Action and horror drive the return of Hawkins in the first volume as our heroes race to find Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower), hoping to vanquish her once and for all. Since the opening of The Upside Down in season four, Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) has been training with Hopper (David Harbour) to strengthen her powers. It’s been such a joy to watch Eleven grow from her early days into a strong young woman by beating up bullies with her friends. Obviously, it’s thanks to Eggo Waffles.
Meanwhile, the non-superpowered, led by Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Joyce (Winona Ryder), unite in the pursuit of Vecna. This time their headquarters moves out of the Wheeler basement and into the town radio station run by Robin (Maya Hawke) and Steve (Joe Keery), who use their show, “The Squawk”, to broadcast secret messages via the station’s needle drops and otherwise government-sanctioned yapping.
It’s heartening to see Hawkins’ heroes use the resources at their disposal to not only prepare for the fight against the Upside Down but also to escape martial law’s hold on their city. Everyone in the cast shines with the skills we’ve seen them develop over the past few seasons, and everyone gets a standout moment when the anti-Vecna campaign begins.
Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) uses radio signals to hack the lines being used by the government base in the Upside Down, guiding Hopper’s secret search for Vecna with the help of Steve’s van, which has been converted into a mobile radio station. Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), Erica (Priya Ferguson), and Will (Noah Schaap) also support using the web of tools from the station; It’s almost as if the city became real D&D Table to play, which is actually a clever payoff of how it all started with kids in the basement. All of this keeps the action moving at a rapid pace and matches the horror of the Upside Down who intends to hunt down Hawkins.
The Demogorgons are back, and Vecna’s foot soldiers begin collecting children for their mysterious new plan by tearing apart anything that gets in their way. The danger becomes very real when Holly Wheeler (now played by Nell Fisher) is lured by Vecna, who appears with his usual Henry face to warn her that monsters are coming, and it’s pretty scary watching Bowser perform his charms, which is Mister Rogers meets Freddy Krueger. It’s a wonderful concept that really evokes the Amblin kids’ adventurous experience, but also dips into the tone of ’80s horror, reminiscent of early Wes Craven and John Carpenter.
The fear feels real, and the situations are terrifying with no holds barred. When the Demogorgon comes to take over the Wheeler house, it results in a bloodbath and a declaration of war against Nancy and the gang’s efforts to capture Vecna.
And that’s just the upside risk; The government is also there to make things difficult for everyone. This is despite Eleven being portrayed as someone who has fallen for horrors. She can’t show her face at Hawkins; Authorities are searching the city to take him to a base run by Dr. K (Linda Hamilton). The iconic 80s action heroine is one hell of a villain, and frankly, we wouldn’t mind letting her take us captive any day.
Just kidding – but his presence here is very welcome. The Duffer Brothers enlisting Hamilton as the antagonist of their final season is pretty inspired, and though she’s not as much of a presence in Volume One as we expected, Dr. K is actually established as the main obstacle in finding Vecna earlier. The government seems to be picking up where Dr. Brenner left off, and the motivations behind Eleven’s search suddenly become clear. It’s such a powerful message that really speaks to broader themes of how we only rely on our communities to protect us because, well, those in power are looking for more dangerous ways to try to further their control.
The Duffers and creator Shawn Levy have enlisted some great filmmakers for this season to really capture the cinematic scope stranger things For its last journey. Frank Darabont’s work on the show this season is projected to be some of the greatest television of all-time, and the feature-length addition of the Duffers close to the first drop of episodes really raises the stakes.
But in reality relationships are strong stranger things As a true pop culture beast. The young cast has grown up before our eyes, and the power of their love for each other has helped make the show one of the most compelling sagas of this generation. We want everyone Eleven cares about to be okay, but we also know that if Vecna has her way, things aren’t going to end neatly. Imagining the horrors that could potentially befall Steve’s beautiful head (not to mention his co-pilot, Dustin) feels as tense as ever. But the core friendship between Will, Mike, Lucas and Dustin is what really makes the connection stranger things together, and we can’t wait to see how their campaign against the Upside Down ends.
stranger things 5 Volume One is now streaming on Netflix. The remaining episodes will arrive on December 25 and 31.
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