STRANGER THINGS’ Series Finale Wasn’t Perfect, But It Was a Satisfying Goodbye (Review)

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Beware! This article contains huge spoilers for the final episode of Stranger Things. Consider this a full spoiler review of Stranger Things 5: The Finale. Once you keep reading, you’ll know everything that happens, so proceed with caution!

What do viewers hope for in a show’s final episode, especially one like Stranger Things? A complete story? Unexpected twists? Significant character moments or even loss? Big action? A cheerful resolution? The Duffer Brothers seemed to cover all the bases with the last episode of Stranger Things. “The Rightside Up” largely succeeded in wrapping up the series. However, like much of Stranger Things 5, some confusing choices and uneven pacing prevented the finale from being truly exceptional.

I really appreciate a well-done series finale epilogue – it’s a powerful way to give characters and the audience a satisfying sense of closure after a long journey. However, the finale of Stranger Things felt like it had too many of these extended scenes, stretching out the last 45 minutes. While each scene set 18 months in the future was good on its own, they ended up feeling drawn-out and repetitive. It was particularly noticeable because, despite being a show about alternate dimensions and sci-fi concepts, the finale lacked surprising twists – everything played out very predictably.

The biggest reveal in this episode wasn’t much of a surprise at all. We already knew the backstory of Henry Creel and his connection to the Mind Flayer. It was a strange choice for the creators to reveal such important information about the villain through a stage play that almost no one watched. Seriously, why hide it that way? If you somehow didn’t know about Henry’s past in the cave, you’re lucky! But many of us did, after watching Stranger Things seasons 1 and 2, which unfortunately lessened the impact of that same reveal in the series finale.

The show attempted to balance making Vecna a terrifying villain with giving him a tragic backstory, but it didn’t quite succeed. While his childhood involved being manipulated by the Mind Flayer, he actively chose to embrace it, which felt underwhelming. It was a good thing Vecna wasn’t just a helpless victim, but this version was less compelling and frightening than the monster we first encountered in season four. The show also didn’t really explore the significance of his fascination with time, and we’ll never know what his vision for the new world actually was.

The storyline involving the military was a slow and annoying part of the show – even more so than the parts with Kali. While Eleven’s apparent sacrifice ultimately connected to Kay’s plan to search the area, it felt unnecessary, as the plan would have worked even without the attack from Akers.

Although the finale and the upcoming Stranger Things 5 weren’t perfect, what did work was much more significant. The show continued to excel at developing its characters, with the scenes between Hopper and Eleven being particularly strong, as was the goodbye between Eleven and Mike. Most importantly, the show gave meaningful moments to nearly every key character, feeling genuine and earned. It was also great to see Stranger Things remember how important Mike was to the story after sidelining him for three seasons – Finn Wolfhard really delivered in the final, emotional fifteen minutes, and it would have been nice to see more of that earlier on.

Even though the episode was over two hours long, I still wanted to see more of Vecna. That might have meant less of the ending scenes, but I really enjoyed those scenes individually. Jamie Campbell Bower was phenomenal as Vecna in the Stranger Things finale – it was arguably his best performance yet. He was excellent throughout both seasons, but his work in Stranger Things 5: The Finale was truly award-worthy. He made me sympathize with Henry Creel, even while rooting for the characters to defeat Vecna.

It was deeply satisfying to see the entire group working together to achieve this. Throughout its run, Stranger Things has always been about the power of friendship, so it was wonderful to see that friendship ultimately save the day. While Mike’s final account might seem less like solving a mystery and more like confirming Eleven’s survival, that isn’t the most important thing. What matters is that Eleven had a heroic moment, and we’re left believing Jane finally found the peace she deserved after everything she did for Hawkins and the world.

The final battle against the Mind Flayer and Vecna in the Stranger Things finale was visually impressive. While some scenes seemed to have been filmed with limited resources – perhaps the budget was focused on creating the Mind Flayer itself – the climactic action sequence was truly excellent. It delivered the kind of satisfying conclusion you’d expect from a series finale. Honestly, I never found the Mind Flayer particularly compelling, but the spectacle of the battle more than made up for it. (It even reminded me a little of the creature Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Padmé fought on Geonosis!)

Did the final episode of Stranger Things wrap things up a little too neatly with Vecna, the Mind Flayer, and the Upside Down? Perhaps. But despite its flaws, it was still enjoyable. The finale wasn’t perfect, but it succeeded by resolving long-running storylines and giving the characters satisfying conclusions. It delivered the emotional impact the show was known for, mixing in action, scares, and even humor. Above all, it provided a sense of closure – and that’s what matters most in a series finale. It’s alright if a goodbye isn’t amazing, as long as it’s a good goodbye.

⭐ (4 of 5)

I’m a big fan of Mikey Walsh – he writes for TopMob and is going to be hosting afternoons on The Squawk soon. You can find him on Bluesky at @burgermike, and honestly, wherever the conversation turns to ranking the Targaryen kings – that’s usually where he is!

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2026-01-01 08:04