“Stranger Things” has officially come to an end after five seasons and nearly a decade of streaming on Netflix.
The series finale saw Eleven and the rest of the group head into the Abyss to defeat Vecna and save Hawkins one last time. But how are fans reacting to the show’s swan song? Overall, pretty mixed.
Many fans were disappointed with how easily Vecna was defeated and that there were less major characters’ deaths than expected in the finale.
Others were frustrated by Eleven’s open-ended ending, in which she disappeared with the Upside Down but may have potentially survived. (If you believe Mike’s theory).
Some even called the ending “predictable” or compared the show’s finale to the end of “Game of Thrones.”
But the reactions weren’t all negative, with one person saying it felt like a return to the shows” prime form” despite “plot armor” for many of the characters and the easy defeat of Vecna and the Mind Flayer. Another said that Stranger Things “landed the plane” with “some real elegance in places to boot,” calling it a “worthy end to what turned into a really good series.”
Another user acknowledged that while the show’s quality got worse as the seasons progressed its “still not even close to how badly Game of Thrones ended.”
“ST feels like the writers trying to tie everything together in weird ways. Not good, but ultimately forgivable,” they said. “The last season of GoT though felt like the writers were purposely attacking the fans with their decisions.”
Others had nothing but praise for the finale, saying the show ended “in the best way possible.”
“I understand why some people will be upset that not many characters died, but after seeing how everyone’s stories were wrapped up, it made sense. Every character got an ending that felt right and true to who they are, and it was really emotional to watch,” one user wrote. “The finale focused on believing, which has been a huge part of the show since season one, and it left us knowing the characters will be okay even though the story is over. This show changed my life, and nothing will ever replace Stranger Things for me.”
All five seasons of Stranger Things are streaming now on Netflix.
