0aurelion-sol0 - Tumblr blog

0aurelion-sol0 · 1 month ago

Text

[This post might be a little outdated now given the elements we've got based on some of the promos that's out there but it is very long so I'll ask you to understand that I didn't think it was worth changing certain elements because it might not fit 100% with what we have seen already. I still think some of the aspects can be interesting to talk about given the trajectory ST5 seems to be going into whether what is said there fits with the characters, elements or storylines I've mentioned.]

(BEFORE YOU READ THIS POST: I do not want any new informations about season 5 or anything related to it whether true or not, same for any leaks, set photos whether true or not (I especially do not want those!) or interviews that are the slightest bit too revealing UNLESS I haven't looked for it myself and even then, easy on any of these. I know something about this season that I will talk about in this post but that's it, nothing more. These theories & analyses might be proven wrong or false already or in the future but I don't care, I do this for fun & as a way to explore different possibilities about the story that can be interesting or could have been at least.

This post is kind of a condensed version of the big ST5 prediction post that I wanted to make since I thought it would be better to cut unnecessary things from it & focus on what's essential.)

THERE ARE CERTAIN & SPECIFIC SPOILERS FOR STRANGER THINGS 5 HERE , BE CAREFUL.

_________________________________________

The Storylines of Stranger Things 5.

_________________________________________

Stranger Things since it's beginning has always been divided into multiple storylines or groups serving a bigger narrative or multiple narratives that will all converge in the end though sometimes they may converge earlier to create a bigger storyline together or seperate to create different storylines. A giant puzzle for us & the characters that has been quite the strongest aspect of the show.

Each groups or characters encounter something about the threat or the plot of the season & when they comme together, they find what exactly is that threat & how it works and so they can find a way to resolve that problem.

Stranger Things 4 was very fond of using & pointing at that type of narration with 4 separate storylines and groups that would again converge at the end of the season in some way. First with the California & Russia storyline where Joyce & Murray goes to find Hopper who is in Russia & leave the boys & El who themselves get seperated during the middle of the season because of the military when Owen needs El who he leads to Brenner to fight Vecna, the new threat in Hawkins who turns out to be 001 which connects to the Hawkins storyline where we go through & study the past to find the connection to that being who turns out to also be named Henry Creel.

But overall, the story is seperated into 4 specific stories. Russia, California, El & Hawkins.

In season 1, the main storyline was Will's dissapearance and each of the three groups (adults, teens & kids) at the time was trying to find him & discover why he dissapeared.

In season 2, with El being the one to have dissapeared she gets her own storyline with Kali while in Hawkins, the rest of the group is dealing with The Mind Flayer & the after effect of Will's dissapearance while having been seperated into different groups earlier in the season that led them into different paths but again, converging in the end for the bigger storylines.

In season 3, there are two threats now, the Russians & The Mind Flayer who is back. At first the season is divided into 4 groups but ends up in 3, the adults as Eagle's Nest, Scoops Troop who were dealing with the Russians in different way and the rest as the Griswold Family which have been taking on the supernatural plot during much of the season.

So there's a pattern with the numbers, S1 = one big storyline, S2 = two storylines, S3 = three groups, S4 = four groups, four specific storylines, if it wasn't already clear yet, and I think that this will continue in it's final season which is Season 5.

Now I don't think there will be 5 specific groups in the final season but 5 main storylines that will merge & connect from time to time before converging in the end, like always but will still center about specific groups, duos, trios that will push most of that storyline forward with some characters having a role in it sometimes because those storylines affects the others & the other characters as well which is normal, that's how story works.

What I'm going to talk about further down in this post might be more what I ideally wish that final season would be in some aspect though I think I'll have the bigger & more important elements of it right for the most part.

_________________________________________

ST5.1: The Military storyline.

With Hawkins literally exploding into an interdimensional crater before the world's very eyes & the governement's involvement in it making things worse since the beginning (plus adding Russia to that), it is only natural that the US military is going to take or want to take control of that situation fast. In that sense, the US military is going to take the role that Hawkins Lab had in season 1 & some of 2 as well.

And I mean, it's the perfect place for them to show their violent strength & authoritarianism: a small conservative town in the 80's in Indiana; they are going to rule it with an iron fist while still giving some form of basic freedoms to the population so that the citizens have the illusion that they're free & that everything is under control (at least to the more privileged part of that population, that's for sure...) when again, it's likely not going to be true or last for long. What's in it, coming in & coming out of that town is going to be heavily controlled and even then, coming in or out will probably be done under specific conditions anyway.

Regardless, much of our heroes will be trapped inside for long periods of time without any possibility of going out with the Byers, Hopper and El likely not being able to leave anyway given their connection to previous events regarding the UD and in the case of Hopper & El not being out in the open either for obvious reasons. And they will not want to leave for long anyway since they want to end the UD threat which will be complicated with a group like the military around which is likely going to limit what they are going to be able to do.

So they are going to have to wait for the right time to strike & launch any plan they may have.

Hawkins & it's perimeters are likely going to be in a heavily controlled quarantine zone where our characters will live in. All this of course supervised by Sullivan who will be after El & any other numbers like Kali or Henry to either kill them or use them again plus exterminate any trace of the UD if they can't use it for their own needs because it is also clear that the US military is going to try to weaponize the Upside Down at some point in that quarantine zone. Giving us a parallel to Russia that we are going to explore further down this post.

One of the people who will be fighting directly against him will probably be Owen, now given the fact that he was taken prisoner the last time we saw him, I do not know if he's going to stay in that state and being used to understand more about Hawkins & the UD (especially it's past regarding Henry & the Creels) or run the operations that they will be doing in Hawkins with him like he did with Brenner. He could also be an outside supporter to our heroes, giving them infos via radio or secret agents working in Hawkins for him. There should be some tension between him, Hopper and Joyce after giving El away to Brenner which could build an interesting dynamic for this last season where he would have to regain their trusts again. Anyway, I do think we will see him again.

Next, obviously are Hopper & Joyce, since they've become lovey dovey now, they are going to try & protect their families & the group in general from the military & the UD, especially El, likely by staying at Hopper's place or stay at a safer place that Hopper and/or Joyce knows in Hawkins. Though their relationship is still far from perfect & their issues haven't really been resolved for me at least much of it on Joyce's side so I think that's why in my mind, Lonnie should be a part of that story to uncover what else happened between them so that if they do become a couple (Joyce & Hopper), it will at least start on better terms for me given all the events. Especially since much of Joyce's personnal problems ever since Season 1 have barely been explored at all & I think it would be nice to explore that again and everything she's been through ever since that relationship.

But Lonnie, given the type of character that he is, a smarter Yuri (*wink wink*) if you know what I'm getting here could also bring drama & problems just by his presence that could add some tension to the story, which in a show focused recently mostly on romantic or supernatural tension, would be welcomed. Though he most likely is only going to be brought up again via dialogues & flasbacks but we will see.

I could see them also become bigger leaders of the community at some point with people of the town like Hopper's ex colleagues or like Karen and Ted, (who should start to be more important to the plot though their exact roles in the story remains to be defined to me), follow behind Hopper's words & experience of the situation to protect their own families & friends but also finally trust Joyce's intuition when it comes to the problems they will face because she has been on the money pretty much every time. This could become a group that counters a part of the military on the field & it's authoritarian ruling of Hawkins giving a window of attack for our group to strike if the military is weakened & distracted.

It's also going to be interesting to see Hopper being put in a similar position that Will was in Season 2 and how it may also differ from that, dead but turned out to be alive and to see how the other characters especially the town in general will react to that. Maybe a moment of connection for the two characters during this season!

Or maybe he will remain in hiding which would also make sense given his direct ties to El and the problems connected to the UD. Though he won't remain dead for long given the situation he is going to be facing.

Plus Sullivan & Hopper are going to fight. Like the guy is like a perfect antagonist to Hopper given Sullivan wants to get El & take care of the problems linked to Hawkins. One ex-soldier vs a Lt. Colonel, it just writes itself. Physically but ideologically too, given Hopper's own thoughts and experiences with war, if he isn't in hiding & decides to work with the military & the government, there probably is going to be strong disagreements on how to handle the whole situation with the UD in Hawkins but that is obvious.

Let's of course not forget about Murray who I'm not sure will be physically present during most of the season & will probably join later during the final part of the season but like Owen could feed info to our heroes via radio about what is happening on the outside.

Other than that maybe Dmitri could also show up in the later part of the season to offer his help again to Hopper after everything they've been through together, I would think that he would want to help him just like Hopper did back in Russia when they were in the prison together. I also remember of him mentioning that he was aware that the threat in Hawkins will reach Russia if it's not being taken care of so it could be his part in helping Hopper trying to protect his family, protecting the world but also his own family that would eventually get threatened by it's existence if the threat of the UD is not stopped. Plus hearing that the US military is trying to weaponize the UD might be an even bigger motivation for him given what he experienced in Russia with Hopper again.

Yuri. I don't think we are going to see him again, he has nothing to do here and nothing to bring plus I don't think anyone is going to be dissapointed he isn't here. Not an interesting character to me and I would be glad if we got rid of him.

After that, I'm not sure what Russia's involvement could be, they've been there in every season in some way & became bigger players by Season 3 so... will they show up on American soil again ? I'm not sure. Will they be completely absent ? It wouldn't feel right since the way Season 4 treated that storyline and "ended" it didn't really feel right or well-written. Apart from what could have been left under Starcourt Mall, it's hard at the moment to see what they could do in Season 5. So, we will see. I will discuss this in another post soon.

As for Brenner, he will be important and mentionned regardless of whether he is dead of not & will likely appear in flashbacks as well but he seemed dead last time we saw him. With some sort of conclusion to his character as well, I'm not sure what would be the point in bringing him back again though the bastard is hard to kill so you never know. If he turns out to be alive, he'll likely be a prisoner who will be used by Sullivan to gather more information about the UD, El & Henry. But again, we will see.

[So that's what I see happening in that storyline, the military taking control of Hawkins & trying to kill or exploit anything related to the UD with the group being very limited in what they could do so they are going to try to distract or weaken the military so that they can strike & get rid of the UD threat via the lead of Hopper and Joyce, who will try to protect their families again, and help of Owen, Murray & maybe Dmitri plus some people in town. While possibly exploring personnal problems related to themselves as I think they are important and should be adressed in some form.]

ST5.2: The follow up to the Creel family storyline.

One of the things that the military always hate is journalists investigating in it's business, and this is what the Scooby-Doo Gang is likely going to do while trying to find ways to end the UD problem once and for all. Led by Nancy, I believe this storyline is one of the two storyline this season that is likely going to bridge the gap between the play: "The First Shadow" and Stranger Things 5.

I think it is likely that the Scooby-Doo Gang is going to try to inform the rest of world and Hawkins from the inside about what's actually happening while continuing their investigation around the Creel family and it's murders to find the actual truth and a possible solution to the Vecna problem. Possibly finding a weakness or a way to reach the little "human" part that's left in him, though it's likely that given the way things are at the moment, they're going to try to solve that problem is via killing him anyway.

Now we enter a more Hawkins focused storyline if that makes sense, I believe that one of the reasons the whole group is going to start making their moves is when people in town are going to start mysteriously dissapearing both because of the UD and the military. The UD is obvious, to build their army, whether via flaying or alien-style with Demogorgons, demobats, etc... hell even maybe fleshy monsters in the style of S3! The military, likely if certain people poses too much of a threat to their authority they will try to use them to weaponize the UD; people that came into contact with it are likely going to be on the spot with them as well. This will mimic on a larger scale the dissapearance of Will in 1983, tying back to Season 1 in execution.

One of those people, well, hate to say it because it's the only thing I got spoiled by the season so far, would be Holly Wheeler. (THANKS the f*ck you guys!) Now I don't know what exactly her role will be in Season 5 but this makes sense if it were to happen as Holly became gradually aware and even involved in Season 4 about what the supernatural happenings in Hawkins. So it would make sense that she would end up mixed in it at some point; and it's already been established that Vecna knows about her and her entire family, not just Nancy & Mike. This would explain episode 2's title being blurred and the little thing that Evil Dead Rise share together which is likely the actress who plays Kassie, Nell Fisher. Now as to what Vecna would want from her exactly, I have no idea... (I won't go theorizing whether Holly has some type of abilities because there's not enough element on that + they were kinda playing the trope of the child noticing things adults don't with her so you can't really know where they are going with her.)

Nancy who would already be in a terrible mindset because of what she saw would probably already pushed further in her investigation & drive to stop Vecna & the UD to destroy the world and kill her family. She could lead the others to sneak into HNL & The Creel House to figure out more about that family and learn even more of what happened in the past to find a clue about where Holly might be and again, how to defeat Vecna. Obviously Joyce & Hopper given their involvement in "The First Shadow" will obviously provide important infos to the group that will likely help them but Nancy will likely want to find more which will probably bring story elements from the play that are the most important into S5 but also could put her in a dangerous position especially if she also tries to expose what the military is planning and doing as well while she is looking for her sister and a way to defeat the UD; and also as you've seen up above, I don't think Joyce and Hopper's focus will be on that throughout the season.

In that sense, there could be an interesting development where the more Nancy tries to find a solution to the conflict and a way to save her family, the more she brings herself closer to the outcome she saw in Vecna's vision for her. I honestly think her character arc & evolution this season could be incredibly interesting in that regard.

One of the ways the Scooby-Doo Gang could try to defeat Vecna is via reaching Victor Creel to find more infos and possibly use him to get to Vecna. I feel like there's a lack of conclusion about Victor's & Henry's relationship that could again bring a more interesting story moment for Henry's character and humanize him by showing him that his perspective of what he thought his family thought of him was not exact vs what his father thinks of him and what happened would be interesting and even tragic because it is likely that he will reject that & try to kill Victor anyway to severe any ties he has of his previous identity. I just think that it would be interesting to bring back Robert Englund a second time for a role that was incredibly refreshing to see him in, at least for me, instead of just one season & let him rot in that asylum.

Continuing with Nancy, it'll be interesting to see how her relationships with her mother evolves. Karen, just like Holly, should start getting more important now that she's aware or is going to be aware of what was happening when & where she wasn't looking. If Holly does indeed dissapear, how will she react ? Her being put in the same place as Joyce back in Season 1 could connect the two again restarting the discussions they had back then, maybe even actually eat that casserole this time around! XD

Will she become more active in the story or will she remain a supporting shoulder for her children ? Will she push them to not follow in her footsteps with Ted at last, perhaps even herself finally leave at some point since she embraces conformity in Season 3 ? Ted, as well, how involved will he become into the story now if his daughter dissapears ? We saw what happened with Max's mother in Season 4, her daughter is basically in a coma and she's nowhere to be seen.

So the prospect of the both of them becoming more important is rather thin to me at the moment. Karen is the only one that's likely of the two of them to play any sort of significant role and one of the ways she could do that via Nancy is perhaps pushing her to get out of her relationship problems with Jonathan & Steve and again, push her to pursue her dreams & career as she did in Season 3.

BECAUSE SERIOUSLY...

I am done with this triangle for the three of them because unlike another love triangle in the show, which we will not really talk about in this post, this one, at this point, just brings nothing for us if it's to keep doing the same thing we already saw in the first two seasons.

Jonathan & Nancy's relationship was already iffy to begin with & honestly we've all already gone through her & Steve's relationship which just doesn't work, but now after 4 seasons and everything that's happened: let's put an end to it and focus on something else for those characters. Jonathan and Nancy could potentially patch things up later but honestly if it doesn't happen who cares! The three of them need to focus more on themselves than other ex or current relationships they don't really have energy to bring into.

Steve as a character leaves much to be desired, he'll probably keep three aspects of his storyline since Season 3, Nancy, Robin and Dustin. We've already gone through Nancy but with Robin & Vickie, I could see a parallel being drawn to his Season 1 storyline when he was with Tommy & Carol, some sort of reflective moment about how far he has evolved and grown as a person since then now that he is friends with two queer women who he kinda pushed to be together. If they reappear as a callback to that part of the show, we could get something more centered about Steve rather than his relationship with Nancy once again and have a moment where he reaffirms his stance about these two people and defend the people close to him again but in a way where he would be unapologetically supportive of them.

With Dustin, we'll get to his character further down this post but given the mindset he will be in, I could see a rift building between him and Steve; especially if Dustin is a tad bit too rebellious in following Eddie's footseps and legacy which might put him in difficult positions. Naturally, Steve would want to help him get through his grief but Dustin might be on a revenge storyline against the town & the bullies so... we'll have to see but I think the season is going to be difficult for that relationship.

Robin & Vickie are likely going to be exploring their relationship this final season, will they already be together or will it be a build-up moment ? I'd prefer the second for it to feel more satisfying but I honestly could definitely see the Duffers skipping to the finish line. It would be interesting to see if they do that, how does the rest of group navigate that relationship and how do they live in Hawkins given the prejudice that would fall upon them ? Or they could just continue ignoring it like they've being doing for most of the characters' own personal issue since Season 2.

As for Jonathan, given his brother will become the "centerpoint" of Season 5, I'd expect he will become more important as well but it would be nice for it to be in spite of Will given that if Will like all the characters being the main target by the UD has some unexplored trauma, Jonathan is likely to have that aspect about his character as well given who Lonnie is as a person and father. Again, just like with Joyce's own issues and the problematic aspects she has in her relationship with Hopper which have yet to be addressed, we should explore that given that Jonathan also has his own issues both personal and his relationship with Nancy, which we only had one scene last season about that didn't seem to be really taken seriously anyway. And again, I think Lonnie should be present as first, the material would be so much interesting, two, some other drama that don't involve relationship problems and three, not just have some mention or flashback which would not give anyone really any satisfaction in any way about that part of the story. (Given that Argyle's actor has come forward and said they didn't reach back to him to play the character, I don't know if apart from a mention if he will even be present in this season but I think, even if we were to stretch his role further into the story, he wouldn't bring much anyway given how he was used last season.)

To finish, as I said I believe that this storyline will be what bridges the play ST: The First Shadow with Season 5, while yes, the adults will obviously play a role in it as they were a part of that storyline in the play; we discovered the Creel storyline in Hawkins while they were away and through the teenagers. It would only make sense to finish that story via finishing with those same characters out of which the one character with which Henry has the most connections & willl have the most connections with is Nancy. (We will go through Max next.) It's likely Nancy would try to get more info about Henry to get a possible weakness about him that they could use to defeat him by digging more & more info these past events related to him that could be gotten in his house, the lab or Victor once again. They will also likely get informations via Joyce & Hopper who could put them on missions regarding their past while they deal with the heavier elements related to the military.

But ultimately, I believe that this will all lead to Nancy, as a journalist, revealing everything that happened in Hawkins & make the governement plus all the other people in this fiasco take responsibility and pay for their crimes pushing her status as a journalist & evolve her career as the woman who uncovered the mysterious events that happened in Hawkins. This would fit with what I think Caleb said in one interview where this time the ending would not be the characters going back to their daily lives like nothing happened and that there would be actual consequences to what happened.

Not only would this be satisfying story wise after everything that happened to our characters but it would work in concept as Stranger Things is supposed to be about outcasts and discovering the untold stories of this time period and as such, sharing the traumatic stories & injustices that happened to them especially by systems that goes directly against them would fit with the purpose of the story.

[As the adults face the heavier elements of the story related to the military, I believe the older teenagers will try to find more infos and ways to defeat the UD by looking more into the past of Henry Creel, The Lab and the town of Hawkins while dealing with their personal & relationship issues. By sniffing into this territory, there could a tragic irony where the more they try to stop the UD and find a weakness, they end up reinforcing it and lead it closer to victory. This will also put a target on themselves with the military trying to stop them revealing things that would delegitimize their authority and power like them using the UD for their own needs or that they are using people for their projects while also investigating dissapearances releated to the UD's doing. This will ultimately tie ST: The First Shadow and the show together and reveal to the world what has trully happened in Hawkins.]

ST5.3: The Mind Lair storyline.

Somewhere over the rainbow, Max's consciousness lies.

Last season ended with Max being in a coma, specifically braindead after suffering traumatic injuries on her body by Vecna but then was saved by El in extremis. She's now in a hospital, not moving or giving any signs of life so what is happening with her ?

I believe, like many others, she might be trapped, not in the Mind Lair's per say though it's connected to it but in between. There's a concept I'll develop in another post but I believe she's in the Mind of the Upside Down so to speak. Stuck in that red-like dimension that affects even the Mind Lair + affected the mind of Billy and all of the people that got flayed.

I believe that dimension, whatever it is, is also connected to El and is the same one that transformed Vecna into what it is today. She is obviously going to try to reach Vecna to defeat him but she's also clearly looking for Max which she could find the Void so she is not there. I believe El is going to have to develop her connection with the UD in a way that isn't about hurting it but more understanding it and working with it.

Now there's also an alternative possibility that Vecna could use Max as his vessel since his body got quite weakened last season but he still was able to escape so he still got some strength so I'm not sure he needs a new one all that much. However, he will be hiding to rest and prepare all of his army and plans he might have in motion. What could be interesting is that if he is weakened, he may perhaps lose a form of control over the UD and it might not necesserally obey to him the way it used to. He might his own authority over the UD especially the entity that is the Mind Flayer as from what I know from the play, they're relationship is a little bit more complicated than what we've been left to believe.

In a sense, there could be a bit of a UD Civil War where one side obeys to Vecna while the other the Mind Flayer who might want to take control back of the UD fully or show that yes we might have had a symbiotic relationship but don't get it twisted, I am the UD, not you. And so this would explain why he might not have attacked right away as he is in a sort of power struggle with the UD and he might question whether he really actually wants to destroy anything, maybe anymore. Perhaps his point of view may have changed...

If Max's consciousness is still connected to the Mind Lair than it is connected to Vecna than she could influence him, get to know him and his memories. This could open the more obscure aspects of his character, his past was extremely pointed into a certain perspective and certain elements are missing and don't work well with what we know in the show. And with a play that seems to have added complexity to the character, this will probably happen at some point. Not just with Max but El as well, as part of his story is part of her story and some much needed interaction with Kali as well who is out there and probably escaped the same way El did and via the help of 001 would likely bring to a form of understanding for the person that he is. We have been shown he can offer forms of empathy or wasn't very keen in killing little animals when he was young, his past as Henry Creel seems blurry to say the least and we clearly don't know everything about Brenner. We don't even know why he survived the Demogorgon back in Season 1.

(With Nancy and her gang, possibly digging more into his past as well and perhaps connecting with Viktor Creel once again, some flashbacks perhaps connecting to the play at some point as well.)

So... how can we trust that what we see in his flashbacks is the truth ? After so much hurt & trauma and possibly tons of influences from an entity, how we can be so sure that what we've been shown is the truth ?

The UD as an entity, whether MF or creatures has been very clear on it's goal, destroy everything, Vecna has has more complex emotions and goals throughout his existence on the show. He even spared Brenner back during the RR massacre, what was that about ? So I can't see him staying the same villain for long, I could see him becoming an ally at some point. Especially if the military decides to go scorched earth as it often does or that the UD clearly isn't on his side as well. Clearly all of these parties will go against each other during most of the season and I don't see Vecna himself having any sort of deal or truce with them compared to the others.

As Max roams in that dimension, Lucas will be by her side on the other side and take care of her which is something she might be aware of. With Erica by his side, maybe certain feelings could be unveiled that he might not have been able to say to her and she could be aware and hear what's going on on the other side a la Running Up That Hill where she runs to a portal where her levitating body is located. Some emotional moments where he would literally have just a heart to heart with her since the only thing she has keeping her going in her body is her heart. What role does he play in the rest of her recovery ? I have no idea, perhaps those moments of love and care could bring her back again in the end but there has to be something more yet to be shown.

I would imagine that Mike, Dustin and Will would also care in some way but apart from using D&D as some form of metaphor for whatever is going on, I hardly see what else they could do but Will may help El realise given his connection to the UD and by default that her consciousness is still present in that dimension. And with Kali's abilities plus her understanding of 001, El might be able master her connection with the UD to help Max gain her body back. I don't imagine she could stay in that place for long all season. Either by Episode 3-4 it's a done deal, or it's Episode 6. That would be... interesting if they keep her there until the end of the season though.

I do believe Owen is going to try to help El master her new abilities the best way he can given that was one of his goals last season and he literally took her to go fight Vecna but Hopper might not really trust him again, Kali as well given his connection and use of Brenner to get El her powers back so trust will be needed to feel like he can be able to help again.

Sadly I could see him kick the bucket this season, I have a bad feeling about Owen, I feel like he is going to go too far and cross the limit of what he should do with the military.

As for Ms. Kelley, she was important last season and I do think she should still be present somehow. Perhaps Lucas could seek her help to know more about what Max was going through last season to maybe try to get to her consciousness at some point.

I also believe that given Max's condition and how much it parallels the one El's mom has, a little part of me thinks that it could be the way for El to be able at the end of the show to restore the consciousness of her own mother back into her. I feel like it would bring a form of closure for her to be able to undo the damage that Brenner has done in her life by saving her mom and in a way her aunt would be a incredible full circle moment and I think very beautiful.

As for Kali, it's hard to say but I believe perhaps making it up for well... abusing El with her powers at some point and realising she can't run away from her past forever and actually needs to confront what happened instead of running towards third parties that yes were involved but not the cause of her suffering and also finding meaning about something other than revenge could help her heal and move forward. Her sister is in danger and I think she probably would want to reach out to her again and help her the best way she can.

As for Max, it's hard to say what she will experience in that dimension and the Mind Lair exactly but it's been pretty clear to all of us that she will probably reconnect with her brother at some point whose consciousness will also be there with her at some point to maybe come to an understanding about the hurt that they had and have the closure she seeks. And we probably might see other familiar faces but we'll see.

I just hope that her mom is slightly bit more or acknowledged because she was kinda sidelined about something that I think for any parent would be quite important given what happened to her daughter. X) But hey, I know the Duffers don't vibe with parents well on their show.

[As Max's consciousness lives on in the dimension connected to the Mind Lair, she may try to influence the events in Hawkins her own way while also getting a form of closure with her trauma regarding her brother. Vecna's powers and authority might grow weaker and his control of the UD might not be as strong as we were to believe, with the UD becoming stronger than ever, it's unknown whether or not he might stay the main threat for long given the nature of the UD. Memories from the past may explain the true nature of events that happened in his life and what's actually been happening to him since then. In the meantime, El may have to discover her own connections to the UD, one that is not based on violence but understanding and connection to be able to bring Max's consciousness into her body as Lucas takes care of her and trying to reach out into the dark corners of her mind. With the help of Kali who would want to also give herself closure about her past by helping El, she may be able to discover new abilities who in the process of saving Max may be able to save her own mother from the damage that was done to her by Brenner.]

ST5.4: The follow up to the Hellfire Club & Satanic Panic storyline.

Hell has finally risen in Hawkins and so shall the demons of that town as well. With the Satanic Panic going well... going since apart from one scene last season that was about Jason rallying the town against the Hellfire Club, nothing came much of it.

Perhaps with Hawkins being broken in 4, the town might show it's true face and the members of that community might really go all out on the witch hunting of the members of the Hellfire Club.

I think this storyline will be largely led by Dustin who in his time of grief for Eddie will try to restore his name and legacy for what it was. Possibly in the stage of anger, he may likely go against the town itself but most likely remnants of Jason's group. There's already been a picture of him next to Eddie's grave that's been vandalized online in a very Sherlock Holmes outfit.

Other character I could see expressing a form of grief for Eddie is Mike, he definitely seemed to have a very interesting perspective of Eddie at the beginning of Season 4. Complex feelings that could potentially lead to certain epiphanies about himself but taken between an El, Holly and possibly also trying to look out for Will, he may not really have the time to process that grief and also help Dustin with it.

Lucas will probably be too preoccupied with Max himself to help Dustin and Mike with that and Erica will likely be a major support for him during that period but perhaps after a season of him forcing himself into the ranks of a basketball team, his sister's passion for the game he once was so fond of may bring back his own passion as well.

Speaking of Dungeons & Dragons, I think it might play a more important role this season than we might think, one last game to end it all perhaps at some point during this season. The boys seem to be united in the promos that we see but could they're be some new or old unresolved tension in the group that's been kept from us ? Perhaps the game could bring back that strong united spirit they used to have

Between Mike & Lucas that will be facing their own complicated problems, Dustin grieving and probably angry + Will who will we get further down below who will obviously have it's fair share of issues, I think it's highly likely that some tension will be in the group & explode at some point. With Will also being so far away for over a year to two, might he feel replaced by the members of that club and Eddie in some way ? This might contribute to the isolation he will feel that we will talk about further down this post.

The older teens + adults may provide some form of support in all this, especially Steve with Dustin which seems needed given how their relationship turned out in Season 4. It would also be nice to see Nancy and Mike have those long awaited heart to hearts that they've been planning to have since Season 1 but clearly have made no real efforts to have for the past 3 seasons, especially since their little sister will probably vanish. I think they might need to TALK a little bit more.

As for El, she never really showed any interest in anything Dungeons & Dragons related, I don't think it's going to change this season. She however will be in a far better place this season compared to last one and might provide some form of empathy but sadly perhaps responsibility for the loss the boys have suffered. Perhaps feeling guilt she did not save everyone as she wanted or felt she should have. Who knows, that would be an interesting dynamic to have.

The military will likely use the Hellfire Club and other related parties as a scapegoat to hide their nefarious acts in town and with the UD. More witch hunting for the more conservative side of the town which could lead a form of worry once again for the parents who might try to influence their kids into dropping their antics + fall in line before perhaps rallying to their sides when they realise what's actually happening behind all this witch hunting, I think Karen will be the least defiant compared to the other parents so she might probably have some words of encouragement for Mike a la Nancy in Season 3. Perhaps the police joining their sides as well as they weren't too fond of Jason & co going around like vigilantes in Hawkins without proper reasons behind it.

Could the old bullies like Troy be apart of that or could so much time have passed that perhaps a form of growth from both of them and the boys might be shown ? They're not as young as they used to be back in Season 1 so perhaps a forn maturity could show up if they ever showed up again. They could alternatively use Mr. Clarke for that effect, the boys all grown up since Season 2, seeking the help and perhaps telling the truth to their favorite teacher now could provide us with a nice full circle moment.

Ms. Kelley's presence as a character is again a mystery for me, will she still play a role as a school counsellor ? There could be lots of grounds to cover for the boys especially one like Will. A season about coming-of-ages and healing would benefit from a character like her again.

For Erica, I don't really see apart from being a support to Lucas at the moment what her role could become as a character this season, given how younger she is compared to the rest of the cast, I struggle to see what she could do for herself as a character apart from reinforcing her interests in D&D.

As for the remaining members of the Hellfire Club, I think they will have as small of a role as they did back in Season 4 but will perhaps be more something to save during the witch hunting of Hawkins.

In the end, I think the storyline will end up being about restoring Eddie as who he really was, showing the boys + group as the heroes they've been against the UD plus proving the town and in some way the world about the Satanic Panic. This will also be a test of their relationship through the darkness against both the town and the UD who will likely want to use the isolation and seperation they feel about each other against them so that they can show that despite those issues & differences, they are still stronger united and can't break that easily.

[As the boys coming into their own this season, they will be faced with their own issues and unresolved problems with last season. To clean Eddie's name and the reputation of their group, they will be faced by the witch hunting of the town which should be more active by now. They would need to trust each other and work together again to overcome those obstacles and blamed for the recent events in town but also the ones that are happening at the moment, they will likely be able to prove as the true heroes of the town and prove everyone wrong about their culture but also their favorite board game.]

ST5.5: Will's storyline.

This one will go less in depth compared to the others as I will explore this storyline in future posts but to make it quick: November 6th, 1983.

This is going to one of the main things this storyline will explore. What exactly happened to Will in 1983 and how that will tie into all of the plots and subplots that will be happening in Season 5.

I believe Will will experience flashbacks of his time during the UD which will at some point directly connects to the main threat & plot of the season. At first, it'll seem like Will is not a target or of any interest to the UD anymore until it's revealed they've slowly been manipulating and breaking him so that they could get to him. WHATEVER reason they may want to get to Will, it is important and that's not a post I can fully delve into but yes, I do believe powers are involved but not the only thing.

This could open us to interesting story moments like Will not trusting his reality, himself or others or Will loosing track of time & space, falling asleep -> flashback/nightmare -> waking up somewhere far away where he's alone and in danger type of moments. He could become a version of himself that is more impulsive and irritable as he gets progressively tired and on edge throughout the season.

Obviously he would have his support system in Joyce, Jonathan, Mike, Hopper & the rest of his friends + the group that would try to help & understand what he is going through but he would likely stay away from out of both distrust but also not wanting to cause any harm to any of them even when he has to be with them. They might try to control him which might make him upset over the season, thinking he is being treated like a baby again without realising they are trying his best to help him.

The military would obviously, given his past connection to the UD, be interested in him & keep their eyes on him. Owen, if he is still alive (probably is) and if he still has some form of influence could lead the rest of the military away from Will the best he can.

Obviously, his relationship with Mike is going to be at play here but we are not getting into that here as this post would become even longer but if Holly does indeed disappear, not only does it open a way for the both of them to talk about Will's experience in the UD and what he experienced there, how he feels about it but also how Mike feels about it. It opens also ways for the relationship where Will can help, reassure and lead instead of the other way around given his experiences with the UD and tie with the discussion he had with Mike in his bedroom in S4 about how they saved him and how he can do the same now. And possibly finding ways to track Holly down because again of what he experienced in the UD. And we will stop there for the moment about their relationship as I think it's the most relevant for the moment.

As with El, saving a special post for them later down the line, but I think their relationship should become a key plot point for Season 5 but I don't think Season 4 really did anything or develop anything with them and the fact that Will & Jonathan consider themselves brothers of her does not feel earned AT ALL. It would be nice to get an actual development of their relationship and it is the best moment since we are wrapping things up. Via the connection she has with El, if Will does experience visions and back and forths in time, someone like Kali (plus her gang), whose powers could help with that, could be brought back into the mix and bring back that lost storyline of Season 2 that is interesting and important. I don't care what the GP thinks about it, they're almost always wrong anyway.

With Vecna, they'll obviously do something about the two of them, parallels parallels, I have no idea what to expect and I'm not really interested anyway. I don't think they'll work well as a dynamic, they just don't seem to fit the same story to me but that's my opinion, I understand people might think differently but to me I just don't think they are going to work well on screen together.

True Sight will likely be involved but that would feel too similar to his Season 2 storyline having to spy or fight any influence of Vecna. And please, I don't want Will to be used as a way for Vecna to be redeemed or understood by the rest of the characters or the audience, that would be so basic & uninteresting.

It's impossible they don't do anything with them and he will likely play a big role in his storyline though ultimately I think most of the answers about Will's story lies with the Mindflayer and how that entity is connected to it but him to it as well.

In terms of other characters such as Brenner, well I do have an idea & a theory that I like that could be cool but aside from that one idea he wouldn't play that big of a role in Will's story anyway. It would have to do with Lonnie of course but that's for that special post linked to El.

Mr. Clarke and the bullies, if they're back cool, flashbacks or not, if they aren't, fine. Again, it'd be interesting for the boys to have that last moment as teenagers with their favorite teacher. The bullies much like with Steve, new interactions could potentially show some growth but if they aren't in Season 5, I don't think anyone's going to complain. Mr. Clarke possibly but them not so much.

As for Joyce, Jonathan and Lonnie. That family's history remains in the details completely unknown, there are things to question about Lonnie that has yet to be opened like the fact he could put Will in the trunk of his car which HELLO ?!, it's crazy that nobody realises how truly insane that actually is. What is the extent of the abuse that the Byers have suffered over the years ? It's likely that the only presence of Lonnie will be through flashbacks though I would prefer that he would come back in real time to see the dynamics and open those closed boxes full of questions.

It is clear this is going to be a season of healing for Joyce and Jonathan as Will has his coming-of-age so those issues will come up at some point. Regardless of how they do it. But him coming into his own may definitely put him in ever more danger than before as while he may be more active, we know the UD also gets more agressive if you stand against it and it'll likely be even more extreme given the connection Will has with the UD.

As I said, there's far more I want to talk about Will but this is as far I can go for the moment given my thoughts on his storyline is more complex than what is being written here. And I have prepared future posts for it.

[As Will comes into his own this season, he will be faced with his worst enemy this season, himself. As his perception of reality deteriorates due to the UD coming for him, his relationships will be put to the test and past problems & traumas should likely be explained and while this season, he may become more active in his fight against the UD, his connections to the wider story of ST may be where we will look into at the end of the season.]

_________________________________________

The only thing I have not talked about is what Linda Hamilton's characters is going to be about, now I don't know if I already talked about this but I remember thinking that her being a relative to Joyce such as her mother could be an interesting deep dive into the family's history of the Byers but given that usually when a famous actor from the 80's joins the show they play something completely opposite to the film or films they're the most known for so it's likely that she'll play a bad guy, possibly a human one. Now what that could be exactly I have no idea but it's a pattern that has followed us since Season 1 so it's likely to be true here as well.

It's highly unlikely everything that I've talked about here will be touched upon hell even considered or mentioned in any way but I wanted to cover as many ground as I could before going into the more complex posts about specific subjects here and there. It'll make sense in the end I promise as some thing need their own posts to be discussed and touched upon. It's also highly likely that the Duffers aim for something totally different than what I've talked about here so no one should get to attached to any idea or theory before the actual ending comes out anymore, Season 4 has shown us that they can simply change and go into a different direction if they want to.

I am hoping that they will suprise me, so far they seem to be on the right track for an at least satisfying ending but is that what we really want ? Is there more to Stranger Things or will we have to accept a more simplistic ending for this show ? Who knows maybe the latter could possibly what the show should have as an ending. And maybe the storylines explored don't need to be as complex anymore given where the story has been ending since let's say... mid-Season 2 ?

Who knows, we'll see how it all ends up being soon enough. I might update this post from time to time if a new idea pops up into my head but isn't really significant to make a whole post about & with that said, see ya!

14 notes · View notes