Stranger Things 5
Out of all of Netflix’s Original shows and movies, few have helped define the streaming giant’s success like Stranger Things. The first season dropped nearly a decade ago on July 15th, 2016 – long ago, in what feels like a very different world from the one we now inhabit.
It was an overnight success, with ratings in the 18 – 49 demo of around 14 million per episode, a number that grew to over 40 million households tuning in for the third season within its first four days, and 64 million households within the first month, breaking Netflix records at the time, and becoming the most-watched original Netflix show.
But as viewership grew, critical and fan reception declined. The first season’s 97% Rotten Tomatoes score dipped to 94% for Season 2, and fell again in both subsequent seasons to 89% and 86% respectively. While I enjoyed the first volume of Stranger Things 4, I was left feeling incredibly disappointed in the finale (unlike the emotionally powerful finale of Season 3, which was quickly ruined by the reveal that Hopper had, in fact, survived).
(P.S. I was just reading over my review of the Season 4 finale and I’m reminded of just how deeply ambivalent I felt after watching it at the time. I haven’t rewatched but I suppose I should now that Season 5 is on the horizon).
In any case, Netflix also changed its release format for the fourth season, adopting a new split-release model that broke Stranger Things 4 into two parts. The first batch of episodes aired all at once but the final two super-long episodes didn’t come out until over a month later.
That unfortunate trend was brought to various other Netflix Originals, from the third season of The Witcher to the upcoming second season of Wednesday, with later seasons split across two or three parts. Cobra Kai’s final season was split into three parts spanning nearly an entire year.
The bad news is simple: Stranger Things 5 is also being split into three parts. Here’s how it breaks down:
- Volume 1: November 26th at 5pm PT / 8pm ET
- Volume 2: Christmas, 5pm PT / 8pm ET
- The Finale: New Year’s Eve, 5pm PT / 8pm ET
For fans who have waited years since the second half of Stranger Things 4, which released on May 27th 2022 and July 1st 2022, having to wait over three years for the final season was painful enough. Having to wait weeks between the first two volumes and another week for the finale is salt on the wound.
There is good news as well. First, it’s only about a month between Volume 1 and the finale. Compare that to Cobra Kai which split its sixth season into chunks of five episodes beginning with Volume 1 on July 18th, 2024; Volume 2 on November 15th, 2024; and Volume 3 on February 13th, 2025. Compared to that release schedule, Stranger Things 5’s split is a much easier pill to swallow.
The other good news is the timing, with each volume dropping at 5pm PT / 8pm ET. This means that everyone (in North America, at least) can dive into the new season at the same time, something that a midnight release makes prohibitive. Personally, I miss the days when shows would drop a new episode in the evening each week and then we could all talk about it the next day. The watercooler talk that made Lost and The Walking Dead and Game Of Thrones such fun experiences is largely gone. Maybe releasing the final season of Stranger Things over three parts in the early evening will revive it to some degree.
This also means that viewers will be left with some anticipation for what’s coming next. Instead of just bingeing it all at once, fans have to wait and see what happens to all our heroes. This, in turn, can lead to lots of fun fan theories, forum threads, and discussion on social media (and in person!) which can be half the fun when it comes to shows like Stranger Things.
Only one thing is certain: After the final episode airs, almost nine-and-a-half years will have gone by since we first met Eleven and Mike and Hopper and all the rest of the cast. A lot of fans will have grown-up during this time, just like the Stranger Things kids. Who lives and who dies, and what happens with Vecna and the Upside Down, all remains to be seen.
The Duffer Brothers-created series stars Winona Ryder as Joyce Byers, David Harbour as Jim Hopper, Finn Wolfhard as Mike Wheeler, Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, Gaten Matarazzo as Dustin Henderson, Caleb McLaughlin as Lucas Sinclair, Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler, Charlie Heaton as Jonathan Byers, Caro Bunon as Karen Wheeler, Matthew Modine as Martin Brenner, Noah Schnapp as Will Byers, Sadie Sink as Max Mayfield, Joe Keery as Steve Harrington and a rotating cast of guest stars including Dacre Montgomery as Billy Hargrove, Sean Astin as Bob Newby, Paul Reiser as Sam Owens, Maya Hawke as Robin Buckley and Joseph Quinn as Eddie Munson, among many others.
