**This article contains spoilers for Stranger Things**
On July 15, 2016, Stranger Things released its first season. It was full of twists and turns no one expected from a Netflix show, and quickly grew into one of the most popular Netflix shows of all time. Now, 10 years after its debut, Stranger Things is finally getting its conclusion.
Season 5 is scheduled for a three-part release, with part one coming out on Nov. 26, part two on Dec. 25, and part three on Dec. 31. Season 5 episode titles like “The Vanishing of…” and “The Rightside Up” are each sending fans into a spiral about what’s to come.
A lot has happened in Hawkins, Indiana, over the past four seasons. Characters have come and gone, families have moved to California, and policemen have been captured by Russian agents. The gate hasn’t always stayed in one location, and the characters have had various romantic relationships.
10 years is a long time to retain information, especially when each episode is stacked with small details and Easter eggs. Below are some events you may have missed or small details that may have completely slipped your mind.
Stranger THings Season 1
In Season 1, Will Byers enters the Upside Down. At first, he manages to run away from his captor, the Demogorgon, but the creature eventually catches up to him. As Will hides in his locked shed, he watches in disbelief as the lock on the shed door moves on its own. At the time, viewers assumed Demogorgons had telekinetic abilities, but as the series progressed, Vecna, the true telekinetic creature, was introduced.
This isn’t the only connection Will has to Vecna. While in the Upside Down, Will is found mumbling the song “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” to himself. He was probably singing this to remind himself of home, but as viewers came to learn, the repetition of his favorite song may have saved him from the torment and torture of Vecna.
Out of concern for Will’s mom, Joyce Byers, Karen Wheeler brings a casserole over to the Byers’ home. She’s accompanied by her daughter, Holly, who was three at the time. While they’re at the Byers’ house, Holly notices the lights flickering and follows the lights down the hallway. She then sees a creature, which the audience knows as a Demogorgon, try and escape the drywall before her mother comes and rescues her.
Karen’s other kids are both intertwined with the Upside Down, as both Nancy and Mike’s best friends have been taken there. Mike takes his questions to Mr. Clarke, his science teacher. Mr. Clarke uses the “Flea and the Acrobat” analogy to answer.
This is an analogy that compares our world to a tightrope. Humans are acrobats who can only move forward and back, while the flea, or an interdimensional creature, can go any which way. This is where Mike and his friends are first introduced to the concept of the Upside Down.
Stranger THings Season 2
Season 2 follows Will now that he’s escaped the Upside Down. He escaped physically, but mentally, he’s still trapped in the alternate dimension. He’s seeing visions of a shadow monster, the Mind Flayer, against a bright red sky. Despite this, Will still goes out with his friends, where he learns about Eleven, her trauma with Dr. Brenner, and meets Max Mayfield.
Dr. Sam Owens describes Will’s visions as post-traumatic flashbacks of his time in the Upside Down. He believes that the anniversary of Will’s kidnapping is causing him to have terrifying visions of what he saw while there, bringing him back all over again. This theory is soon disproven when Joyce and the party watch as a shadow monster enters Will, changing his personality completely.
This shadow monster uses Will as a spy, and all hope seems lost that he’ll ever be freed. Soon enough, Joyce realizes they have to use heat to save her son. So, with the help of Jonathan and Nancy, they bring Will to Hopper’s cabin and crank up the heat. They start the fireplace, turn on the space heaters, and eventually expel the creature by poking him with a hot poker from the fire. The shadow monster leaves Will, escaping into the night.
Hopper’s cabin was also used as a “prison” for Eleven, keeping her safe until she took it upon herself to escape. While free, she finds another victim of Dr. Brenner: Kali, number 008. She can make people see hallucinated visions, which she uses to help her and Eleven get away from the cops. Eleven leaves her sister Kali behind after realizing her friends are in trouble, saying goodbye to one of the last connections she has to the Rainbow Room.
Stranger THings Season 3
Season 3 brings Max’s brother, Billy Hargrove, in as the villain. He’s linked to the Mind Flayer, kidnapping residents of Hawkins to use as creatures of his undead army. To release Billy from the Mind Flayer, Mike, Eleven, Will, Max, and Lucas lock him in a sauna, using the heat in the same way they’d done to Will.
This sauna scene brings in a hard point of evidence for “Byler”: Mike and Will’s endgame. While watching Billy sweat, Will realizes the Mind Flayer is nearby. Mike turns to him, staring him straight on, and immediately knows what’s about to happen. He whispers, “Max, get away from the door,” while staring at Will, before turning to scream at Max. This scene, and the incredible connection between Will and Mike, is where the Byler theories first began.
Another party member, Dustin, has his own romantic connection in Season 3. While away at Camp Know Where, he meets his now girlfriend, Suzie, who helps the party in Seasons 3 and 4, using her intelligence all the way from Utah.
The season closes out with the Battle of Starcourt, where every team comes together to fight off the Mind Flayer. As this creature walks through the Hawkins woods, Holly Wheeler spots him. She doesn’t know what she’s seeing, and her words are disregarded by her parents. However, she sees this monster trampling trees and is the only one who does.
Stranger THings Season 4
Season 4 is where Vecna’s curse infects Hawkins. He starts taking victims in Episode 1, claiming Chrissy Cunningham. Then, he takes Fred Benson and Patrick McKinney. His fourth victim, Max, survives the attack, ending the season in a coma.
Will, Mike, Jonathan, and Eleven are all in California while Hawkins fights the demon. One scene is shot through a video camera, where the date is March 22, 1986, Will’s birthday, though no one seems to remember. The Duffer Brothers claimed this was a production error, but with all the Easter eggs they lace throughout the season, fans find this hard to believe.
In order to stop Vecna, Nancy, Eddie, Steve, and Robin all travel to the Upside Down. It’s here that Nancy discovers the dimension is stuck on Nov. 6, 1983, the exact date Will went missing.
The first five minutes of Season 5 left fans eager for more, and theories are already taking over the internet. Part 1 comes out in less than a month, and the Duffer Brothers have high expectations to meet with the ending of this blockbuster show!
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