Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Stranger Things season 4, volume 1
Stranger Things season 4 won't have a happy ending according to the show's creators. The latest season of the hit Netflix show has been all the buzz since its debut, which dropped the first 7 episodes of the 9-episode season, with the remaining episodes set to debut in July. Stranger Things season 4 brings back the principal cast, including Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour, Winona Ryder, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Joe Keery, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Noah Schnapp, Maya Hawke, and Sadie Sink. Also back this season is Matthew Modine as Dr. Martin Brenner and Paul Reiser as Sam Owens, both of whom play a key role in Eleven's storyline.
Stranger Things has been a staple show for Netflix since its debut, becoming a global phenomenon. The show hit a snag with the excessively-long delay of the new season, which has been three years in the making. The Duffer Brothers have gone on record saying that Stranger Things season 5 will be the final season of the show, making the current one the penultimate chapter of the saga, which continues to unravel into darker territory. The latest season has seen a deeper dive into Eleven's past, which has conjured a new villain in the form of Vecna, as played by Jamie Campbell Bower.
As the last two episodes of Stranger Things season 4 draw near, The Duffer Brothers told Empire Magazine (via Slash Film) that things won't be wrapping up so neatly this time around. Usually, the final episode of each season of Stranger Things ends on a pleasant, sometimes bittersweet note, with a stinger of what's to come in the next season, but things will be different for season 4. According to The Duffer Brothers, Stranger Things season 4 won't be "tied up with a nice bow" as the events that transpire in the finale will leave things in a place that can't be reset to start over fresh, meaning that the usual happy ending won't be in place. Here's what they had to say:
Volume 2 really takes what we did in Volume 1 and ramps everything up. Usually, at the end of a season, we tie things up with a nice bow, before a little tease that says, 'Hold on, something is unraveling.' As we move into season 5, we don't have to do that. There won't be a reset from where we finish this season.
Fans await the final two episodes of Stranger Things season 4 with bated breath as events have built to a showdown between the band of friends from Hawkins, who have already been to the Upside Down and back again, and the villainous threat of Vecna. The Duffer Brothers have previously said that the Stranger Things season 4 finale feels like "a blockbuster spectacle" that promises to deliver on the emotion and action that's typical of the series' previous finales. One big difference, however, is the runtime of the final episode, which is the longest in the show's history, clocking in at 2 hours and 19 minutes.
With Stranger Things nearing the end, it makes sense that Stranger Things season 4 would be The Empire Strikes Back of the series, leaving things in a turbulent, sad, or unhappy place, taking events to the darkest territory possible. It sets the stage for a big finish that would challenge the characters beyond their usual capabilities and drive the story to an earned finale that will surely be difficult to achieve given how big the fanbase has gotten for the show. It's impossible to please everyone all the time, especially when there are so many to please, but thankfully The Duffer Brothers have stuck to their instincts and continue to craft a show that they're passionate about, which will no doubt lead to a satisfying conclusion to the story they've created with Stranger Things. The final two episodes of Stranger Things season 4 will debut on July 1.
Source: Empire (via Slash Film)