Chapter Five: Shock Jock

I hope they fix this problem with steve and dustin AS SOON AS POSSIBLE what are they doing to my favorite friendship. It just seems so out of character for steve to say that. Other than that not the worst ep but a bit of a slower one not full of much, a good buildup for the rest of the vol though on to it.

A lot of slow this episodes with longer conversations especially the ones with Robin and Will/ Max and Holly. But there is a lot of good that comes out of those scenes. I love learning about each character and getting to hear them more and more as the season progresses. The Max/Holly scenes of them jumping from memory to memory had me on the edge of my seat and intrigued. I love the Steve and Dustin dynamic as well. That convo between the two of them in the lab was needed and made me a little sad. We are starting to run out of time to answer questions and let characters finish arcs so i'm getting nervous. However, I am excited and hope the Duffers can land the plane.

The fifth episode of the fifth season is a strong continuation to it's finale. I don't want to spoil but it is intense.

This episode feels like the storyline is setting it's piece for the one last time match. I was excited and I am happy that it didn't ruin my expectations.

"If you can hear me, you need to Run. RUUNNN!", that was the peak moment of this episode for me.

I think everything in this episode is great and I'm not complaining about the story it tells but this episode must've been a mess to edit because of how much stuff they crammed into it. Episode 5 and 6 really have a lot of great stuff but don't have enough time to explore it all without making me forget about what came before when it switches plotlines every 2 minutes. Once again, I love this episode but because I loved everything else, I thought I'd mainly talk about this one negative as my review because everyone else is singing its praises already and I needed to address this glaring pacing issue that isn't helped by the editing.

After reading negative reviews, I set my expectations very low and was even afraid it would be dragging, slow, and filled with bad acting.

But I actually enjoyed it. I understand where people are coming from, and especially in the first episode the school scenes feel a bit forced. That also has to do with the fact that the actors are now clearly adults who still have to portray teenagers.

That aside, I had no issue with the pacing. I like how the show switches between action and emotional moment, and sometimes even some light hearted, humor. If you truly care about these characters more than just the action, some of the dialogue will definitely move you.

On the other hand, I think another problem is that the internet has set the stakes so incredibly high that for most people it would be impossible for the season to live up to their expectations. I personally don't think this is the best season, and is it the perfect final season? Probably not. But how does one create a perfect season to this epic series?

I do think it's still a solid and enjoyable season that balances tension-building, action scenes, and emotional moments quite well.

If you're looking for a purely action-driven season that lives up to the highest of your expectations, it might not fully satisfy you-but if you're still invested in the characters, it's definitely worth watching.