The release of the fifth season of Stranger Things he is not going through the simplest moment in his history. After years of almost unanimous approval from the public, the serie Netflix it is in fact recording a significant drop in viewer ratings, a fact that clearly emerges when observing the trend of online ratings. A general cooling of enthusiasm which, however, focuses particularly clearly on a single episode, which has become the main target of a wave of organized criticism and what is commonly defined review bombing.
Season 5 Volume 2, released on December 25, helped its audience score on Rotten Tomatoes drop dramatically to 56%, a far cry from previous seasons. For comparison, the fourth season stood at 89%, the third at 86%, the second at 90% and the first even at 96%. A collapse that signals a clear fracture between a part of the fandom and the most recent narrative choices of the series created by Duffer brothers.
Within this scenario, one episode in particular stood out for the negative reaction it received. This is the penultimate chapter of the season, entitled The Bridgewhich attracted an unusually high number of ratings on IMDb. The episode scored 5.4 out of 10, becoming the least liked of the entire series. It’s the only one to fall below 7.8, while most other Stranger Things episodes traditionally fall between 8.6 and 9.2. The number of reviews is also striking: over 96,000 users voted for The Bridge, compared to less than 50,000 ratings collected by the other episodes of the same season.
The fuse seems to have lit around a central scene of the episode, in which Will Byersplayed by Noah Schnappfa coming out come gay in front of his friends. A long monologue that comes as Hawkins’ group prepares to face Vecnathe main antagonist from the Upside down. The scene generated polarized reactions, sparking a campaign of criticism that quickly took shape online.
The debate went beyond the boundaries of the series, also reaching social networks. Elon Musk commented on the story by stating that “the culture is changing,” responding to a post that fans were “criticizing a character for coming out as gayIn another post he wrote: “It is completely useless and imposed to an audience that just wants to enjoy some basic science fiction”.
At the same time, many viewers have stated that they have no problems with Will’s sexuality, something that the series had suggested since the first season. The criticisms, according to this part of the public, would rather concern one writing judged to be ineffectiveexposition considered clunky, and a narrative pace perceived as too slow. A discontent that fits into a broader context, already known to other major franchises, in which the so-called toxic fandom uses rating platforms as a tool of protest.
Not everyone, however, shares this negative reading. The television criticism of Variety Alison Herman noted that the series chose not to “flesh out your characters as they grow older” and that “remains primarily a pastiche, so indebted to inherited archetypes and cultural references that its main impact derives from extratextual elements” Daniel D’Addario’s comment is of a different nature, according to which Will’s speech “strikes an emotional chord” and represents “something seismic — and, strangely enough, it is the culmination of a very long journey” for a central character in such a popular series.
Noah Schnapp, speaking about the episode, said he was “in tears” at the first reading of the scene and recalled the support he received from the cast during filming, which lasted almost 24 hours. A key moment for the character and for the series, which continues to divide audiences even as it approaches its definitive ending, expected on December 31st.
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Fonte: Variety
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