Netflix Officially Made Two Stranger Things Finale Mistakes Way Worse

The release of the first full trailer for Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 proves that the Stranger Things spinoff is making not one, but two major mistakes that will hurt the franchise in the long run. The Stranger Things finale disappointed many fans of the Netflix series, although some defended the conclusion’s controversial choices.

For every viewer who bought into the Stranger Things finale conspiracy theory #ConformityGate, thinking there was a secret second do-over ending on the way in a few days, there was a defender who thought the show’s imperfect ending had its good qualities. The bittersweet tone of the final scene earned particular praise.

That said, there was no hiding the show’s issues. The Stranger Things finale missed one of its coolest moments despite building up to this scene throughout season 5 when Eleven’s climatic jump into Vecna’s lair took place offscreen. Similarly, many iconic characters were outright forgotten in the rushed wrap-up of the finale’s ending.

Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 Is Arriving Too Soon

Some viewers may hope that the upcoming animated spinoff, Stranger Things: Tales from ’85, will fix these issues. Set between seasons 2 and 3, Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 will bring back El, Mike, Max, Dustin, and Lucas in a more family-friendly adventure. The series premieres on April 23 and is set to also feature Steve and Hopper.

Odessa A’zion, Lou Diamond Phillips, and Janeane Garofalo are among the star-studded supporting cast, meaning Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 certainly doesn’t suffer from a shortage of star power. However, the series does have one major issue that has nothing to do with its plot, characters, or setting. The spinoff is arriving far too soon.

While believers in #ConformityGate might have wanted more Stranger Things content as soon as humanly possible, this is only because they thought new episodes would undo the ending they didn’t like. Now that it’s clear that the finale is canon, releasing a spinoff only a few weeks after the ending smacks of desperation.

Only a few months after Stranger Things killed off Eleven, the franchise has already brought back a recast version of her, Hopper, and Mike to revisit a familiar storyline viewers have already seen before. While spinoffs can bring back a few familiar faces, relying on the same main characters so soon after the show's ending is a bad sign.

Bringing back all the main characters only a few months after the finale saps the big goodbyes of their emotional weight, since it now feels like Stranger Things never really ended after all. Meanwhile, the story of this new series only makes matters worse.

Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 Revives Two Tired Plots

The trailer for Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 finally gives viewers a solid idea of the show’s story, and anyone hoping for Stranger Things to undo its worst breakup will be disappointed. Instead of exploring some of season 4 and 5’s underdeveloped new characters like Suzie, Eddie, and Vickie in more depth, Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 retreads more familiar ground.

Steve’s infatuation with Nancy and Hopper’s overprotective dad act, which gets between El and Mike, are the two main subplots seen in the trailer. Not only were both of these plots already overdone in the series itself, but both are now also totally devoid of tension, since viewers now know how they ultimately end anyway.

It is no longer cute to see Hopper bully Mike about hanging around with Eleven when viewers know that, only a year or two later, Mike will lose the love of his life forever. Similarly, knowing that the love triangle between Nancy, Steve, and underrated Stranger Things supporting star Jonathan fizzles out in season 5 makes that plot redundant.

Netflix’s Stranger Things Mistakes Highlight The Franchise’s Biggest Problem

It is hard to see how Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 could justify dredging up these two tired storylines, especially when season 3’s events already locked in the show’s timeline. For instance, Mike and Hopper can’t have a heart-to-heart where Mike promises to treat Hopper’s adopted daughter with respect.

After all, viewers already know that Hopper continues to take his struggles with El’s developing independence out on Mike throughout season 3. Similarly, Steve can’t end up with Nancy, and he can’t get over her, either, since viewers know he still holds a candle for her as late as season 4’s ending.

All these issues point to the bigger problem with Stranger Things: Tales from ’85, which is that the show is an interequel instead of a true spinoff. To play things as safely as possible, the creators of Stranger Things avoided a traditional spinoff and instead brought back the same specific characters in the same setting during the same time period.

Since Kali’s episode flopped nine years ago, way back in 2017, Stranger Things has never had any idea how to expand its world beyond Hawkins. Now, Stranger Things: Tale from ’85’s trailer proves Stranger Things may not even explore any new ideas within that limited milieu.