Since the announcement thatStranger Thingshas been renewed for a fifth and final season, there have been regular news updates and audience speculation about which actors will return to face off against Vecna and the creatures of the Upside Down for the show’s final outing. It has recently been announced that anoriginal cast member of the show will not be making an appearance in the upcoming season.Catherine Curtin, who played the role of Dustin’s mom, Claudia Henderson, throughout the course of the past three seasons,will not be returning for the show’s fifth season.
Although she has only been a minor character up until this point,the absence of his mom could be detrimental for Dustin in this season.Dustin is going through a lot in the show: he is growing up, he has his first girlfriend, and more importantly, he has just witnessed the death of one of his best friends, Eddie Muson. Dustin will obviously need some kind of strong support network this season, and with hisfriends all fighting against Vecna and the monsters, it’s possible that his emotions could be sidelined, and he might not have anyone to talk to.
Mrs. Henderson’s Stranger Things Season 5 Absence Makes Dustin’s Story Even Sadder
The Character’s Absence Must Be Addressed In The Season
Following the traumatic events of the fourth season,Dustin is going to need someone to lean on for support, and it seems like that isn’t going to be his mom.Although Claudia doesn’t know anything about the Upside Down, Vecna, or the supernatural side of Dustin’s life, she does have a close bond with her son, so the fact that Dustin won’t be able to open up to Claudia for comfort andsupport surrounding Eddie’s deathjust makes his story even sadder as she is the only real family that he has.
Hopefully, for Dustin’s sake, his mom will be alive and well throughout the season, as the young character has already been through enough.
As the fifth season will be the final, all loose ends must be tied up and all questions must be answered, questions like, “Where is Mrs. Henderson?” Hopefully it is mentioned in passing thatshe is fine and just relaxing at home, unaware of the supernatural events in Hawkins.
However, audiences must prepare themselves for possible alternative explanations such as the character being killed off-screen, or something else happening to her. Hopefully, for Dustin’s sake, his mom will be alive and well throughout the season, as the young character has already been through enough.
Dustin’s Grief Over Eddie Could Make Him A Vecna Target In Season 5
Dustin Could Let His Grief Get In The Way Of Fighting Vecna
In the fourth season ofStranger Things,Vecna was brutal and had no mercy when it came to his victims. One of the main ways he would torment Max was by using her stepbrother Billy, by playing with her guilt and grief over his death. This made her weaker in these situations and led to her close encounter with death at the end of season four.
Next season,Vecna could do something similar with Dustin, using his guilt and grief over Eddie’s death to his advantageso he can make Dustin weak and an easy target to dispose of. Audiences will remember from the fourth season that all the people targeted by Vecna were those who had been seeing the counselor at Hawkins' High School.
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If the showrunners continue this pattern into the fourth series, it could be possible that Dustin is struggling to cope with Eddie’s death so much that he could end up seeking out professional help. If he ends up speaking to the school counselor about Eddie’s death and the impact it is having on him, it could make himan easy target for Vecnain the show’s fifth season.
Stranger Things Must Give Dustin A Strong Support System Given His Mother’s Absence
Season Five Could Pick Up On Dustin’s Close Bond With Steve
As his mom isn’t going to be appearing in the fifth season,Dustin needs to have a strong support network around him. In the first season, Dustin was very close to Lucas. However, as Lucas has begun to fade out of the group, Dustin might not feel close enough to open up to him.
Similarly, there’s a large distance separating him and his girlfriend, Suzie, so this distance could get in the way of him opening up to her. If this is the case, thenthe only person left that Dustin is close enough to open up to is Steve.Steve and Dustin have had a close, unlikely bond since the second season ofStranger Things.
Eddie’s death could be the thing that brings Steve and Dustin back together to team up one final time.
They are arguably the best duo on the show, with the way that Dustin looks up to Steve, asks him for advice, and the way they always bicker, they’re the perfect double act. Last season, their friendship was put on the back burner for the majority of the season.Dustin knows that he can talk to Steve about anything, so perhaps Eddie’s death could be the thing that brings Steve and Dustin back together to team up one final time in the fifth season.
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