many years ago. It’s touching, romantic, and full of tenderness.

However, there remains a bit of bitterness in the mouth for the management of Henry’s story: more was expected, more space, more depth, and perhaps an even more decisive role in the finale, considering how much is shown of his past. His story seems to stop a step before it really leaves the mark it promised and could have given to the character. Visually, however, Stranger Things Season 5 reaches impressive peaks. The special effects are incredible, especially those related to Vecna and to the Abyss: detailed and visually stunning to leave your mouth open. Some scenes look like they were taken from a blockbuster sci-fi film and contribute to a disturbing and spectacular atmosphere, worthy of a major film production.

The episode has the longest running time ever seen in all Stranger Things Season 5 — which already in this last season has offered episodes longer than an hour — reaching a good 2 hours and 8 minutes. Two hours that undoubtedly served to give a fitting conclusion to our beloved characters, characters who grew up with us. Since season one, when we saw Mike, Will, Dustin, and Lucas as kids playing Dungeons & Dragons in the basement of Mike’s house, before it all started with Will’s kidnapping, a good ten years have passed. Years during which we’ve seen actors in their early 12s become adults: first and foremost, the actress who plays Eleven, Millie Bobby Brown, is now married with a son.

The final clash against Vecna and what remains of the Mind Flayer is handled with a clarity that, especially looking at the rest of the season, surprises in a positive way. The staging is impressive, but never confusing, and above all, it manages to give space to almost everyone without turning into a catalogue of obligatory moments. The battle comes, hits, and closes without dragging on unnecessarily, avoiding that feeling of tiredness that often accompanies hypertrophic endings. Even when the narrative solutions are not surprising, the rhythm and energy of the whole make them effective, more as a fulfillment than as a simple spectacle. As often happens in coming-of-age stories, the real conflict has never been just with the monster of the moment. The ending makes it clear: The victory against Vecna is important, but what really matters is what’s left after. The protagonists do not simply return to normality because that normality no longer exists. They changed, they lost something, they learned to live with fear instead of letting it define them. In this sense, Stranger Things confirms itself until the very end as a story about entering adulthood, disguised as a fantastic adventure.

Eleven’s path is treated with obvious caution, a sign of how central the character is to the identity of the series. The ending avoids both the ultimate sacrifice used as a shock and an overly consoling happy ending. Her final choice completes an arc that began with a little girl stripped of everything, weaponized, and then slowly returned to humanity. Here, Eleven is no longer defined by what she can do, but by what she decides to be. It’s a conclusion that can be divided, but which is consistent with the message of the series: growing up also means moving away, accepting solitude as a space of freedom.

After the battle, the ending allows itself time. A long time. More than half an hour, which, on paper, might seem excessive. Actually, they are the real heart of the episode. Stranger Things chooses not to cut the greetings short, not to reduce the farewell to a handful of symbolic scenes. Every moment of the epilogue serves to reiterate that it’s not just the end of a story, but the end of an era for the characters and the audience. The passing of the baton, the return to simple gestures, the silence that replaces chaos: everything contributes to giving weight to the time that has passed. It’s a farewell that insists, yes, but it does so because it wants to be heard.

The ending of Stranger Things is not without its flaws. It often plays on recognition rather than risk, leaves open glimpses that suggest future developments, and doesn’t distribute the same space to everyone. But, overall, it succeeds in something rare: transforming an inconsistent season into a solid and satisfying conclusion. It’s an ending that accepts being imperfect to remain honest, and that closes an epic adventure by reminding us why we grew fond of these characters. Not for the monsters, but for what they represented to us when they faced them.

Stranger Things Season 5 Episode 8 Review: The Last Words

The finale of Stranger Things Season 5 focuses on emotion and coherence: an effective battle and a long but necessary epilogue bring a decade-long epic to a fitting close. Despite some flaws and delays, and a new entry like Linda Hamilton not being properly utilized, the ending of Stranger Things Season 5 manages to close the series and the characters’ stories with coherence and emotion. The journey of Hawkins’s boys takes the form of a showdown that satisfies in terms of construction and meaning, and a carefully crafted and effective CGI, but also in a long and intimate epilogue that outlines the state of the protagonists after this long adventure, ready to face the life that awaits them. In conclusion, Stranger Things Season 5 closes with a thrilling and visually stunning finale that does the characters justice but lacks courage. Nice, yes, but with the feeling that it could be something even bigger. Despite this, our hearts warm to see the end of the characters who have accompanied us over the last ten years.

Cast: Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Noah Schnapp, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Sadie Sink, David Harbour, Winona Ryder

Direction: The Duffer Brothers

Streaming Platform: Netflix

Filmyhype.com Ratings: 4/5 (four stars)