In the wake of Stranger Things season 5, volume 1, there’s a lot to digest as we wait for the remaining episodes later this month. One of the more startling revelations: Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) may possess abilities that rival — and perhaps surpass — Eleven’s, and in an unexpected turn, Robin (Maya Hawke) is instrumental in helping him access them, even though that wasn’t her intent.
Robin, who first appeared in season 3, quickly became a beloved character and a thoughtful portrayal of being a queer teen in the 1980s. When she notices the way Will looks at Mike, she recognizes a familiar ache. It echoes Robin’s first love — a girl named Tammy — a relationship that felt perfect in Robin’s imagination until it became clear she’d been projecting a fantasy onto someone who didn’t reciprocate.
Robin tells Will she once thought being loved by Tammy would let her be “all of herself,” but a videotape of a younger, confident Robin made her realize the truth: the turning point wasn’t about Tammy at all but about Robin finding herself. That hard-won clarity is what she tries to pass on to Will.
Robin’s message is simple: looking to someone else for validation won’t supply the answers. She sees her younger self in Will and, with the advantage of hindsight, urges him to claim what’s already inside him. Her encouragement matters — although not in the way anyone initially expects.
The show has long hinted at Will’s tether to the Upside Down and his fragile command over it. Season 5 reveals Vecna’s lingering influence, but after Robin’s intervention Will recognizes that the solution won’t arrive from his mother or his friends: it’s been within him all along. In a striking sequence, he channels the powers Vecna left behind and dispatches three Demogorgons endangering his friends.
That moment lands with real weight because Will’s journey is the through-line of the series. For years he was underused; at times he functioned more as a catalyst than a character. Season 4 began to remedy that by making his longing for Mike explicit, and now, in the final stretch, he flips the script — using Vecna’s residue to fuel his own agency rather than remaining a passive victim.
Yet with only four episodes left — including a feature-length finale — there isn’t much room for sweeping reinvention, especially as the narrative introduces fresh faces like “Dipshit Derek” (a.k.a. Delightful Derek) late in the game. He’s charming company, but bringing him in at the eleventh hour feels like a squandered chance to deepen existing arcs.
The Duffer Brothers have laid the groundwork with Robin’s pep talk; now it’s their job to finish the story with the emotional clarity it deserves. Will has weathered horrors few characters have; if anyone merits a fulfilling, joyful outcome, it’s him. But Robin’s counsel suggests that victory must be more than a physical triumph over Vecna — Will must also arrive at a place of self-acceptance beyond the Upside Down, beyond his friends’ expectations, and beyond an unrequited crush.
Stranger Things season 5, volume 2 premieres on Netflix on Thursday, December 25, 2025.
Source: Polygon
