By Owen Quinn author Photos copyright Netflix
Dustin fails to warn Nancy thanks to poor signal over the walkie talkie not to fire her rifle at the shield generator but she fires at the flesh wall. And the shit hits the fan.
The Upside Down is a bridge between two worlds and the wall was built by science not magic with a force composed of exotic particles. So wherever the kids and Vecna are, it is not behind the flesh wall. As energy pours through the breach, Hopper, Elle and Kali make it out but Dustin, Steve, Nancy and Jonathan are trapped.
Luckily, Nancy’s shot did not cause a collapse and kill them all. Instead it destabilised the Upside Down and this episode put me in mind of the ending of the House of Wax when it is burning down and melting in huge chunks. It must have been hell to film as the room Nancy and Jonathan are in begins to dissolve.
This is it, I thought. This is who dies first. With no hope and Dustin and Steve unable to get to them, Nancy and Jonathan have a heart to heart about their relationship. It’s beautifully written as they both come to realise that despite their love for each other, they are better apart. How ironic that they are going to die together. Jonathan even produces an engagement ring and asks her not to marry him. It’s nice to see an amicable break up rather than a screaming match and no blame game, even in the face of death. It also humanises our heroes as despite all this madness, it reminds you who they are and what they are fighting for. They are just ordinary people thrown into a mad situation and doing their best to cope with it.
Similarly with Dustin and Steve who is about to risk his life to rescue Nancy and Jonathan. Seeing how quickly, this place is dissolving, Dustin begs him not to. Breaking down, Dustin admits he can’t lose someone else after Eddie. This scene between them hits the heartstrings as we finally see Dustin fall beneath his grief. You always lash out at the ones closest to you and it is played so realistically, it truly hits home.
I really thought this was the episode where we would get our first fatalities but no. The damage is temporary and the Upside Down stabilises again allowing them to live.
Tensions are simmering between Kali and Hopper as he knows in his heart that Elle will never live a normal life. She will always be hunted. Kali is here to stop this cycle from ever happening again. Never again will there be pregnanat women experimented on to create the next Henry. Again, we are teased with the potential death of a major character as many have speculated.
If Vecna has his way, that’s exactly what is going to happen. With Will in a coma and trapped by Vecna for reasons we will discover in the next episode, he locates Max and sends his demidogs to kill her. He cannot find her in his mind so if he kills the body then he will easily retrieve Holly. Holly is a great character as strong and clever as her brother and sister yet vulnerable like a child should be. She and Max make a great team and their journey through Vecna’s memories offers interesting snippets about Henry as a child. We see him trying to help a man in a mine shaft but being shot in the hand for his kindness. He then beats the man’s head in with a rock. I don’t know if this is linked to the play but if so, again I will say that isn’t fair on viewers who will never see the play. This should really be a contained final season, not leaking spin oifs left, right and centre.
Once again, Robin proves her worth when she heads to save Max from the demodogs. We get a great thrill from the build up and again, another death tease as she, Caleb, Max and Vicky are chased by the monsters until saved by one very pissed off Karen Wheeler who blows rhe monsters up. I thought Robin was going to go here as they do a Jurassic Park and hide from the monsters. Caleb has Running Up That Hill to guide Max back. Trapped, Robin tells him he has to turn it off as the demodogs will hear it. If he does, Max will be lost again.
Great tension here but again we avoid a heroic death as both Will and Max make it back to the real world. Will’s bleeding eyes is a creepy sight as Vecna goes to town on him to locate Max.
But I found the Max section of the story the hardest to swallow. She and Holly make it through to their ways back to their portals but instead of running like the clappers, we get a monologue where Max has to convince Holly that she can do this; that she is stronger than she thought and the necklace, given to her by her brother, Mike, is her super power. This does go on a bit as basically the same thing is rrepeated four times. Then they start to walk to the portals to get home. Finally, they break into a run but with the ever present threast of Vecna, running should be a given at all times.
It doesn’t feel as urgent as when Max almost died in the graveyard scene in season four but we at least get Kate Bush back as the screen goies black. We then hear a heart machine before the titles roll. Did Vecna throw one last spanner in the works?
Aside from the prolonged speech from Max, another solid step towards the finale.
The Time Warriors and Beyond 