Stranger Things’ Fifth and Final Season Teases an Epic Conclusion

Almost ten years have passed since Stranger Things premiered on Netflix, and speaking for myself, that first season remains just about as perfect as TV gets. It hit all of the right notes, blending Spielberg, Lovecraft, Dungeons & Dragons, and a pitch-perfect ’80s aesthetic in a way that ultimately transcended nostalgia. Although subsequent seasons failed to fully recapture that first season’s charm, there’s a reason why Stranger Things remains one of Netflix’s biggest titles, even though three years have passed since we last visited Hawkins, Indiana.

The upcoming fifth season is Stranger Things’ final season, and based on the first trailer, the Duffer Brothers are pulling out all of the stops. Eleven and the gang — still reeling from season four’s tumultuous battle with Vecna — shore up their strength for one last confrontation with the evil entity, and it looks like not everyone will survive.

Stranger Things’ final season is being split into several volumes, similar to what Netflix has done with Wednesday and The Sandman. The season’s first four episodes will be released on November 26, the next three on Christmas Day, and the series finale — which is reported to be two-and-a-half hours long — will begin streaming on New Year’s Eve.