The first four episodes of the fifth and final season of Stranger Things are now streaming on Netflix, and the review embargo lifted around the same time the premiere got underway.
For the most part, critics were impressed by how our final trip to Hawkins gets underway, and Volume 1 is now "Certified Fresh" at 86% based on 47 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.
"Stranger Things plays its cards just right in Season 5, solidifying its pop culture classic status with genuinely captivating genre fare," reads the critics consensus.
How does this score compare to previous seasons? Well, it's actually the lowest of the five (the closest are seasons 3 and 4, both at 89%), but that could well change once we get a final score for the entire season.
There are a few negative reviews, however, and a common complaint seems to be that the first half of the season treads over too much familiar ground (the word "reset" pops up quite a bit), and some critics simply didn't feel that the emotional moments hit as hard as they really should have.
Have a read through some of the verdicts below, but if you haven't watched yet, be wary of some mild spoilers.
"The fall of 1987. Hawkins is scarred by the opening of the Rifts, and our heroes are united by a single goal: find and kill Vecna. But he has vanished — his whereabouts and plans unknown. Complicating their mission, the government has placed the town under military quarantine and intensified its hunt for Eleven, forcing her back into hiding. As the anniversary of Will’s disappearance approaches, so does a heavy, familiar dread. The final battle is looming — and with it, a darkness more powerful and more deadly than anything they’ve faced before. To end this nightmare, they’ll need everyone — the full party — standing together, one last time."
Stranger Things stars Winona Ryder (Joyce Byers), David Harbour (Jim Hopper), Millie Bobby Brown (Eleven), Finn Wolfhard (Mike Wheeler), Gaten Matarazzo (Dustin Henderson), Caleb McLaughlin (Lucas Sinclair), Noah Schnapp (Will Byers), Sadie Sink (Max Mayfield), Natalia Dyer (Nancy Wheeler), Charlie Heaton (Jonathan Byers), Joe Keery (Steve Harrington), Maya Hawke (Robin Buckley), Priah Ferguson (Erica Sinclair), Brett Gelman (Murray), Jamie Campbell Bower (Vecna), Cara Buono (Karen Wheeler), Amybeth McNulty (Vickie), Nell Fisher (Holly Wheeler), Jake Connelly (Derek Turnbow), Alex Breaux (Lt. Akers), and Linda Hamilton (Dr. Kay). New to the cast for Stranger Things season 5 are Linda Hamilton (The Terminator), Nell Fisher (Evil Dead Rise), newcomer Jake Connelly, and Alex Breaux (Joe Pickett).