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STRANGER THINGS SEASON 5 Episode 1 & 2 REACTION!! Vecna | Millie Bobby Brown | Demogorgon | Netflix

2025-11-27 Entertainment
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Reel Rejects
Reel Rejects
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Stranger Things Season 5 Premiere Reaction and Review (Episodes 1 & 2)

Analyze the huge stakes of the final season's opening episodes, detailing callbacks to Season 1, character growth under military lockdown, and the immediate re-emergence of Vecna's threat.

Short Summary

  • Episode 1, "The Crawl," immediately revisits Will Byers' 1983 disappearance, signaling Season 5 will close the show's foundational mysteries.
  • The Hawkins quarantine setting emphasizes military control (MAC Z) juxtaposed against the characters' urgent, ongoing fight against the Upside Down.
  • Reviewers praise the significant improvements in how key characters (especially Jonathan, Will, and Mike) are integrated into the primary plot this season.
  • The opening chapters launch the final run with high tension, nostalgia, and surprisingly intense horror sequences centered on Holly Wheeler.

This reaction covers Greg and John analyzing the first two episodes of Stranger Things Season 5 now that the final volume has dropped. They focus heavily on plot continuity, character development arcs—particularly the growth seen in the younger ensemble—and the terrifying effectiveness of the new horror elements compared to previous seasons.

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Description

STRANGER THINGS 5 PREMIERE!!! Stranger Things Full Reaction Watch Along: https://www.patreon.com/thereelrejects - Gift Someone (Or Yourself) A Stranger Things RR Tee! https://shorturl.at/hekk2 - Stranger Things 5x3 Reaction https://youtu.be/6bHl8s4G2Ok Greg & John's STRANGER THINGS 4 Reactions: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-bIhJVeYWw9brpvPJALicH-6Hu7qd29R With the FINAL season upon us, Greg & John RETURN to give their Stranger Things 5 Reaction, Recap, Commentary, Analysis, Breakdown, & Spoiler Review! Greg Alba & John Humphrey react to Episodes 1 & 2 of Stranger Things Season 5, the epic final season of the Duffer Brothers’ sci-fi horror phenomenon. Set in Fall 1987, Hawkins is scarred by the opened Rifts and placed under military quarantine, while Vecna has vanished and the gang races to reunite for one last fight to save their town — and reality itself. Episode 1 ("The Crawl") kicks off with what the creators call their “most eventful premiere yet,” and the first minutes dramatically return to Will Byers’ original 1983 disappearance, tying Season 5 directly back to the show’s beginning and teasing long-awaited Upside Down answers. Episode 2 ("The Vanishing Of Holly Wheeler") is teased as having the “craziest cold open” in the series, hinting at a new, terrifying disappearance that echoes the show’s earliest mysteries — and sets the tone for the final run. The legendary ensemble returns including Millie Bobby Brown (Enola Holmes, Godzilla: King of the Monsters) as the fierce, determined Eleven; Finn Wolfhard (IT, Ghostbusters: Afterlife) as the good-hearted Mike Wheeler; Noah Schnapp (Hubie Halloween, The Tutor) as the wise Will Byers; Gaten Matarazzo (Les Misérables on Broadway, Prank Encounters) as tech-savvy Dustin Henderson; Caleb McLaughlin (Concrete Cowboy, High Flying Bird) as the ever-faithful Lucas Sinclair; Sadie Sink (The Whale, Fear Street Part Two) as the comatose Max Mayfield; Winona Ryder (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands) as protective mother Joyce Byers; David Harbour (Black Widow, Violent Night) as the hardened Jim Hopper; Natalia Dyer (Yes, God, Yes; Chestnut) as the tenacious Nancy Wheeler; Joe Keery (Free Guy, Fargo) as the lovable Steve Harrington, & MORE! With Hawkins on lockdown, the Upside Down bleeding into reality, and the story circling back to Will’s first encounter with darkness, these opening episodes launch the final season with huge stakes, eerie nostalgia, & that signature Stranger Things blend of friendship, horror, and heart. #StrangerThings #Reaction #StrangerThings5 #Netflix #StrangerThingsSeason5 #NetflixStrangerThings #StrangerThingsNetflix #TheCrawl #TheVanishingOfHollyWheeler #Netflix #UpsideDown #Vecna #Eleven #Hawkins #SciFiHorror #80sTV #TVReaction #TVReview #FinalSeason #StrangerThingsReaction #React #ReactTo #Binge #Bingeworthy IT: Welcome to Derry Episode 5 Reaction: https://youtu.be/bECeLWCiUzc Ghostbusters (1984) Movie Reaction: https://youtu.be/BxuSLFFRrQc Game of Thrones Season 2, Episode 7 & 8 Reaction: https://youtu.be/ytZmOckY5BY Follow GREG On INSTAGRAM & TWITTER: INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/thegregalba/ TWITTER: https://twitter.com/thegregalba 0:00 Checking In! 2:10 Stranger Things 5x1 Reaction 45:38 Stranger Things 5x2 Reaction 1:18:59 Stranger Things 5 Review Intense Suspense by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ RR Clips & Shorts Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ReelRejectsClips Follow TheReelRejects On The Socials: IG: https://www.instagram.com/reelrejects/ TT: https://www.tiktok.com/@thereelrejects?lang=en TWITTER: https://twitter.com/thereelrejects FB: https://www.facebook.com/TheReelRejects/ Music Used In Ad: Hat the Jazz by Twin Musicom is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Happy Alley by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Head Editor: https://www.instagram.com/praperhq/?hl=en Supervising Producer: https://twitter.com/nerdchronic?lang=en Co-Editor: Greg Alba Co-Editor: John Humphrey Music In Video: Airport Lounge - Disco Ultralounge by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Follow & Listen to Us Wherever You Get Your Podcasts!! - Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3XHMwbveiznxSOGxN9XT0M - Google Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vc3Rhci13YXJzLXRhbGs - Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-reel-rejects-tv-movie-recaps/id1616339990 - Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Apocalypse-Podcast/B08JJP58FG PLAYLISTS: Sketches & Short Films: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-bIhJVeYWw_zWuTRfBOUP3aYyIYRzc2y

Top Comments (10)

@evergardenxox 2025-11-27

anyone else come straight here after finishing ep 4? 😭

2.9k 153 replies
@Chrysalis-x8s 2025-11-27

I was already expecting Ted Wheeler to nap through the whole season but they really said "nah we gotta go all out for the final season" and put him in an induced coma 😭

1.2k 23 replies
@Alizze_A 2025-11-27

Just finished the 4th episode and omg im so ready for everyones reaction ! This season is DARK ASF and so great already 😩

1.2k 51 replies
@TripleeVFX 2025-11-27

Praper turning the video into an anime dub with the audio delay 💀

607 15 replies
@melissacreel4719 2025-11-27

Say what you want about Ted, he stood up to the monster. Tried to fight, and didn't run away. It shows he will fight for his family.

546 12 replies
@liammcfarlane13 2025-11-28

I like that the kids are a bit more badass at school now because it feels real, of course they'd be like "We've taken on Vecna, we can handle school bullies" 😂

351 2 replies
@rubendaviso 2025-11-27

The characters didn't built the tunnels, they're using the underground vines from season 2

343 2 replies
@Not_Theon_Reek 2025-11-27

Anyone’s audio get really un-synced about 30 mins into the video?

306 11 replies
@Zantos-2211 2025-11-27

I'm so happy that Mike is actually cool again this season.

293 7 replies
@ReelRejects 2025-11-26

Stranger Things *5x3* Reaction https://youtu.be/6bHl8s4G2Ok - Gift Someone (Or Yourself) A *Stranger Things RR Tee!* https://shorturl.at/hekk2 - Use Your Telekinetic Powers to Smack That *LIKE & SUBSCRIBE* Button! 👉 https://www.youtube.com/user/TheReelRejects?sub_confirmation=1 - Full Reaction *Watch Along & MORE* For *Royal* Rejects: https://www.patreon.com/thereelrejects - Greg & John's STRANGER THINGS 4 Reactions: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-bIhJVeYWw9brpvPJALicH-6Hu7qd29R

63 5 replies

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