The end of “Stranger Things” is here, and it’s been a long, long, long wait. As the years passed, it became clear that “Stranger Things” could extend its lifespan. Season 4 was a great clip and helped propel at least one moderate ’80s hit to new levels of success, but it’s hard to say whether it provided much more.
Now, in its final season, “Stranger Things” is doing what all major Hollywood franchises ultimately do: cross-media storytelling. Even though Netflix and the Duffer Brothers have talked about expanding the world of “Stranger Things” through spin-offs, the series just hasn’t really become the cinematic universe that Netflix perhaps wants. It’s easily the most popular and successful show Netflix has made, but it’s not their Marvel or their “Star Wars.”
That changes with the fifth and final season of “Stranger Things,” as it relies heavily on audiences’ knowledge of a separate medium — one that the majority of fans don’t have access to — “Stranger Things: The First Shadow,” the play that premiered in London in 2023 and is currently performing in New York. The piece informed a lot of what the fifth season is doing, as it is a canon story that explains Vecna’s origin, how he got his powers, and more. The play has already offered lucky viewers many answers that are only now being explored in the TV show, making it essential viewing for “Stranger Things” fans.
But the most important information introduced in “The First Shadow” is one person, the one who is the key to restoring good to Vecna and saving Henry’s soul. That person is Patty Newby, the most important “Stranger Things” character you’ve never heard of.
Patty is the key to defeating the Mind Flayer
We know about Bob Newby (Sean Astin), but his sister is technically never mentioned in the series – only briefly shown in a prequel comic. In “Stranger Things: The First Shadow,” however, she becomes an integral part of the story. Patty is Bob’s adopted sister and a classic Hawkins outsider. She is nerdy, smarter than her classmates, and lacks friends. It’s not until a new kid moves into town that Patty finds someone like-minded. This kid? Henry Creel, aka Vecna (played by Jamie Campbell Bower in the TV show). The two bond over their loneliness, nerdy interests, and isolation.
Very quickly, they fall in love and start dating, at the same time as they both star in a high school play directed by Joyce (Winona Ryder in the series). Of course, tragedy strikes and Henry becomes the Vecna we love to hate. As for Patty? She leaves Hawkins behind, never to return. However, she knows that Henry Creel is not the monstrous serial killer that he is made out to be, because she knows that he is manipulated and controlled by the Mind Flayer.
This is extremely important. “The First Shadow” recontextualizes everything we thought we knew about the Upside Down, Vecna, and Mind Flayer. Yet the main characters of “Stranger Things” (for the most part) don’t know this. They view Vecna as the ultimate villain of the story and don’t even consider the possibility that he can be redeemed. Patty knows better. She knows Henry is a good kid at heart. She might be the only person who can turn Vecna into Henry and break the Mind Flayer’s influence over him.
