Stranger Things has been a Netflix tentpole since it launched in 2016, so it was never going to bow out quietly. This fifth and final season is being released in three parts to maximise anticipation, subscription renewals and the inevitable spread of outlandish fan theories. Four episodes premiere today (November 27), followed by another three on Christmas Day and a two-hour finale on New Year’s Eve. In North America, the grand conclusion is even being shown in cinemas, a curious move that suggests this retro sci-fi show has transcended event TV status.
Still, judging on volume one’s pretty ample evidence, putting Stranger Things on the big screen is a flex but never a stretch. Three of these episodes have feature-length runtimes – the fourth is only slightly shorter – and every minute feels lavish right down to the awesome ’80s perms and mullets. Reports that showrunners Matt and Ross Duffer had $60million an episode at their disposal feel entirely believable.
Naturally, avoiding spoilers is only slightly easier than escaping the Upside Down, the treacherous alternate dimension that poses a constant threat to the residents of Hawkins, Indiana. But like plucky teenage telepath Jane ‘Eleven’ Hopper (Millie Bobby Brown), let’s not be defeatist. Jumping forward to 1987, 18 months after that massive season four showdown, we catch up with Hawkins’ teenage clique as they prepare for one last showdown with Vecna, the Upside Down’s malevolent ruler. Played with menacing stillness by Jamie Campbell Bower, he’s become even more mercurial in how he wields his supernatural abilities.
Eleven possesses the psychokinetic powers to vanquish him, so she’s training like Rocky in pop socks for her next trip to the Upside Down, much to the distress of her adoptive mother Joyce (Winona Ryder) and father Jim (David Harbour). Other tertiary storylines are no less compelling because they’re firmly rooted in human experience. Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) is still processing the death of his mosher bestie Eddie (Joseph Quinn) who was felled by winged beasties in season four, while Robin (Maya Hawke) is wrestling with stepping out of the closet.
As ever, the show’s impeccable period details really add to the pleasure. Tiffany’s 1987 pop banger ‘I Think We’re Alone Now‘ features so sweetly in episode three that it could get a ‘Running Up That Hill’-style streaming boost. The Duffer Brothers also deliver a meta masterstroke in casting ’80s icon Linda Hamilton (The Terminator) as Dr Kay, a shadowy government official with few scruples.
Perhaps inevitably, volume one feels a lot like an appetiser for the rest of the season. But even in piecemeal form, Stranger Things has a flair for epic and emotionally resonant storytelling. After all those years, this smart, big-hearted sci-fi show still has the power to turn your head upside down.
‘Stranger Things’ season five volume one is streaming on Netflix now