Stranger Thingshas a well-established group of main characters, though some get more time and attention than others, but the lead character changed after season 1 and has stayed the same ever since.Stranger Thingsquickly became one of Netflix’s best and most popular shows after its debut in 2016 and has been pretty consistent ever since. After four seasons full of shocking twists, reveals, and some tragedies,Stranger Thingsis ending with its fifth season, which has a lot to solve and answer about the Upside Down, Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower), and more.
Stranger Thingsseason 4 endedon a massive cliffhanger as Vecna’s plan was set into motion following his encounter with Max (Sadie Sink). This opened gates and cracks across Hawkins, letting the Upside Down bleed into the human world. In addition to that, Vecna escaped, and his whereabouts are unknown, as well as who will be his next target if not Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown).Stranger Thingsseason 5will surely focus heavily on Eleven, the show’s lead character, but looking back, she wasn’t always the main character.
Stranger Things Season 1’s Main Characters Were Mike, Lucas & Dustin
Stranger Things Started With The Kids As Its Main Focus
The event that kicks offStranger Thingsis Will Byers’ (Noah Schnapp) disappearance in the show’s very first episode. The search for Will is season 1’s main plot, and it’s not just the efforts of Jim Hopper (David Harbour) and the Hawkins Police Department but also those of Joyce (Winona Ryder) and Will’s friends Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin), and Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo).Will’s friends are also the ones who come across Eleven, shelter her, and team up with her when they learn about her powers and possible connection to Will’s disappearance.
All this makes Mike, Dustin, and Lucas the main characters ofStranger Thingsseason 1, even if Eleven was already there. The audience follows Will’s friends closely and learns all about Eleven, Hawkins Lab, the Demorgorgon, and the Upside Down at the same time as them.The show makes sure to focus on the kids’ journeys and reactions to their shocking discoveriesand leaves Eleven, Hopper, and Joyce aside (but not too much), making them the leaders of season 1 – however, that didn’t continue in the rest of the show.
After Stranger Things Season 1, Eleven Became The Main Character (& Stayed That Way)
Eleven Took The Spotlight Starting In Stranger Things Season 2
With Will back home and Eleven missing atthe end ofStranger Thingsseason 1, season 2 smoothly shifted its focus to Eleven. Will is also a key character in season 2 as he’s revealed to have a very strong connection to the Upside Down and the Mind Flayer after his time in the other dimension, but Eleven’s story takes the spotlight. Eleven is taken in by Hopper but gets tired of hiding and sets out on a journey of self-discovery to uncover her past.
Stranger Thingsseason 2 focuses heavily on Eleven’s personal journey and sees her saving Hawkins one more time.
This leads her to meet her mother, Terry Ives, who is in a permanent state of catatonia after Dr. Brenner subjected her to electroshock therapy.Eleven also meets a fellow Hawkins Lab test subject and “sister”, Kali(Linnea Berthelsen), who helps her better control her powers.Stranger Thingsseason 2, then, focuses heavily on Eleven’s personal journey and sees her saving Hawkins one more time, while the rest do their best to keep Will safe and cut his connection to the Mind Flyer.
Season 3 continues to have Eleven as the lead character, even though this season splits the Hawkins crew into different groups.Eleven is key to confronting the Mind Flayer when it takes over Billy(Dacre Montgomery) and attacks Starcourt Mall, and she ends up losing her powers… and Hopper. Eleven is adopted by Joyce and the Byers family move to California, where their story begins in season 4.
Despite season 4 also having the crew split into different groups, the focus is once more on Eleven, the bullying she goes through at school, the return of her powers, her trips to the past, her connection to Vecna, and more.It makes sense that Eleven is now the main character inStranger Things, but it’s interesting to see how that properly started in season 2.
Stranger Things Season 5 Is Set To Continue With Eleven As The Main Character
Stranger Things Has To End With Eleven As Its Main Character
Now thatStranger Thingsis ending with its fifth season and Eleven has led the show since season 2, it’s expected that she will continue to be the main character in season 5. With season 4 revealing the connection between Vecna and Eleven, and the former being the main villain, it’s only natural that Eleven will continue to be at the front and center. In addition to that, and as mentioned above,Stranger Things’ final season has many questions and mysteries to answerand solve, many of them involving Eleven in some capacity.
Of course,Eleven leadingStranger Thingsseason 5 can lead to a not-very-happy ending for her. It’s undeniable that Eleven deserves a happy ending after everything she has gone through since she was born, but as the hero and main character ofStranger Things, she might be on her way to a heroic and heartbreaking end.
Stranger Things
Stranger Things is a Netflix series set in the 1980s, where the mysterious disappearance of a young boy leads a small town to uncover secret experiments and supernatural forces. A significant focus is on a peculiar girl who may hold the key to the unfolding mystery.
