Happy Monday, my fellow strangers! It’s Mrs. Strange once again.
On today’s episode for Stranger Universe, I will talk about more the future of
Stranger Things and debating whether or not l it should end with season 5.
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So this article comes from Craig Elvy from Screenrant, and it’s actually something that
fans little by little are starting to feel the same way. All good things must come to an end,
and for Stranger Things, the end should come with season 5. During its premiere,
the show immediately charmed audiences with its throwback 1980s aesthetic and compelling
paranormal mysteries, told through a talented cast of young newcomers and a few famous faces from the
big screen. Stranger Things demonstrated how valuable streaming originals could be, and how
platforms such as Netflix were finally ready to compete in a mainstream arena. Season 2 arrived
in 2017 with season 3 following 2 years later, turning that fresh-faced cast into household names
and doing wonders for the sale of Eggos. A fourth season is now incoming, with clue-filled teasers
dropping online but no official release date at present. Stranger Things 4 will pick up in the
wake of Hopper's disappearance, relocating to the chilly climes of Russia, as well as
developing the Byers' departure from Hawkins. But as eagerly as fans are anticipating this new
chapter in Netflix's ongoing tale of things that are strange, an ending must come sooner or later.
And, all things considered, it should probably come sooner. Though progress is continuing
on Stranger Things season 4, there remain doubts over the show's long-term future, both from a
behind-the-scenes perspective, and considering the narrative challenges Eleven and the gang
are currently facing. Here’s why Stranger Things should end with season 5. After several months
of planning, season 4 began filming in February 2020 which, in hindsight, was not a great time
to begin much of anything apart from buying Zoom shares and taking up needlepoint. As per the most
recent update, filming is finally expected to wrap sometime in late August or early September, when
season 4 will enter the post-production phase ahead of a currently-unknown release date. Netflix
hasn't officially green-lit Stranger Things 5, but given the show's enduring popularity,
one would imagine viewership won't be an obstacle. There's absolutely nothing
in Stranger Things' season 4 marketing to suggest this will be the final season,
and Netflix would likely want to promote the show's swansong as "the final season" when that
time comes. If that isn't reassurance enough, a 2020 THR interview with Stranger Things creators,
the Duffer brothers, saw the pair explicitly confirm "season 4 won't be the end." Annoyingly,
the Stranger Things team has been far more elusive when addressing season 5 as a potential end point.
The Duffer brothers and Shawn Levy (producer) have all confirmed that an end is in sight,
but are refusing to be drawn on whether season 5 is that end, or whether Stranger Things will
keep peddling boldly over the hill onto season 6 and beyond. Going back to a 2017 interview, the
Duffers stated that 4 or 5 seasons was "likely" how long the show would last. Given that original
time frame, season 5 feels like a realistic stopping point, but no one can say for sure.
Then there’s the release schedule. COVID-19 played a major factor in the production for
Stranger Things 4. That's obviously outside of the show's control; a worldwide event still bearing
a profound impact upon TV production across the board. But the pandemic isn't where the
show’s scheduling issues end. A scant 15 months passed between season 1 and season 2,
which increased to a whopping 19 months for season 3. Based on the February 2020 filming start date,
Netflix was likely aiming for a similar gap between seasons 3 and 4 before COVID scuppered
those plans. But even after Stranger Things joined other productions in North America and
Europe by resuming in September 2020, the process remains incomplete almost a full year later. By
comparison, the filming stage for Stranger Things season 3 took just 7 months. Social distancing
and COVID testing isn't solely to blame and, sure enough, Shawn Levy concedes that Stranger Things'
season 4's lengthy production is partly due to being the "biggest" and most ambitious run yet.
With Levy and the Duffer brothers retaining their creative control, the increased scope of Stranger
Things season 4 means a longer production, as the creative trio oversee each step of the journey.
That' s not a situation that can continue indefinitely. As kids tend to do, the
young Stranger Things cast are hurtling through puberty at pace, and risk looking significantly
older than the Hawkins natives they're portraying. This problem started rearing its head in Stranger
Things season 3, and could get worse in season 4 (especially with filming stretched from February
2020 to August 2021). The longer Stranger Things continues, the more the show's timeline will fall
out of sync with reality, and season 5 might be the last time the cast look young enough
to play their parts convincingly. No one wants Will Byers will a beard. Not only is the gang
refusing to stop growing, they're refusing to stop getting more famous too. As the years pass,
each of the main actors becomes involved in other projects - Finn Wolfhard in Ghostbusters:
Afterlife, David Harbour in Black Widow, Sadie Sink in Fear Street, etc. As the cast's Hollywood
stock increases, scheduling Stranger Things will become increasingly difficult, widening the gap
between seasons. Then not only will the age issue worsen, but fan momentum could wane, as other
shows with other endearing psychic protagonists arrive to steal Stranger Things' thunder.
It's difficult to see how Stranger Things could continue indefinitely from a production
standpoint, but stopping at season 5 isn't only a matter of practicality - ending there would allow
the Duffer brothers to tell a complete story without overstaying their welcome. Stranger
Things still has many plot tendrils to address. The past 3 seasons barely scratched the surface
of the Upside Down's origin and nature, while the presence of the Mind-Flayer still hangs in the
background. There's plenty we still don't know about the MK Ultra experiments that Eleven was
subjected to, and the full scope of Dr. Brenner's machinations remains ominously vague, with
numerous test subjects still to meet. And turning to the personal drama, both the Joyce-Hopper
romance and the Mike-Eleven pairing are in need of one final push before a happy ending is achieved.
Two seasons is perfectly adequate to cover everything on Stranger Things to-do list.
Brenner is a confirmed returnee in season 4, so Eleven's past looks to be explained sooner
rather than later, while Hopper's triumphant return from Russia will likely cement his future
with Joyce. Set photos from Stranger Things season 4 hint toward the Mind-Flayer's return,
so fans can expect another lesson in Upside Down mythology too.
That still leaves a fifth and final season to wrap things up and send everyone on their way.
As demonstrated by the fan backlash when season 2 moved to the big city,
the Stranger Things premise isn't built for expansive storytelling. Hawkins' small town
vibe is too embedded in Stranger Things' DNA to venture far, but there's only so many spooky
situations the gang can find themselves in, and only so many ways their friendship can be tested.
If Eleven and her buddies are still running from Demogorgons and being unashamedly geeky
in Stranger Things seasons 6, 7 and 8, will fans still care? TV audiences tend to appreciate having
a goal in sight - and the shows themselves are often better for it, especially those that rely
on long-form mystery storytelling. If season 5 is confirmed to be the ending,
fans would be more willing to endure the long gaps between seasons and more invested
in the current storylines - just from knowing answers were on the horizon. But in the end,
we shall see if season 5 ends up being the final season. Overall, very exciting times.
And that is all that we have for today. Should Stranger Things end with season 5?
Today’s special shout-out is for Arnav Jain.
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