Stranger Things season 5 debuts with lowest critics' score so far - but fans say otherwise

It's finally here. Volume 1 of Stranger Things 5 was released yesterday (or today if you're in the UK), in what is the start of the show's big three-part finale.

Since the show began back in 2016, it has been one of Netflix's biggest hits - with the previous Season 4 receiving more than 140 million views, or around 1.8bn hours viewed.

So, can the long-awaited final season live up to the hype, or will it go down as another show with a disappointing conclusion?

Well, we won't have that answer until the final episode is released on December 31, 2025... but until then, we can have a look at how Volume 1 is being received.

*Potential spoilers ahead*

Here is a roundup of what critics and viewers are saying about the first four episodes of Stranger Things 5.

How has Season 5 performed compared to previous seasons?

At the time of writing, TV and film review aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes has Stranger Things 5 on there with the critics' score currently sitting at 86 per cent and the audience score at 92 per cent.

• Season 1 has a 97 per cent critics' score and 96 per cent audience score.
• Season 2 has a 94 per cent critics' score and 90 per cent audience score.
• Season 3 has an 89 per cent critics' score and 86 per cent audience score.
• Season 4 has an 89 per cent critics' score and audience score.

What have critics said?

Netflix

All in all, the reviews for Stranger Things 5 have been average to favourable, gaining between 3-4 stars.

The Independent's Nick Hilton gave Volume 1 three stars, writing, "That familiar tone – brisk, upbeat, fun – is maintained throughout these concluding episodes."

He added, "But this final series is also the victim of what I call Marvelisation: a feeling that the drama needs to be set against an interminable fight between humans and extraterrestrials."

"No Stranger Things fan is going away disappointed from these episodes, which leave anticipation for the rest of the season at fever pitch," said BBC's Laura Martin, who gave it four stars.

The Telegraph's Ed Power questioned if the show will follow "long and tragic history of television mega-franchises botching their final chapters" like Game of Thrones or Lost.

"At least on the evidence of the first solid, if not especially spectacular, quartet of episodes of the farewell series, I think we’re going to get a respectable sign off," giving three stars.

“But the enormous stakes come at the expense of the smaller details needed to make them land with appropriate emotional impact," The Hollywood Reporter's Angie Han said.

"More frustrating, however, is the hit to the characters that have always given the show its heart."

In his four-star review, The Guardian's Jack Seale said, "The kids growing up might have changed this show’s appeal, but they manage to go out in a flame-throwing, bullet-dodging blaze of glory – while still being more moving than ever before."

“It’s classic ‘80s adventure fare, in the best way: kids outsmarting adults, lashings of humour and a surprising amount of heart. I gulped it down -- more please," London Standard's Vicky Jessop wrote in her four-star review.

How have viewers reacted on social media?

Since the new season landed, viewers have been sharing their thoughts and reactions online - and they're pretty hyped about the direction the show is going.

One person wrote, "I think this is objectively one of the most badass motherf***ing scenes in the history of Stranger Things. This is MONUMENTAL."

"UNLIMITED CHILLS FOR THE LAST 25MINS OF EPISODE 4 OF STRANGER THINGS 5," a second person said.

A third person asked, "How am I supposed to wait a month for Stranger Things again AFTER THAT."

"Will has powers, 008 is back, Vecna took all the kids, MAX IS ALIVE, Will becoming friends with Robin, military a** kicked, and the Wheeler family parents is on the brink of death. Stranger Things 5 Volume One is bats*** crazy," a fourth person commented.

Another person posted, "THE ENDING OF EPISODE 4 OMFGSSJWHWJWNWNWJENWKWJDKENWKWNWKWNWMWMMWENWJWNWNEKWKWJ."

"The wait between volume 1 and volume 2 is going to be ten times worse than the last three years," someone else shared.

Volume 1 of Stranger Things 5 is now available to watch on Netflix.

Elsewhere from Indy100, Stranger Things actor shocked at how 'sexy' fans think Vecna is, and Stranger Things 5: Every episode the Duffer Brothers recommend re-watching before the final season.

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