Hello, fellow unicorns — we’re back to binge-watching! And now, it’s time to head back to Hawkins one last time. If you’re like me and were waiting for Christmas and New Year for the episodes to drop, get your Eggo’s ready for this review. If you’re new to the Unicorn Scale or would just like to get a refresher on our metric, you can do so here, or check out our Media entry on the series here.
SPOILER WARNING for all of Stranger Things Season 5.
Netflix’s sci-fi juggernaut finished its five-season run with apocalyptic stakes, emotional reunions, and a showdown with Vecna that literally almost tears Hawkins apart. Season 5 leans hard into end-of-the-world dread, family bonds, and long-awaited character resolutions (albeit some more disappointing than others). It’s big, chaotic, and determined to give nearly everyone a moment in the spotlight before the curtain falls.
But we’re not here to just talk about monster battles or 80s needle drops — we’re here for the bisexuals. Specifically, Vickie Dunne, played by fellow bi actress Amybeth McNulty, her character was introduced in Season 4 and returns in this final season as Robin Buckley’s girlfriend. Vickie is revealed as bi by virtue of having had a boyfriend in Season 4 before entering a relationship with Robin, and Season 5 is the first time the show presents her in an established queer relationship, although we are not shown when they started going out due to the show starting in an 18-month time jump after the events of the previous season.
So the question in my mind this time around is: Does Season 5 really engage with Vickie’s bisexuality or not? Unfortunately, my fellow unicorns, it ended up looking like the latter (Boo!).
What I Liked:
Let’s start with the good news: Vickie and Robin are canon, and we FINALLY get some bi representation after 4 seasons of straight-up nothing. In a show that began with zero confirmed queer characters, that alone marks progress — especially with Robin and Will also being LGBT!
Although during Robin’s intro monologue in the first episode of the season, we hear her say that she has a date with a special someone and, “They know who they are”. Their relationship is first clearly shown in Episode 3, “The Turnbow Trap,” when Robin and Vickie share a quick kiss in a hospital room, and Will happens to see them through the door. Of course, since this is the 80s and they’re in the middle of Indiana, they’re still in the closet and not out to anyone as a couple, so we do understand why Robin panics when she sees Will running away after he saw them kiss.
I also appreciated that their relationship continues to exist amid the main plot rather than in a separate “very special episode” bubble, or just a one-off thing that is implied but not really shown on-screen. Vickie helps with supply runs, appears in group scenes, and is present during moments of collective planning and fear. She’s integrated into the ensemble’s survival efforts, which prevents her from feeling like a token cameo girlfriend. The show visually confirms that queer relationships exist in the same emotional and physical spaces as everyone else’s.
Another positive is that the series doesn’t retcon or ignore Vickie’s earlier boyfriend from Season 4. Her shift from a relationship with a boy to one with Robin remains part of her established history, which affirms her bi-ness without requiring a coming-out speech. Although not gonna lie, it would have been great to see Robin and Vickie at least come out to the rest of the party, or at least some close friends aside from Steve. Didn’t anyone else think it was weird that Robin was just bringing her close friend Vickie to all the upside-down danger?!
There’s also something to be said for tone. Season 5 is heavy with death, destruction, and low-key heavy trauma. The fact that Vickie and Robin’s relationship is allowed to exist as a small pocket of warmth gives bi intimacy a place in the emotional landscape of the final season. It isn’t sensationalized, and it isn’t punished. In a show that regularly kills beloved characters, letting a queer couple simply be is a small, quiet win.
Now, let’s move on to the rest, ‘cus boy, there were some issues.
What I Didn’t Like:
One of my biggest issues this season is that Vickie didn’t get the chance to evolve or have her bisexuality explored, not even a tiny scene! We got Murray making jokes so often, and he’s barely a part of the party! In fact, Vickie’s sexuality is not addressed in any dialogue at all. We never hear from her about past relationships, mixed feelings, how she understands her own sexuality, or her thoughts on being in a same-sex relationship in the 1980s — especially in a rural, conservative town. Even a small scene could have helped develop context, added depth, or given her character some meaningful development. Instead, we get Vickie written off, and she doesn’t even appear in the final episode. Where did she go? Did she break things off with Robin? What happened to her? Duffer Brothers, we need answers!
Vickie came in hot and got sidelined HARD in part two of season 5. Her subplot with Robin gets erased almost completely in the last two episodes. Which I get, we had Vecna, the Mindflayer, and the whole team battling it out. But if we got like ten minutes of Will coming out to almost basically everyone in Hawkins, why couldn’t we get more of Robin and Vickie?
Even in moments where the show could have leaned into her more, it definitely pulls back. We get scenes of Robin worried about Vickie, but no one aside from Steve and Will knows why she is there, let alone what she means to Robin. She ends up functioning more as a gateway for Robin’s character growth than a fully-fledged bi character in her own right.
While I do appreciate that their relationship exists, it’s not given any closure. And in a finale that gave everyone (even Derek!) a few minutes of screentime, Vickie’s absence is definitely noticed. Most importantly, the word “bi” or “bisexuality” is never used. Not once. Of course, this is not always necessary, but it definitely limits the depth of the representation in the series.
The Rating:
Overall, Stranger Things Season 5 gets one out of four unicorns.
Although Vickie’s bisexuality is canon, her identity is not really acknowledged, lacks exploration, and is confined to the margins of the main story. It’s great groundwork, but severely lacking for a final season. Unfortunately, this leaves so much to be desired. And with this being the final season ever, we can’t help but mourn a little for Vickie — the great potential she had and the kick-ass bi character she could have become.