Stranger Things is coming to an end with its upcoming season 5, and even though one popular ending theory has already been debunked by the Duffer Brothers, season 5 can’t ignore it completely. Stranger Things is one of Netflix’s most popular and beloved shows, but all things must come to an end at some point. After four seasons of adventures, mysteries, suspense, and tragedies, Stranger Things is ending with its fifth season, which not only has to answer the biggest questions left by season 4, but also solve the series’ biggest mysteries. Of course, there’s a lot of speculation about how Stranger Things will end, but some have already been debunked.
Stranger Things has various elements from the 1980s and other fantasy worlds that have fueled certain theories about what will happen at the end of the series. One fantasy element that has been present since season 1 and has deeply influenced the series is the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons. The importance of D&D within the universe of Stranger Things made way for a theory that suggests the series finale will make the shocking reveal that it was all a big game of D&D, and while this has already been debunked by the series’ creators, it shouldn’t be ignored completely.
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Stranger Things Season 5 Shouldn’t Abandon The D&D Ending Theory Completely
D&D has been very important in Stranger Things
One of the most popular theories on how Stranger Things will end suggested that the finale would make the big reveal that all the events in the series were nothing more than a D&D campaign – meaning that Vecna never existed, the Upside Down never took over the real world, and all those tragic character deaths never happened (which is great news for characters like Barb, Bob, and Eddie). The theory follows a common idea seen in many other theories from other TV shows and movies that suggest the events were a dream, hallucination, or the main character was in an unconscious state imagining the whole movie/TV show.
However, the theory has already been debunked by Stranger Things’ creators Matt and Ross Duffer. In an interview with Metro, the Duffer Brothers said the D&D ending theory is a “no”, and that they have known where the series would be going for a while. Had the D&D theory been real, Stranger Things’ finale would have immediately become one of the most controversial ones in recent years. Not only would it have been a frustrating ending after the audience’s investment in the series, but it also wouldn’t have made much sense as there are a couple of details that don’t make the theory possible, such as the characters having no control over the events of the series and them naming the monsters after those in D&D not because they were literally them, but because they used the game to explain all those strange events and creatures.
However, despite the flaws of the theory and the Duffer Brothers debunking it, it shouldn’t be completely ignored due to D&D’s importance in the universe of Stranger Things. The series began with Mike, Lucas, Will, and Dustin playing D&D, and the game has been used by the kids to name all the horrible monsters they have encountered. D&D has helped the characters understand all the wild events that have been happening around them, and while the kids have mostly left the game behind (though it made a comeback in season 4 as Eddie led a D&D club at Hawkins High School), it should still be part of the series finale.
How Stranger Things Can Make D&D Important (Without The Duffers’ Debunked Theory)
D&D can still be key in Stranger Things’ finale
Stranger Things season 5 doesn’t have to reveal it was all a D&D campaign to incorporate the game and make it important again. Although season 4 revealed that Vecna is in control of the Upside Down and its hive mind, the origin of this dimension is still unknown, as it already existed when Vecna was banished there. Stranger Things season 5 could explain that whoever created the Upside Down was a D&D fan, hence why many aspects of it, like the monsters, are so similar to the game. Another possibility is that the game has always held the answer to all these problems the characters and Hawkins have been dealing with since season 1, though that would leave the question of why a game like D&D would save the world and why the real world was mirroring the game’s events and style.
After how influential D&D has been in Stranger Things since season 1, it wouldn’t be fair to leave it behind in season 5 and not give it some importance in the finale, but it’s to be seen if the series’ ending will have some connection to the game or not.
