After what felt like an eternity, the second part of Stranger Things season 5 has arrived on Netflix and the latest batch of episodes does not play around.
With the series finale fast approaching, there is a lot of ground to be covered to bridge the first and final parts of the season. The episodes are full of action and heartbreaking moments, and yes, there are some characters who perish along the way and others who have very close calls. If your nerves can’t take waiting to know whether your favorite character makes it to the series finale alive, allow us to be your source for spoilers!
Below, we break down the deaths which occur in Stranger Things season 5 episodes 5-7, as well as the characters who have close encounters with death but ultimately survive. Needless to say, there are spoilers ahead.
Who dies in Stranger Things season 5 part 2?
As a Stranger Things fan, let me put your mind at ease right away. While there are some deaths in the second part of Stranger Things season 5, there are no major characters who die in the episodes. This means you can watch all three episodes knowing that the core ensemble will all make it out of these episodes alive and will play a role in the series finale. This list includes Steve, Nancy, Jonathan, Robin, Will, Eleven, Mike, Lucas, Max, Dustin, Erica, Holly, Derek, Vickie, Kali, Hopper, Joyce, Murray, Mr. Clarke, Karen, Dr. Kay, Lieutenant Akers, and Henry.
Now that we’ve established none of the main characters die in the episodes, let's break down the deaths that do occur in episodes 5-7 of Stranger Things season 5.
Axel and Kali’s friends: In episode 5, after making it back to Hawkins, Kali walks Eleven through how she came to be captive in Dr. Kay’s lab. As she reveals, Dr. Kay’s soldiers tracked her down and killed her friends in the process. In the flashback, we see Axel die before our eyes as a soldier shoots him in the head, and it’s implied that Kali’s other friends introduced in season 2’s “The Lost Sister” were also killed including Mick, Funshine, and Dottie.
Dr. Kay’s scientists: Also in episode 5, Kali reveals to El that she had managed to nearly escape once before and in this memory we see Kali breaking free from her restraints and killing two scientists in the lab. These weren’t named characters, which has become a running theme for the season with more secondary and nameless characters dying than anyone major.
Derek’s family: So technically speaking, Derek’s family is alive in the real world; however, we’re including them on this list since we see visions of Derek’s family murdered by Vecna in the show. After finding Derek in the woods with the map Max had given to Holly, Henry confronts Derek about the whereabouts of the duo. As he pins Derek down, he shows him visions of his mom, dad, and sister Tina all dead, as he threatens to make the vision a reality if Derek doesn’t cooperate.
Dr. Kay’s military goons: After finding Max’s location in the hospital via Will’s mind, Henry sends a pack of Demodogs to Hawkins to kill Max in episode 6. When the Demodogs arrive at the hospital, they quickly begin running through the halls, racing past Vickie and charging at Robin and a pair of soldiers who had arrived to take Robin into custody. As Robin ducks to the side knowing the danger the creatures hold, the two soldiers fire off several rounds from their guns at the Demodogs. This angers the creatures, who attack the soldiers and kill them in the process.
RIP Demodogs: After killing the soldiers, the Demodogs race to Max’s room only to find it empty. They nearly get to Lucas and Max in the elevator, but Lucas is able to get the doors to close in time to carry Max to safety. Lucas meets up with Robin and Vickie, and she leads them to the laundry room. It looks like the group is done for as the Demodogs close in on them, but then they hear a noise and dart off in the direction of a dryer. In the dryer is an oxygen tank which explodes, killing the three Demodogs.
The man in the mine: In episode 6, as Holly and Max try escaping Henry’s mind prison, they wander into a memory from his past connected to the cave. In this memory, we see a young Henry enter a mine shaft where a scientist lies on the ground before him, quivering as he grasps onto a briefcase with one hand and waves a gun at Henry with the other. After the man shoots Henry in the hand, they struggle for the gun, and Henry ends up grabbing a rock and bashing the man’s head in, killing him.
These are the only deaths which occur in the second part of Stranger Things season 5, but as I mentioned, there are some close calls. The following characters end up in some precarious situations, but all make it out alive:
- Jonathan and Nancy: After Nancy shoots the atomic matter, the pair are blown back and knocked unconscious. When they come to, they're trapped in a room that is melting around them. Thankfully, the melting stops before the room fills up, with the pair making it out later with help from Dustin and Steve.
- Eleven, Hopper and Kali: After Nancy shoots the exotic matter, a whole in the wall within the Upside Down opens and creates a vacuum that begins pulling debris through its opening. Using her powers, Eleven is able to help get the group to safety and back into Hawkins through a rift that opens in the distance.
- Steve: While racing to get to Nancy and Jonathan, Steve nearly uses a ladder to bridge a gap in the melting staircase. Thankfully, Dustin pulls him away before he climbs on the ladder which falls several stories below.
- Will: After infiltrating Henry's mind, Will becomes trapped temporally before Eleven rescues him.
- Max: As Max and Holly attempt to leave Henry's mind prison, he tracks them both down and nearly strangles Max to death. Thankfully, Will is able to enter Henry's mind and give Max and Holly the chance to get away safely.
- Lucas, Max, Vickie, and Robin: The group are at the hospital when Henry sends his pack of Demodogs after them. Thanks to Karen's quick thinking, they all make it out alive.
- Holly: Holly goes through it in these episodes. She nearly falls into the mine shaft, falls through the sky after breaking free from The Abyss, gets dragged back into the Abyss by Henry, and is jumped by the other kids Henry took, who attack Holly, strangle her with her necklace and then send her falling down the stairs.
Stranger Things season 5 parts 1 and 2 are streaming now on Netflix.