Ranking 'Stranger Things' Characters as the Series Makes Its Final Crawl

by Aprille Hanson-Spivey

Photo: Netflix

As “Stranger Things” takes its final crawl after a nine-year, five-season run, I’ve ranked the show’s top 10 characters: 
​
10. Robin 
Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke) made her debut in Season 3 as Steve Harrington’s coworker at Scoops Ahoy in Starcourt Mall. Initially, Robin had a cool persona, but her character evolved — likely due to the trauma of fighting off monsters — into a quirky bestie who fit right into the group. She might be the comic relief this season, but she’s also the heart. Her story of accepting herself was a big reason why Will was starting to feel safe enough to reveal that he is gay. I’m reserving my judgment until the finale of whether Will actually came out to everyone, or if that was Vecna incognito. But regardless, Robin’s friendship with Will was crucial this season. 

9. Will 
Will “Badass” Byers (Noah Schnapp), as I now refer to him after he became a freaking sorcerer, has undoubtedly changed from a timid kid to a whiny teenager to a courageous, determined one. His feat of strength in the final season’s “Chapter Four: Sorcerer” was one of the best moments of the entire series. He’s always been a key piece of this story and will no doubt be a significant part of the finale. 

8. Joyce 
I went back and watched the first episode of “Stranger Things,” and seeing all of these characters before their lives got uprooted was a bit like opening a time capsule. I felt nostalgic for them. Joyce (Winona Ryder) was just a single mom trying to do her best. This season, she’s learning to trust her son’s abilities, despite every instinct that’s telling her to run away and keep him safe. She knows Vecna has to be destroyed, and watching the character balance her own fears with what she knows has to be done is captivating. 

7. Nancy 
I’ve always had a soft spot for the brilliant student-later-turned-journalist, Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer). She’s grown from a naive teenager into a tough woman who is fully prepared to take out Vecna on her own if she has to. Even though she’s somewhat caught up in a love triangle, I think she’ll wind up on her own — in life or death. 

6. Vecna/Henry Creel/Mr. Whatsit 
Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) might be one of the greatest TV villains of all time because of his multifaceted personality. His backstory as the young Henry Creel (Maksim Blatt/Raphael Luce) is tragic, and you absolutely can sympathize with a child who was victimized into an experiment. At the same time, he’s made some serious evil choices as the monster Vecna. And then you have the creepy Mr. Whatsit, who is kidnapping children. It’s a fascinating character who might just get freed from his prison of darkness in the end, one way or another. 

5. Max 
I can see where it’d be hard for a character to enter the friend group of Eleven, Mike, Dustin and Lucas and fit in so effortlessly. While fans were still getting to know this group, Max entered the scene in season two. As cool as Eleven is because of her unique powers, Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) is honestly cooler. At this point, I care more about the love story between her and Lucas than even Eleven and Mike (in the end, I do want them together, though). Aside from Eleven and possibly Nancy, there aren’t many characters out of this bunch who could have wandered around in Vecna’s mind that long and still kept it together so well. Holly needed her, Lucas needed her, and she did her absolute best for them while saving herself. 

4. Steve 
Oh, Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) — you beautiful young man. Vecna better not mess with Steve, or fans will weep. It’s been a running joke on social media to the tune of “Mr. Sandman,” singing, “Mr. Vecna, please don’t kill Steve,” but we all mean it. Don’t kill him, please. It’s a true testament to this character’s evolution that he’s the one fans are most worried about, especially when you go back to episode one, where all he wants is to get in Nancy’s pants. I’m so glad the Duffer Brothers saw the potential of this character because he went from a stereotypical ’80s popular jerk to the mother hen of the characters. His relationship with Dustin is one of the best on the show. He was marked for death in season one, until the Duffer Brothers realized they wanted him to stick around. Hopefully, they continue to show him that mercy. 

3. Dustin 
Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) is the most interesting out of the original friend group. He’s nerdy, super smart and known by fans as the “glue” for all of them. From being the bridge between Mike and Lucas when Eleven showed up, to raising a Demogorgon to his grief over Eddie’s death, you can’t help but root for him. From the beginning, he’s been one of my favorite characters. I’ve long believed that if they do kill Steve in the finale, it’ll be because he is saving Dustin. “You die, I die,” as those two said, but let’s have neither of you die, OK? Please and thanks. 

2. Hopper 
Seems like eons ago that the character wasn’t just simply “Hopper,” but Hawkins Chief of Police Jim Hopper, Jr. (David Harbour), a Vietnam veteran, divorced and an alcoholic, grieving the loss of his only daughter, Sara, to cancer. Fast forward to season five and he’s father to Eleven, boyfriend to Joyce, a former Russian POW and the leader trying to keep all these young people from going completely off the rails into danger. Despite her resistance, he’ll continue to be Eleven’s protector and the north star of the show. 

1. Eleven 
“Stranger Things” may have originated with the disappearance of Will Byers, but Eleven/Jane (Millie Bobby Brown) has always been at the center of what makes this show unique. She is the protagonist to Vecna’s antagonist, showing what love and kindness can create despite the horrors they both experienced. Her relationship with Mike was precious as children, adorable when they were teens and now, I’m so curious to see what happens to them as they make this final push to finally end the suffering. Will El get her happy ending — with Mike, Hopper, the chance to live a normal life without the military hunting her? Eleven is the soul of “Stranger Things,” and while I care about all of these characters — please, again, not Steve! — what happens to Eleven will matter the most in the finale.