Whether you liked the finale or not, Stranger Things is over. However, some people were unable to accept it, and the small idea that there might be a secret episode quickly became a full-fledged viral conspiracy theory. A theory that so many disgruntled Stranger Things fans locked into that when everyone tuned in for the unannounced episode, Netflix launched so many at the same time that it briefly crashed.
Spoilers await for the finale of Stranger Things, though I'd assume that everyone reading this has either seen the series' only true ending or doesn't care for the events of it to be spoiled. Hawkins, shown right at the end of the episode, is happy because Vecna is finally dead. However, unhappy with how things were wrapped up, a small group of fans said no and decided that the happy vision of Hawkins we concluded was an illusion created by the still very much alive Vecna.
Believing that the show ends with a finale is apparently consistent
If you want to believe it, great. The problem is, some fans wanted to do more than just believe it. They wanted it confirmed and there was a secret ninth episode of the fifth season showing the real ending. This small group was loud enough that others began to join them and believe the hype.
The movement quickly became known as Conformity Gate, probably because those of us who banked on the secret episode theory made fun of those of us who accepted that the show actually ended on New Year's Eve for “conformity.” Well, it turns out we got it right. There was no secret episode, and Hawkins really got the happily ever after he deserves after all he's been through over the past nine years.
Stranger Things creators won't reveal if Mike was right about Eleven's Ending
The Duffer brothers open up about the Stranger Things series finale.
Netflix has collapsed under pressure from Stranger Things fans who signed up for a secret episode
While it seemed increasingly unlikely that a secret episode of Stranger Things would miraculously appear on Netflix on January 7th, that didn't stop people from hoping that the mavericks might be right. So many people on Netflix were looking for an episode that didn't exist that it crashed. This could be the first example of a streaming service collapsing under the pressure of too many users logging on at once without any real content to blame.
Stranger Things is far from the first blockbuster to end in a way that left a large portion of its fan base unsatisfied. Before that there was Game of Thrones and before that Lost and almost certainly a few other examples in between that I've forgotten. Hate to break it to you, Stranger Things fans, but your only course of action is to do what fans of those other two shows still do years later, and complain about it for the rest of the time with no satisfying conclusion.
- Release date
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2016 – 2025-00-00
- Network
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Netflix
- Showrunner
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Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer
- directors
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Cast: Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer, Andrew Stanton, Frank Darabont, Nimród Antal, Uta Briesewitz
- Writers
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Cast: Kate Trefry, Jessie Nickson-Lopez, Jessica Mecklenburg, Alison Tatlock
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Millie Bobby Brown
Jane 'Eleven' Hopper
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Finn Wolfhard
Mike Wheeler
