CiaoMarie

if sydney and carmy would have been the main couple the show WOULD have been better and probably would have gone down as one of the greatest shows of all time. unfortunately the creators were cowards and thus the show went downhill season after season.

it was never as good as the first season and probably should have ended there.

i’m glad it’s almost over.

Make MIKE be targetted by Vecna. Don't get me wrong, I loved what they did with Holly and Max, but it just created many issues for other storylines. It wouldn't magically solve everything buuuttt:

It would dispose of the need to age Holly up, thus erasing that plothole

It would leave room to explore Mike and actually give him agency when he was practically the only character who had none. And with the children later on it would delve into his leadership

It would give the party room for emotional scenes and reconnecting. Because, let's be honest, no one besides Nancy and Mike had PERSONAL stakes whilst saving Holly. But it would SHOW Mike as integral part of the group that's now missing. And you would be able to explore the dynamic between the core characters (maybe, the core party travelling to the UD to save Mike whilst the grown ups are on the right side up? And you could still have the emotional bond between Will and Robin before they go to the UD or after they get back.)

It would make SO MUCH narrative sense: Vecna HEARD and SAW how Mike's words saved El. He has a close connection to both El and Will. To not take that advantage basically served on a silver plattern is actually kinda stupid.

It would give us more time to explore the main ensemble cast instead of needing to establish new characters. And you could still have Derek and Holly starting a new party at the end of the series. It would just take up much less space.

Mike, El, and Will (Dustin and Lucas too) back at the center of the story makes sense for the final season.

Also, I miss the Byers. Jonathan and Joyce don't seem to be related anymore, much less mother and son.

The military should've been focused on Henry, since they saw Hawkins labs tapes from season 4. They also should've been distracted with trying to keep the demogorgons, bats, and demodogs that would be breaking through the metal plates sometimes from mauling Hawkins' citizens. Can you imagine scenes with citizens walking in groups and armed at all times? And they are quarantined by federal law because the blast of spores from the upside down during the earthquake are causing illnesses the medical community can't understand?

A lot of the confusion about Eleven's fate comes from expecting a factual answer, when the finale is clearly symbolic and emotional, not literal.

The show intentionally doesn't tell us whether Eleven lived or died. That mirrors real life. When someone leaves your life… a breakup, a disappearance, or death… you don't actually know their inner reality. You don't know if an ex is happy, miserable, with someone else, alone, or still thinking about you. When someone dies, we don't know if they're in heaven, if there's nothing, or if something of them lingers. What we do know is how we cope with not knowing.

That's exactly what Mike's explanation represents. It's not a scientific answer: it's a human one. Notice how the group is crying, holding each other, and choosing to believe the version that allows them to keep living. That's love. That's how people survive loss.

The Squawk conversation between the older kids reinforces this. It's one of the most honest scenes in the whole show… adults acknowledging that growing up means accepting uncertainty, regret, and unanswered questions. Everyone has had that moment where you realize some things don't get closure, and you still have to move forward anyway. And then the final scene completes the message: the torch is passed. Holly and the new generation sit down to play D&D, just like the original kids did. Mike looks at them and smiles… not because everything turned out perfect, but because life continues. The story doesn't end; it evolves.

If the writers wanted to give a clean answer about Eleven, they would have shown it. They didn't because ambiguity here is the point. Eleven stops being a lab experiment or a government target and becomes something bigger… a memory, a sacrifice, a legend.

The finale isn't asking "What physically happened to Eleven?" It's asking "How do we live when we don't get to know?"