Ahead of Stranger Things Season 5, here is the only recap you’ll need before jumping into it

The whole series begins with Eleven, a scared little girl with psychokinetic abilities, opening a portal between Earth and an alternate dimension known as the Upside Down. Then Will Byers finds himself getting kidnapped by a creature from that dimension, and from there we are introduced to the whole gang, who, along with Eleven, try to save Will.

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Now keep in mind that Eleven is also a runaway, as she escaped from an experimental facility nearby. One kid needs to be brought back home, while the other is looking for one. Some heartbreaking betrayals later, mostly by Jim Hopper, the kids are able to fight off the men who are behind Eleven, led by mad scientist Dr Brenner. The creature from the Upside Down, known as the Demogorgon, actually ends up helping the kids escape until Eleven disintegrates it too. Everyone returns to their homes safe, except poor Barb, and Will has a secret which he keeps from his family on the night of Christmas.

Season 2 – Will becomes the Bridge

Remember the secret Will was keeping from his family? Well, he begins experiencing recurring visions of the Upside Down, but doctors dismiss them as just PTSD. Meanwhile, Eleven finds herself hunted under suspicion of being a Russian spy, even as the rest of the kids try to get back to their normal lives. We also learn that Eleven has finally found a home with Hopper, who sees her as a second chance at being a father.

As Will slowly starts losing more and more control over his body, his scribbles and unusual behaviour prove that he isn’t going through PTSD. Jonathan and Nancy go on a separate mission in order to inform Barb’s parents of her demise in the last season. Eleven also meets her biological mother, Terry Ives, and learns that there was another girl who was trained just like her. After gaining better control over her powers, Eleven returns to Hawkins to save her friends.

As the gang tries to close the gate to the Upside Down, they take the creature controlling Will out of his brain. Eleven, along with Hopper, fights off the Demodogs and finally closes the gate. A month later, Mike and Eleven go to the winter formal dance together, with Max and Lucas also going as a couple.

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Season 3 – Heartbreak and Danger

This season doesn’t start off very well from a romantic perspective, as Eleven and Mike break up just days after Hopper tells Mike to stay away from her. On the other hand, Lucas is also in the same boat after crashing and burning with Max. Will also realises that the monster who had control over him, the Mind Flayer, is still alive, and Max’s older brother Billy gets brainwashed by the Upside Down world.

Will tells this news to Mike and Lucas, just as Russian soldiers are completing shady deals at the Starcourt Mall. The already controlled Billy and Heather take in her parents to the Mind Flayer as well, and soon the creature gets control over dozens of townspeople. Eleven and Mike reunite, as all the ‘flayed’ converge at the mill where the creature is located. Billy, still under its influence, informs the creature of Eleven’s location, who then gets injured in the line of fire while protecting her friends.

The mall, which was at the center of the whole season, becomes the spot where everyone takes the final stand. Eleven, who has been rendered powerless, somehow rids Billy of the control that the Mind Flayer has on him. He in turn sacrifices himself to save the kids, and Hopper seemingly also dies in the explosion triggered by Joyce. However, the season ends with a shot of Russian guards being instructed to feed a prisoner, but not the American, to a Demogorgon.

Season 4 – Powerless but kicking

Even though Eleven lost her powers at the end of last season, Mike and she confessed their love for each other. She now tries to fit into a new school in California, where she is constantly picked on. Flashbacks reveal that Hopper is still alive, and Joyce gets to know this through a note in her mail. Vecna goes on a killing spree and kills Chrissy and Fred right at the start of the season. Owen crawls his way back to Eleven and tells her that he has found a way to get her powers back.

Max, grieving the death of Billy, gets possessed by Vecna and is saved after Steve, Dustin and the rest of the gang realise that music can break Vecna’s spell. Eleven, on the other hand, is again a part of experiments as she starts tapping into her older memories. It is revealed that it was Eleven who, while trying to protect herself from Brenner’s first test subject, accidentally sent him to the Upside Down. That first subject became the Vecna later on.

The final battle takes place in both worlds simultaneously, as Max, Lucas and Erica go to the Creel House while Steve, Nancy and Robin go to its Upside Down counterpart to attack Vecna. Mike’s love for Eleven empowers her as she breaks Vecna’s curse on Max, but it is too little too late, as Max passes away due to her injuries. Hopper and Joyce lead the attack on the other front as they keep killing Demogorgons in order to weaken Vecna. Eleven powers through and brings Max back to her life, which is successful until the energy ends up breaking through the town of Hawkins.

While Max remains comatose, Will discovers that Vecna is still alive.

Created by Matt and Ross Duffer, the cast of the show includes Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Noah Schnapp, Gaten Matarazzo, Sadie Sink, Caleb McLaughlin, Joe Kerry, Winona Ryder and David Harbour.

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