Warning: This article contains Major Spoilers for Stranger Things Season 4!
The season finale of Stranger Things Season 4 was so highly anticipated that it actually crashed Netflix (per Variety). Now that the thrilling and emotional season has concluded, fans are already raising questions about where the horror sci-fi phenomenon will go from here. The season finale continued the dark trend the season had established in Volume 1, and landed the characters in dire, uncertain circumstances.
Hopefully, the wait won't be as long as it was for season 4, which had productions halted due to the pandemic. Given the scale of the show and how it continues to grow each season, it is safe to assume Season 5 won't be here for at least a year. This gives fans ample time to discuss the potential outcomes for their favorite characters. The Stranger Things subreddit has some theories that seem pretty plausible, and some that are outlandish, but are still fun to consider.
Max's Soul
A huge plot point of this season's finale is the fate of Max. With her body currently in a coma, and severely injured, her future is very unclear. The state of Max's mind, and soul, are unknown. Redditor u/chilicheesedoggo believes that “Eleven is going to have to go into Henry's mind to get Max's soul back.“
User u/ezra88 agrees that Max isn't truly "gone." "When he killed all the kids at the lab, (Henry) literally said, "They aren't gone, Eleven, they are right here, with me," as he tapped his head. So my guess is that yes, El will have to go there and grab Max." It is possible that El will journey into Vecna's mind to save Max.
Vecna's Clock
The Creel's grandfather clock has made multiple appearances. In the final episode, it is reiterated that the clock striking 4 times symbolized Vecna's plans. This led fans to make predictions on just how important this clock is. User u/strangerwill thinks "it's a tool he uses to see both the past and the future."
They make their case that the clock helps him know the future. "Vecna's dialog always implied that he was overconfident, saying things like "you can't stop this now," "you have already lost," "this is the beginning of the end," and "there is nothing, nothing you can do to stop this now." It all makes me think that he knows the future, just like he showed Nancy."
New Upside Down Monsters
When Steve, Robin, Nancy, and Eddie are in the Upside Down at Skull Rock, they can hear the wails of a creature, and it doesn't sound like a Demogorgon or DemoBat. It also causes the ground to shake, creating a small earthquake.
The sound makes another appearance "when the kids experience the second earthquake going up the stairs in episode 9. If it's a giant monster like Nancy was saying, I think it's what was causing all those earthquakes in the Upside Down, and that we are about to see it in season 5," u/strangerwill claims.
Will's Connection To Vecna
Will has had a connection to the Mind Flayer since he escaped the Upside Down. He can sense his presence, and even has a feeling of what its intentions are. The mental connection possibly goes both ways, so fans think Vecna may intend to use Will's body to enter our world for good.
"Will said that the Mind Flayer wanted to kill everyone but him. He doesn't want to harm Will, and I think that goes against everything Henry has been saying." According to u/strangerwill, "He simply doesn't want to kill him because he has been wanting a body to use ever since he has been banished to that alternate dimension"
Consuming Max Will Be Vecna's Downfall
Some fans have hope that Max will be able to fight Vecna from her suspended state. User u/strangerwill predicts "Vecna consuming Max might actually be his undoing. Perhaps the essence of the victims he's consumed, led by Max, will be able to do something to Vecna from within, rendering him vulnerable."
Unlike his other victims, Max still has a living, breathing body. Optimistic fans like u/beastboi27 consider that gave Max, "some leverage to roam around inside Vecna's memories and it's possible she will encounter the other victims and free them and they form a group and come up with a plan to destroy Vecna from within and then she will be able to wake up from her coma."
Hawkins Becomes A War Zone
As seen in the finale, the Upside Down has finally made a crossover into this reality. While the news is blaming the giant cracks in the ground and raining ash on an earthquake, others are bound to realize this is more than that. After spending the last 4 seasons being the sole defenders of this world from the horrors of the Upside Down, the Hawkins heroes may finally have support from the military.
User u/nexuspatriot suggests "The US government quarantines Hawkins, and begins to deploy military forces to combat The Upside Down. Enter Sullivan. Realizing his hubris almost doomed civilization with wanting to kill Eleven, he seeks out Owens’ help in finding her. Owens says they’re gonna need a lot more than just her. CIA is deployed to track down all surviving subjects of MKUltra. The militaries of the world led by Eleven and other experiments begin a full invasion of the Upside Down."
Jancy/Stancy Love Triangle
The romances of Stranger Things have always taken a backseat to the world-ending threats, but alas, they are still an important emotional tie to the characters. Nancy's relationships with Jonathan and Steve have had ups and downs throughout the series, and fans believe their triangle will finally come to an end in the final season.
With Jonathan never telling Nancy the truth about his intentions to not go to the same college as her, u/epicbanana05 thinks "Jonathan’s dishonesty will separate him and Nancy, however it will be a respectful breakup and not an anger-driven one." Even though many fans predict not all three will make it out of the series alive, some have ideas for Steve and Nancy's future. u/epicbanana05 predicts "him and Nancy will end up working alongside the government in some way."
Max As A Puppet
The villains have been known to use people as vessels to commit their evil deeds, as previously seen with Billy and Will. Fans think it is possible that Max will be the next host of an Upside Down villain to terrorize the crew. Narratively it would fit in with how Vecna has moved before, Max could be a very disturbing antagonist, and the show is known for having good villains.
User u/kevinr1990 imagines a characterization of a made-over "Max" antagonizing her friends. "Vecna!Max in a power suit with big shoulder pads and bigger hair, like an ‘80s soap opera villainess. Also, it would put a dark twist on Max’s favorite song. “Running Up That Hill” is about wishing to swap bodies with a man so they could both experience what it’s like to be the opposite sex. Well, Max is now getting a firsthand taste of that."
Henry Creel Is El's Bio Dad
The Duffer Brothers have already given Eleven's bio dad a name, Andrew Rich, but not much else is known about him. It could turn out that her parentage never comes into play, or it could be retconned. This reveal would give Eleven and Vecna a Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader dynamic that could be interesting.
User u/kevinr1990 details the possibility, "Doing some quick math, if Henry Creel was 11 in 1959, that means he was around 31 years old during his showdown with El at Hawkin's lab, when she blasted him into the Upside Down. El was 9 when this happened, so it's totally plausible from a sheer timeline/age standpoint that Henry Creel could be Eleven's biological father."
Final Big Bad Monster
Each season has had a Big Bad in the form of a monster that they name as a Dungeons & Dragons villain. In order to better understand what they are fighting, the kids make connections between certain monsters and the Upside Down monsters. Fans predict the biggest and baddest for the final season.
It may have been foreshadowed with Will's painting for Mike depicting them fighting a 3-headed dragon. "What if we are yet to see Vecna’s final form?" u/borgenschatz wonders. "DnD lore describes some creatures that resemble the one in Will’s drawing including Tiamat, Thesselhydra, The Tarrasque." These particular monsters could fit the description that Nancy saw of the future, and Will's painting.