The Stranger Things Wishlist: What We Want To Happen

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

I don't say this because I want bad things to happen to him, but I predict that One/Vecna will possess Will - in S5 - so that he can 'exist' in the normal world.  He's already basically done it already, as the "Mind Flayer", so it wouldn't be all that big of a stretch to imagine as a possibility.

Unless the opening of the portals all throughout Hawkins means his Upside Down!body can & will exist in the normal world after he recovers, then nvm the above.

[memememe76]

I want: 

- all of the parents, especially Karen, to get more involved in the inevitable battle. This is where Joyce and Hopper can play a bigger role. 
- my late 80s touchstones being referenced: Milli Vanilli, Def Leppard, B-52s, the use of Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” would be so iconic

- a better haircut for Will

- Joyce going all Melanie Griffith from The Working Girl or Diane Keaton from Baby Boom, opening her own business or running for Mayor

- Heathers reference!!!! It’s time, hire Christian Slater as the main villain for season five

- Argyle, Steve, Jonathan and Robin working at a music store that sells something called Compact Discs. 

[Brn2bwild]

2 hours ago, memememe76 said:

I want: 

- all of the parents, especially Karen, to get more involved in the inevitable battle. This is where Joyce and Hopper can play a bigger role. 

I would laugh if it turned out Nancy and Mike's dad had experience with the Creels or the Upside Down and never told anyone because "no one ever asked."

[QuantumMechanic]

2 hours ago, Brn2bwild said:

I would laugh if it turned out Nancy and Mike's dad had experience with the Creels or the Upside Down and never told anyone because "no one ever asked."

“One thing about living in Santa Carla I could never stomach — all the damned vampires.”

[TwoBitUsherette]

There are so many things that I want for the final season, but one of the biggest things for now is no more new characters. If all we have left is eight episodes, I don't want to spend valuable time devoted to getting to know yet another side character who'll ultimately get killed off.

I want whatever time we have dedicated to people that we already know and are invested in - that includes the mains and side characters like Mr. Clarke, El's mother and aunt, or even Kali.

And if the Duffers feel they need more canon fodder to kill off, dip into the archives and bring back James and Troy from season one or even Steve's douchebag friends.

[memememe76]

Yes, the show has a large enough back catalogue of dislikable characters who can return to the season. I can see Billy’s dad coming back and wrecking havoc on Max’s recovery. 

[blueray]

I saw a rumor about a time jump for season 5. I hope not. This will mess up the flow of the show. It should pick up from where season 4 ended. It is okay that they look "older". All the characters are playing teens now. Expect for Erika but I think they can figure out how to to just ignore that. 

[Redrum]

Yeah, still no problem with my preferred scenario of Mulder and Scully debating whether it happened. Maybe the LoneGunmen should be looking for El?

[festivus]

I'm fine with a time jump. I think you could have the gang staying there in Hawkins, monitoring the situation and killing the occasional demigorgon that gets through, while Vecna is hiding and licking his wounds and trying to build himself back up.

My wish is since they are all back together now, that they stay that way. I want to see them together as a group taking on Vecna in the final showdown throughout the whole season. No splitting everyone up until the last episode.

[bettername2come]

Ok, I want the show to confirm this suspicion I have - Henry/One/Vecna tried the same manipulative tactics on Eight/Kali and that's when she escaped. They did have a certain similarity in training El to use her powers by focusing in on negative emotions. 

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

A few of my wants for Season 5 are;

-  Just once, it'd be nice to see the Wheeler patriarch be something other than useless.  He makes a great La-Z-Boy advert, but not much else.

-  They need to bring back Mr Clarke.  I missed him this past season.

-  Something for Will to do, or at least involve him more in the plot.  He was seriously sidelined for the vast majority of S4.  Would be nice to see that he has had or developed powers/abilities, even if only very limited, other than just being a HC/O/V & Mind Flayer,etc human radar alert system.

[Taryn74]

2 hours ago, bettername2come said:

Ok, I want the show to confirm this suspicion I have - Henry/One/Vecna tried the same manipulative tactics on Eight/Kali and that's when she escaped. They did have a certain similarity in training El to use her powers by focusing in on negative emotions. 

Totally with you!

[Brn2bwild]

I'd like to see Victor Creel come back and maybe be part of the solution to destroying Vecna once and for all.  There has to be a reason he's still alive, when Vecna could have easily finished him off at any time, and why Vecna kept playing "Dream a Little Dream," his father's song.  Maybe he has some latent affection for his father, a desire for a connection with him.  

[Enero]

20 hours ago, blueray said:

I saw a rumor about a time jump for season 5. I hope not. This will mess up the flow of the show. It should pick up from where season 4 ended. It is okay that they look "older". All the characters are playing teens now. Expect for Erika but I think they can figure out how to to just ignore that. 

If it's going to take them another two years to release the next season, then they need to do a time jump. The kids were still able to pass as high schoolers this season, but I think that's going to get harder to do as the actors get older, even by a couple of years. I'm fine with a time jump as long as it's no more than a a year or two. 

16 hours ago, iRarelyWatchTV36 said:

-  Something for Will to do, or at least involve him more in the plot.  He was seriously sidelined for the vast majority of S4.  Would be nice to see that he has had or developed powers/abilities, even if only very limited, other than just being a HC/O/V & Mind Flayer,etc human radar alert system.

I want this so much. I was reading that the Duffer Brothers are saying that Will, will come full circle in the final season. I hope full circle does not mean he will be possessed by the Mind Flayer again. I do not want to see him victimized again. I'd like to see him be able to fight back, but also be an asset to the the team. What better way for that to happen than for him to have developed some type of mind control ability which he can use against Vecna. 

My other wish, like I stated in the episode thread, I'd like to El to be able to put up a real fight against Vecna. Perhaps they can bring back Dr. Owens to help her gain strength. I'd like a real back and forth between her and Vecna where he is shaken by her power. The big powerful moment where she stretches out her hands while screaming to the high heavens as she takes down her opponent is always cool to see, but is not how the final battle with Vecna should be. Or rather it shouldn't be that way until they've at least had a real fight where the audience is unsure who will win. 

Lastly, I hope the episodes aren't as bloated as this season. They don't need an hour + to tell the story of each episode and they don't need 2+ hours for the finale. I believe they can keep the story tight by avoiding throwaway scenes (and arcs) and making each minute count towards the overall story arc. 

[Taryn74]

I hope next season we get a Lost Boys reference (unless there's no time jump at all). Lost Boys came out in '87 so we're finally getting to the point where it would be appropriate, and the entire storyline of a bunch of kids fighting the supernatural baddies with very elaborate schemes which should not work but do, while the parents are oblivious, is a nod to that great classic IMO.

[Hotel Snarker]

2 hours ago, Taryn74 said:

I hope next season we get a Lost Boys reference (unless there's no time jump at all). Lost Boys came out in '87 so we're finally getting to the point where it would be appropriate, and the entire storyline of a bunch of kids fighting the supernatural baddies with very elaborate schemes which should not work but do, while the parents are oblivious, is a nod to that great classic IMO.

I suggest that they use Gerard McMahon’s “Cry Little Sister”, the movie’s theme song, sometime in Season 5. Cry Little Sister rocks!

[blueray]

2 hours ago, Taryn74 said:

I hope next season we get a Lost Boys reference (unless there's no time jump at all). Lost Boys came out in '87 so we're finally getting to the point where it would be appropriate, and the entire storyline of a bunch of kids fighting the supernatural baddies with very elaborate schemes which should not work but do, while the parents are oblivious, is a nod to that great classic IMO.

Someone either on here (or on reddit) had a funny idea that Mr. Wheeler would get a line similar to the grandfather's where he knew it all along but nobody asked him lol. 

[Ellaria]

What I want for S5...

1. Keep the characters together for the majority of the season. This show is at its best when these wonderful, quirky characters are fighting evil together.
2. I want The Duffers to tell the story that they have planned. I don't want them to make plot choices based on what they think their viewers want, including what characters may die. 
3. Shorter episodes even if it means more episodes.
4. A new haircut for Will. 
5. Jonathan's renewed interest in photography. He was a lot more interesting in the earlier seasons.
6. No more bullies in Hawkins. (I'm overly protective of these kids.)

[bunnyblue]

My wishes for next season:

• No more new characters. FFS there are about 3 dozen established characters already, work with what you got, Duffers!
• Since Joyce sold her house in Hawkins, I want Joyce, Hopper, El, Will, and Jonathan to all live in Hopper's tiny cabin and let hijinks ensue. Also I just want to see some nice blended family scenes.
• More involvement from the other parents. The Upside Down has ripped a hole in Hawkins, there's no way the other parents can remain oblivious to what is going on with their kids. 
• Owens to convince Sullivan that El is not a threat and that the military must help prevent the Upside Down from spreading beyond Hawkins. I love our core group, but this is now way beyond their capabilities.
• Hopper to resume being Chief of Police. Powell is a nice guy but he seems in over his head with the supernatural stuff, plus I just want to see Jim in that uniform again.
• Nancy to "choose herself" by season's end.  I don't think she's into Steve or Jonathan as much as they are into her, and that's okay. They're all so young, they don't need to be making lifelong commitments now. I want Nancy to part on good terms with both guys, but let her go off to college because clearly she has goals that go beyond romantic relationships.
• I hope Jonathan stops feeling like he has to be Joyce & Will's protector. He needs to let them go and live his life for himself. What happened to wanting to go to NYU?
• Will, please stop crying all the damn time. 
• A 10 episode season, but with shorter runtimes. Tighten up those episode, Duffers.
• ETA: I don't care how cheesy it may be, I want a flashforward montage where we see the main characters in the future. All the kids should be in their 50's in 2024 (or whenever season 5 airs), so I want to see how their lives turned out. I also want to see old-ass Hopper & Joyce sitting on rocking chairs on a porch surrounded by grandkids & great grandkids. Like I said: cheese galore!

Edited July 6, 2022 by bunnyblue

[Taryn74]

1 hour ago, bunnyblue said:

Since Joyce sold her house in Hawkins, I want Joyce, Hopper, El, Will, and Jonathan to all live in Hopper's tiny cabin and let hijinks ensue. Also I just want to see some nice blended family scenes.

I kind of figured Hopper would have to move out to California with them, or they would all have to move somewhere new, even though that would mean splitting up the core group yet again. I just can't think of a way they can explain away Hopper's Not!Death since he was supposed to have died in a fire at the mall and has been gone for almost a year.

[Nashville]

On 7/4/2022 at 2:48 PM, Redrum said:

Yeah, still no problem with my preferred scenario of Mulder and Scully debating whether it happened. Maybe the LoneGunmen should be looking for El?

Just be glad Brenner didn’t smoke.

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

Since we've made it through 4 full seasons for the main core of characters, and 2 or 3 for the main additions, lets have everyone (in the main group) survive the series finale  [assuming S5 is really it].

I'm not looking forward to getting attached to someone for a good chunk of a season and losing them, ala Barb (s1), Bob (s2), Alexei (s3) & Eddie (s4), but stick with the formula to finish things off, is I guess what I'm saying.

If they kill any of the main cast in the final season, it'll feel like nothing more than a "we had to do it for the shock value!!!!!!!!" move.

Edited July 7, 2022 by iRarelyWatchTV36

[Dev F]

So I was thinking about how a frustrating aspect of Will's storyline is the fact that he's dealing with his sexuality in a vacuum: there are no other gay male characters, and it's awfully late in the game to suddenly introduce a new kid as Will's love interest or whatever. Then it occurred to me that there is another established young male character who's very likely gay, and from that I realized something I'd like to see in season 5. . . .

For the final season, a lot of people are expecting Will to come full circle in the sense that he'll be taken over by Vecna again, or kidnapped into the Upside Down again, but my hope is that "full circle" will mean exactly the opposite of that: Will as the one who finds the lost boy, reaching out to whatever is left of young Henry within Vecna's Mind Lair, helping him come to terms with the "sensitive boy" he could have been as Will himself comes to terms with who he is, and turning Henry into a spy inside Vecna's own head.

[ch1]

I would like to see Will central to the Hawkins plot.  Not in a human alarm way like in S3 or the victim needing saving like S2 and S3 but in a way where El needs him to ultimately end Vecna and the UD.  I would like it if Will’s “we’ll fix it together” that he said to El when the bully destroyed her project to be forshadowing.

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

6 hours ago, ch1 said:

I would like to see Will central to the Hawkins plot.  Not in a human alarm way like in S3 or the victim needing saving like S2 and S3 but in a way where El needs him to ultimately end Vecna and the UD.  I would like it if Will’s “we’ll fix it together” that he said to El when the bully destroyed her project to be forshadowing.

Fully agree.

I know the series is about more than just one person or storyline, but it will feel 'wrong' if Will isn't a very essential part of the final battle against HC/O/V.  I mean, the whole series - especially the first two seasons - started with the majority of the main cast tightly circling his orbit because of what happened to him in and because of the UD.  Hell, the very first episode was pretty much dedicated to the character - title and all - even with as little actual screen time he was in it.

And I would like to see him develop - or has had since S1, or even born with - powers.  Doesn't have to be as OP'd as El and Vecna, but still have abilities nonetheless.  While being able to sense HC/O/V's presence and thoughts/feelings is indeed helpful and advantageous, its not really something he can take the fight to a powered villain with.

Edited July 12, 2022 by iRarelyWatchTV36

[manute]

One thing I love about Stranger Things is the bravery and resilience of the children and teens.  Like good children's and young adult literature, the adults are useless for the most part and the kids win the day.  I'm already obsessing about Season 5.  What are you looking for?

What happens to Hawkins?

Does the government leave Eleven alone?

How do the valiant children and teens deal with Vechna?

Does Max recover?

Is Papa really dead this time?

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

What happens to Hawkins? 

Could be a few things.  They could finish Vecna off and then just abandon it as it is, or somehow fix all the massive damage and forever seal off all the portals to the UD for good.

Does the government leave Eleven alone?

Depends on if the final battle with Vecna leaves her without her powers/abilities or not.  If it does, then yes.  If not, then probably & most likely no.

How do the valiant children and teens deal with Vecna?

Have Eleven do the most damage with her powers - hopefully with Will's (and his newly discovered powers) help! - and then finish him off completely as a whole group.

Does Max recover?

I see no reason to 'save' her (physical body) at the end of last season if just going to officially kill her off in the final season, so yes.

Is Papa really dead this time?

Hopefully, but that dude is giving cats a run for their money with that 9 lives thing he seems have going on.

Edited July 16, 2022 by iRarelyWatchTV36

[Rankles]

Brenner is definitely a goner imo, don’t think there was too much ambiguity there. Not sure about Owens though.

I’m thinking that maybe Max’s consciousness is inside Vecna and she can fight him from within. We definitely need to have a big moment for Will after all the crap he’s been through.

Eleven will probably either end the series without her powers or sacrifice herself to save the day.

[manute]

I love the theories.  I read an article about Matthew Modine (Papa) and he said he hoped to be back.  He also said that the Duffer brothers had not begun writing for season 5.  

[Nashville]

2 hours ago, manute said:

I love the theories.  I read an article about Matthew Modine (Papa) and he said he hoped to be back.  He also said that the Duffer brothers had not begun writing for season 5.  

Modine will be back - in flashbacks, at the very least.

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

On 7/16/2022 at 1:58 PM, Rankles said:

Brenner is definitely a goner imo, don’t think there was too much ambiguity there. Not sure about Owens though.

I would completely agree with this, but we saw him supposedly being very much in the process of getting his face (and/or whole head) chewed off by the demogorgon towards the end of S1, but he was back with barely any scarring in S4.

[manute]

I agree that the demogorgon attack on Papa in season 1 should have been fatal.  Then in season 2, the guy that worked with Papa and zapped Eleven's mom swore that Papa was still alive.  So, it seems we just have to accept that Papa survived the attack.

[Rankles]

Not too bothered about the Demogorgon not killing Brenner. We only saw it leap on him before it quickly cut to another scene. There were several of his men firing at it at the time, so it probably turned its attention to them pretty quickly.

[manute]

True, Rankles.  There were a number of military shooting at the demogorgon, so its attention was diverted from Papa.

[iRarelyWatchTV36]

I wouldn't mind him being dead - not at all - but until I see his cold dead corpse on a morgue slab, I'm not writing off Brenner's ability to 'cheat' death again.

(or, iow, 'hedging my bets')

[Chicago Redshirt]

In no particular order:

What is every character's equivalent of "Running Up That Hill" theme music to keep them safe from Vecna?

How did Papa find out about Vecna? How did he figure out how to "chip" Vecna, and why did he actually do it? Why did he leave Vecna in the middle of the kids? Was there a particular thing that caused him to have Vecna shocked?

What kept Vecna from moving in person before now?

I think the answer speaks for itself, but Is Will gay/ace/shy or what?

What will be the reactions of the non-Joyce, non-Hopper parents (and the world at large) now that all the crazy is out in the open?

I don't really want to spend much more time on Russia-related stuff of any stripe, but I think they should explain how the Russians became aware of what was going on in Hawkins, set up their own bae in Russia, whether there's a Russian-Upside Down, etc.

What happened to No. 8?

Will Barb ever get justice?

What is the deal with Angry Black General guy, and with what happened in Hawkins, is he going to finally give up on blaming El for everything? If not, what sort of gruesome death will he suffer?

Is Argyle going to have to answer for taking the pizza van across country?

Will Susie come to Dustin's aid? 

Will we see/have developments with any of the other members of the Hellfire Club/the basketball jocks?

[janie jones]

15 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

What is every character's equivalent of "Running Up That Hill" theme music to keep them safe from Vecna?

I think Will's would be Should I Stay or Should I Go, not that I want to hear it 100,000 times like we did in the first season. (Or was it the second?)

[Sarah 103]

19 hours ago, Chicago Redshirt said:

What will be the reactions of the non-Joyce, non-Hopper parents (and the world at large) now that all the crazy is out in the open?

I am not sure if this is true. Are they on a fault line? Do they ever have earthquakes in that region? If an earthquake is rare but within the norm/edge of possibility, most people are going to think earthquake, not crazy supernatural event.  

[Chicago Redshirt]

11 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

I am not sure if this is true. Are they on a fault line? Do they ever have earthquakes in that region? If an earthquake is rare but within the norm/edge of possibility, most people are going to think earthquake, not crazy supernatural event.  

Maybe I am naive, because there have certainly been outward manifestations of stuff in Hawkins that got explained away like the dead crops when there were things growing in the fields a couple seasons back, or the giant-ass Mind Flayer and mall destruction. 

But between the glowing faultlines and earthquake where there shouldn't realistically be one (no known fault lines in the Midwest), and the strange otherworldly ash, it's a phenomenon that can't really be ignored. And there seems to me anyway that both our government and our heroes have less incentive to try to cover this stuff up.

[Hotel Snarker]

23 hours ago, janie jones said:

I think Will's would be Should I Stay or Should I Go, not that I want to hear it 100,000 times like we did in the first season. (Or was it the second?)

Dustin’s would definitely be “Neverending Story”.

[bettername2come]

23 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

I am not sure if this is true. Are they on a fault line? Do they ever have earthquakes in that region? If an earthquake is rare but within the norm/edge of possibility, most people are going to think earthquake, not crazy supernatural event.  

So depending on the exact location of "80 miles from Indianapolis" an earthquake doesn't look entirely out of the question, although the severity is a lot worse than could be expected as the worst real earthquake in Indiana was a 5.1, compared to Hawkins 7.4.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1909_Wabash_River_earthquake

https://www.wired.com/2008/10/five-us-earthqu/

To make this post relevant to the actual wish topic, since season 5 is supposed to have more focus on the season 1 main cast, I would like to see this balanced by giving minor but significant roles to some of the non-Hawkins characters in preparation for a final showdown. Suzie's hacking something in Utah, Enzo is fighting a demogorgon in Russia, Kali's waging a psychic attack on Vecna from Chicago. 

Edited July 21, 2022 by bettername2come

[bijoux]

On 7/3/2022 at 6:58 AM, Brn2bwild said:

I would laugh if it turned out Nancy and Mike's dad had experience with the Creels or the Upside Down and never told anyone because "no one ever asked."

Or because he's a patriot.

On 7/19/2022 at 11:57 PM, janie jones said:

I think Will's would be Should I Stay or Should I Go, not that I want to hear it 100,000 times like we did in the first season. (Or was it the second?)

First.

I can't believe everyone is slamming on Will's hair when we all saw Mike's mess this season.

What I want to see:

- ending the Steve/Nancy/Jonathan thing. I felt it was handled better in previous seasons and this one felt like a regression.

- shaping Robin's character better. It's weird that she felt more fully developed in season 3 than in 4.

- definitely on the train of keeping the team together and mixing up the groups and pairings for smaller missions 

[BlueSkies]

Eddie getting respect or his name cleared next season.  Coolest character 

It's b.s if he's still the main suspect in it all.  

[Hotel Snarker]

21 hours ago, BlueSkies said:

Eddie getting respect or his name cleared next season.  Coolest character 

It's b.s if he's still the main suspect in it all.  

Resurrect Eddie and Bob from the dead and have them be a major part of the storyline!

[bijoux]

Here's something I don't want to happen. Last minute teary reunion between El and Hop after a lengthy separation. I adore those scenes in both this season and season 2, but give them a bit of a break. 

[janie jones]

It might be nice to see them working together.

[BlueSkies]

The masterminds behind the Upside Down/torturing Hawkins, Indiana being held responsible.  Most people in power irl like that are able to walk free while people per say like in Hawkins get dumped on 

[manute]

I enjoy reading everyone's wish list for season 5.  I believe that most are assuming that season 5 will be the last season.  I realized that I didn't offer my list--so here it is:

1.  Rebuilding or abandoning Hawkins: I would like to see it rebuilt and residents return.

2.  El's battle with Vechna: I would like to see a concerted effort by all the main players.  My favorite part in season 2 was the role each group played at the end: El and Hopper at the lab, the group with Will at the cabin, the rest of the main players in the UD offering their assistance.

3.  Ending: Nothing too sad, please.  I cried at the end of season 3 because the characters were separated by long distances.

4. Possible romances: Nancy back with Steve, and continuing relationship of El and Mike, Lucas and Max, and a crazy thought--Dustin and Erica.

[QuantumMechanic]

On 8/21/2022 at 12:15 PM, manute said:

I enjoy reading everyone's wish list for season 5.  I believe that most are assuming that season 5 will be the last season.

While there can always be take-backsies, the Duffers have gone on record as saying season 5 is it.

Edited August 22, 2022 by QuantumMechanic

[BlueSkies]

Seeing Dr. Sam Owens tell people what the deal is with the Underground.  He seems to be one of the few people in the series with a conscience.

I'm sorry to go there but that Dr. when he was younger gave the introduction to the funniest Grammy Performance in history.  

The song fits the series well too!