The further we go into the cryptic rabbit hole that is Stranger Things season 5, the closer we get to the terrors that lie in the Upside Down. While episode 1 took things a bit slow and easy at the beginning, episode 2 proved that this TV series isn't afraid to pull any punches at any given time. While we knew something tragic was on the horizon, it was impossible to grasp how quickly it would all go sideways for Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Will, Eleven, and the rest of the Hawkins squad.
Episode 1 culminated with Steve Harrington and Jonathan Byers losing track of Hopper's location after he was ambushed in the Upside Down by a Demogorgon. Furthermore, Will was able to see through the eyes of the same nightmarish creature and discover that it was heading towards the Wheelers' house. Remember how Nancy Wheeler had a terrifying vision in Stranger Things season 4, where her whole family was attacked? Well, it finally happened.
The attack on the Wheelers' house
Mike and Lucas rode their bikes as fast as they could, while Eleven and Nancy sped through the highways in a car. They were all in a race against time to get to the Wheelers' house before the Demogorgon could make its next move.
See, the previous episode made something very clear: Holly Wheeler has an instrumental role to play in Vecna's plan, and it could potentially be the same role Will has been playing this whole time. After all, Vecna said to Will that they would do "beautiful things together", hinting that the relentless villain kidnaps specific people with one particular purpose. As such, the Demogorgon had one sole goal: to bring Holly into the Upside Down (a plan that would unfold 3 days before the anniversary of Will's first disappearance, which seems like too big a coincidence).
Despite Nancy and Eleven's effort to arrive at the Wheeler house as fast as they could, they were already too late. Nancy entered her own home just to see a lot of blood spilled all around the floor and her mom, Karen, lying on the ground, barely breathing. Tom Wheeler, Nancy's father, was also badly injured by the Demogorgon. But the worst part? Holly was nowhere to be seen. Fortunately, there was one saving grace.
Nancy noticed a portal to the Upside Down on the house's front door, through which her little sister was taken. Without a second thought, Eleven went through it and eventually met Hopper (who was stranded there after the events of the first episode). Meanwhile, paramedics arrived at the scene and took Karen and Tom Wheeler to the hospital. Nancy, Mike, and Lucas all followed their trail until they couldn't do anything but wait in the hospital's waiting room.
Mike eventually spots a book in one of the hospital's rooms: A Wrinkle in Time. His little sister, Holly, not only used to read this book a lot, but she also named a new 'friend' Mr. Whatsit, based on one of the book's characters. See, nobody but Holly could see this mysterious new guest, which she swore was real and wanted to protect her from the monsters roaming around Hawkins. A twisted thought then comes to Mike's head: What if Mr. Whatsit is actually real instead of an imaginary friend, as everyone assumed?
Mr. Whatsit's identity revealed
If it isn't the million-dollar question: Who is Mr. Whatsit? Nancy and Mike discussed the idea that perhaps this 'guardian' figure could actually help track Holly's whereabouts. The only person who could have had more answers was Holly's mom, Karen, who spoke with her daughter's teacher about the whole "imaginary friend" incident. Unfortunately, the hospital wasn't allowing Karen to receive any visits, which is why Mike and Nancy had to disguise themselves as a patient and a nurse and infiltrate their mother's room.
While Karen was unable to talk due to the Demogorgon's vicious attack, she was able to communicate with her son and daughter via writing. When Mike asks about who Mr. Whatsit really is, a terrifying truth comes to light. See, Holly described her new friend as someone kind, tall, who wears a vest and has a pocket watch. The worst part? His true name is Henry.
To do a bit of a recap, Henry Creel was among the first people in the Stranger Things universe to possess psychic powers like telekinesis and telepathy. The original MKUltra experiments had the sole purpose of replicating Henry's abilities, and from there, Eleven was turned into a superhero. Unfortunately, Henry wanted to rule over humankind, which is why El sent him to the Upside Down, turning him into the merciless villain Vecna in the process.
Mr. Whatsit is Vecna's human form, visible only to certain people, such as Holly. Worse yet is the fact that he took Holly to the Creel House (which was a prominent location in season 4), except it appeared to be perfectly restored, looking even better than it did when it was bought in the late 1950s. So, the biggest question in store is: Where is this taking place exactly?
Given that the Demogorgon took Holly to the Upside Down (which is where Vecna resides), then chances are this version of the Creel House is the one found in the nightmarish dimension, except it was given a little makeover to lure kids. This would also explain the big barrier that Eleven and Hopper saw in the Upside Down. What if everything inside the walls looks like a restored copy of our world, instead of the usual decayed structures found in Dimension X? While "The Vanishing of …" didn't give us any concrete answers as to this mystery, it won't be long before the truth comes to light.
Will discovers the true extent of his connection to the Upside Down
Throughout four seasons of Stranger Things, audiences have seen how Will's connection to the Upside Down has some serious side effects on him. However, sometimes this connection disappears or reappears at the most convenient times, so how exactly does it work? Back at the WSQK Watts radio station, Robin theorizes that Will works like a radio antenna. The closer he is to the "transmitter" (who would be Vecna, in this case), the stronger his visions get. However, when he's far away from Vecna, he's completely free from the monster's influence.
When the Byers family moved to California, Will was able to live a "normal" life free of any scary visions because he wasn't in Vecna's proximity radius. Now, it's important to remember that ever since Will was kidnapped in the first season of Stranger Things, he has been a part of the Upside Down hivemind, which is controlled by the Mind Flayer. That's why Will was able to see the Demogorgon's attack on Hopper from the monster's point of view. Furthermore, this also explained Will's strange vision back in the previous episode.
When Vecna locates his victims, he's able to briefly see through their eyes. Since Vecna was looking for Holly, Will briefly tapped into this vision and was able to see what Holly was seeing on the playground while on the merry-go-round. Vecna has been using Will to spy on the Stranger Things squad, but it can also go the other way around. Now, it's just a matter of discovering how this power will be used to defeat the big bad of the show.
The first four episodes of Stranger Things season 5 are now available for streaming.