The end of "Stranger Things" is here, and it's been a long, long, long time coming. Over the years, it's become clear that "Stranger Things" might be overstaying its welcome. Season 4 was a great music video and helped catapult at least one moderate '80s hit to new levels of success, but it's hard to say if it provided a whole lot more.
Now, in its final season, "Stranger Things" is doing what every big Hollywood franchise eventually does -- cross-media storytelling. As much as Netflix and the Duffer Brothers have talked about expanding the world of "Stranger Things" through spin-offs, the show simply hasn't really become the cinematic universe that Netflix perhaps wants. This is by far the most popular and successful show Netflix has made, but it is not their Marvel or their "Star Wars."
That is changing with the fifth and final season of "Stranger Things," as it is relying a lot on audiences being familiar with a separate piece of media -- one that the majority of fans have no access to -- "Stranger Things: The First Shadow," the stage play that premiered in London back in 2023 and is currently playing in New York. The play has informed a lot of what the fifth season is doing, as it is a canon story that explains the origin of Vecna, how he got his powers, and more. The play already offered lucky viewers plenty of answers that are only now being explored in the TV show, making it essential viewing for "Stranger Things" fans.
But the most important piece of information introduced in "The First Shadow" is a person, one who is the key to turning Vecna good again and saving Henry's soul. That person is Patty Newby, the most important "Stranger Things" character you've never heard of.