Stranger Things Season 5 Vol 2 review: Emotional fireworks, but a narrative fizzle

If there’s one thing that was particularly daring and novel in the latest batch of episodes in Stranger Things Vol 2, it was a very irritated Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) telling a frazzled Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) to stop playing the hero.

Steve brought up the very painful, throbbing wound of Eddie Munson, a much-loved character from Season 4 who decided to sacrifice himself to a swarm of demonic bats, because the script demanded it. Don’t get me wrong, that Metallica cover that he played was gorgeous and one of the best scenes of the show, but, was entirely unnecessary.

And so, it was actually refreshing to hear someone call out these really obtuse sacrifices that we, as the audience, are forced to contend with. Maybe it was the writers being self-aware about their own whims and fancies to get a rise out of their viewers? I’ll take it.

Nevertheless, this led to one of the most emotional scenes of the show---almost a nostalgic reminder of what the show’s pulse used to be. Dustin and Steve thrash it out, only for later Dustin to finally admit the raw, gnawing grief of losing Eddie. He lost one brother; he could not handle losing another. Both the actors were splendid in these few minutes: Understated, without the excessive dollop of melodrama that was splashed on Will’s monologue later as the episodes, amid much narrative chaos.

That’s the key word right there: Narrative chaos. The latest batch of episodes picks up in the aftermath of Will killing three demogorgons in one sweep, yet Vecna remains at large — now operating like a grotesque Pied Piper, drawing the children he has abducted toward an inevitable fate that appears to involve Holly. Elsewhere, Dustin, Steve, Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Jonathan (Charlie Heaton) find themselves trapped in the Upside Down, where the show finally offers clearer answers about what the realm actually is, thanks to Dustin’s refreshingly plain-spoken explanation.

However, any momentum these tension-filled scenes build is undercut by the oddly unsatisfying resolution to Jonathan and Nancy’s long-running relationship limbo.  (Are they or are they not together? And why break up when you’re on the verge of death? What’s wrong with everyone).

If you’re wondering why there hasn’t been a mention of Eleven (Millie Bobby-Brown) till now, the answer is right there. Despite having the most gutting arc, our El feels oddly sidelined in all the machoism that’s taking place. She seems to have been given a couple of rehashed, wearied dialogues this time around, which reflects in her conversations with Mike (Finn Wolfhard). The only pleasant throwback line, is when Mike says ‘Friends don’t lie’, referring to long-gone days of Season 1, when they first formed the close friendship that was meant to be the heartbeat of the show.

Eleven seems particularly unsatisfactory this season, and loses much of the charisma and enigma that she once possessed, before being made into something resembling Marvel's Avenger.

However, as always, Max (Sadie Sink) is the reason to watch this show, when everything else begins to feel contrived and staid. Her relationship with Holly, and reunion with Lucas is bittersweet: It’s something that all fans have been waiting for…since 2022. The chemistry just flows between them and is natural, with her saying, “I just needed you,” and laughing that she isn’t bored of Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill yet---the song that saved her from darkness, and which Lucas had consistently played for 18 months, hoping against hope that she would recover from her coma.

Stranger Things Season 5 Vol 2 had these emotional moments that did strike the right chord. Yet, overall, it felt rather clunky, almost laboured, almost driving home the point that hey, we’re not done. We’ve got another two hour-long finale to go, and so the ‘final’ battle you’ve been waiting for…is still not final. Bring back Suzie? Can we know what’s happening to Max’s mom? Does she not really care that her daughter has been in a coma for the past 18 months?

Stranger Things Season 5 Vol 2 reminds us that the show still understands grief, friendship, and loss — it’s just far less certain about how many times it needs to prove it.