Photo Call, London Underground, Nov 11, 2025 Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2025
If the season 5 premiere is anything to go by, Stranger Things has absolutely stuck the landing. Fans who caught an exclusive screening of the season opener were very impressed by what they saw.
After years of waiting, so much anticipation, and countless fan theories, the fifth and final season of Stranger Things is almost here. For some lucky fans, the season premiere came a few weeks early. On November 13th, the season premiere, ‘The Crawl,” was screened in front of a limited number of fans in London. Naturally, we’re starting to see some initial, spoiler-free reactions across social media.
To bring you up to speed, Stranger Things season 4 ended on a gigantic cliffhanger. The Hawkins team managed to defeat omnipotent Upside Down demon Vecna, but it didn’t come easy. Eddie Munson lost his life in the battle, and Max was left in a coma. As Joyce, Hopper, and the kids reunited in Hawkins, the hellish Upside Down landscape began to spill into the real world: the sky turned red, and plants withered and died. Turns out, Vecna was not defeated after all.
While we couldn’t make the screening, we caught up with Neil Vagg, the editor of Get Your Comic On, who was present at the fan event. He was very impressed by the season opener. “Coming in at 68 minutes, ‘The Crawl’ has to contend with setting up a complex new normal for the residents of Hawkins, Indiana,” Vagg says. “It defies the odds to balance the series’ now huge ensemble against what could easily be its largest scale story to date. Whilst not action-packed, it delivers everything fans need to get this final season underway.”
As for whether the season 5 premiere is the best opener of the show, Vagg says it’s “difficult to call” as each premiere has its individual strengths.
Other reactions from across social media.
On X, user Christopher Rates It praised the premiere for its immense scale, sharing that it’s the biggest season of the show. “While I can’t say too much about the first episode, the Duffer Brothers have increased the scale to the max. Our characters are still reeling from the events of last season, with the hunt for Vecna being the core focus. It’s brutal and cinematic with its outstanding sound design and visuals. It’s beyond the greatest start we could’ve asked for and easily Netflix’s biggest season yet.”
In addition, user Luke Morris shared similar thoughts, calling it “Propulsive, huge, terrifying fun,” adding: “If the whole season is like that first hour, they will have well and truly stuck the landing.”
Finally, we should note that many fans in attendance have criticized the event itself although many said the episode itself was fantastic.
Over on Reddit, many people who attended were unhappy with how the event was handled, mainly because of the poor weather the UK has been experiencing as of late, as well as poor organisation, overcrowding, and long waits. Another YouTube video goes into depth on the issues with how the tickets were issued and the night of the event, leading to some disappointment.
— What's on Netflix (@whatonnetflix) November 13, 2025
Stranger Things season 5 debuts its first four episodes on November 27th on Netflix. It will return for a further three episodes on Christmas Day, followed the the series finale on New Year’s Eve. Are you ready?
Rating: TV-14
