JuicyTalk
Netflix’s Stranger Things may be over, but a secret spinoff is making the finale even more controversial. With Stranger Things: The First Shadow now confirmed to be recorded for Netflix, the prequel play’s canon storyline will be in the spotlight, raising new questions about Henry Creel’s past.
Set in 1959 Hawkins, the stage production explores Henry’s teenage years, his early connection to Dr. Brenner, and even his attempt at romance. These storylines are all key to understanding Henry/Vecna’s identity, but they’re only briefly referenced in the Stranger Things season finale. By ignoring major revelations from the play, the ending leaves gaps and contradictions that become harder to overlook now that the prequel is heading to Netflix.
The Stranger Things Prequel Play Dives Deeper Into Henry Creel’s Backstory
Stranger Things: The First Shadow has many surprising revelations about the early days of Hawkins. The story follows the life of young Henry Creel, beginning with the Creel family arriving in their new Hawkins home, just like in season 4 of the Netflix series. It’s right after Henry injured the boy in Nevada, so his powers are still new and unexplored.
Henry starts school at Hawkins High with younger versions of Joyce and Hopper, as well as the parents of Lucas, Dustin, and Mike. A young Bob Newby, the beloved character played by Sean Astin in season 2, is also there, along with his adopted sister, Patty, who’s a new character introduced to the Stranger Things franchise.
She’s the only one in Hawkins who isn’t scared of Henry, and the two fall in love. It shows an emotionally human side of Henry that we don’t see on screen. They go through all the typical awkwardness that comes with a first-time high school relationship, but their relationship is anything but normal.
Henry doesn’t know how to control his powers, so people get hurt along the way. In a desperate attempt to save both her son and her family, his mom reaches out to a local doctor willing to help: Dr. Brenner. The play explores how their complicated relationship formed, how Henry arrives at Hawkins Laboratory, and everything that leads up to the Creel family massacre.
Stranger Things: The First Shadow Was Never Acknowledged In The Finale
There are some mentions of the Broadway prequel throughout Stranger Things season 5, but its story is never directly acknowledged or fully explained in the final episode of the Netflix series. The most notable reference is when Max Mayfield travels through Henry’s memories in Volume 1.
The memory leads Max to Henry’s time at Hawkins High, where we see a young Joyce handing out flyers during a passing period for the school play she was directing. The cast of the play is listed at the bottom and includes James Hopper Jr., Karen Childress (Karen Wheeler), Patty Newby, Alan Munson, Ted Wheeler, and Henry Creel.
This adds an entirely new layer to the central storyline, but it’s never elaborated on. In the finale, Max, Eleven, and Kali enter Henry’s memories of the school production, and the scene is identical to the Broadway prequel, but that’s it. The show never mentions Patty Newby or acknowledges that she was an integral part of Henry’s story.
The flyer also reveals that Joyce’s play was on November 6, the same date Henry took Will in 1983 and planned his final attack in season 5. Something pretty significant happens the night of the production in 1959 that would easily explain why this date becomes so significant in the series, but it’s completely omitted.
Granted, the finale does show how Henry first gets his powers, which is thoroughly explained in the Broadway play. We see Henry’s interaction with the man in the cave, but the series never reveals who he was or what was in the briefcase. We also never really learn if it’s either Henry or the Mind Flayer who is in charge of the Upside Down. These are things you would only know the answer to if you saw Stranger Things: The First Shadow.
The Stranger Things Storylines Contradict Each Other
The biggest issue created by Stranger Things: The First Shadow is how it fundamentally changes the relationship between Henry and the adult characters in the Netflix series. The play centers on Henry’s interactions with Joyce, Hopper, and Bob, and they aren’t just casual acquaintances. They genuinely get to know him, and they also become familiar with Patty.
The prequel makes it clear that Patty is deeply involved in Henry’s life and shapes his fate. That means Joyce, Hopper, and Bob would have known Henry’s weakness and motivations, and they could have used them to take him down sooner. Their exhausting search for answers feels unnecessary when the prequel establishes their history together.
The First Shadow is officially canon to Stranger Things, which makes these plot holes even more controversial. The Duffer Brothers said they avoided addressing these connections in the finale because they felt it would be too confusing, but ignoring them only created a bigger problem. If incorporating the play’s events was too complicated, why include these connections at all?
- Release Date
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2016 – 2025-00-00
- Network
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Netflix
- Showrunner
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Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer
- Directors
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Matt Duffer, Ross Duffer, Andrew Stanton, Frank Darabont, Nimród Antal, Uta Briesewitz
- Writers
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Kate Trefry, Jessie Nickson-Lopez, Jessica Mecklenburg, Alison Tatlock
