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[Ammogeddon]

My theory for season 5

Spoiler

Vecna has taken over Max’s body which is why Eleven couldn’t see her in the mind void, she’s dead. Not long after Eleven appeared to save her, the rift opened in Hawkins

 

[Kssio_Aug]

Just finished …

Idk how they did it but, they beat 1,2,3 together . 4 is the new king

To be fair, I think season 2 and 3 were quite disappointing, althought not exactly bad.

But season 4 was amazing, and it indeed was quite a feat to surpass season 1, which I agree they managed to.

Absolutely fantastic season. And that scene of Max fleeing from Vecna in episode 6 while Kate Bush was playing in the background was epic! Brilliant season... I hope they deliver this same level of quality in the last one.

 

[daveonezero]

They have to do the IT thing where they're older.

They can't do that now they just ended on a huge clifhanger.

They should have made the time gap in S3 to S4 longer as someone else said. Then this surprise brings them back. Now they are stuck with what they created. It's fine but considering the circumstances and ages it would have made more sense.

 

[ManaByte]

To be fair, I think season 2 and 3 were quite disappointing, althought not exactly bad.

I think it's 4, 1, 3, 2

2 is just forgettable. 3 at least had the mall location and the Russians.

 

[Kssio_Aug]

I think it's 4, 1, 3, 2

2 is just forgettable. 3 at least had the mall location and the Russians.

I agree. Season 2 also had that terrible episode about a lost sister (008).
Thankfully the showrunners decided to completely ignore it, like it never existed. They made the right decision before it was too late.

 

[wondermega]

Season 4 was great, 1st episode was a bit of a slog up until the very ending (whoa) and then just took off like a bat out of hell. Very captivating and difficult to stop watching.

I was looking forward to pt2 following all of that, but it really couldn't touch the heights of the later episodes of part 1. Since they still have another season, it landed with a whimper for me. Not bad, just weak and forgettable. And now with the final season years (?) away, it's hard to expect I'll retain my enthusiasm for it. I'm sure they will do some wild over the top showdown which no doubt will be interesting, but I'm honestly not looking forward to another whole season's worth of many hours of episodes building up other subplots just to lead to that. Do 3 more episodes and be done with it!!
Anyway, nice bit of escapism to get one's mind off all the actual crappy things going on in the real world otherwise, I suppose..

 

[Soodanim]

I managed to block out or forget everything I saw while I was waiting to watch both parts 1 and 2, so for me watching without knowledge of season 5 coming I watched it thinking it was the end. It felt like it could easily have been, and probably should have been. If they dropped the season long Will being gay thing that went absolutely nowhere and just finished the show with 4, I'd have been happy. They event gave part 2 after a wait and delivered it with movie length, it made perfect sense. I hope they've got a half decent plan for 5.

That said, I enjoyed it enough and there were fun parts. I will likely rewatch the show, then I can be reminded of what Kssio_Aug said above. I have no recollection of that story.

 

[OmegaSupreme]

 

[Fuz]

Yeah, I didn't like this season.
I loved all the previous seasons, they had ups and downs (except the lost boys in Season 2, that was just embarassing) but they were fucking good and couldn't stop binge watching.

It's too diluted, most scenes takes much more time than they needed.
They went super safe with the writing, and the way they changed the cards on the table about the upside down is fucking stupid.
The whole Eleven part is boring as fuck. Boring and pointless. Couldn't resist watching it without pausing here and there and doing something else. And the Russia one isn't much better, just feel like Hop's actor wanted to be a superhero too. At least Yuri, or whatever the smuggler's name was, was fun.
I know this show abuses nostalgia (and fake nostalgia) but some references are way too much on the nose it's grating. On the whole, feels that the Duffer Brothers became too self-indulgent.
On the good side, Steve/Robin/Nancy segment was pretty good. All the actors, all of them, are great and the characters fucking work - even though Eleven was badly misused, as I already stated. The whole first part is good, there's some good horror building and the mistery is intriguing... until the stupid revelation.
Weakest season for me.

 

[Raven117]

I think its great. Best season since 1.

Sure there are holes, sure some plot lines are weaker than others, but all is made up by the strength of the characters.

 

[nkarafo]

I only saw the first season and it was OK-ish. But not good enough to make me want to watch the rest of it. I felt it was relying on 80's nostalgia and references way too much. And the whole monster plot was boring and felt shoehorned in.

I also saw the Master of Puppets scene because it's all over the internet as something that everyone is so excited about. I love the song, obviously, used to be a Metallica fan before they turned to shit. But the scene was pure cringe to me. Like something out of a young kid's movie. Maybe because i saw it out of context? Who knows.

 

[jufonuk]

My theory for season 5

Spoiler

Vecna has taken over Max’s body which is why Eleven couldn’t see her in the mind void, she’s dead. Not long after Eleven appeared to save her, the rift opened in Hawkins

 

[jufonuk]

Did they explain at all why Vecna needed to kill 4 people and how killing those 4 people would open the gateway?

 

[bitbydeath]

Did they explain at all why Vecna needed to kill 4 people and how killing those 4 people would open the gateway?

Not directly.
We do know Vecna was obtaining the souls of his victims and doorways would appear where they died, so their souls likely powered the doorways, and we do know that when the 4th kill took place all the doorways connected up, likely making a larger, more powerful doorway that he could use.

 

[cormack12]

Just finished it.......

 

[ManaByte]

I felt it was relying on 80's nostalgia and references way too much.

Stranger Things is pretty much the only modern movie/show to get the time period correct. S1 is 83, S2 is 84, S3 is 85, and S4 is 86. It's not like the Goldbergs where it's a hodgepodge of references, each season feels like it was made and fits in the year where its set. Aside from the timeline issue with the release of Master of Puppets and Eddie playing it perfectly in S4, from how the cast dresses and what's going on in the world at the time fits so perfectly

Like S2 is set in the fall of 84 around Halloween. Ghostbusters came out that June, so of course the guys are dressed like Ghostbusters that fall. S3 is in 1985 and that's when the 80s mall culture really started to become a part of society, so the mall fit perfectly and probably why I like S3 more the S2. Then in S4 when they're in CA, it you start to see some of the late 80s fashion stuff with Argyle like how obsessed he was with Mike's clothes being real Ocean Pacific, and the tube sunglasses straps which were everywhere starting around then into the early 90s.

The Duffers were toddlers during those years, but somehow they managed to perfectly capture the look and feel of each year the show is set in.

 

[jason10mm]

Also, I would have shifted the whole season two years on into 1988… partly so the kids look more their own age, and partly because they could have used One by Metallica instead of Master Of Puppets, and that scene would have been even more metal than it was

Wrong, they just needed to get to 1987 for Dokken's Dream Warriors, that song should been the theme for this entire season!

 

[FunkMiller]

Wrong, they just needed to get to 1987 for Dokken's Dream Warriors, that song should been the theme for this entire season!

Too on the nose?

 

[ManaByte]

Too on the nose?

 

[jason10mm]

Too on the nose?

Have you SEEN Stranger Things?

Anyway, Master of Puppets doesnt fit what vecna is doing better than Dream Warriors represents what the kids are doing IMHO.

As an aside, hasn't it been established that the upside down is locked into a past version of Hawkins? I always assumed it was created when the rift was, freezing it in the late 70's or whatever.

So how was Eddie's guitar there? If stuff from our world appears in the upside down as it is moved around in real time, A. The gang could just walk into the upside down version of the police station and get all the guns or B. they could actively place stuff in the real world to translate over to the upside down mid combat. (would be an editing headache, but imagine how cool it would be if they have two simultaneous fights, one in real world and one in upside down, that affect each other for doors opening, object placement, etc).

Anyway, hopefully the Duffers have a concrete idea of the upside down and it has been following its own logic this whole time.

 

[AJUMP23]

Season 4 was a little long in the tooth. I liked the finale and there were some great scenes. It took too long to get there. The Master of Puppets scene was wonderful.

 

[Fbh]

Finally caught up with this.
S4 was pretty good, definitely the best one since S1 with the most compelling plot, some nice scenes and great production values. Despite a few nitpicks this definitely re-ignited my interest in the franchise. S2 was so bad it made me skip S3 for years, but after S4 I'm definitely in for the next one.

Some nitpicks on the finale:
- Slightly disappointing that after 2 and a half hours they basically go full anime and essentially win through the power of friendship
- The Russia plot ended up feeling a bit like filler and the way they tied it to the larger narrative was pretty forced
- After them teasing "major deaths" it's a bit underwhelming for them to be the scientist dude that had been gone since S1 and the new character they introduced this season (Eddie was great though, best new character they've introduced in a while). Though I guess at least max was left with serious consequences.

 

[Kev Kev]

master of puppets was a tie in to vecna, and a perfect choice for that scene.

you cant talk about 80s music without mentioning metallica. they had to be in this. master of pupets made the most sense as far as the tie in goes, but also bc of the sheer popularity and recognizability of the song.

non metallica fans would not recognize 'one' or 'creeping death' as much. 'for whom the bell tolls' would have been the next logical choice imo, but it wasnt as fast and intense as master of puppets and just wouldnt have fit the scene as well... and id argue its not as recognizable either.

master of puppets was the only choice.

 

[wondermega]

As an aside, hasn't it been established that the upside down is locked into a past version of Hawkins? I always assumed it was created when the rift was, freezing it in the late 70's or whatever.

Yes they went a bit hard on explicitly stating this to be the case.

 

[G-DannY]

I'm the only one recognizing this?

(Conan Atlantean Sword) as the weapon that Hop uses to slay the demogorgon?

Hell of an Easter Egg, but why an epic "film-replica" barbarian sword was laying there in a prision in far east Russia, (razor sharp even...) ?

 

[jason10mm]

Hell of an Easter Egg, but why an epic "film-replica" barbarian sword was laying there in a prision in far east Russia, (razor sharp even...) ?

Yeah, it makes no sense (could you even buy a replica in the 80's?) but the rule of cool trumps logic in this case.ill just assume there will be a 6 episode spin off TV series about a lonely neuro divergent Russian guard with an obsession with John Milius films who sneaks into a Hollywood studio prop room, steals the ACTUAL sword, and brings it back to the prison. Hopefully he also nabs a "WOLVERINES" banner

 

[DJ12]

My theory for season 5

Spoiler

Vecna has taken over Max’s body which is why Eleven couldn’t see her in the mind void, she’s dead. Not long after Eleven appeared to save her, the rift opened in Hawkins

Pretty sure your timing is slightly off there.

Spoiler

The rift started opening the second she died, Lucas was holding max in the same position he was after he pulled her out the way of the rift. Thats not to say he's not in Max though, could be yet again 11 has done something bad for good intentions and when she brought her back to life she's given vecna a vessel, not sure why he'd need one though, pretty sure he will exists in the real Hawkins in season 5.

 

[Fuz]

 

[Kimahri]

Very good season, but it had major flaws.

It's too long. Episodes are too long. This is a TV show. Please stick too the one hour parameter. 2.5 hours for an episode is just stupid. Make more episodes if you have to, just cut the length.

And too much filler. I swear, this is a sickness. Are there no editors left in showbiz able to say no?

90% of Eleven stuff could easily be cut. The entire Russia thing had no relevance to anything.

Just stop dragging things out Hollywood. Stop hiring yes men, and get people with the balls to make hard choices. You're wasting my time.

Had this been edited down to half the length it would have been incredible.