Warning: major spoilers for Stranger Things season 5.
Stranger Things has officially ended after five seasons, and as complete as the series finale was, it left a couple of plot holes and questions. After dominating Netflix’s charts for years, Stranger Things ended after a nine-year run and five seasons full of action, mystery, horror elements, and 1980s nostalgia.
Stranger Things season 5 is set 18 months after the ending of season 4, and it sees Hawkins under quarantine and taken over by the military, who have also settled a camp in the Upside Down. Meanwhile, the Hawkins crew keeps coming up with elaborate plans to go into the Upside Down and find Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower).
After the reveal of the true origin and nature of the Upside Down, the crew set into motion the ultimate plan to kill Vecna and destroy the Upside Down. The Stranger Things finale saw these two goals achieved, but also Eleven’s (Millie Bobby Brown) sacrifice. Although the final hour of the show was all about the future of the characters, it left some plot holes and questions.
What Happened To Dr. Owens
Stranger Things left some characters behind throughout five seasons, but one that had been an important (even if secondary) presence since season 2 was Dr. Sam Owens (Paul Reiser). Despite being part of Hawkins Lab, Owens was on the side of Eleven and the rest, helping them in seasons 2 and 3, and working with Brenner to restore Eleven’s powers in season 4.
Owens was betrayed by Brenner when Eleven insisted on returning to Hawkins in season 4, and Brenner had his guards chain Owens to a rail inside the Nina Facility. Owens was later found by Colonel Sullivan, who ignored his plea to spare Eleven. Owens wasn’t seen after that, nor did he appear in season 5 or was mentioned, so his fate is unknown.
The Pregnant Women In The Upside Down
One of the biggest surprises inside the base at the Upside Down was Kali, and even more shocking was what she was being used for. When Kali briefly escaped, she ended up in a room where pregnant women were being experimented on. Kali learned that her blood was being transferred to these women to create more children with powers.
After that, the women at the base weren’t acknowledged again, and Stranger Things fully focused on the plan to defeat Vecna. It’s highly likely that these women were never taken out of the base in the Upside Down and died when the bridge was destroyed. Even if they had been evacuated, it’s unlikely they would have fully recovered.
The Tank Full Of Water In The Upside Down
A key part of the final plan to kill Vecna was getting inside his mind, and for that, Eleven needed to go into the sensory deprivation tank… but in the Upside Down. As the bridge was a copy of Hawkins as it was on November 6, 1983, Hawkins Lab in the Upside Down had the tank Eleven needed to set this part of the plan into motion.
The tank in the Upside Down was conveniently ready for use, and it was even filled with water. The problem is that it had been established that there was no water in the Upside Down, with lakes, pools, and more completely dry. For some unknown reason, the tank was full, and the water even looked pretty clean to be in the Upside Down.
The Lack Of Demogorgons & Other Monsters In The Abyss
The reveal of the Upside Down being a bridge to another dimension that the kids decided to refer to as “The Abyss” also explained where the Demogorgons, Demodogs, and more came from. Their real home was the Abyss, which was also the home of the Mindflayer and the land where Henry Creel was banished.
However, when the Hawkins crew made it to the Abyss, there were no Demogorgons and other monsters. Not only would it have made sense to see these creatures in the Abyss, but they would have added an extra layer of action, adventure, suspense, and conflict to a part of the finale that has been criticized for feeling rushed.
What Happened To Dr. Kay After Eleven’s Death
Among season 5’s villains was Dr. Kay (Linda Hamilton), who can be described as Dr. Brenner’s replacement, as she attempted to revive his experiments. Given the casting of Linda Hamilton and Dr. Kay’s position, she was expected to be a real menace and a villain to hate. Unfortunately, Stranger Things didn’t seize Hamilton and her character.
Dr. Kay didn’t have much of a presence throughout season 5 and had very little screen time. Even worse is that Stranger Things didn’t give any closure to her character and story, and after Eleven’s sacrifice, Dr. Kay and her entire team simply disappeared.
Max Graduating With Her Class
Stranger Things ended with a flashforward 18 months after Eleven’s death. Will, Mike, Dustin, Lucas, and Max were preparing for their high school graduation, which was an even more emotional achievement after everything they went through in the last five years. However, the surprise here was that Max graduated with her class.
Max was in a coma for 18 months, and then came the recovery process, which is unclear how long it lasted. Before that, Max wasn’t the best student, so it’s truly surprising that she graduated with her class after missing a year and a half of school. It’s likely that there was some leniency given everything that happened in Hawkins between 1986 and 1988.
What Happened To Murray After The Bridge’s Destruction
One of the most entertaining characters from the Hawkins team was Murray, who went from a journalist to an ally of Joyce, Hopper, and the rest. Murray was key to the group’s plans after Hawkins’ lockdown, and he went into the Upside Down with the rest. Murray made it out of the Upside Down alive, but it’s unknown what happened to him after that.
Murray was last seen at the graduation ceremony, sitting next to Mr. Clarke and cheering on Dustin as he gave his speech. It’s unclear what happened to Murray after that, if he’s living in Hawkins, and what he’s doing for a living now, but he’s most likely doing great.
Joyce & Hopper Not Acknowledging Going To School With Henry Creel
Stranger Things season 5 has strong ties to the prequel stage play The First Shadow, which has caused a lot of confusion and frustrations among fans who are unfamiliar with the prequel. Something that is revealed in the play and briefly shown in season 5 is that Joyce, Hopper, Karen, Ted, Steve’s father, and Eddie’s father went to school with Henry Creel.
Henry was even the star of a school play put together by Joyce, but neither Joyce, Hopper, nor Karen ever acknowledged that Henry Creel was their classmate. While this is being seen as a plot hole, the truth is that Stranger Things never showed them learning that Vecna was Henry Creel, thus there was no reason for having them acknowledge they went to school with Henry.
Eleven’s Fate
Of course, the biggest question left by Stranger Things is whether Eleven is dead or not. It was in part 2 that Kali told Eleven that the only way to truly end the horrors they had been put through was by sacrificing themselves, so Dr. Kay and company can’t make more superpowered children.
Although Eleven agreed to this and was later confronted by Hopper about it, seeing Eleven standing at the gate as the Upside Down was destroyed was heartbreaking. Right at the end of Stranger Things, Mike shares what he knows about Eleven and what he believes truly happened to her.
In short, Kali (whether injured or not, as that could have been an illusion by her) projected a fake Eleven at the gate while the real one escaped. Mike and the rest choose to believe Eleven faked her death and is now living a peaceful life, even if alone.
It’s unclear if this is what truly happened or if it’s just Mike’s way of coping, so it’s up to every viewer to decide what happened to Eleven at the end of Stranger Things.
- Release Date
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2016 – 2025-00-00
- Network
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Netflix
- Showrunner
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Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer
