In the third episode of Stranger Things' fifth season, El and Hopper embark on a perilous mission to breach the Upside Down's imposing wall. Their efforts are met with a relentless pursuit by an army of soldiers, who zero in on their location, momentarily immobilizing El with a chilling precision. Despite the odds, El manages to evade capture, leaving them in a tense standoff.
Sheltering behind a weathered metal sign, the duo waits anxiously as the soldiers discover Hopper's blade embedded in a slimy concoction. Realizing their proximity, they unleash a technological terror that neutralizes Eleven's powers, rendering her powerless against the onslaught. Hopper, bravely engaging the soldiers with a barrage of grenades and bullets, succeeds in taking down the satellite, allowing El to unleash her Magneto-like abilities on the foe.
As they flee the scene, Hotper and Eleven evade the military's relentless pursuit, carrying with them a captured soldier whose memories Eleven sifts through like a detective's tools. It's in these memories that she discovers Dr. Kay, the mastermind behind Sullivan's orders and the one keeping Vecna hidden behind the vault door.
Meanwhile, Joyce stumbles upon Will and Robin on the road, their journey marred by Robin's neglect of Will's care. Will, ever the voice of reason, critiques Joyce's plan and reveals his surveillance of Vecna through the Hive Mind connection. Vecna's latest scheme is revealed to involve kidnapping children from Holly's elementary school, though his next target is Derek, Holly's relentless bully.
Henry has a heart-to-heart lunch with Holly, serving her favorites before warning her to stay indoors and stay away from the woods. Intriguingly, Holly receives a letter in her mailbox soon after, urging her to meet Henry at a location marked with an 'X,' an invitation that entices her to venture into the woods. Despite Henry's warning, Holly musters her courage and sets off on her own adventure.
In our world, the gang once again gathered at the radio shack, their minds churning with a plan to rescue Derek. The ethical quagmire of kidnapping a child and sequestering him in a remote location was a slippery slope on paper. But Mike, ever the schemer, concocted a devious plan: to drug the Turnbow family into unconsciousness, allowing the gang to lie in wait for the Demogorgons. A twist on the season 1 strategy, this plan also involved attaching a tracker to one of the creatures, luring it back to Vecna's lair.
Erica, once best friends with Tina Turnbow, initially balked at the idea. But when Mike mentioned Holly's capture and the potential for Tina's resentment, her resolve hardened. Robin and Will ventured to the hospital, procuring medicines to spike a pie that Erica would deliver to the Turnbow household.
Meanwhile, Murray smuggled in equipment for the gang, including a telemetry tracker that Nancy intended to modify into a shotgun for direct fire on the Demogorgon. There were moments of tension too—Jonathan's potential proposal to Nancy faltered, and Steve was displeased with Dustin's tinkering with his beamer.
Despite these hiccups, the plan went ahead. Erica arrived at the Turnbow household with the spiked pie, and after some hustle and bustle, the Turnbows were knocked out cold. The gang swiftly transformed the house into a battleground.
The Demogorgon eventually appeared, and this time, just like the gang had hoped in season 1, their plan was a success. They set it ablaze, fired the shotgun, and worked together to send it back to the Upside Down.
Outside, Dustin and Steve pursued but faced a new problem: the Demogorgon (and by extension Vecna) were heading straight for Will's location, where they had hidden the Turnbows in a barn.
As the episode drew to a close, Holly wandered into the woods and stumbled upon none other than Max.
