On November 26th, the highly anticipated volume one of the fifth season of Netflix’s hit series Stranger Things was released. Millions of viewers tuned in to watch the series, but the streaming service was not able to keep up with the demand, causing the platform to crash. Fans were unable to watch the show due to glitches and frozen screens. Many turned to social media to express their thoughts on this issue, but fortunately, all was fixed within five minutes after the release. One of the creators of the show, Ross Duffer, posted on Instagram that Netflix increased its bandwidth by 30% to try and prevent any crashes from taking place, however this effort clearly proved to be insufficient on release day.
Stranger Things released its first season in 2016. At the time, there was nothing else like it on the streaming platform. Within the first month of its release, the series accumulated around 21.7 million views for the first season, making it the second-highest streamed show that came out that year. Millions of people were able to watch and connect with the characters, which is how it grew to become what it is today. The next season was released just about a year after the first came out. About 15.8 million Americans watched the season in the first three days; this season went on to break various records previously set by season one. It took two years for the next season to be released, and eager fans were excited for new characters and the return of their favorite series. Once again, Netflix records were broken, and the show was extended for another season. The fourth run of Stranger Things shattered records—such as the biggest streaming debut for any show on Netflix. It took another three years for season five to be released, already debuting at #1 after just one day, and it is expected to break all previous records held by the other seasons once all volumes are released.
Every season of Stranger Things has a main antagonist used against the main cast. Season one started everything off with the Demogorgon, followed by the Demodogs in season two, described to be the adolescent stage of becoming Demogorgons. The Mind Flayer was introduced in season three as the strongest villain yet. Now, in seasons four and five, Vecna has been fighting against the main cast; he is shown to be the creator of the Upside Down and the controller of all the previous villains in the other seasons.
Season five, being the last season of Stranger Things, means that the show ran for a total of nine years. People watching the show from the very beginning have grown up with the series, lasting almost a decade. Viewers were also able to see the cast grow up with the show. The protagonist, Eleven, is played by British actress Millie Bobby Brown. She started the show at age 11; now, in season five, she is 21. Stranger Things has come and gone throughout the years, but soon it will all be over with the final episodes coming out soon. Volume two comes out on December 25th, and volume three is released on December 31st.
With the first four episodes of the new season being released on November 26th, unexpected twists and turns have already taken place, leaving viewers eager to see what happens next. People are going on social media to predict what could happen next to their favorite characters. Cast members have expressed contentment with the endings that are in place for their respective characters, and they seem to be pleased with the outcome of the show as a whole. With about a month until the next volume comes out, anticipation continues to grow over what might happen next to conclude a show that has been here for close to a decade.
