Stranger Things Season 5 Vol 1 review: The strangest ride yet with a mind-bending plot twist and a slime-fest

*Spoilers ahead*

Netflix’s most-awaited sci-fi spookfest of slime and 80’s haircuts returned, and what a return, that was. Considering everyone was panicking about who's dead or going to die...well, you can assume what you please. (Look at us being tactful).

The first four episodes are out, and the premiere seems to set the stage for the “final battle,” with Millie Bobby Brown’s fierce Eleven grinding hard for the Vecnalympics, which is somewhat reminiscent of the X-Men. But training’s over, folks—the Demogorgons are on the loose, this time zeroing in on the Wheelers and snatching little Holly. Don’t worry, she’s safe… for now.

The first three episodes set the pace, even if a bit unevenly. Grief still persists; it clearly consumes a person whole, and currently, seems to be eating away Dustin. To be fair, Dustin is still reeling from Eddie Munson’s death, wrapped up in a kind of aggressive grief—sometimes even seeming to enjoy getting punched a little too much.Moreover, it’s a little heartbreaking to watch Dustin and Steve Harrington fight and yell at each other, considering how precious their bond once was. Meanwhile, Mike… is still just there. Mike has always been the leader of the group, but of late, he's just been 'the friend' or the one who keeps trying to understand what is happening. The most contribution he has had currently, is to break into a hospital room with the help of a distance. In a final battle, he's knocked out.

On the other hand, there's the rather unecessary love triangle, between Steve and Jonathan. Steve wants to send Nancy flowers after a harrowing experience; Jonathan wants to stick to the plan. Obviously, he thinks Steve is trying to show him up. Let’s not have more of Steve-Nancy-Jonathan love triangle, it won’t even be a bad idea if Nancy decides to ‘choose herself’ and move far, far away when it’s all over.  Nancy is like us, she can’t deal with their nonsense; she’s just dealing with the guilt of never letting her parents know about the Demogorgon horrors that she has been chasing for the past decade.  

Meanwhile, Max isn’t as comatose as we thought she was, and we’re still running with Kate Bush still, this season. Sadie Sink as Max, is refreshing as ever, and it’s fun to see where her dynamic with Holly goes.  

The plot and sub-plots do run along smoothly as the squad is in different places: Yet, owing to the various threads; there might just be a chance of excessive exposition that can dilute the impact, especially when it comes to Eleven and Hopper, who seemed to have resorted rather trite dad-daughter dialogues on safety and precaution, that doesn’t quite capture their potential, as yet, compared to earlier seasons.  

Eleven deserves more nuance and depth, rather than being projected solely as a superhero. In previous seasons, it was a delight to watch her, thanks to the pulsing mystery that surrounded her. You almost miss the quiet intensity—the seething power that came with a bleeding nose and that enigmatic aura. Millie Bobby Brown remains fantastic, as ever; yet Eleven’s character could use more spark in her script beyond expository dialogue.

However, it’s the final episode and the final moments that gives quite  a horse kick: The most likely superhero is found: And that’s Will. Those goosebumps and creepy-crawly feelings have amounted to something worthy of a plot twist, and boy, is it worth it. It's almost a relief, considering we spent four seasons wondering why that child has never caught a break in his life.

The last few seconds of Episode 4 is almost cinematic, with most of us staring like Mike Wheeler in abject astonishment.  A new era, however short begins and hopefully all the remaining questions will be answered in the next batch of episodes.

Sigh, another month. Who’s ready?