This year, the 2025 winter break was everything CDM students had hoped for and more. With many fun memories and various vacation locations to cherish for years to come, winter break was a variety of adventures and holiday moments for all of CDM. Though this year, one thing stood out: the film releases were incredibly notable. Avatar: Fire and Ash – which was released in theaters on December 19th – kicked off our winter break with a bang as this continuation of the hit movie series was just as wonderful and action-packed as its predecessors. In the early holiday season, Zootopia 2 was released, which was also a huge success, and fans of the animated original were satisfied and excited that the newest addition stayed true to the original values of the story. But most importantly, this holiday season was wrapped up with fans across the globe logging in to Netflix, then proceeding to crash Netflix to watch one of the most critically acclaimed series in history. On November 26th, volume 1 was released, on December 25th, volume 2 once again crashed Netflix, and on December 31st, the finale was dropped, creating a division as part of the fanbase adored the ending, and part despised it. This show is—you guessed it—Stranger Things. Before jumping in, here’s a preface message: this article will contain no spoilers; however, it is important to mention that both sides of the fan finale opinion will be analyzed and explained. It is recommended to watch this show before reading! Okay, now let’s get into it.
December 31st, the finale was released, and a good number of fans hopped on to watch it on their small screens at home. A huge portion of the world waited one night because the next day, all day long, the finale would be playing in theaters for one day only. During the theatre watching process, there were cheers, jokes, and tears as fans came together to support and dive into this dearly beloved series for one last adventure. However, not a day later, speculation on social media exploded as many were dissatisfied with the series ending. A new theory emerged with a question: was the show really over? As thousands started to flock to participate virtually with this theory, it was granted a name that was soon to be the talk of American teens and young adults all over the country. It was granted the name “Conformity Gate Theory”, which is a theory based upon strong evidence, leading some to believe that the end is, in fact, false and reality is not what the characters and the audience believe it to be at the end of the show. This soon became known to adults and people not as familiar with the show, and it was huge. Half the fandom believed, half of it didn’t. Pure chaos due to the lack of chaos in the finale of a show that is built upon the literal basis of chaos. Which led the world once again to the pressing question: was it really over?
Whitney Wyson ‘28 comments, “My heart was pounding like the entire time I was watching the finale. I saw it in theaters, and it was truly just incredible on the big screen. I myself didn’t believe in all this conformity gate baloney; there was no question in my mind that there was no secret episode, and it was just some upset fans stirring up the pot. Also, it is quite controversial among the fandom, but I personally loved the ending and thought it did the characters and Stranger Things itself so much justice.” While the negative opinions and comments seem to shine through the most, criticizing the show, Wyson is one of thousands and thousands of fans who think that the Stranger Things season 5 finale was a satisfying ending to the show. The one thing, however, that almost all fans can agree on is the numerous plot holes. This is fairly common among incredibly popular shows where tons of pressure is put on the cast and crew to finish it off as momentous as they can. Then, on the other side of the fandom, some did believe in a secret episode coming out.
Tomas Villaveces ‘27 says, “The conformity gate is real. I’m convinced. Just search it up on any social media, there’s too much evidence for one clip.” Villaveces has much support in similar beliefs that just because there is, in fact, no 9th episode, believing in a fake reality caused by the bad guy, Vecna, played by Jamie Campbell Bower, can still live on in fans’ hearts.
While covering the entire span of evidence revolving around the Conformity Gate Theory is quite impossible, here are some of the main pieces of evidence: 1. There were semi-main/supporting characters missing from the final half hour of the show, which was odd and confusing to viewers. It felt out of place. 2. There was a lack of intense action throughout the majority of the finale and even throughout previous volumes, which seemed (again) quite odd. 3. When fans went on to Netflix and searched up “9th episode” or “fake ending,” Stranger Things would pop up without even promoting the show title, which left the internet speculating for days on end. 4. In a certain scene, all of the characters’ body language is positioned in the same way that the villain used to clasp his hands and position himself; this stood out quite firmly to the fans. And 5. Stranger Things has a history of unhappy endings, so a semi-happy/choose your own happy-ever-after-ending adventure was definitely a turn for the worse. Or for the better? You never can tell when it comes to this show.
Overall, many people found the show to be wonderful and the finale to seal things off in a satisfying way. And for those who weren’t completely satisfied with the ending, found their fun in the viral entity of the Stranger Things Conformity Gate Theory. So what is real? Well, as Lucas (a main character in the show) once said, “I don’t believe in coincidence,s” which leaves many doors wide open for fans to interpret this as they may. But all you have to do is believe. And for ten whole years, Stranger Things has served its purpose in giving thousands of people around the world, characters and humanity to believe in. Watch it now on Netflix.
