Stranger Things return gives some critics chills and thrills, but leaves others lukewarm

The first half of the final season of Stranger Things has been released to viewers, and many critics have praised the return of the popular Netflix series; however, others said the season was past its best.

Ed Potton wrote that the first four episodes of season 5 were “highly entertaining stuff, full of appropriate stakes and emotion”. Times.

Another four-star write-up by Jack Seale protector“You’ll stand on a chair and scream with joy in this luxurious final run,” he said.

But not everyone was so enthusiastic. According to him, the show “alternates between exciting and frustrating” USA TodayKelly Lawler is Atlantic‘s Sophie Gilbert described much of it as “largely joyless and grim”.

Netflix briefly crashed when four new episodes were released in the US on Wednesday and early Thursday in the UK. streaming service he told Variety Normal service was resumed within five minutes.

Three more episodes will air over Christmas, with the finale set for New Year’s.

As the hugely popular sci-fi series nears its climax, the end may also be near for the brave residents of Hawkins, Indiana, as a showdown between the (now mature) young heroes and the villainous Vecna ​​looms.

“This is the classic ’80s adventure movie at its best: kids outsmarting adults, whiplash humor and surprising heart.” StandardVicky Jessop gushed. “I swallowed it, some more please.”

The Times added: “Volume one does not rewrite the manual, but why would you want that?”

EmpireLeila Latif’s four-star review said it “remains a show that knows exactly what it is and reminds us that youth can be precious but growing old can still be exciting.”

He wrote: “All the trademark elements are intact: dark humour, weirdness, trauma poetry and hard-earned resilience. Most reassuring is how quickly the show proves it hasn’t lost its sense of fun.”

“Bombastic” is the fourth episode, according to Stranger Things “at its best.” BBC CultureLaura Martin.

“It’s exciting; and if this is a harbinger of how the Duffer Brothers plan to wrap up the series… then viewers are in for an all-time great TV finale.”

Inside TelegramA three-star review by Ed Power wrote that Stranger Things “remains the ultimate in viewing comfort.”

“For now, despite a somewhat slow start, the signs are promising that the game will be better than Game of Thrones and deliver a send-off that lives up to audience expectations,” he said.

The Guardian also made some warnings in its positive review.

“Stranger Things definitely needs to turn off the stereo, put away the catapults, and admit it’s too old for these capers, but it’s worth one last indulgence,” Seale wrote.

The show’s fifth season had a healthy 86% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of this writing, but some critics weren’t exactly thrilled.

Sam Adams said, “The cast keeps growing, but the show doesn’t.” Slate.

“It’s not just Hawkins who feels disconnected from the world. It’s Stranger Things itself, a series now sealed in an airless, impenetrable bubble of static characters and wheezy information.”

Others also noted the advancing ages of the main characters.

Hollywood Reporter‘s Angie Han said: “It’s time to let these teenagers do what teenagers are supposed to do: grow up and move on with the rest of their lives.”

Diversity‘s Alison Herman wrote: “By refusing to enrich its characters as they grow older, Stranger Things locks itself into arrested development. When you grow without delving deeper, you end up weakened.”

Independent WireBen Travers explained that the fifth season “leaves you wanting less”. Cow‘s Michael Walsh agreed that less could be more.

“The beginning of Stranger Things 5 ​​is overwhelming,” he wrote. “Very, very much.

“While very few parts of these overlong four episodes are downright bad on their own (with one major exception), too much story, too many characters, and too many convoluted/intricate developments prevent Volume One from being great.”

The next three episodes will air on Christmas Day in the US and Boxing Day in the UK, with the finale airing on New Year’s Eve in the US and New Year’s Day in the UK.