So I just saw the Stranger Things series finale -- on Netflix. Here's a critique -- with spoilers.
The whole ending hinges on El no longer being available to her friends, who in effect are her family. She's either no longer alive -- though we didn't see her die -- or she has deliberately made herself unavailable. Everyone, except Mike, seems to accept that.
But why did El do that? Vecna's dead. Henry is therefore no longer significant. So what's the threat? What is El trying to protect her friends and family from? The U.S. military?
That vicious force, led by Dr. Kay, was already no match for the Hawkins contingent. So El left the people she had come to cherish because of that? I find that hard to believe. I think that El would have found another way.
Perhaps the Duffer brothers intend to make some sort of sequel in which Mike searches for El. He certainly makes clear to his friends that he doesn't think she's gone for good. The Duffer brothers have made clear that they're finished with the 1980s ambience, but they could show Mike and El in the 90s and beyond, or change their mind and revisit the 1980s after all.
The five seasons were a fun ride. As I've said, I thought this fifth and final season really shone. And the finale had its moments. But I can't say that I'm a fan of the way it ended. But also on the strengths of Stranger Things, I'll definitely take a look at anything else the Duffer brothers do.
